looking for a lifeline, is ww it?

I'm thinking of going back to weight watchers. I lost a ton of weight with them back in 2010, but since then put a lot of weight back on. Emotional eating seems to be a progressive thing with me, and at this point, I am suffering with Binge eating, full force. MFP isn't enough because I need to be accountable every week with the scale.
Of course, MFP and WW are totally different programs. But here is my plan...
I'll do WW until I am healthy mentally - probably a few months. During that time, I will follow WW but also log in MFP. Eventually, when I want to quit WW (too expensive) I will have an easy transition to MFP's program, since I will have been logging it and I'll know what I'm expected to do.
I think MFP is a fantastic program, but mentally, something is seriously wrong with me, and I need to get my stuff together before I can really use it.
Anyone try to use both? Anyone have another way besides joining WW to hold yourself truly accountable? (in person, something "official.")
Anyone just feel like their willpower is broken because in their hearts they feel they have screwed up their lives and nothing can fix it?
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Replies

  • GoMizzou99
    GoMizzou99 Posts: 512 Member
    I too did WW using the old system with great success. IMHO - The new Points Plus is a gimmick/money grab...which brought me to MFP and counting calories - which I also did with great success and made it all the way to maintenance and have stayed there for nearly a year.

    Counting calories is way easier than WW. You can still buy your WW and Lean Cusine fav's, just log the calories.

    If you need the meetings and the group support - stay with WW.
  • Hi there, sounds like your weight/eating is a reflection of things going on in your life,....which is just like a lot of us here!
    I am not sure if we is your answer,....but in my opinion,....when someone is really ready,....and has their willpower strongly in place, then there isn't a need to pay for the info or for a program. If you had success before on ww then you already know how tl lose and how to eat healthy. Take it one day at a time with mini goals or get a support grp of friends here or real life,.....they can hold you accountable.
    Feel free to add me,...I am on MFP daily,....but not logging everyday,.....for me it hasn't been effective and feels like a chore,....but to each his own,
    Donna
  • For what its worth this book help me a lot

    The power of habit by Charles duhigg.

    Really taught me why I did what I did instead of temporary solutions
  • CaLaurie
    CaLaurie Posts: 178
    Seems to me that you need to do what you think is best. You'll have support here no matter what decision you make. I just have to say, Sweetie, that NO ONE has screwed up their lives beyond repair. Things can and do get better. Honestly. :flowerforyou:
  • Kara52217
    Kara52217 Posts: 353 Member
    If that is what you feel like you need to try I say go for it.

    I lost 75# in 2007/2008 pre daughter and felt fabulous. Even made it to lifetime status! I went back when the new program points plus started and gained gained gained. Everyone I know who did WW on the "old" program gains on the new one for some reason. But hey maybe you will lose?



    Good Luck
  • Tykk
    Tykk Posts: 153 Member
    For what its worth this book help me a lot

    The power of habit by Charles duhigg.

    Really taught me why I did what I did instead of temporary solutions
    Interesting. I read that book and really enjoyed it.

    I wasn't sure how to "operationalize" it, though. It helps with general awareness, but doesn't exactly give a recipe for breaking ingrained habits. How have you been using this practically?
  • lveh8lve
    lveh8lve Posts: 162 Member
    I hit lifetime with WW back in 2006. I ended up moving around and the weight came back on. I did the new WW and I couldn't lose more then .25 lbs a week for over 3 months. Then I quit.

    I was going to go back, but then I found MFP. And MFP is free. I get all the support I used to at WW (except this is pretty much 24/7) from my friends on here. I can't see wasting money on it again. Maybe you need more motivating friends!
  • Rogue_Minx
    Rogue_Minx Posts: 71 Member
    I hit lifetime with WW back in 2006. I ended up moving around and the weight came back on. I did the new WW and I couldn't lose more then .25 lbs a week for over 3 months. Then I quit.

    I was going to go back, but then I found MFP. And MFP is free. I get all the support I used to at WW (except this is pretty much 24/7) from my friends on here. I can't see wasting money on it again. Maybe you need more motivating friends!

