Baked goods: the one-way path to Weight Watchers

There’s something very predictable about gaining weight when you’re in a relationship. When the pressure is off to always look good (because you love each other as you are, blah blah blah), the comfort weight can creep up on you like the freshman 15. Of course, sitting at a desk all day and a love of carbs doesn’t help the situation either.

They say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach (I’m not so sure this only applies to men), which is why I showered Hal with baked goods for at least the first year of our relationship. Part of the problem I allegedly created was that he was the only one indulging in these sweet treats; I didn’t eat them. Cupcakes and cookies are good but I’d take a baguette, a bagel, or any slice of yeasty goodness over them any day. Like Hal can eat his way through a pint of ice cream, I can do the same with carbohydrates in quantity. Anyway, Hal claims that it’s because of my culinary sugary delights (brownies out of box) that he’s gained weight. Forget the facts that he’s sedentary most of the day and the man hardly touches our elliptical. Now wanting to be named the sole culprit, I stopped baking (for the most part). But not eating fat doesn’t necessarily help you lose fat, which is why Hal decided to join Weight Watchers (WW).

So this is the first full week on WW for Hal, and me. Essentially, I’m dieting by association since I make most of our meals. And counting points becomes addictive. To make it easier to figure out the points, Hal’s got this nifty calculator (of course there’s a gadget involved) that calculates the points for you based on calories, fat and fiber.

While I understand the purpose of the point system, I was surprised by how few points I was allotted for the day based on my weight, height and sex – only 15 points. That’s nothing, which is probably why the required minimum of points is 18. Apparently, my height and sex really work against me; two things I can’t change of course. Being such a shorty earns me ZERO points. Being a female only gets me 2. Men get 8 just for being born with…well, you know. Although if I was breastfeeding, I’d get 10 points! (Is this why some women breastfeed their kids until they’re two?) It’s all about the points.

While I feel like I’m exceeding my daily points, Hal’s continually coming under his 30 point allotment. At this rate, he’ll be slim and trim in no time. Let’s hope that he still loves me as I am (without the blah blah blah). He’d better, or I’m going to start baking again!