My First Time on My Fitness Pal instead of Weight Watchers
bonnienicholson
Posts: 6 Member
What if I want to eat without worry one day on the weekend, but go way over my calories? Do we ever have any leeway like we do on WW with the "weekly" points?
Is the program going to yell at me if I go over my points?
Oh, and another thing that I am having a hard time adjusting to is that vegetables and fruits aren't "free". I had a healthy salad for lunch (no cheese, no croutons, and balsamic dressing) and the calories total was 414 calories!!!!!!!!!! I did put black beans and garbanzo beans in it so that did count for a lot of the calories. Lesson learned salad = no beans!!! And the grilled chicken was 100 calories. So, I guess if I just cut out the beans and olives, I'll be okay.
Well, this is a learning curve just like WW was. I'll eventually get it figured out.
Good luck to everyone out there. Thanks for listening to me ramble on.
Is the program going to yell at me if I go over my points?
Oh, and another thing that I am having a hard time adjusting to is that vegetables and fruits aren't "free". I had a healthy salad for lunch (no cheese, no croutons, and balsamic dressing) and the calories total was 414 calories!!!!!!!!!! I did put black beans and garbanzo beans in it so that did count for a lot of the calories. Lesson learned salad = no beans!!! And the grilled chicken was 100 calories. So, I guess if I just cut out the beans and olives, I'll be okay.
Well, this is a learning curve just like WW was. I'll eventually get it figured out.
Good luck to everyone out there. Thanks for listening to me ramble on.
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Replies
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The only person who is going to "yell" at you here is you. The "program" is just an online tool that allows you to count calories and keep track of them to your hearts content, do with it what you will.
The advice I would give is that weight loss is a factor of how many calories you have expended versus how many calories you have taken in. If you don't track accurately you won't really be keeping on top of it and if you choose to have days where you don't track at all then basically you are saying that accuracy isn't that important to you. Thats up to you.4 -
Hi! I also switched from WW to MFP a while ago. It is a learning curve, but I'm so much happier. The thing is, that salad was still 414 calories when you were on WW. Zero points does not equal zero calories. In fact, I heard just last week that fruits are no longer zero points and my guess is that because people were eating too many and gaining weight. I didn't fact check that, so I have no idea if it's accurate.
There are no flex points, per say, on MFP, but the working logic behind them is still there and something you can choose to do. You could choose not to eat all your calories on MFP and "bank" them (you'd have to find another way to track that though, it's not something MFP does automatically). You're striving for a weekly average of calories. I have no idea if I'm making sense or not.
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Personally I think counting calories makes a lot more sense than programs like WW. Calories are the direct readout of weight gain. You eat more calories than your body expends and you gain weight, if you track your calories you can see that directly and adjust accordingly. The nice thing about that is that you don't have to avoid any types of food because you see how many calories you are getting from them. Programs like weight watchers rely instead on you only eating "low calorie" foods in the hopes that without tracking you will still be under on your calories (ie what really matters) so they encourage you to eat lots of vegetables (low calorie high fiber) and avoid higher calorie things since you aren't tracking you wouldn't know when you went over.
Now you are tracking, so now you do know. So you can eat beans, you can eat cake, provided you can fit it into your daily calories. What you choose to eat is up to you, its the tracking that matters.7 -
It's really your average calorie intake that matters, across time, and not necessarily any one day. Lots of people structure their weeks to have lower calorie days and higher calorie days; as long as your weekly average results in a deficit, you'll lose weight. So if MFP tells you to eat 1500 calories daily (10,500 weekly), you could eat 1400 on 6 days, 2100 on the 7th day, and you'd be fine.
What you can't do in that scenario is to eat 1500 for 6 days, then 2100 on the 7th day, and expect the same results. That's where people can run into trouble with things like "cheat" days.
The advantage of MFP over things like WW is that MFP gives you full visibility into all the choices you're making. That salad always had 414 calories, you just didn't see it that way. With MFP, you can choose to "spend" your calories in any way you want. If you want the beans and olives tomorrow, you can add them. If you want to save those calories for something else (like dessert), you can do that too.4 -
Some vegetables and fruits are "free-er" than others. Peas, carrots, and corn are more expensive calorie-wise than a similar volume of leafy greens, but variety is the spice of life and you can and should eat whatever you like, just maybe less of some things. Pick the ones that have the highest amount of fiber. And don't omit protein just because it is a higher calorie item. You need protein with every meal. Not only is it necessary for helping to preserve your existing muscle, but it helps you remain satiated between meals.
