Weight Watchers Q&A
 

There are a few WW threads out there, but more specific to the individual that started the thread and I don't want to hijack them. Since we have a few WW members on here, how about a generic thread to ask questions, share tips, success stories, etc? (unless one already exists?)

I'll start with a question :)

How many activity points do you allot for cycling? According to the WW site, my 60 min of riding today, >12mph, earned me 14 activity pts. THat seems high!
I rarely use my activity points, and if I do, I use them for any extra food I ate because of cycling (a bar, or gel bloks, gatorade, etc) Just curious what others do.

Great thread Penny.

Todays ride of 32.5 miles which took 2 hours and 14 minutes and was over 12 mph earned me.... are you sitting down?.....44 activity points. When I am right on with commuting all the time and riding on weekends, I can earn over 250 activity points a week. I NEVER use the activity points to eat because I know they are calculated high and just because I earn that many points does not mean I lose weight.

Hope that answers your question.

Ok a few tips:

- Remember to track everything even on off days. It will help you in the long run.

-Along with that, WW gives you the opportunity to write some notes next to the weigh in for the week. Take a few seconds and jot something down. How did eat this week? Why do you think you were down? Why do you think you were up? What could you strive to do better the next week? How are you feeling? Etc. This gives you SOOOO much insight for future reference.

- Start an Excel sheet that will show date, what your weight is currently, and if that week was a gain or a loss and put those notes next to it. This gives you a quick and effective way of evaluating your journey as a whole to see patterns. I am interested in the patterns of my body and how it reacts to certain things. Gives you more tools for your tool box.

- If you do not know how to cook or find yourself doing the same thing over and over again, take a cooking class locally. It will really help you. And strive to learn different techniques like how to roast, saute, broil, bake, poach, braise and stew. Those techniques you will use a lot. Nothing bugs me more then when folks at WW meetings complain about the dull taste of steamed cauliflower. If you do not like it, change the cooking method. Roast it, grill it, saute it, cook and mash.... whip in some laughing cow cheese or something along those lines and make cauliflower mashed potatoes.

- And take a trip to the spice shop. See, you can manipulate your food two ways.... 1) cooking method and 2) using different spices. Spices offer an array of culinary possibilities. I can make that cauliflower you hate the plain taste of really pop. You can make it sweet, sweet and salty, sweet and hot, spicy with a a hind of acid, etc. So many things you can do with spices, it is incredible.

- And the last plug is for fresh herbs. They are like spices but used in a different way. They give so much flavor too!

I've gone from 265 down to 179 on WW and I don't count activity points. I just try to stay fueled during rides. Today I did 25 miles over 1 hr 45 mins and during my ride I stopped and eat two bananas and a small can of tuna. Then when I got back to the house I eat a bowl of beans. This gave me a total of 8 points for lunch.

on my app it actually comes to 31 points. How did you arrive at your figure?
2 hours 14minutes equals 134 minutes right? which from the app bicycling > 12mph = 31 points. Wonder why they have two formulas?
jerry

44 pts?? See, that is crazy!

Thanks for the above tips.

I am doing WW for the second time around. This time I am doing it on line, and I have to say, they make it so easy. The first time I did WW, I tracked everything by hand in my little book, looked up pts in the books you had to buy and brought the cheapy calculator to the grocery store with me. While I was pretty diligent, it got old and at times seemed like a lot of work. (But it paid off with a 38 lb loss.)
This time, I pretty much do everything from my iPhone. Track, create shopping lists, use the barcode scanner in the grocery store to look up points, etc.
Chef, maybe you could just freeze a few extra WW meals and send them to me?? :)

We are two different people my friend. It is not set out as an equal across all weight categories. We both could ride the same pace and distance over the same time and because we are different in weight, height, build and age, it will be different activity points.

Have you tried the WW scanner? Pretty neat app. Still some bugs in it but it does work. Got me out of the jams at the airport with airport food.

I also now write the points on everything I have when it is time to eat the first portion of it. This helps too especially with my wife who always asks me :)

Another tip: If you are doing it online or have an online monthly pass, check out the WW forums. The forum software they use sucks but the people on the forum are nice and helpful.

Penny: where abouts are you?

I changed my weight and it never changed a thing try it u will see!

I do not think I can change my weight.

What weight did you try? Try a 6 foot 4 inch male, 32, starting weight 332 pounds and now weighs 294 pounds.

Doesnt really matter in the long run. I never touch the points in regards to eating anyway.

I've been convinced for a few years now that WW activity points are way too high when it comes to cycling. At least where they have the current cut-off between slow and fast riding. If they bumped that point up to 18 mph or so, it might be more realistic.

Agreed. At least for cycling. Walking I would say I might agree with.

