Weight watchers

jaymijones

NinaSharp wrote: »

deannalfisher wrote: »

so do you get more points to start off with, if they have removed the bonus exercise points? or do they just assume you don't eat back those calories

You get the points for excercise, but they tell you weirdly enough not to eat those.

That's not new, I remember being told that in 2009. It was "eat them. Unless you want to boost your weight loss, then don't eat them."

missmagnoliablossom

jaymijones wrote: »

NinaSharp wrote: »

deannalfisher wrote: »

so do you get more points to start off with, if they have removed the bonus exercise points? or do they just assume you don't eat back those calories

You get the points for excercise, but they tell you weirdly enough not to eat those.

That's not new, I remember being told that in 2009. It was "eat them. Unless you want to boost your weight loss, then don't eat them."

UGH. Yes, the double-talk.

songbird13291

I am using the older WW program, Points Plus, and I am also tracking here. There's a real correlation between calories and points on that program. Although -- the last two weeks I was over my points budget and still managed to lose weight, because I was within my calorie goals for the week.

There's a real disconnect between calories and points on the new program, which is why I quit when they introduced the new program.

WW has been having problems for awhile now, and it's not just the new program. It's the business model. $19 a week? Why spend that when you can use My Fitness Pal, or the app that came with your Fitbit, or a dozen other tracking apps, that are iethe free or very low cost.

CMNVA

songbird13291 wrote: »

I am using the older WW program, Points Plus, and I am also tracking here. There's a real correlation between calories and points on that program. Although -- the last two weeks I was over my points budget and still managed to lose weight, because I was within my calorie goals for the week.

There's a real disconnect between calories and points on the new program, which is why I quit when they introduced the new program.

WW has been having problems for awhile now, and it's not just the new program. It's the business model. $19 a week? Why spend that when you can use My Fitness Pal, or the app that came with your Fitbit, or a dozen other tracking apps, that are iethe free or very low cost.

I also feel like WW has to keep "reinventing" itself in order to continue to pull in money.

If they have a successful program that goes on too long, in the internet age, people have access to finding their materials unofficially and getting unofficial (free) support online. If they keep changing up their materials, calculators, philosophy, they at least get a boon every few years as it's hard to access the "new" material.

I really believe that their last program was their most successful, but so many people were able to do it without paying the fee that they probably saw a drop in revenue.

vxCricketxv

I did the WW thing many moons ago, where you had one points range to stay in. There were no pointsplus, no extra week points, just- here's your range and your calculator. It was simple and it worked. However, it was just a formula for counting calories and making sure you were eating fiber. Checked it out years later and it felt like they changed, like any business I suppose, to keep you more reliant on their system.

Mirlanda1

Look_Its_Kriss wrote: »

Sweet jesus.. =/
Thats sad, i had a co worker join them just 2-3 days ago.. $19 a week.. and shes ranting and raving about how it needs to be real for her or she wont do it.. yeah.. well... i kept my mouth shut for the most part.. but.. i honestly dont think anyone learns much of anything from the program to take with them if they ever cant afford to do it anymore... i had a co worker previous to this join and lose some weight but she stopped paying to go cause it was just too expensive.. she put 5 pounds back on since the summer, which is all fine and good, its not ALOT of weight but shes still over weight in general.. i would rather see someone LOSE 5 pounds since the summer on their own

Things I've learned from WW that I've carried with me for years even though I'm no longer willing to pay for the program...

- How to make reasonable choices at any type of restaurant.
- How to estimate portion sizes, with pretty good accuracy, when I'm away from home and can't measure (I actually test myself periodically, and I'm pretty darn close)
- That it's important to eat at least so much every day.
- Tools for dealing with cravings, including knowing when and how to indulge one.
- Which foods are more filling.
- Drink water.
- Exercise (so you can have desert)
- Desert ideas that don't blow your diet.
- Make sure you still eat dairy, protein, fiber, and healthy fats.
- Don't only worry about the scale. The scale on any particular day doesn't tell you how good or bad you're doing.
- Celebrate Non-Scale Victories.
- If you have a special occasion coming up, eat lighter ahead of time to "bank" some calories/points, then you can indulge a bit without going off plan.
- Going off plan one day is seldom a problem, it's when you use that day as an excuse to stay off plan. Brush yourself off, and get back on the saddle.
- The importance of mini goals (5%, 10 pounds, etc.)
- The joy that is club soda.
- Slow and steady wins the race.
- The importance of maintenance.

