# What can you tell me about WeightWatchers?



## Oggie (May 29, 2003)

My wife has a friend that really likes it.

She wants me to go to a meeting.

Has anyone had any experience with them?


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## trixiwick (Jun 9, 2004)

I know assorted people who have done it, and it seems to be the only effective program I've seen people do. You're supposed to attend regular weigh-ins to keep you honest, and they have a "point system" to manage eating rather than a "diet." I don't know that they emphasize exercise all that much. But as programs go, I think it works pretty well.


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## wr (Aug 10, 2003)

Oggie, I lost about 80 lbs on WW but it really isn't a big secret. It really is about eating sensibly, exercising moderately and the big key to their success is accountability by way of documenting your food choices, recognizing & managing specific eating patterns, recording your weight losses & gains and group support. One of their great keys is their maintenance program because many people can loose weight but few have any idea how to move to the next level and keep it off long term. If you have any specific questions, I'd be glad to answer.


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## nancy237 (May 29, 2008)

excuse typos..it is very late...
My husband and I are doing WW's core. 
He has lost 25 pounds in 2 months and I have lost 
from 150 to 144.(slow and steady) The best part is 
I felt better the first week I was on this diet. basically it is 
all you want of fruits /veggies/lean meats/eggs/fat free dairy
and whole grains. Other stuff you count and it is lmited.
It teaches you healthy eating..and if you are hungry you can always 
have something on the core list.
My whole family is eating healthier because of the diet 

You can do it without the meetings ..We do, but some get 
motivated by the meetings.. I get motivated my the scales
saying I am losing!!

There are web sites("3fatchicksonadiet" is one )that you can learn
and after a few weeks it will seem easy to know what you should eat.

A few things you can only have once a day?? potatoes/bread??
Not really sure about that part. My husband still does a sandwich
at lunch with 50 cal bread but doesn't have bread at night.

I cannot say enough good things about this diet. I am not hungry/it works/
it blends fine with cooking for a family/its healthy/we can eat out/
no gimmicks.

My husband was 270 and is 245 now. His goal is 210.
Before he always did atkins diets and felt terrible/was grumpy/ learned nothing about eating right/ and gained everything back really fast.

Hope this helps.


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## wr (Aug 10, 2003)

trixiwick, unless things have changed in the last bit, WW has always encouraged exercise. They do suggest at least starting with moderate exercise. If your leader is not emphasizing the importance of exercise, she is failing to follow program protocol and you may want to contact WW main number.


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## Becka (Mar 15, 2008)

Weight Watchers is a great program, but it's pretty expensive. I've found that TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) is just as good and costs WAY less than WW.


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

I have a friend who has lost 50 and counting with WW. It is the most sensible thing out there, IMHO. It emphasizes learning to make the right choices and learning proper portion sizes so that you won't gain it all back when you are done.. I have not seen any other program/method that does both of those things.

If you don't like the meetings - which many men do not - you can still follow their program, etc. They have a lot of online resources.


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## trixiwick (Jun 9, 2004)

wr said:


> trixiwick, unless things have changed in the last bit, WW has always encouraged exercise. They do suggest at least starting with moderate exercise. If your leader is not emphasizing the importance of exercise, she is failing to follow program protocol and you may want to contact WW main number.


Hi, wr. To clarify: I've never done WW. I do know some folks who have and that they've done reasonably well on it. I think I might not think much of their emphasis on exercise because the folks I've known who've done WW are really (still) not exercisers. I know you CAN lose weight by focusing on diet alone, but it sure is 10X easier with exercise as part of the equation! I'm glad to hear they pay it due attention.


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## designer (Aug 19, 2004)

The price seems high for just the diet info and meetings. I checked and local for me was $39 a month.


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## farmergirl (Aug 2, 2005)

I've used the Weight Watchers literature as a guide for which foods to eat more of and which to eat less of, or avoid all together. I have never followed a strict diet and before the last couple years was never overweight. I have a very sedentary job when I'm away from the farm and that is probably the #1 contributing factor in my weight gain. I like the idea of knowing how many "points" something has. I don't add them all up during the day, like you would if you were actually doing the Weight Watchers diet for real, but it was a way to wean myself off of refined sugar. I drink ALOT of iced tea, especially in the heat of the summer. I used to ingest alot of refined sugar in each and every glass of tea. Then I realized how many empty calories that sugar was adding to my diet. The point system helped me see that iced tea is basically a "freebee" with regard to caloric intake, so long as I drink it unsweetened. I had decided I needed to lose 18 pounds to get to the weight I think is best for me and my lifestyle (see my thread about what a homesteader "should" weigh). Since the beginning of March, I have lost 8 pounds  and that is almost all from cutting out the sugar in my tea and candy snacks at work.


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## wr (Aug 10, 2003)

trixiwick, they should exercise but many find that they can come up with a reasonable formula to loose weight with little to no exercise but they fail to understand that exercise makes them healthy and help them loose weight. Often WW has meetings strictly on how to fit exercise into your lifestyle and they have challenges to encourage exercise. To be quite honest, I lost about 80 lbs and avoided exercise like the plague and it took forever. I can't blame anybody but myself and it took me quite a few years before I realized that exercise made me feel good, I enjoy it and I can eat more and maintain.


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## nancy237 (May 29, 2008)

designer said:


> The price seems high for just the diet info and meetings. I checked and local for me was $39 a month.


I joined for one month to get the info, get my questions answered
then I did it own my own.

You could just borrow the books from someone and it wouldn't
cost anything. There are diet websites that teach the info also.


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## nebraskamom (Jan 14, 2008)

I currently do the Weight Watchers on-line program so I don't have to run to meetings. Am doing the flex plan because I really want the variety--down 7 pounds in one month, but had a horrible time this past July 4th weekend. Doesn't help that we went to Cracker Barrel yesterday for lunch, but it was sure good!! Will try to do better this week!


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## Ruby (May 10, 2002)

Becka said:


> Weight Watchers is a great program, but it's pretty expensive. I've found that TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) is just as good and costs WAY less than WW.


Plus one for TOPS. I've lost 59 lbs since June of 07. We just had one lady join last week from WW. She was and ONLINE member and it was costing her $40.
a month just to belong to their online group.

You could go to the TOPS meetings and still do the WW points program or what ever they do, but have the support of the group. TOPS only charge $24 dollars a year national dues plus what ever the local group charges for their monthly dues. Ours is only $4 a month. We have a great group of people.


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## WiggyMagPye (Jul 8, 2008)

I've lost 91 pounds with Weight Watchers at this point. I don't believe $12.00 a week is too expensive given how much it has helped me. Tops was boring and cheesy to me...holding hands, singing songs...um....no. WW has private weigh ins, TOPS charges you for when you lose weight and you have to share it with the group. If you are a private person about your weight, TOPS is not the way to go. They also do not give you a specific food plan to follow. Ok..enough about that. I've done both and the results with WW speak for themselves. You can check out my progress on my weight loss website: www.freewebs.com/wiggymagpye. Whatever plan you do choose, eat sensibly, find something you love and move your body. All my best.


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## coalroadcabin (Jun 16, 2004)

I've lost 46 pounds since 1/1/08 using the weight watchers online tools. A couple of years ago, I used the online tools for a couple of months and lost some weight but I thought it was 'too expensive' so I tried to go it alone..........bottom line, going it alone just didn't work for me. So, I'll spend $17 a month to use the tools so I can keep on track, at least until I reach my goal. (Only 14 more pounds to go!)


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