New Years Resolutions?  Dieting Tips & Tricks With The Twins…

For the past 3 months my saucy sidekick and I have been working on losing 40 lbs each by next September.  Since we both love carbs and gummy bears- this journey has had a few ups and downs along the way beginning with Halloween (who doesn’t love candy) and finally winding up at Christmas). 

Trying to get your family to go on a diet journey with you isn’t fun or easy but, our mini me twins have been “trying” to cut out the French fries and Starbucks lattes to lose a few pounds with us. 

Every year my family “House hop” to at least three different locations and for my son six or seven.  This year Cindy and I traveled from my home aka WorthamWorld to my dads house aka DadsDen to our friend Tammi Leggett’s house aka Casa Leggett and tried to stay away from the candy, pumpkin pie and delicious buttery rolls.  It was harder for Maryssa and Makenna who couldn’t help but dive into the delicious treats but they are planning to get back on track with their new Christmas bikes next week. 

    
 I keep a bag of disgusting bean chips in my pantry and often eat one when I’m feeling like going “off the rail” and eating something delicious.  Everyone hates these chips so I don’t have to worry about running out around here and let’s face is the “after taste” of these chips is even worse than the “before taste” so I can remind myself why Cindy and I decided to get healthy in the first place and turn away from the cookies for Santa Maryssa and Makenna just baked in my kitchen.  When you are surrounded by temptation, it’s easy to forget how hard you’ve worked to lose 21 lbs alongside your sister who has lost 16!  Lifestyle changes and excercise regimens have been a struggle for both of us but thyroid cancer and menopause are a real eye opener for women everywhere.  Suddenly gaining weight doesn’t happen overnight- it happens over the course of several years and getting rid of it will take a lot of hard work and dedication during the holidays.

  

 

Making cookies for Santa is a Christmas tradition along with fruit cake (which Cindy and I are skipping this year),  old favorite Christmas movies and decorating the house.   We make several stops to friends homes prior to the holidays to drop off food and gifts for many we know are struggling financially- this is perhaps one of the most important things that my entire family get involved with.

My son and his wife have several stops and now that my dad is a widower,  we cook at his home too so he has plenty of leftovers.  Our friend Tammi goes “all out” for the holidays and we usually end Christmas night with her.  The holidays have lots of tempting treats for Cindy and I but staying on track of our goals and getting back into our closets of clothes we’ve “been saving for” weight loss is a real gift for both of us this year.

I don’t make New Year’s Resolutions because they never seem to work out for me.  Making a Lifestyle Resolution is the route that Cindy and I have chosen instead and with baby Maddy home for the holidays, we’ve really worked on not having a bite of her cookie or sampling her pudding, pretzel or Nilla Wafer. 

 My family all love food and weight gain, heart disease and high blood pressure problems scare the heck out of me- nothing tastes good enough to risk my health for and although I’ve never been a fan of fried foods, getting my family to cut them out of holiday meals is a real challenge. 

Ending Christmas Day at my best friend Tammi’s house and helping in the kitchen, I found out why her rolls and mashed potatoes taste so much better than mine– butter and lots of it!  Tammi makes a beef tenderloin that would make a good man leave home ya all and I tried to eat meat and skip the other delicious things in the kitchen but did eat part of a buttery roll.  Hey, the smell of delicious goodies was just too much for me.

   
   Last night my Aunt Eleanor died suddenly of a heart attack.  With a history of heart attacks and high blood pressure haunting me and my sister, you can bet that this yearlong diet journey of excercise and will power won’t be just another New Year’s Resolution.  

Instead, it will be a new way of living and perhaps our husbands, children and grandchildren will decide to “follow our lead.” 

Everyday my sister comes up with a new Redneck Reality spin for our humorous journey to lose weight.  #Cindyisms contain a lot of truth about our lives and our unique journey to change the wedding and events industry “one family at a time” from Fort Worth, Texas.

When I combined Texas Twins Events and Texas Twins Treasures to create The Pawning Planners, I never “worried” about being surrounded by wedding cakes, cupcakes, cookies and catered confections but, let’s face it whether I’m at an Appraisal Appointment evaluating a trade or at an event- there is always a “tempting treasure” for Cindy and I to partake of but we are learning to say no and stay focused on our “in it to win it” weight loss and lifestyle changes. 

Did I ever see myself riding bikes, going to a gym and long walks in my fifties? No but being a twin gives me a workout buddy with a good sense of humor who occasionally pokes me with her fork when I’m asked if I want desert.  Rarely, I give Cindy the “stink eye” when she eyeballs the catered tables at events but together–we are one unstoppable team who are on our way to healthy, long lives at many more events while meeting new friends… 

 Wendy M Wortham