Nothing wrong with a 400 calorie meal, I often eat 500-700 calorie meals and stay within my goal. Getting some exercise every day helps with that.3 -
Hi! I also switched from WW to MFP a while ago. It is a learning curve, but I'm so much happier. The thing is, that salad was still 414 calories when you were on WW. Zero points does not equal zero calories. In fact, I heard just last week that fruits are no longer zero points and my guess is that because people were eating too many and gaining weight. I didn't fact check that, so I have no idea if it's accurate.
There are no flex points, per say, on MFP, but the working logic behind them is still there and something you can choose to do. You could choose not to eat all your calories on MFP and "bank" them (you'd have to find another way to track that though, it's not something MFP does automatically). You're striving for a weekly average of calories. I have no idea if I'm making sense or not.
Hah fruit was zero points? Yeah I can see that backfiring. I mean I get that vegetables are zero, you can eat as much lettuce as you want you'll never get enough calories from that to matter before you've literally filled up your stomach....but fruit? Fruit can be pretty high calorie and its basically sugar. Wouldn't be that hard to go over by 600 calories eating fruit, couple of mangos would probably do that.1 -
Aaron_K123 wrote: »Hi! I also switched from WW to MFP a while ago. It is a learning curve, but I'm so much happier. The thing is, that salad was still 414 calories when you were on WW. Zero points does not equal zero calories. In fact, I heard just last week that fruits are no longer zero points and my guess is that because people were eating too many and gaining weight. I didn't fact check that, so I have no idea if it's accurate.
There are no flex points, per say, on MFP, but the working logic behind them is still there and something you can choose to do. You could choose not to eat all your calories on MFP and "bank" them (you'd have to find another way to track that though, it's not something MFP does automatically). You're striving for a weekly average of calories. I have no idea if I'm making sense or not.
Hah fruit was zero points? Yeah I can see that backfiring. I mean I get that vegetables are zero, you can eat as much lettuce as you want you'll never get enough calories from that to matter before you've literally filled up your stomach....but fruit? Fruit can be pretty high calorie and its basically sugar. Wouldn't be that hard to go over by 600 calories eating fruit, couple of mangos would probably do that.
At least according to the following list, acorn and butternut squash (all summer and winter squash, actually), artichoke hearts, broccoli, carrots and tomatoes are all "free." I could easily add a few hundred calories per day in those vegetables. (Apparently, ketchup is also free, which is crazy).
http://www.weightwatchers.com/util/art/index_art.aspx?tabnum=1&art_id=597812 -
And bananas!1
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Aaron_K123 wrote: »Hi! I also switched from WW to MFP a while ago. It is a learning curve, but I'm so much happier. The thing is, that salad was still 414 calories when you were on WW. Zero points does not equal zero calories. In fact, I heard just last week that fruits are no longer zero points and my guess is that because people were eating too many and gaining weight. I didn't fact check that, so I have no idea if it's accurate.
There are no flex points, per say, on MFP, but the working logic behind them is still there and something you can choose to do. You could choose not to eat all your calories on MFP and "bank" them (you'd have to find another way to track that though, it's not something MFP does automatically). You're striving for a weekly average of calories. I have no idea if I'm making sense or not.
Hah fruit was zero points? Yeah I can see that backfiring. I mean I get that vegetables are zero, you can eat as much lettuce as you want you'll never get enough calories from that to matter before you've literally filled up your stomach....but fruit? Fruit can be pretty high calorie and its basically sugar. Wouldn't be that hard to go over by 600 calories eating fruit, couple of mangos would probably do that.Aaron_K123 wrote: »Hi! I also switched from WW to MFP a while ago. It is a learning curve, but I'm so much happier. The thing is, that salad was still 414 calories when you were on WW. Zero points does not equal zero calories. In fact, I heard just last week that fruits are no longer zero points and my guess is that because people were eating too many and gaining weight. I didn't fact check that, so I have no idea if it's accurate.
There are no flex points, per say, on MFP, but the working logic behind them is still there and something you can choose to do. You could choose not to eat all your calories on MFP and "bank" them (you'd have to find another way to track that though, it's not something MFP does automatically). You're striving for a weekly average of calories. I have no idea if I'm making sense or not.
Hah fruit was zero points? Yeah I can see that backfiring. I mean I get that vegetables are zero, you can eat as much lettuce as you want you'll never get enough calories from that to matter before you've literally filled up your stomach....but fruit? Fruit can be pretty high calorie and its basically sugar. Wouldn't be that hard to go over by 600 calories eating fruit, couple of mangos would probably do that.
