[RubySnacks]

I'm 430 (down from 470) and I recently joined Weight Watchers (online only, for now). When I signed up and gave my weight, I was given about 78 or something points per day. I understand that it's because WW wants you to have healthy, slow weight loss (I think 1 pound a week or something), but at that rate, and with my disability keeping me from being able to exericse, I would have gotten to my goal weight in 2023...

I want kids. It's hard having kids when you're this fat. I want to travel. Hard to do that, too. Mostly, though, I hear these stories of people dying of heart attacks at age 35 and 42 and stuff and they don't weight nearly as much as I do.

On my WW profile, I said I weighed 300 points. I get 47 points per day. It still feels like a lot. I've been going to bed with 1 - 11 points left over. After a year or so, I want to switch to fewer points.

I guess I'm just bringing this up here because I want to know if it's an absolutely terrible idea. Slow, gentle weight loss would be ideal--if I felt like I had time. What do you guys think?

[sunsetrose]

I'm no expert at weight loss, so take what I'm about to say with a grain of salt.

I think that as long as you are not starving yourself and are eating a healthy amount, it is okay to have smart points left over. I absolutely do not recommend restricting your diet so much that you are in a constant state of hunger, feeling weak, etc. However, if you are eating a proper amount and still have points left over, your body probably does not need as much food as WW thinks it does. Especially if you are not physically active. Just make sure you are eating enough for what your body needs, and I think you will be okay.

[RubySnacks]

This makes me feel so much better. What you said makes a lot of sense.

When I first started, I cut down to whatever was probably around 2,500 - 3,500 calories per day (not dieting, just regular eating) to 47 smart points, and I was going INSANE. Now, though, I actually feel full and I have to make an effort to use up the 47 smart points I have. My stomach got used to it very quickly. Also, I'm eating virtually no junk food, so I'm sure that even though I'm eating less, I'm meeting more of my nutritional requirements than I was before.

[Wannabehealthy]

I think a lot of people don't eat all their points every day. WW is never going to recommend a points allowance so low as to not be healthy. It's a personal choice. There may be days when you really need your full points allowance, and they will be there.

Good luck to you.

[Koshka]

You may be able to adjust your points total a bit even if you put in your actual weight. I doubt you can adjust them as much as you did however. If was going to eat below the recommended daily points for my weight I would probably also be counting my calories to make sure I am getting enough (personally, I track on WW and also on MyFitnessPal). I might also consult with a nutrition professional or doctor to get an idea of the appropriate calories to eat while losing weight. It is easy for us here to guess but we aren't professionals who really know.

As far as not eating junk food...bear in mind that WW kind of assumes everyone will eat some junk food. I mean it would be nice to eat only totally healthy foods, but I know I can't do that 100% of the time. Now, there are some foods that I can't have in the house or I overeat them. So, I understand avoiding some foods. But, part of WW is learning how to eat at least some of these foods without going off program. WW builds points into the system to allow for some of this. Of course, the vast majority of the food we eat would ideally be food of good nutritional quality.

[doryc]

As a Medical Assistant, I would recommend a physical with your Physician to make certain you have no diagnosable heart/lung conditions. Otherwise I am new to WW and have never joined but have been doing it on my own so I am no expert. Good luck on your journey!!

[twinieten]

The only down side I see to this is if you lose weight too fast, you'll end up with extra skin that will have to be surgically removed. Besides that, if you feel like you are getting enough food in a day, you're not starving or struggling, then go with it.