Weight Watchers Rant

I went to a weight watchers meeting last night but didn’t weigh in. One, I was wearing jeans and I had eaten popcorn so I knew the scale would be skewed. Plus, I knew if I weighed in and saw a gain I would attribute it to my increase in calories and I may start cutting back my calories again. Since I am leaving for a two day vacation tomorrow I thought it would be good to have an extra mental boost before I went.


Last nights meeting topic was on indulgences. When you want to treat yourself for a job well done, a loss, or anything else that needs rewarding, what things do you like to indulge in? Most people still talked about food which made me very sad. Go here and get this and it’s only 2 points, or mix this with that and then add splenda….. You can eat a ton of the soda pop cake for only x amount of points. They only talked about food or alcohol rewards.

Don’t get me wrong, I love weight watchers and I think that the program is basically good and bonding with the other people at the meetings is really important. Here's an idea...... how about doing what is best for us instead of treating us as though we are a cash cow. Teach us about the big picture of what our body needs and can use. Not how to get the most sweets and junk food for our daily allotted points.

Which leads me to by biggest rant with WW. It makes me crazy to see all the stuff that weight watchers sells. Smoothie mixes, add ins for water, cookie bars, candy, chips, oatmeal and now flavored straws to put in your milk. Wow, is it just me or is weight watchers missing the boat? Here’s another idea….How about telling people that your body really can’t use all the chemicals and artificial sweeteners and preservatives that are in those items? How about telling them that artificial sweeteners have been shown to increase hunger and cravings? How about educating the consumers that the core plan and clean eating is what your body needs? No, instead they see a venue to make even more money off us (as if $40 bucks a month isn’t enough). I don’t mind the exercise videos, pedometers, cook books and measuring tools. It’s the food that they sell. These items are so expensive. I think the new Peanut Butter bliss bars are $7.50 for 6 bars! On Saturday’s there is one woman that has no less than 4 or 5 boxes of these things in her arms as she checks in every week!

On a side note, I know that I previously shied away from the core plan because they say you don’t count the points and use the fullness messages your body sends to your brain to stop eating. My brain and stomach don’t speak the same language so I never figured it would work for me. But if they taught that you do the core plan and count the points, maybe people would feel more comfortable trying it. BUT is the reason they don’t teach it that way because people would stop buying all the crap they are selling???? (Yep I am a big conspiracy theorist)

So, what did I share as my indulgence? I talked about buying a new pair of shoes or a new workout outfit or not feeling guilty spending money on my upcoming mini vacation to bike around Mackinaw.