Weight Watchers (WW) is probably the most well known weight loss programs in North America. I first tried it a few years back, and found it relatively easy and effective.
WW goes by the points system, the more fat and carbs in a food, the more points it is. Fruit and veggies are 0 points for the most part. It is essentially a low fat/ low carb diet. You also get bonus point for exercising, meaning you can eat more.
Pros:
-flexible, you can eat whatever types of food you want, so long as you don't go over your points.
- encourages exercise by rewarding you with bonus points.
-I loved the super handy iPhone app for tracking points.
Cons:
-does not teach you healthy lifestyle habits because you can eat a chocolate bar every single day and still be within your points range
-expensive. You have to pay a monthly fee which is just over $20, plus a sign up fee. You can also attend meetings if available in your area, not sure of the cost of that. You can join on a sale that waives the sign up fee, usually at the beginning of the year
-tracking points can be time consuming, especially if making your own food. It is easy to track points with something with a nutritional label. I feel that this steers you towards processed foods because of ease of tracking.
-low fat, which equals high hunger. You cannot take out both fat and carbs and expect to be satiated.
My conclusion:
WW works to help you lose weight. If you stick to it. Forever. Stop tracking your points and start piling on the pounds. Although WW steers you towards making healthy choices, it does't really teach you how to completely change your lifestyle. It is only permanent if you want to keep paying for it for the rest of your life.
I think you are going to hear me sing this same tune a lot. If you want to change your health, you need to change you lifestyle. That is a lesson that has been hard learned for me. For some reason, in the last couple months this had FINALLY been engrained in my head. I really believe all these diet programs and plans that I have tried have taught me lessons. They may not have helped me to permanently lose weight, but there is something positive to take from all of them.
WW goes by the points system, the more fat and carbs in a food, the more points it is. Fruit and veggies are 0 points for the most part. It is essentially a low fat/ low carb diet. You also get bonus point for exercising, meaning you can eat more.
Pros:
-flexible, you can eat whatever types of food you want, so long as you don't go over your points.
- encourages exercise by rewarding you with bonus points.
-I loved the super handy iPhone app for tracking points.
Cons:
-does not teach you healthy lifestyle habits because you can eat a chocolate bar every single day and still be within your points range
-expensive. You have to pay a monthly fee which is just over $20, plus a sign up fee. You can also attend meetings if available in your area, not sure of the cost of that. You can join on a sale that waives the sign up fee, usually at the beginning of the year
-tracking points can be time consuming, especially if making your own food. It is easy to track points with something with a nutritional label. I feel that this steers you towards processed foods because of ease of tracking.
-low fat, which equals high hunger. You cannot take out both fat and carbs and expect to be satiated.
My conclusion:
WW works to help you lose weight. If you stick to it. Forever. Stop tracking your points and start piling on the pounds. Although WW steers you towards making healthy choices, it does't really teach you how to completely change your lifestyle. It is only permanent if you want to keep paying for it for the rest of your life.
I think you are going to hear me sing this same tune a lot. If you want to change your health, you need to change you lifestyle. That is a lesson that has been hard learned for me. For some reason, in the last couple months this had FINALLY been engrained in my head. I really believe all these diet programs and plans that I have tried have taught me lessons. They may not have helped me to permanently lose weight, but there is something positive to take from all of them.
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