Weight Watchers or The Zone
- Thread starter lizzyc
- Start date
Mckmain
Cathlete
I am a true fan of the Zone...Pinky is too. I got in the best shape EVER when I went on the Zone. I do know alot of people that have had good luck with WW too. What made it easy for me was my sister had been on the Zone. So, I bought the book "Mastering the Zone" and she helped alot!.I bet there will be more posts on this..
...Carole
...CaroleI love WW's. I eat very good, healthy, and have a bowl of WW's Moosetracks every night. I get plenty of veggies, fruits, a T of Flax, some almonds every day....I am happy. I can tell a difference in my figure with just sticking to it for 3 weeks. I no longer look at it as a "diet," I look at it as a way of measuring food to let my body know when it has had enough for the day. The high fiber really works well with my body.
Lori
Lori
C
Carol_is_fit
Guest
Hi Lizzy, I've lost 40+ pounds with WW in six months, and dropped 6 sizes!! Obviously I would recommend the program to anyone! I have no experience, however, with The Zone, but there are plenty of people on here who do. I would say explore each a little, and pick the one you feel you can stick with for LIFE. Both programs stress they are NOT "diets", they are ways of eating. I'm a firm believer that to achieve lifelong health and fitness, you need to find a program you can stay with. In the end, you have to do what you feel is best for your body, and what you are comfortable doing long term. Best of luck to you!
Carol
Carol
icklemoley
Cathlete
If you notice the thing that WW and The Zone have in common are calories. WW lets you have about 50-60 calories per point (so assuming you’re on 18-20 points per day that is only 1,200) and most people’s calorie intake on The Zone (women’s) are 1,100 or 1,400. Now if you’re active this (to me) seems very very low and surely cannot do anything good for your metabolism.
Sure you’ll lose weight but that will happen whenever you starve your body.
The Zone has some good theories (keeping carbs in balance with protein and good fat, etc… which I strongly believe in) but I do not believe in a place called The Zone!
I think what matters most is not which program you go on (if its low calorie – they all do the same thing) but which one you will be able to stick with in the long haul.
For me? I dunno…WW is too restrictive for me (I would be starving) and The Zone (again, I don’t want to count food blocks or have only 1,400 calories per day, especially if I’m working out 1 hour a day).
I like to balance my food intake. Keep protein high. Fat (good fat) high. And reduce my intake of processed food. I eat all the vegetables I want (about 1 ½ lbs a day) and probably take in about 100g of carbs (not green, ie vegetables). I limit fruit to one piece per day. I eat around 2,500 – 3,500 calories per day. One thing I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, I would not be able to eat that much food If I were eating the bulk of it from processed food. Sorry this is so long…just sharing my views. Carol however has done fab on WW and she looks great and is a good advert for WW. Do not get me wrong, WW is very good and many like it (Yo! Carol!) but for me, its not right. But in the end that’s what its all about…finding what works for you and making it work, for life. Good luck.
Sure you’ll lose weight but that will happen whenever you starve your body.
The Zone has some good theories (keeping carbs in balance with protein and good fat, etc… which I strongly believe in) but I do not believe in a place called The Zone!
I think what matters most is not which program you go on (if its low calorie – they all do the same thing) but which one you will be able to stick with in the long haul.
For me? I dunno…WW is too restrictive for me (I would be starving) and The Zone (again, I don’t want to count food blocks or have only 1,400 calories per day, especially if I’m working out 1 hour a day).
I like to balance my food intake. Keep protein high. Fat (good fat) high. And reduce my intake of processed food. I eat all the vegetables I want (about 1 ½ lbs a day) and probably take in about 100g of carbs (not green, ie vegetables). I limit fruit to one piece per day. I eat around 2,500 – 3,500 calories per day. One thing I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, I would not be able to eat that much food If I were eating the bulk of it from processed food. Sorry this is so long…just sharing my views. Carol however has done fab on WW and she looks great and is a good advert for WW. Do not get me wrong, WW is very good and many like it (Yo! Carol!) but for me, its not right. But in the end that’s what its all about…finding what works for you and making it work, for life. Good luck.
All diets whether they are zone, atkins or WW all limit calories one way or another. You just have to pick a program that works for you. I try to stay away from processed food and whie sugar because I just end up over eating with those foods. I keep track on fit day and my carbs are about 200-250 a day with about 40-50 grams of fiber. I just feel better and tend not to over eat if I avoid white sugar and rice.
Hi Lizzy, I answered your question in the Zone thread. I just want to say that it doesn't matter which diet you choose as long as you see the results you want with it, you're happy with it (doesn't leave you famished, headachey, sick), and you can stick with it for life.
