Combine MFP & WW?

aplaw87

Has anyone had any experience or success doing a combination of counting calories with My Fitness Pal & the new Weight Watchers program with "free" foods?

For instance, do you think that it would be possible to lose weight if I set my calorie intake to 1200 (super low for me) BUT allow myself to have the "free" foods on WW without counting those? Fresh fruits, veggies, chicken breast, turkey, etc.

The only thing I did like about WW is that even when I was out of "points" I could still have the "free" foods so I was never hungry.

I tried doing WW but their app/system is just lacking so many foods & brands... I really prefer MFP but I loved the aspect of the free foods with WW.

Just curious if anyone else has had any success with this scenario & what base calories they use if so.

Thanks in advance:)

yirara

Depends on you of course. I mainly eat those things that are free on WW, which means if I'd not count I would gain weight. What's wrong with weighing everything and using a reasonable weight loss goal? MFP is free after all.

aplaw87

yirara wrote: »

Depends on you of course. I mainly eat those things that are free on WW, which means if I'd not count I would gain weight. What's wrong with weighing everything and using a reasonable weight loss goal? MFP is free after all.

It's mental lol! For me I think it's more of the freedom of not ever completely "running out" of food allowances. If I have "free" options even when I run out of calories I can still have something without blowing it for that day.

lnmalachi8795

Hi! I am also a WW member. I just joined MFP about 15 minutes ago. I really loved WW Blue. I am only trying MFP because last week I went to a weight loss clinic and the doctor suggest I used it. So far it seems like everything I love about WW app MFP also offer .

mom22dogs

The thing about the "free" foods is they really aren't free. They still have calories, and if you eat enough of them, will put you over your calories.

nanastaci2020

It depends on your stats.

Let's say your TDEE (considering BMR, daily activity, and exercise) is 2000 and you want to lose 1 pound per week. You could eat 1500, or you could eat 1200 + 300 in 'free foods'. Either way works.

If you want to use 'free foods' then allow some calories for them, and be aware that they still have calories so eat in moderation.

cwolfman13

As an aside, I can understand why WW would make veggies and fruit "free" in an effort to get people to eat more of those things...I don't quite get how chicken is "free" though. I grill a lot of chicken and typically serve myself a good 6 ounces or so with dinner...that's around 275 calories right there. Not super calorie dense, but definitely not "free" or even close to being "free".

Also, WW can make things "free" with their point system because their point system has no direct correlation to the actual calories in those foods. Some foods are inflated with WW points relative to their actual calories and others are deflated or "free". When I logged, I was pretty loose with veg and fruit, but I did log something...they have calories and your body is going to count those calories regardless of whether or not you're actually logging them.

Whether it works for you are not to count these things as "free" is really going to depend on how much they eat into your calorie deficit. If you are logging 1200 calories of other stuff and not logging fruit or veg but that fruit and veg is adding up to a significant number of calories, it's going to slow down weight loss, particularly if your NEAT or TDEE isn't all that high...but again, that's going to be very individual. I have a relatively high TDEE so not paying a ton of attention to my veg and fruit wasn't ever a huge deal. YMMV.

sijomial

cwolfman13 wrote: »

As an aside, I can understand why WW would make veggies and fruit "free" in an effort to get people to eat more of those things...I don't quite get how chicken is "free" though. I grill a lot of chicken and typically serve myself a good 6 ounces or so with dinner...that's around 275 calories right there. Not super calorie dense, but definitely not "free" or even close to being "free".

Came home one day to find my son cooking on the BBQ.
What are you cooking?
- Chicken.
What kind of chicken?
- A whole chicken.
Have you got friends coming round then?
- No, it's just for me.



"For instance, do you think that it would be possible to lose weight if I set my calorie intake to 1200 (super low for me) BUT allow myself to have the "free" foods on WW without counting those? Fresh fruits, veggies, chicken breast, turkey, etc."

Yes it's possible if 1200 plus your free foods adds up to less than your TDEE but that's an experiment you will have to run. If you invest a consistent month with this approach you will have your answer. It does address the mental/emotional side of dieting and is a very personalised approach which I think are two definate "pros", the "con" is lack of accuracy but if that doesn't matter so much to you it's not a problem.

WW and calorie counting both work for some people (but not others) so don't see why a hybrid wouldn't also work for some people. If you are one of the some it doesn't matter that it wouldn't work for others.

freda666

Personally, I found counting calories for all the food I eat - be it lettuce and cucumber or fish and meats or grains - has allowed me to get a feel for how much of each I 'can' eat.

My Mum did Slimming World and I was looking at her booklet and peas for example are "free". I have a 100g portion most days for around 90 calories but before I started this would have cheerfully eaten a portion twice that size. Same with chicken in that I will now eat a 125g portion for 150 calories rather than the twice that size I used to eat before I started this.

That is why "free" foods are a danger to my mind as even when the calories are 'low', whatever that might mean, I would be tempted to pile them on my plate without regard which of course is what got me to obese in the first place.

I also love dahl, lentil and onions and tomato cannot be high in calories, right? But it turns out I was eating 600 calories portions so now eat a portion half that size.