BrendaDargan.com

I’ve recently rejoined Weight Watchers to rid myself of some holiday pounds. A New Year’s cliche, I know, but I worked really hard to drop 30 pounds on the program last year and I’m not happy with the slow creep back up on the scale I’ve witnessed. So it’s high time to nip it in the bud. Plus, I just feel better when I’m accountable for what and how much I eat. A few days in and I’m already seeing the results. I’m a little less jiggly and most importantly, I’m regaining the drive and focus that propelled me to that monumental weight loss last year.

Helping me out is the handy-dandy “Healthy Checks” feature on WeightWatchers.com which allows me to mark off each glass of water, serving of fruit/vegetables, lean protein, etc. I’ve consumed. When I’ve met my daily requirement, a happy face icon appears. Sure, I revert to a kindergartener with the gratification derived from that rather juvenile seal of approval but hey, it works and I’m not going to criticize it.

My goal is to drop 10 pounds and then maintain the weight. In addition to WW, I’m going to fire up my Wii Fit again and thanks to a gift from my dear friend, Jess, I can now step up my efforts with Wii Fit Plus. I also have EA Sports Active, which really kicked my ass the last time I used it. I’ve even considered getting that Jenny McCarthy exercise program but I’m not entire sure I can tolerate her for a prolonged period of time. I can’t quite shake the memory of her burp-and-fart-filled broadcasts on MTV back in the day. I just can’t.

An added benefit of my recent health kick is the boost to my finances. I cook more so that I can control the amount and quality of the ingredients. I made a huge pot of Italian lentil soup yesterday for about $10. I even shared it with two friends and we barely made a dent in it. I split it up into smaller containers and put some in the fridge, the rest in the freezer. I will have lunches and dinners for weeks to come. This is awesome because I work in far west Chelsea where the lunch options are few and far between. Oh and good luck finding anything for less than $9. That seems to be the neighborhood-wide going rate. I think it’s a conspiracy.

Today’s tip: If you have the seed money handy, open up a Hale & Hearty franchise near Chelsea Piers. You can recoup your investment and retire to Boca in record time. I would do it myself but that J. Crew/Anthropologie habit I developed in my 20s still haunts my bank statements. Sigh.