Why Doesn't Weight Watchers Work?

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  • angieroo2
    angieroo2 Posts: 973 Member
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    malibu927 wrote: »
    I've never done WW, but from what I've seen, some people take "free" to mean "free-for-all" and eat all the fruits and vegetables they want. Which can add up. And if you aren't counting calories, that can destroy your deficit.
    This exactly. Following the weight watchers plan is to focus on what you're eating, not just eating all of the zero points you want.
  • feisty_bucket
    feisty_bucket Posts: 1,047 Member
    edited May 2015
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    Fruits have hella calories. People commonly grouping "fruits and veggies" together like they're in the same category is very misguided, IMO. The only thing they have in common is that they're closer to their origin as plants than most things people eat.


  • JSurita2
    JSurita2 Posts: 1,304 Member
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    booksandchocolate12 wrote: »
    Weight Watchers does work, until you stop doing it. That's true for any weight loss plan, even counting calories.

    Please go back and read your WW materials. Nowhere does it say that you can eat all the fruits and vegetables that you want.

    This totally! I was more successful on WW then on MFP. Sadly I could no longer afford WW so I'll try to stick to this but I think I need to go back to WW. As far as "free" fruits and veggies, they try to encourage you eat that instead of cake and cookies but I agree that NOWHERE does it say you can eat fruits and veggies all you want. Everything in moderation.
  • maidentl
    maidentl Posts: 3,203 Member
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    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    jessica22222 wrote: »
    Ww works. I tried it and lost weight. I gained it back. What failed for me is you're taking an extra step changing calories into points. I could never wrap my head around the points system.

    This is what I always think. I've never done WW, so maybe there's some benefit I don't see, but if you are going to count why not go with the actual calories?

    I had a friend get upset with me when I said this same thing. Her logic was that WW's point system "encourages" you to make better nutritional choices. As I told her, I don't doubt that but I feel I am capable of making those choices on my own. Perhaps some people need the guidance? Maybe? Makes no sense to me either.
  • narmas1417
    narmas1417 Posts: 8 Member
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    I have had SO MUCH SUCCESS with WW, currently lost 90 and still have about 20ish to go. I like to experiment a little and I was told at the beginning of this life style change that I deserve a free day, so I gave myself a "free" day and i ate...the next day my stomach hurt so bad and I felt that when I let myself go I had to make up what I messed up on the day previous. With any diet excersise should be part of the plan. I shattered and almost lost my leg a yard ago because I fell down the stairs at 90 pounds heavier hence why I lost weight. I started running, doing zumba and walking and my body loves it, and so do i! Any diet comes with sacrifice and hard work, it hasn't been easy to get to this point, but time passes either way and looking back I DID IT! And so can you!!! Stick to it! :)
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    edited May 2015
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    lisag0109 wrote: »
    I also believe weight watchers does work. They do tell you to limit your "free" fruits & veggies to five servings a day. You should also make sure you weigh everything! It's surprising sometimes how much a "serving" really is!

    even with 5 servings i can abuse the WW system lol easily

    i love avocado.....( almost 300 calories for 1 soooo 1500 calories only for eating 5 avocados) And yes really i loveee avocado so would eat them.

    Of course this is silly but what i mean with this is, that when you dont count calories and you eat to much you gain weight! Even with the rule 5 servings only.

  • Dnarules
    Dnarules Posts: 2,081 Member
    edited May 2015
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    TheOwlhouseDesigns wrote: »
    lisag0109 wrote: »
    I also believe weight watchers does work. They do tell you to limit your "free" fruits & veggies to five servings a day. You should also make sure you weigh everything! It's surprising sometimes how much a "serving" really is!

    even with 5 servings i can abuse the WW system lol easily

    i love avocado.....( almost 300 calories for 1 soooo 1500 calories only for eating 5 avocados) And yes really i loveee avocado so would eat them.

    Of course this is silly but what i mean with this is, that when you dont count calories and you eat to much you gain weight!

    But one serving of avocado can't be the whole avocado, just a portion of it, right. It's still common sense.

  • Liv2LovemyBody
    Liv2LovemyBody Posts: 70 Member
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    WEight watchers was the one thing that actually worked for me the best. I grant you I have gained back my weight. But when on weight watchers I lost fastest and kept it off the longest. I worked for weight watchers and had to quit my job when I moved and then I got Prego with my 2nd kiddo and gained it all back and just don't have the time and money to get back into meetings :-(
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
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    thats why i said its silly to do so...and indeed common sense. But a lot of people dont want to use that when they see the words "free"

    After all every diet works as long as you eat a deficit, its quit simple lol

    And everybody should chose what suits them best. And use common sense indeed.

    For me that is weighing all my food and counting
  • Dnarules
    Dnarules Posts: 2,081 Member
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    TheOwlhouseDesigns wrote: »
    thats why i said its silly to do so...and indeed common sense. But a lot of people dont want to use that when they see the words "free"

    After all every diet works as long as you eat a deficit, its quit simple lol

    And everybody should chose what suits them best. And use common sense indeed.

