Track and lose

February is all about taking those good habits that we set in place in January, and locking them solidly in place so that we can keep the course all through the year and for the years to come.

I think that to do that, some of us have to take a different point of view on those new habits. Instead of of looking at them as limitations that we impose on ourselves to achieve our goals, why don't we look at them as enhancements we are bringing to our every day life?

• I'm not limiting junk food, I'm enjoying more healthy foods.
• I'm not forcing myself to work out, I'm doing something fun while making myself fitter, stronger, happier
• I'm not forcing myself to not snack in the evening, I'm just finding healthier ways to wind down. 

It's a slight change that does take some practice, but in the long run it makes this new lifestyle more natural, more enjoyable and less like a series of punishment. Which brings me to this week's topic:

Recently Jennifer Hudson was asked "How do you stay motivated to track everyday?" She answered "Really?!? I get to look like this- and all I have to do is to track?"

I had never thought of it quite that way, had you? We keep talking about how important it is to track, how it keeps us on track, but still we act like it's a chore, something painful that we have to do if we want results.

What if we starting thinking about it differently? What if tracking was a gift we're giving ourselves? What if we could make it work, make it effortless, make it fun? Lets see if we can find ways to do that together!

Member Corner

Well, since I wasn't around last week, I have no idea what happened!

I just wanted to pipe in this section anyway and remind you that if you want me to post something on here, I will gladly do that. This is to be YOUR section of my blog. If you are looking for a walking partner, a recipe, an obscure cookbook or exercise tape, send me and email and I'll be happy to post it on here. :o)

It's a Lifestyle

As I have been down with the flu for over a week, not much as been going on other than a lot of online time, couch time, and whining. HA!

I did manage to win a giveaway online which brought me to a realization about what direction I want my lifestyle to take. You are never really done building up your life and deciding which direction it is to take at any given moment. Here's my thought process about this whole Vegan/not vegan thing.

I did try a new food! Mung beans!I made a soup and it was absolutely delicious! Look it up here : Whole Mung Beans Soup.

After the Farmers Market Sunday before last, I swung by Jai Ho a little Indian grocery store (awesome by the way) for spices, and grabbed those little green beans/lentils thinking I should give them a try. I did and I LOVE THEM! Give them a try!

Setting down the foundations of success

The warm up is done, we have identified the steps we need to take, and learned how to take them. Now it's time to fine tune them and find our second wind. We're in this for the long haul, and we're in this together! We will not let the momentum slow down, we can make this work because we Believe!

I'll be back in the meeting room this week, I can't wait to see how you are all doing. In the meantime, never be afraid of emailing me. I'm there for you!

Your leader,

Melanie Bourgeois

Change from the Outside in

Change is a funny thing. You'd think that it's a very simple process, that you make the decision to change and that's all there is to it. If only... Changing one's life is a process, it is complex it happens in stages. To try and do everything at once is putting a lot of pressure on ourselves, often it's setting ourselves up for failure.

A few years ago, Weight Watchers had a poster that was called the Levels of Change and it looked pretty much like this:

When it comes to changing our habits for successful long-lasting weight loss, it's easier to proceed by stage. We are changing from the Outside In. First we control what's around us. Distancing ourselves from temptation and surrounding ourselves with "safe foods". As we get better at this, little by little we move toward the center of the circle until our very identity has evolved into "I am a healthy, active, thin person."

It's only January though, a lot of us are just getting started, or restarted. Why don't we start by the beginning? Or is it begin by the start? This week lets deal with that outside circle, the environment. How can we manage our environment for a successful, enjoyable and durable weight management?

Come to your meeting and see... ;o)

Member's Corner

It's been a crazy and awesome week out in the meeting rooms! When I say that you guys are a bunch of losers, I mean it in the proudest and most loving way!

San Bruno on Tuesday night had 50 people weighing in. 50! I am so happy that I had Adelina and Samina there to take care of everybody! It got a little crazy, but we are inviting an extra receptionist next week to make sure we don't get overwhelmed.

Those 50 people at Bayhill lost 54.8 lbs! 1.1 lb/member!  You guys rock!!

Stonestown was also a little crazy with 54 members. We had already staffed up though, and this week the computers cooperated (thankfully!) so it went pretty smoothly I believe.

Now the weight loss at Stonestown is just crazy. The 54 members who weighed in lost 72 lbs. That's 1.3 lbs/member.

Stonestown wins this week! I am incredibly happy and proud to see everybody lose so much weight! I'm also happy that it seems like the winning meeting switches back and forth. The game is on my friend!!

I repeat myself I know, but again thank you for your patience. Bigger groups make for longer lines, but also for very animated meetings and the merging of more ideas tricks and suggestion than we see in the smaller group.

I have also seen many "already members" extend a helping hand, take the time to explain things and share their wisdom with the people who are walking in our doors for the first time. Thank you, you are reminding me of why I am truly doing this.I don't always have the time to thank you on the spot,  but you are noticed and greatly appreciated!

It's a lifestyle

I've been cooking up a storm lately. I made a delicious fish soup Friday night ( January 6th) that I had to share It was a Tilapia-Kale Soup.

I've also been bragging about my Goulash Hongrois all week! It was delicious, easy, and I got to freeze quite a bit of it for future use.

Finally, I made a Butternut Squash-tomato Soup that was very much made up as I went but turned out to be absolutely delicious!

I cooked many other things, but those were too common place to bother blogging about it.

I haven't posted on my lifestyle blog this week. Just have been doing my thing, one day at a time. Not slowing my efforts, just feeling a little more quiet and introspective this week. Or many I'm just too busy cooking! ;o)

Onward and Downward!

We are putting down the bases on which we will build success all through 2012 and for the years that follows. I'm impressed by the cheer energy and push forward I get every time I step in the meeting room. We are on baby, and we will achieve our goals!

Lets keep the momentum going. In the meeting room, talk to your neighbors, check in and make sure that that person who was sitting next to you last week is there, and reach out. Check in with your friends and make sure they keep coming with you, or that they start coming if they aren't already. What's better than a partner in success? (well I can't say a partner in crime here right?).

I am here if you need me, just drop me an email! Thank you for being there for each others and for me. It is a great feeling to be part of such a wonderful and powerful group of people.

Yay us! See you in the meeting room!

Melanie
Leader

Making Powerful Plans

You've been running all day. It's 5:30pm (or later) and you're running in the house, drop your stuff and look wishfully at the couch when someone pops a head around the corner and ask: "What's for dinner?"

You run everything you know is in the fridge and the pantry in your mind and realize that anything you come up with will be at least an hour of preparation and cooking (not including thawing out the meat!). There is just no way, you're tired, hungry, it's just not happening. "How about we call in pizza?"

