die hard weight watcher considering converting...

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  • mymonty
    mymonty Posts: 57 Member
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    I was a WW member for years and even still think of point values. It got a bit expensive and I wasn't seeing the results, but I felt like I was a sole person on an island. I paid my weekly dues, sat and listened and then left. Then I joined TOPS (Taking Off Pounds Sensibly) and relied a lot on my WW materials. The difference there was I felt connected to the group. I still wasn't seeing the results I wanted, but knew that was because I wasn't putting my effort into it. I started seeing a dietician in July and am down 16 pounds since then and they used MFP as a way of monitoring what I"m doing. Now I'm addicted to MFP. I refer to it as "Diet Facebook" to my friends. And speaking of friends, I've met some really amazing, inspiring and motiviating people here.

    If you're thinking of converting YOU WON'T BE SORRY, but do reach out to get some friends who will be on every day to inspire and motivate you. I'm always up to meeting and accepting new friends, but I want them to be as motivating and inspiring as myself who will encourage and support each other through our journey. If you feel you'd like to be my friend, please feel free to invite me. I wish you great success and the best of luck!:smile::smile:
  • allifantastical
    allifantastical Posts: 946 Member
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    I was nervous too about switching. WW is so expensive and I decided I would rather spend the money on a gym membership than weekly meetings. MFP gives way more support and I don't have to try to plug meeting times into my schedule.

    I still call my calories points though. :tongue:

    I went to a seminar and they explained that WW is a great program, but the fact that they tell you you can eat all the fruits & veggies you want as zero points is ridiculous.

    In the seminar he held up a bag of peanut M&M's and a vine of grapes and said that each one of these have the same amount of calories in them! I think that telling someone they are allowed to eat as much of something as they want doesn't get to the root of the problem which is over-eating.

    Good luck on your decision!
  • Jenny775
    Jenny775 Posts: 108 Member
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    Convert!!! Just do it! I used to follow WW too -- stumbled upon this app on my phone...I absolutely love it AND it's free! You'll get tons of support here.
  • Tebbspcad
    Tebbspcad Posts: 233
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    Do it!
    I did weight watchers then slimming world...I use the recipes from both to make low fat choices and use this site to log. And as an added bonus this site has lots of people for morale support, a log which adds everything up for you as well as being totally free!
    It's a win win situation :)
  • amymichelle1226
    amymichelle1226 Posts: 150 Member
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    I did WW two years ago (and spent a lot of money wasted on the monthly fees) and gained weight back. I've been doing MFP for 5 months now, I love it more for so many reasons. You never have to figure out/think about how many points things are (counting calories is MUCH easier), the database is much bigger than WW, fruits and veggies are not free (some fruits/veggies are high in calories! And you're doing your weight loss a disservice if you are eating too much and counting them as 0, because they're not), the community here is awesome and easier to interact with...the support/accountability of friends is super helpful, and above all else...it's FREE! You could be spending your money on zumba classes or other healthy things instead of paying WW.
  • sherrirb
    sherrirb Posts: 1,714 Member
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    WW vs MFP

    1. WW is an expensive 20 min pep talk with a scale, MFP is free
    2. The "pep talk" is designed to make you feel better about spending the money for the pep talk and the "feel good" only lasts until you walk out the door back into reality. MFP is reality.
    3. WW requires you to calculate points.. why? Calories are listed on each and every item you consume, so much easier!
    4. Points... points... where is that STUPID calculator!? MFP helps you focus on proper nutrition, not points. Calories, yes, but also carbs, fats, proteins, sodium.. important stuff that your body needs and doesnt need.
    5. I never really made any connections with anyone else attending WW unless it was friends that were attending with me and they were already friends before WW. On MFP I have connected with dozens of people that encourage me pretty much on a daily basis, not once a week on the way out of the door after the expensive pep talk.
    6. Did I say FREE?!?!?!?!
    7. People attend WW for years... for years? If you are attending for years (3 or more) and still trying to lose weight, then it isn't working for you. MFP is designed to help you get to your goal weight and then you go to maintenance. By the time you get there you should understand nutrition and how foods affect your weight and be able, for the most part to maintain without the use of MFP. If you really had to, you could live without MFP during maintenance but you can always come back and not have to pay a fee to use it to get back on track.
    8. Its FREEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!
    9. WW is all about points... I dont remember them ever really talking about exercise much, it is mentioned in one of the little booklets but its all about the points. MFP encourages you to exercise. Your MFP friends will praise you when you exercise. You get to eat more when you exercise!
  • anawhatsme
    anawhatsme Posts: 261 Member
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    oh you guys make converting sound so tempting!
    thanks a lot for all your great input.
    i am going to do calories for the rest of this week and see how it goes.
    it's going to be an adjustment, but maybe i need things shaken up a bit.

