Sunday, February 14, 2010

Points & Pennies

2010 = the year of counting points and pennies for me.

Last month, I met with a friend of mine who set me up on her budgeting system. She came over for (pre-Weight Watchers) appetizers and wine while I pulled out credit card bills, bank statements, past-due medical invoices - everything I could find in the "I'll get to it later" pile. We worked through my new salary, outlining fixed expenses and setting up a monthly budget for everything from gas to groceries. I have a spreadsheet set up where I enter every penny I spend on a daily basis and, at the end of the month, all my entries are input into a larger budget document so I can track my progress. Good story, huh?

Point being, I started having to be accountable for every penny I was spending and in a lot of ways, this process was a good precursor to joining Weight Watchers. On only day 14 of the budget tracking and day 4 of Weight Watchers, I feel more in control of my life. Sounds cliche, but so do all the things Loreal and I find ourselves saying while we prepare for a meal, or after we eat it.

Case in point, after breakfast this morning (see below), we caught ourselves saying things like "I feel better just having made a smarter decision about what I eat" and "It feels good to be aware of what we're eating".

Valentine's Day Breakfast
3 egg white omelet w/ fresh veggies (red pepper, mushroom, and spinach) = 1 point
Coffee w/ 2 tbs 1% milk & splenda = 1 point
100 calorie English muffin = 1 point
1 tsp margarine = .5 point
6 oz OJ = 2 points

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