Hi Penny4,

I don't think it is high. 25 miles at 12 - 14 mph is about 1000 calories. Just to let you know, I use Weight Watchers to maintain my weight. I am 5' 5'' and weigh 122 at the moment. I LOVE WW, and want to work for them. Their program has worked for SO MANY people I know, whether to lose weight or to maintain. Thanks to WW, I did NOT gain the usual 10 pounds over the holidays. I have also been cycling more than I normally do at this time of year, and I attribute most of my success to that. I think you can trust WW's figures, they seem to be right on target! Happy cycling!

Not sure if this link will work for you or not.

http://www.weightwatchers.com/commun...e=OPENDATEDESC

Good for you LadyC! My first leader at WW made such a positive impact on me. I owe much of my success to her. Right now, I'm only riding one or two days on the weekends IF the weather is warm, so I'm not really racking up a lot of activity pts. I hope you are able achieve your goal of working for them.

And Chef, I just signed up for a cooking class! It starts in April. This should be funny...the poor instructor may not be ready for such a culinarily challenged student like me.

I agree I have used them for a while now and lost 100 pounds. I think if u follow their program and are honest about amounts or portions u will lose. I try to log my exercise as closely as I can but am extra careful on food intake, measure Or weigh for awhile and u will lose consistently.
Food diary is the key to weight loss as well as support groups whether here or at meetings. In my humble opinion!

What is the difference between WW and other online calorie trackers?
Thanks!

This is sorta tough question to answer.

WW's goes by point plus system so instead of being encased in calories, the program is based on points. When you join WW's, they give you a max point daily allotment plus 49 weekly points used like over draft fee. Each day you log your points and it is subtracted from your daily points first and then if you use all of those, then your weekly points.

Points that you log are based on total fat, carbs, fiber and protein.

Online programs are usually based strictly on calories.

The issue comes, in my opinion, that WW's wants you to lose at a respectable pace that is safe so you do not regain while other programs or DIY programs tend to make you lose weight too fast.

WW's is all about not depriving yourself of anything but taking responsibility for what you consume and also learning in the long run. LEarning portion control, making healthier choices while still savoring those yum yum foods and while incorporating good habits in your life.

I hope this answers your question. If not, let me know.

Thanks Chef!

I'm all about slow steady progress. I've lost 50 Lbs on my own over 2.5 years. But now I seem to be struggling with the last 35 or so I need to drop.

How do you folks feel about WW online vs weekly meetings?

I've done both. I started with the weekly meetings, and am glad that I did. The group support really helped, although you have made great progress on your own. The meetings may also help to understand the program better. I think you can sit in on a meeting for free to check it out, but you'd have to check with your local center. The leader also makes a huge difference, so if you do go to the meetings and don't gel with the leader, you can try a different meeting.
I'm doing on line now and really like it. The on line tools make it very easy, but I had the advantage of understanding the program before switching to online.
Congrats on the 50 lbs! How did you do it?

Lots of veggies and lots of miles. I run, well really jog, about 10 miles/week and ride 50 to 75. When I ride it's at or near my aerobic max, no just cruising along.
What I need to work on is my relationship with food. I continue to use it for way more than fuel.

Both are good. But I will throw this out to you...... If you are stuck with the last 35 pounds, go to the meetings. The ideas, support, and education is wonderful. If you get a good leader, and you need to ask which leader is the best when you go in to sign up, then it is so worth it. I love the meetings Love hearing what works and doesnt for others as well.

When you reach your goal weight and maintain for a period of time, membership becomes free if you stay true to the program.

Find your local WW and go in and talk with them.

This screams the need to go to meetings. The education is eyeopening once you find that great leader.

Today was my 3rd weigh in since re-starting WW. I got a big old goose egg...0lbs. Not quite sure why, as I was within my daily pts plus everday and I used 15 of my weekly pts plus. I only exercised once (which I know i need to increase) and earned 14activity pts, which I did not use. Here is is typical day for me. THoughts? I get 33 daily points plus. I know the frozen meals, etc are not greatfor me, but I struggle with low prep healthy options. I also tend to hoard points for dinner and after dinner, which is my witching hour...the hardest part of the day for me has always been from 7pm - bedtime...

Greek yogurt -3
banana -0
coffee - 0
cherry tomatoes or cucumber slices - 0
Lean Cuisine type meal for lunch - 7-9
pretzels - 3
carrot sticks - 0
apple or pear - 0
fiber 1 90 cal bar - 2 pts
chicken/brown rice/veggie 10-12 pts (dinner is usually some variation of this)
Rice cakes or micro popcorn 1-3 pts
WW brownie/cookie/dessert - 2-3 pts

Penny, weight varies a lot by factors that are not directly related to calories. After all, much of our weight is water. You may just be carrying a bit more water weight this week. This might be especially true if you got in some vigorous exercise in the past day or two. So, you might be just fine on what you ate and next week you may see a more significant drop. One weigh-in doesn't tell you much of anything. Trends are what is important.