Nothing succeeds like success...

I weighed in today for the first time in at least two weeks, maybe three. In that space of time, I have been anything but diligent about following my Weight Watchers plan. Tracking? We don't need no stinking tracking! Well...actually...we do...but you get my drift. I've eaten all kinds of stuff that really wasn't in my best interest...chocolate chip cookies (that's cookIES, as in multiples), ribs (the whole slab, not one of those wimpy sampler portions), grilled burgers made with ground beef so fat-laden that it was barely light pink, hot dogs (good beef hot dogs, but still...) - and the list goes on. So how did I still manage to lose weight?

Well, here's my theory: I think I've changed my regular eating habits so much that it offsets my occasional indulgences. Before WW, I ate enough fried food in a week to keep the people producing frying oil in business for a long time. My arteries were so accustomed to their daily grease allotment that they suffered withdrawals for a while. And it was a struggle to give it up. I began working in restaurants in my teens and learned to make killer deep-fried food - seafood, mushrooms, pickles, chicken (oh yeah, I can make some fried chicken)...and fried green tomatoes. I no longer get the oohs and ahhs that came from putting a plate of golden, crispy, sizzling chicken fingers or succulent fried shrimp in front of my friends and family. I miss that.

But you know what? It's ok. I miss that ego-boost now and then, but I don't miss the 68.8 pounds that I'm not hauling around anymore. I don't miss buying size 28 slacks or 3X shirts. And I definitely don't miss the wheezing wreck I used to be when I climbed the hill at 5th street or attempted the 61 steps into the back of the building. Nope. Not at all.

So...thinking back over the last couple of weeks...I've eaten when I was hungry, indulged some less-than-stellar cravings...and still lost weight. I didn't gorge on fried food. I ate quite healthily at work every day; indulgences were saved for dinner out with my husband and the occasional warm cookie. That's a life I can definitely live with. And seeing a weight loss today instead of the gain I was afraid I would see has actually motivated me to get back on track.

So...here's to the next (and final) 70 pounds and a life that just gets better all the time. Thanks for letting me celebrate a little...and happy Monday!