Before WW, every "diet" I tried was not at all sustainable, and some of them were downright dangerous. Could I have learned these things somewhere else? Probably. But I learned them from WW, and I'm not sure I would have learned they would be as ingrained in my brain if I learned them somewhere else.

voegele13

I was successful on WW back before they made the changes that assigned more points to certain foods. Now, the system they use just doesn't work for me. I am assigned 1200 calories a day on MFP. Even something as healthy as a large garden salad takes up 10% of that total, but on the current WW system, that salad would be assigned no points because it's a vegetable. And I find it annoying that WW keeps talking about "taking a stand" against unhealthy foods on behalf of all of us adults!

jaymijones

Knowing now how the newest program punishes "unhealthy foods" makes those new adds with Oprah all that more annoying. Talking about eating what you want while still losing weight is one thing, promising that you can, but punishing you when you do seems like false advertisement.

estherdragonbat

If I still had regular employment, I probably would have gone back to WW when my doctor told me to lose weight in September. It was the only program I knew that didn't mandate eating 'their special meals' (I know WW has their own foods, but it's not like Nutrisystem, etc. where you HAVE to buy it), wasn't a fad diet, and had a good track record. But I didn't and I told my doctor that I couldn't afford the fees. Best advice my doctor gave me was the obvious: "You don't need WW to lose weight." Keep in mind that a previous doctor had pushed WW as though it was my only option and it had never occurred to me to go elsewhere. Not sure what else to do, I went Googling online calorie counters and one of the first links that came up was MFP.

Truth be told, I feel like I've got a better attitude toward food than I did on WW. That could be me wising up and being honest with myself about not wanting to give up all junk food, desserts, etc. It could be all the forum threads, the straight-talk as well as the sympathy. It could be that MFP put me on more calories than I'd expected (though, to be fair, I'm also heavier than I ever was on WW and starting on 1200/day when you're 124 lbs overweight is probably a bad idea in most cases; 1710 was more my speed).

At this point, even if I had more disposable income, based on what I'm reading about the current program, I wouldn't go back to WW. But I might consider going premium on MFP...

djwar9858

I recently tried to join and they charged my card 8 times a day for 6 days!! Had to file a claim and close down my bank account. Customer services is an overseas call center and is a joke. No one answered at their corporate offices. Go figure. Glad now because I found MFP!!

Running_and_Coffee

I think it's great. I need the structure, though. Everyone's different. Honestly, if I could "spend" 1500 calories however I wanted to, I'd eat pancakes for breakfast, oatmeal for lunch and toast with butter for dinner, then enjoy a treat of a cupcake with a glass of wine. I need to be incentivized to eat protein and vegetables and fruit (because these are healthy ways to fuel your body, weight loss or no weight loss.) Eating the high protein/lower-sugar/high produce foods they push you towards for me means being less hungry and craving sweets less. If I had more discipline, maybe I could just rely on CICO or force myself to eat the foods WW advocates on my own, but alas, I'm lacking in that department.

You can easily change the settings to include activity points. The default is to track how many you earn but not make them your allowance, but you can change that if you want to.

can111

Oh boy ... of course everyone is different and will react different to different ways of eating. I have successfully lost weight through WW and even got to goal. The whole group-therapy approach is very effective for many people. Also facing that woman who weighs you and writes your weight down every week was super motivating for me. Over the years, having kids/working/busy busy, i gained everything back. Being too cheap I found MFP and follow my calories here. This actually appeals to me more but I learned some valuable tools and coping methods from WW. I still will comment 'is that point worthy?'. I have become more strict with myself and don't eat sugar or white flour. The whole "moderation" teaching of WW is just a slippery slope for me. BEST OF LUCK ON YOUR WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY, WHATEVER ROAD YOU CHOOSE!

GingerLark

I did WW 17 years ago and lost 38 pounds and made "lifetime" in about 5 months. Kept most of it off, have been on MFP for many years though not consistently. I gained about 10 lbs. back recently and started WW on my own again. The smart points plan works in the sense that it DOES focus your attention on sugar consumption. Yes, a calorie is a calorie.... but alot of times, people get overweight consuming large amounts of sugar that they don't seem to "see". By making high sugar items "high smart points", it draws attention to that. We know that sugar foods don't satisfy for very long, making you want to eat again, and thereby, calorie overage. The WW plan now puts protein in the limelight, which we all know is better nutrition and satisfaction for hunger than something sugar laden. I've dropped 9 pounds since Jan 1. And yes, there still are activity points. And yes, you can use them. I'm back to logging in MFP as I personally want to know my macros so I use my points each day more effectively. I'm never overly hungry anymore, eat regular food, more veggies and fruit than in the past, less coffee creamer, think about the cookie before I do or do not eat it... it's a good program if it works for you. For some it doesn't. I know people that can't get the hang of MFP for some reason. Some can just drink a "shake" for a meal and be happy (not me....) Whatever gets you moving, eating right, works for you, and makes you feel good about your self is a step in the right direction.

newheavensearth

Mirlanda1 wrote: »

