"I'd been trying and trying to lose weight, but you just gain it back," says Janice Harrison, a cancer survivor who also has rheumatoid arthritis throughout her body. "My blood pressure would go up and down, up and down."

Harrison never had a weight problem until she had a child 25 years ago. After that, she nearly tripled her clothing size and ended up wearing sizes 14 to 16. Besides not liking the way she looked, Harrison's doctor also told her she needed to lose weight for health reasons.

So at her sister's urging, Harrison joined Weight Watchers and within seven months had lost 26 pounds.

"Now that I lost the weight, I have less problems with my joints and when I get my blood pressure checked, it's good," Harrison said. "And it feels good to get rid of old clothes and buy new clothes."

Besides being on the Weight Watchers Point program, Harrison also walks as often as she can.

"I love to get out and walk in the early morning when it is cool," the Calumet Park resident said. "And after losing this weight I have so much more energy to walk."

Harrison works part-time as a receptionist at Weight Watchers. She also trained as a Weight Watchers leader so that she can help others develop a healthy lifestyle.

"Being in Weight Watchers keeps you focused on the way you want to go," Harrison said. "When I work there you hear how people are struggling, you keep focusing. That's why meetings are so important, it allows you to interact."

Another support that Harrison found to be very useful was Weight Watchers' Internet E-Tool.

"I bought some of their food but make my own," says Harrison, who does buy a Weight Watchers mini-chocolate caramel bar that she says satisfies her cravings for sweets. "That's because E-Tool has recipes you can use. Besides that, you can chat with other members and exchange recipes online. It's very supportive."

Harrison says Weight Watchers is not a diet, it's a lifestyle.

"It's fun going out now, you're not out of breath when you walk and you're not out of energy now," she says.

Janice Harrison

Age: 57

Height: 5'5"

Weight: 162

Pounds lost: 26

How long it took to lose it: 7 months

Clothes size: 14 or 16, now 10

The workout: Weight Watchers Point System

The diet: Weight Watchers is not a diet, it's a lifestyle

Tip: Eating the proper way by changing your eating habits.