Monday, February 02, 2009

Weight Watchers Questions

I am enjoying Weight Watcher Online, but I am feeling a bit in the dark about a few things as I wasn’t really given any information when I signed up. Most of what I know about following WW is what I have learned by reading other blogs, so I am hoping you guys can help.

Firstly, I have been allocated 25 points per day, which seems like a lot to me. This was given to me when I entered my height, weight and age into the website and doesn’t take anything else into account. So how many points do other people follow? I am finding that I naturally eat about 17-20 points a day, should I push myself to eat more (I won’t complain about that!)?

By the end of the week, I had accumulated a lot of extra points that I hadn’t been able to eat and I wasn’t sure if it was in my best interest to use them or let go of them. I didn’t have any plans that involved eating extra points, so I decided to go out to lunch and a movie with a friend, but it felt stupid to use the points just for the sake of it. The funny thing was, I only ended up using an extra 5 points for the day anyway! So, is it best to eat all you allocated points for the week or to not push it if you don’t need to?

One more question, I find that I could easily fit a glass of wine and a small chocolate into my points every day, which I would find very enjoyable, but somewhat decadent. Do other people have these sorts of treats every day or would that be abusing the system? It seems so foreign to me that I could eat a cheeseburger and it would fit in with my points, but I am guessing this definitely would be abusing the system?

Sorry for so many questions, but I would really love to hear how other people deal with these things and I am not feeling ready to attend a meeting just yet.

15 comments:

  1. Use all your allocated points, as if you start too low you have no points to drop as your weight goes down.
    If you are starting at 25, say in 3 months you have dropped 5-10 kilos you also have to drop your points allocation accordingly. So if you are only eating 17 points to START with when you NEED to lower your points you will be STARVING. Get it?
    If you are accumulating extra points that you have not eaten it means you are not eating enough!
    When you 'earn' bonus points for extercise... don't use them just cos you have them! I never did.
    A glass of wine or some chocolate every day is not that good cos it means you are not eating enough of the 'good' food....
    You have to eat healthy to stay healthy.
    And chocolate will give you spots... so I'm told! I never get spots from eating chocolate, but that's another story.
    Eating a cheeseburger is fine, as long as it's within your daily points. To do it every day might not be a good idea though! Cos no matter how ya look at it, it's a burger! And they are not that healthy.
    DONE.

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  2. I haven't done weight watchers in a long long time, but I would say eat all your points. You don't have to use them on a cheeseburger if you don't want to, maybe increase the portion sizes of the healthy food you're eating right now? But then if one week you feel like having a cheeseburger, it's not the end of the world. The above comment is right, if you start to low you won't be able to drop points when you lose weight without causing yourself problems.

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  3. Hey there, I'm on 21 points. I know it all depends on your weight, age, activity level etc. If I remember when I get home, I'll calculate yours using the method mine was determined by and I'll let you know.

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  4. I agree with Chris...make sure to use all your points- if you eat less your body may go into starvation mode and stop losing..
    in my life I"ve been on WW for a total of about 3 years and it gets easier.... feel free to ask for help/clarification- we are all in it together!!

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  5. Tully, the points allocation is in my book I got when I started. I will type it out for you-

    1. Are you

    Female (non breastfeeding) SCORE 7

    Female (breastfeeding) SCORE 14

    Male SCORE 14

    2. How old are you?

    16-20 SCORE 5

    21-35 SCORE 4

    36-50 SCORE 3

    51-65 SCORE 2

    OVER 65 SCORE 1

    3. How many kilograms do you weigh?
    If your weight is two digits your score will be the first digit.

    If your weight is three digits your score will be the first two digits.

    4. How tall are you?
    Under 160cm SCORE 1
    160cm or above SCORE 2

    5. How active are you at work or during the day?

    Sitting down most of the time- 0
    Occasionally sitting, but mainly standing- 1
    Occasionally standing but mostly walking- 4
    Doing physically hard work most of the time- 6

    That should help. Your points sound about right though. My leader always admonishes me for not eating enough points, she says im not doing myself any favours, even slowing my loss down!

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  6. Hey chickadee,

    25 points sounds right to me. I was on 25 when I started and have recently dropped down to 24.

    The advice my WW leaders have all given me is to definitely try to eat all of your points. It's possible that, if you're not used to eating much, your metabolism has slowed right down, but if you eat all your points it will fire up that metabolism and get your body burning fat! But the idea is that you add points using healthy foods full of nutrients, rather than, say, having a big block of choccie at the end of the day just to use up your points! Some ideas I've heard to healthily bump up points: snack on cheese and crackers (there are great little snack packs available in the supermarket for 2.5 points), or small handfuls of unsalted nuts; if you're having a cooked brekkie or a salad sandwich, add some avocado; add avocado or nuts to salads; add nuts to your morning cereal if you have things like porridge or muesli.

