STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Andrea Julia · Coach

Does anyone know about Weight Watchers?

JoceyBaby23 · Gucci

I have never done it but I know a lot of people who have had success..

I think eating better and working with my personal trainer is still the best thing. However, my trainer says that if she had to choose a program like this.. that weight watchers is the best one.

Some of my trainers comments:

1. WW is good if you want to lose a small amount of weight.. She said that at first.. the Weight practically falls off of you.. But once you plateau, it is hard for a lot of ppl to start losing again..

2. WW gives you points for exercise but they dont give enough credit to exercise. Keep this in mind when you get started. Walking or running 1 mile is actually quite good and WW acknowledges it but really should give more credit to it. Healthy Weight lose is NOT possible without exercise and she thinks that WW should teach the importance of exercise more.

ILoveChoo · Hermes

WW is all about portion control. You get assigned a certain number of points that you are allowed each day (and can earn more by exercising). Points are calculated based on calories, fat, and fiber and you can get a list of points for common foods/restaurants (they actually sell a book of them and dwlz.com has a ton of restaurant point info.). Eating out is totally OK- basically you will just learn to make smarter choices or to eat a smaller portion. There is no food that is off-limits or anything like that, so it's just a matter of working it into your day.

Feel free to ask any questions you have- I was on WW for about a year (I reached my goal) and FH is still on it, so I know a ton about the program.

laken1 · Hermes

I know several people on here are on WW so they can comment further, but I really like it. To me it's common sense that I usually don't use, like you can put cheese & mayo on your sandwich if you are willing to sacrifice in other areas - sometimes I feel like it's worth it, sometimes not & I like having that choice. You are basically given a certain # of points per day, which are based on calorie, fiber & fat content of a food & you stay within that point range.

I don't know what you consider a "small" amount of weight - I lost 25 pounds on the program and I don't consider that small. I think it's true about the plateau & the exercise points that joycebaby made.

I do find that you need to plan, I don't find it easy to eat out or to do WW without preparing for meals, snacks, etc, although others may disagree.

I think it is very healthy & worth the trouble, eating less, move around more.

Andrea Julia · Coach

JoceyBaby23 wrote:

I have never done it but I know a lot of people who have had success.. I think eating better and working with my personal trainer is still the best thing. However, my trainer says that if she had to choose a program like this.. that weight watchers is the best one. Some of my trainers comments: 1. WW is good if you want to lose a small amount of weight.. She said that at first.. the Weight practically falls off of you.. But once you plateau, it is hard for a lot of ppl to start losing again.. 2. WW gives you points for exercise but they dont give enough credit to exercise. Keep this in mind when you get started. Walking or running 1 mile is actually quite good and WW acknowledges it but really should give more credit to it. Healthy Weight lose is NOT possible without exercise and she thinks that WW should teach the importance of exercise more.

Thanks! I do plan on exercising. I am going to start slow because usually I jump right into a rigorous workout routine and get overwhelmed and stop. I am participating in something called Walktober through my work where you are supposed to walk every day. When October is up, I plan to join a gym. I just really need to get myself healthy! I have become very lazy lately and it's showing.

ILoveChoo · Hermes

oh, I also wanted to add that I eat out ALL the time (several times per week) and I lost about 30 pounds. FH lost around 75.

And exercise def. does help- whenever I reached a plateau I upped my activity level a bit or changed to something new and I was fine.

laken1 · Hermes

ILoveChoo wrote:

oh, I also wanted to add that I eat out ALL the time (several times per week) and I lost about 30 pounds. FH lost around 75.
And exercise def. does help- whenever I reached a plateau I upped my activity level a bit or changed to something new and I was fine.

What do you order when you go out to eat? I know I have a friend that has lost 50+ pounds & she eats out all the time as well, I just really struggle with this aspect of the program.

ILoveChoo · Hermes

laken1 wrote:

ILoveChoo wrote: oh, I also wanted to add that I eat out ALL the time (several times per week) and I lost about 30 pounds. FH lost around 75. And exercise def. does help- whenever I reached a plateau I upped my activity level a bit or changed to something new and I was fine. What do you order when you go out to eat? I know I have a friend that has lost 50+ pounds & she eats out all the time as well, I just really struggle with this aspect of the program.

It really depends on where I am and what I have eaten/plan to eat the rest of the day. Once in a while I will get salad, but not often because it bothers my stomache. I eat a lot of chicken, or I'll get a burger and substitute soup or a baked potato for the fries, fajitas (go easy on the guac and sour cream). I pretty much just try to make healhy substitions or not eat all of whatever is really bad (like fries). and drink a lot of water because that fills you up.

Irene · Dooney & Bourke

I am on weight watchers and have been for 8 weeks tomorrow. I have had a great success so far. My goal is to lose 93.5 pounds and if you go on the website community board, you will find many people who have lost 50, 100, even 200 pounds.

You can eat pretty much whatever you want. It's mostly about portion control and eating healthier. I used to snack a lot on peanut butter, ice cream, white bread, and other not so smart choices. Now I snack on mostly carrots, low fat-sugar free pudding, those Nabisco 100 calorie snacks, and WW ice cream bars. I used to have eggs or an omelet every day for breakfast and now I have fruit salad with lowfat yogurt and fat-free milk or Special K cereal. I do try to have a veggie omelet once a week though.

Portion contrl is the most important thing. Did you know that the appropriate amount of protein is aboutthe size ofyour palm or a credit card=3 ounces? At most restaurants the serving sizes are 3-4 times that. It's also about substituting not so good foods for much better foods. Such switching white bread or pasta for whole wheat. Try using less fat when cooking but still adding lost of flavor.

One of my favorite places to eat for lunch is SubWay. They have a lot of sandwiches that have very low points and very low fat (5-6 grams only). Applebees has a WW menu which includes deserts. I eat out all the time.

Here is a link to restaurants menus and their points: http://www.weightwatchers.com/food/rst/index.aspx?tabnum=3

If you or nayone else is interested or has more specific questions, please let me know.

BTW, my weigh in is tomorrow. I am hoping to be down a total of 3 pounds this week. Wish me luck!

-- Edited by Irene at 11:32, 2005-09-27

lsubatgirl · Gucci

Hey girl. I have loads of experience with WW so if you need help with it let me know. I have a ton of computer files I can email your way.

Andrea Julia · Coach

Thanks everyone for sharing all this WW info with me. I think I will join. I really need to get healthy (and lose some weight). I have not been very successful trying to do it alone. I have a lot of trouble not eating what I want or not eating as much as I want. I also rationalize myself out of working out all the time.