I was (am?) skeptical about the program. There is a LOT of negative stuff online about WWPP, even over at WW's own website. Matter of fact, my own leader said "I GAINED the first 2 weeks on PP, but I stuck with it and I lost 37 pounds and reached goal." So, that was bad, then, good to hear. I'm doing the at work program and as I posted elsewhere, the majority of members reached goal on a prior program and aren't exactly embracing PP. Newer members (like me) are stuck with PP. I've done WW before; last time about 9? years ago. I recall requirements for 2 milks, 3 breads, 2 proteins, 2 fats, 2 fruits and free veggies for my female frame, minimum. The fact that proteins and GRAINS (not bread/starch) aren't ticked off on a box anymore stumps and confuses me, but I'm going with the flow now that I'm trying to wrap my mind around this PP program.
Anyhow, I am hypothyroid/diabeticII/fatty livered and menopausal. It isn't an excuse, my metabolism isn't great. I lose slowly, stall, get discouraged, quit. Why did I "come back?" I see people at work losing and [most of them] keeping it off. Two seriously put it back on, plus some, but....I was getting hopeful, again, that maybe this new program could work some magic for me. I was inspired!
During the first week, I anticipated losing nothing, with the program learning curve. I didn't believe when the leader said I lost 1.6. We don't see the scale, so .... she could have told a little lie to encourage me, right? That is how sick and twisted my mind is. Week 2, last week, Wednesday, after 10 weeks without, T.O.M as you write on the forum, and I was beside myself after weighing in and not dropping an ounce. Of course, there was part of the reason in big red letters.
That night, I had a fight with my husband about dinner. I've not been myself since starting WWPP. On one hand, I'm trying to be all "cheerleader" about it and on the other I have my doubts, question if I'm really following it properly, adding that "no loss" weigh ins so early seals the deal that it isn't working, is a waste of time, I'm doing it wrong, I'm a horrible evil person destined to be locked in my own body. I know...dramatic, that. I can write that now and see how ridiculous it is, but still. That scale reinforces such negativity when it doesn't go the way you envision it. Conversely? Well, see conversely below.
Thursday I overate. I chalked it up to Weeklies and didn't beat myself up. I went to bed early because I was intolerable to my family and to myself. Friday was a little better, looking forward to a week off work, and being able to de-stress that area of life. Saturday, I apologized to my husband, pleaded for his help to get me through this miserable phase and not resist my efforts for myself to get healthier and thinner. We actually had a lovely day after that conversation, and after dinner, I had leftover points that I absolutely could not consume. I was stuffed. I figured...so what. One night I overate and now I underate....maybe in a week's time it would all work out and I'd see a difference at the scale.
Last night I didn't sleep well and was up very early. To not wake the entire house, I cleaned out a closet. Quietly. At 9 a.m. I went downstairs and decided perhaps I should go to a meeting TODAY, the start of WW's week, rather than wait until Wednesday, since I won't be a work, I'd have to find another meeting anyhow. Quite the concept, going today, before breakfast. Of course, this meant a trip to MY scale, just to test the water. Naked, I weighed 185. Fully dressed, with shoes, I weighed 187.5. 187.5 is less than 188.6 on Wednesday at work. It never dawned on me that the scales could differ by more than a few ounces. I decided going today would be a win-win. Certainly, I could not weigh more there than I did in my own bathroom fully dressed, with shoes.
The weigh in lady says...you had a great week. I replied HUH? She says 2.8 lost...you're 185.6. Seriously? I said please weigh me again. She asks...do you keep your shoes on at your usual meeting? Well, yes I do and there's a running joke about that...the next to last meeting of the 16 week tour, I'm taking one off...and the last meeting both...so this way I go out with a loss even if I didn't lose. (Of course, I'll be leaving my shoes on.)
We discussed my last weigh in being only just Wednesday. How could this HUGE loss be possible? Is it a difference in the scales, and not real? She said a person should always rely on the scale where they usually weigh in. So, I won't know for a full week and a half if their scale is right/wrong/fair, or if the work scale is right/wrong/fair. I do know that the scale in town weighed me near 2 full pounds less than my bathroom scale and my weigh ins at work took place at noon, after breakfast and 3 cups of water...but we'll see in a week and a half.
I'm sorry for the length of this post. So much to get off my chest.
Those losing on WWPP and posting your successes means a great deal to me and goes a long way in my "giving in" to the program and believing it can work. I hope I can get past all my own crazy.
Last edited by 124chicksinger; 08-07-2011 at 08:33 PM.
I have been on the program for a little over 6months. I have lost 39lbs on PP and would not have been able to do it without WW.. period. I am a happier, and more self confident person.
There are always people posting on here with scepticisms about the program working. Our best advice is to try it and give it a fair unbiased trial without judging it. If you can truly then say at the end of a decent trial that you stuck with it and gave it your all... without days where you overate... then that should give you your answer. All of us are different. some of us lose better when we dont touch our 49 weekly points, so of us lose better when we do, or if we use the activity points and some dont. Its really a unique system and everyones bodies require something different. The weeks where i "felt" like i overate, i ended up staying the same weight, but they were also weeks where i did not track. I probably overate by a whole lot.
