Anybody like smart points?

[CamdenTownie]

I just switched from Slimming World to weight watchers last week, I lost 3 stone on SW but I'd come to a standstill and was finding it quite depressing.

I decided to give WW a go but I'm struggling, my allowance is 30 smart points daily plus 28 weekly points, I generally have oats with water and a splash of milk for breakfast with a cuppa -5sp. With an apple thrown in to keep me going.

Lots of fruit, clementines, grapes, pineapple, mango, plus either soup, crumpets or warburtons thins with ham salad for lunch approx 8sp, a weight watchers yogurt -2sp, special k bar 4sp or 2 Jaffa cakes for 4sp.

It all seems to go well until my evening meal, 4sp for a small portion of meat or fish, 1/2 pouch of microwave rice is 5 sp and it's such a tiny amount! I try to eat lots of veg, today I had a beef casserole with peppers onions mushrooms mange tout and broccoli, but I feel like I'm eating very small amounts and just don't feel full!

Today I'm at 33 smart points and I've had my two Jaffa cakes and 2sp pack of hula hoops puft.

Can anyone point me in the right direction, I do have a big appetite I guess but I wouldn't say I eat tons.

I'm not keen on the no count system as it seems pretty similar to Slimming World.

Just don't know if this is sustainable long term.

My first weigh-in is tomorrow and I'm surprised to say that I've found this past week relatively straightforward. I lost a lot of weight (6+ stones) nearly 10 years ago but over the years it's all gone back on. I played about with slimming world for a few years but it was too easy to kid myself on.

I obviously have a fair bit to lose but can see sp working just as well for me as whatever the plan was 10 years ago. Only thing annoying me now is that I need to look up the points value of just about everything but needs must and it's forcing me to do it right.

I think gaining more points through the gym etch (Activity Points) gives you a bit more leeway. You don't have to eat them all, but it helps me stay on track.

Good luck Dame you will soon get back into the swing of things!! I've been doing it for 9 weeks now and have lost 24lb. I had about 5stone to lose so just over 3 now. I'm finding it great and just second nature now. I also did sw a few times over the years and agree with you I just kid myself I was being good when I was eating way too much just cos it was "free"

One trick that I have learnt during my time with WW is to always point your meat/fish/potatoes raw

Many foods loose moisture and weight when they are cooked and becomes more dense
So if you weight 100g of raw salmon and then cook it - 4p
If you weigh it grilled at 100g - 6p - because it was more like 150g beforeyou cooked it

150g chicken breast is 1p before you grill of bake it and Quorn is good to save points - last week we had quorn burgers 1p and homemade potato wedges. White fish, tuna and prawns are low points

The other thing that I have started doing is making cauliflower rice (just blitz in food processor) - it works really well with strong foods such as curry or chilli

I struggle with smart points a little because I feel that it pushes people towards lean meat and away from carbohydrates. I am getting the hang of it though and have now got a bank of easy meals that for my points budget.

I usually have weetabix with a bit of almond milk and soy yoghurt for breakfast. Lunch is homemade tomato soup with pitta sticks and an apple. Dinner can be anything from fajitas to aubergine pasta to a stir fry. If you want any more specific ideas there are lots of recipes on the ww website to suit all tastes and points budgets. Best of luck x

Must have done something right - lost 8lbs in my first week!

It's a great plan once you get used to all of the points, are you weighing everything before you cook it or after? I've found it so much easier to weigh it all raw so I know what's gone into a meal. It took me a while to get used to it but I have more lean protein on my plate than carbs, so I do look to substitute rice for cauliflower rice and spriralise courgette etc instead of spaghetti so I'm getting a fuller portion of food and it does then satisfy me. Definitely on the spag bol type dishes I bulk them out with peppers, mushrooms etc x

I just joined yesterday so today my first proper day. Finding it hard enough to be honest. Had porridge with almond milk and spoon of cashew butter (8sp), sweet potato salad with tuna (10sp) and sweet potato, Lentil and spinach dal (10sp) (sweet potatoes to use up!) with a spoon of natural yoghurt/cucumber/mint raita (2sp), an apple and some grapes. Doesn't feel like much food for the smart points!

twinmummy25

Was that question for me? I'll assume so! Haha! I weigh everything before I cook it too, much easier. The issue I have with the plan is that vegan protein sources are often high in carbohydrates and as such are high sp when compared to the equivalent portion of meat/fish. I have found some really good low sp meat substitutes but I'm finding it a little difficult to get enough protein within my sp budget x

Hannamarie0098
Have you tried things like quinoa and edamame beans they're meant to be high in protein, not sure if they would help?

twinmummy25

I have done, i often throw soybeans into a stir fry. I haven't cooked with quinoa myself but often eat it when I'm out. I would still argue that they're relatively high in sp compared to chicken/fish though. I muddle through as best I can, it's just been a steep learning curve! I miss propoints, though I can see the advantages of smartpoints if you eat meat.

