Groups weigh in with special support

Losing weight and making all the necessary lifestyle changes amount to a very personal journey, but members of three organizations in Yuma say it's a journey no one should have to make alone.

Through everything from meetings and educational resources to buddy systems and helplines, Yumans looking to achieve a healthier weight are being added by these organizations every day, all in their own unique way.

To celebrate the start of Fattest to Fittest: Yuma vs. Yakima Weight Loss Challenge, the Yuma Sun recently interviewed leaders and members with Overeaters Anonymous, Taking Off Pounds Sensibly and Weight Watchers. All three organizations stressed how much they have to offer, especially for individuals who have made up their minds to make true and lasting changes to their waistlines - and lives.

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Overeaters Anonymous

At a meeting of Overeaters Anonymous, there's only one full name ever spoken: God.

OA stands apart from most weight-loss groups through its focus on member anonymity and a total reliance on a spiritual answer. The organization, which is based on the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, was founded in 1960 by "Rozanne S." and two other women. Today membership is estimated at 54,000 people in 6,500 groups meeting in more than 75 countries.

Members explain that OA doesn't focus on diet plans or nutritional information, instead preferring to focus on members' "physical, emotional and spiritual healing." With this approach, overeating is more of a symptom than a core problem.

"We deal more with the problems that lie behind the eating," said a Yuma woman who is a veteran OA member. "This is a program of living, not a program of dieting. They say it's not what you're eating, but what's eating you."

The goal of Overeaters Anonymous is helping people - through a spiritual means - achieve "abstinence," which is defined by someone no longer eating compulsively.

Meeting times are made public, but outright advertisement is avoided based on the tradition of "attraction rather than promotion." There is no cost to join. Meetings are supported through voluntary donations.

In addition to traditional in-person gatherings, meetings are also offered online and over the phone. Go to www.OA.org for details. For information about local meetings, call 503-1229.

This Yuma member lost 55 pounds through OA and has maintained a healthy weight for more than 10 years.

"I tried everything else and Overeaters Anonymous is the only thing that worked for me. This program has given me capability," she said. "I can cope with life, and I have had some pretty heavy things flung at me.

"Living life on life's terms is what we try to do, and there is a higher power who can help us. God helps us live our lives so we don't have to turn to food."

The Yuma woman stressed that OA works if people are willing - and invest the time.

"I've been there 36 years and the only reason I'm where I'm at today is because I never left. They always say 'Don't leave before the miracle happens.'"

Meetings in Yuma:

• Gloria De Cristo Lutheran Church
11273 E. 40th St.
Monday (winter meeting) 1 p.m.

• Central Church of Christ
651 W. 28th St.
Tuesday 6:30 p.m.

• Central Church of Christ
651 W. 28th St.
Thursday at noon

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Taking Off Pounds
Sensibly (TOPS)

Members of TOPS say their organization's name says it all. Its aim isn't to just lose weight but do it sensibly.

"TOPS focuses on what is good for the body, using exercise and a good, nutritious food plan," said Jo Ann Wood, a TOPS leader in Phoenix. "Whatever your head provider says is what we want you to do."

TOPS, which is nonprofit, was started in 1948 by four women in Wisconsin who met in the kitchen of a community center.

"They called themselves TOP, but I believe it was the Milwaukee Journal that published an article and inadvertently added an 'S,'" Wood said. "So the ladies met together and decided what the 'S' should stand for - 'sensibly.'" They had too many people show up after it hit the Journal that they were lined up around the block - and TOPS was born."

Today TOPS boasts 170,000 members and nearly 10,000 chapters worldwide. At its peak, the organization had 250,000 members.

"One of the things we're saying about our members getting older is that isn't it great that we are able to grow older?" Wood said. "Thanks to TOPS, our members are living longer."

To find and support the best and latest information about weight, exercise and nutrition, TOPS is actively involved in research. To date the organization has funded more than $6 million in research related to obesity.

TOPS, like most weight-loss groups, is built around meetings. Weigh-ins are common, but voluntary and private.

If they feel comfortable, people share if they have lost or if they've slipped a little. To make it more fun, TOPS often offers little charms or other prizes, plus some meetings arrange little contests. But Wood stressed that the emphasis is never placed on winning through unhealthy means.

