This is month #7 in my 2020 Nutrition Challenge:
I promised to give you my honest, unabashed opinion, and here it is...
WW. Does. Not. Inspire. Me.
Game.
WW has found a creative way to encourage people to go on a crash diet. It is well documented that low calorie diets don't work. Rebound weight gain is a thing. How do they manage to promote a crash diet in this day and age? Well my friends, the WW plan is most certainly a low calorie game. That is why it works. If you limit what you eat, you will lose weight, and lose it fast.
Yoyo.
I thought that crash dieting was a thing of the past. Even the Biggest Loser TV shows were witness to the yoyo dieting effect. Nearly all of their contestants gained the weight back. These types of diets mess with your metabolism, and worse, create negative associations with food.
Applause.
In 2020, many diets are now focused on 'healthy' weight loss. I applaud these efforts. They teach you to:
Avoid empty calories
Learn to eat nutrient dense foods
Create habits that keep you away from highly processed foods
And many plans look at the psychological link that we make with food and help you understand how to break emotional eating. Amen.
Cheat.
I am a nutritionist, and I am gobsmacked by the fact that people are entranced by WW's "Points" and "Zone" game. It's simply misdirection, smoke and mirrors. Points are calories, and the color Zones are the range of food choices that you prefer. The website does not even mention calories. But most women I know love this plan. AND with the "Zero Point" foods, you can eat and not be penalized. A cheat. They gave me 23 points and I felt flush with cash.
Simple.
It's like giving a kid $2 to shop at the candy store. You can eat everything that you buy today, but you can't spend more than $2. Well, my kid wants the $1.50 candy bar, but that leaves me only $0.50, so I'll skip the chocolate and walk out with a bag of jelly beans that will last me all day.
It's simplicity is the secret to it's success.
Oceanfront.
It has nothing to do with nutrition.
The WW health strategy is to place low point value on foods that are healthier, which are supposed to encourage better choices. Even teens roll their eyes at "Make good choices!" Show me person who passively changes their behavior, and I'll show you some oceanfront property in Arizona.
Math.
I believe their ads are misleading as well, suggesting that you can eat your favorite foods and still lose weight. Right. If that's the ONLY thing you eat that day. Let's look at bread: One thin slice will cost 2 points. When you've only got 23 points in a day, you quickly forfeit the bread. I still am scratching my head over the fact that my hearty oatmeal is worth 19 points, but the WW egg and bacon slider is 5 points. That I have to spend 4 points for coffee with a splash of 2% and 2 tsp of sugar, and a whopping 15 for a bowl of barbecue pulled pork. You can do the math.
My Calorie & Nutrition Data
I track all my foods on www.cronometer.com and after the first week, I saw my average calorie intake drop to 1170/day. After the second week, I managed to bring it up to 1456. I like to stay between 1600-2000 calories per day. My nutrition suffered as well, bringing in low values for fiber, calcium, copper, magnesium, potassium, zinc, B1, B5, folate, Vit C, Vit D, Vit E. My macros were Carbs 94gm, Fat 50gm and Protein 60gm.
Concerned.
I am especially concerned that people who suffer from eating disorders may find this a socially acceptable diet. The WW rules would help people avoid foods at social gatherings, and provide an external restriction on calories.
I Believe.
I believe that true health is the result of internal control, knowledge, practice and consistency. WW takes that control from you, and imposes their own. You must trust in their calculations.
WW. Does. Not. Inspire. Me.
NOTE: This is simply my unsponsored straightforward opinion. I followed the WW plan for a month as part of my 12 Diets in 12 Months, 2020 Nutrition Challenge. If you are interested in reading more, you can visit my Diet summaries at:
Until Next Time
~ Be Kind to Yourself ~