PAGE A4, KEIZERTIMES, MARCH 30, 201d
Sensible strategies, support network made
difference in woman’s weight loss success
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
One of the most diffi cult
things to do when seeking any
sort of support – be it emo-
tional, physical or some com-
bination of the two – is con-
necting with the right people.
Sometimes the search alone can
be overwhelming, but Martina
Sierra is a walking testament to
what is possible when someone
commits to fi nding the right
people.
When Sierra joined Taking
Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) in
2007, she weighed 253 pounds.
Today, she weighs 136 pounds
and has kept the weight off for
more than six years.
“The support made a 100
percent difference. I knew
there was a group of people
that cared about me as a person
and cared about my journey to
being a healthier person. They
were going to be there for me
when I was having a bad time
and I could be there for them,”
Sierra said.
TOPS (www.tops.org) is a
non-profi t organization and
network of weight loss support
groups. Keizer has three TOPS
chapters with weekly meetings,
one at Faith Lutheran Church,
another at John Knox Presby-
terian Church and the third at
Clear Lake United Method-
ist Church. Meeting days and
times are available at the web-
site. National and individual
club dues amount to about $8
per month. Sierra is the club
KEIZERTIMES/Eric A. Howald
Martina Sierra has lost more than 115 pounds since joining Tak-
ing Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) in 2007. She now leads the
TOPS chapter at John Knox Presbyterian Church.
leader at John Knox and the
area captain for all of Marion
and Polk counties.
While Sierra has stuck with
TOPS, attending her fi rst meet-
ing was something of an am-
bush.
“I had lost weight and
gained it back and gained more
back. Then, one day, my mother
appeared at the door and said,
‘You’re coming with me, we’re
going to TOPS.’ I said, ‘What’s
TOPS?’” Sierra said. Her
mother explained on the drive
to the meeting.
TOPS meetings start with a
weigh-in followed by a roll call
in which the members declare
whether they’ve lost or gained
weight since the last week.
“That can be the most diffi -
cult part of the meeting because
some people will have lost and
others will gain. If the member
has lost weight, we congratu-
late them, if they gained we
remind them that we are glad
they came to the meeting,” Si-
erra said.
After the roll call, someone
in the group leads a program
about new exercise techniques
or nutrition information that
might lead to better results.
There is no formalized meal
plan members have to buy into,
but there is a constant feedback
loop with awards for weekly
and monthly weight loss, long-
term results as well as statewide
and national competitions. Last
year, the organization chal-
lenged members to lose more
than 1 million pounds. As a
whole, they met and exceeded
the goal. Club members are
encouraged to work with their
regular physicians when setting
weight goals.
“My original doctor set my
goal at 165 and said I would
never make it. I proved him
wrong,” Sierra said.
If there is a catch, it’s one
that most dieters come to real-
ize anyway: it’s a marathon, not
a sprint. It took Sierra fi ve years
to meet her fi rst goal (she can
cite the date it happened), but
she also kept the weight off by
changing her lifestyle in small
ways over time.
“One of the most important
things I did was journaling,” Si-
erra said. “I would write down
what I was eating and what I
felt like when I was eating. I
was able to discover patterns in
my own eating and learn about
nutrition in general.”
She changed portion sizes,
but never denied herself the
occasional treat in modera-
tion. She also started moving
more even when doing routine
things like watching TV.
Through it all, the support
of other TOPS members was
crucial. When the meeting
times for her original group
in south Salem stopped work-
ing for her schedule, she visited
four other club meetings before
settling into the club at John
Knox. Aside from enjoying the
humor of the group, she found
they did other things like keep-
ing in contact outside of meet-
ings that helped on her journey.
“I got a note from the leader
of the group the week I visited.
I had already decided I was go-
ing back, but that made me feel
like they really cared. I’m now
the leader of the group and the
one trying to make those con-
nections,” Sierra said.
Her service dog, King, a
6-year-old English black lab-
rador, also became the group’s
unoffi cial mascot. It was com-
mitting to fi nding a group that
worked best for her that has
kept her motivated and spurred
growth in ways that extend be-
yond the confi nes of the meet-
ings.
“That support is important
when you’re having a bad day
and someone says, ‘I’m glad you
came today because we need
you here,’” Sierra said. “I lost
weight, but I grew as a person.
I gained self-confi dence and
became less isolated and more
willing to put myself out there.”
crossword
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