Tell me about WW

tdmd09 · March 2012

I have 10-15lbs that I really want to lose. I tend to eat relatively healthy but I don't know a lot about nutrition and what things are really good/bad to eat (aside from the obvious things). I also don't exercise (although I am changing that TODAY, darnit). I feel like if I had a structure of some kind rather than just "watching what I eat" or counting calories, I would be better at it, and WW seems like a great program.

Any strong pros or cons to it for people who have done it? How long do you have to commit (money-wise) at a time, for the online version? Any other tips or suggestions? I need to tell Ty if I'm going to do it since obviously that would probably change some of the recipes he cooks as well. Thanks!

steeser03 · March 2012

I personally havent done it, but my mom has had really good success with it. In September 2008 she was a size 18 and in September 2009 she was a size 8. She's hovering between a 8-10 now for the last 2+ years and continues WW meetings.

For her, it was more about learning about portion control and making better choices. Like, she can still have a Thin Mint or two, but she doesnt need the whole box. Or she can have a bag of Smart Pop! popcorn over a brownie or ice cream.

She also learned to listen to her body better. Was she eating because she was hungry, or just because it was there?

She's also learned to make smaller meals and substituting better, lower fat ingredients. My dad has inadvertently lost 20 pounds as well because of this.

My mom has not/does not exercise with it.

MBMcC421 · March 2012

WW is the only thing that has worked for me. Ever. And for what it's done, it's been worth every penny spent.

It's set up different ways... you can either pay $15/month and have only eTools if you don't want to attend meetings. Or you can go with 3 different pay methods -- pay as you go standard weekly fee of $14, 17 consecutive week pass for $209, which is about $12.99/week, or you can do what I do, which is $43/month recurring pass, averages less than $10 a week, and you have unlimited meetings and free eTools.

I love it because it's healthy, it makes me accountable, and it works. But for me, I have to attend the meetings or else I just don't feel the motivation, so that's why I shell out for the monthly pass.

Umm... any other specific questions, let me know!

Diamond_Doll · March 2012

I've never done WW, so I don't have any advice about it. I will say, though, that keeping a food journal has helped me more than anything. I've used sparkpeople.com in the past, but this time I got the My Fitness Pal app, and I love it. You can chart the foods you eat, your exercise, and when you start losing it'll chart your weight loss, which is a lovely line to see. It makes me feel so much more accountable, especially for the little things, like eating one Werther's Original instead of 7. I'm too cheap to sign up for WW, plus a gym membership, plus the Scaleback competition fees, so this is my I need something more than watching what I eat solution. HTH!

SEMelius5073 · March 2012

I lost about 20 lbs on WW last year using the online version. It really made me think about my food choices and opened my eyes to how "expensive" some foods are points-wise. I did exercise while on it and I'm sure that helped! I ultimately ended up at a plateau for a couple of months and that really frustrated me. A coworker suggested LoseIt! instead. It's a free calorie counter. I've been doing LoseIt! and exercising for about a month and have lost 6 more lbs.

I think I started WW with 3 months @ $50 total and each month after was around $20

law67 · March 2012

I also haven't done WW but like DD I food journal/watch calories but do so at www.thedailyplate.com I really like it; it allows me to put in recipes that I make and see the calorie count in that, tracks my water intake, tracks my calories plus fat, carbs, sodium, cholesterol, etc... and also tracks weight loss. DD is right, seeing that little line go down on the graph is usually the highlight of my Wednesday (I input my weight once a week, kind of like WW).

You can take this with a grain of salt since I've never done WW, but it seems to me that it's not worth it to pay for just the online tools (if you weren't going to go to meetings) when there are free ones out there that will do just about the same thing. But, I could be wrong and if you want that meeting to help hold you accountable then I think WW would be helpful and I know many people who have had great success with it.

D74LeadinLady · March 2012

I have done WW multiple times. The only time I was truly successful was the first time I did it. It was much easier to do when you have someone taking the journey with you (that sounds totally lame, but it's true).

Financially, I just can't commit to the WW membership right now. So, I've been using MFP, like DD, and I LOVE it. The really cool thing about it is it's also a social networking tool, so you can send friend requests to your friends. So, I feel like I'm still getting that "journey" support from friends while doing it.

ETA: DD - what's your MFP user name?

Tell me about WW

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