Doing WW, but don't love the new system

Like others have said the 0 point fruit/veg are to help encourage you to eat more of them, but they are not unlimited f/v. WW "healthy guidelines" suggests 5 servings a day (that is what is "built in" to your daily points).

When this question comes up in meetings my leader suggests sticking to the guidelines and if you are not losing weight and tracking everything like you should, then start counting points for your f/v after the first 5 servings.

I completely agree!
I tried it for 3 months and the website/app is HORRIBLE. Just horrible.

And the forums where you could ask questions? ALL they would EVER say is either ask your counselor (who was an idiot) or look in your booklet. Because the forums could be seen by the public, nothing in depth was ever discussed that was actually HELPFUL.

It never made sense to me. I never lost anything. And yes-- I went to the meetings. I was the ONLY person in the room that was under 60. I'm 40 and I felt like I was the teenager in the room!

Not for me.

I still cannot get past 5 points=2 TBSP of peanut butter; just hurts my head. And folks routinely talk about crashing(wrestler pre-weigh in) just to make weight. I would think MFP is just going to be easier and more realistic in the long run.

I just bought powder peanut butter thats 40 calories and 1 gram of fat for 2 tbsp. I don't know if its going to taste great, or like butt.... But I'm willing t try anything once! lol

I think there is a thread about to its potential 'butt' taste. Good luck, and agreed, if it works, go for it.

2) The ease of use is the main issue for me. With the old way, you could eyeball points (approx 50 calls = 1 point, if a lot of fat add a little, a lot of fiber knock one off), this made it a little easier to do the plan on the fly. Now, you have to know lots of info about what you are eating (fat, fiber, protein, and carbs) and plug that into the app or calculator. It was tedious and less flexible, I quit tracking pretty quickly since it is so darn cumbersome.

Oh wow. That does sound annoying.

You can still eyeball the points the same way, you just have to use 40 instead of 50.

I don't mind PB2, either. Or using real nut butters with fruit. 1T on a banana is 3 points. 1T on an apple is 3 points. Or have it all for 5. Those are 'cheap', filling snacks. Skip eating off the spoon and have some fruit and you're all good.

I used to mind the 'free fruit' but now I see it as 'pre-logged'. I like the fact that it's in my daily budget so I'm not likely to swap it out for cookies or pizza. I think you can eat 300-400 calories of fruit and still be fine. The base calorie level without produce or weekly points is like 1000 calories so if you're charging yourself for fruit, you're probably under-eating.

I totally agree that the WW online tools and forums suck. I finally got MFP to calc WW points in a column and it's nice.

I've lost significant amounts of weight using both WW old and current point system. As I reached my goal weight using the new system I found if I didn't add some of the fruit as points then I would plateau and stop losing weight. This seemed to be a common complaint when the introduced the newer point system.

I recently ended my WW subscription to save money and found MFP as an alternative. I have to say I'm loving the MFP Food Diary as there's so much more in it that WW and the barcode scanner is much better. The WW scanner rarely worked for me but so far the MFP hasn't failed me (I've only been using it 2 weeks or so).

The only thing I miss about WW is the accountability of a weekly weigh in. So, I signed up for a couple of DietBet games - they have dates set where you have to submit weigh-ins (with a photo) and that is keeping me accountable for now!

I also much prefer the MFP Forums since you get different perspectives rather than just the WW way (you couldn't even post points values of food on the WW forum).

Hey

I'm 3 weeks in and i'm doing ok 4lb in total so far

I used MPF before and although it was fab I think I needed to go and face someone else weighing me to keep me on the straight and narrow, I have started off well and then lost heart on my own so I'm trying the £10 a month meetings & online pass this month (21.95 next - i think I might see what just the meeting cost is)

Basically(if you dont know) Simple start is for 2 weeks and that uber low fat anything you want and 2 treats a day then you move on you can either go the old way - get a set amount of points and track everything that passes your lips or do "filling and healthy" which is all the simple start foods being zero points and then other food has points and you are given a weekly "treat allowance" you can also track point earned through work outs and either swap them for more food or not for both options

I am enjoying the food and the meetings at the moment, I work in the city so they don't hold a meeting as such - they camp out at a local church pretty much all day 3 days a week and i often have the guy to myself for 30 mins when I go for my weigh in - talking about problems I've had or tips or whats new so I guess i'm lucky. I'm finding it easier to have a list of "yes" food as I'm that person that will look at a oreo or an apple and eat the oreo straight off... and a the moment I genuinely think its working... I am 3 weeks clean of chocolate which is massive for me and.... shocking of all I don't FANCY IT - which is unheard of I'm hoping the more i don't eat it the more I won't fancy it and will treat it as a treat rather than a daily must have.

BUT I miss you guys the forums aren't as good so i'm on here mainly for the support, ideas and fun side (hope you don't mind!)

One year ago, at 59, I started my current weight loss journey. On a day that I needed to go somewhere, anywhere I could find support to take that first step, I went to a WW meeting. The leader was very funny and animated and she made everyone in the room feel like she was talking to them and I could feel the love. Not all leaders can do this. I was blessed to have chosen this location. I followed WW for 8 months and during that time lost 19 pounds (this included the holidays and a Disney post retirement vacation) and most important found a piece of myself that was lost. The group definitely helped me get on my feet and pointed in the right direction. I did struggle with the zero points for fruit and also the fact that 1 serving could be one point but two servings could then become three points. WW explains this is due to rounding process. That was my big hang up. February 2014, it was always dark and cold when it was time for a meeting and, being in post retirement phase of my life, I just did not want to leave my warm house to drive to a WW meeting. That is when I started using the MFP ap and working my butt off on my treadmill. In the last 4 1/2 months, I lost another 16 pounds. I have my ups and downs and accept that my weight loss journey will never be perfect. I love the MFP projected weight loss that only looks forward. It does not drag you down for what you might have messed up on yesterday, it only looks forward from the end of the current day and ahead for the 5 week projection. That is the greatest motivation for me - seeing that message everyday that reassures me that the math supports I can be successful on this journey. We should each stay with what works for us and also recognize that sometimes there are different recipes for success and also that sometimes those recipes need adjusting for our current environment. Today is the first day I visited the "Community" of MFP and I am so glad that I did. I see that MFP has its own support group and that is awesome. I hope this information is helpful to you and that you continue your journey whether it is with WW, MFP or a combination of the two. You are very wise because you recognize that fruits must be counted and nothing in life is really free. I know the WW leader I had did always use that as an explanation for not losing........well, consider cutting back on those zero point items. Well for me that meant they were not really zero and I did not want to be part of an experiment to find out. The most important thing is that you and I and everyone in this MFP Community are working on our health and the rest will come. Have a healthy day !