Wellness

[VaBelle35]

I just count calories and track on Sparkpeople.

I go to my weekly WW meeting for the weigh in, accountability and friends. It keeps me focused on what I'm doing and keeps me from going too far off the rails.

[Mmsfoxxie]

Yes, it is 26 pts....that' the lowest you can be on for WW plus.

[Mistreatedbycs]

On 1/20/2014 Brinklii said:

Seehorse, I'll check out the Andrew Lessman Secure Meals. Wow...I would starve to death on 22 points. I thought they told me 26 was the lowest, but I could be wrong. I know I crave the carbs too, so have been eating a lot of rice cakes and Fiber One cereal with Almond milk.

The pounds are coming off fast this first week, but I know it is all water...seems like I live in the bathroom. LOL! At least I'll have a good first weigh-in!

Brinklii: You are missing the whole point of WW, this is going to be for life, if you are not used to eating Fiber One with almond milk everyday why do it? Eat within your points limit the way you normally eat and adjust accordingly from there.

It's not a race to get the pounds off (at least not for me) but a lifestyle change, was using way too butter, eating way too much bread, eating way too many sweets, eating way too much regarding portion size. Eat what you like, do not deprive yourself, they teach you that, you need to continue this the rest of your life, its not a fast 20 or fast 50 program.

If you learn to put more fruits and vegetables in your menu, learn to plan for meals and snacks, learn to realize what's hungry your mind or your tummy you'll be successful.

I haven't given up a thing and reaching 30 pounds in 6 months, there isn't a food or restaurant that I feel that I can't have, I can have it all but within the guidelines given.

Hope this helps. Your extra 7 on the Simple Start are for indulges as they call it, the extra 7 in Points Plus are there for you to use if you have something special, eat something you normally wouldn't eat, make it like a bonus, eat the 7 points if you want. I personally may eat all 7 per day or 2 or 3 extra and some days pending what I choose, I may even be under my points.

I don't know how you started with 26 but that is the lowest in the current system. I started in the 30's and they've dropped me twice so far.

Good luck, don't give up, you'll get a lot of support as I did on this program. I was stagnant for 6 wks, up 1.2 down 1.2 up .6 down .2, just recently have I seen 2 wks of continual reduction, my body just said, enough is enough, we need to sit here and stay on this weight until I can catch up now I believe I'm going down again for my 5# goal for Valentines Day.

I'm learning so much and hopefully my goal is to be that leader, I love helping people but right now, I'm learning about why people eat too much and what to do about it.

I guess my current leader was a "closet eater" or you could say that. She said she snuck all kinds of foods in the movie theater and ate in the dark since she really didn't see the food so she didn't know what she was eating (she did but because you couldn't see it, it didn't count for any meals)....it's all in your mind. In her case, not seeing was believing and even though she had full sub sandwiches, she ate it all but yet went out for dinner after the movies and ate an entire meal again. People end up at WW for all different reasons, just because I didn't do doesn't make it that it doesn't exist.

[chessylady]

I'm also a lifetime Weightwatcher. It is the only program I have been able to lose on. I need the structure of counting points. On simply filling, you eat the specified food until you are full. It is often hard to stop or sense you are full if food remains on your plate. You know yourself better than anybody else. Try not to go more than 3 hours without eating something. When I go to the movies, I bring a baggie with a cut up apple and a string cheese. The meetings will give you lots of strategies.

[MissysMomma]

I, too, am a WW Lifetimer - have been for almost 7 years. I still track every day, both on paper and on my I-device and I still attend weekly meetings. I have to have that accountability personally.

I haven't tried any of the simple start items yet, but some of them sure are appealing, and I plan on trying some for sure. I don't think I could just not track, so even if I opted to try the Simple Start - I would still track my daily points. I had a hard time when they went from points, to the Points Plus and ended up gaining weight and then just went back to the "old" points. Since they dropped the daily target to 26 - and I started tracking online - I have been doing the PPV's and have maintained my weight fine.

I have discovered that work makes me eat more and I start to gain - the candy and stuff around here is horrible - and the "business meetings" after work are not always helpful to me. I guess I just need some more willpower and more time to go to the gym!

Good luck - it works if you work the program for sure. I lost 30 pounds and have kept it all off for almost 7 years. My goal now is to never have to pay for Weight Watchers again - and so far, so good!

[Yardlie]

On 1/20/2014 nantucket shore said:

On 1/20/2014 Brinklii said:

Seehorse, I'll check out the Andrew Lessman Secure Meals. Wow...I would starve to death on 22 points. I thought they told me 26 was the lowest, but I could be wrong. I know I crave the carbs too, so have been eating a lot of rice cakes and Fiber One cereal with Almond milk.

The pounds are coming off fast this first week, but I know it is all water...seems like I live in the bathroom. LOL! At least I'll have a good first weigh-in!

Brinklii: You are missing the whole point of WW, this is going to be for life, if you are not used to eating Fiber One with almond milk everyday why do it? Eat within your points limit the way you normally eat and adjust accordingly from there.