We all have that happen every once in a while right? How often does it happen though? Ever look back and realize "Woah! I've  "called in" dinner 3 times this week!" That's a lot of extra calories, and dollars!

Putting dinner on the table doesn't have to take very long, or be very complicated. All it take is a little thinking ahead, a little organization and the right tools*! You can have a home made meal on the table everyday without having to spend hours in the kitchen.

*Tool like a simple meal plan template. I made this one in about 2 minutes:

This week we're talking about how powerful planning can make your meals easier and healthier!

Member's Corner

We could tell the January fever has hit the meeting rooms already! We are seeing more people, and happily a lot of people came back after a little holiday hiatus. Welcome back everybody!

I want to thank everybody for their patience. More people means longer lines, and we are doing everything we can to keep things moving. It's all so exciting though!

San Bruno had 30 people weighing in and we lost 16.2 lbs which is 0.54 lb/member

Stonestown had 48 people weighing in and lost 24.8 lbs which is 0.51 lb/member.

How close is THAT? Last week San Bruno was behind, but they more than made up for it this week. I must add that being the first weigh in of January, with a lot of people coming back after taking a little break, both weight loss are impressive! You rock!!

I lost my award sheet *blush* and do not want to go by memory for fear of forgetting someone. So all of those who passed milestones this week CONGRATULATIONS!

I will email myself the award list from now on so I can't lose it. Being more organized was my resolution for 2012... thankfully I'm doing better working toward my goals than I am with my "Resolution". ;op

Recipe Club

There is a meeting of the Recipe Club this week at the Stonestown Center Wednesday at 7pm (after the 6pm meeting). It's a fun way to get together and talk about cooking, new recipes ideas and tips and tricks to make meal prep more fun and less of a chore!

Here's the Flyer:

All you need is 1 recipe relating to the theme. It doesn't have to be a complicated recipe! Actually, we've turned out to be a very practical-minded group. The simpler the better! We love to cook, but we don't want to live in our kitchen!

Bring your friends, all are welcome!


My Lifestyle

Wednesday I wanted to cook some bulgur, but I had no broth whatsoever. I hate to cook grains in water, it doesn't taste like anything. I didn't have time to go to the store and all that, so I decided to improvise. I must say that it turned out quite well. See what I did here in my No Broth No Problem post on my Recipe Blog.

Thursday I was hungry and couldn't decide what to make for lunch so I decided to improvise! Look it up in my Clean the Fridge post. It's nothing complicated really, more of an example of how you can make things work if you keep it simple!

Friday I was greatly inspired after leaving my first meeting in a while. I stopped by Whole Food Market and got shrimps, Kale and decided to spoil myself a little: Shrimps with Kale.

This week has been on of many lessons for me. After realizing that I was putting much more in the process than in what I was trying to achieve, I started putting things in perspective. A little accidental miche of bread started the whole thing. If I ate the whole thing (minus a slice that I gave my husband), is it lame? Or can it become a victory?  It's all in how you look at it, see my post: Lame or victorious?

Finally, as I mentioned I went to a meeting as a member. It had been a long while, for many reasons I did not feel that I could go to a meeting and feel like a member. It's difficult to put the "Leader aside" and just focus on "me".

I found a leader whom I felt completely at ease with and a ground in which I had made many friends, so I finally showed up thinking "Just go in, if it doesn't turn out well, then... at least you tried." I received a warm welcome from everybody I knew in there. It was like walking home! I walked out of the meeting feeling inspired, motivated and full of ideas! It's like this thing works! See about it here: All in a meeting.

We are just getting started!

I have been a leader for over 8 years now. Lets just say it is not my first January at Weight Watchers. This one is starting with a special energy. We have a good thing going, everybody is ready, motivated and it's contagious! We are settings serious, realistic (if ambitious) goals, and we know deep in our heart that we can totally achieve them. Lets keep the current going!

I will see you in the meeting room this week! Until then email me if you need anything. Have a great week!

Melanie
Leader

Believe!

"My goal for 2012 is to get this weight loss thing back on track and finally make it to goal! No resolution, no promises to be perfect every day of the year, I have set a realistic goal, and I will make it happen!

Sounds good but I'm not sure I actually can make it happen. It's not like it's the first time I try, I'm not sure what I can do for it to work this time. What if I can't have my wine? My chocolate? I don't want to eat carrots and lettuce all year. I'm not sure I can give up all the foods I love, all my social engagements. 

I've done this weight loss thing before, maybe I've been at it already for a while and well... I'm not exactly melting if you get my drift. Why make all those effort to hardly lose anything?"

Does this sound familiar? Do you find yourself sometimes setting a goal, determined to make it happen but not altogether confident about actually achieving it? You are not alone!

This week we will use the knowledge of the PointsPlus 2012 program, along with the lessons of our past weight loss experiences all wrapped up in good old common sense to dispel our fears and realize that YES each and every one of us can achieve our goals.

Hear me loud and clear: You can achieve your goals! The first and most important step is to believe...

Member's Corner

This week  was a tough week for weight loss. It was the week of Christmas, Yule (the solstice), and Hanukkah!  Still we have lost! Those of us who have kept going through the holidays are now ahead of the game for January!

Tuesday at the San Bruno Bayhill center for the 6pm meeting, 17 members weighed in. We managed to lose 4.4 lbs! That's 0.26, or about 1/4 lb per person! Good job!

We had no award, but Nancy, who couldn't make it to the meeting, left me a note to say that she DID add a walk on the weekend like she had promised to do on the 20th! Go Nancy!

Wednesday at the Stonestown Center, also a 6pm meeting, 23 members weighed in and we lost 8.6 lbs! That's about 0.37lbs/member or a little over 1/3 of a lb!

Elissa and Jen both passed the 20 lbs milestone, and they both, along with Ruth, earned their Stay and Succeed award for being there for 16 weeks.

Look at your weight record, and plot your way to your next milestone. What will it be? Another 5 lbs? A percentage? When he made one of his milestone, 5% I think, Rich, a member at Stonestown explained that he felt he had to stick to this, and go the extra mile so that he wouldn't let the team down. That's what we are, a team, and everybody is an important player!

My Healthy Lifestyle

Most of my cooking during the holidays has been quick and uninspired. We spent our energy on relaxing, going outside and watching cartoons. Don't judge us, we are nerds and proud of it!

I did make an experiment in mid-December that turned out quite well! I had this recipe for banana bread that I spent some time fine tuning, and when my friend gave me a bag full of pineapple Guava, I decided to experiment! See the result of my experiment here: Pineapple Guava Bread.

I baked this all by myself! Two of them actually, for real!

This next breakfast recipe is an old one that I just trotted back out this week. In my family, we call it "Mushed-up egg half sandwiches" the name evolved from my bad English and our enjoyment of silly sounding names. It's a simple thing which, I'm sure, we aren't the only one cooking, but it's a favorite of mine, and makes me feel like I'm cheating. See what it's all about here: Mushed-up egg half sandwich.

