Janice’s PointsPlus® program Success
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Janice, a stay-at-home mom and longtime Weight Watchers member and leader, was a huge advocate of the POINTS® program. When she was asked to lead a pilot meeting whose members would use the new PointsPlus program, she renewed her commitment to health and lost even more weight.
**Weight Watchers Leader. Janice lost weight on a prior Weight Watchers program and also with the PointsPlus™ program
I first joined Weight Watchers more than five years ago. My breaking point was when I was going to a wedding and went to put on my “fallback” dress — the big dress that I knew would fit. I went to zip it up and it was too small. My family had to stop at a plus-size store so I could buy something else to wear. Because of this detour, we missed the ceremony. That’s when I knew that what I think of as pleasure — the fun that food is — was making me trade too much of who I was. Eating bad food is just not worth it.
The long journey
My mother had found success with Weight Watchers so I knew in the back of my head that it worked. The week before I started the program I had “the last suppers.” I ate all the foods I never thought I’d be able to eat once I joined Weight Watchers. I was so wrong! with Weight Watchers there are no good foods, no bad foods. You have a Target to get to and you can get there any way you want. It’s really freeing.
Over the years, I lost the majority of my extra weight. I never thought I’d be able to wear a single digit clothing size, so that’s kind of amazing for me.
The transition to the PointsPlus program
When I first started following the PointsPlus program, I made some mistakes. I mixed plans at first, which was not a good idea. I basically added free fruit to the old plan. That week I gained weight. Rather than get frustrated and give up I just buckled down and focused more on what’s really important: planning, preparing, tracking, being accountable and going to meetings for that support system.
Convincing her members
Of course people were skeptical at first. Some members kept asking, “Why did they have to change the Plan?” And I explained that it’s all based on the latest research and that it’s more focused on how your body processes food. It’s easier on the PointsPlus program to stay fuller, longer and lose weight at the same time.
Now the vast majority of my members love the new Plan because now they’re not scared of running out of PointsPlus values for the day because you can always have vegetables or a piece of fruit. There’s a lot more freedom.
Lessons learned
The biggest thing I’ve come away with since joining Weight Watchers is that I’m not a “good person” or a “bad person” because of what I eat. In the mornings I used to say, like many people do, “I’m going to be really good today.” And then I’d feel deprived all day and then be starving by dinner. I’d just blow it big time at the end of the day.
With Weight Watchers you have the tools you need to help you make good choices. I ask myself: Is this food worth the sacrifice of other foods? My life isn’t perfect, but it’s certainly a lot better. It’s about the added weight I no longer carry while getting into and out of the car and going up and down stairs with laundry. My life just feels a lot lighter and easier.