Weight Watchers Diet

Background

Weight Watchers has over 45 years of reputable experience in delivering well-managed and safe weight loss programs. It is most famous for its balanced and well-established lifestyle programs with a focus on healthy living rather than just mere dieting. Thus, the emphasis is controlling the portions and eventually losing weight in moderation. The approach endorses not just food choices but also healthy behaviors or habits, exercise and an accommodating community support. Over the years, it has earned high marks and recommendations by dietitians and people who have undergone the program.

The program is founded on usual store-bought food available in groceries and supplemented by food items from Weight Watchers, which are not compulsory. This also allows people to be in control of how much they would spend on the program. There are no food restrictions but food is portioned, accounted and assigned a certain point value for a person to stay within that certain daily point level, coupled with exercise regimens.

The Weight Watchers weight loss program also offers specific programs for men, teens, busy employees at work, students and even senior citizens, making definite programs available for every age group. WeightWatchers.com also features free meal plans, various exercise plans, newsletters and testimonials, message boards, and a community where people can modify or swap recipes. Additional Weight Watchers products, food items and books are also available online. It also provides members much needed motivation and community support through group meetings.

The philosophy of this program adheres to recommendations of the National Weight Loss Registry. Plus, it resembles recommendations from notable institutions like AHA, the American Diabetes Association and the American Cancer Society endorsing a healthy diet consisting of fruit, vegetables, fish and whole grains.

Pros

•    Established experience and consistent enhancement of programs over the years

•    Places realistic goals on its programs

•    Focuses on lifestyle change owing to its long-term success

•    Availability of resources online and in several locations all over the United States and overseas

•    Excellent online tools

•    Good network of online community like chat rooms and message boards

•    Customized programs available for different age groups

•    Members are not obliged to buy products

•    Affordable price and the program’s flexibility

Cons

•    Difficulty in transitioning to portion sizes

•    Calls for a great deal of consistency and self-motivation

•    Point counting can be overwhelming to some dieters

•    Weight loss takes much time

•    Some of the expenses in the program are unnecessary

•    Online support staff are sometimes difficult to access

Food and Recipes

There are basically two main diet plans offered in Weight Watchers, namely the Flex Plan based on making healthier food choices by marking corresponding point values; and the Core Plan which emphasizes on eating nutritious yet filling foods minus the tracking of points. You can decide the suitable plan and see what will work best for you to achieve your weight-loss goal. Both these plans are easy to follow and flexible enough to work for your particular lifestyle and schedule.

The Weight Watchers program also offers recipes and meal options along with strategies when eating out. The website provides basic nutritional information and food options, recipe ideas for all kinds of cuisine and suggestions for take-out and restaurant meals.

The program also allows people to modify and create healthier versions of their favorite recipes, share recipes and meal tips with members of the community and create a collection of online recipes.

Exercise

Weight Watchers feature workouts and exercise regimens in varying levels along with video demonstrations that provide tips to keep you motivated. Over 60 exercise videos are available, from an entertaining salsa dancing to serious strength training. There are also workouts in the program that focus on specific muscle groups especially the programs made for men.

Expense

The Weight Watchers standard monthly plan starts at $46.90 on the first month and $16.95 for each additional month, plus a meeting fee. A great thing about this program is when members achieve their target weight goal and able to maintain it for 6 weeks, they become a Weight Watchers lifetime member and they no longer have to pay for the weekly meeting fees.

Conclusion

Weight Watchers programs and its website are convenient and easy to follow. It promotes the goal of healthy living instead of emphasizing the need to just lose pounds. It offers a personalized goal and the support of online groups in handling not just diet but health issues also. In addition, it provides the motivation for people to stay healthy in the long run and considering weight loss as just an added bonus.

Have You Tried The Weight Watchers Diet?

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