Mushed up egg half sandwiches!

Other than cooking, I've been walking quite a bit, and thinking. Now that all the partying and celebrating is done and that I had some time to myself, I finally had the time for some much needed sitting back and thinking things through. For over two years my energy has been all over the place, and I have been feeling for a while like I was hanging on my weight loss by a hair. It's time for a makeover!

My first step was to realize that somewhere over the years, my focus had shifted and not for the better. I decided to put the focus back on setting significant goals, and achieving them, rather than focusing on the process itself. It's not about how many times I go to the gym, but rather about why am I wanting to workout? Why do I want to eat right? What am I working for?

See how my whole reasoning went, and how refocusing can really help you prepare for success here:  Not  Resolutions, goals.

You know what though? Goals aren't only helpful if they are worth the effort to you. It's also important to understand why you want to achieve them, and to know that you actually CAN achieve them. It's work, but it's worth it! I sort of worked it out for myself here: Here we are!

Lets get this year started!

It's 2012 my friends! Lets get this year started the right way with a goal, a plan, and a lot of want power!

Remember that there is a meeting of the Recipe Club on January 11th at 7pm at the Stonestown center. The theme for January is Soups, Stews, and Chilis. We are warming up for winter!

Never be afraid to email me, I'm there for you! Starting on January 2nd, I will be back to my usual available self (we're running out of cartoons to watch, HA!). I will see you in the meeting room. Lets get this weight loss thing going and going strong!

All the best,

Melanie

Leader

"If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right."

~Henry Ford

Melanie Weekly 2012!

Hi everybody!

I hope the Holidays are treating you well and that you are getting ready to enter 2012 with a spring in your step. I know I am! There has been a lot of changes to my schedule, and to my life. A lot of you now have a new leader, whom I KNOW is doing a great job because those who were chosen to replace me are just that great!

The Melanie Weekly Blog is coming back!

This blog has been very quiet through the Holiday season, simply because I needed to focus my energy elsewhere and so did you I’m sure! It is not dead though, the Melanie Weekly 2012 will be a little different, but it will be there! Here’s how I want to make it work so that it’s easier for me to put together, and still give you what you really need to have:

The Weekly itself will be simplified. I’m keeping my little “Topic of the week” section, because it’s fun to know what we’ll be talking about before you get there, right? I want to put in a “Member section” where I can report on how my 2 groups are doing, and maybe brag about people’s milestones? Wouldn’t that be cool? I will also have a little “Lifestyle” section where I will link to anything I posted that week on my Lifestyle blog and the attached Recipe blog. Those blogs are more related to my own journey on this healthy lifestyle of ours, and on what I learn and try out for myself. Hopefully that way I can still share and encourage you to try and have fun with this without having to put in extra research to “have something new” for the Weekly. Finally, I plan on keeping you posted on what’s going on at WW in the Bay Area but in a less formal manner than having an “Events” blog, or an “On sale” sections.

Any comment, suggestions and/or ideas on how the Melanie Weekly blog could be better, more useful, or more insightful is greatly appreciated! I want to note that the “Body and mind” blog is going dormant for now. It never quite found its focus, and I am keeping it in reserve for a possible Personal trainer career (if I ever get to it!). I also want to note that all of my blogs, the Weekly included, are put together by me, not by Weight Watchers, and reflect my opinions and ideas and only mine. Furthermore, only the Melanie Weekly blog is written with my Weight Watchers members in mind. The other blogs are a reflection of my personal ideas, and my sometimes twisted opinions and sense of humor. Readers be warned! ;op

2012 is knocking at the door

I want to take a minute to thank you my members and my friends for being there week after week through 2011. This year has been great, this year has been difficult. We have seen success together, set backs, joy, sadness, inspiration and frustrations, and yet here we are, good and ready to get started all over again.  I intend on taking the good, the smiles, the lessons, and the victories of 2011 and use them as fuel for my efforts during 2012. The new year is full of promises, of possibilities and opportunities. Take them, step ahead and grab whatever it is that you want for 2012! We are not making resolutions, we are setting goals, and already we can plan ahead and prepare for the steps that will lead us to those goals. We’re in this together, and as long as we stick together, not much can stop us!

I wish you a wonderful year 2012, full of love, health, success, smiles, lessons and victories. I am proud and honored that you have chosen me as your leader and will be looking for you in the meeting room!

Thank you again and Happy New Year!!!

Melanie
XXX

It's Thanksgiving already!

Hi everybody,

It’s been a while since I last posted on here. To make a long story short, I have a lot going on and needed to back off a little bit. The blog will live on, but I’m in the process of reorganizing and refocusing the whole thing, so I needed some thinking time. I couldn’t pass up Thanksgiving though. So I’ve put together a few things that I’m hoping will be helpful for you this week!

Thanksgiving is first and foremost about giving thanks and I want to thank you my members, and my readers, for your strength, your dedication for this journey we are all on together. I want you to know that over the last 8 years, I have learned and grown as a person, as a Weight Watchers members, and as a leader from your experiences, your insights and you strength of character. You inspire me, motivate me, and remind me on regular basis that you can do anything if you really want to. You have also shown me that there are people out there who are good, caring and strong. Thank you!

Now, the Thanksgiving party! And please, party is the operative word here. Thanksgiving is one day in the year, and it’s all about enjoying yourself and your family. Yes there is a lot of food (my first American Thanksgiving gave me my first real culture shock after moving to the US!), but you don’t want to be so concerned about what you eat that you forget to enjoy yourself! A little thinking ahead can make you feel safe and secure, and take the stress out of the Thanksgiving dinner, well the food stress that is ;op

Thinking ahead

Here’s a few things that came up during the meetings this week that you might want to do ahead of time to be prepared for the big T day:

Add a little bit to your activity routine every day : It’s easier to earn an extra 2 AP+/day than try to earn 6 AP+ the morning of Thanksgiving. Remember you can swap your AP+ for Food P+ on the week that you earned it!

Look up recipes: There are a lot of delicious healthy recipes floating around at this time of the year on the web. With a little research you can “healthy up” old favorites, or find new avenues to explore that can make the Thanksgiving dinner healthier and still memorable. Remember Etools and the message boards!

Shop ahead: The 2-3 days before Thanksgiving, the grocery stores will be overloaded, and under stocked. It’s not too late to avoid most of the craziness. This close to T day, you might want to go shop early in the morning or a little later at night to avoid the crowds. You want to shop for cooking supplies, but also for safe snacks, to munch on while the appetizers are going around.

