Weight Watchers Tips

Everyone likes tips and this week I will try to scour the internet for as many Weight Watchers tips as I can. Here are the first 13 tips from Buzzle.com:

Do not set unachievable goals
Decide upon a realistic target weight loss and try to achieve it in manageable chunks. Reward yourself each time you reach a key milestone (e.g. every 10 pounds lost).

Don’t eat anything until you find out the point count
That "fat free muffin" that you see at the bakery probably has twice the points that you think it does. Do your research before eating it. Stick to your recommended points limit. Under-eating can be as bad as overeating, and can slow down your metabolism making effective weight loss difficult.

Don’t waste points on non-filling items
Things like orange juice; non-diet soda, etc. use up a lot of points, but don’t really fill you up or satisfy your hunger very much. I also recommend that you not use points strictly for "flavor" (i.e. sauces, full-fat dressings, etc.) Save your points for items that will be filling and satisfying. Don’t forget to count points when you drink as well as when you eat. It is all too easy to forget that the odd glass of wine or tumbler of juice contains points as well, but they can add up so make sure you take them into account.

Do use your points on filling items
Rice cakes are a good example of this. They are pretty filling and are only 1 point each.
Keep a food diary Writing down what you eat and how many points you’ve had with each meal helps you to monitor your eating habits and keep track of how many points you’ve consumed. This gives you more control and shows where you might be going wrong if you begin to gain weight again.

Rethink what you like
Many people say "I don’t like salad" or "I can’t eat vegetables." You are trying to improve you health and fitness, now is the time to re-access your likes and dislikes. I don’t like vegetables very much, but I try and have them with every lunch and dinner, because I know they will fill me up without points.

Do some exercise
This will not only keep you toned whilst you lose weight, but can help to increase your metabolism and speed up weight loss. You can also earn bonus points through exercise.

Know your yogurt
Yogurt comes in a mind-numbing number of varieties. Ranging from full-fat, fully sweetened to non-fat, non-sugared and everything in between. The point counts can vary tremendously, so read the labels carefully. I’ve seen two different brands of plain, non-fat yogurt have 100 and 130 calories (both for a 1 cup serving). Save the gimmick yogurts with the sprinkles or crunchy add-ins for your kids.

Drink plenty of water
Water contains no points and will promote a feeling of fullness, keeping hunger pangs at bay. It is also necessary to keep you hydrated whilst dieting and exercising.

Beware the fruit
Fruit is healthy and you should be eating some every day, but they have points and some of them (bananas, pineapple) have quite a few points. You cannot eat an infinite amount of fruit and lose weight. The same goes for carrots, if you are going to be munching handfuls of carrot sticks, make sure you count the points.

Eat a variety of food
Since no foods are banned on this diet, you should make the most of it and plan interesting and well-balanced meals. Many diets can get tiresome and boring because of the lack of variety, but this will help to keep you interested and motivated.

Just Do It
Diet alone will only get you limited results. If you are overweight, chances are you are not getting much exercise. Do it. Do it every day. Joining a gym is fine, but are you really going to get there every day? Try and find something that you can do at home, whenever your schedule permits.

Review your cooking methods
Try and avoid frying and stick with steaming, grilling, stir-frying, microwaving and boiling. These are lower fat methods of cooking and will help to cut fat intake.

Proud to be Hungry
This tip is kind of philosophical. There will be times (perhaps many times) that you will be hungry. Instead of exceeding your points and eating something, wear your hunger as a badge of honor. The hunger you feel lets you know that the program is working. I’d be surprised if you can go around feeling full all the time and still lose weight. However, this should be the exception rather than the rule. If you find you are hungry all or most of the time, speak with your Weight Watchers leader.