Weight Watchers and MFP

Anabug81 · May 2016

Was thinking about doing Weight Watchers and MFP together? Anyone else doing and done this?

sammyliftsandeats · May 2016

MFP is free! No need for Weight Watchers.

Just enter the correct information and follow the guidelines.
Log your food and use a food scale.

Good luck!

jennk5309 · May 2016

Honestly, the new WW program is too restrictive in my opinion. I tried it twice and gave up both times because I couldn't stick with it and then felt guilty and overate. If you follow their program and then log the calories here, you'll probably be shocked to realize how few calories the weight watchers points translate to.

Anabug81 · May 2016

That is what I have been learning through my research. I guess I will stick with MFP.

Queenmunchy · May 2016

Yep, I did. I consistently lost weight every week within the parameters of the old WW (8 years ago) and calorie counting simultaneously. It was free for me because I was an interpreter, but I wouldn't pay for it.

jbrownnolan · May 2016

I did Weight Watchers for 10 months 10 years ago, (September - June), I went from 185 lbs to 132 lbs in that amount of time. It really helped me realize what proper portions were, and also helped me take control of my snacking. Around March of that year I did both CC and WW (from March until June), but through a different calorie counting website. I was able to transition over to counting calories instead of points once I got everything under control, and eventually stopped WW (YA, cause I didn't want to pay for it any more LOL). I've been calorie counting ever since (yes this is a life time thing, not a "once I get there I'll go back to my old eating habits" thing). I came over to my fitness pal when I got an activity tracker that synced to it. I've maintained the 132 lbs (give or take 5 lbs up/down) for the past 10 years. So there you go, go ahead and do both...but counting calories is free

azgolfgirl · May 2016

The new Smart Points is too restrictive. I double logged when the program was introduced and was only eating about 1000 calories per day. No wonder I was hungry all the time!

MissusMoon · May 2016

For those looking into WW, not only is the new plan restrictive and sort of woo, but apparently the website and app are a disaster, and they've outsourced their billing and customer service. Just spend a few minutes looking at this: https://www.consumeraffairs.com/nutrition/weight_watchers.html Good luck getting a refund or simply being able to cancel your account.

MFP is free and gives you the tools to make a real lifestyle change. No way I'd ever go back to WW given how much they've fallen.

chunky_pinup · May 2016

azgolfgirl wrote: »

The new Smart Points is too restrictive. I double logged when the program was introduced and was only eating about 1000 calories per day. No wonder I was hungry all the time!

Yup! My breakfast consumed all of my daily "points"....was all nutrient dense food and is less than 600 calories. Sorry, I lift heavy and am NOT willing to starve myself or alter my diet to consume their nasty marketed junk instead of my wholesome, delicious food just to see the scale move.

newheavensearth · May 2016

My calories following the new WW points system are very inconsistent. They range from 1000 to close to 2100 depending on food choices. Since fruits and veggies are 0 points, those calories can up your calorie count. Too high for me to lose, or I gain some weeks, or so low I'm hungry. So far I'm maintaining my weight on it +/- 2lbs. I want to lose more, so I'm back to counting calories.

baciodolce18 · May 2016

I'm sad WW changed so drastically. I was super successful on points plus 3-4 years ago losing 45 pounds. I was wanting to rejoin because of how successful I was but was really scared off by smart points.

typeitdaily · May 2016

I left WW when they changed their program. Way too restrictive! All the "free" fruits and vegetables were hard on my calorie count also. I was always starving!

TxTiffani · May 2016

I feel like there's some unnecessary steps converting foods to points when you can just put your cals in MFP. IMO.

alyssa0061 · May 2016

MissusMoon wrote: »

For those looking into WW, not only is the new plan restrictive and sort of woo, but apparently the website and app are a disaster, and they've outsourced their billing and customer service. Just spend a few minutes looking at this: https://www.consumeraffairs.com/nutrition/weight_watchers.html Good luck getting a refund or simply being able to cancel your account.

MFP is free and gives you the tools to make a real lifestyle change. No way I'd ever go back to WW given how much they've fallen.

The app is complete crap and gets worse and worse with every update they do.

The only thing I like about it is the toggle feature when logging foods. It makes it extremely easy to log something by grams or ounces.

The social media portion of the app (Connect) is filled with nothing but drivel and misinformation.

Wineandyoga · May 2016

I just switched to MFP from WW. I did WW points plus a couple of years ago and loved it. But like others have said, the new system is way too restrictive. On the days I was staying within my points, I was only eating 600-800 calories, and was starving all the time! The app was also terrible and I was unable to track at all for about a week. I've been doing MFP for about a week now and I am so much happier and feel so much better. I do not recommend adding the new WW program.

randomtai · May 2016

I like free.

DebSozo · May 2016

randomtai wrote: »

I like free.

Me too! I like how easy MFP is. I had friends who did WW and all they talked about was points. To me they got obsessed with "counting points". MFP feels more intuitive/ natural, and I don't stress about it all day.

Dove0804 · May 2016

I've never tried WW, but wasn't the basic idea to simplify calorie counting and make it easier to do by making it "points" instead? So if you're willing to calorie count, I really don't see why the more simplified, less accurate, and pricier way of doing it would be necessary at all. That's also extra work more restrictions for you.

DebSozo · May 2016

Dove0804 wrote: »

I've never tried WW, but wasn't the basic idea to simplify calorie counting and make it easier to do by making it "points" instead? So if you're willing to calorie count, I really don't see why the more simplified, less accurate, and pricier way of doing it would be necessary at all. That's also extra work more restrictions for you.

I think points are just a marketing ploy to make it seem like WW has an edge over calorie counting. I'm not sure that WW is simpler?

wizzybeth · May 2016

Dove0804 wrote: »

I've never tried WW, but wasn't the basic idea to simplify calorie counting and make it easier to do by making it "points" instead? So if you're willing to calorie count, I really don't see why the more simplified, less accurate, and pricier way of doing it would be necessary at all. That's also extra work more restrictions for you.

That was supposedly the idea, but you could only "simplify" by using their Points Finder tools. The forumla for converting nutritional info to points is somewhat complicated. And of course every few years they have to switch up their points program and use a different algorithm to keep people guessing and depending on going to meetings. Weight Watchers is currently, first and foremost, about making money off the consumer. Nothing wrong with that, but that's what it is.

Counting calories is SO much easier - and it's FREE! It's FREE! It's FREE! You don't even need MFP to do it though it makes it so much easier. A simple journal and old fashioned pen, and perhaps a calculator if you suck at math, is all you need to do it.

songbird13291 · May 2016

Another former Weight Watchers member here.

Weight Watchers uses the point system to encourage healthier food choices. That's why two foods with the same calorie counts may have different point values -- the food with the better nutritional value will have fewer points.

Personal experience. I loved Points Plus, it was easy to follow, I felt satisfied with the foods I was eating, I lost weight. When they transitioned to Smart Points, I was miserable. So were a lot of other people.

I did a little experiment.

There are apps -- Ultimate Food Value Diary and Protracker, for example -- that use the old Point Plus format. I downloaded UFVD.

I ate what I normally eat and tracked the foods on My Fitness Pal, UFVD and the Weight Watchers app. There's a real correlation between calories and Points Plus, but no relationship between calories and Smart Points. If I ate my MFP calories a day, I was well within my points budget on the old Points Plus plan, but because of the foods I chose, I was well above my points allotment on Smart Points.

I've lost a lot of weight since I dropped Weight Watchers and started to use MFP exclusively.

Weight Watchers and MFP

Replies

Categories