Make it easier on yourself: A lot of the Thanksgiving fare can be cooked ahead of time, or at least prepped so that on the day of the dinner, you don’t get overwhelmed. It’s also a good idea to delegate and share the workload. After all Thanksgiving is a family affair, so it’s only natural that everybody pitches in. Sometimes all you have to do is ask…

Set your Winning Outcome and then strategize: What is your personal Winning Outcome for the Thanksgiving dinner? You want to track everything and stick to your P+ budget? Is it going to be a Simply Filling day? Are you setting a strict goal? Or are you just trying not to pass out on the couch at the end of the night?

Once you know what you are shooting for, you can put together a plan:

• Find an ally in the crowd,
• Decide ahead of time what you are going to eat and find the P+ values
• Use a smaller plate
• Use a PointsPlus Clicker to click away the P+ value as you eat
• Drink a lot of water to keep you hydrated (and busy).
• Practice saying NO to food pushers in a firm but polite manner
• Hang out away from the table when you can
• Offer to do non food-related duties to help out

There are a lot of things you can do ahead of time to make sure that your Thanksgiving Day is stress free and fun.

The Food

No matter how prepared we are, there is no denying the fact that once faced with a table overloaded with goodies, some of us might struggle with keeping things under control. When it comes to loading the plate, there is 2 main questions you must ask yourself: What am I going to eat? And How much of it am I going to eat.

What to pick: Some Thanksgiving goods are just too good to pass up. There will be things on that table that comes around once a year and that you don’t want to miss. Costco cookies are not one of them! Here’s the process of elimination that came up through this week’s meetings:

• Which foods can I do without? For example, I HATE cranberries, so not having that sauce, and mashed potatoes are just “ok” so that’s not worth the P+.
• Which foods can I have any time? There are foods on there that are year round food really: Mashed potatoes, unless it’s Granny’s special recipe that comes once a year, isn’t worth splurging on to me.
• Which foods are a must? Some of the Thanksgiving fare is just either too good to pass up, or so deeply tied to tradition that passing on them would just not go. Those are the foods you want to go for. Every year I have a slice of real, full fat/sugar/everything pumpkin pie. Not skipping that one because it’s worth every single P+.

How much: Ok, so you’ve decided that the stuffing is totally worth it, the mashed potatoes not so much, Pumpkin pie totally, but Mac n Cheese, meeeh no way! All is good right? Well, only if you don’t overload your plate with your chosen goodies. Portion control can be a challenge when there’s a lot of food, a lot of distractions, and sometimes a lot of pressure from the family. If you can measure out your portions that would be ideal but it’s not always convenient or even possible. Being the extremely visual person that I am, I use visual cues:

Separate your plate and load it in order:

1. Vegetable and fruits, ½ of the plate, comes first
2. Starch/Grains ¼ of the plate comes second
3. Proteins, 1/6 of the plate comes third
4. “Yummies” (sauces, dressings, etc) comes last taking whatever space is left.

Practice Island eating:

The food you put on your plate makes little islands, the food CAN”T TOUCH. This is automatic portion control, unless you’re an engineer, you can’t overload while doing this (and it’s fun!).


Respect the plate:

There are two parts to a plate:

1. The food part
2. The decoration part

There should be no food on the decoration part of the plate. Somebody made the effort to make those plates pretty, enjoy their prettiness. :o)

Emotional eating:

The holidays can be a stressful and sometimes sad time for some of us. Having lost loved ones, or living far away from family members can make us feel cut out from all the festivities. Add all that with the overabundance of temptation, this can spell trouble. Take time to acknowledge the feelings that rise up at the time of the year and remember that food is not the solution. Reach out, talk to loved ones, help somebody, treat yourself with non food goodies, find a way to honor your feelings rather than trying to squash them.

If you think emotional eating might be a challenge for you in the coming weeks, look up the Reframing Tool for Living, either on Etools, or on the leaflets at your meeting. It certainly helps me a lot. :o)

Thanksgiving Cheat Card:

In case you missed the meeting, I decided to post my cheat card on here. I don't normally put handouts on the blog, cause that's what the meeting is for, but I didn't have the heart to stick to this rule on Thanksgiving week ;op

The format is a little off, but the information is there. Hope it helps!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is a great time of the year in which we celebrate those we love, and give thanks for the little and big things in our lives. Since traditionally, Thanksgiving is a celebration of abundance, the focus often is on the foods as well as (sometimes more than) on the thanks.

Let’s put the focus back where it belongs this year, and put the focus on the love, the family, and the gratefulness of the season. Don’t worry, I’m not saying we want to skip the food! Just that, it should be “part of” the celebration, not the sole focus of it. How’s that sound?

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for being part of my meetings. You bring inspiration, motivation and light to my life, and I’m hopeful that in some small measure, I can do the same to you.

My husband and I (as well as Grace the dog, Leo and Gaya the cats) want to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving!

See you in the meeting room,

Melanie

Trick Not Treats!

Halloween is almost there! The kids are all excited, most have picked their costumes and are getting ready to go trick or treating. Fun, fun, fun all around! To most of us though, Halloween means 1 thing: Candies everywhere.

Every business we go to have a candy bowl, the stores are filled to the rafters with the "seasonal treats" (as if candies didn't exist the rest of the year!), the kids come in from trick or treating with bags full of candies, we feel obliged to buy candies for the trick or treaters who will inevitably stop at our door. If you have the tiniest of a sweet tooth, it seems like you're suddenly dropped in the middle of a mine field! Now what?

This week we will talk about ways to manage our sweet tooth during the Halloween celebration. You can enjoy Halloween without turning into a sugar monster!

Here's something that is floating in the Leader's message board (click on it for a bigger version):

Tool of the week

One thing that helps me when I know there will be temptation to avoid, is the Mini Bars! I always have at least one of those in my bag. They are delicious and only 2 PointsPlus. They can give me that sweet fix I need when temptation gets to be too strong.

They are small, easy to carry, and a very PointsPlus-friendly way to fight off a sweet attack without feeling deprived. :o)

In the Kitchen

I posted these last year, and they were a hit, so I figured I would share them again this year! I did these for a party with adults only (I have no kids) and they were a hit! As George Bernard Shaw said: “We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” The Point value will vary depending on the brand/recipes you use and the serving size, but it’s a lot of fun to put together!

Wormy Mud

You need:

A package (or two) of brownie mix. I used the No Pudge to cut down on pts
A pack (or two) of gummy worms
A large shallow bowl

Cook the brownie mix following the package directions, let cool enough to handle. Crumble the brownies in the large shallow bowl and mix in the worms.

Add-on: You can use a handful of FiberOne cereal to throw in. They look like twigs making the “mud” look more realistic.

Funky Eggs

You need;

Hard boiled eggs (shells on)
A glass bowl with enough water to cover all the eggs
Green food coloring (other colors work too, mixes can make some really interesting eggs)

Once the eggs are cooked, crack the shells by rolling the eggs between a hard surface and your hand being careful not to squish them. Do not remove the shells.

