to ask if anyone's interested in a 2017 Weight Watchers thread?

[JenniferYellowHat1980]

First off, I know there's a dedicated area in big/slim/whatever but I'm after traffic as it's a bit quiet in the WW section. Second, I know that 5:2 and low carb are popular on MN but neither of them suit me whereas I've lost weight with WW in the fairly distant past and regained due to unrelated issues which I'll leave out for now. I'm sure there are plenty of opinions on why it doesn't work but for me it does.

Just wondering if anyone is thinking of signing up and would like a support thread over on the WW board. I have at least 4st to lose and would appreciate it. I can't go to meetings as they don't fit in with work, so will be doing it online (half price on the website at the moment and Top Cashback give a few quid back). Anyone in?

Thanks guys.

Iggy my friend has just bought the weight watcher bottle which has silly little comments on the side apparently but it has helped her keep up her intake as she knows she has to have two bottles a day.

I have the Joseph Joseph Dot bottle but there are lots of different bottles available, in addition to the new WW one.

Habitual snacking can be a problem. Definitely think about healthier snacks or alternate habits, but maybe try to change one thing at a time. Much easier to cope with small changes rather than doing lots at once! Small steps in the right direction all help!

The water intake is a problem here also! Something to work on! My day 3 on plan has been successful and I picked up the Davina 30 day fat burn DVD today. I am a member of the gym but can't manage and hour away from work/home/being mum/wife to do a decent session so I'm hoping that the fact it's in 10 minute bits will help me do a few throughout the day, fingers crossed! Well done wintersdawn! That's fantastic!

Morning all. I was 2lb down this morning. Had guests at the weekend and made a really nice coronation chicken and veggie chilli for people to have on baked potatoes. Served with a green salad and a giant couscous salad with roasted peppers. Then meringues with raspberry cream.
We had an exciting weekend as two rescue hedgehogs were released into our garden on Saturday. We have built a hedgehog house and are feeding them and so far they seem to be sticking around. They are incredibly cute.
Now for the ww related question. I've found some, ahem, slowing of my digestive system going on. Dr google tells me this is due to reduced fat in my diet, despite the large amounts of fibre I've been eating. So I'm another one who has to up my water content. Anyone else found this?

Hello all, well done dorothy. I've been super stressed at work so have forced myself to do some exercise over past few days which really does make me feel better. Weigh in tomorrow.

Weekend was ok, used quite a few weeklies but still have 15 or so left and around 100 fit points so fingers crossed weigh in will be ok! Have holidays in five weeks so would love to be down half a stone by then.

With regards to the bowels- suddenly increasing fibre can bung you up (causes the stools to bulk up which can slow their progress). Plenty fluids to soften things up is the way round it, and moving lots!

Hey all

I've not read the whole thread so apologies if this has been covered, but can we talk about fit points? They're out of whack, right? Or am I doing things wrong?

I was given a target of 55 fit points a week. I get 7 points for a spin class. So I was whinging to a friend saying even if I did spin every day, I wouldn't hit 55 in a week. She said she gets 55 easily because of just walking round. For example we went to IKEA last week and she counted points for that. But surely that's not activity? It's just living. Not raising your heart rate or getting a bit sweaty.

Today I went running - only 3.5 km but I'm just a beginner - and got 4 points for it. This afternoon I took the kids to a NT place and wandered around for a couple of hours - out of interest I tracked it. Boom. 12 points. I know which was harder and which will improve my fitness levels. So why do you get so many points just for wandering?

Actually I don't 'eat' my fit points anyway so it doesn't matter, but it's annoying me!

I take probiotic tablets to help with the blockages . Very good , same effect as Activia!

RE: fit points, I don't understand them either. I was given a target of 38, and I don't know where that came from. I'm writing a thesis just now so the only exercise I get is walking to and from work. I got 8 for walking for an hour this morning. The only way I'm logging though is by tracking via my iPhone. I don't have that with me when walking up and down stairs at work (I do that a lot) so didn't make the target. Today the app suggested. I reduce target to 30

I don't get them either. I have a target of 39 which I hit within 2 days easily. I walk 10-15k a day in a standard work day, then add in maybe 3 HIIT workouts. I've got 140 now- I couldn't possibly eat all those and lose weight!

Well done on the loss Dorothy

I'm so glad others are frustrated by the fit points. They don't seem to follow any logic. 30 mins swimming, yoga or walking all give me 4 fit points. I can't say any of them are at max effort as I'm not fit enough but I know the swimming burns a lot more than the other two!

Kathy I know what you mean. Just wondering if the difference is your friend has a Fitbit on logging everything whereas you're just logging separate 'units' of exercise.

Chuffed tonight - lost 3lbs! Have tracked all week and last week I had pmt but yay! 1.5lbs till I'm in the free zone

Kathy my Fitbit gives me the points- I should have mentioned! But gives way too many in my opinion.

Well done Miffy!! 3lbs is great!

Hi all I am thinking of taking the plunge but just wondered... does WW really work? If you wholeheartedly stick to the plan then will the weight come off?

Also, I find that a lower carb and higher good fat does work for me - yet things like avocado and full fat Greek yoghurt are apparently lots of points! Does that annoy you, because they're not exactly unhealthy foods?!

Well done Miffy on the 3lbs!

