Hi everyone...

As I mentioned here, I am doing Weight Watchers. Currently, I am 120 lbs overweight (I have already lost 9.6 lbs) and am finding Weight Watchers to be a wonderful tool for losing weight. Anyone else here on weight watchers? Maybe we can throw some support around here as well as give eachother low point vegan/vegetarian options to eat (which there are many of)..

Fantastic idea! I have been following Weight Watchers since about October and I am not doing so well. I was down 12 lbs and now I'm only down 9

I definitely could use some low point ideas that are filling. I'll try to think of some good ones to post here.

That'd be fantastic! I was on WW for a while and lost 10 pounds... I've thought about joining again & would love to see some suggested recipes w/point values...

I am not on weight watchers, but my husband went from 270 to 190 last year and is maintaing his weight. How? Eating less and eating healthier. Low fat, low carb, no sugar. Shear willpower. Easier said than done right? Here is an example of what he eats in one day. Breakfast-protien drink; lunch-salad; snack-powerbar; dinner - broccoli, brussel sprouts, apple; snack - hot air popcorn.



A good friend of mine who is not veg*n went from 220 to 180 last year by knocking out beer, fatty foods, cheese and sweets. He still eats big meals, just healthier. Once a month he treats himself.



I always thought, don't think of it as a diet, think of it as changing your eating habits.



Anyways, Good luck with WW. The important thing is that you are taking steps to improve your health and it may not come off as quick as you would like, but stick with it. The first few months are the hardest. You have to find what works for you.

I have been thinking of joining WW also but didn't know if they offered a plan that gave vegetarian meal plans. I hate to cook so I need all the help I can get. Are you guys going to meetings locally or are you doing it on-line?



Barb

www.burnsoycandles.com

They do offer vegetarian options, barbbr.



I have some questions, however. I was thinking about joining but wondering how exactly the situation works. I realize a point value is assigned to every food, but will they have foods like soy ice cream or vegan cookies? Is there anyway to figure the point value of a specific food? I want to do it, sort of, but I need some more details. Oh! and what does it cost? I'm pretty broke, but I really need to figure out some kind of way to manage my weight that is easy to understand and maintain.



Thanks!!

lovenlight,

Linz

yes there is, and it's so nifty. haha. my grammie used to be on weight watchers, and my mom and i tried it for awhile (this was like, years ago -- how wonderful, eight years old and on weight watchers ), and even after i gave it up for the longest time afterward i had so much fun playing with the little point calculator thing grammie gave mom.. haha. it was like this little card thing, and you slid it until the calorie value was lined up with the um, fiber content, i think, and then you lined that up with how many fat grams are in it, and it would tell you how many points were in the food! hehe i just made it sound really complicated, but it's fun if you're a dork like me :3



i have no idea where you'd get one, though o_o

RBM - As long as you know the fat, fiber, and calorie content of the food, you can figure out the points. There's a formula about it somewhere... something like (calories/50)+(fat grams/12)-(fiber grams/5). But don't quote me on that. Anyway, I'm sure you can find some sort of calculator on the internet or at the WW website. And though I don't know the price, I know two guys who were obese as teens, did WW, and it worked very well for them.



Man, I'm probably gonna get whacked for being in here....

*polishes the stick.....

I actually did WW (bootleg) a few years ago. It was very good, compared to other diets. Nothing was eliminated, and you could "budget" your daily points if you wanted a treat. I was omni at the time, but I'm sure it will work as a veg*n.

Coool, I am definatley going to check it out, go to a meeting, ect. It sounds sensible.

Oh Cissy, you were just giving me info.

But don't come back.

I bought a fancy-schmancy point calculator at my meeting location. It looks like a regular calculator but it keeps track of how many points you've used for the day, how many flex points you've used (you get 35 flex pts every week), how many fruit & veggie servings you've eaten, etc. plus calculates points for anything under the sun (as long as you know the fat, fiber & calories).

You don't have to be a WW member to walk in to the meeting location and buy a calculator.

And yes, you can do WW strictly online and never step into a meeting at all. Visit their website for more info. They have a cool "recipe builder" that helps you figure out point values for recipes you have at home.



The cost varies depending what special program they are running. When I go, I pay $14 - but I only go once or twice a month. My friend goes every week and she's on the $8 a week plan (but you have to pay that one in advance).

I did their online program for about 3 months & lost 10 pounds. I think it was $12/month, and it was quite good. You can enter in everything you eat (even save homemade recipes you make a lot) and it calculates everything for you based on calories, fat, and fiber (I think). It even tracks how much water you drink



They had a LOT of vegetarian recipes on there so it's certainly do-able as a veggie. Hmmm....



amy

LMAO... if it makes you feel better, I'm back up to about my average weight

I'm really glad, Cissy.