Last edited by mercuryblue; 08-07-2011 at 09:30 PM.
I've followed both programs. I even lost 100 pounds on TurnAround/Momentum. So I know what I'm talking about when I say I liked the old Points system.
I like them both, and am fully enjoying the emphasis on healthier choices with PointsPlus.
I understand that some people get frustrated with change, and PointsPlus was a big change from Points. People had to re-learn a system, it didn't click as well for some as it did for others. That being said, I think a bigger stink is made of it than necessary. It scares off people who really need to just have an open mind when joining.
It's like any program. Work it right, it works. And "working it right" can mean different things to different people. To some it means pacing out their Weekly/Activity Points in a certain way. To others it means not eating as many of them.
It's not a miracle program. It takes trial and error (like -all- weight loss programs) to figure out the best pace and method that works for us.
What WW does offer is a way to healthfully, and mindfully change over time how we see food and decrease our intake while still allowing flexibility. At the same time, the meetings offer advice... and support!
Humans dislike change. Sometimes, however, change is good. And this change, for me... is damned good.
Honestly - slow down and take a breath. Trust the program. It does work even if it might move a bit more slowly than the old programs did.
I did the previous program for 3 months until PP came out last year. I'm down 117 total and almost 66 pounds since PP came out. Is it slower? Maybe but am I losing? Yes - and at a rate that I am happy with. I feel like I could do the program indefinitely - and that is a big deal to me. I'm 18 pounds from goal and I know PP will get me there.
The negative reviews are only part of the whole picture as just as many people are having success, if not more. Keep in mind, too, that there were people who didn't get anywhere with the previous plans. No one plan is necessarily going to work perfectly for every single person but most people should be able to have success if they follow the plan. Also remember that with all the negative reviews, people tend to complain about things they don't like more than they will give glowing reviews when something works - that is true of any kind of thing to review, really.
This is what I would say: be gentle with yourself - use your weeklies if you need them but track everything and then move on. Stay off the scale unless it's your weigh-in day and try to weigh in consistently at the same time and place each week. Your weight is going to fluctuate just because of water from hour to hour and certainly day to day and from scale to scale. Also, the scale is only one measure of your success - and not the be-all, end-all - it shouldn't be allowed to ruin your entire day with one flashing digital number. Take your measurements and see what is changing there, too. Get in your GHGs and if you can find the time to do it, get some exercise. Most of all, though, be patient. Likely you didn't gain overnight and the weight won't all just fall off overnight.
This program works - don't give in to the negativity because this is only for you and you CAN be successful.
That being said, I think a bigger stink is made of it than necessary.
I agree. I did both and honestly I feel like Points+ is easier for me to maintain. I've felt better and felt more successful this time around than any of my previous efforts.
But yes, WW gives us guidelines, but we have to tweak them to our own needs and bodies. I stall if I don't eat my weeklies and/or some of my activity points. Others can't touch them. We just have to trust the program and give ourselves time to find what works best for US within it.
After hearing what was involved with former programs (WW and others) and knowing what I know about nutrition and food, PP makes sense. It makes sense. Eat more fruits and veggies. Eat less processed foods. Eat lean proteins. Go easy on the processed carbs. Drink water. Don't drink your calories. No food is off limits - you just have to plan for some foods. No deprivation. It makes sense.
I do not know if I would have lasted very long on other WW plans. The deprivation would have killed me. Is that what is so hard to believe with PP - you CAN eat any food you want, you just need to plan for it?
My favorite thing my leader has said in a meeting - If you feel like you don't want to go to yor meeting (binged, not tracking, know you have put on a few lbs) GO TO YOUR MEETING to get your mind back in the game.
The thing that really had me stumbling was two categories minimum/maximum are pretty much gone. What used to be called bread, encompassing all starches, bread, pasta, potato, starchy veg--is now called healthy grains that you eat whenever possible. Lets be honest. A person is going to want a potato, pasta, corn. And there's no minimum or limit. You're to "fit them in whenever possible." To me, that is confusing. Also, 2 healthy oils per day. Occasionally, I'm going to want butter, or peanut butter, or avocado, or whole olives. If I've eaten 2 servings of olives--which is a fat, and a healthy fat, as is avocado, I don't want to have to still fit in 2 servings of healthy oil. At least the guideline is 1 to 2 servings of protein....but you don't check that off anymore, and you don't check off carbs anymore. I spoke with WW and they said there is no minimum on healthy grains, just choose them whenever possible. My leader said if I choose to have olives instead of olive oil, or an occasional pat of butter instead, "I can live with that." But, there is no list of fat alternatives to the healthy oils, 2 per day. The fact the tracker tracks milk, oil, and fruit/veg that are "zero", but not protein and carbs/breads/starch/whole grains totally stumps me, as does the lack of alternative list of fat equivalent. Those are the problems I'm dealing with on the program, but basically I'm having 2 to 3 "grains" per day, I'm trying to choose whole ones (wheat pasta/wheat bread/brown rice) and if I have butter, I count it as my fat. Or olives. Or a small bit of peanut butter, etc. If the leader is okay with it, I'm okay with it. My issue isn't preferring a 100 calorie pack to a piece of fruit. I just felt very lost and on my own the first 2 weeks without answers. When you follow a diet (classically), you anticipate eating "x" food groups in "x" amounts...and knowing what foods belong to what groups. I'm doing better with it. I know I keep writing thank yous to all who respond positively on the WWPP topic, but it really helps me to know that you've figured it out for yourselves and that it is working for you.
