purchase a scale!!!  I highly recommend it... 3 oz of chicken is a lot more
than you'd think but cheese is sooooo small in portion... but works for a
quick snack...

I have to consume 35 points... sigh... and sometimes it is hard to do and
sometimes its wayyyyy too easy... one chocolate bar will zoom me right up
there...*G*

I'd also recommend going to at least one or two meetings at least, most
places allow a freebie if you haven't joined yet...

and a good investment is also a good book that lists brand names,
calories/fibre/etc for various foods... and use your fiber calculator to get
your point value, if you've joined you'll get one... very handy for
shopping...

also, I would also HIGHLY recommend the guide for eating out, as they list a
lot of popular quickly places and places that are frequented a lot, etc...
a&w, arbys dennys, dq... etc... it also helps to eye out points and size of
servings I've found...

I rarely purchase frozen meals... I find its never satisfying enough... I'd
rather make my own then freeze the portions... *see 'meal planning' subject
in this newsgroup*...

I've lost a few pounds, but I only track about 4 days a week... the rest I
guess at really... but it is working... if I don't track I don't lose... I
track I lose... I'm on day three of four right now for tracking... I totally
ignored monday... but did extra workout on tuesday to attempt to make up for
that...

and I'm pretty busy and have lots of obligations to do as well... but I set
aside one day *morning really* to go to weight watchers, then out for
breakfast...* its a total of 25$ for the day... so 100$/month... give or
take pending on what I have for breakfast of course... and the support of
people who have 'been there' is awesome!!!  and really helps... regardless
if you gain or lose its always good to talk about it.

6'1 and 250 lbs... if you're eating only 18 points your going directly
toward disaster..

Will~

I bought a ww cookbook in costco and made 2 recipes from it ( I bought it 3
days ago!!). My husband raved about the first recipe and it wasn't too hard
to portion (servings made = 4, split recipe in quarters and don't come back
for seconds :-)  and was fairly simple to make. Yesterday I made a manhattan
clam chowder (ww recipe) in the crockpot and 1 1/2 c = 2 points, so I
allowed myself 2 full cups.  I, too, need to invest in a scale for food.
Teri

For starters, invest in a good food scale and a set of measuring cups and
spoons. If you aren't weighing and measuring you probably under estimated
your points for the day. At your height/weight, 18 points would mean you
were starving. I aim for 20 day and some days it is not enough food for me.
I'm 5'3 and 153 lbs.

As for shopping, WW does not have to be expensive. You need to shop wisely.I
get chicken breasts (look for sales), pork chops, frozen fish, cereal,
oatmeal, egg beaters, skim milk, lots of fresh/frozen veggies & fruits,
bagged salad/spinich, lean hamburger meat, tuna, eggs (rest of family), boca
burgers, potato rolls and soups. I may be spending more at the grocery store
but on healthy items. We have drastically reduced the number of times we eat
out so we save money that way. We don't buy many chips, crackers and other
junk anymore. I do buy WW smart ones and Amy's Organic bowls for quick meals
to have in the freezer for nights that I have a meeting or DH/DD are having
something I don't want to eat. I also only buy them when they are on sale.
Last night DD wanted lasgagne. They had stoffers and I had a smart one.
Unfortunately it was not that satisfying so I probably won't buy that one
again. DH did not plan the meal very well or I would have insisted that he
add a veggie to mine to make it more satisfying. They are okay for lunch but
not for dinner (ymmv). I usually buy the ones labeled "smart about carbs" as
they are lower in points and don't have rice, pasta or potato in them. These
have more protein than the ones where the points are mostly from carbs.

You probably should find a WW book to help you with the basic point values
of foods. eBay has the old kits available. Another good source is Dottie's
weightloss zone: http://www.dottisweightlosszone.com/index.html. Scroll down
to the bottom of her home page and you will see links to restaurant and food
lists. Print these up to create a reference book for yourself. You'll do
fine. Having your GF support you is great too. DH only semi supports me and
it is very frustrating at times but that's a story for another day.

