Weight Watchers vs MyFitnessPal

Rozlynmac

I have a co-worker friend who has tried WW in the past. I got her to join MFP and she says she likes it so much better. Easier to follow, easier recipe area and best thing its FREE. A few other co-workers have tried to talk her into joing WW again and she refuses. Tells them that MFP is so much better!

I am totally addicted to this site! I can't get enough of it. I find myself coming on here so many times during the day to see how my MFPFriends are doing on their exercise and food.. And I LOVE the forums! They are great!

Easier Recipe area? Where's that? I've never been able to find any recipes except when people stick one in a thread or blog post.

priescm

I also did WW for a bit.
The biggest reason I am not a huge fan is because WW is not a realistic lifestyle approach to me. You have to continuously calculate points values for what you are eating...and sure, you get to know how many points your common foods are, but homemade meals just aren't realistic.
At least with MFP, I can always calculate calories without needing a special calculator. I agree that it really is a waste of money.

LTGPSA

I've done both. I became a Lifetime WW member back in the 80's - my first time around - and then thru the following years went back at least 4x - point being it didn't work for me as far as keeping the weight off. The biggest thing with me regarding WW is they (the last times I went there) are focused around "fat free" and I am not. To each their own, but MFP has been an easy tool to use with great success! Best of luck to all of you on whatever healthy journey you choose to take. :flowerforyou:

cramernh

Well said...I agree 100% and I've done both!

Im not a fan of WW because it lacks the ability to track things for people with dietary restriction (medical issues). I 'get' how they calculate things but... they are so late in the game for configuring carbohydrates into the daily intake.. Its almost become like a fad "based on the low glycemic index" that WW now calculates carbs into the formula...

Just give me MFP: Massive Food Porn

NELSAL

I have tried WW and also Nutrisystem and had some success but guess what... the weight came back! This time I am doing MFP and also trying the Beyond diet where I am slowly eliminating all processed foods and sugar. I feel so much better it is unbelievable. I don't have stomach or gastric problems like I did with Nutrisystem.

Beyond diet? Never hear of it! Sounds interesting!! Processed foods are so not good for you. I think I'll look into it!

NELSAL

When you first look at Beyond diet you think "I can't do that" but once I got started I was amazed how easy I fell into eating healthy and staying away from the processed foods and the processed sugar. You can have Stevia and honey for sweeteners but nothing else and amazingly I don't miss it at all and I was a real sugar monster!

HellsBells61

The only time WW ever worked for me was when I was attending meetings. I'd tried the At Home & Online versions but going to a weekly meeting was a great incentive and gave me nowhere to hide when it came to weighing-in. I thought it expensive at the time but it was working so I did it for a year. BUT they closed my meeting down and moved it to a time & place that wasn't convenient for me anymore. I went back to the online version, lost all motivation and interest and piled the weight back on (and then some!). When I was on it I found myself obessing over points values and counting, it affected how I approached each day and not always in a good way. I also didn't like the way that WW change the plan about once a year so that after spending months getting your head around it you almost need to start again. Cynically I view that as WW trying to justify the cost.

I'm a very recent convert to MFP (i.e. joined a week ago!) and I already love it. As someone else said I come on here several times a day and finding it very easy. Now all I need to do when choosing food is look at the calorie content!

MFP kicks WW butt any day! :bigsmile:

glpennington

I did weight watchers when my company offered to sponsor it. I can say that it works well for some people. Some people need that accountability to get results. However, there appears to be some stigma still about men joining the program. Some of the activities definitely made guys feel uncomfortable.
Your mother probably got a bad coach. It is a commonly known fact that if one reduces calories too much that their metabolism can slow down. It causes the body to conserve fat for survival. This makes it even harder to lose body fat. The coach should have offered a diet analysis. This would highlight foods that are killing her efforts. Sugary yogurts, salty cheese, insulin spiking fruits without fiber and other "hidden" attributes of processed foods can easily sabotage the best of efforts. Even excessive consumption of good fruits and vegetables can create a calorie surplus which will turn to fat in a slow metabolism.
Weight watchers focuses too much on weight and less on a balanced approach to slimming down. One can lose weight fast by stripping muscle but that yields an even slower metabolism. It takes controlled diet, exercise, proper rest and water consumption to change one's shape permanently.
One must change their mentality about food. I heard so many people talk about diet recipes that just replicated bad foods. I wanted to scream every time a person got up to share and started with the statement "You take a box of cake mix and a can of diet soda…". Can you guess what they returned to when they finally dropped out of Weight Watchers?
I did weight watchers when my company offered to sponsor it. I can say that it works well for some people. Some people need that accountability to get results. However, there appears to be some stigma still about men joining the program. Some of the activities definitely made guys feel uncomfortable.
Your mother probably got a bad coach. It is a commonly known fact that if one reduces calories too much that their metabolism can slow down. It causes the body to conserve fat for survival. This makes it even harder to lose body fat. The coach should have offered a diet analysis. This would highlight foods that are killing her efforts. Sugary yogurts, salty cheese, insulin spiking fruits without fiber and other "hidden" attributes of processed foods can easily sabotage the best of efforts. Even excessive consumption of good fruits and vegetables can create a calorie surplus which will turn to fat in a slow metabolism.
Weight watchers focuses too much on weight and less on a balanced approach to slimming down. One can lose weight fast by stripping muscle but that yields an even slower metabolism. It takes controlled diet, exercise, proper rest and water consumption to change one's shape permanently.
One must change their mentality about food. I heard so many people talk about diet recipes that just replicated bad foods. I wanted to scream every time a person got up to share and started with the statement "You take a box of cake mix and a can of diet soda…". Can you guess what they returned to when they finally dropped out of Weight Watchers?

