I started Weight Watchers in January of 2008 to lose a few extra pounds I’d gained after starting seminary.  I was preparing for my wedding and counting calories wasn’t cutting it.  I enjoyed the community of others working towards the same goal.

On November 23, 2009 I reached my Goal weight and earned Lifetime status on January 10, 2010.  I used the Momentum plan for my weight loss.

In November when Weight Watchers began the Points Plus program I jumped in with both feet. I embraced the new plan and worked with the new principles.  At first I did lose weight.

However my health issues and limitations prevented me from eating even my Daily Points Target.  I used this as a license to binge to fill my daily points.  In addition to the weight I gained with steroids and allergy medications my bingeing added to my weight gain.

I was frustrated with following the program (i.e. not eating over my points target) and gaining. To figure out what I would do I made a pros and cons list. Either I’d continue with Weight Watchers or find something to work for me.

Pros:

• It’s familiar. I know how to count points, look up new foods and follow the good health guidelines set by Weight Watchers.
• My friends. I’ve made friends at my local meeting as well as the online message boards.  They’re my support when struggling with my own eating demons.
• It’s simple. Counting calories was how I started but I was becoming obsessed over 5 or 10 calories.  With Weight Watchers I quickly learned points values of what I ate on a regular basis and tracked consistently without overwhelming myself.
• Weight Watchers is everywhere. I travel a lot for work and find meetings everywhere from Colorado to Maine.  Knowing there’s support wherever I am is comforting.
• I have Life Time Status. Weight Watchers has worked for me.  When I return to my goal weight I wouldn’t have to pay for meetings.

Cons:

• I hate change. My blog is titled It All Changes but I hate change…even though they keep coming.  Changing from Momentum to Points Plus along with everything else changing in my life has been challenging.
• Weight Watchers feels expensive. I’m paying for Monthly Pass but not losing, so it seems expensive.  I paid this when I first lost and had not problem.  If the program were working for me I wouldn’t mind.
• My dietary restrictions. My diet staples are either low in points plus or zero.  I rarely meet my Daily Points Target unless I eat several gluten-free products.  I would fill my Good Health Guidelines but not my points plus which is the “rule.” It’s hard being a rule follower when you can’t follow them.
• I’m scared. My binge mentality reared its ugly head when I was trying to fill my DPT. Those are scary memories I don’t want to revisit.
• It felt like starting over. Not only am I reworking what I can eat, it felt like starting over with the plan and how it fit my life. Most foods I eat aren’t listed in e-tools so it was tedious to add them one-by-one.
• Unclear Activity Points. I love my Polar Heart Rate Monitor and used it to count points on Momentum. With Points Plus I was never sure exactly how many calories burned equaled one activity point. I was either over estimating or underestimating which lead to overeating.
• Meeting time and location. This is me specific.  My favorite leaders (2) meetings are difficult to attend.  Either too early or too late in the day.  I tried other times and leaders but the time and leader are often just as important as the program.
• Not at that point. When I began Weight Watchers I needed the meeting topics and enjoyed the discussion to find low point snacks and foods.  At this point in my healthy living journey I’m looking for the healthiest foods instead of eating the most for my point allowance.  It’s not better just different places on the journey.
• Desire for a lifestyle change. Only following the rules of Weight Watchers was a safety net.  I didn’t trust myself to eat what I knew I needed instead of what I was told.  I desire complete habit changes instead of merely following rules given to me.  It was comfortable but maybe not the healthiest.

As you can see the cons outweighed the pros by a fair margin.  The biggest concern for me was falling in old bingeing habits. I struggled with those issues throughout college and worked hard to limit them today.

The final push was discussing my situation with two leaders I trust.  Both listened with concern wanting the best for my healthy living journey.  I am glad for their support of me and not just a company.

My ultimate decision: Friday I called and canceled my Weight Watchers membership.  I believe Weight Watchers is a wonderful program and works for many people.

If a friend asked how to lose weight, I would recommend Weight Watchers if they were looking for a simple program and support of a community also losing weight.

Weight Watchers was a great match at one time but at this point in my life however it doesn’t work…FOR ME! I am working on how to proceed from here but I’m not giving up.

How do you make life changing decisions?