Angelica88. It works very well for me and always has, when I stick to it. This time around I have lost a bit over 6 stone In the last 7.5 months. I am walking much, much, more than I have done for many years and I am feeling the healthiest and fittest I have for more than 20 years. I know some members who do have advacado sometimes. some use some of their points on alcohol each week, others on sweet or savoury treats. Everyone is different. The plan encourages more healthy eating, more so if you do 'no count' and can help reduce the amount of sugary foods you eat. If you don't have enough weekly and daily points for everything, it is still possible to exercise more, earn fitpoints and to eat some of those fitpoints as well. I know some who use all their available fitpoints too and still lose weight. I have tended to not to use mine, although I have used more of them over the last three weeks. It is the flexibility that works for me.

At the end of the day, you have to find what works for you and what suits your lifestyle. For me WW can and will become a way of life, so that I can maintain my weight, once I get to where I want to be.

Angelica to be honest I think any plan works if you stick to it! It's all about calories in calories out at the end of the day. I like the lean protein to keep you full approach that WW are taking at the moment but tbh my main reason for going is the weekly weigh in to keep me motivated. I did well with mfp last year but it's a hard slog doing it all on your own hence trying WW.

Speaking of fitpoints my app has this morning suggested that I increase my goal from 39 weekly points to 120!

Weigh in this am, but the pre-period bloat is at its height so not too confident, but going to go anyway. Hopefully period arrives in a few days with a little whoosh of weight. I'll try to hit 15k steps if possible most days, and a quick workout video when DD is in bed.

Angelica88. Yes I agree with EditEcho that anything works if you stick to it. I suppose the key is how sustainable that eating plan is in the longer term, to help keep the lost weight off. Can it become a permanent lifestyle change? I am not excluding anything that I like. I just have some of those things in moderation and less frequently. I am mostly making healthier food choices and eating more healthily. Hubby has been mostly eating the same as me, and has lost over four stone. Again, like EditEcho, I like the discipline of my weekly weigh in. I find the meeting after weigh in, motivational and helpful. But I have a supportive leader, or coach as they are called now. I have come across some leaders in the past who are much less inspiring, so if you go to the meetings, like any of these slimming clubs, the leader you have can make a difference.

EditEcho hope your weigh in goes ok despite the pre-period bloat. Just stick with it, whatever the result.

I think the app gives you a low fitpoint target to start with as I suppose it doesn't know how active or inactive you currently are. It then adjusts closer to what you achieve after that. Then it will keep suggesting to increase your target a bit more than the last one if you are reaching your target. I have declined a few requests to increase my target and then adjust it manually in settings when I am ready to push myself a bit more.

You should also find that the amount of points you earn for each activity will reduce as you lose weight.

Thanks sez. Weigh in was surprisingly good- 5lbs! Got my little 7. Must just feel bloated. The 9lbs in 2 weeks is a great start, but my first weigh in was after a long weekend away eating everything in sight so first few lbs were bound to drop off. Gets harder from here on in (I know from bitter experience!).

When do the weekly points start to drop? And the daily points? I have 30 daily but 42 weekly which seems to be a lot more than everyone else (13st6 though so very large too!).

Edit that's a brilliant loss. Well done.

Fantastic result EditEcho! Glad the bloated feeling didn't affect the scales. I really couldn't tell you when the points drop. It has been quite regularly for me.

I have only lost 2 or 3 off my weeklies since July. I am also on 42 weeklies, but am much heavier. My daily points total is 40 at the moment. I originally started on 56 or 57 points a day. As my 'new week' starts on weigh in day, I now try to leave a couple of points free, in case there is a drop in points after weigh in. If not, then I can just have a small treat when I get home!

I lost 3.5lbs tonight. Was worried about the bloated feeling too, so very happy with the result. I ended up using a chunk of my fitpoints again this week, for the third week in a row, despite the best of intentions to not use them!

Well done sez! We are both great!

I'm a bit confused about the way they work out the points now! Im fine with 30 Daily but not sure I would cope with much less. I think seeing the fitpoints as a buffer is the way to go, ok to use a few if stuck but otherwise avoid. I'll have some Easter egg and roast with trimmings on Easter Sunday for example so might need to use some then! But I earned 24 yesterday just from daily activity and a 20minute workout video (on a workday I'm on my feet all day and walking around London) but still seems an awful lot. At home with toddler today so unlikely to get many though I suppose.

Yesterday I made griddled pork loin (10 points including a little oil) and cauliflower mashed with kale and a teaspoon of butter (2sp) with some griddled courgette slices for dinner and didn't feel deprived at all. Tonight it's chilli.

Well done on losses up thread! I've had an ok few days. Really struggling with writing up my thesis and it's getting harder not to comfort eat. I'm staying firm though. If I tackle the writer's block I'll be too busy to eat...
Making turkey burgers for dinner tonight. Made up recipe that would work on no count or be very low points. I'll point it up and post later.

EditEcho I have no idea, but I am pretty sure your daily points won't drop too much, as I don't think they can go much lower, but maybe your weeklies are where you will see more of a reduction. Someone asked last night at the meeting about weekly points reduction. Sounds like they can drop quite a bit from where they are now at 42 a week. Maybe my daily points will keep dropping until they are closer to where they should be longer term and then my weeklies will start to drop more instead. Who knows???!!! I have never stuck to WW for this long before, so this bit of it is new to me! Maybe I will have a better idea in 6 months times!

sez49 I remember starting on 42 weeklies and it dropped to 35 weeklies but it's not gone any lower thank goodness! For my age and weight it's stuck at 30 daily and 35 weeklies, dailies don't normally drop below that but by then at least earning those extra fitpoints will be a bit easier lol!