Once the shells are good and cracked all over, put the eggs in a bowl of water to which you have added 20-25 drops of food coloring. Let soak 10-15 minutes.

Remove the eggs and peel off the shells. The results should be eggs with a marble effect in green.

Creepy Punch

You need:

A bowl of fruit punch (I like to mix pineapple, pomegranate and tangerine juice).
A clean rubber glove.
2+ cup of orange juice.

Fill the glove with orange juice, tie the wrist securely and put in the freezer.

Just before serving take the glove out of the freezer and peel off the orange juice “hand”. Put the hand in the punch bowl.

It looks creepier as it melts!

There are tons of ideas like that floating around on the web.

Have a Great Week!

Halloween is only one evening, do not let it be the beginning of "food season". There are candies around all year round, they are just decorated differently at this time of the year. Unfortunately, putting a witch or a ghost on a candy wrapper doesn't remove the carbs or the fat from the candy inside! Wouldn't that be neat? This time of the year is just like any time of the year, take the challenges one at a time, plan for them and then enjoy yourself.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!

Melanie

We did it again!

Once again the Lose For Good campaign is a great success: A million dollars donated, millions of pound lost, thousands of food drives. It’s a success, and that’s because of YOU!

Each 0.1 of a pound, each can, each “on plan bite” has added up to a major success. Once again we helped others by helping ourselves one little bit at a time! In the process we have proved, to ourselves and to the world, that when we really want to we can totally make this work no matter what.

This week we are getting together to celebrate our success and see what lessons we can take out of this wonderful Lose For Good campaign and how we can apply them on our weight loss adventure. Don’t miss it!

Announcements

Recipe Club

The next meeting of the Recipe Club is November 9th at 7pm at the Stonestown Center.

November Theme: What else? PointsPlus-friendly Holiday Fare

Click here for details, don't miss it!!

Dr. Oz:

It's not too late to enter the Dr. Oz Transformation Nation contest! Make sure to ask for it when you weigh-in!

Sale - Sale - Sale - Sale

It’s the last week of the sale: From October 2nd to the 22nd, Baked snacks, Snack Bars and Popped Snacks are on sale at $3.50!

That's a dollar off on every box you buy. Last week to stock up on the good stuff!

Tool of the Week

It is often the small changes that make the biggest difference between weight loss success and a plateau. It’s in the little steps that you take every day that you build new successful habits. To count the most basic of those step, we have the Weight Watchers Pedometer!

Not only it’s a good way to count the number of steps you take, but also the distance, and the Activity PointsPlus earned by walking. There’s even a stop watch! It’s a highly motivating monitoring tool.

In the kitchen

This is one of those recipes that has made the round on the Weight Watchers message boards since the dinosaurs. I have no idea who first posted it, or how many variations there are. I trot it out in one version or another every year.

Pumpkin Mousse Parfaits
Makes 4 parfaits, 5 P+ each (8 with the graham crumbs)

15 oz can of pumpkin puree
3 cups cool whip free, divided
1 cup skim milk
2 small boxes of sf/ff vanilla pudding
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (to taste)
1 cup Graham crumbles (divided in 4)

Click here for the complete recipe.

Body and Mind

This week the topic of the meeting has to do with the little things. How the little steps, the little victories can make a big difference.

That inspires me to start a Fall Challenge that will take us from now to January! Now that Lose for Good is all done, we need something else to tweak our motivation a little bit right? Here's what I'm thinking:

For this week: Find, each day, one way you can move a little more in your day to day activities and do it.

See some examples of ways to burn more calories Here!

Have a good week

We have such a good thing going, lets keep at it. Lose for Good gave us wings, now is time to fly!

What do you want to see by January? Making it happen starts this very minute! Success doesn't lie in the big complicated plans, but in the tiny mini steps that you take every second of every day. Make every one of those second count!

As always, let me know if you need anything, I am there to help you reach your goals, just email me if you need me. See you in the meeting room.

Melanie

“It is better to take many small steps in the right direction than to make a great leap forward only to stumble backward.”

~ Old Chinese Proverb

A Space of your own

Oops, I got this all ready to go and never came back to post it! Here is this week's Weekly Note:

It's Saturday, 12:30 pm, and you realize that you were so absorbed in household chores that you completely forgot about lunch. Now family and stomach are both calling for food now! "I'm STARVING!" So you open the fridge, the pantry, the freezer, and see.. what?

What do you see when you look around your kitchen? How does that help you make the right choices? Are there things in there that makes it easier to follow the PointsPlus Program? Are there things that makes it more difficult?

Managing your environment is a cornerstone of following a healthy lifestyle. It's great in theory, but what does that mean in our daily lives? What do I get? What do I avoid? How can I make my kitchen PointsPlus-friendly? This week we are sharing ideas, tricks and strategies to make our environment work for us on a daily basis. Be there!


What's going on at Weight Watchers?

The Lose For Good Campaign is nearing its end! It's time to give a last push on the weight loss, and on the donations. Don't forget that you can help others by helping yourselves.

The food drives are in the Centers. Bring your non-perishable foods and we will donate it to the San Francisco Food Bank.

It's not too late to enter the Dr. Oz Transformation Nation contest! If you missed last week, make sure to ask for it when you weigh-in!

Here are the October events:

• October 12th Recipe Club, 7pm Stonestown Center. Theme for October: Fall vegetables and fruits
• October 13th Recruitment meeting, 2pm Stonestown Center.
• October 15th Etools training, 11:15 San Bruno Center.

Sale - Sale - Sale - Sale

From October 2nd to the 22nd, Baked snacks, Snack Bars and Popped Snacks are on sale at $3.50!

That's a dollar off on every box you buy. Time to stock up!!


Tool of the Week

Did you see our brand new Oil Sprayer? It's a most nifty way to cook using natural oils (without pesky chemicals) while completely controlling the amount used.

A little oil goes a very long way as 10 sprays (plenty to cover the bottom of your favorite pan!) has a PointsPlus value of 1 only! It's the ideal tool to use on vegetables or proteins before roasting or grilling as you can coat the whole surface with very little oil. Perfect tool for healthy cooking for only $11.95.

With its stainless steel look it's cute too right?