At least according to the following list, acorn and butternut squash (all summer and winter squash, actually), artichoke hearts, broccoli, carrots and tomatoes are all "free." I could easily add a few hundred calories per day in those vegetables. (Apparently, ketchup is also free, which is crazy).
http://www.weightwatchers.com/util/art/index_art.aspx?tabnum=1&art_id=59781
Yep! When I was doing WW I allowed myself one "free" piece of fruit but then counted the others in my point allowance. It never sat well with me. Also, I was paying just to track points and have access to a community. Ridiculous!!1 -
I found I stalled on WW after a while, and fruits and vegetables(peas are my favorite) were easily adding 200-300 calories a day on average, which WAS the difference between my .5lb loss a week goal and maintenance.
I found I was eating better counting calories than counting points, because there is no reason a few pieces of chocolate should account for half my daily points because it doesn't. WW over simplifies the plan which hurt me, I am a numbers person.
I would suggest keeping track of points and calories for a few weeks so you can compare the differences yourself and be able to chose which route gets you to your goal of being happy and healthy!
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On a side note personally I think salads are about the worst thing you can eat on a diet.
You have lettuce, which offers absolutely nothing in terms of satiety or taste or anything really. Then on top of that you put things that make it taste better which is for most people a dressing that is pretty much oil and fat. So basically you are eating some oil and getting very little satisfaction out of it. I'll eat salad for the greens for nutrition purposes, but I never eat it as a way to "fill" myself for low calories, it just doesn't work.
In my opinion you'd basically be better off eating some sausage or something, at least you'll feel satisfied afterwords. You'd be way better off eating some lean proteins. Actually the beans in your salad were probably the only decent things in there in terms of satiety.6 -
Lindsay375 wrote: »I found I stalled on WW after a while, and fruits and vegetables(peas are my favorite) were easily adding 200-300 calories a day on average, which WAS the difference between my .5lb loss a week goal and maintenance.
They are encouraging eating fruits and vegetables (which I get), but as you found out, if you play it wrong, you'll stop losing weight.1 -
In my recollection, WW's Core Program was essentially the same as Paleo/Atkins/Keto, but not quite LCHF. So yeah, it worked, but as stated above, unless you eat less calories than you burn, you will gain.
You can't go by me tho'...I'm a heretic.
To OP: Bonnie, read 'Always Hungry?' by Dr. David Ludwig. Great book!2 -
Former Weight Watcher here. I had success with the program but stalled out pretty quickly. As other posters have mentioned calorie counting just makes sense!1
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My issue with programs like weight watchers is they just seem to be insultingly patronizing. Like "oh honey, you can't handle tracking calories so why don't you just eat lots of vegetables and things will probably work themselves out from there".
Will focusing on eating lots of vegetables cause someone who previously did not eat vegetables to lose weight? Probably at first for a bit yeah. But it sort of ignores the whole centeral tenant of actual weight loss, CICO, presumably on the assumption that people just can't handle basic addition or something. Its oversimplification to the point of really not tracking what actually matters for weightloss.1 -
So, beans. Often very satiating. Decent amount of carbs, fiber, and some protein. If you like them, keep eating them!
Weight watchers plays with their points pretty frequently - in their current version, I think they're formulating points to get members to eat very lean meats/proteins and few animal fats (I think I noticed that saturated fats seriously spiked points in foods that generally had a decent nutritional profile). Nothing wrong with that, but that's not the only way to do it. You don't have to subsist on super lean meats and greens to be healthy or lose weight. When I tried it, they were still really into low/no fat - which does not keep me full and happy while I'm dropping weight.
On MFP, you can look at "net calories" in the weekly chart view. If you want to save some calories for a night out or a weekend away, you can do that. You can also eat calories burned through exercise, though probably only 50% of what you think your burning. (Activity trackers, etc. often run high compared to what you actually burn) So that principle from WW stays the same - you can just fine tune it to meet your needs. Don't go over your net calories for the week. Always try to get at least 1200 calories per day so you're more likely to meet all your nutritional needs.2 -
Hi! I also switched from WW to MFP a while ago. It is a learning curve, but I'm so much happier. The thing is, that salad was still 414 calories when you were on WW. Zero points does not equal zero calories. In fact, I heard just last week that fruits are no longer zero points and my guess is that because people were eating too many and gaining weight. I didn't fact check that, so I have no idea if it's accurate.
