Weight watchers

Has anyone tried weight watchers? If i dont go through with this diet (im givin myself one last chance!) im joining weight watchers. So far i been doin pretty good...but i usually do good for the first 3 weeks with WONDERFULL success (why i stop? i dont know)

Success stories with weight watchers??? what is it like??

weight watchers uses the same idea as calorie counting except that it tries to make it easier for you by assigning the "points" to all the foods based on their caloric value. It is much less accurate than straight up calorie counting but that may be good or bad depending on what different people like. You will get more structure, less options, instruction on exactly how to manage your points, etc. And it encourages you to eat all the veggies you want because many of them are no points.

I totally agree with 4theloss.

I also have found through personal experience that WW does not neccesarily teach you the best skills to maintain a healthy lifestyle. I found that in meetings most of the advice was centered around fitting in the foods that you love (ie. icecream, guacamole etc). It was either making "healthier" versions of the bad foods. There was never ANY emphasis on proper balance in your meals. Never talk about the amount of carbs, salt, sugar and processed foods you should be eating. Perhaps its the city I live in.

I really think a lifestyle change is about totally understand what you eat and what you should be eating.

Original Post by leahhh:

I totally agree with 4theloss.

I also have found through personal experience that WW does not neccesarily teach you the best skills to maintain a healthy lifestyle. I found that in meetings most of the advice was centered around fitting in the foods that you love (ie. icecream, guacamole etc). It was either making "healthier" versions of the bad foods. There was never ANY emphasis on proper balance in your meals. Never talk about the amount of carbs, salt, sugar and processed foods you should be eating. Perhaps its the city I live in.

I really think a lifestyle change is about totally understand what you eat and what you should be eating.

 Very true you need a system that teachs you how to eat and weight watchers does not do this.

Chris

Weight watcher is good. I lost a lot of weight on weight watchers. It is just like doing low calorie only you kind of get credit for fiber. I did not like the meetings but they do help some people. As far as them teaching you to fit in foods you like, you could do that with low calorie as well. If you can understand low calorie, low fat, high fiber, high nutirents you can save the money and just do low calorie.

Thanks for hte info. I've been trying to stay away from it. But basically i really need someone to get after me...my fiance has been doin' a wonderfull job at it haha! i Honestly think he enjoys roustin my butt up in the AM and draggin' me to the gym :-)

Only reason i asked is i know a girl who lost like 20 lbs on it last i heard. Of course she is very obese so it probably came off a little quicker

I am on WW and have been on it since july 31st and love it I think its the most wonderful, easy thing ever. I have lost 28lbs im 5'1 187lbs right now. And it is alot like counting calories only for me it feels as tho its come easier.

Good luck!

I have a good friend who lost 70lbs on the point system at WW. She has kept 60 of it off for the past three years.

Just like everything, it depends on the person.

I'm a former member of WW and the only reason I'm not still attending is because of the $$.  I thought all my leaders were great and would take time after class to talk to you if you had questions that wern't asked in meetings.  Every week you received a pamplet that explained each element of weight loss (fats, carbs, calories, exercise, rest, etc.)  I never left a meeting feeling that I wasn't "getting it".  There are the two plans:  1-you count points & 2-you don't.  I needed the structure of counting points and occasionally go back to my CC logs and see how it translates to points.  Most of the time it's within one or two, however your points are flexible (some days you just need more food!), and they're there for you to add to your normal point level.  They do not recommend going below your determined point allocation (I.E. don't under eat!) as we all know that leads us to starvation mode joined by frustration .  If I could afford to go to WW I would still be going AND using CC for the additional support.  Your WW leaders aren't with you at 2:00 a.m. when you just gotta have that bag of chips in your pantry, but theres thousands of CC members who are.  Good luck

One more thought--I have found from past experience any help offered by a spouse or significant other can lead to resentment.  Especially if their message of encouragement is something like.  "You're so fat, you need to lose weight because you're embarassing to be seen with".  (And he wonders why he's an ex.)

Original Post by mommakitty:

One more thought--I have found from past experience any help offered by a spouse or significant other can lead to resentment.  Especially if their message of encouragement is something like.  "You're so fat, you need to lose weight because you're embarassing to be seen with".  (And he wonders why he's an ex.)

 Oh my gosh, thats horrible!!! thats when i'd come back to the same guy with my new "banging bod" and be like "WHAT NOW?!?!?!" haha.

I'm just glad my man is super great about it. I put on 20 some lbs in college and he put on like nothing!! So he has told me he doesnt think i need to loose weight because who do i need to impress? He tells me he loves me no matter what and will support me and help me if it makes me happy. Glad i have that kind of support.

I am doing weight watchers right now.  And I LOVE it!  For some reason, for me, it is easier to count points then calories and doesn't make me as crazy over food as I am calorie counting.  And I don't fill myself up on junk either which a person can do either on WW or counting calories. 

I do WW on my own. I cannot afford to go, I think the cost is utterly insane to go step on a scale every week!  If I had the money mind you I would go just for morale support.  My friend goes to the meetings, she has gone from 220 to 180lbs in about 3 months and she looks fab.  She says the key is to always eat your points plus your activity points to get the best results.  My three cousins did it before one of their weddings and they all lost quite a bit of weight.  My cousin that got married got really really thin on it.  A girl at work has lost 24lbs in a little over a month mind you she's got alot to lose.

