There are many tools available to people who want to lose weight.  That's
what they all are - tools.  There's Medifast and Optifast, WW, Jenny Craig,
etc.  But the bottom line is still if you don't learn to make permanent
changes to your life, weight loss will not be permanent.  You can use all of
these things to help you along the way, but eventually you have to learn to
do it on your own.  There is still no substitution for effort and knowledge.

det

I had several friends do the weight watchers thing a few years ago.

I was very impressed with what they told me.

However, I didn't get the need to dumb down calorie counting into their
point system.  Counting calories isn't any more difficult then counting
carbs or fat.

The strength of weight watchers is their support system.

My friends who did told me they met several people who lost huge amounts
of weight on it and who still came to the meetings to support their
maintenance which had the benefit of encouraging others.

I'm doing WW at home, which means I don't go to meetings but am following
the plan.

WW is a program based on low-calorie, low-fat diet.  The program requires
the user to eat five fruit/vegetable servings per day, two to three dairy
servings, and to drink plenty of water.  As such, it seems to me to be as
healthy as most programs, and healthier than many.  High-carb options are
generally not considered "bad" in low-fat programs.

WW is based on "points" -- their proprietary system that takes into account
the calories, fat and fiber contents of foods.  A Krispy Kreme doughnut has
5 points, while a 12-oz can of Coke has 3 points.  (According to
calorieking.com, a 1.8 oz Krispy Kreme Original glazed doughnut has 208
calories, almost 40% more than a can of Coke.)  The rounding factor in WW
points can reduce or attenuate the differences in raw calorie counts (1 WW
point is roughly equal to 50 calories) but let's face it -- the calories you
count for what you eat is pretty much an approximation anyway.

I'll respectfully disagree with your notion that daily weigh-ins are
important to maintain one's weight.  Many find weekly weigh-ins sufficient.
The most successful diet program I was ever on (before this one of course)
had monthly weigh-ins.  The focus was on changing and controlling one's
eating habits and exercise habits and not on one's weight.  For
premenopausal women, a monthly weigh-in at the same time in the menstrual
cycle may be the most accurate anyway.

I'm not sure how much help WW gives people on maintenance.  I do know that
most people put the weight back on regardless of what program they used to
take it off.  I also read recently that an indipendent study shoed that
people who lost weigh on WW were somewhat more successful at keeping it off
than people on other programs.  That doesn't mean however that the typical
person who used WW keeps the weight off.

Anny

As someone who has been on weight watchers and lost 30lbs I have to disagree
with you.     They do teach you all of which you mentioned. It is up to the
individual to learn how to keep it going. I went off of weigh watchers do to
expence and as as do to personal problems and stress. But I have started
back up today. Because I know that if it wasn't for weight watchers I don't
think that I would have lost the weight that I did. I  have tried a number
of diets. I lived off of the Mr.Noodle soups for a yrs and lost a few
pounds.
  I followed slimfast for a little while and also lost a little weight. I
tried low calorie diet eating only 1200 calories , but only finding myself
either getting sick of eating the same food all the time or just plain tired
of being hungry. I have also tried low carb recently and none of them are
what I would like to stick to for the rest of my life I know that with
weight watchers though I can lose a significant amount of weight and also
learn how to keep it off in the long run.
   Everyone is different. I am doing the program on my own, because I can't
afford the meetings right now. But I don't find that the meetings really
helped me any. I also belong to a number of support groups on here as well
as this one and everything I learn from them I put into my diet. And am able
to stick to it most days. I do have bad days like everyone else. But unless
people have tried weight watchers or any other diet for that matter then
they shouldn't  " Knock it. Isn't the old saying Don't knock it till you try
it."  Hopefully for your sister she can get back on track and relose the
weight that she has gained. I know what she is going threw cause I too have
gained and now have to lose another 30lbs to get to my main gaol. But I am
doing what is best for me and so should she.

Angie

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I think what I've seen from the years of being in ASD, as well as living in
real life and witnessing real people struggle with weight loss, the
difference between WW and ASD is - at WW many people join and just want to
lose weight without putting alot of thought into it.  So you do see many
people like your sister, who do not take the time to learn.   But not all
people are like that.   Although, you do tend to meet alot of people,
because alot of people do try WW at some point in time.

Whereas with ASD - the dynamics of this group is about learning.   We've had
many people come and go over the years, that come in on some crash diet of
some sorts, and when we try to talk to them to teachthem, they leave.
People fail in ASD too.

The difference is.   WW is a mass marketed, world wide, large corporation of
dieters that has been around for decades.   So, the general public know WW
as a household name.   You have a large amount of people there, so when you
look at the diet failures, its easy to find.

ASD is a usenet newsgroup.   We probably get a couple thousands people a
year.  (not millions like WW).  So, the amount of "failures" is much smaller
in comparison.    Not to mention that its not like ASD is a household name,
or something many people discuss ourside our computers.   So, if someone
fails on ASD and doesn't learn something and drops out, how are we to know?

Your talking about a percentage in millions of people, vs. a percentage of a
couple hundred of people, at any one time.   Of course all programs will
have failures.

The successful WW dieters are just like the successful dieters in ASD.
They are the ones that took the time to learn on their own.   Someone can be
there to teach it day and night, but unless the "student" listens, they will
not learn.   that's what its all about.

I know people really liked the support of a good Weight Watcher's
community, and I totally appreciate it from that point of view... but
that said, I stayed far away from WW because growing up I knew a lot of
people who lost a lot of weight with WW and regained all of it, plus some.

The basic flaw in WW is right there in the name: they are watching their
Weight.  What we know here is that we want to lose fat, keep muscle, and
 learn a healthy lifestyle where we fuel our bodies appropriately while
getting the basic maintenance (exercise) that human bodies need.  The
fat loss follows inevitably.

I'm sorry, I just can't figure out how trying to lose weight while
eating Krispy Kreme's can be anything other than calorie deprivation
with huge doses of self-control to handle blood-sugar swings.

Low-fat/high-carb clearly works for some people.  But give me some
healthy fats and protein and I'll be a whole lot happier and healthier
on a reasonable calorie load.  (BTW, nearly half my calories still come
from carbs.)

When WW starts talking about macronutrient ratios and throws out the
scale in favor of body fat percentages I think they'll be on the right
track.  Until then, well, it's a gimmick just like all the rest.

Dally
244/180/169
42%/27%/23%