Any Reformed Weight Watchers people?

I lost about 20 lbs a few years ago on WW using the old points system. I got very discouraged because as I lost the weight, my daily allotment of points DECREASED, only making me hungrier, both physically and mentally, :grumble: . And I stopped losing weight! Gained all the weight back as I gradually reverted to my old eating habits and stopped going to meetings and stopped tracking.

Fast forward to about a year ago and I heard about MFP--wonderful! I am a data junkie and the phone app makes it so easy to track all those wonderful calories, macronutrients, etc down to the gram, as well as pretty good accounting of exercise. But the real kicker came when I hit my first plateau and came on these boards looking for inspiration.

I fortunately don't have a lot to lose--about 25 pounds and had lost about 5 on MFP when I plateaued. My weight loss goal was 1 lb/week. So I read here and there and found a post wherein a woman similar to my situation was given this advice: EAT MORE TO LOSE WEIGHT. Huh?! I thought. How can this be? Well, the reasoning goes like this: As you get closer to your goal weight, to keep it going, you need to lose weight SLOWER. Change the goal to 0.5 lb per week, so you actually get more calories to eat per day as well as make sure you eat back all your exercise calories. That way your body does not go into "starvation mode" and you keep losing weight, but at a slower rate.

For me this has been a revelation. It's the exact OPPOSITE of what WW did on the old points system. Instead of being punished for losing weight by having to eat LESS, I am actually rewarded by getting to eat a bit more! It took a bit of mental readjustment to handle the slow rate of loss, since our culture is so hung up on fast results and instant gratification, but this approach is totally working for me. I have now lost another 10 lbs, albeit at a rate only 1-2 lbs per month. But I finally feel this is an approach to eating and fitness that I can sustain over my lifetime--not just a temporary diet. I rarely feel hungry and deprived, as was often the case on WW, and when I do stray now and then, as one always does, it is easy to get back on track with my daily goals because I don't feel like I am fighting against a system that punishes me for succeeding (as felt with WW).

My original goal was to lose 15 lbs, which I have now achieved, but have upped the the goal to 25 lbs since this method is working so well for me. That would put me back at the pre-pregnancy weight I was at for many many years. Until finding MFP, I thought I would never be at that healthy weight again, but I now think with patience and determination, I can be there in 6 to 10 months. Then it is a simple transition to adding a few more calories to MFP to maintain the weight.

I tried WW online and, when that didn't work, believed the hype that people who attend meetings have more success. I knew it was a mistake the moment I walked in the door and saw all the tempting WW snack food for sale. But I gave it a try, lost some weight and promptly gained it all back when I finally quit. Now I look askance at any diet that shows photos of tempting desserts "you can still have" on their plan. I no longer crave desserts I can still have. "Opportunity knocks but once, while temptation leans on the doorbell all day long."

I'm low-carbing now and will never go back. I can't go back. I'm past the point of no return plus I don't want to go back. My name's Ed, I'm type 2 diabetic and I'm glad to be here. Thanks for all the wonderful advice and support so far.

"Opportunity knocks but once, while temptation leans on the doorbell all day long."

^^ This. I love this. Thank you! :flowerforyou:

Edit to add: Oh yeah, I was on WW. I lost 30 pounds on the OLD SYSTEM years ago. Then got pregnant and quit. I rejoined after my son was born but had to take him with me to the meetings. I hated the stares I got when he cried. I stopped going. I rejoined WW on the new system with my mom. We went to meetings. Neither of us did well on it.. her especially, since she never has more than 15 pounds to lose. We felt like we were often neglected at the meetings and treated like black sheep. We quit going. I rejoined as on online only member in 2011. I started at 205 and got to 187 (losing 18 pounds), but it took me about 4 months! I started to feel discouraged quickly with how slowly it was coming off. I left and regained some, going back up to 198. At 198 I recommitted myself to WW online and then started hearing about MFP on the forums over there! I thought, hmm, I'm gonna check that out. I created an account here and tracked on WW AND MFP for two weeks. I found that although I was eating ALL of my points plus, I was NOT having enough calories (even with free fruits/veggies). The second week, I was driving myself crazy because I didn't know who to trust. WW or MFP. Do I go over my points plus in order to hit my 1200/calorie minimum? I decided at the end of that crazy week to unsubscribe and go soley with MFP and haven't looked back. I have had MUCH more success here.