    ^^ This! WW is expensive and the weekly meetings were nice but didn't do it for me. I prefer MFP because it's easier to log food and exercises!
  • hazelovesfood
    hazelovesfood Posts: 454 Member
    I'm thinking of going back to weight watchers. I lost a ton of weight with them back in 2010, but since then put a lot of weight back on. Emotional eating seems to be a progressive thing with me, and at this point, I am suffering with Binge eating, full force. MFP isn't enough because I need to be accountable every week with the scale.
    Of course, MFP and WW are totally different programs. But here is my plan...
    I'll do WW until I am healthy mentally - probably a few months. During that time, I will follow WW but also log in MFP. Eventually, when I want to quit WW (too expensive) I will have an easy transition to MFP's program, since I will have been logging it and I'll know what I'm expected to do.
    I think MFP is a fantastic program, but mentally, something is seriously wrong with me, and I need to get my stuff together before I can really use it.
    Anyone try to use both? Anyone have another way besides joining WW to hold yourself truly accountable? (in person, something "official.")
    Anyone just feel like their willpower is broken because in their hearts they feel they have screwed up their lives and nothing can fix it?
    My will power is often lost and ive been like that since august and im trying to get the will back and i do the same as you eat and eat and eat , im always thinking about food lol wish i wouldnt actually.The trouble is with me that nothing makes me accountable lol. No one can force me to do it and thats the trouble
  • pepeleo
    pepeleo Posts: 48 Member
    I am currently with Weight Watchers, again. I am a life timer, fell off the wagon and needed to go back. I have lost with WW, plateaued and joined MFP. WW is once a week sort of support system, I have never really bothered with their on-line support system. But with MFP it is 24/7 and the support is fantastic. WW is a points system, MFP is calories. For me I needed and wanted to know both. But you need to be quite serious and dedicated to lose the weight and get your health back on track otherwise, if the mind set is not there than neither program will work.

    Good luck.
  • One of my work colleagues is on the new plan at WW. She has lost 62lb since February this year. She's had no issue with logging her food diary with WW. She looks amazing now from when I first met her!!

    Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    I'd suggest seeing a therapist to find out what your mental issues are with your weight. No diet program is going to work until you get your head is in a place where you can control yourself, Being accountable still won't help if your head isn't there.
  • AZKristi
    AZKristi Posts: 1,801 Member
    I utilize a health coach. Its a free service provided by my employer based health plan. The idea is that getting us moving, eating better, and losing weight ends up saving the plan a lot of money. This person will look at my diary and tell me exactly whats up - in no uncertain terms! See if your insurance offers something like that. Or, see if your employer will do an on-site WW group. We have those as well. You pay $120 for ten weeks of WW. If you go to at least 8 meetings and lose 10+ pounds, the health plan reimburses you $100 of the WW fee.
  • kiraleilani
    kiraleilani Posts: 124 Member
    I don't like the new Points Plus system... it made me gain weight. If you are eating for emotional reasons, then WW isn't going to help that. Good luck! Battle the problem at the source... find out what is causing the binge eating and work from there. HTH!
  • wswilliams67
    wswilliams67 Posts: 938 Member
    Time for a lifestyle change?

    Give this a good browsing... http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/jamie-eason-livefit-trainer.html
  • jbwegner
    jbwegner Posts: 254 Member
    For your emotional issues, I am not sure WW is the answer. How about a therapist or Overeaters Annonymous? It sounds like you need more interactin/face to face support and need to talk things out. Therapy or OA may be better options. If you have health insurance, at least some therapy will be covered, and OA is free! I have done WW several times in the past and have never been successful. Through my own fault mostly, not the program's. I definitely prefer MFP. Good luck with whatever you decide!
  • wingednotes
    wingednotes Posts: 274 Member
    Looks right up my ally - thanks! I've requested from my library...
  • wingednotes
    wingednotes Posts: 274 Member
    that's an awesome loss!
    i also was on ww during the momentum program, and when I went back to ww after gaining 10-15 back, I was not pleased with the pointsplus. (or maybe it was just my lack of motivation to learn a new program.) either way, it didn't work for me.
    still, i think i'll give it a shot this time.
  • wingednotes
    wingednotes Posts: 274 Member
    health coach....great idea. I will have to look into this!
    i'm currently a stay at home mom, with some upcoming ft work prospects, but nothing definite yet. being at home with a special needs child and a...loquacious preschooler has certainly contributed to my bad habits. I think my mental health will improve when I am out of the house a little bit. And I am hoping that if I do get employment that they have a ww program of some sort. that would be very motivating!
  • norcal_yogi
    norcal_yogi Posts: 675 Member

    I went back when the new program points plus started and gained gained gained. Everyone I know who did WW on the "old" program gains on the new one for some reason.




