How to review the Weight Watchers program? This one is hard. When you have been fully involved in a program for over two years, it just becomes part of your life. It is hard to review a program that will now forever be in your life but here goes.
When I first started Weight Watchers, I joined because my dad wanted to go and my mom didn’t want to go with him. We made a deal that I would go with him as long as they paid for it. They agreed to pay for it as long as I lost weight. If I gained weight one week, I would have to pay them the weekly fee of ten dollars. My husband and I had been trying to get pregnant and had not been successful and I thought my weight might have something to do with that and I was obese so I told my parents, “It’s a deal.” My dad and I joined on January 6, 2009. I walked in and weighed on the scale and I was the heaviest I had ever been! Good thing I walked through the door. My dad joined with me and reached goal in May of 2009. He is to this day a lifetime member. I continue to walk through the door almost every week. NOTHING (except sickness or really bad weather) keeps me from my weekly meetings. They are a priority to me because I am a priority to myself. So, what keeps me going to the meetings? Three main things:
First, the receptionist. The lady that weighs me in, Kyle is so amazing. She is like my mom: gentle and loving regardless of how I did every week. My dad would only let HER weigh him in. That is how much we like Kyle. There are weeks I can go in and say, “Kyle, I gained…don’t want to know how much.” She always just smiles and nods and weighs me in not saying a word. The receptionists are key to the program because they are accountability holders. Having to go and weigh in and have the receptionists tell you whether you gain or not is accountability that I need sometimes. The next thing that keeps me walking through the door ever week is my leader, Jacynta. To put Jacynta into words is impossible. You must EXPERIENCE her. I have never met another person who inspires me as much as Jacynta does. Every meeting is an adventure and best of all, she makes it fun. She is loud (I can appreciate that, I am loud), she is funny, and most of all, she has lived this program and is a success. When a member is successful, she sends post cards in the mail to congratulate him/her. I don’t think she knows how powerful those postcards are. I still have the one I will treasure for all time.
Here it is for you to see.
The power of the spoken (or written word) in this case. When I got this I thought to myself, “I wonder if she is right, will I be successful?” I hope one day to become a leader, a Jacynta, and inspire others as much as she inspires me. The last reason I continue to go through the door is the program. IT WORKS!!!!!
Weight Watcher’s has a brand new program called Points Plus. It is the first time in many years they had a major restructuring of their plan. I LOVE IT!!! It really makes me think about what foods I am putting in my mouth. Before, I would eat too many carbs. Now, I try to limit my carbs and eat more fruits and vegetables. Why??? Because FRUIT IS FREE!!!! Yep, no points, zip, zilch, nada, none, FREE! You get a daily point target and then you get a whole boat load of extra points you can eat throughout the week. The program is different from other programs because it is real life. You can eat whatever you want, you just have to count the Points Plus. With the extra weekly points, you really can splurge and still lose weight. They teach you strategies to live by. They are real life.What have I personally gained (or lost depending on how you look at it) from this program:
- A new body – I have lost a total of 93 pounds and I have gone from a size 24 to a 14.
- A healthier baby making body- My body will no longer be a fat body with a baby. One day, when God is ready for me, it will be a healthy body with a baby which means a healthier pregnancy.
- A lower blood pressure-No more high blood pressure medication.
- A lack of migraines-I have not had a migraine since I joined WW two years ago!
- A higher energy level-I used to come home and take a nap everyday. Now, I go non-stop all day without hesitation.
- A new way of thinking – I no longer think, “I can’t do it”. Instead, I think “I can do it, no matter how long it takes, I can do it.”
- A new way of looking at food – I know what bad food does to me and I know what good food does to me. No more “mystery.”
So, should you join Weight Watchers? My opinion is, without a doubt, YES! It saved my life! Just make sure you find a leader as amazing as mine. Without a great leader, you are less likely to attend meetings and less likely to be successful.
My most recent postcard from Jacynta…I’m ready for the one that says, “100!”
About Jennifer Swafford