In the kitchen

This recipe is from an old-ish cookbook called "Slow Good". That cookbook came out in 2005 and has been a favorite of my family ever since! We make this recipe regularly. It's good as is, or with leftover chicken or pork thrown in. :o)

Sweet Potato Chili
4 servings, 7P+/serving

2 leeks, trimmed to white and light green parts, chopped
1 large zucchini, diced
1(15 ounce) can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas rinsed and drained
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes with jalapeno
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce (no salt added)
2 1/2 TBSP chili powder
2 TBSP packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp cumin seed crushed (ground can do, but put less!)
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 small sweet potato, peeled and diced
1/2 pound green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 tsp red-wine vinegar

Place the leeks, zucchini, kidney beans, chickpeas, tomatoes, tomato sauce, chili powder, brown sugar, curry powder, cumin seeds, pepper, and cinnamon in a 5 or 6 quart slow cooker; mix well. With the back of a spoon, gently press the vegetables so they form an even layer. Place the potatoes on top, leaving a 1/2 inch border around the edge of the slow cooker. Place the green beans on top of the potatoes. Cover and cook until the vegetables are fork-tender, 4-5 hours on high or 8-10 hours on low.* Stir in the vinegar.

* Newer slow cooker seem to reach a higher temperature on the "low" setting, adjust time accordingly.

Source: Slow good, Weight Watchers 2005, p. 126.

Other recipes this week:

Butternut Squash and Chickpea Curry

Lobster Desperation Soup

Have a good week

Lets keep the momentum we built in September going! Come to your meeting, bring any friend who's interested in learning more about Weight Watchers. Ask questions, bring ideas, this is YOUR meeting!

As always, I'm there for you, just let me know!

Melanie

Remember

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. (...)

Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice.

And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.

They somehow already know what you truly want to become.

Everything else is secondary"

~Steve Jobs

Etools for Success

When it comes to staying on plan, I tend to be a little old fashioned. I like to track on paper, I use my companions to look up PointsPlus values of the foods I eat, I love my "Little Blue Dude" (my calculator), I like to have things in my hands. Something tangible to work with.

The challenge with that is that it's a lot of tools to carry: 2 Companions, 1 tracker, 1 calculator, my Getting Started Booklet, my Pocket Guide. Add all that to my usual: Cellphone, wallet, laptop, sunglasses, gym bag... Ever feel like you're moving every time you go somewhere?

Enters Etools! In my little easy to carry Blackberry, I have all the tools I need to follow the PointsPlus program (It's even better if you have an Iphone!), and that's only 1 of the many advantages of using Etools. What if I said that you can just go online and calculate the PointsPlus value of Grandma's favorite and make it fit in your plan? What if I said you can find information, inspiration, motivation just by clicking in? How about this one: Members who use Etools lose 50% more weight than those who do not. Interested yet?

This week we are discussing how to get the most out of your Etools subscription. If you have questions, bring them in! If you are an expert, bring yourself in! We'll get this all figured out!


What's going on at Weight Watchers?

The Lose For Good Campaign is still going strong!! Don't forget that you can help others by helping yourselves. There are also food drives in the Centers. Bring your non-perishable foods and we will donate it to the San Francisco Food Bank.

It's not too late to enter the Dr. Oz Transformation Nation contest! If you missed last week, make sure to ask for it when you weigh-in!

Here are the October events:

• October 9th Second Sunday Stairs with Michael
• October 12th Recipe Club, 7pm Stonestown Center. Theme for October: Fall vegetables and fruits
• October 13th Recruitment meeting, 2pm Stonestown Center.
• October 15th Etools training, 11:15 San Bruno Center.

Sale - Sale - Sale - Sale

From October 2nd to the 22nd, Baked snacks, Snack Bars and Popped Snacks are on sale at $3.50!

That's a dollar off on every box you buy. Time to stock up!!


Tool of the week

The one thing that I do still carry around is my PointsPlus Calculator. It's just faster and easier to calculate P+ values with it. It's so small anyway, you hardly know it's there.

The "Little Blue Dude" can do many things for you:

• Calculate the P+ value of any food using the nutritional values
• Keep track of your P+ for the day
• Calculate your Daily PointsPlus Target
• Serve as a regular calculator

Don't leave home without the "Little Blue Dude"!


In the Kitchen

I had leftover Harissa that I didn't know what to do with, and I decided to get creative. This recipe is a mix of personal ideas, several recipes I've seen on the web. It's very simple, and gives you a lot of latitude. It's very spicy! So feel free to modify the Harissa recipe. Better yet, just buy pre-made Harissa and then it's a snap to prep!

This is delicious!

Butternut Squash Roasted with Harissa
4 servings, 2P+/serving

Harissa (store bought Harissa is perfectly fine, just forget this part):
10-12 dried red chili peppers
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoons olive oil (normally it's more than that, but I try to keep it to a minimum)
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground caraway seeds
1/2 teaspoon cumin

Remove stems and seeds from chilies, soak in warm water about 20 minutes to plump up. Meanwhile, sauteed the spices in a dry cast iron pan until just browned (fragrant).

Put everything in a mortar and grind everything together with a pestle until it makes a more or less even paste. If you want to it to be super smooth, you might want to grind the spices first in a grinder, but I like it more "natural looking".

Squash:
1 large butternut squash peeled and cubed
1 TBSP Harissa*
1TBSP olive oil
1 tsp lemon juice (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400F.

In a small bowl, mix Harissa, oil and lemon juice (if using). In a large bowl toss the squash cubes with the harissa mix well.

Spread the squash cubes on a baking pan (big enough to make 1 layer) and let sit a few minutes. Roast in the oven for 30-40 minutes (a bit browned is good, but don't let the Harissa burn).

*Note: Any leftover Harissa can be refrigerated, just put in a clean glass jar and cover with oil.


Body & Mind

You may have noted that the "Move it" Blog has become the "Body and Mind" Blog. The reason for the change is simple, I felt like I had limited myself by making the sub-blog sorely about exercise. I feel like there is so much more to talk about than food and exercise when trying to improve on our health.

I'm hoping that the new focus will be helpful to everybody and of course encourage you to make comments, suggestions whenever you feel like it. This Blog (and all of its sub-blog) are for you! Here's this week's post:

Getting a good night sleep

How much sleep do you get on average each night? Is it enough for you? I'm asking because it is different for all of us; some people need their 8 hours of shut eye, others can function with 4 hours (how I'll never know!). Having suffered from insomnia most of my life, I thought it would be an interesting subject to look into: What can we do to get a good night sleep?

For the complete post click here.

Have a great week

We are having rain this week. It's the perfect time to do a little planning, maybe a little cooking and getting ourselves ahead of the game for October!

As always if you need anything, I'm here for you! Never be afraid to drop me an email :o)

Melanie

“Computers are magnificent tools for the realization of our dreams, but no machine can replace the human spark of spirit, compassion, love, and understanding.”
~ Louis Gerstner

Why am I doing this?

Since the beginning of September, we've been talking about what the PointsPlus program is about, about what we need to do to stay on plan the entire week. We've come up with ways to make time in our busy schedule to take all those steps that we need to take to plan ahead, eat right, move more and do all the things that lead to success. We know what needs to be done, and how to do it.

