Weight Watchers to MFP

I was on WW for about 5 months, and quit a week ago. I like this site so much better already. My big downfall I believe was fruit for 0 points.

I was on WW for nearly 5 years. Ugh, would love to have all of that money back! :noway:

I did like the Points system....I was a bit annoyed with the Points Plus. With the points, I could pretty much look at a label and know what the points are. With the points plus, I always had to have the WW calculator handy.
All of the foods I had in my diary changed.... some changed automatically, but a lot didn't.

I figured if I had to recreate my food list.... might as well start using MFP. It's free, the barcode feature for the smartphone is awesome, it syncs with my Fitbit and the people on here are great!

Hope you find success with MFP.

I tried points plus twice and had zero success. I had done ww off and on for years...some programs worked and some did not. I was tired of spending the money and a friend of mine suggested MFP. She had lost 75 pounds. I absolutely am swearing by MFP. I love counting calories.....it is so much easier than points. I have learned so much about how my body works....different videos....HRM's....and the food database is 10x bigger! I would never go back to ww. I have figured I was probably eating 1200 calories per day and not losing a single pound. I have been doing eat more to weigh less and am in the first week of my calorie cut and started doing 30 day shred. I love MFP and will never do another "diet" again in my life!

I agree with everyone who has posted. I can't even count how many times I've joined WW. I have so many of those crazy books, sliders, calculators, etc. . . that I've held onto for years. While I lost weight, I never hit goal or felt I was looking at it long term. While I've only been on MFP for a week, I find it much easier to track. I like how it incorporates the exercise as well. It's so important to track every morsel (fruit, vegggie, etc. . .) that goes into my mouth. I've also added the sodium and fiber to my tracker as well so I can watch all of it. I just seem to be adjusting so much better to this site. 10 lbs 15 times is my goal. One down and 14 more to go!!!!

I've been on my my own program of sorts since I began my weightloss journey on December 15, 2011. I only heard about MFP from my sister-in-law back a few months ago and I SWEAR BY IT! I've encouraged several others to use/utilize the site including my physician! He said I was so much of an inspiration he wanted to know ALL of my tools!

I have a friend that recently began using WW Points Plus so I found a FREE online calculator and a WWPP Scanner so I began tracking "points" while still utilizing MFP. There are many items that calculate at ZERO Points (Michalob ULTRA Beer, Mini Moos coffee creme are 2 that come to mind). Really? ZERO points? You can drink ULTRA beer and not have to calculate it? Same thing with Cherry Vodka now that I think about it. Or just use the Mini Moos in your coffee and not have to "count" the cream? THIS IS NOT REALITY! Each of these items has calories, carbs, fats, protein, etc. some or all of the aforementioned. I think this is how WW keeps people for all the years they keep them. Think about it; those people never reach 'goal' and they just keep going and paying and paying and switching to whatever new program WW invents. WW has not changed in 32 years (yes, the 1st time I was on WW was 32 years ago when I was 12) they just change the name and "how you count your points".

I did find after 2 weeks using the WWPP tracker/calculator it was not beneficial to me at all; MFP is still far more beneficial for ME and my lifestyle. I wish my friend the very best of luck; but honestly I don't see her (or anyone else) maintaining their WW weightloss for any length of time. Another reason why WW has so many REPEAT/RETURNING customers; they lose some weight, then when they are no longer on the "program" they don't keep it off and then many put back on what they lost and most put on more! I track everything I eat and/or drink; my water intake count for the day is just the WATER I intake nothing else is included in that portion of the tracker. That's just how I do it; everyone is a bit different...

I would remind you that no matter what the amount of weight you have to lose in the BIG picture, set yourself small, attainable goals. YOU set YOUR goals, don't let others dictate that for you; you'll find your success coming quicker than you realize! Keeping things small and attainable keeps them realistic; you'll be able to stay in a more positive frame of mind and find it easier to stay on-track! I wish each of you the very best of luck in your weightloss journeys!

WW is a business and the longer it takes/fails to work the more money for ww. They are not stupid, thats why they made fruit and veg now free.

Any weight loss program you have to be charged for in order for them to stay in business is usually set up to make you fail. They thrive on return business. It shouldn't cost anything to lose weight.

First, congrats on your weight loss success so far! That is fabulous!

I've also done WW...and lost lots of pounds. However, when I stopped the program the weight came back on. With MFP, I've learned a sustainable lifestyle...for free! The biggest challenge is that on WW you don't count the fruits and veggies...on MFP, I track everything I put in my mouth.

Good luck on the second half of your journey!

I tried WW twice and lost twice, but was never able to keep going. I like the system they had going on but some parts of it didnt work for me. I love myfitness pal for the community that I can work with and how easy it easy to keep track of my eating habits and exercise.

You can access the message boards on WW at no cost, and still be in touch with the friends that you have made there, while still using MFP. I do it.

WW and MFP are not exclusive. You could do both at once.

I prefer MFP's emphasis on fitness and health. My goal isn't to be skinny, it's to be healthy. (Thinner is a good "side-effect". )

edited to fix a formatting mistake

P.S. There are many other sites that may be useful to check nutrition information, find recipes, exercise instructions, etc. Use what helps you. One other site I like is the USDA's Choose My Plate (http://www.choosemyplate.gov). It is a bit harder to use, but helps you check many more nutrients than MFP. It also doesn't have the social aspects, so I don't find it as motivating. But it's useful for checking occasionally to see how balanced your diet is in term of many vitamins and minerals.

I did WW for 3 months and it worked well. Then I found MFP and fell in love. There are many more options and I love reading the message boards everyday. The only thing I liked better at WW is the weight lose graphs. I know they have them on here but i like the layout better on WW. Trivial, I know but its the only thing I could think of.

I was on WW for two months. I lost about a pound a week, sometimes less. The friend who joined with me did not lose weight. Even though we were about the same height and weight, so we had the same amount of points, we had very different eating styles.

Switching to MFP has definitely sped up my loss a little. I have been losing a consistent 2lbs a week since I made the switch. I only managed that the first week of WW. I like being aware of my macro-nutrients, I feel like it helps to keep my carbs from getting out of control. I had a penchant for munching "free" bananas, which are awesome in moderation, but a carb bomb when taken too far. I am definitely doing better without the "free" fruit, and the occasional half a point they would round down. I feel like all that rounding down could really add up sometimes.

That said, I think WW was a step in the right direction for me. It got me to be consistent about tracking and made me more aware of what I put in my body. It definitely helped end mindless snacking for me.

I love WW because the Points + plan really DID teach me HOW to eat. I try to get in the good health guidelines on a daily basis (of course I do not always succeed with that, but it's a goal I shoot for every day).

I recently ended my W W subscription and am tracking solely on MFP now. I feel like it's working for me AND it doesn't cost me $$$ every month.

But still, I do love WW and think it's a great program and I know I wouldn't be so far along on this journey without having joined WW. I don't feel like it was money wasted but I do feel like it's something I no longer need to pay for. If that makes sense.

I would love to be friends with anyone who has been through the same so feel free to send a friend request.