| Product: |
Weight Watchers |
| Date: |
19/11/07 (806 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Losing weight and making friends
Disadvantages: Expense on meetings and food!
At the age of 30 I joined Weightwatchers.
I was 15 stone 10lb, 5ft 10 and classed as obese.
I'd always been overweight and in my house we always ate incredibly well and then I moved to London to live with an a abusive, alcoholic ex bf and was in a living hell of a relationship.
When things were going well between us we ate and drank out all the time and when we fell out we'd make up and it always involved some kind of 'treat' which considering he was over 20 stone he was this weight for a reason lol
Then I left him (well I did that regular) and I moved in for a few months with my best friend, pink.
She was overweight too and we decided to go Weightwatchers.
We both followed it easily the first week and she lost 8lbs and I lost 4lb.
I was gutted and I quit after a major tantrum.
She continued and kept losing and in the meantime I was gaining and I eventually moved back in with my ex.
By this point I was bursting out of my size 20 clothes and needed new clothes and I told him bout Weightwatchers and he encouraged me to go, offering to pay for the meetings as my incentive and promising to help any way he could and even following some aspects of it himself and to be fair for the 8 months I was on the plan he did help me.
I followed a point eating plan and it worked it just took patience!
I mainly shopped in Tesco's in which a lot of their healthy eating range clearly states point values, which helped with my diet plan as it was easy!
I wrote down everything I ate, did some exercise and saved up points for weekends by cutting down rest of week.
I regularly lost 4lbs a week and not once had a gain I was driven!
I pretty much weighed and measured everything I ate and became a fantastic cook.
Most vegetables were free on my plan so I could eat oodles of them, stir Fry's and vegetable curries in the day and go out and knock myself out with a few vodkas (trying to count the points when drunk was hard!)
I didn't realise I'd hit my goal weight till Margaret (my leader) announced it.
Because I was in a destructive relationship, I didn't know anyone in London to comment I'd lost weight, I no longer saw my family or my best mate and my ex never said you've lost loads cos I think he grew to hate my dedication or simply stopped noticed I was shrinking, one of the two.
So when I signed the gold board and became a gold member I'd lost just under 4 stone.
I didn't feel any different about my weight it was weird.
However so many other things were going on in my life.
I didn't realise how strict I was on myself till the day my ex tried to set fire to me and I left London for good to come back to Coventry to live with my mum and her new partner, in my family home.
They are both overweight.
They love to eat and love to drink and suddenly I was surrounded by food and drink of the sort I wouldn't have over my flat door in London.
I had no money at all so I couldn't buy any of the food I was used to and mum was like well you'll have to eat what I buy or go without.
At this point I was meant to be learning how to maintain my weight.
However over the door came massive takeaways, Pizzas, curries you name it I either ate it or I went without.
I pleaded and tried to rationalise with my mother that I didn't want to eat all this junk I just wanted some fruit and veg and stuff but my mum said nonsense your dead skinny you can eat what you like!
I couldn't eat what I like or I'd of never of been overweight in the first place! She refused to listen to me though as most Mother's do lol
The first time I remember puking was the first meal I ate here (back at home).
Then I never looked back.
I became bulimic.
The first few times I did it, it was so I wouldn't gain weight but then it became a habit and I didn't know any other way.
I have now been in therapy for 3 years and I'm controlling it though at 9 stone 5lbs I'm actually underweight.
I don't blame weightwatchers for this at all.
If I'd of stuck with the plan and not came off and learned to maintain I'm sure like many others I would have been fine, unfortunately life took a turn for worse.
I do question however portion control.
I'm not sure if the plan has changed any but it was never clear on how much veg I should eat so I was used to huge portions so I'm sure I actually over ate so it never taught me about that.
There was a lot of emphasis on points but not enough emphasis on eating the right things my leaders attitude was if you want to eat chocolate all day do so just count it and in my eyes that's not showing a good way of eating healthily.
After being in therapy for 3 years I've seen and heard a lot about diets.
Its quite surprising how many people do suffer with eating disorders or eating disordered thoughts after diets.
So in conclusion....
Weightwatchers is simple, plenty of literature to read, the foods great to help you along that you can buy at the meetings.
The magazine is a good read and worth getting for a bit of inspiration.
The weightwatchers kitchen scales cost me £34.99 and were rubbish, they didn't measure the points correctly.
The handbook is great and the recipe books are brilliant, I'm sure I've cooked every recipe going!
Its easy to work out points and I recommend you do buy the eating out guide at the very least because its surprising where and what you can eat, I never stopped eating out!
The people who go the meetings are great and I got on with everyone as we all had some much in common, and after the meetings its like a mini social event and a good laugh chatting in a group and asking the leader questions.
Weightwatchers.co.uk is a fantastic site, you can either just use the forums and share ideas etc or you can become an at home member.
To me even though I'm bulimic I would recommend Weightwatchers, I just wasn't of suitable mind to do it, just enter into it with care.
Dont become so wrapped up in it you become like me lol best advice i can give lol x
Summary: Enter with caution!
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