Judy:
These are just my thoughts, me on my soapbox, things I've learned...take what you want, toss the rest, and accept the hug that's coming your way...
Now, I think there are several potential reasons for why people are more enthusiastic and focused in the beginning, and then taper off in their enthusiasm. It may be that the newness is exciting, but I'm not sure if changing from plan to plan is necessarily THE answer, although it may be AN answer. I also think it's important to realize that we need to do what works for us and our individual lifestyles -- maybe you have trouble sticking with WW because a strict plan doesn't fit your lifestyle. Maybe it's tedious, or frustrating, whatever the case may be -- you CAN modify it after all, remember that. Or maybe you didn't do it long enough for it to become a habit -- most things take about a month of consistent action to become habit -- or maybe it was too inflexible -- did you feel like you had an "out" if you were ravenous and had no points left? Or maybe, deep down, you were convinced that failure was inevitable, as you'd tried before and it hadn't worked out.
First of all, failure is only inevitable if you give up.
If you persist, evaluate, and adapt, SUCCESS is inevitable. It's only a matter of time. I can tell you there were several times I had grown very frustrated, and felt like I wasn't going to lose any more weight, or that I might gain it back. But when that happened, I first went to my mother and best friend for support (and you guys, once I met you), and then I reevaluated and looked for things I could do differently. A new trainer, a new gym -- that just may work for you! And it's still working. I've gone from a size 22 to a size 14, almost a 12 now. It took me a while, and plenty of reevaluating and changing of my strategy, but it's working. Of course, what worked for me may not work for you, and that's what's most important to discover -- what works for you. And you may need to try several programs, and take your favorite thing from each (and teach us a trick or two, why not?)
I've thought sometimes about doing LA Weight Loss, just as a change, myself. If I get stuck closer to my goal, I just may.
Second of all, evaluate what part does and doesn't work for you, and if it doesn't work for you, abandon it. You don't have to do exactly what they say if it doesn't work for you! If you count points and include exercise points and don't get anywhere, trying not counting exercise points. If you find yourself eating. If point counting is too tedious, do core. You get the idea.
Also, don't beat yourself up if you slip. If you're anything like me, guilt over a food slip feeds anxiety, which feeds anxiety eating...repeat cycle. If you slip, focus on adjusting a little for the rest of the week if possible, picking yourself up, dusting yourself off and continuing. The only real failure is in giving up.
I think it's important to have an "out", a food you can eat if you get really hungry -- so that you don't feel trapped -- telling myself I cannot eat anything else only made me want food MORE. But if I told myself I could have a piece of fruit or popcorn, free, if I was desperately hungry, helped, because, if I could turn that down, I knew I wasn't as hungry as I thought, and if I needed it, then well, I didn't beat myself up about it.
Lastly, it's important to evaluate if their was an emotional reason things didn't work out before -- i.e. was food your stress relief? If so, and you didn't replace it with another former of stress relief, it must have been that much harder to succeed. I think that changing our psychological responses to and around food are just as important as our actual food consumption and exercise habits. Food is just not for nutrition, or Americans as a whole wouldn't have an obesity problem.
I've done this before...these super long posts...does anyone find my thoughts helpful here? I hope so.
If you don't like it, please feel free to disregard. It's all meant to help, and it's all meant with great affection.
NOW, regarding your second post -- it looks like you're finding your way and on track -- CONGRATS on the 2 pounds! That is fantastic!