Sometimes weight loss just doesn’t make any sense. My family threw a graduation party for me on Saturday with a buffet laden with, among other things, pulled pork barbecue, sliced smoked brisket, a “southern caprese salad,” and key lime pie. I ate with abandon, not counting any points. Still, I lost 2.2 lbs last week. Most likely, the nice scale victory occurred because I was diligent about cooking last week and really enjoyed my meals. Also, I worked out twice. That’s not great, but it is a 100% improvement over the week before.

This week, I’m planning to make a weight watchers recipe - a chicken and cabbage salad with soy dressing. I’ve had mixed luck with WW recipes - sometimes they can turn out tasteless or glommy from the lack of fat. The recipe I’m going to try tomorrow night calls for fat-free mayo, which I find pasty and gross. I’m going sub in reduced fat mayo instead. Since the original only has 3 points/serving, I figure that I can afford to add a few extra points to the recipe.

I’m a good cook but sometimes can be a strict recipe person. It feels good to realize that I can tweak recipes to suit my palate, the ingredients I have on hand, etc. and still make them work. I’m slowly starting to accept how to incorporate dieting back into my lifestyle. I really have to make it work for me instead of trying to shoehorn myself and my personal tastes into a way of being that are counter to who I am. Now, let’s just hope that chicken salad with a ginger soy dressing tastes good!