There are no flex points, per say, on MFP, but the working logic behind them is still there and something you can choose to do. You could choose not to eat all your calories on MFP and "bank" them (you'd have to find another way to track that though, it's not something MFP does automatically). You're striving for a weekly average of calories. I have no idea if I'm making sense or not.
Fruit is still zero. Also lean protein and protein supplements are low point, so now people are overdoing that. Like baked goods made of protein powder and protein shake frapaccinos.
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I lost successfully 60 pounds on WW 10 years ago, but gained back once I stopped, as I did not really learn the science behind what I was actually eating.
I started again this year with their new program and I just could not wrap my head around their new system on how they calculated the points value. Last time, I could go through the supermarket and kind of knew how many calories would equal a point (regardless of the food group), but this time I felt extremely lost and I did not want to use my points calculator on every single product when shopping.
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Aaron_K123 wrote: »On a side note personally I think salads are about the worst thing you can eat on a diet.
You have lettuce, which offers absolutely nothing in terms of satiety or taste or anything really. Then on top of that you put things that make it taste better which is for most people a dressing that is pretty much oil and fat. So basically you are eating some oil and getting very little satisfaction out of it. I'll eat salad for the greens for nutrition purposes, but I never eat it as a way to "fill" myself for low calories, it just doesn't work.
In my opinion you'd basically be better off eating some sausage or something, at least you'll feel satisfied afterwords. You'd be way better off eating some lean proteins. Actually the beans in your salad were probably the only decent things in there in terms of satiety.
I think this is FANTASTIC advice. You are so right. I could have just had a protein and some broccoli for greens and fiber. I am a diabetic and the beans are high in cholesterol, which turns to sugar.....so, I am actually hungry again already! Thanks for the great advice.0 -
You have all been a great help. Thank you so much.2
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I avoid salads. Any day while I'm losing weight that can be achieved within calories without having to resort to salad is a win in my book. Unless you adore salad and would eat it every day regardless of weight loss salad, I would say ditch it in favor of foods that you WANT to eat.
I will say that sometimes now I choose cheese OR sour cream on taco night to stay within goal. Those kind of compromises make sense, and TBH, I don't really miss the sour cream or feel the meal is incomplete without it.1 -
I hated WW. I find MFP is easier and makes more sense.0
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I like a salad made with baby spinach and some kind of protein. I find it filling and tasty.0
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the only time i eat salads is when I put my meal on top of the lettuce, otherwise it's not filling. I'm actually eating more bread & potatoes, something i hardly ever ate before, but always loved & am loosing weight. I really like mfp. I can eat whatever i want within the daily calories i have and I have & am learning to eat more variety of foods. I love zucchini & green beans, i can eat alot of those without going over, I also put those in my smoothies along with fruits0
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on another note, when i first started mfp, I went out to lunch with a friend. I had a large cesar salad. When i logged it, it was over 450 cal!! since then, i'll have grilled chicken, ground turkey or beef with baked potato, butter, green beans & occationally 1/2 ice cream on a cone. So filling & less or a little more calories than that salad depending what kind of meat i had1
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OP - on your diary page, click nutrition (bottom), then highlight calories. In the top middle, you can toggle between daily and weekly. Just keep the weekly number at goal and you should be fine.2
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Keep an eye on your WEEKLY calorie goal. I aim for that more than daily, if I eat 1200 one day but 2000 the next I don't care so long as it evens out. My daily goal is 1680 a day, I try to save 80-180 of those a day if I know I am going out on a weekend or something. Those are my 49 weekly PP
I use to do weightwatchers on and off but hate the fact fruit and veg were free, they still had calories after all! Though I don't beat myself up if I go over goal now and have had a good day loaded with fruit and veg. 0 -
Oh I do eat lettuce, but its to add some greens to a meal like Evamutt basically said (put my dinner on top of some lettuce). Its a nutrient addition, not the star...would never call it a salad. I suppose its semantic at somepoint if you call two chicken breasts ripped up and put over a bed of lettuce a "Salad" or not.
When I picture a salad I picture lettuce with dressing and like some seasame seeds or some small pieces of chicken or bacon tossed in. I don't think thats a good "go-to" for an entire meal for someone who is attempting to lose weight because most of the calories end up coming from a dressing which is basically oil.0 -
OP: You said beans are high in cholesterol....that's not true. Black beans and garbanzo beans that you mentioned have zero cholesterol. Make sure you are reading labels correctly.
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