Expensive But Very Effective In Weight Loss. (Weight Watchers)

Member Name: mythdata

Product:	Weight Watchers
Date:	18/11/08 (529 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It really works providing you have the detemination.

Disadvantages: the prices they charge to jump an a scale.

INTRODUCTION

I am not over weight but I am slightly heavier than I should be for my height, usually this would not bother me but, I have been trying to have a baby for over six years, and I have recently undergone a big operation to help me and my husband get the baby we have always longed for.

After the operation my consultant has advised me to lose a stone in weight, this is usually very easy to do and I can achieve the weight loss in 6-8 weeks. The biggest problem for me is keeping the weight off as I work full time and constantly pick at the wrong sort of foods.

I needed help so I decided to give weight watchers a try, this way I could lose the weight and maintain the loss without putting any more than five pounds back on.

HOW IT STARTED

Weight watches was established over forty five years ago, a lady called Jean Nidetch was trying to lose weight and she and her friends would meet on a weekly basis, to share weight loss ideas, recipes and support to each other.

This is what made weight watchers the success it is today and they currently support millions of members on there bid to lose weight.

The weight watcher plan has been devised to help and maintain any ones weight loss, but for me the real help is that there are many other members in the same situation who are willing to offer their support and expertise in helping you with your personal diets.

AIM OF WEIGHT WATCHERS

The overall aim or weight watchers is to help and support you with your weight loss, even after you have lost the weight they are there to help you maintain it and keep you at your ideal weight.

You have a choice of diet plans that can suit you, so it is not really a strict diet but if you eat the wrong things you may go hungry. I have learned to change my eating habits over a period of time, I have thrown the sausage rolls and pies and I have started to eat a lot of pasta, this works really well as I make it at home and take it to work for my dinner, I have also noticed that I have saved money as I am not nipping out for pies or sandwiches.

If you have a good bit of weight to shift, the weight watcher leader will recommend you head for a 10% weight loss, this is 10% off of your starting weight. If you reach your 10% loss target you will be give a cool 10% key ring, it is rather tacky but for the achievement side of things, it certainly gives you a boost.

Once you have reached your 10% target you will be given a goal weight, this is classed as a gold weight and if you manage this, you become a weight watchers gold member, Not only will you get a gold key ring to match your 10% loss but you also get free meetings, this means you never have to pay for your meetings again providing you stay within five pounds of your gold weight.

STARTER INFORMATION

At your first meeting you register and get given a little tracking card, this can be taken away with you every week to monitor your weight loss.

Once all of the registration paper work has been completed you will meet your leader and get weighted in for the first time, you can weigh in with of with out shoe so it is completely your choice, I personally weighed with boots on but the next week I took them off so I got a 2 pound advantage and lost 5 pounds in the first week.

The weight you get on your first weigh in is the weight that will determine any of your targets, but trust me this weight soon creeps down providing you stick to the diet.

After the weigh in you get a starter pack which contains, a weekly tracker sheet for you to write down every thing you have eaten and it helps you keep track of your points, a welcome book to tell you about weight watchers, a points booster which is a little card that help you determine how many points you have earner through exercise and the diet plan which is a book that lists point values of many foods and tells you a little bit about each diet.

Every week after this you will receive a little booklet with recipes and tips for weight loss from your leader at the weigh in point, you will also get a new weekly tracker.

The meetings run for roughly 45 minutes and this is where you sit around with all other weight watchers and discuss you strong and week points during the week. I personally hate these meetings and I only weigh in every week and don't stay for the meeting.

So may think this is mad but I have tried to weigh my self, but I soon stop and the weight goes straight back on, I don't have the self motivation to keep it up myself. This way if someone else tells me I have gained weight, I will do more the following week to shift it again.

DIETS

With the weight watcher diet you have the choice of two different diets, the core plan and the points plan.

The points plan is designed to help you lose weight, by counting the number of points you eat a day. You need to fill in a questionnaire to see what point allowance you are allowed each day, then with the help of the book that lists the point values for many foods you can get going.

I personally use the point plan as I find that I can eat anything I want, if I want a sausage sandwich I can have one, but I need to eat point free foods if I reach my point target as long as I can still have something to eat I don't mind.

The core plan is where you eat certain foods listed in the book, this is fine if you like every type of food. You can eat as much as you like from the list and still lose at the end of the week. I can't personally stick to this diet as the majority of the foods I can't stand, but I have seen it work well for others.

If you are a new started you can use the kick starter diet, this is only available on the first two weeks or you diets and can lose you up to 5 pounds in weight, This is a very strict diet and you have to follow the diet weight watchers set out for you. I didn't do this at the start as I thought it was too intense to start with, so I stuck with the points plan.

PRICES

At certain times of the year you need to pay on one off membership fee, this is usually roughly 7.95 but I got a voucher that I printed off of the weight watchers web site, this entitled me to fee membership.

Each week at every weigh in you need to pay 5.50 this gives you the weekly booklets, your weigh in and the meeting. This is expensive to stand on a weighing scale for me as I don't do the meetings, but I pay it as I can't keep the weight off alone, so in my opinion it is worth it.

If it is something you think you will stick at you can set up a monthly direct debit to get a monthly pass, which costs 17.95 this is a little bit cheaper then the 22.00 a month if you pay each week. The pass also entitles you to free use of Esourse the weight watchers web site.

WEBSITE

The website www.weightwatchers.co.uk is very easy to use and it is very easy to navigate, here you can access the Esource bit which is for members only, it lists hundreds of recipes and all of the point values in foods.

On the site you can catch up with other weight watchers through a forum and message board, which is great if you are having a low week, the members always seem to pick you right up again.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

You can only join weight watcher is you are over 18 years old, they do make allowances for children with weight issues but they need to have a valid doctors note, stating that they are fit to take part in the diets.

You have to be at least 5 pounds above your recommended weight, which is correct for your height and age.

They recommend that you do not join if you are pregnant.

MY OPINION

My only down side to weight watchers is the fact that they will only allow one meeting off a year, this is crazy only getting one meeting you don't pay for if you don't attend. Yes you can have other weeks of but when you return you have to pay 5.50 for each of the additional weeks you have missed.

The Points plan for me is by far the best suited to me, I can actually lose weight very easily on this plan. I just hope I can keep it off this time around.

As for the leader she is very nice and continuously encourages you to keep going with the diet even if you start to gain weight, I have seen many women so disappointed at a half pound gain, but she instantly make them feel better by saying half a pound is the weight of a good pee. This comment now makes me go to the loo before very weight in just in case.

It is a very expensive price just to get weighed, but I don't mind too much because I tend to stick to it. I do have a weekly treat on a Saturday, I have this as a point free day and eat whenever and what ever I want.

This Saturday I had a donor kebab, chips, garlic mayonnaise and a bottle of wine, all of the naughty things is am not allowed. I find that giving myself a Saturday night party helps keep me motivated as I look forward to it after I weigh in and after I have had it, I concentrate at getting the weight down for weigh in.

If you have considered weight watchers, I would strongly recommend you try it. If you have the will power you can lose weight to.

Summary: Overall a very good weight loss group.