I've got a pretty basic question for all of you life timers out there. Here's my story (I'll try to keep it short). I made LT in October, 2000. I attended my monthly weigh-ins for the next 3 months and had maintained the same goal weight and did not have to pay. Since January, I have regained (thru stress eating) 18 lbs of my weight. Two weeks ago, I decided enough was enough. I went back to my meeting. Now, here's the question:

Since I was over my goal, I paid my meeting fee ($12 -- which I had previously been grandfathered in at a lower $9 fee). After discussing my problems with my leader, she suggested that to keep motivated, I should try to attend weekly meetings and weigh-ins until I get back to goal. I see no problem with this, except -- at last weeks meeting, I weighed in (lost 7 wonderful lbs) and was told I needed to pay the $12 fee. Is this right? I thought (maybe misunderstood) that once I hit lifetime, if I was over goal weight, I only had to pay the once a month fee and any other time, I was welcome to attend and weigh in? What is your opinion on this? I'd like to know if I need to argue this with my leader/receptionist this week when I return for weigh-in.

Thanks for your help,

Karen

If you weigh in monthly at no more than goal+2, THEN you get free meetings for the rest of the month, and most centers allow you courtesy weigh-ins when you go. However, if you are over goal +2, you pay every time you weigh. However, you don't pay for missed meetings, so you're still better off than you were without your lifetime membership.

And, you don't need to pay for 6 weeks of maintenance when you get to goal. Once you hit the goal+2 mark, you just stop paying (provided you don't cross it again).

Dina

Hi Karen - This is totally off-subject. But I just 'got' your user name! You're SO funny!

Abby

I would speak to my leader about allowing you to have a free courtesy weigh-in, given that you've paid your monthly fee. My meeting, and many others, will allow this, and it's possible if you spoke with her privately about it she would go for it.

If you are a lifetime member you have to pay when you are over 2lbs. whenever you go and get weighed. As a lifetime member you do not have to go every week-just once a month and you can go to as many meetings as you like (just can't get weighed). Even after you are back to your goal you are only allowed 1 free weigh in a month. If you choose to go every week you will have to pay 3 out of the 4 weeks because you are only allowed 1 week for free. I'm not sure where Rupertsmom is located but if you check the guidelines about lifetime in your membership book it is clearly stated.

If you weighed in during the preceding calendar month that you attend, you are eligible to attend this meeting free of charge depending on your weigh-in results.
· If your weight is at not more than two pounds above your goal weight, your Lifetime membership book will be validated. You may then attend the meeting free of charge.
· You may also attend as many other Traditional Group or The At Work Program meetings, if offered at your worksite, free of charge for the remainder of that calendar month. You simply present your validated Lifetime Membership Book to the Traditional Group receptionist or The At Work Program leader upon entry. You will not be required to weigh in more than once a calendar month.
· If your weight is more than two pounds above your goal weight, you will be charged the meeting fee in effect at the time you attend the Traditional Group meeting.

If you did not weigh in during the preceding calendar month, regardless of your weight, you will be charged the meeting fee in effect at the time you attend your next Traditional Group meeting.

So you see, as a lifetime member you are required to weigh in once a month and if you don’t you will be charged the next time you go to a meeting-regardless of whether or not you are at goal. You don’t have to pay for back meetings however. Also if you are over goal you will have to pay for the meetings just like any other member, until you come within 2 pounds of your goal weight. I believe

prettynpink,

Right. It's clearly stated in my Lifetime book, but my leader allows for courtesy weigh-ins free of charge (provided you've fulfilled your monthly weigh-in commitment). She loves having Lifetimers in her meeting (whether we're at goal or not) and seems to go out of her way to accomodate us, which is really nice.

Just like Rupertsmom, I get courtesy weigh-ins as often as I want at my local WW center, and it doesn't matter which receptionist or leader weighs me; I've never been charged for weighing in (as long as was "current" and no more than 2 lbs over goal since I made Lifetime).

I've been weighing in almost weekly for close to 5 years now.

My WW center is a "stand alone" center and is owned by the corporation. This might make a difference.

Jane

If you're 11 pounds over goal, I don't think you can really expect your leader to let you weigh weekly for free, no matter how much Rupertsmom's leader bends the rules. I mean, don't you lose lifetimer status and become a regular member again when you're more than 2 pounds over goal? Or do you have to be more than 2 pounds over goal for a number of weeks/months before losing lifetimer status? In any case, since you hadn't been going to meetings since the holidays, wouldn't you have lost your lifetimer status for not coming in for the monthly weigh-in?

Thanks all for your replies....now I'm informed and won't make a fool of myself when I go in for weigh-in on Friday.

ShakeThoseHips, it took me 2 years to reach this lifetime status and as far as I'm concerned, I keep that status whether I'm at, below or 100 lbs above that goal weight, today, tomorrow or ten years from now. With any luck, I'll be back to goal in the next few weeks.

Thanks again for all of your replies,
Karen

I am not Lifetime, but my daughter became a Lifetime member about 3 years ago, so I asked her about this. Once you reach Lifetime, you NEVER lose your Lifetime status, regardless of your weight. Even if you skip a year or more of meetings, or gain more than 2 pounds above your goal weight, you are still a Lifetime member.

Tato, That's my understanding as well regarding Lifetime status.

Karen, Keep up the great work in getting back to goal. I've been maintaining over a year now and have had some ups and downs. I expect that I always will. It's great that you're getting on top of things again.

Karen -

I had the same experience that you did when I weighed in over goal as a Lifetime member. I had actually NEVER skipped a monthly weigh in and was attending at least once a month (usually more often) after reaching Lifetime status. Then one month, I weighed in twice (I do get courtesy weigh ins as long as I am under goal). The second time I weighed in I was 2.3 pounds over my goal weight. The receptionist seemed almost EXCITED that I had to pay again. Since I had already weighed in for the month, I told her that I didn't need to weigh in and that she should just give me my book back as if I had not weighed in. Then I would lose the weight (since it was just .3) and everything would be fine. Well, she told me that she couldn't do that since I had already stepped on the scale and I HAD to pay.

Well, that was demoralizing enough for me that I didn't go back after that for over 2 months (which was, I know, my own fault, but...). So now I am back and need to lose 10 pounds! I so want to tell that receptionist how much she demoralized me, but I never have. What I do now (until I am back at goal) is only weigh in once a month (never with that receptionist, mind you!), but I calibrated my personal scale at home to coincide with my WW weight, and I weigh myself at home the other 3 weeks. Then I go and attend the meeting for free. I find it's not as rigorous as weighing at the center every week, but it's working so far...

Just wanted to throw in my thoughts.

-Kim