Weight Watchers

[beefche]

I'm not doing WW now, but I am trying to make some changes. I found this site to help me keep track of things. It's free and similar to WW website (obviously doesn't count points). I'm trying to stay away from obvious carbs--flour, pasta, potatoes, cakes, candy, etc. I'm not eliminating them, just trying to avoid them with an occasional foray into carbs. Today, I couldn't resist and had a Jimmy John's sandwich for lunch, but I'll try to choose something healthier for dinner.

My problem is drinking water. I do not like water, so I have to have Crystal LIght packets to flavor them. But, Crystal Light is turning everything into Green Tea, which I don't drink. I found Ocean Spray has little packets (I LOVE their white grape peach) and did find some Crystal Light packets without tea in it. So, I stocked up and try my darnest to drink at least 64 oz. a day.

[Dravin]

Weight Watchers just essentially counts calories (and other facets of nutritious eating) for you, if you want to save the expense you can just do that for yourself. Admittedly that is more work, if the money is worth the work it saves you go for it.

[beefche]

Dravin, you are correct; however, there is a lot of support at WW. Some people need that, at least initially, to begin a weight loss program. WW has a lot of tools to use as well as the support. One thing I found to be extremely helpful at WW was the level of accountability. I can only speak for women, but we find it VERY difficult to admit our real weight to anyone. Having a stranger do it once a week helps you stay accountable and not be so embarrassed.

[Dravin]

My experience with WW is when my Mom did a free trial online. It basically consisted of a calorie calculator, I was not impressed. I won't deny there is something beneficial in having a support network of some kind. Since I'm still living at home the fact that my Mom is dieting makes it a lot easier for me to maintain mine (though not very well lately as I got sick and lost weight falling below my target so I've been a little splurgey lately due to having a 'cushion') as we can count calories and report with each other. If nothing else she understands how annoying all the, "It's just one little bite, try some, it won't hurt." she used to pull on me. The fact that she and I are the ones who do the cooking helps, there is a lot less spontaneous brownie baking at the end of the day after having reached our calorie limits or on days other than splurge day. So yeah, I can see that aspect as helpful.

[beefche]

Yeah, if someone is only doing the online WW, then I would agree, you can go to the website I use for free and save yourself some bucks. But if one is actually attending the meetings, then I think it's worth the money (at least initially) to gain that support. It is always easier to live healthier when you have someone to do it with you. Good that you and your mom and doing it together!

[Tarnished]

I have been going to the meetings, and taking notes. I also bought the books so that we can track at home. Our thought is to get the materials and figure out how to do it and then once we are good at doing it then we quit and use the materials we have collected to keep going.

[pam]

I've never been to one of their meetings but I have their points counter and other information. I've had so many friends that have gone. But it is much easier to do it with someone else. Someone else you have to be accountable to. Whether it be friend, family member or a coworker. Or by going to the meetings.

[pam]

So Tarnished..how is it going?

[Tarnished]

It is going pretty good. I tracked all my points last week and started trying to get all my nutritional foods in, like my dairy, lean protein, and whole wheats. I have found that by trying to get all of them into me I end up using up all or most of my points. It is nice to have used them all up by the end of the day.

Last night was my WW meeting and I was able to get the points calculators, which is nice because Faded has been calling me anytime he has questions about points values for anything. Now he can calculate them up himself. I also created a easy to carry around chart for him to keep track of his points on, which he likes better than the tracker that the WW meetings give us. I made a chart for myself as well but have been keeping track of my points online.

Our elliptical broke (again) so while we are waiting for the repair guy to come and fix it we are trying to do more of our other exercises. Faded has been taking long walks with the dogs and I have been doing more Wii exercises.

[pam]

Sounds like you are doing much better with the points thing. Are you still feeling like you aren't eating enough?

Keep it up. You are doing great.

[Tarnished]

I still feel that I need to refine the types of foods that I am eating. I am trying to get everything in everyday, but I know I end up not getting in some of the foods that I should be eating, proteins I have a lot of difficulty with. I did see something recently that a hard boiled egg would count as a protein and that it was pretty low in points, so I may start making some hard boiled eggs to bring to work with me. I think that is what I need, fast easy things that I can just grab and go. I suppose the problem I have is that I want fast easy things, but I don't want to pay a lot of money for them. Weight Watchers offers fast easy things, but it costs a good amount for them.