It's not a race to get the pounds off (at least not for me) but a lifestyle change, was using way too butter, eating way too much bread, eating way too many sweets, eating way too much regarding portion size. Eat what you like, do not deprive yourself, they teach you that, you need to continue this the rest of your life, its not a fast 20 or fast 50 program.

If you learn to put more fruits and vegetables in your menu, learn to plan for meals and snacks, learn to realize what's hungry your mind or your tummy you'll be successful.

I haven't given up a thing and reaching 30 pounds in 6 months, there isn't a food or restaurant that I feel that I can't have, I can have it all but within the guidelines given.

Hope this helps. Your extra 7 on the Simple Start are for indulges as they call it, the extra 7 in Points Plus are there for you to use if you have something special, eat something you normally wouldn't eat, make it like a bonus, eat the 7 points if you want. I personally may eat all 7 per day or 2 or 3 extra and some days pending what I choose, I may even be under my points.

I don't know how you started with 26 but that is the lowest in the current system. I started in the 30's and they've dropped me twice so far.

Good luck, don't give up, you'll get a lot of support as I did on this program. I was stagnant for 6 wks, up 1.2 down 1.2 up .6 down .2, just recently have I seen 2 wks of continual reduction, my body just said, enough is enough, we need to sit here and stay on this weight until I can catch up now I believe I'm going down again for my 5# goal for Valentines Day.

I'm learning so much and hopefully my goal is to be that leader, I love helping people but right now, I'm learning about why people eat too much and what to do about it.

I guess my current leader was a "closet eater" or you could say that. She said she snuck all kinds of foods in the movie theater and ate in the dark since she really didn't see the food so she didn't know what she was eating (she did but because you couldn't see it, it didn't count for any meals)....it's all in your mind. In her case, not seeing was believing and even though she had full sub sandwiches, she ate it all but yet went out for dinner after the movies and ate an entire meal again. People end up at WW for all different reasons, just because I didn't do doesn't make it that it doesn't exist.

Nantucket shore, thanks for all the advice. Actually Fiber One is a staple for me. I love fruits and veggies too, so I am eating a lot of those. The problem is I'm single, and you know how single people eat....make a pot of something and eat until you are stuffed and then put it in the fridge and eat the same dinner the rest of the week. I end up skipping the salads, etc. as it's like it's too much work for just one person. I don't normally make balanced meals. I've got to get back to that, and WW is teaching me that.

As far as how did I start at 26 points goes, I guess I'm not that far overweight. I'm normally pretty thin, but I can put on weight fast...like I did over the holidays. Once I get back down to my goal weight, I'm going to give myself a 5 pound leeway, and as soon as I get 5 pounds overweight, I'll take it off.

I've tried just about every diet out there, and nothing seems to work except for WW. Before menopause, I could take off weight easily....but not anymore.

[Yardlie]

Chessylady and MissysMomma, congratulations for being lifers in WW. That's a great accomplishment!

I cleared the house out of all the junk food...as much as I could as I'm a caregiver for my mother. She's a real junk food eater. I'm finding that apples are nice and filling, so I'm eating a lot of them. I'm also eating a lot of the WW string cheese...although I have to be a closet cheese eater as my cats want their share!

Guess I'll be counting points, as I would eat too much with Simply Filling...no control, and I eat too fast so I really can eat alot.

Thanks for the advice. I guess I just have to make the program whatever way it works for me.

[Vivian]

I've been a lifetime member of WW for 30 years, having lost 108 pounds on the program. Here is my take on the choices we have. First, the reason I got fat is that I didn't know when to stop eating. Therefore, for me, the idea of Simple Start or any other program where certain foods are limited only to satiation does not work. Points provide guidance while bringing the flexibility that I need to keep on track...and, yes, track is the operative word. It is all too easy to rationalize what we've eaten but the tracker makes me accountable. As far as the extra points are concerned you can have up to 49 per week, spread out as you like. You can choose to have none, all, or something in between. Be careful, however, since for many of us women of a certain age using all the bonus points will prevent weight loss, even if we exercise regularly. By the way, having worked for WW for several years, I can tell you that your leader has been told to push the new Simple Start but you can opt for Points Plus. Good luck. WW does work.

[Yardlie]

Thanks, Vivian! Weight Watchers certainly worked for you! It's nice to hear from someone who used to work for Weight Watchers. What I notice is that some days I'm still hungry after 26 points, and other days, I end up using only 24 points.

I think I need to increase my protein intake to keep myself feeling full. I have a pretty high fiber intake (always have). I guess I do need to think of this as a way of life rather than a fast way to lose weight, as I know you just gain it right back when you do that. It will be a journey...that's for sure. Thanks for your input!

[Vivian]

Budgeting your points is like budgeting a pay check. You don't want to spend all your points in one place. Allocate them throughout the day while saving a little for the appetite equivalent of a rainy day. You might want to think out what you want to eat each day while including a few points for snacks. That's the beauty of the points program. You know how much you've got to ""spend"" and you decide how and where those points will go.