"People will starve themselves to win big money. That's why we keep our prizes small. We encourage you to take off pounds sensibly, not buy our pounds off."

Membership to TOPS is $26 a year, which includes a monthly magazine. For more information, call 1-602-277-1524.

Woods said what makes TOPS different from other groups is the trend of intimate friendships among members.

"There is no other organization that has the same camaraderie. It's the weekly meetings where we share our successes and failures, because we learn from both of those, don't we?" she said.

"We have a buddy system, where we call each other if we need help. You know there are other people who have gone through it, so it gives you the courage to know you can do it, too."

Meetings in Yuma:

• Country Roads Village - Winter Chapter
5707 E. 32nd St. in New Card Room
Friday 8 a.m. weigh-in, 9 meeting

• Gloria De Cristo Lutheran Church
11273 E. 40th St. in Fellowship Hall
Monday 7 a.m. weigh-in, 8 meeting

• Gloria De Cristo Lutheran Church
11273 E. 40th St.
Thursday 7 a.m. weigh-in, 8 meeting

• Gloria De Cristo Lutheran Church
11273 E. 40th St. in  Fellowship Room
Friday 7 a.m. weigh-in, 8 meeting

• Church Of Christ - Central
651 W. 28th St. in Multi-Purpose Room
Monday 5:45 p.m. weigh-in, 6:30 meeting

• Trinity United Methodist Church
3030 S. 8th Ave. in Music Room
Tuesday 5 p.m. weigh-in, 6 meeting

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Weight Watchers

Talk to someone about Weight Watchers and expect to hear a lot about education and nary a mention of diet plans or weight-loss gimmicks.

Local organizers say Weight Watchers is all about a realistic and commonsense approach that doesn't just help folks lose weight but achieve a better state of health in every way.

"I would describe Weight Watchers as teaching you to live a healthy lifestyle," said Jeannie Morago, a local meeting leader. "It doesn't teach you to eat special foods or do special things. Weight Watchers simply teaches you that there are basic foods, particularly fruits and vegetables, that are good for us and that we all need to eat healthy and move more."

Weight Watchers focuses mostly on ideas it calls the four pillars: eat smartly, move more, helpful habits and get support.

A commercial business found nationwide, Weight Watchers began in 1963 and came to Arizona just a few years later.

The hallmark of Weight Watchers is the group meeting, where members gather to check their weight, hear educational presentations and share inspiration and support. Members also enjoy sharing healthy recipes.

"We are always celebrating successes and teaching," Morago said. "That is how we spend our time."

For more information, such as the cost of membership, call Weight Watchers of Arizona toll-free at 1-800-651-6000.
 
Morago said many people fear being weighed in front of people, a situation that doesn't happen at Weight Watchers meetings. She explained that weigh-ins take place privately, between the member and group leader.

A member's goal for weight loss is based on national standards for each person's body mass index.

Group leaders give a health talk at every meeting, with information coming from Weight Watchers International, which Morago praised for being involved with the latest research regarding nutrition, exercise and weight loss.

"When I joined in 1997 my issue was fast food, which every one I passed sounded good," Morago said. "Now when I need that quick meal, I know I can steam some vegetables and pick up a rotisserie chicken. You just have to think differently and learn to live your life differently."

Morago herself has lost 70 pounds through Weight Watchers.

"I, of course, was in a lot of pain, but wouldn't admit it," she recalled. "There comes so much freedom in weight loss. You can move more and with less pain and shortness of breath."

But Morago added that no degree of pain or encouragement can push someone to lose weight until they're ready - and decide for themselves.

"This has to come from a lifestyle change, and then Weight Watchers can help you move forward. We can't force you. We have to wait for you to come to us when you are ready for transformation. Until then, if I suggest you lose weight, it's just hot air flowing out of my mouth."

Meetings In Yuma:

• Gila Mountain United Methodist Church
12716 North Frontage Road
Monday 5:30 p.m.

• Trinity United Methodist Church
3030 S. 8th Ave.
Wednesday 5 p.m.
Saturday 9 a.m.