Weight Watchers?

[Mouse princess]

WW has weekly meeting for you to go to. You go there, weigh in, and than take a seat in a big room where there is a bunch of people all on weight watchers and the leader. The leader will than bring up whatever topic is for the day- whether prtion control, ccoking tips, etc. The meetings are very helpful.

[MTNGIRL]

You can also do WW on-line.

[TinkPink]

Okay, let me ask a stupid question.... is Weight Watchers a program like Jenny Craig where you go in and meet with someone on a regular basis, etc. or do you just do it on your own by purchasing a book (like Adkins)?

I would say you (general you) should join the meetings in the beginning for sure. You get the supplies like point counters and learn how to go with the program. I think you are definitely more successful when you have to go be accountable with people once a week. And they have a lot of helpful hints and recipes that they give out.

Now that I have the supplies and know how the program works, I do very well following the program without paying. But I also have an amazing support group that I am a part of and we weigh in together once/week. It's just free!

[Missviolet]

I did Weight Watchers hen I was in the 8th grade with my mom. They have a little "point counter" thing that lets you put in the Calories, Fat and Dietary Fiber.. you slide the little counter around so that you get all the measurements right and it gives you a point value for ANY food as long as you know the dietary info.

Like said above, it's not a quick fix, it's a total life style change.

I remember not liking it becasue I felt guilty knowing how many "points" were in food and I felt guilty when ever I ate. I didn't lose any weight becasue my mom and I didn't stay on it very long. Not only did it kinda give me a food complex, it was expensive for us poor folk. The meetings were $13 a person per week. That was MAD expensive back then (ha! "back then" ... I sound old.)

I've recently discovered the joy of Lean Cuisine. It's the best "diet food" I've ever had. It doesn't taste "diety"at all.. it's just small portions of good food! If you eat it slowly, you'd be suprised how full you can get from it.

Hope what ever you do works out!!

[Villains Fan]

I have been on many diets, and I have to agree with most everyone here, Weight Watchers is the best around. It doesn't teach you how to "diet", it teaches you how to eat correctly. It teaches you which foods can be harmful and which can be helpful. It also teaches you what food size portions should be. They also stress on how this is a lifesyle change, not a diet. This includes exercise and how to just change how you look at eating and most importantly, how you look at yourself.

[aimsy]

A wonderful resource to help with weight watchers is www.dwlz.com - they have wonderful tips, motivation ideas, recipes. It helped me a lot when I was on WW.

[Disneyland Daddy]

I just started weight watchers since my doctor said I needed to lose 15 to 20 pounds. I did this because my boss has done it for about 6 months and she lost 25 pounds. Has anyone done this program. I would like to her your stories if you have. Thanks.

I think WW is a great program - but not for everybody. I tried it about a year after I got married and I was allowed to have 30 points a day. Well, I was TOTALLY hungry for breakfast, so I went out and had a 17 point breakfast. I blew through my points and more that day - and I realized in about 3 days that it wasn't for me. I picked my own route and I am quite pleased with the route taken.

However, my Mother in law does wonderfully on this program. But my question is - do people stay on WW forever? What happens when you conclude the program?

[NeverNeverland]

You go on lidetime, and you can go to any meeting anywhere for free (IIRC). You do have to WI once a month and if you've gained too much then you lose the lifetime privledges. I also think you have to be lifetime to be a leader.

[SCUBAbe]

There is no "diet" in the world that will keep weight off forever, unless you stick to it. You can't lose weight on a diet and then go back to the way you ate before and expect it to stay off.

That is why WW works, it isn't a diet. It changes how you eat and you can stick with it for the rest of your life. Since I got pregnant, I stopped counting points, but I kept up with the general portion sizes and I have kept the weight off and had very minimal weight gain. It is more of a lifestyle.

yes, thats what I said...you have to do it forever. It was not a lifestyle that worked well for me.

[SCUBAbe]

I think WW is a great program - but not for everybody. I tried it about a year after I got married and I was allowed to have 30 points a day. Well, I was TOTALLY hungry for breakfast, so I went out and had a 17 point breakfast. I blew through my points and more that day - and I realized in about 3 days that it wasn't for me. I picked my own route and I am quite pleased with the route taken.

However, my Mother in law does wonderfully on this program. But my question is - do people stay on WW forever? What happens when you conclude the program?

I was the opposite. When i diet/or try to loose weight, i really watch what I eat. I coudl never get enough points in. At the meetings everyone was going on and on about how they keep gpoing over their points. I simply asked if it was ok not to use them all. the leader/speaker asked how many I had left at the end of the day and I said anywhere from 6 to 10 and she said, "well why don't you just go eat some pizza then.." not helpful at all. When I lost 6 pounds in a week after 2 weeks of not loosing the lady looked at me and said, "what'd you do? cut an arm off?"...it just wasn't for me. It wasn't helpful at all and it was very frustrating. The other huge hurdle for me was there recipes call for low fat and fat fre food. I'm totally against using those. They are usually higher in carbs and they taste funny.

[Trekkie Dad]

My wife has done WW on and off, and she still counts points now and then. She'll lose weight while she sticks to the plan, but she doesn't. And she doesn't exercise enough for me to notice. I've learned not to talk about her weight unless she brings it up.

On the other hand, I do not diet for weight loss, but I have lost weight. It's a beneficial side effect of dieting to control cholesterol (w/o medication). I've changed my relationship with food. Before I eat anything, I ask myself, "What will eating this do for my body?" I like food--all kinds. But for the sake of my health, I gave up red meat altogether and try to avoid stuff that has more than 10g of fat per serving. (I make allowances for "good" fats, though.)

And I get plenty of exercise. I'm an avid cyclist--as you can see from my signature. I really enjoy getting out on a bike for more reasons than I care to enumerate here.

Since I made the dietary change two years ago, I have lost 20 pounds and find myself at a healthy weight and still dropping slowly.

Whatever you do, I wish you success. And once you've reached your goal, you need to set a new one--to remain at a healthy equilibrium.

[MsKaren]

Thanks everyone for you comments and suggestions. I think I will be able to stick to this program. I am looking at it as a life style change and not a diet. I go for my first weigh in tomorrow. I have a scale at home but will not use it. I think I will go to meetings for the first 12 weeks and then try it on my own. I love that you can track your points online. My problem was portion control so now that I know how much I should really eat I understand that I was eating too much. I need to lower my cholesterol so my doctor wants to try and do it with my diet and exercise and not medication. It helps that two people in my office are doing it also so I have that support which I really need. Thanks again!

[TinkPink]

That sounds great snookie! Having a support team can make a huge difference! Let us know how things go!

[SCUBAbe]

That sounds great snookie! Having a support team can make a huge difference! Let us know how things go!

I agree, having support is very helpful. I was the most succesful when I did weight watches with my mother. We both had the same struggles.

[Trekkie Dad]

I need to lower my cholesterol so my doctor wants to try and do it with my diet and exercise and not medication.

Boy that sounds familiar. I was already exercising, but I had to make a major change in the diet, and I lowered my LDL by more than 30 points. I already mentioned giving up red meat, etc. The doctor gave me five months to the next blood test to get it down, so I was very strict at first. I carefully examined food labels and read menus with a critical eye. Now that I've been on it for two years, I've eased up a little, but the "bad stuff" has lost its appeal. It's really not that hard to stick with it.

What changes are you expected to make in your diet? How much exercise (and what kind) is the doctor recommending?