Up and down. I get on the scale usually once a week, sometimes I am up, other times I am down. Now mind you, I have had three children (all still under the age of 5), and am coming up on being 30. You would think I would be willing to cut myself a little slack, but no. I am like most women; I am obsessed with that 3-digit number that lights up once a week.
So, I have tried many different diet plans. I have done the green tea, the high fiber, diet pills, and so on. Another diet that I tried to no avail was the popular weight loss program, the Weight Watchers point system. What a joke. So you buy this food from your local supermarket, and then you count these points to help you lose weight. I do not know about you, but something about putting pre-cooked, frozen entrees that have large amounts of sodium (water-weight anyone?) into my body sounds counter-productive to me.
My favorite advertisement from this company is the Smart Ones website. You go on there and see a delicious looking plate filled with a dressed cheeseburger and a pickle. Upon closer observation, you will notice that huge looking burger is actually a mini-cheeseburger sitting next to a sweet baby gherkin. The lettuce and tomato are placed strategically to the side simply because they will not fit on the tiny bun and patty. Talk about false advertisement.
So then I thought to myself, I am going to go to Weight Watchers online and do some research about this company. Maybe I need to sit in on some meetings, join a member’s only chat room or blog, anything to keep me on track. To my surprise, former consumers had some very weighty issues (no pun intended) with this company. There is a 7-day free trial membership you can sign up for online, but I do not think it is actually free. One consumer complained about Weight Watchers using a bait and switch technique. The website tricks or baits you into thinking you are getting a free trial, you give them your credit card number, and then you are locked in to their legal contract, the switch.
After doing some research for my own personal vendetta, I decided to take a look and see what cases had been open about this seemingly scrupulous company. In the past year alone, they have had over 43 complaints with the Better Business Bureau. Many complaints derived from customer service and membership cancellation issues. Others were about the products and services this company had to offer.
The thing I loved with the Weight Watchers website is that they will not even allow you to just browse the site, see helpful daily tips, or join a community without first signing up and giving them your credit card information. You have the option of a monthly pass or a 3-month pass, and then you have access to the site. To me, that does not say much for such a well-known company. I am a person who likes to know what I am getting into before I jump in and make a commitment. This program does not allow you to do so. They do not list one success story or decent incentive for joining. Which is crazy because Nutrisystem has many success stories, and they provide coupons to help their users save money.
I discovered that when you browse around the official Weight Watchers website, there is nothing but dead ends when it comes to trying to contact a human being. If you are fortunate enough to find a telephone number, the representatives are rude to you and refuse to help you get your money back. Also, if you decide to willingly join this weight loss program and later change your mind, you keep on getting billed anyway. One consumer is still being billed 1 year later after canceling and receiving a confirmation email that she canceled.
Now, in all fairness what actually attracted me to Weight Watchers was all the success stories that I see advertised on the television or see the once plump people now skinny flashing on the browser screen. People have actually been successful with the Weight Watchers program, and I commend them for that. I read where one person lost 20 pounds in 2 weeks, and another member lost 176 pounds in 1 year.
After realizing that Weight Watchers is basically counting calories and of course eating sensibly, I realized I did not need to pay someone to do that for me. Who has the time to attend weight loss meetings and get online for weight loss support? Not me, that is for sure. So I have developed my own weight loss plan. I watch my calories, eat but do not over indulge in sweets, and exercise 2, maybe 3 times a week. But I am an active mom who loves to play with my kids and I think that counts for burning calories too. I do not need some tricky point system telling me how much I can eat after I have consumed a tasteless and dry muffin.
Which brings me to my next point; if you have ever tried their foods then you would understand why people lose weight on this program. The food is awful. As mentioned before, I tried some of the frozen entrees. Some were not too bad, I particularly liked the Santa-Fe Style Rice and Beans and the Alfredo. I also tried some of the snack cakes and muffins. The muffins tasted stale and the snack cakes oozed of artificial ingredients that would scare away a Twinkie. Not for me.
I then thought this might be a good diet for my husband. He has high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and is pre-disposed to diabetes. He is also obese; he decided to get pregnant with me. I was shocked to discover that these so-called healthy low-calorie snacks were higher in sugars and carbohydrates than some Little Debbie’s. Weight Watchers can claim their products are low fat because you do not have to list sugar as a fat on the nutrition label. Anyone who knows a little bit about chemistry knows sugar turns into fat.
Then, I decided to do some more research to see what other options were out there that could help me lose weight for less, or better, free. Many consumers complained about being over-charged, incorrectly charged, and charged after canceling. I have 3 children to clothe, feed, and send off to college one day, so I am always looking for the best deal.
I have lost just as much as the average person has on Weight Watchers and it has cost me nothing. My youngest child is 9 months old and I have lost 50 of the 70 pounds I gained with him. All I do is eat sensibly most days and get in a moderate amount of exercise. I think I would feel deprived if I had to stick to a list of certain foods that are low in points.
These types of deprivation diets also set you up for failure. Some restaurants do adhere to a Weight Watchers points system, but many do not. When you eat out, you will find that more often than not you are limited enough on what you can eat if you are trying to lose weight. I cannot fathom trying to adhere to the strict point system that Wight Watchers requires. You cannot indulge in a Big Mac or Whopper without blowing the free 35 points you get everyday out of the water.
If there is one thing that I have learned through the ups and downs with weight after pregnancy, it is that you simply cannot diet. You have to get in the mindset you are going to change your overall lifestyle. If you try any other way to lose weight and be healthy, you will fail every time, over time.
You have to have the will power and determination and know that you can change your habits. You cannot think about the calories you are putting into your mouth throughout the day. You have to incorporate lean meats, less bad fats and sweets, and stay somewhat active. You do not have to become a gym rat or starve yourself. Just use common sense and you attain your goals in a healthy and reasonable manner.
Weight Watchers will tell you to not diet and to start living, but how can they say that? Anyone who tries to tell you that you can eat this and not that is putting you on a diet. Essentially, they are setting you up for that dieting failure. You will get bored of the foods, you will tired of the meetings, and you will gain all that weight back that you paid for when you quit the program.
Weight Watchers does not teach you how to obtain a healthy lifestyle on your own because they want you to become dependent upon them and their array of products. They know if you leave them, you will gain weight and come crawling back (hopefully you will not let it get that bad and can still walk).
Overall, do not let some company feel as if they are your higher being and the only way out to lose weight. If you are reading this then you have already accomplished the hardest step of all. You are admitting to yourself you need to become healthy. Just try to do it the old fashion way with sensible, healthy eating, along with a little time on the treadmill.
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