Counting Calories vs Weight Watchers - opinions please!

traut101202

Hi everyone! I'm a lifelong yo-yo'er and keep going between Weight Watchers and MFP. I don't know why I can't commit to one or the other. That's why I'm coming here - I'd like to hear what has worked for you. I know I need to make my mind up and pick one or the other. I lose 5-10lbs, have a bad weekend or week...gain it all back...and then say to myself - oh, let me try the other one. Enough is enough! Thanks for your thoughts!

jlahorn

You've tried both. Which is easier for you to follow?

amandatapar

I've never done weight watchers. But I love this site. It makes counting calories pretty simple and keeps me on track. I mainly use it on my phone though. I have lost 79.2 pounds in 9 months with this site and have 3.8 more pounds to go to my goal weight. Also this site is free and weight watchers is not.

LoriIAM

Why can't you do both? Whatever works for you the best is the best for you.

maffff

Doesn't 0.1 of a weight watcher point = 10 calories. Whilst they peddle you to buy their sugar loaded crap?

So effectively you're still counting calories. and being sold crap.

BernadetteChurch

MFP over WW any day for me.

I believe WW still has free foods? Even if it's all fruit and veg it still has calories and can take you way over what you need to be eating each day to lose weight.

I find MFP gives me the freedom to eat whatever I want, as long as I moderate my portions. With WW I was always fretting about how many points I had left and how to use them, and it was always a struggle.

Also, MFP is free. If you find yourself some nice friends their support will be really helpful, and the forums are always there for useful information.

But what it comes down to is what you can stick with. And only you can decide that.

ChaplainHeavin

I was actually just telling my wife this morning about this site. I never had any idea how many calories I was consuming, even if I had a salad. Using the calorie counter I realized my salad dressing was 300 some calories alone. I'm one of those who only need to lose 5-7 pounds but never did because I didn't think I was eating too much. So, I count my calories, allow one weekend day to eat whatever I want (without overkill) am I losing the weight.

DesireeNL

I did WW for several years and never got to a healthy BMI. I could stick with their program for several months at a time, but I'd always get to a point where it was so hard to get through the day on my points budget. After finding MFP I realized how little I had been eating on WW. 1000-1100 calories a day on WW versus the 1500-1600 I eat on MFP. My BMI is around 23 now.

stephy244

I'm doing both right now. I like how WW gives me the freedom to eat while keeping me within a certain realm and I keep track on here the amount of calories I'm actually consuming. I was using MFP for a long time and was able to lose over 50lbs. But because I was only counting calories, I took that as a free for all, ate whatever I wanted just as long as I was keeping within a certain amount of calories. However because of this I was still eating fast food and the weight would either creep back up a pound or two every couple of weeks or just stalling all together (had hit terrible plateaus several times) . And the first time I had tried doing WW (and not using mfp) I ended up stopping 10 days in because I was always so hungry and getting tired of constantly figuring out the points. But this time around I'm doing both and am able to work between the two and make it work for me. 23 days in and still going!

I would say for you, perhaps trying both for a little bit?

twixlepennie

There's a way to set up your MFP food diary to track WW points. That way you can do both (for free)

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/822197-how-to-track-weight-watchers-points-on-mfp?hl=how+to+add+weight+watchers+points

amandatapar

I've never done weight watchers. But I love this site. It makes counting calories pretty simple and keeps me on track. I mainly use it on my phone though. I have lost 79.2 pounds in 9 months with this site and have 3.8 more pounds to go to my goal weight. Also this site is free and weight watchers is not.

kdub67

MFP over WW any day for me.

I believe WW still has free foods? Even if it's all fruit and veg it still has calories and can take you way over what you need to be eating each day to lose weight.

I find MFP gives me the freedom to eat whatever I want, as long as I moderate my portions. With WW I was always fretting about how many points I had left and how to use them, and it was always a struggle.

Also, MFP is free. If you find yourself some nice friends their support will be really helpful, and the forums are always there for useful information.

But what it comes down to is what you can stick with. And only you can decide that.

^^This!

I've done WW online and by going to meetings...Yes, it works, but I think it's more of a hassle than just counting calories. For me, that has worked much better. Having been on MFP for 15 months and at goal for 11 months, this has more staying power in my world. WW was just a pain, honestly. And yes, their pre-packaged processed foods are super easy, but they are pretty much crap nutritionally. I'm not saying I don't pop a 300 calorie frozen dinner in the microwave once a month or so just out of ease, but I try hard not to. Good luck in making your decision...my vote is MFP all the way!

shortcurls

I did WW during my undergrad and I did lose a few pounds, but I couldn't always find time for the meetings and weigh-ins and the monthly fee was a bit much for me at the time. I found MFP after college and lost more weight with it. For me, I find calorie counting easier.

blopez579

I did WW for years. But I went to the meetings. To me, that was the value in WW. I had an incredible leader, who really taught well. She taught the WW strategies for dealing with food, relatives, sabotage, taking care of yourself, excuses, and so much more. I use those lessons every day.
As far as trackers go, I'm loving MFP, and the way it synchs with FitBit.

