Weight Watchers and MFP

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ejbarr85
ejbarr85 Posts: 1
in Health and Weight Loss
I started Weight Watchers in May 2012 after regaining about 60 lbs of my 150 lb loss a few years back. I've lost much of those 60 lbs using Weight Watchers but have recently found MFP. Are there others of you out there who have experienced both programs and have favored MFP? Obviously the big draw is that MFP is free. I'm hoping to lose another 20 with MFP. Looking for tips, words of encouragement, any motivation, etc.

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  • BombshellPhoenix
    BombshellPhoenix Posts: 1,693 Member
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    I, honestly, think mfp is better. Not just because it's free but because you actually see the calories and not "points". Also, aren't veggies "free points" on ww? That might work for awhile because veggies are typically less calorie dense than other things but as you get closer to goal, those calories can add up.

    I've transitioned from deficit to maintaining very fluidly with mfp. I can't imagine doing so with ww or wanting to continue paying for something like that for forever when this is free :) just my 2 cents.

    Oh, and I can track my nutrient intake on here! Which I love!
  • WW_Jude_V2
    WW_Jude_V2 Posts: 209 Member
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    Hi there, I'm a WW to MFP convert. :) I lost 50lbs with WW and a further 22 here since April.

    Although I will always credit WW with teaching me how to eat more healthily, I find MFP has taught me how to eat more mindfully. I've always been aware of fat, protein, carbs etc, but MFP lays it right out in front of my eyes and now instead of eating "points" and not knowing what they're comprised of, I eat calories and monitor macros and can easily see where I'm falling short and adjust.

    I'm a life time WW member so being free is absolutely not the reason I moved to MFP. It just made so much more sense to me than the 'magical' points. :)

    Hope you find MFP as helpful as I have!
  • tmaginparadise
    tmaginparadise Posts: 3 Member
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    Bonus that it is free, but it is all about measuring and tracking. MFP is working for me.
  • Singularity84
    Singularity84 Posts: 98 Member
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    I did weight watchers for awhile a couple years ago. I like MFP a lot better. Part of it is probably that I am at a different stage now and more committed than I was on weight watchers (paying money for something is apparently NOT a good motivator for me). I like tracking calories and macros better than points. It makes more sense to me and is easier to wrap my head around. Plus, the food database at MFP seems to have a lot more things in it. I can't even tell you how many times I used the WW barcode scanner only to have nothing show up (even when I was scanning some WW food items). That rarely happens with MFP, which is really nice (though you do still have to be careful that things show up correctly when scanning).

    The biggest difference for me though, is that WW seemed primarily focused on food and diet, while MFP also has a lot to say about exercise and overall healthier living. That's much more helpful for me. Plus, it's free, so that's awesome :)
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    BombshellPhoenix wrote: »
    I can't imagine doing so with ww or wanting to continue paying for something like that for forever when this is free :)

    Maintenance in WW is free. If you've never done it I don't know how you couldn't imagine succeeding with it.

    Points aren't 'magical', just very misunderstood. But if you don't mind dealing in calories, MFP works fine.

  • BombshellPhoenix
    BombshellPhoenix Posts: 1,693 Member
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    WalkingAlong wrote: »
    BombshellPhoenix wrote: »
    I can't imagine doing so with ww or wanting to continue paying for something like that for forever when this is free :)

    Maintenance in WW is free. If you've never done it I don't know how you couldn't imagine succeeding with it.

    Points aren't 'magical', just very misunderstood. But if you don't mind dealing in calories, MFP works fine.

    I never had to pay for it, you're right. I got my desired results for free.

    I never said points were magical. I'm not sure where you got that from. It's an oversimplification of calories that isn't nearly as exact.

    Calories dictate weight loss, so if that's your goal, it's pretty wise to reign those in.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    BombshellPhoenix wrote: »
    I never said points were magical. I'm not sure where you got that from.
    The post below yours.

  • BombshellPhoenix
    BombshellPhoenix Posts: 1,693 Member
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    WalkingAlong wrote: »
    BombshellPhoenix wrote: »
    I never said points were magical. I'm not sure where you got that from.
    The post below yours.

    I has the Halloween tired it seems lol xD. I see now.
  • WW_Jude_V2
    WW_Jude_V2 Posts: 209 Member
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    Yep, I'm the "magical points" poster. What I meant was that points didn't really easily correlate to food for me. If I stayed within my 19 per day, I lost weight. Magic. :wink:

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