Still, sometimes when the alarm clock rings at 5:30 in the morning, I want to roll around a sleep, lets just say that motivation isn't always at its peak that early in the morning. I know that I need to get up and go to the gym, otherwise I won't have time to go later, still I don't wanna. It's one thing to know what to do, it's another to actually do it. Sometimes what I want "now" comes ahead of what a "really" want.

Motivation doesn't appear from the sky in a ray of light and with a little heavenly music. It's a fire that you need to build up, light up, and keep fueling if you want it to last for the long run.

Come to the meeting this week and we will gather fuel for a long lasting motivation!

Recipe Club

We met last Wednesday for the first time and it was FUN! See what we came up with here:

September 2011 meeting

The next meeting will be October 12th, at 7pm at the Stonestown Center. The plan is to meet the second Wednesday of every month.

Theme will be determined shortly. Don't miss it!!

Lose for Good

We are more than halfway thought the Lose for Good Campaign already! Can you believe it?

It's time to look back, evaluate, and adjust if necessary. We still have time to make a huge difference in someone's life by helping ourselves. It's a winning situation all around!

Here's how you can get involved:

Losing weight

Weight Watchers will donate 1 dollar for each pound lost up to a million. We want to pass last year's total of 4 million pounds lost. We are doing good and we can so do it!!

Connect with the Lose for Good Community

Look them up for support, inspiration and motivation: http://weightwatchers.com/loseforgood

There is still time to make a huge difference, set your goal, plan ahead and GO!

Tools

Have you ever tried the Weight Watchers Smoothies?

They are high in proteins, count as a milk serving and of course they are delicious!

You can have them cold with water, with milk, you can throw in frozen fruits, or fruit and ice! My favorite way to use them is to throw a package of the chocolate smoothie in 2 cups of coffee. Instant Mocha!

Did I mention that they are also low PointsPlus? Only 2 P+ for the mix itself! Keep an eye out for the new Creme Brulee flavor!! How delicious does THAT sound?

Etools first log in:

People who use Etools regularly lose 50% more weight than people who don't. Knowing that, Weight Watchers encourages members to select the monthly pass; not only it's cheaper, but Etools is included in the price.

You don't have to be a computer wiz to figure out how to use Etools, it is very user friendly, if you can log in that is! We've found that many members are finding it challenging to log in for the first time after purchasing their Monthly pass.

Comes in Bg the wonderful, who came up with a simplified list of instructions to log on Etools with the Monthly pass and registration number. I thought I'd put it on here for you to refer to in case of troubles:

Setting up your eTools for the first time:

Go to www.WeightWatchers.com/login

Q. Where do I find my temporary eTools username?

It’s your Monthly Pass number, located on the back of your temporary Monthly Pass card. The Receptionist placed the computer-generated bar code sticker on the back of the card. On that sticker will be the member’s name, Monthly Pass number, & expiration date.

This Monthly Pass number starts with either an “M” (if you bought it at the center) or a “W” (if you bought it online), followed by numbers.

Q. Where do I find my temporary eTools password?

It’s your registration number—found either on the sticker on the bottom of your registration card (or printed on the barcode sticker) that is on your Weight Record or Pocket Guide. (It’s a series of numbers.)

You won’t need to memorize these numbers—these are temporary until you create your own username and password.

Thank you Bg!! You're da bestest!

In the Kitchen

This is a fall favorite for me. Once September comes to an end, and it starts smelling like fall, I bring up this soup and make it almost once a week until January. It's simple, it's easy, and it's DELICIOUS!

Spiced-up Pumpkin Soup
6 servings, 2 pts/serving

Ingredients
2 limes
2 tsp olive oil
1 large Spanish onion, chopped
2 tsp ground cumin (roast and grind yourself, so much better!)
½ tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cayenne (I put more)
5 cup vegetable broth
2 cans (15 oz) solid-pack pumpkin puree (not pie filling!!)
½ cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 TBSP sugar
¾ tsp salt
3 TBSP fat free half & half*

Zest one of the limes, then squeeze enough juice from the limes to equal 2 TBSP. Set zest and juice aside.

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until golden about 6 minutes. Add cumin, cinnamon, and cayenne; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove the mixture from the heat and let cool about 5 minutes.

Transfer the onion mixture to a food processor and add 1 cup of the broth; puree. Return to the Dutch oven; add the remaining 4 cups of broth, the pumpkin, the apple sauce, sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, about 2 minutes. Stir in the reserved lime juice.

Ladle the soup into 6 bowls. Drizzle each with ½ TBSP half & half (or yogurt) and swirl lightly with the tip of a knife. Sprinkle with the reserved lime zest.

That soup is truly delicious and keeps well for a few days!

*I use plain non-fat yogurt instead of half & half just because fat free half & half sounds spooky to me. If you like it use it!

Source: Simply Bueno, Weight Watchers p.41

Move It!

Wednesday at the evening meeting we were joking about people getting all made up to go to the gym. I rarely do any people watching at the gym, I have too much to think about to bother, but I have to admit that when I see someone walk in with 2 inches of make up and a push up bra to work out, I fail to take them seriously. Really? Working out is the goal here? Really?

This being said, I spend a fortune in workout apparel. I do. I shop bargains for my work clothes, for my every day clothes, but will not cut back on my workout clothes. I make sure that the WO pants and top I’m wearing flatter my behind and show off my shoulders and upper back while hiding my tummy. It’s my shameful little secret (well, not anymore) I’m vain and like to look good as I’m enjoying torturing myself.

Apparently I’m not the only one! Read all about it on the Move It! blog.

Have a great week

It's fall! Time to get outside! We're having our summer here in San Francisco, the fall vegetables are coming out, the apples and pears are wonderful, enjoy it!!

As always I'm only an email away, I answer any question except "How many PointsPlus is this?" ;op

See you in the meeting room!

Melanie

“He who has a why can endure any how”
Friedrich Nietzsche

Maximize the Minutes

How did your Magical Week go? Were you 100% on plan? How did that work? What lessons are you taking out of it?

I learned a lot and enjoyed myself, but I have to admit that my biggest challenge was time. There never seems to be enough hours in the day to do everything.

It takes time to plan ahead; it takes time to eat right, it takes time to work out. We can't just put everything aside: work, family, social life. So what to do?

This week we will discuss how we can make time so that we can do everything that we need to do to be successful without having to put everything else aside. It's tricky, but it IS feasible!

Recipe Club

I am so happy to have the first meeting of the Recipe Club this week! I've been wanting to do this for so long, and here it is!

We are meeting this Wednesday (Sept. 21st) at the Stonestown Center at 7pm. Here's how it works:

This month the theme is Soups & Stews

 You need:

• A soup or stew recipe that you love.
• The source (very important for legal reasons!)
• The PointsPlus value (of course!) and serving size
• Any additional information you think we need to know to make the recipe.

