Thoughts on noom?

ashmherrin
ashmherrin Posts: 16 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi everyone! One of my biggest hurdles is that sometimes I don't hold myself accountable, so I was looking into trying out a program, and noom caught my eye.

If you've tried it, what are your thoughts, positive and negative? Is there a different program that you'd recommend instead?

Thanks! :)

Replies

  • dolorsit
    dolorsit Posts: 92 Member
    edited March 2021
    Have a look with search. There are a couple of recent threads on it.

    I was looking at it but read lots of scary reviews about people being charged after trying to cancel the 14-day trial. Apparently there's no cancel button, you have to send messages/emails or something and hope that your credit card doesn't get charged. That stopped me trying it and I came here instead.
  • kermitch
    kermitch Posts: 53 Member
    I got it for a few months, but it didn't really inspire me. I had somebody linked up to keep in touch, and they did. But I kind of felt like anybody could do that task in their setup. They'll send you a few messages a week and ask how you're doing etc.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    Here's a good recently active thread you might find interesting: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10825317/noom-vs-mfp#latest
  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    ashmherrin wrote: »
    Hi everyone! One of my biggest hurdles is that sometimes I don't hold myself accountable, so I was looking into trying out a program, and noom caught my eye.

    If you've tried it, what are your thoughts, positive and negative? Is there a different program that you'd recommend instead?

    Thanks! :)

    Hi! I did the 7 day trial and then upped to the 14 day trial.

    ➕
    - In the beginning, I enjoyed the mini articles. I bookmarked quite a few that I found helpful.
    - really like their color coded logging system. Even if I’m under total calories, I may have gone over in Red (high calorie density items). I still use their free logging.
    - Imports workouts from VeryFitPro

    ➖
    - was not happy at all with their Goal Specialist and their Group Coach. It felt like their answers and discussion topics were computer generated. Did not feel supported or encouraged. No specific feedback towards what I was eating
    - Found a lot of inaccuracies with their calories for specific UPC items. They allow you to submit a request to have the item information corrected, but I’ve been using their free system since January and items are still not updated.
    - Towards the end of the trial, found the articles meaningless

    I recommend the 14 day trial. See got yourself. Just set a calendar reminder to cancel your trial on the 12th or 13th day. Like most subscriptions it automatically renews.

    Hope that helps.
  • Sara3veg
    Sara3veg Posts: 48 Member
    So I just signed up for the 14 day trial. I had a friend over on Memorial Day and she's doing it (her doctor recommended the program to her), and she showed me around the app. Some of the things my friend said really clicked with me-I know how to lose weight and I even know how to maintain-for a while. But along the way I've picked up some pretty unhealthy behaviors-I've got labels slapped on labels for different foods/food groups :p I feel like I'm at a place where I need to get rid of all the years of accumulated dieting 'junk' and learn how to finally have a balanced relationship with food.

    Today is my first day and so far I like the little videos. Good reminders for most of the topics and I even learned a couple of things. But, I tried logging my breakfast and literally the first thing I logged had incorrect information (Killer Daves bread, so not anything uncommon). That instantly made my eye twitch, ha! I'm going to give it 10 days and see how it goes. It might be worth it for me to just to pay for a 3 month subscription and log here on MFP.



  • Idontcareyoupick
    Idontcareyoupick Posts: 2,854 Member
    I tried the 7 day trial and feel like the others. It's a lot of money for things you can do yourself and mfp is more accurate for calories. They do try to build a better relationship with food but the money stopped me
  • jo_nz
    jo_nz Posts: 548 Member
    I did the free trial (and actually managed to cancel without any big hassle - there was a chain of messages not just a one-step process, but not too complicated).
    But I really disliked the articles - too upbeat or over-familiar in tone (IMO), and really not very much solid information.

    Maybe it would have got better beyond the trial stage, but from what I saw, the information and support here is miles ahead of what it offered - and free!
  • foxcc
    foxcc Posts: 68 Member
    I found some of the topics/ tips were helpful identify my mood prior to overeating; focusing on lower caloric density foods and other tools I don't think the coach added anything and ultimately it did not improve my accountability; I ended my subscription after 6 mo which I had no difficulty with
  • kelleyhambrick
    kelleyhambrick Posts: 2 Member
    I totally agree on the aspect that there was someone there doing a check in but it almost felt like it was a computer generated answer. Not much help. And very time consuming.
  • roseym10
    roseym10 Posts: 107 Member
    kermitch wrote: »
    I got it for a few months, but it didn't really inspire me. I had somebody linked up to keep in touch, and they did. But I kind of felt like anybody could do that task in their setup. They'll send you a few messages a week and ask how you're doing etc.

