MFP vs. WW

ChickenKillerPuppy
ChickenKillerPuppy Posts: 297 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
About 10 years ago I lost about 50 pounds on WW and mostly kept it off (as long as I was recording) for the past 10 years, periodically gaining about 20 of the pounds back and then starting the program again and losing it and getting to goal.

Over the past 16 months I gained back about 30 pounds and I just wasn’t feeling motivated or successful on WW the few times I tried to get it started again (I think all the free foods meant a lack of accountability for me and frankly I just felt bored with the program). I decided to start MFP two weeks ago and I am REALLY enjoying it and so far so good with the weight loss.

I find it so interesting to notice how being on MFP is different than WW - some things I like more, some things are harder to get used to, but I was going to share some of my observations and am curious about what those who have tried both think:

- I love that on MFP I can eat carbs without being heavily penalized. On WW there was a weighted formula for points that steered you away from carbs bc they were so point heavy (artificially).

- Along those same lines, I love that so many foods are available to me because they may be a reasonable calorie amount, but they would have had a high point value and been not worth it

- I find it tedious (but worth it) to have to log EVERYTHING (every cup of coffee, piece of gum, packet of Splenda). Because of all the free foods on WW, all those fruits and vegetables didn’t need to be logged, but now every time I eat an apple or cut up a pepper I have to weigh it

- Despite what I just wrote above, I do like how MFP makes me much more aware of my serving sizes of fruit and vegetables! I often have a half an apple instead of a whole, or avoid bananas bc they have more calories than I realized

- I love how MFP breaks down the macros/nutrition stuff. I am learning so much more about my habits. I’m excited to really track and watch for 6 weeks or so to see what combinations work for me to lose, maintain, etc.

- I do find that bc I learned to lose weight on WW my diet tends to be protein heavy and carb light

Replies

  • Remoth
    Remoth Posts: 117 Member
    I dont really count absolutely everything I eat in a day, just the things that are calorically or nutritionally significant. If my dish has a few small pieces of a veggie that doesnt amount to much, I dont bother with it. Next to 0 calorie foods like diet soda and splenda I dont track unless I'm curious about how much I consume. Artificial sweeteners have very little nutritional value and dont add much of anything of value to your logs.

    Unfortunately, unless you have an amazing talent for eyeballing portion sizes and knowing when to stop eating, logging and adjustments based on recording your diet are how controlling your body works. Many "diets" try to skip the whole logging part by simply cutting out certain calorie-dense foods, or entire macros. Logging is a way of acquiring data of the process of what made you the weight/size/and shape that you are. This data is then used to change your way of eating to get the results you want. Without knowing what is causing you to gain weight, control is much harder.
  • liz0269
    liz0269 Posts: 139 Member
    I joined WW for the first time the end of March. After one month, I have decided it's not for me for all of the reasons you mentioned.
    I do best with a high carb low fat diet and that just doesn't work with WW.
    I did like the accountability. That's why I joined.
    I am figuring out how to get that accountability elsewhere like these forums and a HCLF group that I am in on Facebook.
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    I've never tried WW so I can't compare the two really, but what I like about counting calories is that it reflects reality. I know WW works for a lot of people but I don't like how they put inflated point values on certain foods and no points on other foods. I shouldn't be penalized for choosing some food option that WW has determined is "not healthy"
  • mph323
    mph323 Posts: 3,565 Member
    liz0269 wrote: »
    I joined WW for the first time the end of March. After one month, I have decided it's not for me for all of the reasons you mentioned.
    I do best with a high carb low fat diet and that just doesn't work with WW.
    I did like the accountability. That's why I joined.
    I am figuring out how to get that accountability elsewhere like these forums and a HCLF group that I am in on Facebook.

    I'm in maintenance and find posting in a maintenance accountability thread really helpful. There's a thread running in the Motivation and Support forum that's focused on any type of goals that I sometimes follow (without posting in my case) that I think is really supportive. You might check it out and see if it's something you might like to participate in.

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10714976/just-for-today-one-day-at-a-time-daily-commitment-thread-for-2019/p1

    Very best of luck :)

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