I won't weigh myself until my annual physical because I get too stressed about scale numbers and really discouraged if the number has barely moved.  I go by my clothes and when people start to comment on how thin I'm looking. 

Have you ever looked at the label on any of the WW foods?? I have yet to see a product that is not processed junk. I would not call any of the WW foods "healthy". Most of them are also loaded with sugar. Amazed me.

hi,

I read your post, you said you do weight watchers on your own?

What do you mean? I'm planning on joining, but am not interested in going to meeting and I can't afford the costs either.

So, is there cost for doing it on your own?

If so, could you tell me what it is?

Thanks!

CC will work if you work it, so will weight watchers. I lost 20lbs on WW but the money for the meetings was just too much and not worth it anymore, yes it helped because i had to weigh in front of people and i didn't ever wanna gain cause i'd be embarrsed. So now I'm working CC and it's just as good if not better than WW and also free which is wonderful!

If you need someone on you about sticking to the plan maybe get another friend who would like to diet with you and meet at least once a week to weigh in with other eachother and maybe you could exerise and such together. I did this with a friend for a while but she gave up. It was great while it lasted though. It's better having a friend to do it with. It def made walking and exerising fun!

Weight Watchers Core Plan is pretty much the same as the YOU on a Diet: A guide to Waist Management.  I love them both.  The big difference for me between them is WW cost money for the meetings and The YOU I used CC to get the same thing.  They both work great if you stick with it because they make you feel full, satisfied, and don't have cravings for all the carbs and sugars. 

My down fall is when I get to goal and start easing off of them I start adding foods back that start my cycle of cravings all over again... then I gain the weight, then I go back on it and lose the weight, then start adding them back and start my cycle all over again.  You would think one would learn wouldn't you?!  They both have taught me good habits that I have stuck with, it makes the difference of gaining some of the weight back vs. if I would have gained all the weight back.

I don't like the Flex point plan.  It takes more points to eat healthy foods like chicken than skinny cow so I would choice the bad foods.  Sure I was still losing but I was eating unhealthy and not practicing good food choices.

Hey Kris

You can do weight watchers online for about 15 bucks a month.  You don't have meetings but there are forums like here.  I couldn't do WW cause I was starving.  Even when I ate all my activity points and weeklies.  It made me sick to the point of scaring my family.  Just be careful and listen to your body.

Yes, I was hungry on the Flex points as well.  You get all the food you need to feel satisfied with the Core plan and the list is really big to pick off of.  You just use 35 points a week for any of the special events (like Birthdays, going out to a business lunch, pizza night, etc...).  I really liked this plan.  It's just like the YOU diet except that with the YOU I don't have to pay for it.  I just use CC for my support system.  I love it here.  I joined in 2006.

I know this thread hasn't been active for a few months, but I wanted to chip in.

I just joined WW again today. I am losing weight for so many reasons, but the main one is because I am graduating and it will soon be time for me to audition for ballet companies. I have anywhere between 40-60 lbs to lose (I can't know for sure until I get there.)

Anyway, WW has recently adopted their new "Momentum" plan -- basically it does what many of the above posters said it doesn't. It encourages you to eat healthier foods, which they call Filling Foods; they also do not encourage anyone to eat just their food that you can buy. However, for many people, losing weight is hard because they miss the foods they like. So WW uses the concept of bringing alternatives for what you might like even though it's not necessarily as healthy as, say, drinking a can of V8. It's still healthier for a lot of people to lose the weight.

The cool thing about WW is that it holds you really accountable. My favorite part is that today I didn't feel ready to see my weight, so I asked the lady not to tell me. They write it down in your pamphlet, but you don't have to know the number. So you can keep track of your weight change rather than an actual number until you feel ready. For me, that helps because on Tuesday I am starting ballet again for this year and I know that if I saw a number that got me all dissapointed, I would have a very difficult time doing well and focusing in ballet class. It's more important for me to do well in class than know a number.

So it's almost like you are losing weight but you're not doing it all by yourself. I feel like I don't have to worry as much. And that, my friends, is SO important. For me, at least...there is a huge difference in how I feel and act when I am "free" and happy vs. stressed, worried, and restrained!

One last thing: people gain their weight back after WW because they didn't stay on the plan. The plan includes maintanence. They encourage you to keep coming to the meetings after you reach your goal weight. If you get a lifetime membership (you get it by meeting certain, easy, criteria such as reaching your GW and maintaining it) you go for free. It's actually a birlliant idea to motivate and help people keep off the weight they lost. And if you are willing to make the lifestyle change, it will work.

I do like CC, though -- the main reason I am doing WW is because my mother convinced me to try it for a month or two because she thinks it'll help me get the start I need. I still use this to sometimes track my calories and because it's one of the best resources.

I think that personally I'm a CCer and it's like I'm just trying WW to see if I like my results. Ultimately, I do plan on doing my own thing again (counting calories, etc.)

I hope I provided another perspective and some further insight on what WW really does encourage!