Sally- The calculator sounds nifty. What did it cost? I am on a tight budget, but I should be able to afford $8 a week, or even $14. We'll see how it goes.

I think it was about $15. I also bought a journal thing that works similar to a check register and it fits in this little case along with the point calculator. I think that was about $5 or so.



Also, WW online has a vegetarian message board. It is pretty helpful. I like to check in over there but I'm not there very frequently anymore since my computer is deciding to bully me around.

I know a lot of people like Weight Watchers for the support of the group, but there are also books of recipes you can buy that have all the points labeled. They are about 20 bucks at Barnes and Noble, and I'm sure you could get them used of Amazon for cheaper (even cheaper is the library, mine has like three copies!). THere are seriously 1000s of recipes in there, a whole section for vegetarians, and I'm sure you can veganize/vegetarianize the recipes in the meat sections

Thanks so much for all the info!! 20$ for all that stuff is pretty reasonable.



I feel like I hijacked this thread.

without having to count points or calories??

I am SO tired of counting weight watchers points. I have been on and off weight watchers so many times. I need to lose 35-40 pounds. This puts me at a healthy weight, on the upper end of my weight range.

I tried Mcdougall and I didn't like the fact is was extremely lowfat. The food didn't stick with me for long so I was always hungry. Weight watchers works but it makes me so obsessive.

Advice please.

Well, first off, don't "diet". Eat sensibly. Eat plenty of fruits, veggies, whole grains, and legumes. Eat fats and sugars in moderation. Get some cardiovascular exercise, weight bearing exercise, and flexibility training. You don't need any special weight loss programs to do it--just teach yourself how to eat healthily and exercise. If you learn it, rather than take guidance from someone else (while having to pay for someone else's help), you're more likely to stick with it.



It's a lifestyle change. It means you adapt yourself to a healthy lifestyle for life. If you want to keep the weight off, it's a commitment that you have to be willing to make. Don't just lose the weight and go back to your old habits and expect the weight to stay off. Make a commitment to lose it and maintain it.



You may have to work things out on a psychological level. Most people think it's just weight loss--not a lifestyle change. They don't make the commitment to it and that's where they fail. It has nothing to do with "willpower" and everything to do with making it a priority.

Exercise, do cardio, burn it off and keep it burned off. Do not diet. All that does is take you on the weight ferris wheel, and the wheel just keeps getting larger.

Howdy friend, I've lost 60 lbs and I can't find it. It took me darn near 25 years to learn what to do and be willing to do it. I've tried a lot of stuff but my very favorite way of eating is whole, unprocessed, vegan. It rocks the house down if you ask me. I'm a lifetime member of weight watchers which teaches you to weigh, measure, and count. Since I got to a vegan (well 99% vegan) diet I've been able to let all that go. Prior to being a vegetarian I did quite well on a very plant centered omni diet, but since cutting out meat I get about 500-700 more calories a day. I kid you not. It has been such a mind boggling experience I want to scream it out to strangers on the street. I feel so good I can't stand it. I am 37 years old, 5'3'' and weigh about 114 lbs. I have been at this weight for 2 years and 3 months now. My weight maintenance is effortless. In a nutshell, my daily food would be



2 or 3 servings of whole fresh fruit. 1 serving = 1 piece or 1 cup of cut up fruit. I don't care for juice much because it has a lot of calories and zero fiber as compared to whole fruit



4 or 5 servings of whole fresh vegetables. 1 serving = 1/2 cup cooked, 1 cup raw (not lettuce), or 2 cups lettuce



6 or 7 servings good quality grains. 1 serving = about 70-90 calories worth. For example 1/2 cup irish oatmeal, 1/2 cup non cereal, 1 piece 100% whole wheat bread, 1/2 cup brown rice, quinoa, bulgur, wheat berries, etc, 1/2 whole grain bagel, 1/2 cup whole grain pasta



4 or 5 servings beans, legumes, nuts, seeds, nut butters. 1 serving = 1 shot glass full of nuts, 1/2 cup beans or lentils, 1 tbsp nut butters, 1/4 cup hummus. This area is a little harder to describe because calories vary widely among these foods.



0-200 calories of empty calorie foods, such as candy, pop, mints, alcoholic beverages

LOL, make that non-sugary cereal. Oh and plenty of water.



I guess a lot of this is just good habits that WW teaches and in me they've built up over time.



The problem with WW, is that they tell you too much of what you want to hear and not enough of what you need to know. All sort of putrid American toxic waste in brightly colored packages can fit into WW points program and they tout it as so. The problem is that nonsense doesn't work for weight management which makes it unnecessarily hard on people.



