Who is this Chic?

Hello fellow Weight Watchers,

My name is Cassandra Past. I am a photographer and fashionista on the exterior but underneath it all, I am a Weight Watcher.

When I was twelve, I was sent off to fat camp. I was never really that heavy but I was chubby for my age and miserable. So for 6 weeks Camp Shame was my life. They starved us and exercised us and at the end of those 6 brutal weeks I lost 12 pounds. I was completely thrilled. The kicker about this situation though was, at the end of the summer, there was a big banquet where they fed you a ton. Throughout the course of the summer too, while there were a few nutrition classes, a healthy way of eating was never instilled in the campers. Please keep in mind that like anything else, this was a business. Plain and simple, skinny kids are bad for fat camp business and they wanted returning customers.

Well, that was not happening for me. I lost twelve pounds and I was keeping off that twelve pounds. When I came back however, I was in total panic mode. I was counting calories and exercising but didn't really know what to do. My mother, once again seeing my stress, suggested I join Weight Watchers.

I jumped at the opportunity. So twelve year old me, doctors note in hand, walked into my first Weight Watchers meeting that Saturday and who do I see sitting there? My 6th grade math and science teachers. If this were any other situation or person for that matter, they may have turned right back around and never looked back. Me being the bold (now thin!) child that I was, walked right up next to them and sat right down.

How many 7th graders do you think were on this program? My town was entirely skinny blonde girls who ate toasted bagels with butter and sour watermelon candy for lunch every day and didn't think twice.

On our 7th grade trip to colonial Williamsburg, I was sharing a room with 3 other skinny girls. So what did I do? While I wasn't ashamed to hide my weight loss journey in meetings, I certainly was in front of my skinny friends. So I took my points tracker and a pencil into the bathroom, sat on the toilet, and tracked my food for the day. Then I called my mom to tell her what I ate. 

I have been on and off Weight Watchers for the past 10 years (I'm sure all Weight Watchers can relate) but this is the first time I'm talking about it. I am no longer an ashamed 12 year old writing down her points. That's what iphones are for.  

On this blog I will post recipes, favorite products, and overall Weight Watchers tips and tricks. Whether you have 12 pounds to lose or 212, whether you're collecting allowance or social security, my hope is that this blog is a reference tool for Weight Watchers at any age.