FREE Weight Watchers??

I’ve never tried Weight Watchers, but I know friends who have and liked the program.  WW is not free though and for those of you who know me I love getting free stuff!  I knew there had to be a way to incorporate the WW program for free.  I think if you’re not sure if you want to spend the money OR maybe you just don’t have the funds to invest, then this article will help you get something similar for FREE!

First off the very basic nature of the WW program is counting calories.  Anyone can do this without necessarily signing on to a program but what’s great about it is that it makes counting the calories much easier.  3500 calories make 1 pound so if you are eating anywhere near that on a daily basis you are bound to keep gaining weight rapidly.  In order to lose weight you have to cut calories.  This doesn’t mean you have to eat less, it just means you have to be more aware of what you are putting into your body.  If you incorporate some exercise along with lower caloric intake, then you should see faster results for weight loss. 

I found this great, FREE app called “MyFitnessPal” (which I use on my Android phone) where you can log your meals and snacks and keep track of how many calories you are taking in.  When you first set it up, you put your information and level of activity and it will calculate how many calories you can eat on a daily basis in order to meet your goal.  You can choose how much weight you want to lose, how many calories you want to take in, etc…so it is very easy to modify.  Plus you can search for many different types of foods to log into your food diary.  I think what’s great is that when you are putting down what you eat it gives you a moment to really reflect on what you are putting into your body.  This app also breaks down (depending on what you are eating) how much of fat, protein, sodium, etc. you are eating so you start to notice if maybe you are eating foods with too much sodium or sugar, which can lead to serious medical issues.

I think using an app like this can give you a preview of what to expect if you choose to later on try Weight Watchers, or just stick with this to lose weight on your own.  Another thing to note is that if you need extra support, for example if you feel you need to meet with other individuals who want to lose weight, who share the same struggles as you, you can join existing support groups for free.  You can either create one yourself and advertise on outlets like Yahoo groups or Meetup(.com), or join existing groups (on sites mentioned) or check out “OverEaters Anonymous”’; they have free OA meetings across the county.  I’ll post an update in about a month to let you know how this free version of WW is working out for me!

Lastly I will be posting soon about ways to work out for free, so you won’t have to spend money at a gym!