    For me that is weighing all my food and counting

    I agree. I prefer weighing and counting, too.

  • honkytonks85
    honkytonks85 Posts: 669 Member
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    WW is just a simplified form of calorie counting. Like anything else it won't work if you aren't prescriptive in your counting. Also not counting fruits may be detrimental to your progress. I prefer MFP because I like looking at all the variables rather than just assigning "points" to food.
  • jkal1979
    jkal1979 Posts: 1,896 Member
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    TheOwlhouseDesigns wrote: »
    lisag0109 wrote: »
    I also believe weight watchers does work. They do tell you to limit your "free" fruits & veggies to five servings a day. You should also make sure you weigh everything! It's surprising sometimes how much a "serving" really is!

    even with 5 servings i can abuse the WW system lol easily

    i love avocado.....( almost 300 calories for 1 soooo 1500 calories only for eating 5 avocados) And yes really i loveee avocado so would eat them.

    Of course this is silly but what i mean with this is, that when you dont count calories and you eat to much you gain weight! Even with the rule 5 servings only.

    Avocados still have points on WW, along with starchy veggies.
  • ImitatetheSun
    ImitatetheSun Posts: 44 Member
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    I hear you on the strawberries. I eat 2 cups of blueberries for breakfast every day. :) When I did weight watchers in 2004 I had wild success, but after that they started Core, which let you eat high-fiber foods (including pasta!!!) without counting it. I can eat 1,000 calories or more of whole wheat pasta and fat-free mozzarella cheese no problem. All the weight I'd lost came flooding back. They obviously did away with that horrible idea less than a year later, but by then I had dropped out. :). I haven't had any success with WW since then. The system now, with its high point values for whole foods, pushes you into totally fake foods with loads of sugar alcohols and fiber and protein additives, which in me cause uncontrollable cravings and leads to never feeling full. Compare to MFP and clean eating - I just had 200 calories of shrimp with olive oil and a cob of corn with butter and I feel fantastically satisfied. Don't know if that's the whole explanation, but it's been my experience.
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
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    jkal1979 wrote: »
    TheOwlhouseDesigns wrote: »
    lisag0109 wrote: »
    I also believe weight watchers does work. They do tell you to limit your "free" fruits & veggies to five servings a day. You should also make sure you weigh everything! It's surprising sometimes how much a "serving" really is!

    even with 5 servings i can abuse the WW system lol easily

    i love avocado.....( almost 300 calories for 1 soooo 1500 calories only for eating 5 avocados) And yes really i loveee avocado so would eat them.

    Of course this is silly but what i mean with this is, that when you dont count calories and you eat to much you gain weight! Even with the rule 5 servings only.

    Avocados still have points on WW, along with starchy veggies.

    Dang what a shame ;)

    but more comfortable and it make more sense to eat it all and just count the calories i consume.
    Feeling happy that way.

  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
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    TIL that free isn't the same as free according to common sense.
  • Dnarules
    Dnarules Posts: 2,081 Member
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    LiftAllThePizzas wrote: »
    TIL that free isn't the same as free according to common sense.

    When I was in WW, they weren't free. They were 0 points, and to be used in moderation (about 5 servings). It's possible some leaders made them out to be free. But it is common sense. And reading directions. And all those things you complain about here on MFP.

  • Sarasmaintaining
    Sarasmaintaining Posts: 1,027 Member
    edited May 2015
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    JSurita2 wrote: »
    booksandchocolate12 wrote: »
    Weight Watchers does work, until you stop doing it. That's true for any weight loss plan, even counting calories.

    Please go back and read your WW materials. Nowhere does it say that you can eat all the fruits and vegetables that you want.

    This totally! I was more successful on WW then on MFP. Sadly I could no longer afford WW so I'll try to stick to this but I think I need to go back to WW. As far as "free" fruits and veggies, they try to encourage you eat that instead of cake and cookies but I agree that NOWHERE does it say you can eat fruits and veggies all you want. Everything in moderation.

    Just out of curiosity I've done some googling tonight about WW, and I was able to find everything online for free, including online calculators to find my points, and also to calculate my food into points. If the system is a better fit for you it would be pretty easy to do it for free :)
  • tracie_minus100
    tracie_minus100 Posts: 465 Member
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    If you get a good leader, the meetings can be awesome and worth the membership fees.
    Like anything, WW works if followed properly.
    I am a former WW member. I'm sticking with MFP because I don't want to pay, and because I just prefer counting calories instead of points.
  • bpetrosky
    bpetrosky Posts: 3,911 Member
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    Weight Watchers originally used an exchange system (there were several that came up after WWII). They switched to points sometime in the 90s. Either way, it's a proxy for calorie counting. That made a whole lot of sense when nutrition labels were non-existant or not well standardized, and detailed food databases hadn't come around yet. You can pick from a list, measure out the right portion, and the calories tend to fall in the right range to allow for losing weight. WW was one of the better programs and included a good social support program.

    Now with apps like MFP and several others, calorie counting is not as labor intensive as it was prior to 2000. So we have more ways to accomplish that goal, and that's a good thing.

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