    thanks again!!
  • KristyJoy123
    KristyJoy123 Posts: 84 Member
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    I have followed both, and I go back and forth between the two based on what my goals are. This might get a bit long-winded, I apologize, but I feel like my experience might help you :)

    I went on WW when I weighed 217 lbs. It was a great, INVALUABLE tool to my initial weight loss. I lost 50-60 lbs with it, doing just a little bit of exercise. However, once I got pretty close to my goal weight, Weight Watchers became more of a struggle for me. I wasn't seeing the losses I once did. Long story short, I think WW is a terrific tool to learn portion control, but counting calories is great for learning how to control your macros, which is much more important for weight loss when you are closer to your goal weight, working out more, etc.

    I still periodically go back to WW, because it's close to my heart as the program that helped me lose a significant portion of weight. I know a lot of people are very down on the program here, but I think everyone has different needs, and I'm adamant in the fact that if you have a significant amount of weight to lose, Weight Watchers is an excellent program that, if followed properly, guarantees weight loss.
  • Guamybear
    Guamybear Posts: 1,061 Member
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    I counted for a period but I actually prefer this better..
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
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    One thing I love about WW is the GHGs. While MFP certainly shows you a better idea of macro and micro nutrients, it doesn't tell you WHAT to eat. The GHGs were an invaulable tool for me in revamping my diet.

    Now I've learned it, though. I feel like I outgrew WW and while the free veggies are so few calories, they're not really a big deal, I did not agree with the free fruit. I understand the logic (you'll choose an apple over a candy bar for a snack), fruit calories add up. A banana is 80-120 calories, depending on size.

    I did the old Momentum plan and I contonue doing that plan to this day. I never made the switch and I know a lot of people who struggled with the new plan, especially those with less to lose.
  • iluvco3
    iluvco3 Posts: 98 Member
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    I am a LT WW. I still weigh in once/month. I had never been able to reach my personal goal. I gave MFP a try along with PP and realized that 26 PP gave me a HUGE range of calories and was often too much. I dropped counting and only tracked on MFP. I am now 18 lbs. below my WW goal and 5 lbs. below my personal goal. I still follow the GHG. I love, love having all the nutritional info that MFP gives me. I can't imagine I will EVER count points again. However, I will continue to weigh in each month for the accountability.
  • formersec
    formersec Posts: 233 Member
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    Don’t be nervous, it makes much more sense to move on to calories. I wouldn’t eat Weight Watchers stuff anyway, they are way too processed and filled with additives and stuff that is not good for you. You don’t need that to lose weight, you can make low calorie meals or eat natural low calorie snacks without eating all the extra crap.

    Just wanted to make the point that WW does not force you to eat their food. In fact, the last few versions of the program emphasize less processed food. The meals are intended as a convenience from time to time. They aren't meant to be eaten 3 times a day every day. I didn't eat WW food either. Too many suspicious ingredients, too much sodium, not enough nutrition and ultimately more expensive than anything you could prepare at home.
  • cebreisch
    cebreisch Posts: 1,340 Member
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    I do both. I log my food with MFP, and then convert the data to points. It's an extra accountability measure.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
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    Don’t be nervous, it makes much more sense to move on to calories. I wouldn’t eat Weight Watchers stuff anyway, they are way too processed and filled with additives and stuff that is not good for you. You don’t need that to lose weight, you can make low calorie meals or eat natural low calorie snacks without eating all the extra crap.

    Just wanted to make the point that WW does not force you to eat their food. In fact, the last few versions of the program emphasize less processed food. The meals are intended as a convenience from time to time. They aren't meant to be eaten 3 times a day every day. I didn't eat WW food either. Too many suspicious ingredients, too much sodium, not enough nutrition and ultimately more expensive than anything you could prepare at home.
    Exactly. I think in all the time I was on WW, I ate on SmartOne just to try it.

    I eat the same food on MFP that I did on WW.

