Is it all that great?

[Bestie245]

Now don't jump down my throat please as I'm not exactly 'slating' it, I know if you stick to it the results are amazing. I've never done it properly (I like alcohol too much) but I know people who have done it and lost a ton of weight... but almost guaranteed these people have also piled it straight back on within a year, which leaves me to think that just like every other fad, Atkins etc - it's just not sustainable. Who can be arsed to count sins and think of As and Bs etc as soon as you've hit 'target'?! My friend is currently on it and says it's easy but if it was that easy surely she'd have stayed on it the first time?

I also don't understand how it even works as it seems to be loaded with things that are high in sugar such as muller lite yoghurts and cereal bars (these products are advertised as healthy but in my opinion shouldn't be).

I need to lose around a stone myself and I'm just eating as healthily as I can and also exercising a lot more than I ever have, I've gone from 11.4 to 10.8 so far, it's been much slower than doing the much advertised Slimming World diet lifestyle change, but I really believe the faster it comes off the faster it can go on.

So am I the only one out there who thinks maybe SW isn't all that great?

I think the red and green thing is outdated now.
Not certain only just joined, 3 weeks ago.
It’s acually only reinforcing the obvious, eat lots of fruit and vegetables, protein and little bread. Rice, pasta, potatoes are free too, in moderation. Which is the key to all healthy eating plans.
Limit crap and move about. Common sense really. I avoid the things mentioned, yogurts and bars as I wouldn’t eat that even on a greeedy day!
I’m doing ok in it because it has focused my mind set and is very easy without having to say to “no I’m a diet” when offered things, the things I decline are the crap that is bad for you anyway.

I would say no ‘diet’ suits everyone. Some people will do much better on low carb high fat diets, it’s supposed to be much better for diabetics.

I will admit to being one of those people who lost weight but then gained My problem stemmed from ill health - I got ill, comfort ate and couldn’t exercise, didn’t get to group so I gained weight - not as much as I’d lost but put half back on. Chipping away at it again now I’m better.

Essentially, SW is a pretty good diet. A healthy balance of fruit and veg, protein and carbs. Carbs are somewhat limited if you have 1/3 speed food as suggested. You also limit your sugar intake if you stick with your syns. However I agree that promoting Muller lights and mug shots etc is a massive downfall. I still don’t think there’s enough research on how the body responds to sweeteners and sugars in ‘low fat’ foods. I have a colleague that often has a mug shot and muller light for lunch and I think You’ve not got it quite right!!. I’d rather have proper yoghurt and syn it than how fat free or low fat stuff!

Any diet needs to be sustainable (that’s why I can’t do LCHF - I miss my carbs!). When I was at target (for a couple of months before I got ill), I found I didn’t have to be quite so rigorous with counting syns, A and B choices are just habit now and I maintained quite easily. It’s when old habits creep in that it becomes unsustainable. So no, it’s not perfect but it’s the best I’ve found so far.

I did SW in 2005 and stayed at target for 4 years before getting ill.

I've lost the extra weight I gained and am a target member again. This time I've learned to make adaptions for when I get ill and I don't live off crisps the way I did.

Rarely eat a muller light or the meals from Iceland. Have discovered my mojo for cooking again too. I look at it as a lifestyle change.

Slimming world is basically healthy eating. I don't think it's the 'diet' or eating plan that's the problem. It's going to a class and getting weighed every week and being told you should be able to lose weight every week. It just encourages an all or nothing mentality. When someone thinks they've had a bad meal or day then they binge eat and then the whole yo-yo cycle begins.

As someone who yo-yo dieted for most of my 20's, I have actually lost more weight and been able to maintain it since stopping dieting and weighing myself. I eat healthy most of the time, but I follow my own rules. I don't binge eat anymore which is a big thing for me.

The problem is people want to lose weight quickly without thinking about how they can maintain the weight in the long run. Much better to lose weight gradually and slowly with sensible changes over time than the yo-yo cycle I put myself through all those years!

SW is basically healthy eating with the odd sweet treat. I personally couldn't give up all sugar so the way I see it, the odd Muller Light or cereal bar, as a treat, is still way better than the way I used to eat! I lost almost 2 stone last year and have kept it off for a year now, bar a few normal up and downs. I find that it's sustainable as it's a normal healthy way of eating and nothing too radical.