I lost 3.2 lbs this week! I consider that a success. I didn't exercise, but I did eat very well and the scale shows it. I think I would have been down more had I not had a little bit of an off day yesterday. Nothing too terrible, just a couple (5!) too many granola bars.
Last week I didn't follow any particular plan, I didn't count Points or calories, and it worked for me. BUT I don't think it will always work for me because I like having the definitive "on plan" day when it comes to losing weight, especially with this challenge at work. I want to be able to look at the week and KNOW that I was on plan. If you've read my blog these last couple of years (if so, thank you!) you know that I have gone back and forth about Weight Watchers and that I have never embraced their new plan (I guess it's not new anymore since it was introduced in November 2010). I've also gone back and forth about whether I should do the online plan or go to meetings. As I sit here today, I am still wondering what I should do. Part of me wants to see it through with Weight Watchers, but part of me thinks just counting calories is the best right now. Not to mention FREE. I really like using My Fitness Pal online and on their iPhone app. It makes logging calories super easy, especially when your food has a bar code. While most of my food is not prepackaged, their database of items is very comprehensive.
I calculated a typical day on Weight Watchers for 29 Points and the same foods came out to 1,443 calories (my limit has been 1,500). This calculation shows me that either option of Points or calories should get me to my goal if I stick to my daily allowance. It's just a matter of choosing a plan now. And can I let go of Weight Watchers completely? You see, since January of 2010 I have been an active online, meetings, or etools subscriber. Over the many years of trying to follow this plan, I have built up quite a database of favorite foods and recipes. I'm not sure I want to let all that go, but I'm also kind of tired of paying for something too! I think the time has come that either let it go, or go back to meetings. Otherwise, it's not worth it to pay for something I can do online for free (track food). I don't use the site for anything other than tracking so it's not as if I'd be losing all kinds of resources.
So typing all this out has brought me closer to thinking that counting calories is what I should do. So that's what I'll do today. Tomorrow? We'll see.
Does anyone use My Fitness Pal? Do you love it? Do you have any tips or tricks? What other sites have you tried?
I have also used Livestrong and SparkPeople. Both are great options, but the iPhone app for MFP is way better in my humble opinion. One thing I'll point out is that I haven't used any of the applications for tracking exercise so I have no idea how it even works.
I use MFP on my Android phone off and on. No real tricks. I like the option to scan bar codes. I also try to adjust the portion size to fine tune the calorie count. If I eat a little more than one serving, I might enter "1.3" servings. And if I eat a certain dish at a local restaurant, if there are ten versions of the food in MFP, and what I eat seemed like an above average portion, I might pick one near the most of the calories. Good luck!
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