    The official 'rule' about treats is just to go easy on them, but ALL of my leaders have strongly suggested incorporating treats into your week so that you don't feel deprived and therefore binge. I don't think there's anything at all wrong with having a small glass of wine and a small choccy (two points all up) every night, as long as you're following the 'healthy eating' guidelines and checking off your two servings of fruit, two servings of dairy etc on your tracker. It's also DEFINITELY fine to have a big treat (e.g. a cheeseburger, a choc top or popcorn at the movies, etc) but the advice I've heard is to try to limit these kinds of treats to once or twice a week.

    The whole idea of WW I think is balance. As long as you're sticking to the healthy eating guidelines, it's completely fine to work in some treats. WW is definitely not a deprivation diet, and no food is forbidden, which I guess probably takes a bit of time to get used to if you are used to starving yourself on diets!

    Arghh, sorry that this turned into a novel! Feel free to email me if you have any more questions :)

    xoxoxo

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  7. Hello! I am in the U.S. and our points calculation must be different. I am female, 30, weigh 242.5 pounds (sorry I do not know kilos) and I get 32 points. But for sure they tell us to eat all of our points to ensure you still lose. You do not have to eat your extra points or your activity points. Good luck to you. Love your blog!

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  8. i think u should use your points but be careful of sugar points. A cheese burger actually is sugar points because there is as much sugar in a cheeseburger bun as in an unsugared donut! AArgh! If sugar is in the 1st 3 ingredients then it is a sugar point and I think you can only have 14 of those a week or something!

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  9. ps. I forgot to say... Congrats on your loss sweetie! :)
    pps. There's no such thing as the sugar points Airlz mentions anymore... they were too complicated!

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  10. Hey Chick!

    Eat all of your points!! You cannot goody two shoes this! In the beginning, if you exercise, eat those extra points too!

    When I started back in September of 08, the first thing I did was test and see what I could get away with. The first week, I worked in KFC, a fast food hamburger and fries, and a Hershey bar. I lost 5 pounds and am currently losing about 2.5 pounds a week. I have yet to eat a raw crunchy vegatable, anything non-fat (blech),or plain. Remember, this is not a diet, but a plan for life.

    Now, I also walk about 4 miles a day too - gotta sweat for the pounds to come off! But you have to eat all of your points or this will not work. Can you go to a local Weight Watchers and purchase the Food and Dining Out Companions? Those books have been a godsend to me, everything that you can think of to eat is in there with the points values.

    Also, you should be getting a weekly allotment of 35 extra points - these are for use anyway you choose, whether you want to add a few more points a day to what you have or if you want to splurge on something yummy!

    Btw, most mixed drinks are about 10 points, so party wisely ;)

    Good luck girl, YOU CAN DO IT!! Any other questions, let me know!

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  11. I'm doing Weight Watchers as well, and half the time I think that I have too many points alotted to me, and the other half, I'm done with most of my points by the time lunch is complete!

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  12. Hi

    I've done WW online for years. I think it's brilliant, and when I stick to it I lose weight easily.

    Eat all your points - it will stop you feeling "entitled" to binge at the end of the week. As your weight comes down your points allowance will automatically drop.

    Once you hit goal they actually go up again to halt your weightloss!

    And by all means have a glass of wine and a desert/savoury treat every night. Again, it will probably stop you binging at the weekend because you feel deprived.

    To use more points switch to a seed bread like burgen (2pts per slice) which "costs" more points but is more filling. Eat bananas, nuts, dairy (I'd avoid cheese but yogurts are good value). Muesli is heavy on points but very filling.

    Also, maybe be very rigorous with how you calculate your points. Are you weighing and measuring everything? It is amazing how an extra handful of my favourite food sneaks in under the radar when I'm not measuring!

    Also, don't count your exercise points at the moment if you don't need them.

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  13. It's definitely better to eat most of your points - I'm on 24 a day and I usually make sure I eat at least 22 of them. I count my exercise points but don't use them and usually only let myself go below 22 if I want to save points for a special occasion.

    As to chocolate/wine or any other type of treat - I think moderation is the key! The great thing about the Weight Watchers program is there old slogan "no food is a sin" as long as you track it and it fits into your points then it is allowed. Of course keep in mind that by eating chocolate regularly it just gives you a taste for it.

    When I want chocolate I buy a multi bag of Milky Way bars - the fun size ones are only 1 point each and it's enough to satisfy a craving without feeling like i've overindugled - if I want a second one then i'll have it but don't make it an everyday thing.

    Takes a while to adjust to the ins and outs of the program but you will get the hang of it and it really does work.

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  14. Hiya! I just started WW a couple of months ago. I started with 25 points, but fiance started with 39! He found it very hard to eat that many points. Most days I make it to 22 and the weight is currently coming off (about 2 pounds a week). I've been warned though, that it will be harder for me to lose weight once I actually make it down to a 22 point daily.

    I don't think it is good to eat your points "just because" you have them...but I do think it is good to give into cravings, if done in moderation.

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Awww thanks so much for the comment!