Hi there -

I'm brand new to 3FC, and am looking for some sort of plan to do. I did WW years ago, and it worked, but of course, i gained the weight back.

I still have all the literature and whatnots... what do you guys think about just trying to do the plan on my own, without actually joining again? I just can't afford it right now, nor is it easy for me to get to the weekly meetings. I worry a bit about accountability, i guess.

Any thoughts/tips are much appreciated!

I do WW completely on my own and have been very successful. I am down to 155 pounds since starting April 7, 2008. I started at 183 pounds. I have never lost so much weight in my life. I never thought I would be able to get down to 155 again. Funny thing is I haven't been a size 8 since I was 18. I am now fitting in a size 8 at 155, whereas before I got pregnant two years ago, I was a size 11 at 155. Strange how your body can change with a little effort.

I feel great and even totally cheated last weekend. I am back on track however and can't wait to lose another ten or fifteen pounds.

The reason I started was because another friend of mine had started it and I thought, no, big deal, so she's on a diet. Well, after she dropped about four sizes in two months, I asked her for more info. She was doing it at home as well. I didn't want to wait for a points manual. I just got their patented equation online and found out some of the rules. After the first couple weeks, it was so easy. I do exercise almost every day.

I walk briskly most nights for about an hour, which I think is the reason I am fitting in a size 8. I also play a lot of softball and sprint a lot since I am an outfielder. I also do a Jillian Michaels workout dvd, 30-Day Shred. All those things and eating a lot better have changed my life. So cliche. I know.

Go for it! I have never felt so good about not fitting in my clothes. Even though I still find myself hungry a lot of nights, I wear it like a badge of honor (I heard this one time and loved it). It sort of reminds me that I am keeping myself in check.

I eat my largest meal at breakfast and just slowly taper off towards the end of the day. After I take my nightly walk, I will have a little sandwich or some salsa and chips to refuel so I am not starving before I go to bed.

I also wrote down everything I ate for the first two months. Now I don't need to do that since I sort of have an inner calculator. I am on the flex program. I also eat a pizza every couple weeks. I just have a delite Papa Murphy's lower carb and fat pizza instead of a big fatty one. That way I get my favorite craving in before I go crazy from denying myself for too long.

I've done the program on my own and I've done well. I think it just depends on what you need personally. Good luck!

I have done the program in the past and this time I thought I would do it at home. I am only on week 2... but using this site is really helping me!! Good luck to you.

Hi Knitta, and a big to 3FC, especially to the Weight Watcher Forum. I lost 85 pounds doing WW on my own, getting my inspiration right here at 3FC. (I too, regained, though!) Other say they do much better with a face-to-face meeting. How about you give it a try on your own, and see what you think? Again, welcome.

The only thing that works for me is WW. Going to the meetings regularly is what works best for me. When I'm having a hard bout, I read additional literature and go to their website along with attending the meetings. This pushes me through the rough patch. If I try to do it on my own, I get no where. If I try to read materials on my own, I don't get very far. The WW acountability and meetings helps me consistently and makes the difference. I find the best thing to do for long term success is to make a committment to get to goal weight, even if it is a slow process. Actually, the slower it takes might prove to be better in the long run. Afterwards, ideally you should attend the meetings once a month. If you mess up and don't do this...at least MAKE yourself go back on the proram if and when you gain 5-10 pounds. Never let yourself get past 10 pounds and you will not be overwhelmed again. I think it is a healthy program and reasonably priced for all the information and assitance they provide for you.

I loss 34lbs. when I first joined WW. I attended meetings for 5 weeks and it was so easy, I felt I could do it at home on my own. I maintained, but I didn't lose any weight.

I rejoined a few months later and started losing again. Everyone is different and you should do what works for you.

I just find it works better for me if I attend meetings and weigh in with the leader for accountability. I also enjoy seeing the friends that I have made since I have been with WW.

I get the monthly pass and know that once I've reached goal and completed maintenance, I'll be able to attend meetings for free.

Hi like others I attended weight watchers numerous times and then decided to try it on my own an for a while did well. But one slip turned to another and I finally put the weight back on.
For me I need that feeling that Im answerable to my leader if i put weight up on my weigh in.
I suppose everyone is different though

Jen

I don't know whether you can count WW Online membership as going it alone, but that's what I do. I'm happy with it.

The only success I've ever had has been with in-person support systems. For me, that weekly meeting and weigh-in keeps me on track in a way that doing it on my own doesn't. On my own, I eventually procrastinate and stop losing and then gradually start gaining, but that's ME. YOU really have to know yourself, and know what motivates you, and whether on your own is the best method for you.

My husband never dieted before meeting me, but diagnosed with type II diabetes (and an inherited bone and joint disease which would be helped to some degree with weight loss) we joined WW together, and we were doing well. Then we had some financial problems and couldn't afford WW any longer. Long story, but we both ended up on disability, and a very fixed income, and couldn't afford WW for one of us, let alone both of us, and then I remembered TOPS. In the 90's I lost a lot of weight with a great TOPS group (taking off pounds sensibly). On TOPS you can follow any food plan you wish. My husband and I joined and pay less for a month at TOPS for both of us than we would for one week for one of us on WW.

I don't recommend that anyone switch from WW to TOPS (or from any group to another for that matter) if they're doing well and can afford to continue. Once you've built up a relationship within a group, sometimes it can be hard to start over somewhere else (even from one WW meeting time to another, for that matter).

But for someone who gets something out of the support of a group, but can't afford WW, I can't help but mention TOPS, because it is so affordable and a person can still follow the WW food plan. For the first couple months, in my current group, I continued to use WW points (several members in our group still do). I now use an exchange plan, but revert to points in circumstances that make using my journal a little more difficult (I can do points in my head from years in WW).

I'm not in anyway trying to undermine WW, because it's a great program, but I know what it's like not to be able to afford it. If you are a person who CAN do it on your own, and don't need or want the in-person support, then you can succeed on your own, but I think only you can decide that. Since you're worrying about accountability, you have to decide whether those worries are justified. Does the support system and weigh-ins of an in-person support group aid your weight loss? If so, you may want to see if there is a TOPS chapter meeting in your area that you can fit into your schedule (or if you're really wanting to, you can create one - you only need 3 people, I think). There are also some church based programs like (I think it's called) First Place.

For me, I'll never do without an in-person weight loss support group ever again. If for some reason my TOPS group were not available to me, I would join or create another group (whether in the TOPS framework or not), because for me, it keeps me on track and that's priceless. For me, the social support, not just the foodplan, is a vital component of success. For you, that may be different. There are people who CAN do it alone, especially with the added support found here, I'm just not one of them.