Serah87

MFP, see ticker below. :bigsmile:

schonsdragon

I have done WW but for me I have found that I need to count calories and make sure that I am eating a balanced diet. I can not have free foods because I need the accountablitiy that every food has a cost and to have to decide is that food worth it. Does that mean I never eat junk food? No, I do eat it once in a while but that is part of life and when I do I refuse to feel guilty about it. I am trying to find a balance by keeping things in moderation.

pensarepink

I had a lot of success with Weight Watchers ten years ago using their Winning Points program. I dropped 75 pounds, became a lifetime member and maintained that for three years. Then my life got very stressful and I gained back all of the weight and then some. Since that time I have re-joined five or seven times and have never had the success I did originally. It's some combination of a new program (Momentum, Core, PointsPlus) to master plus the whole corporate vibe. Not to mention the expense. (Don't get me started on the whole ActiveLink product with subscription fees.) I found the meetings got to be very slick and commercialized with members talking about how hard it was to get in their water for the day (sigh) or what new frozen dinner was the lowest in points and BTW nearly expired snack-bars are on sale this week. I couldn't relate to it anymore. I no longer wanted to count points. I no longer wanted to have my nutritional intake "hidden" despite tracking. I no longer wanted to pay out all that money when I wasn't getting anything out of it except feeling like a failure because I couldn't jump on the corporate bus.

With counting calories on MFP I feel a lot more informed about what I'm eating. I can clearly see my macro and micro-nutrients for the day and week--this is all hidden from you in WW. I feel I'm no longer punished for having food that is not low-fat. Avocados are a good example of the fat punishment. Half a medium avocado would cost me 5 points (quite a bit when you're having that half an avocado as guacamole in addition to a full Mexican meal that may be 7-9 points in itself). With MFP I simply log my 150 calories and I can get on with my day without feeling I have to eat zero-point soup all day to be able to afford a healthy-fat condiment. I like the option to be able to eat full-fat dairy or use a whole tablespoon of olive oil in my cooking. I've never had much success sauteing onions in a non-stick skillet with a couple bursts of cooking-spray.

I basically feel much more in control and informed by counting calories. It seems to be working for me where all those reattempts at WW didn't.

bentobee

When I first started my weight loss I signed up with WW. I liked the program. I had immediate success on the program. I only looked elsewhere bc my husband was also interested in doing it, and one WW subscription was expensive enough, two was going to strain our budget. So looking around I found MFP and got my husband set up with it, and to encourage him I began to log at MFP too, still doing WW. I found that when I was out of WW points for the day, I was also hitting my MFP calorie limit. So for ME, the two programs were similar enough that I felt I could drop WW and just go on with MFP (for free!).

I think I found the two programs similar because I tend to choose healthier foods anyway. Lean meats, whole grains, greens and some fruit….these are things that WW doesn't "charge" a lot of points for, so the calorie equivalent was on par. If you are someone who wants to eat a lot of junk, then that's where WW can help because they really start penalizing you for very sugary and fatty things, from what I observed. For someone completely ignorant of nutrition WW can help keep you in line.

I got really tired of calculating points. It's just faster and easier to look at the nutrition label and read calories. This was especially troubling if I ate out and was trying to calculate points for restaurant meals. Sometimes I could find calories listed somewhere, but the macros would be a secret and therefore I couldn't calculate the points for it. It also seemed WW's database was so lacking. I was constantly having to enter in items, whereas MFP's database seems to have every single thing and I rarely ever have to enter in a new food.

What I did like about WW was the weekly flex points and how you can bank activity points for use during the week. My body really responds well to doing the "zig zag" thing and the weekly set-up of WW made that really easy to organize. MFP's daily set-up makes it really difficult.

WalkingAlong

Both have their plusses.

WW can be done for free, without meetings or Etools, of course.

WW can be a bit less tracking, due to free produce.

WW can lead to healthier choices, due to free produce and how points favor high fiber, low fat foods.

WW has a strong education component. (MFP has a strong misinformation component, in my opinion.)

WW can be 'gamed', you can overeat on it.

WW is very conservative at the moment, with most members eating over 1800 calories daily.

ScottH_200

I looked at joining WW, they seemed pretty spendy to me.

I downloaded the MFP app for free, have been using it religiously to track my daily caloric intake for a couple of mos now. I come here daily for support and it's great. I eat whatever I want within my daily caloric goal. Most of the time I don't eat back the additional calories I burn through exercise, just not that hungry for it most of the time.

