Weight Watchers - Doctor ordered me to weight watchers...

My doctor ordered me to start weight watchers. My problem is the whole idea of meetings. I am not sure I like the idea of it. My doc told me that there is a higher sucess rate (that he found) with the meetings. I am wondering what is eveyone's experience? Do you find the meetings more helpful?


:carrot:
Metta,
Kat

I did WW 7 years ago, went to the meetings every week for 5 months, lost all my weight & did great! Then I had another baby and decided I'd do the plan on my own because I couldn't afford the meetings...nope! I failed miserably & am now even heavier than I was when I was pregnant. I'm back to going to the meetings & doing great. I really recommend them if you can afford it!!!

I do much better if I go to meetings. Staff is helpful and so are other members with lots of tips and explaining things. Plus I made some new friends. And the people understand what you're going through.

I love the meetings. I guarantee you I would not have stuck to it this long if I hadn't been going to them. It's way easier to just forget to get back on track if you don't have a weekly reminder of just WHY you are doing what you are doing, you know? At least try a couple out, see what you think, before you write them off. You don't have to speak up or tell anyone what you weigh or any of that, you can just sit and observe.

I love going to meetings because it really helps me stick with my plan. I feel more accountable when I got to meetings, plus I learn a lot of new tips. It's really inspirational to see people that have had great success and also good to see other people that are also having difficulties...
I was really hesitant at first, but now I'm one of the most vocal people at every meeting.

We have many successes of those who do WW on their own. I personally lost 85 pounds w/o meetings, while getting my support here. As the main caregiver of my MIL w/Alzheimer's disease, I was unable to attend meetings. Others, like the previous posters, find the meetings keep them focused and accountable. Check out the WW At Home section and see what you think. :)

Maybe try it out for a month- see if you like it- if you don't, then cancel after one month?

I've been a Lifetime member for three years now and I really need the meetings to stay accountable.

Susan

Personally, I know I wouldn't have found the success I have without the weekly meetings. There's something (for me) about a whole group to share with in person. There have been a few weeks that I've missed, and it makes a difference... my eating isn't as good, and it shows on the scale.

That being said, it's going to be a personal decision. Commit to the meetings for a month or two. Give it an honest chance.

If you choose to go it on your own after that, you could still find success. (As members on this board will show.) It depends on your commitment. However, if you're struggling, don't hesitate to return to meetings.

I am going today to go down to the local meeting place and sign up and see what happens. I just imagine a place where I am being shamed for not losing a pound and I don't think I could handle that.....

But, I will give it a shot....

Thank you everyone and I look forward to sharing with everyone what happened.

You can pay a week at a time if you want. You don't have to make a big commitment.

All the people in my WW group are very nice and no one flogs you if you gain a pound. It's bound to happen now and then.

I like the meetings too. I'm a very shy person, so I thought I wouldn't like the meetings either. At first I thought they were a little cheesy, but I have found them so inspirational and informative. I've learned tips, recipes, and where to find low point foods from the other members. Other people ask the leader questions that I never would have thought of, but I am certainly inerested in the responses.

Your weigh-in is personal, and sharing is optional. WW is very encouraging and supportive, and I've never been berated for a gain or maintain. Usually they say "that's okay! This is a new week!" I don't think WW would have lasted so long if they encouraged their staff to be mean.

Give the meetings a try. If they don't work for you, you don't have to go back, right? Good luck!

I only started back in WW after 5 years off trying to do my own plan. I really like being back, I missed the accountability. I find I tend to fall off wagon easier with out weight watchers.

Good Luck

I only started back in WW after 5 years off trying to do my own plan. I really like being back, I missed the accountability. I find I tend to fall off wagon easier with out weight watchers.

Good Luck


I started back to WW after my own 4 year "do-it-yourself" plan. I must say I need accountability too. The weekly meeting and weigh in does it for me!

I highly recommend the meetings. I lost a lot of weight on WW and am at goal. I still go to the meetings every week. If I could have done it alone, i would have done it years ago.

i personally don't go to meetings (for various reasons - don't have time, i'm very introverted etc.) and i do fairly well on my own. but like several others said, give it a try. if it's not for you, look into doing WW online and getting support here. it's also important to have a support system (family, friends) if you're not going to meetings. that makes the difference for me.

The meetings are great, really, and there is nothing to fear! You don't have to say a thing if you don't want! Mostly your leader talks, and then there are always a few talkative people in the bunch.

You will like them!

~CGH~

I lost 105 pounds when I was going to meetings on a regular basis...When I stopped going to meetings thinking I could do it on my own the weight started coming right back at me...but I also know some people that are able to do it without the meetings...

I use everything! I go to meetings, I track my food on-line, I use this site, I use ww forums, I use recipe builder on-line. I figure every little bit helps and eventhough $40 bucks a month is expensive it has all been worth it to me. Use what works! Best of luck to you.
-Phil

I've done meeting & the at home program. I'm having better success w/ the at home program & I spend TONS of time on this forum to get the support I need. I'm also planning on getting a therapist to help me deal w/ my emotional eating issues.

I personally, need one-on-one support & didn't get that in my meetings. I also had a hard time finding a group that I felt I fit in with & couldn't always go to the same meetings b/c of my schedule so I never felt like I truly belonged anywhere.

I belong here tho! Love 3FC!!

I'm just starting out at home. My MIL was a WW leader at some point. She goes to the meetings regularly. She is maintaining. But I think I'm going to just do the home stuff. We really can't afford the meetings and membership.
Everyone has their own style of losing weight. Some things work for some and not for others. My mom did WW for a long time and never really lost, she does SB now and does awesome with it. I don't know why. It's really the same concept but for some reason, it works differently for some people's bodies.

