Good news this week. Another .9kg (1.9lb) gone. I'd dropped 1.8kg (3.9lb) two weeks ago while I had a virus. Then I'd put 1kg (2.2lb) back on last week. Now it appears I've lost most of that again. Hoorah!

Unfortunately, my WW leader has some virus thing this week and so we got a substitute leader. Which brings me to a very important point. Ladies, I respect that you have lost weight and have maintained it for x years. However, this does NOT qualify you as a public speaker...

I know what I'm talking about. I am a public speaker. I have presented all over Australia and in the US. I'm a fully qualified trainer as well. I know what makes a good presenter. And I know what makes a shocking presenter.

Unfortunately, the only qualification you seem to need to be a WW leader is the ability to maintain your weight loss. When leaders are good, they are very, very good. When they are bad, they are positively toxic.

Today's substitute was a batty old thing who did not have her notes prepared and waffled on and on, repeating herself and offering nothing new to the group. I respect that it is intimidating presenting in front of a new group, but still, scout motto--BE PREPARED.

Being prepared does not mean printing off a couple of pages, sticking them on the wall and reading from them. We, the audience, can read them just fine. We don't need you to read them for us. Give us some insight. Teach us something new. Inspire us.

Sound like a big ask? I don't think so. Think about what these women are really trying to do. They are trying to inspire huge changes in your lifestyle. They are trying to motivate you to change the way you think. This is not for the faint-hearted or the poorly prepared. This is an important job and needs to be taken seriously.

My regular leader, Katherine, is an utter goddess. You don't hear her spouting arrant nonsense such as 'muscle weighs more than fat'. She studies. She researches. She knows her stuff. If she doesn't know the answer, she doesn't flutter nervously, fob you off and move onto the next bullet point. She promises to find out for you. And next week, she tells you.

She's smart, she's savvy and she doesn't toe the political line. She'll happily bag the Weight Watcher's products she didn't like or didn't find useful.

Better yet, she's a foodie. She understands my need to not eat the shitty Weight Watcher's chocolate bars, that I would rather save myself for something worth eating, like a Lindt ball. Her husband is French and she knows her way around a kitchen.

I've been to many different meetings and I've seen many different leader styles. It is a personal thing, of course, but it would be so much easier if these women were formally trained and qualified to do what it is they are trying to do.

You wouldn't ask medical advice from a stranger who'd just gotten over a cold, would you?