The two good things they have going for them are free veggies and the support system of the meetings. The free veggies thing is excellent because veggies are the most nutrient dense food you can get. The problem with the free veggie thing is the 2 servings of dairy. A lot of veggies and a lot of dairy in the same diet don't mix, and it's called lactose intolerance.



I believe eating a lot of nutrient dense foods was the magic bullet in conquering my binge and night eating. I am someone that used to get down on her knees every day and pray for the strengh to get through the day without a binge.



Is there a length limit on these posts? I guess by now you can tell I can go on and on and on about this.

At this point, I guess I would encourage you to continue with WW but try fitting vegan into their framework. Use the accountability of their weekly weigh in and guidelines for portion sizes until you get used to it. If it works out for you anything like it worked out for me, you'll eventually be able to leave the nonsense behind too.



Trying on vegetarianism was in the back of my mind for a long time, my only regret is that I waited so long to pull the plug. The Vegans have had it all along and I'm so glad they were there when I was ready. We can't simultaneously torture animals, destroy our planet and bring optimum health to ourselves. All things are connected.



Also, as a long term WW member, I am someone that weighed her chicken breast with relative regularity for the last 11 years. People are not the only species that has gotten obese over this time. Chickens have too. Back when I started, I used to cut off a bite or two to get my chicken breast down to the 3 or 4 oz size. Now I can't remember the last time I saw a chicken breast that small. I believe every last ugly, awful, miserable story about factory farming. I don't need to see it with my own eyes, I saw it on my own plate.



I'm sorry on this website to see people talking about their eating disorders and such. It's unfortunate because I would tell anyone with a totally straight face that an excellent vegan diet has solved my lifelong eating disorders.



We as a society need to get out of this horrible box we're in. Vegan is about as far out of the box as you can get.



Some resources I like:



www.pcrm.org



Cooking Light Magazine, zoom in on the vegan stuff

Eating Well Magazine, ~~~ read between the lines ~~~

Any of the Fit for Life books by Harvey Diamond

Eat Drink and Be Healthy by Walter Willett

Food Politics by Marion Nestle

Diet for a New America by John Robbins

Fast Food Nation by ? sorry

ya got some good tips there, glitterbug



I really dont have any advice. I'm losing weight now, but I'm not even trying to. Then again, as an omni I ate mucho trash.

I lost 40 pounds using the Weight Watchers points system and exercising. If you want to stay on WW, hike up the points about 5 or so, because they recommend much lower than you need to survive.



I still count WW points to this day, except I have about twice as many as the weight loss amount. Why do you find it so difficult? The only thing I weigh is pasta. No one would even know that I'm counting points in my head, unless I told them outright. I eat freely.

If you are interested in losing weight and becoming more healthy without thinking about it, Go Raw! Just try it...it ALWAYS works!

Ditto to the suggestions about exercise. It helps you burn fat faster and you feel better.



Also, eat when you are hungry. Don't worry about eating at prescribed times, etc. This doesn't mean you eat a lot, but if you are hungry in the middle of afternoon, grab an apple or something, don't wait until "dinner" time. Eating small portions more often helps me feel full. Plus, eating based on your hunger level helps you to be more in tune with your body and more able to deal with emotional eating/binging, etc.



Keep posting - there are many of here working on weight issues, we'll be glad to offer you a supportive hand (or a kick in pants if you need that too ).

Go glitterbug - your advice is amazingly sensible.



I have trouble staying away from junk food and feeding my greed instead of my need....that is exactly why I struggle with a few extra pounds, especially now that I've left my 20s behind.



Thing is, when you're craving a candy bar, a mango will satisfy that craving 100%.

My biggest problem is not always being willing to solve the craving sensibly - it is the WANTING of the candy at all costs, regardless of the fact that fruit would work just as well....

Wow, thanks for all the replies!!!



The reason I find ww so hard is I go hungry alot. And when I know I can't have any more food, I will sometimes go to bed hungry. I could add more points, but I would feel like I am cheating. It is like a diet, so when I want to eat something off plan, I do really bad out of rebellion. It's the same diet cycle I've been on for years.

Also, some healthy foods are high in points. Like oatmeal, I love oatmeal. But when I eat it the way I like, it's too many points- 1 Tbsp ground flax, 1 tbsp wheat germ and a Tbsp of organic sugar. I hate having to use splenda. I don't trust it. Also, healthy bread is twice the points as the "lite " variety. I like baking my own, and I grind my own grain. So when I don't use lowfat fake foods, and artificial sweeteners, I run out of points really fast.





Glitterbug, if you want to go on, please do. I found everything you said very helpful. I've been doing weight watchers so many times so I kind of know what I need to be doing as far as how many veggies, etc. I am just so convinced that I need a plan to be able to lose the weight. I guess I don't have the confidence to do it myself. I love whole foods because I love cooking.

Do you watch your fat intake? I mean do you try to eat lowfat?