New Weight Watchers!

[maillotpois]

A recipe doesn't look at the points within individual food items, it looks at their nutritional information. So it adds the carbs, etc. of zero point foods. If you are making a recipe with zero point foods and some non-zero point foods, you can save it as a "meal" instead, and that will zero out your zero point foods.

[GLC1968]

Thanks, MP. That explains it. That's kind of sucky though. So I guess the recipe builder can't tell a veggie from a grain? I threw my tomato/cuke salad recipe in there and one serving is 3 points but when I key it in individually it's only 1 pt.

So which one is 'right'? Will I be cheating myself if I key these things in as meals and not recipes?

And does this mean that the counts for the recipes in the database are probably misleading as well?

[maillotpois]

It's certainly not an exact science. I look at it on a case by case basis. If it is a salad, or something that is predominantly veggies, I count it as a meal - or I only count the stuff that isn't zero (dressing, beans, etc.) so I am not plugging in a bunch of veggies. If it is a soup or something where the veggies are a more incidental part of the recipe, I do it as a recipe. I may underestimate the amount of veggies in it to make it more "fair".

The WW recipes are all counted as recipes, so the values are high. If they create the recipe, I kind of figure you should go with their values.

I don't think there's a right or wrong way. I just think you have to see what works. I've steadily lost every week for 8 weeks, so I feel like what I am doing is "working". If I plateau for a while, I will re-evaluate.

[GLC1968]

I don't think there's a right or wrong way. I just think you have to see what works. I've steadily lost every week for 8 weeks, so I feel like what I am doing is "working". If I plateau for a while, I will re-evaluate.

Good point. We'll just see how things progress and make changes as necessary.

(I often wish I wasn't so anal about stuff like this! )

[katluvr]

Thanks for the info about the recipes. As a new vegetarian I am doing a lot of new recipes.
Some are pretty high in carbs and thus higher points than I thought. Last night i did a recipe that really was all veggies except for the tempeh, so I just entered that and.some oil to get my points.
As for the points, I figure that at the end day the total points is not exact anyway. I can say 8 am rating less, it makes me think & plan. I am still adjusting, but I think what WW does for me is to cut back, measure & be accountable for what I put in my mouth. I would like to be able to eat (& drink more) and maybe I can eat more of my weekly points, but right now i want to see some weight loss. And the scale IS moving in the right direction so I am happy and can deal with my sacrifices.
K

[ASammy1]

So I've now officially been on WW at Work for 2 weeks, and I have to say that I really like it. I completely agree with everyone else that the new program steers you toward whole, real food as opposed to the old program. I really think that this is the program one could do for the long haul as a way of life and not just a "diet."

So far so good here! I'm down 7 lbs since Jan 1 and 5 since starting WW. I have a LOT more to lose, but I'm confident this is way to go.

[Aggie_Ama]

My problem with why I went off the new program to return to the old way (and a really elaborate spreadsheet) was I had too much memorized and waas getting frustrated. I still try to make good choices because I feel better when I eat more fruits and vegetables. But I just couldn't see paying when I was getting frustrated and not counting.

[lauraelmore1033]

7 pounds for me too! Not quite half of what I gained since September. I find myself thinking I could easily eat this way for the rest of my life as well. That will be tested when/after/if I reach my goals. I have a suspicion I might feel differently then...

[GLC1968]

I'm still pleased with it. I'm down 3 lbs in two weeks (which is pretty good for me) and I've got my husband signed up too. He only lost 2 lbs in the first week and was disappointed, but he did 'splurge' the night before his weigh-in so it's to be expected. I think he'll have a much better week 2.

So far, so good!

[maillotpois]

I am so glad everyone's having such good luck with the new WW! I am down over 14 since 12/1, which has been great and really motivating.

Go us!

[katluvr]

Warning: whining ahead

I am very happy for all of you losing weight on WW and enjoying it. I must admit a am frustrated. I have tried hard to stay on plan, I feel I have cut my intake greatly, I have cut my wine consumption (and beer) greatly. I have enjoyed my weekends--and that may be the problem. Losing weight has never been easy for me. And when I run 10 miles and feel like I should be able to eat a bit more (especially when I am ravanish). I wish just being active was enough!

