Weight Watchers as compared to MFP?

I have also done Weight Watchers and had lost weight while I was on the program (and have gained it back) but IMO I would save my money and stay with MFP. The concept is basically the same thing because Weight Watchers uses points and MFP uses calories. When you stop paying for weight watchers you no longer have access to the tools unless you bought the books, but you get free tools with MFP. As others have said, its all in moderation and accounting for everything that goes in your mouth. I wish you good luck

I tried WW online a few years ago. I think it’s effective for loosing weight, but not for making the broad lifestyle changes people need to keep weight off. The point system doesn’t allow you to see what you’re eating in a holistic way. A 1-pont snackwell cookie and a 1-point apple are not created equal, but being on WW makes you think they are nutritionally the same. Using MFP, you can really see the difference that choosing one brand of bread over another can make to your sodium, fiber, or sugar intake. And you can make better and healthier choices for the future. I know when I look at a recipe whether it contains wholesome ingredients that will fit well within my plan. It’s hard to know that when you operate in a world of “points."

This exactly!

I, too, have done WW. I hope I'm not repeating what someone else has said; I skimmed the responses. What clicked for me with WW was the meeting; talking face-to-face with people, seeing the other person look at the scale when I weighed in, knowing that I had to step on that doggone thing at the end of the week with someone looking...All those things "kept me honest."

MFP does many of those same things...as long as you're honest about your food, your weight, and your exercise. But online communities, as good as they are, still leave out the personal contact.

If you want personal contact, look in your area for a TOPS chapter. They are at http://www.tops.org/default.aspx I just joined last night, so I am no expert. But my aunt, who attended WW with me, has been a TOPS member for a while now. She says it has that personal face-to-face contact that WW had, but it is much cheaper to join. $26/year, plus dues at your meeting. The dues at my chapter are $1/week, but you can reduce that to 50cents if you log your food and exercise. You can win money back by losing weight. And my aunt was the biggest loser in December, so she pays no dues for January. So it is a more cost-effective program. There isn't a program, per se, like WW has. I will use MFP to track my food and set my goals; the people at TOPS will be my in person community.

At lest check out their webpage before you sink a ton of money into WW.

I say stick with MFP as it teaches you more about food and nutrition as well as portion sizes. Everyone I know that has done WW has piled the pounds back on. Being on MFP feels like more of a lifestyle change for me as I am learning so much about what I eat AND obviously everyone else can see what I eat which helps!