We want everybody to have a chance to share their recipes, so we need to keep it short. We will make sure to have time for mingling after everybody presented their recipes, so you'll be able to ask any questions you might have about a given recipe!

It is the very first time we do this, so we will learn as we go. I'm hoping to have this become a monthly thing. Wouldn't that be fun?

Don't be afraid to email me if you have questions. This will be so fun! I can't wait to hear what everybody brings in!

Lose for Good

It's week 4 of the Lose for Good Campaign! Lets keep the momentum going! We have committed to 5 days of tracking, and 4 days of moving this week. How are you doing?

Remember that when we say tracking, it means however you can make tracking work for you, from Etools to sticky notes, going around by the clicker. It's all good!

We also said moving 4 times, again don't over think this. When we say moving, we agreed that it means get ready and do something active 4 times in the week. It can be 5 minutes, it can be 2 hours. It all counts!

Here's the different ways to get involved with the Lose for Good Campaign:

Losing weight

We have done very well on the weight loss, but we can always do a little better! :o) Remember that for every lb we lose, Weight Watchers gives a dollar to the kids who need it. Help others by helping yourself. It cannot get cooler than this!

Plug in for Lose-A-Palooza

It's tomorrow!!! Monday September 19th. Find information here: http://loseapalooza,com

Connect with the Lose for Good Community

Look them up for support, inspiration and motivation: http://weightwatchers.com/loseforgood

Food Drives

There are also be food drives at the centers! It's time to help others by helping ourselves! I know times are hard for a lot of us, and money isn't exactly raining. It's not about giving a lot, it's about giving whatever you can afford to give. Every little bit counts!

Travelers, I will be taking donations this week and bringing them to the Center. If you can't make it to a center to give, bring it to the traveler meeting (JCCSF, Century Club) and I will put it in my super Matrix and bring to to Stonestown.

Tool of the Week

When I don't have time to make it to the gym, that's when I make sure to wear my Pedometer so that I can keep track of how many steps I'm taking.

Not only it's a good way to monitor myself (number of steps, miles, Activity PointsPlus earned) but it's also a great motivator. If I know how many steps I've taken, I can set a goal for the day.

In the Kitchen

One of the many things Weight Watchers has always been good at is coming up for ways of making cooking quick and easy. A few years ago, the cookbook "Shortcuts" came out, and my husband and I have used it extensively. Still do!

Those are not Foofy cuisine, but quick and easy satisfying meals for those days when you just don't have time for anything else.

Scallop and Vegetable Stir-Fry

4 servings, 4 P+/serving

Ingredients

2 tsp canola oil

1 1/2 pound sea scallops

1 tsp dark asian (dark) sesame oil

1 12 oz bag assorted fresh vegetable cut for stir-fry

1 TBSP minced, peeled fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves minced

1 1/2 TBSP reduced-sodium soy sauce

1- Heat a large nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat until a drop of water sizzles on it. Add the canola oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add the scallops and stir-fry just until opaque in the center; about 3 minutes on each side (do not overcook!). Transfer to a plate.

2 Heat the sesame oil in the skillet. Add the vegetables and stir-fry just until tender; about 1 minute. Add the ginger and garlic; stir-fry just until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in 1/4 cup water and cook, covered, until the vegetables are crisp-tender; about 1 minute. Stir in the scallops and the soy sauce; cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until heated through, about 30 seconds. Serve at once.

Note: It always cracks me up when a recipe says to serve "at once", I feel like I have to run to the dinning room as soon as I turn off the fire. "Quick, quick! It has to be served AT ONCE!" ;o)

Source: Shortcuts, Weight Watchers, p. 27

Move it

I live in the Richmond District, a few blocks from Golden Gate Park. I love walking/running in the park, having picnics, reading under the trees, but I had not realized how much stuff is going on in there! Isn't it funny that we sometimes fail to see what's right in front of us? This week is going to be beautiful, the sun is out FINALLY! Why don't we head to the Park and see what's out there?

Golf

Ok, I played golf 1 time in my life, took 86 hits to do a 9 hole. Lets just say that it's not my thing. If it is your thing though, did you know there's a 9 hole golf course at the western end of the Park? You can rent equipment and everything! It works on a first come first serve basis, so no need to call ahead or anything!

Volley Ball

There is the Monday Volley Ball at Kezar Pavilion on Mondays (7pm-9pm, $2) but have you thought about taking it outside? Sharon Field is a great place for it (and for many other things). Gather your buds and head for the South-west end of the park.

Of course, with a net with good anchors (it's windy out there! Don't let your net fly away!), Ocean Beach is always neat for beach volleyball. With the wind, the sun and the waves, what can be better really?

Baseball

There's always the choice of playing at Sharon Field, or other big open areas in the Park, but Big Rec Ball Field at 7th Avenue and Lincoln is THE place to play some ball. Bring your own equipment and to make sure you can have the spot, make reservations by calling 831-5510.

Remember that you don't want to park near the field, but rather on the street, and be careful for kids while driving around there!

Basketball

There's always indoor at the Kezar Pavilion but if you want to shoot some hoops in the sun, what about the playground at the Panhandle? The playground is between Stanyan and Masonic, and is fairly easy access with public transportation!

Dancing

I've posted about this before. Lindy in the Park is there, free every week and fun!!

Walking, Running, Biking

The Golden Gate Park counts a massive amount of trails, paths, paved and not paved. It's a beautiful setting,  most of it is sheltered from the wind and mostly flat! It's the perfect place to get moving, without being overwhelmed with traffic, noise, fuel smells and whatever else that sometimes makes exploring the city a little less fun.

Be Safe

Sadly things do happen in the Park. You want to be safe and aware of your surroundings. Things like reflecting clothing and staying in the paths can go a long way toward protecting you from the drivers who use the Park as a commute short cut.

If walking/running at night, stay on the well traveled, well lighted paths. I like to wear only 1 of my headphones, that way I can still hear the music AND hear what's happening around me.

Golden Gate Park (along with Ocean Beach) is my favorite part of San Francisco. There is always something to do, if only sitting down and listening to the wind in the trees, and things to see. The museums, the gardens, the pedal boats at Stow Lake (hilarious! They sink one every other week!), the Windmill (they repaired it!!).

Just go in there and enjoy yourselves!

For more information go to: http://www.golden-gate-park.com/

Have a Great week!

Remember that the Recipe Club meeting is this Wednesday!! Also, we are about midway into the Lose for Good Campaign, it is not over yet! We're in this together!!

As always, email me if you need anything. I am here for you!!

Your leader,

Melanie

“Don’t count every hour in the day, make every hour in the day count.”
~Anonymous

But then again:

"How long a minute is, depends on which side of the bathroom door you're on."
~Zall's Second Law