Hey TD, if you need some extra support try the WW At Home Thread. The weekly thread is fairly active w/ some great ladies. I post there every day.

I think it probably depends on why you gained weight in the first place and how you gained it. Personally, I gained it through years and years of inattention. I know how to eat healthfully and most of my life have eaten healthfully, I just eat too much at pretty much every meal and snack and too many sweets and too many carry out/restaurant meals.

I was thin 18 years ago (when I suddenly got tall in high school and went from a chubby kid to a slim teen). I've gained about 0.5 lbs a month every month since then to get me to where I am today. For me, it isn't that I don't know how to lose weight, but without the reminder once a week from the WW meeting, I just don't stick with it long. I've probably lost about twice the weight I would have since joining WW than I might have on my own, I don't feel hungry, don't feel frustrated, and am able to eat the foods I enjoy - perhaps with just a few changes.

I tried LA Weight Loss once (which cost me $700 upfront). They wouldn't tell me prior to the payment how the plan worked. It turned out to be a food exchange program that was very very very low carb. I hated it from the first week. It's completely opposite of how I prefer to eat - which is a lot of whole grains, a little protein (or beans), and a touch of something sweet once a day. There was such a huge list of foods not to eat and I was constantly hungry. You could only eat certain vegetables/fruits and not others. I don't find a chicken breast on a salad a satisfying meal. I'd much rather have a bowl of black bean soup with a piece of homemade cornbread. While the accountability was there, even if I lost weight in a week, someone would look through my food journal and critique it and tell me where I could eat better. I felt invaded, which also made me feel rebellious - not a good combination. Every now and then they send me an offer to come back for free. If you complete the program, you get either 25% or 50% of the money you paid back at the end. I'm tempted to rejoin as I continue on WW and fake my journal, just to get back the money.

At WW, I can eat any combination of healthy foods (while meeting the good health guidelines). Only the person checking me in sees my weight. They only draw attention to your weight if you meet a milestone of some kind (5 lbs more lost or 10% lost or something). It's also helpful to hear what kinds of things other people are trying that are working for them or what kinds of challenges people are having where others of us can offer suggestions to help. Also, my meeting is on Monday, which I find helps me be attentive on weekends - when I struggle a bit more. Finally, I think it's totally worth it to get the monthly pass, which reduces the cost per week and gives you the eTools free. I adore that I can look up any food point value on my smart phone wherever I am and log it. It's so much easier not to make a mistake.

Their forums are also very active. However, there is a lot of trolling (which this board is pretty free of). The trolling probably takes up as much as 75% of all the threads and forum posts. The published WW articles are really great though and propose suggestions to all kinds problems a person might have while losing weight. Their Tools for Living are also very helpful for solving any WL obstacle.

Ari - I too did LAWL last year and have lots of the same opinions as you. I hated being critiqued each week even when I did lose weight. And the weight loss was so slow yet the changed I made in my diet were so drastic.

I remember their counselors always telling me to lay off of the baby carrots b/c my body would treat them like a sugar & that would make me hold onto weight. It was all ridiculous. Seriously, I didn't get fat from eating baby carrots after 7 pm!!

The final straw for me was when I went in & they told me I had probably gained that week because I had been taking meds for an illness so my body was confused & holding onto the extra weight. I was like "hello!" I shouldn't be gaining weight from an antibiotic.

I did learn a TON of great eating habits from them tho. Apparently nobody had ever taught me how to eat a balanced diet & their 30-day express deal was such a shock to my system......whole grains, lean proteins lots & fresh fruits & veggies. I really learned to eat right on that plan & have incorporated what I learned into the WW program. Now I make sure I get all of my good health guidelines met each day & it is making a huge difference in how I feel. I feel satisfied & don't really even feel like I am dieting, I just feel like I am being aware. It's pretty awesome really.

That thing about the carrots is hilarious. I exactly that same experience.

Also, nearly every day I was exchanging a protein for the carb lover thing because I couldn't stand eating that much protein. I had 2.5 protein exchanges and one time I changed 0.5 protein for 0.5 carb lover thing.

Counselor: "You absolutely can't exchange 0.5 for 0.5. If you're going to exchange, you should use a whole serving. You shouldn't be using the carb lover exchanges while losing anyway. It will hinder your progress"
Me: "I lost 5 pounds this week and spent most of the time starving, but 5 pounds isn't progress?" *confused*

I used to be a vegetarian (temporary insanity I think), so I usually would only have 1 serving of meat (at most) and 1 of beans or something. I would then get lectures about using beans as my protein serving. Seriously, if they don't want you to follow what it says in the book, why the heck do they bother to publish it?

Anyway, back on-topic, check out a meeting. If it doesn't work for you, or makes you uncomfortable when you're there, then try something else. The best thing about WW is it's flexible. The idea is to give you the tools you need to succeed and let you make use of those tools in a way that works for you.

Oh I hear ya, I finally gave up on the program when I realized that I had made so many adjustments to it to make it livable that it wasn’t even LAWL anymore. I was just counting calories. Because I started at such a high weight I had an enormous amount of food to eat every day – 5 proteins, 7 veggies, 5 fruits, 10 starches, 5 fats – it was insanity. All I ever did was eat! It was amazing I got anything else done. But I did learn that I didn’t have to starve to lose weight, I just had to eat different things.

I lost 80 lbs on my own with WW and then, I just gave up. I restarted WW with meetings this time and love it. The weather has caused me to miss my meeting this week and I'm so annoyed. I'm really shy and hardly talk at the meetings. They don't force you to participate.