four out of five bullet points

Posting a blog entry about eating a cupcake yesterday helped me extend the experience long after the actual cupcake was gone. I like to write about the special treats, not about the vast majority of my meals, which are in keeping with the weight loss plan I started following over three years ago. I can afford a caloric splurge every now and again because of my normal vigilance.

That is the same word USA Today used to describe dietary success: "Food vigilance is key to keeping weight off," said the headline in Thursday's issue. I can follow all but one of the bullet points from the National Weight Control Registry. The people in the group lost an average 66 pounds and kept off at least 30. See if you can guess which of the following tips is the one that's too strict for me:

• Limit their calories to 1,800 a day
• Eat a low-fat diet
• Weigh themselves at least once a week
• Walk about an hour a day (11,000 steps) or burn the equivalent calories
• Watch fewer than 10 hours of TV a week