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Wedding Etiquette Forum
NuggetBrain
member
If I wanted to hear the pitter-patter of little feet, I'd put shoes on the cat.
Weight Watchers
I joined it today. I probably won't be able to make it to my first meeting until next Monday, but I'm starting to track points. Anyways, how does it compare to something like Sparkpeople, or Calorie Count? Anybody had any luck on WW, not just losing but actually keeping the weight off? I've always done online things like that, so I like the online abilities that WW has, but I noticed I kind of fell off the wagon every time so I'm hoping the in-person meetings will hold me to a better accountibility.
If I wanted to hear the pitter-patter of little feet, I'd put shoes on the cat.
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Re: Weight Watchers
I started doing WW back in March, not paying so I didn't go to any classes, but my Mom started doing it so she just told me what to do to be successful. I've lost 20Ibs and have kept it off. I'll start back up again w/ being strick w/ myself after the wedding. Once I had my fitting I couldn't keep losing the weight so I let myself be more flexable w/ what I ate and I'm still keeping the 20Ibs I'd lost off.
WW isn't a diet its a life style change...if you use it as a diet thats when you'll gain your weight back when you stop
PS -- I'll be in the cities next week. Jus' sayin'.
Vacation with Alix, Andy, Mandy, and FLORENCE. AND HER MACHINE.
The Margarita Evolution
I actually quit WW right after I lost all the weight, and am now able to use my own calorie counter (I use Lose It on my iPod) - but I would not have been able to learn all the techniques and stuff without actually doing WW.
If you have any qestions, feel free to ask (or PM) - I'd love to share my wisdom with you!
The biggest piece of advice: don't expect it to happen right away - WW is a HEALTHY way to lose weight and teaches you a healthy way to look at food - there were many many weeks I stayed the same or lost "only 0.5lbs" - but each one of those "only 0.5 lbs" added up to 60 in the end!!
*ETA: since then have been eating healthy and manged to lose 15 pounds on my own, just about 10 pounds left.
I think that WW is a great way for someone to START to learn to eat healthfully. Just be care of becoming to obsessed and restrictive. It can backfire.
I agree with rbtrumpet, that it is rather healthy, and don't expect Biggest Loser numbers (aside from your first week).
Also, back when I did it (have since left), there were two plans: counting, and not counting but eating "whole foods". Don't be afraid to try the not counting plan after a while. I was amazed at how easy it was, and the weight still came off. Plus, I think it's a bit healthier than counting and eating a bunch of crap for 22 points.
I switched to "core" (the not-counting one) after about a year and LOVED it - esp since I was training for a triathalon, and burning more than 1000 calories a day in the gym - the points system just doesn't work when you're burning that many calories (you're just hungry ALLLLLL the time when counting points, even when eating "filling" foods) - so eating "core" foods was definitely a better option for me. The people on the boards there were great, and I still eat mostly "core" foods.
They changed the programs right after I left - the names are different, but the ideas behind them are still similar.
I do count points because I don't have self control that the core program requires. I don't listen to body queues that tell me I am full, so counting points is the way to go. I can easily fill up on things like carrots and fruit so it works well for me. I used to go to meetings but this time around I just do the online version and love it.
I have joined and quit many times. I joined in March for my wedding and lost almost 25 pounds. I have since gained back 10-15 pounds of it which royally sucks, but its got a lot to do with the stress from moving and stuff. Also I'm from Buffalo and totally obsessed with pizza and chicken wings, and have been getting in as much I can before moving to Washington where I know it will suck. Also my gym membership expired and I wasn't renewing for 2 months in a year, and its been hot as hell outside so I've been pretty sedentary since the wedding.
Weight Watchers definitely works if you do it. I used to eat out all the time and still did fine. There is a website called Dottie's Weight Loss Zone that lists almost any restaurant you could think of and has points values for the foods on their menu. That's always been really helpful for me.
http://www.dwlz.com/restaurants.html
I'm always really good when I first start doing WW, then eventually start cheating and counting points less. They no longer have the Core plan, but they have "filing foods" and "set points" where you can eat as much as you want of something for a set points value. If you need any tips of low points things to eat or that are really good I'd be happy to share.
I did it a few months ago, but then I got too busy at work to got to the meetings (it was an At Work session, so the meetings were during lunch on campus.) I still track online. I haven't lost nearly as much without the in-person meetings, but I like the flexibility with the online resources.
If you have any kind of fancy phone, there should be an app. If not, I just use the WW mobile site on my Droid as well. I love the recipes on that site. I used to use the Calorie Counter app, too, but the latest update wiped out the WW points, which sucks, a lot.
It's nice though, because it only uses Calories, Fat, and Fiber. A lot of restuarants are picking up on the WW popularity and are now listing at least those three nutritional facts (fiber was hard to discover.)
Eat.Drink.BeMarried. Blog.
I think this time around when I get to lifetime I'll definitely keep going to meetings. The WI's and meetings help keep me accountable. I tried Sparkpeople for awhile but it didn't have the accountability that WW meetings do for me.
I lost 50 lbs. on Weight Watchers in about six months. Unfortunately, I went off program and gained it all back over the course of two years.
Gaining it back isn't really a strike against the program, though. I credit WW with my initial success and my own lack of control (after reaching Lifetime) for the subsequent failure.
WW works but it's a lifestyle, not a diet. All the weight I gained back was because I didn't stick with counting points--I went back to my emotional eating, boredom eating, etc.
What I did discover is that if you eat right 80-90% of the time, you can have your splurges and still lose weight (or maintain). I try to focus on "whole" foods as much as possible, but I do allow myself a one-point treat most days (like a Hostess 100-calorie pack or a WW ice cream).
Today's WW with points is MUCH easier than the one I used in 1988!
Good luck--it does work if you stick with it, and surprisingly, it's pretty easy!