Thanks for checking in on me with this all. It helps out a lot! Keeps my mind on the goal. :)

[pam]

Well I like ya and want to see you succeed.

[pam]

Well I have decided that you have given me some motivation to get back on the program. Just as soon as I find a job and get back onto a regular schedule. I know that sounds like I'm procrastinating..but I know me and what works for me.

[Tarnished]

Glad to hear that. I created a chart for keeping track of points in excell, and my husband likes it better than the tracker they give at meetings. If you would like a copy of it just let me know and I can send it to you. I am liking it so far, even though this weekend was very difficult for me what with Halloween and all that candy.

[pam]

You have to know that there will be times you slip up and that's okay. It's whether you are able to get right back on it that is the hard part.

When I did it for 3 months straight..I had one day a week that I kinda splurged. My son was working at a restaurant then and I would go once a week and eat there. Oh it was so good. But having several friends also on the same program helped me to stay with it even on those splurge days. I think if I had been doing it by myself..I probably would have not have continued with the program.

[Tarnished]

It is difficult at times, I am glad that my husband is doing it with me. We discussed it this weekend and he helped me get back on track. I agree that doing it by yourself is very difficult.

[Tarnished]

Still going good on the Weight Watchers, I have lost about 8 lbs from the time that I started. Yesterday was my meeting and I passed around some alternative Thanksgiving recipies that I found online, they are pretty much the same food that is usually seen for Thanksgiving but with less calories. If interested I could look into posting some of them here.

[beefche]

Good for you! Keep up the great work. Is it going better? Seems I remember you saying that you were having difficulty with either the food or exercise.

[pam]

That's awesome Tarnished. I'm proud of you for sticking with it. You go girl!!!!

[Tarnished]

Good for you! Keep up the great work. Is it going better? Seems I remember you saying that you were having difficulty with either the food or exercise.

Yes I was having difficulty with the food. In fact I still do but I am getting better. What I found was that I was not eating enough each day. I had made lifestyle changes to my foods that I ate but I wasn't eating enough of what I should be eating. Now I try to eat each of the nutritional needs each day (meaning Dairy, Fruits/Veggies, Lean Protein, Whole Grains, Oils, Liquids) and that has helped me to use all or almost all of my points in any given day. It really is amazing how difficult it can be to get all of those items into a day's food consumption.

[Tarnished]

Just an update on this. I am still doing Weight Watchers and have been doing pretty good. Since I started it I have lost 16 lbs. My target weight is still quite a ways away but I am making progress!

[pam]

[JudoMinja]

I did Weight Watchers for a little over a year in combination with Curves (an exercise program for women). I think doing them together worked out really well.

What you get out of Weight Watchers depends on how much you really pay attention to your foods and look for better ones. Take something like bread- my mother often makes homemade bread. She took the time to figure out the points for WW, and while homemade bread is healthy in many respects, its 4 points a slice! That's a heafty sandwich. Every loaf of store bought bread is different to. You really need to look them over. We found one (can't remember what it was) that was only 1 point per slice.

The way the points are calculated is great. It is not just a calorie counter. You are also looking at the ratio of fat vs. fiber. The less fat and the more fiber the better off you are.

I think, that its not really so important to go low fat high fiber with EVERYTHING you eat as it is to make sure your fat/fiber ratio is good for your entire day. That means if you eat something high in fat, you'd better eat something equally high in fiber to make up for it. And portion control is important, because if you eat more than your body really needs in a day, then its going to be stored away as fat, even if its healthy.

Curves is an exercise program that works muscle building with cardio. These work very well with a good diet to make sure your weight loss is healthy and that instead of just becoming skinny, you are becoming healthy. A good thing to look for in your foods that WW doesn't calculate is protein. You need protein to build strong muscles, and the more muscle you build, the more fat you will burn when you exercise.

And, yes, muscle does weigh more than fat because it is more dense. So if it seems like you're not losing weight, try looking at more than just the scale. Take measurements. Have you been losing inches? If you have something to do so, calculate your bmi. This is the most accurate measurement of your health.

Now, I don't do WW or Curves, but I do continue to eat healthy and exercise. I do need to get a little more on top of my diet and exercise now after having a baby so I can lose my baby fat, but all in all, doing both these programs at the same time really helped educate me on how to eat and exercise in a way to maintain good health.