For the last 25 years, I’ve been fat. Once or twice, I’ve managed to lose enough weight to be called average, but mostly, I’ve just been fat.

It’s pretty clear that all the diets, pills, snake oils and other potions I’ve tried haven’t worked. I’m still just plain fat. I even created this blog with the idea that writing about being fat would somehow help me not stay fat. I figured the public shame of putting my obesity on parade might make me want to lose weight. But so far, no luck. Today, I weigh more than I did when I started last summer. Ughh.

For the two people who have kindly commented on my blog, I say thank you. Thank you for your support and nice thoughts. So it probably won’t surprise you to leearn that I’ve decided to join Weight Watchers. Weight loss is certainly not working on my terms, so I need to switch terms no matter how much I hate the idea. I don’t like to admit defeat.

Here’s my plan. I will go on the program, lock stock and barrel, for 40 weeks. I will go to the meetings. I will stay within my points range. I will go to the gym. Forty weeks from tomorrow is December 11. Why 40 weeks? Because I figure it will take that long, and that much commitment, to lose 60 pounds. And then, I’ve got to figure out how to maintain that weight.