My biggest worry is that I'll get hungry. I hate being hungry. Hunger will lead me to eating something I'll regret later.
I am on WW to lose weight. But I also have the expectation that this will be life long. I cannot go back to the way I was eating and not be fat.
I am learning what keeps me full. I LOVE potatoes, bread, pasta, rice - but if I eat mostly that, I will be hungry. And if I get hungry, I will eat more than my PP budget. And then I will gain weight.
I know if I eat protein and a fiber, I will stay fuller longer. I am learning to make better choices about what to eat. Also about how much of things to eat. What works for me - not for some book author or corporation. For me.
And I am being rewarded for that. I feel better. I weigh less.
The thing that really had me stumbling was two categories minimum/maximum are pretty much gone. What used to be called bread, encompassing all starches, bread, pasta, potato, starchy veg--is now called healthy grains that you eat whenever possible. Lets be honest. A person is going to want a potato, pasta, corn. And there's no minimum or limit. You're to "fit them in whenever possible." To me, that is confusing. Also, 2 healthy oils per day. Occasionally, I'm going to want butter, or peanut butter, or avocado, or whole olives. If I've eaten 2 servings of olives--which is a fat, and a healthy fat, as is avocado, I don't want to have to still fit in 2 servings of healthy oil. At least the guideline is 1 to 2 servings of protein....but you don't check that off anymore, and you don't check off carbs anymore. I spoke with WW and they said there is no minimum on healthy grains, just choose them whenever possible. My leader said if I choose to have olives instead of olive oil, or an occasional pat of butter instead, "I can live with that." But, there is no list of fat alternatives to the healthy oils, 2 per day. The fact the tracker tracks milk, oil, and fruit/veg that are "zero", but not protein and carbs/breads/starch/whole grains totally stumps me, as does the lack of alternative list of fat equivalent. Those are the problems I'm dealing with on the program, but basically I'm having 2 to 3 "grains" per day, I'm trying to choose whole ones (wheat pasta/wheat bread/brown rice) and if I have butter, I count it as my fat. Or olives. Or a small bit of peanut butter, etc. If the leader is okay with it, I'm okay with it. My issue isn't preferring a 100 calorie pack to a piece of fruit. I just felt very lost and on my own the first 2 weeks without answers. When you follow a diet (classically), you anticipate eating "x" food groups in "x" amounts...and knowing what foods belong to what groups. I'm doing better with it. I know I keep writing thank yous to all who respond positively on the WWPP topic, but it really helps me to know that you've figured it out for yourselves and that it is working for you.
I actually remember those checks!
I was 12 the first time I ever joined WW (my sister made me so she wouldn't have to go alone), and those check marks confused the heck out of me! (Be kind... I was 12 after all) I had no idea what a serving was, I was confused by the lists of "grains and breads" that I was supposed to eat. It was just a mess, and I only stayed with it a month and ended up gaining weight.
They still maintain -some- of the checks on the categories that they felt needed more monitoring. And, I too, count things like butter as a serving of oil. And of course, fruit is zero points -- but needs checks so we don't go eating only fruit.
This time, they do emphasize how much a serving is (the palm of your hand being 3 oz of meat, etc), but they no longer have that minimum/maximum, and I think that's because they wanted to allow more flexibility for different lifestyles.
Some days I'm going to get more whole grains, some days I get more protein, other days I have more fats. Over the course of a week, it tends to balance itself out. While I still have to be mindful that I -can- eat only cake and stay within my points, that it's not the best use of my points. That's a personal decision.
In that manner it's more like Calorie Counting than it used to be. The decision is up to the individual just how much control they want over the macronutrients. It can be as detailed as we like, and we can aim to get in 2-3 servings of protein a day and have our own checkboxes for ourselves if it helps us feel better mentally or physically about the program.
I think that most plans are a little overwhelming when we begin them. We want so badly to be doing it "right". There's a natural learning curve, and it's 100% okay to be learning. I'm always going to be making adjustments to my plan. WW gives me the basics, I do my best with those, and then I add or subtract so that it fits my life best while still giving me results.
2 1/2 weeks in...my WWPP experience
