*People following the WeightWatchers weight-loss programme can expect to lose 1 to 2 pounds per week. Kara, WW ambassador, lost weight on a prior programme and continued on myWW™.
Six years ago, I stood on an old-fashioned scale during my physical when the nurse slid the weighted beam from the 100-pound range to 200, then 300. I was traumatised. After that, I avoided healthcare visits at all costs. I’d been heavy my entire life, but my fast food habit didn’t help the situation; I just couldn’t hear another doctor tell me to lose weight.
In April 2014, my sister and mum decided to join WW. Wary of being left out, I thought, “Why not give it a try?”
RELATED: Invite your friends to WW—for each one who joins, you’ll both get a free month on us!
My first week
When I walked into my WW Workshop for the first time and stood on the scale, I was embarrassed by the number I saw. I just couldn’t believe that I’d let myself get that heavy. After I wrapped up my Wellness Check-in and turned around to see my mum and my sister waiting for me, my shame morphed into resolution. With my family by my side, I was ready to start making changes beginning with a WW Workshop.
During that first meeting, I was surprised to hear members open up about their struggles. When one mentioned that she’d emotionally eaten a stale biscuit off her car floor, I thought to myself, “I found my people!”
Making smart decisions
My sister and I live together, so we started to meal plan and cook together. When I knew we were having pizza for dinner, I’d eat a lighter lunch to stay within my SmartPoints Budget.
Pretty quickly, I realised that it didn’t take much effort to make healthy choices - it only takes a few seconds. One tip I heard during an early Workshop: When you’re going out to eat, order first. This way, you’re more likely stick to your healthier choice, rather than let other diners’ orders sway you.
Most importantly, I realised, I had to reset my relationship with food. Before WW, while I was eating one meal, I’d think about the next. When I shared this with my WW Coach, she said, “You can enjoy the foods you want, just not all of them all of the time.” Over the next few months, I stopped feeling so weighed down by food, and that chain that linked my mind to food was broken.
What Kara ate then vs. now
| Then | Now | |
|---|---|---|
| Breakfast | Fast-food breakfast sandwich with sausage and bacon | A double egg sandwich with hash browns, an ultra-thin slice of cheese and salsa on an English muffin |
| Lunch | As a teacher, I’d have the school lunches like chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes and pizza. | Vegetarian chili, or soup with a side of carrots, an apple, or frozen grapes |
| Dinner | Fast-food enchiladas and rice and beans; pizza | Air-fryer chicken with a baked potato and steamed broccoli; or Mexican lasagne |
| Snacks | Crackers, crisps, chocolate bars | An apple and light string cheese, a hard-boiled egg, or frozen edamame |
Transitioning to myWW
Since the beginning of 2019, I went from teaching preschool to developing a new one. While working 12-hour days, I’d slip into old habits like stopping at the drive-thru to get fast food.
Instead of listening to my body’s hunger signals, I ate on autopilot, relying on food like chicken, beans, and corn, which I’d eat without abandon, rather than seeking out new dishes to keep things interesting.
When I heard about myWW, I was excited for a reset. I chose Green to get back to weighing and measuring my food, an approach that worked for me when I started WW five years ago. The ZeroPoint™ foods list on Green still includes fruits and non-starchy veggies, which you don’t have to measure or track. While other foods have SmartPoint values, weighing and measuring them helps me stick to single portions.
Exploring the app to find the Green SmartPoints values of the foods I was eating made me feel like a new member all over again! I made a rule to track everything I ate. And I’ve already lost 10lb* over five weeks!
Now that myWW has given me more flexibility, I’m reaching for a greater variety of foods. Instead of eating black beans or turkey mince simply because they’re ZeroPoint foods, I allocate my SmartPoints for ingredients like lean beef mince, which I like even more.
I love that myWW gives you a choice. Green just so happens to be best for me because I struggle with portion control.
Now that I’ve been on WW for five years, I’m excited about my next chapter - and way less worried about stepping on the scale. I finally feel like I’m in control.
Explore more WW member transformations here.