Ok, so I HAVE lost weight. I am usually up and down alot during the week but in 4 weeks I have lost 2.4 pounds. So that is about 0.5 pounds a week. Which when I think back that is usually how much weight I lose. I am a real slow loser!

So I am going to keep on the plan, try to be a bit better (but still relax a bit) on the weekend and up my during the week workouts. And continue to "tweak" things to see what really works for me.

Thanks for letting me whine a bit!
K

[zoom-zoom]

I am seriously considering signing-up for this. I had amazing success with Atkins years ago, but going that low with carbs doesn't work well with the volume of running and biking I do, nowadays. And counting carbs and calories with Fitday.com started making me more than a little obsessive about food...to the point that eating became a chore. Sounds like WW simplifies things.

So do most of you go to meetings or just do it online? We do have meetings 10 minutes away, but I'm generally good about staying accountable when I have to check-in somewhere, even if it's just online.

[GLC1968]

Katluvr - If I remember correctly, you are already pretty small and probaby close to your goal weight, right? If so, then I would think that 0.5lb a week is totally fine. I mean, you aren't starving all the time, missing workouts, being a raving b1tch...right? They way I look at it is this - I'm not really suffering. I'm actually quite comfortable with my current intake and feel like I could do this for the long haul. I'm not feeling deprived, so I have time. I'm not going to sweat the small losses as long as they are losses. I'll get there eventually. I bet you will too!

In fact, I'm VERY curious to see my results this week. I had a couple of 'splurgy' days over the weekend and I'm using a LOT of points. In fact, if things continue the way they are, I will have eaten all my exercise points (I have them set to be used daily) and almost all my weekly points. Let's see how the scale reacts! Personally, I feel pretty damn good. I have lots of energy both for my workouts and for daily life...so if there is loss, I'll be very pleased.

Kirsten - I just do the online (no meetings anywhere near me anyway). For me, I just needed an easier way to be accountable. The last time I did WW, I was obsessing about points. This time, not at all. I think having higher targer numbers really makes a HUGE difference for me (mentally).

[Tri Girl]

Warning: whining ahead

I am very happy for all of you losing weight on WW and enjoying it. I must admit a am frustrated. I have tried hard to stay on plan, I feel I have cut my intake greatly, I have cut my wine consumption (and beer) greatly. I have enjoyed my weekends--and that may be the problem. Losing weight has never been easy for me. And when I run 10 miles and feel like I should be able to eat a bit more (especially when I am ravanish). I wish just being active was enough!

Ok, so I HAVE lost weight. I am usually up and down alot during the week but in 4 weeks I have lost 2.4 pounds. So that is about 0.5 pounds a week. Which when I think back that is usually how much weight I lose. I am a real slow loser!

So I am going to keep on the plan, try to be a bit better (but still relax a bit) on the weekend and up my during the week workouts. And continue to "tweak" things to see what really works for me.

Thanks for letting me whine a bit!
K

I don't think you are whining... you are just frustrated. Me, too. I've lost, but not a lot. Only 6.6 pounds in 6 weeks. It's frustrating for me, too. I hear people who've lost 15 or more in that time frame and it bugs me. I know that for me it's just jealousy that they are losing faster than me. I also know that when I lost my weight before it was FAST and that it all came back on. I'm trying to remember that if I do it slow, maybe it will stay off (but that doesn't help when I weigh in and I feel like I've cut way back and I'm only down .7).
I feel your pain and frustration.
Last time I was gung-ho, balls to the wall, etc and I lost quickly. It wasn't something I could do long-term (it felt like- and was- dieting). This time I'm trying to make it a lifestyle by cutting back and still indulging when I run 10 miles, or bike 50, and I guess that means losing slowly. Like a tortoise... we will make it there, it will just take us much longer. :/
I'm not happy about it, but I'm more unhappy with myself for gaining it back. I wish I could go back in time... it was far easier losing weight when I was 30 than when I'm nearly 40 now.

[lauraelmore1033]

Those activity points are kinda scary! a good hard 20 mile ride earned me 33 points yesterday. I'm assuming I'm getting so many because I'm so heavy. No way was I going to eat all those on a week night. Weekend, yeah, maybe, but even then it makes me uneasy...