Before OA, for eons and eons, I either binged or dieted, one or the other. Being a fairly active person and perhaps luckier than the average overeater, I never went over 240 pounds. Each time I got close to that number, a diet mentality clicked in and I'd begin Weight Watchers, South Beach, Atkins diet or one of the many others I tried.
With each diet, I'd immediately start racking up deprivation points. No cookie? One point! No seconds? One point! No bread? One point! Keeping a huge mental suitcase full of points was no problem at all.
When finally I reached some sort of goal weight, or at least went down a size or two, guess what? I'd start spending the points like crazy, the pounds reapplying themselves to my body in no time at all.
One of the blessings of OA, turning food over to a higher power, knowing it's not me anymore, is this: for the first time in my long weight loss history, I have no suitcase full of deprivation points. I'm not eating cookies, cake, candy and the like, not any at all. But the way I see it is that it's not me making the decisions about what I eat and what I don't eat. It's all in HP's hands. Thus, I don't do anything to earn points. There are no points to be spent later. And that's a good thing!
Showing posts with label Weight Watchers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Weight Watchers. Show all posts
Friday, December 10, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
WW vs. OA
A fellow blogger got intrigued by my Overeaters Anonymous posts and decided to try OA. She went to a couple of meetings (not in same part of country as me), but didn't feel comfortable with the spiritual aspects of it (God). She has decided OA is not for her and to try Weight Watchers instead.
That got me thinking about the differences between WW and OA from the perspective of my experiences so far.
I've done WW several times. Twenty five years ago, I lost 65 pounds in WW, got to my goal weight and stayed there for more than a year. Then I gained it all back, plus more. Five years later I repeated the same cycle, only didn't quite make it to goal before starting to climb again.
Several more times I re-joined WW, lost a few pounds and quit. Two years ago, I joined WW on line and lost 32 pounds, at which point I hit a psychological wall. I kept paying $16 per month, but was only intermittently keeping track of my food. I re-applied all 32 pounds to my poor body over the next 18 months (and paid $288 more dollars while gaining).
During all my WW experiences, I ate cookies, cake, candy, pastries... When I was being "good," I counted the points. When I was being "bad," I simply "cheated." I was more successful losing weight (and keeping it off) in WW than I have been in the other weight-loss programs I've tried.
My OA experience began 67 days ago. I have not been on the scale. I have not eaten any cookies, cake, candy or pastries... not even a bite. 67 days ago, I was wearing a snug size 18 jeans; now I'm fairly comfortable in size 14. I feel better, more stable, more even-keeled than I have in many decades. It's a start.
Could it turn around? Could the cookies call too loudly for me to resist? Could I quit again? Yes, you bet.
Too bad I can't format columns here... I'd like to list the two programs side by side to easily compare their features (as I've experienced them). I'll have to do it item by item:
WW - about losing weight, learning healthy food choices
OA - about recovery from food addictions
WW - diet driven - count points
OA - spirituality driven - maintain abstinence, stick to food plan
WW - self monitoring, track points, rewards, weigh-in meetings
OA - higher power, group meetings and personal sponsor provide support
WW - weekly fee
OA - free
WW - will power
OA - higher power
WW - bad habits got me to this place of being overweight
OA - I have an incurable disease of addiction to overeating and certain foods
WW - anything in moderation, as long as I count the points
OA - abstinence from certain foods
WW - get to goal weight
OA - experience sanity one day at a time
These two programs are not mutually exclusive. A person could choose WW for their OA food plan.
For me, being abstinent on certain foods is a huge relief. Some part of me must have known that eating one or two WW chocolate brownies every day (in a highly addictive way) was eventually going to snowball into binging and weight gain. Yet, consciously, I had no real clue about addiction.
Holy Hunger by Margaret Bullitt-Jonas is the catalyst that opened my eyes, finally, to addiction... to my need for more than weight loss... to my need for spiritual recovery and abstinence. I will be forever grateful to her for writing her personal journey in such a deep and honest way.
My recovery journey will have its share of bumps, no doubt. I came into the program as an agnostic who is critical of all organized religions. Finding trust and belief in a higher power, surrendering control, and feeling my feelings are the challenges right now. The weight loss is a by-product... good, but not the focus.
OA is right for me because I finally admit, understand and accept that I am powerless over my habit of overeating and my addiction to certain foods. When dieting, I have power for some length of time. But over and over again my power shuts down or isn't adequate. I accept this about myself and am seeking help from a power greater than my own.
That got me thinking about the differences between WW and OA from the perspective of my experiences so far.
I've done WW several times. Twenty five years ago, I lost 65 pounds in WW, got to my goal weight and stayed there for more than a year. Then I gained it all back, plus more. Five years later I repeated the same cycle, only didn't quite make it to goal before starting to climb again.
Several more times I re-joined WW, lost a few pounds and quit. Two years ago, I joined WW on line and lost 32 pounds, at which point I hit a psychological wall. I kept paying $16 per month, but was only intermittently keeping track of my food. I re-applied all 32 pounds to my poor body over the next 18 months (and paid $288 more dollars while gaining).
During all my WW experiences, I ate cookies, cake, candy, pastries... When I was being "good," I counted the points. When I was being "bad," I simply "cheated." I was more successful losing weight (and keeping it off) in WW than I have been in the other weight-loss programs I've tried.
My OA experience began 67 days ago. I have not been on the scale. I have not eaten any cookies, cake, candy or pastries... not even a bite. 67 days ago, I was wearing a snug size 18 jeans; now I'm fairly comfortable in size 14. I feel better, more stable, more even-keeled than I have in many decades. It's a start.
Could it turn around? Could the cookies call too loudly for me to resist? Could I quit again? Yes, you bet.
Too bad I can't format columns here... I'd like to list the two programs side by side to easily compare their features (as I've experienced them). I'll have to do it item by item:
WW - about losing weight, learning healthy food choices
OA - about recovery from food addictions
WW - diet driven - count points
OA - spirituality driven - maintain abstinence, stick to food plan
WW - self monitoring, track points, rewards, weigh-in meetings
OA - higher power, group meetings and personal sponsor provide support
WW - weekly fee
OA - free
WW - will power
OA - higher power
WW - bad habits got me to this place of being overweight
OA - I have an incurable disease of addiction to overeating and certain foods
WW - anything in moderation, as long as I count the points
OA - abstinence from certain foods
WW - get to goal weight
OA - experience sanity one day at a time
These two programs are not mutually exclusive. A person could choose WW for their OA food plan.
For me, being abstinent on certain foods is a huge relief. Some part of me must have known that eating one or two WW chocolate brownies every day (in a highly addictive way) was eventually going to snowball into binging and weight gain. Yet, consciously, I had no real clue about addiction.
Holy Hunger by Margaret Bullitt-Jonas is the catalyst that opened my eyes, finally, to addiction... to my need for more than weight loss... to my need for spiritual recovery and abstinence. I will be forever grateful to her for writing her personal journey in such a deep and honest way.
My recovery journey will have its share of bumps, no doubt. I came into the program as an agnostic who is critical of all organized religions. Finding trust and belief in a higher power, surrendering control, and feeling my feelings are the challenges right now. The weight loss is a by-product... good, but not the focus.
OA is right for me because I finally admit, understand and accept that I am powerless over my habit of overeating and my addiction to certain foods. When dieting, I have power for some length of time. But over and over again my power shuts down or isn't adequate. I accept this about myself and am seeking help from a power greater than my own.
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