Hanna what about tofu? 2sp/100g

Editecho

Haven't liked it in the past but if you can recommend any recipes I'd give it another try :)

Have you tried writing tofu in the app and it'll bring up recipes with that ingredient in it x

Hanna tofu is fairly tasteless so it's all about taking up the flavour of the food you are making. Try marinating in soy and adding to a stirfry, or frying it and then adding to a curry? I add it to curry and stir fries all the time.

I also make a cannelini bean and leek mash which is delicious. I use yoghurt in making it but you could just as easily use a little plant milk/soy yoghurt. Essentially fry some leeks and garlic. (use spray to reduce cals) and add some water to pan- sautée slowly over 10-15mins. Then blend with yoghurt/milk and drained cannelini beans. I've pointed it as 3-4 sp for half a tin of beans and a little Greek yoghurt- I have it as a side with meat but it's very filling.

I LOVE smartpoints! I'm never hungry and I save all my weekly points for a super fun day at the weekend.

Today I got to the end of the day and had 12 points left! So I ate a mars bar I'd had porridge for breakfast (3), pasta, lettuce, tomato, cottage cheese and wafer thin chicken for lunch (7), and jacket potato (6) with vegetable curry (0) and 2 points for milk in coffee. Bit unusual today as I'd usually fit in a couple of snacks in the day but no time today as super busy.

I never have trouble sticking to my points and always have some left. My weekdays look like something like this:

Porridge made with water, and a banana (3)

Snack of fruit and coffee

Lunch: pasta salad, up to 10 points (sometimes I put chicken in, sometimes just lots of salad and veg, sometimes low fat cottage cheese, etc)

Snack 2 slices WW bread - toast - and marmite (3)

dinner for up to 12 points (curry, chilli, roast dinner, steak and chips, jacket potato and low fat cheese)

2 points for milk in coffee throughout the day.

I'm finding this so much easier than slimming world when I have a day I want to eat processed food, or grab a sandwich when out (I recently had a boots sandwich and a glass of red wine when out and about, I think it totalled 14 points, that would have taken me well over my "syns" on slimming world!). Much more flexibility that SW and so much easier to stick to...

I really struggle with smartpoints. I lost a lot on the old weight watchers diet -qlthogh granted by the end i wasn't eating a lot! I managed to maintain it on propoints, bt im really struggling with smartpoints! Im always hungry, end up eating too much fruit and find that even a small amount of chocolate in the afternoon leaves me with next to no points for dinner! I might switch to no count. I've tried it before and found it good but it's hard to balance that with work and eating out sometimes as food list is limited! Wish it wasn't so hard!!

I've been on the program for nearly a month now. I've lost 10lb and hope to lose another 40lbs.

If you aren't feeling full try adding protein. For breakfast I had 4 eggs but took out 3 of the yolks. I then made a separate egg for the kids with 2 eggs and the 3 yolks.

My breakfasts tend to be oatmeal made with almond milk or scrambled eggs (4 eggs but only one yoke). The oatmeal is 5 points and the eggs are 3 points. With the oatmeal I make a big batch that is splits into 7 portions. I serve it with fruit (banana, different berries or apple) and a splash of almond milk over the top. The egg is mixed with spinach and salsa.

I have a hard time in the afternoon and it's when I'm at my most tired. My leader told me in the first week that frui is free but if I wanted to see results I should only have fruit twice a day and no more.

Fish is also excellent and low point. I buy a lot of canned fish. It's cheap too!

I just joined and I'm bloody starving. I have 30 points a day and it's tough going. Seem to be eating tiny amounts. I'm dubious tbh.

I used to do No Count back in the day but I was only cooking for myself and could be as boring and repetitive as I wanted. Don't think it would work with the family.

Another shitty discovery is that the App isn't available outside the UK. FFS.

I'm in the US and we have a WW app. It's brilliant. Love the barcode scanner.

thinking of hauling myself along again.

I'm new to WW and the points system has changed to SP since the last time I did it. What are the zero point foods I should look out for? I can't seem to find a crib sheet anywhere for a quick overview, so I've just been searching for everything. So far, just looks like some fruits and all veg (exc. potato). Any other mystical zero foods I should be seeking out?!

Sugar free jelly. Been making a zero point jam with frozen fruit and sugar free jelly.

If you can stand it, think something like up to around 25g or maybe 26g of the Protein cheese is zero points. Needs to be pointed after that. I occasionally use it, but only melted. Not overly impressed with it though and find it goes mouldy quite quickly. Have tried freezing it this time, as lots of people do.

I am not a milk lover, but recently discovered the No Added Sugar Crusha Milkshake thing. Really liking that.

JUMPING IN here as I can not get a response from the online question service thing on the WW site. I only started yesterday and I am finding it q;utie easy to navigate my way around. I do find the points system really easy to follow but they are quick to rack up! Only got 10 left for today and really fancy a wine this evening which is 5! Anyway, my question is, what are the weekly points? Are they different from daily points? I mean are they in addition? I don't get it. Also, if you exercise daily - as I do 4 days out of 5, do you get added points for it? Thank you.