    I had this same exact experience, I find the message boards here much more helpful and the same and in some cases better advice and information is provided.
  • candysashab88
    candysashab88 Posts: 73 Member
    someone said it was like weight watchers for millenials and that right there is a huge turn off for me. Im not a fan of color coded food categories to be honest. I prefer to know the nutrients and the protein and carb percentages and not just say this is 4 pts on WW or this is a green category food. Plus there is lots of complaints on the BBB about their lack of customer support if you want to cancel. I was like heck no
  • Sara3veg
    Sara3veg Posts: 48 Member
    edited June 2021
    Well I ended up canceling after day 4 of my 14 day free trial. I didn't like how the group coach/guide would send me a message, I'd respond, and then immediately would get a canned response. So obviously an automatic system, I wasn't actually connecting with a real person. Their food database was very lacking as well.

    I didn't have any issues canceling though, it was really easy to do it and I was never charged or have had any issues after the fact.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,989 Member
    Well at least here on the forums, the advice given is free (unless you want to pay for more individual concise advice) and there's a wide array of opinions from many who are well versed in weight loss/gain/maintenance. The reality is for people who want to change, is that you have to change your habitual behavior of eating to one you can sustain over a long period of time without totally changing your whole lifestyle. Many try to do a full 180 and FAIL because it's usually going to be a change that deprives them of things they like to eat or do.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
  • Mrsrobinsoncl
    Mrsrobinsoncl Posts: 128 Member
    dolorsit wrote: »
    Have a look with search. There are a couple of recent threads on it.

    I was looking at it but read lots of scary reviews about people being charged after trying to cancel the 14-day trial. Apparently there's no cancel button, you have to send messages/emails or something and hope that your credit card doesn't get charged. That stopped me trying it and I came here instead.

    Yea, I cancelled then got charged the next month. I even had a message from their customer service saying my membership was cancelled and now in "free" mode. But I got charged the following month I was told I need to cancel it through the App on ituned and they cant aka wont refund me the money
  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,994 Member
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    I like that it addresses the psychological aspect of weight loss and what maybe holding people back. But after free trial, you pay for that advice. You get it for free here on the forums.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

    BOOM! This.

    I tried Noom about a year and a half ago.
    The pop psychology isn’t awful…. If you like that sort of thing. Lots of filling in a square to answer questions like “How do you see yourself in six months?”

    But when I tried it the teams they set you up with very quickly devolved into me and the coach, and maybe sometimes one other person. And the personal coach knew absolutely zilch about how to help me - a person with a balance disorder - actually exercise. Like, at all. So he was pretty much useless.

    Also? It’s expensive. Very expensive for what I was able to get out of it.
  • HoneyBadger302
    HoneyBadger302 Posts: 2,073 Member
    I very briefly tried it, thankfully had no issues cancelling (but caught it within minutes of the email coming through).

    Personally, my impression was that if someone is new to losing weight and/or working out and/or tracking a diet/foods, then it's a great tool to get started with and a wide variety of resources available.

    As someone who is not new to any of this, who already has many tools and resources at my fingertips, I found it very, very basic, entry level, and no help in my situation at all.
  • lbpfahler
    lbpfahler Posts: 73 Member
    I did Noom for about 8 months. I agree with others that the food logger is awful. I did enjoy the daily lessons and that kept me focused on my physical and mental health. I lost 20 pounds. After about 7 months the lessons were complete and then switched to review. I found the group discussions occasionally useful. Many people did not participate in discussions. I never got a personal coach - just the group coach. I didn't realize that I was missing that. So a mixed review but it did help me get started.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Sara3veg wrote: »
    Well I ended up canceling after day 4 of my 14 day free trial. I didn't like how the group coach/guide would send me a message, I'd respond, and then immediately would get a canned response. So obviously an automatic system, I wasn't actually connecting with a real person. Their food database was very lacking as well.

    I didn't have any issues canceling though, it was really easy to do it and I was never charged or have had any issues after the fact.

    I can't speak to Noom, but I am a real person who does a lot of text banking and we are supposed to use canned responses.

    (I do edit these as I see fit as sometimes it appears that not a lot of thought went into them.)

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