    I get so tired of people posting in these threads who have no idea what they're talking about. If you never did the program and if you did and don't know what a Good Health Guideline is, then you shouldn't be advising anyone on which is the better method of weight loss because you don't know enough about WW to have an opinion of it.
  • purpleipod
    purpleipod Posts: 1,147 Member
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    Even though WW makes you think fruits and vegetables are "free" you're still supposed to control your intake and they still have calories. Whatever plan you use will work if you work it.
  • Frankii_x
    Frankii_x Posts: 238
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    I'd strongly recommend not using weightwatchers - they were great to lose the weight but not so good at helping to keep the weight off - I lost 20lbs on weightwatchers and put it back on and more. With MFP I feel totally in control xx
  • Capegirl8013
    Capegirl8013 Posts: 12 Member
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    I use both. I do WW because I like the group nearest my house and find the leader to be truly interested in helping participants lose and make the program work for them.

    I did WW for a year, lost 50 pounds, became a lifetime member and then stopped tracking and measuring my food and gained it back and then some! I don't count this as a failure of the WW program, rather a personal failure of NOT using the tools that I learned: making good decisions about what to eat, measuring food accurately, writing it all down etc.

    When I decided to start losing again, I knew the WW program works for me and so I went back there. Simultaneously I started exercising and wanted to track it a bit better than the way WW tracks activity, so a friend suggested here. I've been using both back to back for about two months now and have seen about 1 -1.5 pounds come off weekly.

    Meetings - I like the one I go to. I've been to others in different cities when travelling (yes, I actually go weigh in on vacation or on business trips!) and have realized that the leader makes all the difference to whether or not you find the meetings valuable. Although these boards are awesome and you can glean a lot of of info from them, I find it requires a discerning eye to weed out the true science from the nonsense. The leader at my meeting is a nutritionist and is pretty quick (but does it kindly) to keep truly false ideas at bay.

    Cost - WW is expensive. This is free. Given that I've been tracking in both places and now feel pretty confident in my abilities to do it well, I think that once I hit my goal I'll stop tracking on the WW site and only track here.

    Nutition - With both, it's what you put into it. Obviously you can do either program eating total garbage and you may even lose weight provided you have a calorie deficit/don't exceed your points. OR you can use either tool to learn how to fuel your body well and pay attention to getting a variety of healthy whole foods. I have my macros set to show the same as what WW uses to calculate points plus and it's working for me.

    Fruits & veggies - everyone has already said it - most veggie calories make so little dent in your daily allowance that they might as well be free. I have never been a huge fruit eater anyway, so the fact that they became "free" on WW didn't really impact my eating.
  • numsquat
    numsquat Posts: 133
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    WW works if you truthfully follow the plan, doesn't if you don't. Same with MFP though or any other plan. Personally lost 160+ pounds on WW and not gained any back. Never was forced or even asked to buy any other their stuff. My experience was that those that gained back quit working the plan. You can be at either for years not loosing or getting healthier if you don't follow through. WW is more educational focused than MFP, you learn a lot about healthier eating, exercising, etc which MFP as a site doesn't focus on (though there is plenty of information here), you can take what you learned there and apply it here.

    I do prefer MFP at this point because I'm able to focus more on overall health than just weight loss. I tracked on both for several months before stopping WW and found things to work on, such as though I was staying within points/calories I needed to increase my protein (which has helped) and I would had not been able to figure that out staying with WW. I have more control over the little things tracking here and MFP is more well rounded though WW is getting better in that sense. It is cheaper but that's not a factor for me. The food data base is larger but can also be more difficult to navigate and both have their inconsistencies at times. Both messages boards (and you can still use the WW boards w/o being a member) have their good and bad things, a lot more trolling and negativity here but most things are WW focused there which doesn't help doing a different plan. I still visit a runners group there daily.

    WW as a tool got me going in the right direction and far along my path, MFP is just the next tool to get me where I'm going.
  • briannadunn
    briannadunn Posts: 841 Member
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    I do both. I log my food with MFP, and then convert the data to points. It's an extra accountability measure.
    I do this, I have a free points system calculator on my phone and I do MFP for free. I did the meetings only for the first 12 weeks years and years ago and then I started doing them on my own and hadn't looked back. I am back at it doing it on my own again. I love it and will continue to track my food on here and convert to points to stay in a daily goal range.

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