I've done weight watchers old points system several times and it's worked great. Until this past time. I use the materials I've saved over the years but the scale wouldn't budge. Started mfp and I've only gained weight. Thinking about switching back to weight watchers OLD system where fruits and veggies do count. I would typically eat oatmeal for breakfast with a light English muffin, oatmeal for lunch and whatever I wanted within reason for dinner and I lost 10 lbs and kept it off for three years. Started doing this and I gained 10.

I'm a former WW member.It worked for me until personal problems sidetracked me.But from what i hear now the new system is very frustrating

I've done WW three times. I tried to go back 3 weeks after I had my son, but it didn't work regardless of what I did. Now I'm working on getting back to low carb, because that's the only thing my body responds to! It's quality of food for me!

I have done WW several times over the last 10 or more years. I would lose the weight, get annoyed or fed up keeping track of points and gain it all back again.

Came here at the end of April...heading towards 60lbs lost since then (I lost 10lbs before I started tracking weight on here). I was never even close to having that kind of success with WW.

Count me in. Weight Watchers was frustrating for me. I like this site much better and so far I have lost three pounds.

I have done WW a gizzilion times....worked for awhile and then I would crash.Been with this for a few days and I am loving it !! I like that the database is huge...I can scan an item on my phone...I can carry it anywhere my phone goes...most of all I love that I can see what is working and where I need to improve...such as with nutrition...it keeps me balanced. I need to lose at least 100# and I seriously think I can do it with MFP....just have to figure out message board thing...:))))

I have spent so much money on WW -- it's phenomenal. I wish I'd discovered MFP sooner. One of my problems while being on WW is that I always felt like I not only needed to conserve my points but also eat to the full extent that the point allowed (for example 1 TB of Cool Whip may be the same point value as 4 TB, so why not eat 4?). Also, WW not only sells but promotes processed foods. There's no emphasis on clean eating -- it's all about how to keep your point value low. And since the new program where fruits and veggies were "free," I'd had a really hard time losing. Could it have been because I was eating 3 bananas a day, apples, grapes, pineapple... anytime I wanted to eat, I'd eat fruit. I suppose no one got fat from eating a ton of bananas but I doubt 300 extra calories a day is helping anyone lose.

Plus the meetings became a place of confession. Women would admit to over-indulging for a few days, and now they were feeling incredibly guilty about it. Then everyone else would have to step in and soothe them and say "It's no big deal" without ever really looking at what caused the binge in the first place.

Wow, I didn't realize how much disdain I had for WW!

Many of my co-workers have had success on weight watchers but it just seemed too complicated to me. Someone recommended MFP said it was free, so I gave it a try. No WW for me an MFP girl all the way.

I have also done WW on and off for the last 14 years with varying degrees of success. There are some good things about the program, and it really depends on the leader, meetings, etc. that you go to as to how well you like the set up.

I realize they have had to evolve the program over the years to try and keep up with weight loss trends (low carb, etc) but the result is that the program has gotten more complicated. I think they have also changed up the program because there were people losing weight eating nothing but fat free popcorn and drinking diet coke and staying within their "points."

I just find this site to be very simple and effective. I am not knocking WW because it did work for me at times, but I'd find myself skipping meetings because I knew I wouldn't have a good weigh-in and then I'd get frustrated and stop going altogether. Here, I feel like I can have a bad day, and then move on. It also helps to have so much encouragement and to be able to find people with my same personal challenges.

Also, the food/restaurant database on this site is HUGE! I have searched for some of the most random brand name foods and they always pop right up and I can add them and be done. The WW database is very limited to me. I always wound up having to figure out a lot of the food values myself. I found their mobile site to be very complicated to use.

I did WW several times, and I lost over 130 lbs but gained it back. Since being here I have lost 80 lbs and kept it off for almost a year. This website is wonderful. I will add u as a friend.....Joann:drinker:

Me! I successfully lost 45 pounds on WW and didn't want to keep paying for the program once I was maintaining. A friend turned me on to MFP. I did both in parallel for a while and eventually dropped WW. I maintained for a good long time, then over the last year have lost some will power and gained 10 again. So now trying to lose again. Feel free to add me as a friend.

I follow WW, I don't go to meetings and neither do I pay for online. I work my WW PP alongside my calories