Ditching Weight Watchers and doing just MFP? Is it possible ;)

I think your mind is telling you it is time to be self-accountable which is great. Take some time to learn how the body reacts to all foods. Learn about each type of carbohydrate, learn about fatty acids, amino acids, maybe pick up some fish oil pills once you learn a bit more about the omega3's. Play with some intermittent fasting and see if that makes eating easier for you. My best days are a 200cal hemp/whey protein shake in the morning with coffee, then lunch is a coffee, then I eat like a champ from 6-11pm. I love going to bed stuffed which makes up for the fasting all day. Of course sometimes I need an additional shake/food mid-day, but I'm just stating my best days are big fasts. Find out your best strategy. Don't worry too much about the glycemic index, but do track your calories as that is the default method to keep track of the molecules you stuff down your throat. Remember, you are eating carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and then you breathe off those molecules after a reaction in the form of carbon dioxide. If you eat more of these molecules than you breathe out you will gain weight

Hooey! I started WW when I wasn't overweight but thought I was. It was in 1970 when it was so restrictive and the food so awful, actually starving seemed a better alternative. So, yes, I quit them then. Went back two or three times over the years, quit them each time because I didn't like the meetings and didn't like the program. I even tried it a couple years ago when it was okay to eat whatever as long as it was within the 'points' range. Keeping up with all the points in this and that was a total pain. I'm sorry if you are a WW devotee and I'm stepping on your toes. They are just not for me. Nor were any of the other 15 DIETS I tried. I lost weight on each of them, but gained it back every time because it was a diet. WW is a diet, in my opinion. I came to MFP by way of the nutritionist/dietitian at the bariatric surgery center I went to because I was so frustrated I was considering gastric sleeve surgery. The nutritionist gave me the MFP app, which I figured I would never do because it surely would be another failure. But I did try it and I have lost 43 pounds and didn't do the surgery. It's taken me a year, but it's off. I'm fighting it now because of the holidays. But it's easier this time. I just do not feel like I am on a diet anymore. I eat pretty much anything, but watch the calories for the day. I do limit the carbs. I know I would lose more if I limited them more. But I AM NOT GOING TO DENY MYSELF ANY FOOD ANYMORE! I have done it long enough. I use portion control and exercise. I have just over 60 more pounds to lose and if it takes me another year, then it does. At least I know it will be gone for good. I think I started this little story to begin with to tell you that I partially blame WW for me gaining 100 pounds! I went to them when I most certainly was not overweight and not one person there bothered to tell me so. I'm 5'9" tall and weighed 150 pounds. That is not fat. I wore a size 10/12. In today's world, that is 'plus size,' but it is not. I look at pix of myself from then and I could cry because I was not overweight and the folks at WW assured me I was and needed to lose 30 pounds. Really? Had I aspired to be a high fashion model, probably needed to lose 30 and more. But I was a wife, the mom of an 18-month-old, and going to college five days a week. I thought I was overweight because I had lost all but 8 pounds of my baby weight. Anyway, not a fan of WW. Rant over.

I think you will be fine just using MFP and having your trainer.

U can def eat more here than weight watchers didn't like meeting at all. Think u should eat foods u enjoy. Have ur treats. Stick to ur calories. I walk my dog at the minuet that's it. I use to exercise to Rosemary Conley DVDs. Just got them out again. I loved them as u can do short workouts r the whole workout.

I have been an on again, off again member of WW for almost all my life. My first time I went I was in my early 20's...I am now 60. I have reached "goal" and " lifetime " twice while on the WW plan.
I am not slamming the WW plan, it is just that I think it is great for when you want to loose weight, but there is little support and infrastructure when you have reached your desired gosl ( I.e. no longer have to pay). I have been on MFP since last Feb. They offer great support through the community forums, and an infrastructure that helps you both loosr and maintain through friend, and food diaries, with lots of a food database. I have recently list 10 pounds, which puts me back in the normal bmi range through MFP, and walking using a fitbit flex. I love using both if these tools in tandem. And for me right now, this is working, and I am not going back another time to WW, unless they change the way they support lifetime membership.

smelbo wrote: »

I have been an on again, off again member of WW for almost all my life. My first time I went I was in my early 20's...I am now 60. I have reached "goal" and " lifetime " twice while on the WW plan.
I am not slamming the WW plan, it is just that I think it is great for when you want to loose weight, but there is little support and infrastructure when you have reached your desired gosl ( I.e. no longer have to pay). I have been on MFP since last Feb. They offer great support through the community forums, and an infrastructure that helps you both loosr and maintain through friend, and food diaries, with lots of a food database. I have recently list 10 pounds, which puts me back in the normal bmi range through MFP, and walking using a fitbit flex. I love using both if these tools in tandem. And for me right now, this is working, and I am not going back another time to WW, unless they change the way they support lifetime membership.

As a lifetime member that is currently 16 pounds under my goal weight, I couldn't agree with you more here. I go monthly just to weigh in and that's it. There are two receptionists at the desk who are nice when I first walk in, but then have nothing nice to say once they see that I am still under the goal weight that they set many years ago. I guess when they can't make money off of you, they no longer care. I use to use MFP to maintain. But since getting my Fitbit One, I just use that now since it is working out well and has all of the info that I need right now. That said, I do love coming here to MFP as I think the community is a great place for support as well.

I did WW online program 10 years ago for 3 months and I lost about 22 lbs. I've since gained it all back not because I stopped being a member, but because I stopped tracking my food and paying attention to what I ate and drank. With WW, there was no "magical formula" other than I counted points and tracked food intake diligently. I can track my calories here on MFP just the same, but here I don't have to bother with "points" or pay for the privilege of tracking. It's really up to you. If you "work" the program, it will work for you. Just track your calorie intake, stay within your range, and you'll be successful.

I'm amazed at how many of you are here that are experiencing the same fear and concerns as I have been feeling and thinking. I have heard the same thing said that if you leave you'll gain weight. I think we need a support group for those wanting to leave but are afraid to. lol. It's kind of sick really. I stopped going to meetings because the info has gotten so stupid really. I was doing online only. Thank you all for sharing.