I also joined TOPS (taking off pounds sensibly) for $29 a year and attend a weekly meeting that includes a weigh-in and additional support. The meetings are kind of corny, but the older gray haired ladies are really nice to me ;-)

78carriejohanna

I tried WW a few times and years ago lost 30 pounds, but then gained it back. I tried a few times in the last few years but didn't like how they changed the programs everytime I went to join. I finally gave up and then found MFP this year. It has worked for me. It's hard but I like the more detailed break out, like you want to lose this much, this is how many calories less you have to eat and the per week loss is realistic. Also seeing how much sugar, fat, carbs, calories ect I should eat per day helps too. MFP is free which is nice. I would keep trying both and see after a month or two which one seems to make sense with your lifestyle, even though your not sure which one yet at least your working on your health and that is what does matter. Good Luck!!

JakeMcl2013

I would go with the least expensive option. My Fitness Pal has really helped me keep track of what i'm eating while also telling me how to do better, and the best thing ITS FREE. Weight Watchers is expensive, at least too expensive for me in the long run.

WendyTerry420

Doesn't 0.1 of a weight watcher point = 10 calories. Whilst they peddle you to buy their sugar loaded crap?

So effectively you're still counting calories. and being sold crap.

"Sugar loaded crap?"



:laugh: :laugh:

kbeaumont88

I'm currently doing both. I started MFP in March and lost 25 pounds till August when I just stopped losing. I tried playing with my calories and changing my workouts and nothing was seeming to work. I joined WW a few weeks ago and the weight is slowing starting to go down again. I'm continuing to track my calories so that I can see where I should be at. One thing that opened my eyes is that some days I would go to Mcdonalds for breakfast because it fit in my calories, at about 600 for the meal... but when I looked up the points it was 21 (out of my daily 26)... made me realize that by doing WW it could help me make better choices for my calories.

Hope it continues to work for me... but I plan to track both ways until I reach my goal weight.

Juliane_

I'm currently doing both. I started MFP in March and lost 25 pounds till August when I just stopped losing. I tried playing with my calories and changing my workouts and nothing was seeming to work. I joined WW a few weeks ago and the weight is slowing starting to go down again. I'm continuing to track my calories so that I can see where I should be at. One thing that opened my eyes is that some days I would go to Mcdonalds for breakfast because it fit in my calories, at about 600 for the meal... but when I looked up the points it was 21 (out of my daily 26)... made me realize that by doing WW it could help me make better choices for my calories.

Hope it continues to work for me... but I plan to track both ways until I reach my goal weight.

I keep a lookout on my points for this very reason. Both systems have their advantages and disadvantages. I think there has to be a strategy to your method but whatever you choose to do, the premise is the same: burn more calories than you eat but don't starve yourself either.

I've done WW for years since Winning Points I believe around 2001. I lost all my pregnancy weight and kept it off for years even through a pregnancy. I survived it. I bounced right back. This time around I wasn't so lucky but I'm also dealing with thyroid issues and find that my metabolism is slower. this may also be a combination with the fact that I have a desk job so my life is very sedentary.

I battled for a while torn between Momentum and MFP. MFP is just so easy to log your foods and maintain a diary but I felt I always needed to know how many points I had consumed. Planning how many points per meal keeps me focused and gives me a game plan if you will on my use of points throughout the day so that I don't exceed myself too early in the day. You got to leave some calories for dinner.

I also have a fitbit and I enjoy it very much. I have it setup to give me a deficit number on MFP. -500 calorie deficit = 1 lb in a week. So I'm focusing on a daily deficit of 1000-500 calories daily. My strategy will also be to cycle my calories up and down but not to exceed 1300 (based on my TDEE of 1532). You always want a calorie deficit from food but the remainder of your calorie deficit should come from exercise. In addition I can view points on the website with a plugin I installed so I started adding on the notes section how many points I ate that day. I plan to use that information so when I'm on maintenance I can "play" around with the flex points a bit more for special occassions and ball park how much I'm eating. Points is great at estimating and portioning your foods on special events. It's much easier for me to think in smaller numbers rather than hundreds.

You have to play around with it and find your strategy. Once you find your strategy stick with it and you won't bounce back and forth.

Naaer

My two cents worth...
I lost twenty pounds on WW in 2012...I, also, gained all of it back after quitting the program because of the expense...I, also, went to meetings, and , I agree, they teach you a lot of good things about health, and weight loss, in particular...But, it ultimately didn't work for me because I got tired of paying for it after a year! MFP IS FREE! To me, this is a no-brainer...And counting calories makes plenty of sense, as well as getting enough exercise...To each his own, but I say, MFP all the way!!!


Reaan:bigsmile:

eldamiano

Weight watchers charges the earth for half baked services and rip off products. Counting calories doesnt.