Hi all..
And wow, thanks so much for all your replies!!

Okay.. Yes, I'm 6'1" and weigh 250.. On the first day I couldn't eat
more than 18 points.. Second day I managed to go up to 21..
I do have a WW book, one that lists all the points for different food
items, including competitor's brands.. Which has really helped out,
especially when eating things like vegetables and fruits..

But will the diet not work for me because I'm under eating?
I work in IT, and thus do not move around too much during the day..
Which is probably why I'm rarely hungry..
I will start walking during the week.. Although I've said that in the
past and never have..

I'll be investing on a food scale as some of you suggested, and will
definately try to start cooking.. I love cooking, but never really
been a big fan of measuring .. I normally cook by 'feel', and hate
measuring. Perhaps a habit I should get used to.

It seems like there is a great support group in this NG, so I will
definately be coming back in to ask for advise when needed..

I will see if I can get a cook book. The other day, funnily enough the
day after I started WW, at the train station they were giving out WW
stuff..
I got a bag with WW chocolate mousse, a WW protein bar, breakfast
cereal, a box of skim milk.. What else.. Ooh, and a WW magazine!!
The mag had lots of really good recipes, so I will read through it and
perhaps make something up tonight.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Ooh, and also, does anyone know how lean kangaroo meat is, in
comparison to beef?

Cheers,

Ivan.

we rarely buy those, you need to look at fresh meat and frozen vegetables,
if you shop sale items and you aren't buying as much junk food you should
save money.  good for you starting, Lee

Hi all, and thanks again for all your replies and helpful advise..

I went to a birthday party on Saturday evening and thought I had blown
it by eating what I did.. I did keep to one plate, and tried getting
things that I knew I wouldn't regret getting, such as chicken instead
of pork, no gravy, greens and cous cous instead of pasta salads, fruit
for dessert instead of cake..

I didn't really count the points of the food I ate, but I did note
them down and guestimated about 17 points. I think I ate a total of
about 28 points that day. Much more than any other day I've had since
started the diet.

The next day (yesterday), I grilled out chicken and again, had lots of
fats and oils with roasted veggies (potatoes and the like)..

And today, I thought to myself, surely I must have put on some weight
over the weekend..

So I measured myself, and compared it to when I originated the diet..

Albeit the change not being big, I did shrink by half a centimeter!!
Which, was surprising, really, as the third day into the diet I had
gained a centimeter from when I measured myself originally..

Overall, a 1.5 cm loss (or half an inch) in less than a week..

Could have been water, of course, but still.. The change is welcomed
and makes me feel good. so I'll take it. :)

Walking or similar will make every diet work even better.
------------------------------
How To Solve Your Problem Now!
http://www.Netvoters.com

No, not really...  You need to eat almost all those points to lose in a
healthy way.  Don't go too lean and mean!  cut out a little volume
stuff, and save a little treat for the end of the day...

Don't weigh and measure every day!  Pick a time and weigh once a week,
at that time and never in between!  That way madness lies...  Weight
naturally fluctuates from day to day, so keep a once a week score only.

Cooking for yourself is a LOT cheaper than buying ready meals!

Weigh everything.  Look at the guides in the books if you can...  For
example, a portion of fillet steak is a steak the size of a pack of
cards, a baked jacket potato should be about the size of a standard
light bulb, a portion of full fat cheese is the size of a standard box
of matches...  2 oz of uncooked rice is a single portion.

If you don't have any kitchen scales, get some.  The WW scales can help
you point everything you eat as you weigh it.  And follow some WW
recipes, paying attention to the number of portions the recipe serves.
If it serves 4, portion it out and freeze the un-eaten portions in
single portion packs for other days...

You'll lose if you steer it right!  not every week, but you'll get
there!  :)

See my comment above.  I bet you packed yourself full of zero point
veggies or something, leaving less room for the proteins you also need
to do this right.

Buy some WW cook books and learn to cook your own WW meals!  Many can be
frozen for later, so on days you have time, cook for the days you don't!  :)