Look_Its_Kriss wrote: »

Sweet jesus.. =/
Thats sad, i had a co worker join them just 2-3 days ago.. $19 a week.. and shes ranting and raving about how it needs to be real for her or she wont do it.. yeah.. well... i kept my mouth shut for the most part.. but.. i honestly dont think anyone learns much of anything from the program to take with them if they ever cant afford to do it anymore... i had a co worker previous to this join and lose some weight but she stopped paying to go cause it was just too expensive.. she put 5 pounds back on since the summer, which is all fine and good, its not ALOT of weight but shes still over weight in general.. i would rather see someone LOSE 5 pounds since the summer on their own

Things I've learned from WW that I've carried with me for years even though I'm no longer willing to pay for the program...

- How to make reasonable choices at any type of restaurant.
- How to estimate portion sizes, with pretty good accuracy, when I'm away from home and can't measure (I actually test myself periodically, and I'm pretty darn close)
- That it's important to eat at least so much every day.
- Tools for dealing with cravings, including knowing when and how to indulge one.
- Which foods are more filling.
- Drink water.
- Exercise (so you can have desert)
- Desert ideas that don't blow your diet.
- Make sure you still eat dairy, protein, fiber, and healthy fats.
- Don't only worry about the scale. The scale on any particular day doesn't tell you how good or bad you're doing.
- Celebrate Non-Scale Victories.
- If you have a special occasion coming up, eat lighter ahead of time to "bank" some calories/points, then you can indulge a bit without going off plan.
- Going off plan one day is seldom a problem, it's when you use that day as an excuse to stay off plan. Brush yourself off, and get back on the saddle.
- The importance of mini goals (5%, 10 pounds, etc.)
- The joy that is club soda.
- Slow and steady wins the race.
- The importance of maintenance.

Before WW, every "diet" I tried was not at all sustainable, and some of them were downright dangerous. Could I have learned these things somewhere else? Probably. But I learned them from WW, and I'm not sure I would have learned they would be as ingrained in my brain if I learned them somewhere else.

This is everything I learned from WW and why I still believe in it. So why am I here? Because I am smaller and the new points system is wacky. Members in my group have had their points lowered to below minimum (>30) to either maintain or continue losing. I need to count calories because 30 pts for me is either maintain or gain. I'm happy to report that I've lost 6 lbs over the last 2 weeks double tracking here and with WW.

I also miss donuts every now and then and Quest bars can't fill that void all the time. Almost the same calorie count, but 13 points for the donut but 4 for the bar? Come on.

labblb86

I started WW last year Feb, lost 58 pounds by November. I think it is a great program to lose weight, but MFP is better for maintaining.

descene

Once upon a time, WW was my most successful weight loss attempt and my favorite "diet" plan by far because it was more customizable and it didn't conflict with the beliefs I held about dieting, mainly that forbidding certain foods was counterproductive. I can't comment on the recent system, but I did it twice once on the really old system that just took into account fat, carbs, and protein, and once on points plus when they just introduced that one. I mean I've still lost more now on my own than back then but I think the most valuable part is the weekly weigh-ins and meetings. Contributes a sense of accountability, and every week you learn from someone who has lost a fair bit of weight and maintained it with the program. I prefer lone wolfing it now because I can't justify paying money for something like that.

cheryldumais

I used to believe in WW but they kept changing the program again and again. Seemed to me it was just a way to hook more people and sell products. The calculations for points became next to impossible to do on your own. I don't want to need a calculator to know how much food I have left for the day. Also you don't really learn anything because even if you did it would change again in the next iteration of the program. When they changed in 2016 I dropped my subscription and came here and lost 70 pounds for free! I paid for WW for years and years without losing more than 10 or 15 pounds. What a waste of time and money.

Treece68

$15 a week I remember it was $10 a month.

Treece68

storyjorie wrote: »

I think it's great. I need the structure, though. Everyone's different. Honestly, if I could "spend" 1500 calories however I wanted to, I'd eat pancakes for breakfast, oatmeal for lunch and toast with butter for dinner, then enjoy a treat of a cupcake with a glass of wine. I need to be incentivized to eat protein and vegetables and fruit (because these are healthy ways to fuel your body, weight loss or no weight loss.) Eating the high protein/lower-sugar/high produce foods they push you towards for me means being less hungry and craving sweets less. If I had more discipline, maybe I could just rely on CICO or force myself to eat the foods WW advocates on my own, but alas, I'm lacking in that department.

You can easily change the settings to include activity points. The default is to track how many you earn but not make them your allowance, but you can change that if you want to.

If you can fit all that into 1500 calories go for it nothing is stopping you, you are an adult. A few days eating like that you may think hmm I need some veg and protein I feel a little sick from all this sweet.