    0 point fruit and veggies.
  • sallysuze
    sallysuze Posts: 65 Member

    Of course, MFP and WW are totally different programs. But here is my plan...
    Huh? The programs are exactly the same, except one you count calories and the other you count points.

    Oh yeah, and one is free....
  • try a commitment website - like stickk. You commit to a certain amount of weight loss and choose how much money to stake on your being successful. Any week you make your target you pay nothing, if you fail you are charged the amount you have chosen.

    The money doesn't go to the site, it can go to a friend - or a cause you really hate to help to motivate you. You nominate a friend as the judge who weighs you in to make sure you don't cheat.
  • LadySylvanas
    LadySylvanas Posts: 133 Member
    the new points system didn't work for me either.. I ended up gaining weight :grumble:
  • Hello, how 'bout trying the power of Will, right smack dab in the middle of consciousness? It is such a force of course straight from the source ... You!
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    I found great success on WW years ago - it was Winning Points back then. BUT... the binge eating thing never went away until I stopped restricting harshly.

    I find the best way to avoid binging is to set a more realistic goal - 1/2 lb per week, or 250 calorie deficit daily. That way, you don't feel deprived and the weight will come off if you're diligent with weighing and recording what you eat.

    See even if it takes you more than a year to lose the weight, it WILL come off and you can live with this system. What you may find harder is the constant restriction/binge cycle that has a tendency to cause self-loathing and other less helpful emotions.

    Moderation... my recommendation FWIW.
  • Ke11yJo
    Ke11yJo Posts: 141
    I haven't read the other replies yet because I want this to be an uninfluenced reply.

    I was a huge WW fan. I lost 60 lbs with them reaching my goal weight in Dec 1999. I kept this weight off for 10 years. It was an amazing program. I hit menopause and a deep depression and gained it back. The first thing I did was trot my butt back to WW and found they had a new points program. I stuck with it for a solid year and lost 6 lbs. This is only my personal opinion ... I think the PointsPlus program is flawed. Fruit and veggies both have calories. Sucks, but it is the reality that they do. You need to account for everything you put into your body. All of it.

    Although the old program worked for me I think the points program not showing you the balance from Carbs/Protein/Sugar etc does not educate you enough. You need to find a healthy lifestyle which MFP promotes. Eating balanced, moving your body etc. IF you feel you need accountability maybe find a way to incorporate that ... step in the scale with someone you trust?

    You will do what is right for you and I wish you all the best of luck. :flowerforyou:
  • bjdavid53
    bjdavid53 Posts: 47 Member
    I went back to WW a few weeks ago & have been losing steadily since I started. I am a lifetime member. I like to come on MFP to read the message boards, but found I could not get my number of calories right here & wasn't losing any weight. I know that with WW I will lose the weight if I track what I'm eating & stay within my points. They take the question of how many calories to eat out of my hands.
  • Amlong1977
    Amlong1977 Posts: 125 Member
    I'd suggest seeing a therapist to find out what your mental issues are with your weight. No diet program is going to work until you get your head is in a place where you can control yourself, Being accountable still won't help if your head isn't there.

    ^^^^^^^ DEFINITELY THIS!
  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    I'm thinking of going back to weight watchers. I lost a ton of weight with them back in 2010, but since then put a lot of weight back on. Emotional eating seems to be a progressive thing with me, and at this point, I am suffering with Binge eating, full force. MFP isn't enough because I need to be accountable every week with the scale.
    Of course, MFP and WW are totally different programs. But here is my plan...
    I'll do WW until I am healthy mentally - probably a few months. During that time, I will follow WW but also log in MFP. Eventually, when I want to quit WW (too expensive) I will have an easy transition to MFP's program, since I will have been logging it and I'll know what I'm expected to do.
    I think MFP is a fantastic program, but mentally, something is seriously wrong with me, and I need to get my stuff together before I can really use it.
    Anyone try to use both? Anyone have another way besides joining WW to hold yourself truly accountable? (in person, something "official.")
    Anyone just feel like their willpower is broken because in their hearts they feel they have screwed up their lives and nothing can fix it?

    If you feel like "something is seriously wrong with me" you need to seek the help of a trained professional. You need a therapist, counselor, etc. Not a company that makes their money off of people being unable to sustain weight loss.

    Get real help so you can make a real change in your life.
  • mamapuddin17
    mamapuddin17 Posts: 108 Member
    Can someone tell me how many calories 26 points are? My friend is doing ww and is allowed 26 points.