Today in class we discussed eating out, and the importance of making the right decisions. You can be excellent all week with exercise tracking & sticking to your ProPoints but then the weekend comes, you’re off work, you’re heading out with friends it’s time to unwind, but it’s not time to stop tracking. This does not mean that just because you’re in Weight Watchers and trying to lose weight that you need to stop having fun or going out it just means that you still need to track and make some wise choices don’t forget your 49 points, that’s two bottles of wine for the weekend! My friend was home from England and we headed out for some dinner few drinks and a catch up, once I followed the below I was ok and still lost weight this week. Here’s a few tips that can help. 1. Set your budget you have 49 flexi points plus on top of your daily allowance- this 49 points is for the whole weekend. 2. Mentally prepare - be aware what’s around e.g. prawn crackers, bread sticks on the table there high in fat and you don’t really want them , a handful of prawn crackers is 4 points. Drink plenty of water that day sometimes you think you’re hungry but you’re not you just need some water. Have a big healthY low pro point lunch so you’re not starving when you’re heading out for dinner . 3. Practice portion control, sometimes when you go out for dinner you get three times the amount of food you actually require. If you’re going for a Sunday dinner ask for a half portion or if you’re having a Chinese’s share the rice, or share a dessert,  also you’re an adult you know when you have eaten enough so don’t be afraid to leave food on the plate . I know it can be hard J but will be worth it in the end and you won’t feel stuffed after. 4. Google the restaurant before you go, have a look at the menu so you know what you are going to order before you get there, this can help you not be influenced by other people in your group by coping there orders it will also help you to track. Maybe take a photo of what you’re eating this will help you to remember what you eat for your tracking the next day and stops you fooling yourself too,  I had a small piece of cheese cake when in fact you had a large piece even if you go over your pro points still make sure you track this will give you back your control and you can start your commitment again 5. Weight Watchers eat out guide-  this is a great book it shows the ProPoints of some meals that you think may have been ok e.g. sweet and sour pork with special rice 37 points - it makes you rethink. Hope this helps! Height: 5:5 Starting weight: 15 ½ stone Planned weight loss: 2 stone Weight loss to date: 1.5     Warren Barry Week 7 - know what you’re eating when you’re eating out! This week’s class was very informative, and the topic was definitely something I could relate to. The Weight Watchers programme is quite simple, calculate the value of the food you are preparing for the meals you are eating across the days, match that to your daily pro points total, exercise and you will experience weight loss. I have found the programme quite simple to follow and I have found that tracking what you eat gives you freedom to eat well without restricting yourself. Portion control is the key here. When all is said and done Monday to Friday preparing your own meals, the weekend comes around and you’re planning on spending some of your extra 49 ProPoints. The topic of this week’s class was actually knowing what the values of the food you choose when you eat out. Gwen gave a great example of someone eating Chinese food and inadvertently blowing all of their 49 and an extra 20 to boot! This really brought home to me the value of investigating the menu of where you are eating out and pre planning what to eat so as to stick within the daily and weekly total. Height: 5'9 Starting weight: 15 stone 3 Planned weight loss: 1 stone Weight loss to date: 7.5 lbs     Laura Kavanagh This week I lost 2.5 pounds and it was mainly down to me tracking all my food, better control over my portion sizes and weighing all foods I wasn't a 100% sure on. What was key for me was banking my 49 ProPoints solely for the weekend and I didn't let the weekend control me! This week’s class was very helpful as Gwen spoke about what we are up against while eating out. Our aim as Weight Watchers members is to stay in control and stick to our weekly budget as much possible. Gwen explained the downfalls of what can happen during a weekend of dining. Essence of damage:  1.      Not researching/planning - no plan before heading to the restaurant. 2.      Mindless at the weekend - not tracking all food. 3.      Not adapting my lifestyle around food. How I'm going to be a wiser diner? Mentally Preparing  Make my choices before by looking at weight watchers pocket guide and looking up what I like and basic my choices around being healthy. I'm heading this weekend for dinner so I’m going to set my budget for 8 ProPoints for alcohol and 12 ProProints for my main. Make special requests Since starting Weigh Watchers when eating out if I get a chicken Caesar Salad, I now always now get sauce on the side with no bacon and no sides. I still love the salad but it’s now a better option.   Portion control By measuring your rice and pasta on a scale at home it allows you to visually know what size you are able to have. Have a good attitude  Don't be resentful of what I can’t have when out and stay committed. My Christmas goal hangs in the balance. It's not worth it. If you don't control the weekends, the weekend will control you. Height: 5:3 Starting weight: 11 ½ stone Planned weight loss: 1 stone Weight loss to date: 5 lbs   Sarah Moore So after my disastrous weigh-in last week, I was hoping for a bit more of a positive week this week. Remember, I put on 4 pounds last week! I was very happy to see the numbers on the scale significantly lower than they were previously. I lost 5.5 pounds. I think the main difference in my tracking was accounting for EVERY SINGLE thing that passed through my lips ie. six m&m’s. I’m not too sure what these mean in ProPoints but as discussed in last week’s class, underestimating is a bad habit to get into so I’m overestimating slightly on certain things I’m unsure of. I also did quite a lot of exercise during the week. Our weigh-in is on Wednesday; I trained Thursday morning, took my dog for two long walks on Saturday, went for a 50k cycle on Sunday, attempted a run on Monday morning and trained again on Tuesday morning. Our class this week was all about becoming a ‘Wiser Diner’. This is something which I find quite difficult because I eat out a lot! The 10 dining tips which Gwen gave us were:

• Set a budget – ProPoints wise, not money. You need to plan ahead and figure out where and how you are going to ‘spend’ your points. If you think your extra 49 points are going to get you through an entire weekend of being out and about……think again!
• Mentally Prepare – Look up the menu of the place you are going and decide before you get there what you are going to have and stick to it. You can still eat out; it’s just about making healthy choices.
• Make special requests – ask for sauces on the side, switch chips etc. for a nice side salad with a specific dressing. This allows you to stay in control!
• Practice portion control – this is a hard one. Restaurant portions will generally be larger than the ones you make for yourself at home. Don’t look at it as something that has to be finished because you paid for it.
• Break down the language barriers – be careful of the words used to describe the items on a menu. These are used to make you hungry and it works. Crispy (I love this word) generally means fried etc.
• Think kiddie sized – You don’t have to eat a huge portion!!
• Watch out for extras – ask what sides come with your meals or before your meal ie. Prawn crackers in a Chinese – killer!!
• Don’t go top heavy – I’d be a big one for this, thinking that a salad is the healthy option but it’s really not. Think of all the things that can come on a salad ie. Croutons, full fat dressing, bacon etc.
• Stay committed – Commitment is key! Since the beginning of this process I have been fully committed to losing my extra weight. Each week there are ups and downs which can sometimes make it difficult to maintain a steady path. If you do well, you may feel a little cocky, if you don’t do as well at a weigh-in and don’t know why, it can be difficult to motivate yourself to continue.
• Resign from the ‘Clean Plate Club’ – YOU DON’T NEED TO FINISH EVERYTHING ON YOUR PLATE!! Leave some food.

The main point of the class was that you have to organise your weightloss around your life and not the other way around. If you do that you don’t learn to control your cravings etc. and when you reach your goal, you go back to your old habits. I’m learning (hopefully) how to do this and moving towards my own goal. Toodles! Height: 5'7 Starting weight: 13.5 stone Planned weight loss: 1.5 stone Weight loss to date: 6.5 lb   Check back on these pages weekly for regular updates from the foursome, and if you want to find out more about Weight Watchers classes in your area, you can do so here.