Do You Need Help Losing Weight?

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It’s up to you to take charge of your health. You should know if you weigh too much, if you out of shape, or have too much body fat. That’s something children don’t learn, how to take care of themselves, how to take care of their health. Why is it that we don’t know that we’re not in good health or that we weigh too much?

First of all, I think we do know but too often we ignore the signs. If a person has colds frequently or feels exhausted and has no energy, that’s a good sign that something is missing in their diet. Most of us reach for vitamin supplements for the answer, but what most people need is to examine their diet. Be truthful with yourself and start to keep a log of what you eat. After one week, I think you’ll know what’s wrong with your diet. Some people already know their diet is their problem but just don’t know where to start or don’t want to take the time to change. For example, I think we all know that fast food isn’t really a healthy choice. But every day we line up at the drive-in windows of all the different fast-food restaurants and convenient stores looking for something on the menu that might be healthy. It’s the convenience. Many adults under 35 still eat the way they did in school. They got used to the cafeteria type of meals. The problem is that in those days we were more active and burned up than comfort food was as today when your job is far less active you still eating the same way. Another thing wrong with that cafeteria-style of eating is that you get used to only eating the things you like. This lies the groundwork for a poor diet.

I'm not a big advocator of paying for diet programs, paying for gym memberships, or having weight loss surgery, but I think this is worth talking about. I know that some people are just not up to creating a weight loss program that works for them. Hence, Weight Watchers might be the help you need. The thing is that you can't quit until you know that you turned the corner and can live the lifestyle without any help. For all the people who have benefited there have been just as many or even more people who gained the weight back after they quit. For those who don’t know, Weight Watchers is an educational program, you don’t buy their food and they don’t sell supplements. They have an online program but in the beginning, I think it’s important to attend the meetings and do the weigh-ins.

The Promise

Pasta, steak, cheese, even ice cream. You can eat what you want on Weight Watchers – provided you're willing to count the points. Each food is assigned a number of points, and foods that fill you up to have fewer points than foods that are just empty calories. I found that you need to stop eating meals that you invent and then can’t really assign a point value. For example a creamy dish with lots of extras on top. A baked potato has one value but if you add too many toppings you can’t really estimate the point value.

This isn’t so much a diet as a lifestyle change program designed to help you learn how to eat healthier and become more active, so you lose the weight for good. Weight Watchers says that people who follow the PointsPlus plan can expect to lose 1 or 2 pounds a week. Studies have shown that this rate of weight loss leads to long-term success. Weight Watchers also recently launched a 2-week starter program called Simple Start, which includes more than 30 meal ideas; tips for dining out; photos of recommended portion sizes; motivational support; and suggestions for snacks and beverages. You do Simple Start on your own via a mobile app.

You can also follow the whole diet online entirely on your own: track food and exercise, chart progress, and find recipes and workouts. Or you can go to in-person group meetings, where you’ll weigh in and get support from other people going through the same process. That's part of the Weight Watchers appeal: You're not on your own. A Consumer Reports survey found that people who attended meetings were more satisfied with the program and lost more weight than people who used only the online tools.

Does It Work?

Many studies have shown that Weight Watchers can help you lose weight and keep it off. Compared to people trying to lose weight on their own, people doing Weight Watchers lost more weight, according to a study from The American Journal of Medicine. The Consumer Reports survey also found that women who followed the program for 9 months lost between 10 and 28 pounds, while men lost between 12 and 35 pounds.

What You Can Eat and What You Can't

No food is forbidden when you follow this plan, which doesn’t make you buy any prepackaged meals. You’ll eat real food, all of which Weight Watchers assigns a PointsPlus value. You’ll have a PointsPlus target, which is personalized to your body (including your height, weight, age, and gender). As long as you stay within your daily target, you can spend that PointsPlus however you’d like, even on alcohol or dessert. Of course, healthier, lower-calorie foods cost fewer points. Some are even free. Weight Watchers is designed to make it easier to change your habits long-term and is flexible enough that you should be able to adapt it to your life. You’ll be tweaking your dietary and lifestyle habits, many of which have been years in the making, and creating new ones. As a result, how much effort it takes depends on how much you’ll have to change your behaviors.

Cooking and shopping: Expect to learn how to shop, cook, and dine out in ways that support your weight loss goal without sacrificing taste or requiring unusual foods. Packaged foods or meals: Not required. In-person meetings: Optional. Exercise: Weight Watchers encourages you to exercise and make it fun so you stick with it. Does It Allow for Dietary Restrictions or Preferences? Because you choose how you spend your daily PointsPlus, Weight Watchers can accommodate various dietary preferences, including vegetarians, vegans, and people who need to limit salt or fat.

Cost: Weight Watchers offers several payment options. If you do the diet online only, it's $48.90 for the first month and $18.95 for each additional month. Or you can sign up for a 3-month savings plan, which costs $65 for the first 3 months and $18.95 for every month after that. If you want to go to meetings, the prices vary depending on where you live. You’ll need to contact Weight Watchers for the cost. You can also buy a monthly pass (as long as you’re over 18), which gives you unlimited meetings and access to the online tools. Again, the price varies depending on where you live.

Support: Besides the optional in-person meetings, Weight Watchers has an online community, a magazine, and a website with tools, recipes, tips, success stories, and more -- including a section just for men. You can also sign up online for Weight Watchers' newsletter.

As you can see, This type of program will take the guess-work out of losing weight. The program is set for you, all you have to do is follow it. If I were going to do this, I would contact a local office and see someone in-person, get your questions answered, think of new questions and get them answered, then make your decision.

Personally, I think that anyone can lose weight on their own if they have the time to research a plan and if they have the willpower to stay with it. But I know not all of us have the time so maybe something like this type of plan that will educate you on shopping, cook, dining out, and exercise could be what you need.

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.


If you really want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 


There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.


My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

 


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