LaDauphine

I was thinking about joining WW online again then I remembered I was a subscriber to MFP! I think both are similar but MFP is FREE which is a plus. I also gave up on the WW system early and lost money. I'm going to challenge myself to log on to MFP every day and go from there.

I probably would have joined WW if there was a meeting closer to me, but I know myself and know that I wouldn't keep up with driving 30 minutes to go to a meeting. I will have to use this virtual community as a source of inspiration!

Jmollster1

bump

emstgm

Not that you really need one more opinion here, but I have done both. I don't think I ever lost more than 20 lbs on WW (if it was even that much). MFP works so much better for me. Could be me though ... maybe I was just really ready and serious about it this time? However, that $10 or $12 a week pays for lunch out - a healthy lunch! You can't argue with free if it works!

madamepsychosis

It's not something I would ever do. I know calorie counting works for me. I met a girl who'd lost around 45lbs doing WW, so it was clearly working for her. On the other hand, one of my friends has recently stopped WW because it wasn't working for her. It all comes down to personal preference, I guess.

cattraxs

I am a current member of WW and have lost 29.2 pounds since late Jan; clearly it is working for me - so no "dishing" here (pun intended). Having said that, I also want to note that I have made dramatic changes to my eating habits and intake portions (more fruits and veggies, lean meats, water, water, water) but have yet to get serious about the exercise routine due to a injured foot. I have given up some of the more unhealthy foods (chips, crackers, snacks) since joining WW, but still enjoy the foods I like (cheese, pasta, dining out) albeit in measured amounts.

I love the fact that I can use MFP for counting calories; but find it frustrating that the calorie database can be so contradictory (e.g., I found 4 or 5 different caloric levels for green seedless grapes) and that is only one example. Anyone else found this issue to be annoying? Or are you more diligent in selecting the item from the database. I encountered the discrepency quite by accident but have seen more occurrances of late. Pehaps there is something I am doing wrong in using the food database, any suggestions?

emmalou2206

I know someone who was a weight watchers consultant and they have stopped working for them now and have joined Slimming World as a member (they want to lose 14lbs). What does that tell you about WW?

Jain

I tried WW last year, and I can see how the system can work, but found I didn't like the way the WW processed foods were pushed at every meeting. I understand that the class leader gets a percentage of the sales she makes, which explains a lot..
To me MFP is a better tool, just as long as you don't need that very public weighin every week. And you've a better chance of learning how to eat healthy as you're not encouraged to eat overly processed food at every opportunity.

twilliamsclark

I was on Weight Watchers 9 times. The third time I lost 93 lbs only to gain it all back plus 13 lbs. I actually am doing a wonderful program that involves eliminating gluten and refined sugar from your diet. I lost 20 lbs before joining myfitnesspal. I have lost another 40 since I began using this app in September. My vote is for myfitnesspal . The app is easier to use and it is way cheaper.

Lovely135

I have seen so many people on MFP asking about WW. I want to give my opinion, my HUMBLE opinion. Some may disagree, some my agree, and maybe this or some comments help.
1. My mom is 52, 5'0", weighs 150-155. She had been a WW member for 18 months. Since she joined she lost 6 pounds. She paid $54 per pound lost! LOL!!

2. Her points range is the lowest allowed. I decided to take one of her diary entries and plug it into MFP. She is only eating 800-900 calories per day, and WW says that is correct!! One difference is they don't want you to count fruits and vegetables as points. Okay, that can make up the deficit in points. I just thought you were supposed to track everything that you eat. Heck, 2 bananas is 300 calories! Fruit or not, its calories and calories is the weight loss factor...am I wrong?

3. If my mother is invited to a dinner, or goes on vacation she comes back up to 3 pounds heavier. I think she is starving herself.

4. Support! There is none on WW. I think there is a place for that, but no one uses it. To me MFP has replaced Facebook! Not really, but I get so many "good jobs" and "yays". I can't tell much that helps me keep going! I may not know any of my friends personally, but there is a bond there because we are all "fat losers"!!

My mother paid for my first 3 months, and said she would continue the membership, but I told her to save the money. I wish I could convince her to join MFP! I did try WW for 3 months, so I am speaking from experience, SAVE THE MONEY. I really have nothing good to say about Weight Watchers after joining MyFitnessPal

I agree 100%. I am speaking from experience. i have done WW in the past, and there is no comparison. MPF wins hands down. When I was on WW I was constantly hungry. By the time to eat dinner, I did not have any point left.

stephreed11

I couldn't have said it better myself! Especially #2. I have realized that after years & years of being on & off WW & then finding MFP & researching about BMR's & how many calories I should be eating. MFP all the way for me too! Plus it's free!

stephreed11

I lost 70lb doing WW years ago.. I gain the weight back plus more because I didn't learn how to eat health.. Is telling a obese person that its okay to eat french fries everyday cause it x amount of points really going to help keep the weight off.. Then you get so point obessive you stop looking at the nutritional values.

MFP as been amazing.. When I started logging what I was really eating. it changed my life. Being able to see how much protein, carbs, sodium and fat contents I am consuming helps me make better choices. Even going out to eat... I will preplan what I am going to order just to stay within my range.

Unfortuntately, we live in a media world. WW, Nutrasystems, JC, and all the other fads out there are pushing their products using celebrity faces. Why listen to what the doctors have been saying for 100's of years and what really works. So we have to listen to them complain how much $$ they are spending to lose weight.

They can't comprehend that if they used the money on buying healthier options instead of the meeting, or XXX companies food. They will save money and have better results.

End of RANT

Wait so I can't eat a serving of french fries & lose weight or be healthy? Dang I've been doing it all wrong!

beautifulblac84

MFP works for me!! :flowerforyou: just got started and have already lost 2 lbs..something that would have taken me a lifetime to do if i was still on WW :grumble: