Weight Watchers

I did WW back in 2009. Yes it does work but as soon as I left the program my weight came back plus 20.

I still use WW today for recipes, they have fantastic food ideas!

I also did Weight Watchers. I just cancelled my account recently. It does work, yes. However, I have found the community here to be much more supportive. Also, the food calculation is much more complete. Many things I would want to eat would not be on their list of foods, and I would have to calculate them myself. This program is basically the same thing, you just calculate differently. Both emphasize healthy diet and exercise.

I like WW. I follow the WW program and hang out in the MFP forums. I think the WW database is better than MFP where accuracy is concerned.

I think any of those diet plans work if you follow them correctly. The problem with most of them though, is that you don't learn how to eat right and you end up gaining weight back. I don't have much experience with WW but I've followed other programs in the past. I lost alot of weight on each program but gained it all back plus more after I finished the program, then I had to start over at an even higher weight so each time it was more discouraging...

I think the best way to do it is to stop following diets. This journing should have no end... it's a lifestyle change. I read that line many times on these message boards since I joined and I've learned that there's a reason everyone repeats it... It's TRUE! Good Luck with your weight loss!

I've done it and it worked... I was at goal for a very long time, I even started to work for them....however times change and I can't affort the money for the meetings and the online stuff....so I guess YES it works - MFP is wonderful & also would work IF we apply the info... so my opinion is they both are great you just have to work the program...

Would it be easier? No, you still have to figure out points values for every food you eat and you have to track it. Same as here, except here you will have a better understanding of how many calories your body needs and how many calories you are consuming each day. WW keeps all of that a big secret.

I have been on WW before and I did have some success. However, WW is all about a points value and they don't work in the real world. You don't learn to eat right per say, you learn to find foods that are low in points which again, doesn't apply in the real world.

I am going to say I think it is like everything in this life...You get what you give! I'm sure there are people that learn how to eat, I'm sure there are an equal number of people who don't. I think it also depends on the group, the "leader", and whether you are really ready to change. If you take it seriously, and will do everything it takes to learn how to eat better, and have the money then do it. But like someone else here said, you can do that here too and it's free. I like free personally. :flowerforyou:

I am currently on WW and have made it work with MFP.. I like some of the recipes but mostly what I get from it is information and an extra push. I'm probably one of the "black sheep" of WW though, because I let all the nonfat this and fat free that go in one ear and out the other and I'm still losing weight by the points plus system. Give it a shot, the first meeting is free so you can see if it will help you or not. I love both WW and MFP, not planning to give up either at the moment.

Has any of you on here ever tried weight watchers? If so, does it work? Do you think it would be easier to use that type of program instead of MFP?

I did it for three years, both the core and P+ plus program. I lost the majority of my weight on the core program; when all fruits and veggies became free weight loss slowed. What I don't like is that there is very little individualisation in the program. It tries to be a one-size fits all, and the leaders are trained in the Weight Watchers system, not how to lose weight.


And as other users said, their basis for their points is way out of whack for some foods. I think tracking calories is a lot more effective, especially if you're trying to trying to watch certain parts of your diet like sodium or sugar. I think this is much more flexible and in tune with what is required to lose weight.

You want to work on portion control? Try using a smaller plate for any of your meals. Like a salad plate. If it doesn't fit then it's not making it to the table that night!

It works like any calorie restriction diet will work. It encourages you to get plenty of fruit and veg as they are mostly zero points. You can get extra points for exercise in the same way you add calories on mfp by adding exercise. Personally I prefer MFP as it's free and I wanted to save money.

For me the pro and cons were

*WW pros

If you go to meetings you get support, depending on your personality this can help focus and motivate you. I am a bit of a lone wolf and never really needed a group.

Their site is pretty easy to use, much like MFP except its points not calories

I like the way you have both weekly and daily points. If I am going out I can use my weekly points all at once or equal them out over the week. I do a similar thing on MFP were I stagger my calories, so I will eat 1300 one day and then 1600 another day etc etc so I equal out a deficit over the week.


*WW Cons

Costs money

Takes a little extra time than MFP to log as you need to convert your foods to points. Not that much longer to be fair but it needs to be converted.

I lost weight at W.W. but it took a long time (7-months to lose 17 lbs). I did like the meetings, but I am like many others, I like MFP better because calorie counting for me works better than points. Plus, I felt they were always pushing there products on us and every two years they change the program just enough so you feel the need to buy new books and other things to help with your weight loss (although the newer things are really no differant than the older version). It does get expensive, but learning about portion control and how to eat better came in handy..............and I have my refrigerator set up so my healthy food is right there in the front where I can see it and cut up so I can eat it. So, I did learn some things from W.W., I still think with MFP being free it is by far the better "deal".

I've done it and it worked... I was at goal for a very long time, I even started to work for them....however times change and I can't affort the money for the meetings and the online stuff....so I guess YES it works - MFP is wonderful & also would work IF we apply the info... so my opinion is they both are great you just have to work the program...

I too was at goal and worked for them - I lost weight using their Selections program where you had so many Proteins, so many Breads/Starchy veggies, so many Milks, Fats, etc. I learned a lot about proper portion sizes and that I could be satisfied with much less food than I thought (took a couple of weeks for my stomach to adjust).

A few years ago, I didn't want to go to meetings, so I tried doing it online, but found it was too easy to skip tracking, etc.

I love the support of my friends here at MFP and via Fitbit. They have motivated me to do more and help keep me accountable. I like that the forums and blogs are available 24/7.

You could definitely use both at the same time.