As I said before in another post, if you skip all the scientific jargon in the Zone, you'll see that it tells you things you've heard before: Drink lots of water. Eat your fruits and vegetables. Stay away from saturated fat and starches. Eat lean or low-fat protein with your meals. Eat small, evenly spread out meals throughout the day. Eat a small, balanced meal 30 minutes before working out (to fuel your workout) and 30 minutes after (to replenish glycogen stores and help your muscles recover). Don't skip a meal and let yourself get too hungry. Balance and moderation are key.
For those who know a little bit about the Zone, it would seem that the meals are small and insufficient, especially for those who work out intensely all the time. I have learned to tweak my meals so they can work for me. My initial Zone calculations let me eat only about 1,200 calories a day. I added more blocks so I'd be eating 1,900-2,400 calories, depending on whether I have a heavy lifting day, an endurance day, an intense cardio day, a light cardio day... You get the idea. I gained 9 lbs. on the Zone and Cathe (from 98 lbs.) and went down a dress size. The last time I was 107 lbs. was when I was three months pregnant with my son. I couldn't fit into my size 4 jeans.
I've found something that works well for me. I hope you do, too.
Pinky
As I said before in another post, if you skip all the scientific jargon in the Zone, you'll see that it tells you things you've heard before: Drink lots of water. Eat your fruits and vegetables. Stay away from saturated fat and starches. Eat lean or low-fat protein with your meals. Eat small, evenly spread out meals throughout the day. Eat a small, balanced meal 30 minutes before working out (to fuel your workout) and 30 minutes after (to replenish glycogen stores and help your muscles recover). Don't skip a meal and let yourself get too hungry. Balance and moderation are key.
For those who know a little bit about the Zone, it would seem that the meals are small and insufficient, especially for those who work out intensely all the time. I have learned to tweak my meals so they can work for me. My initial Zone calculations let me eat only about 1,200 calories a day. I added more blocks so I'd be eating 1,900-2,400 calories, depending on whether I have a heavy lifting day, an endurance day, an intense cardio day, a light cardio day... You get the idea. I gained 9 lbs. on the Zone and Cathe (from 98 lbs.) and went down a dress size. The last time I was 107 lbs. was when I was three months pregnant with my son. I couldn't fit into my size 4 jeans.
I've found something that works well for me. I hope you do, too.
Pinky
C
Carol_is_fit
Guest
Wayne, you make an excellent point about calorie intake! When I first made goal, I was still eating the same WW points, and actually lost two more pound without trying to! Now, trying to simply maintain and keep toning up what's already there, I'm up to about 2500 calories a day of CLEAN eating. What a difference in my energy level! I have to say though, that I was never hungry doing WW, and I really think that's because of the way I ate. I made sure to eat plenty of protein and some lean fat, and I drank at least three quarts of water a day. It was a huge leap of faith for me to start eating more food, but I've maintained that goal weight for five and a half weeks now - WOO HOO!! Even while I was on WW, I didn't eat their processed food. It has too much sodium in it, and I love fresh veggies too much!!
Thanks, by the way, for your kind words!! They really made my day!!
Carol
Thanks, by the way, for your kind words!! They really made my day!!
Carol
Lizzy- I like Pinky, tweak my meals on WW's. I am at the level where I am allowed only 20 points per day, but I earn activity points, and I eat them. We also get 35 Flex Points, and I usually use those throughout the week somewhere. I eat, I do not starve at all. All veggies are free, except starchy ones, so I load up on those too. I have lost 2 lbs. in 3 weeks, which is very safe weight loss. You just have to do what is right for you!! Good Luck.
Lori
Lori
icklemoley
Cathlete
Hey Carol...no worries. Glad you're up in the higher calorie backet and maintaining. You've done a fab job and look every part the health and fitness lifestyle. You deserve a big congratulations x
C
Carol_is_fit
Guest
Thanks Wayne! We're CATHEITES, after all!!! You sound like you've done a fabulous job too, and are walking the walk!! Great job!!
Carol
You sound like you've done a fabulous job too, and are walking the walk!! Great job!!Carol
kathryn
Cathlete
Rather than choosing one or the other, you might want to check out www.ediets.com . There, for about $5 a week (about the same as WW?), you can get a meal plan that you can tailor to your tastes (any foods you what you want to avoid, like dairy or soy, plus other criteria like high fiber or high protein, etc.) and you can chenge your preferences from week to week. I joined for 13 weeks to finally get off this 10# that I gained in the first 2 years of my current job, and itdid the trick (even though I actually didn't follow the meal plan! The weekly check-in and the forums kept me in line!).
gogigi
Cathlete
One more note about WW. You figure out how many activity points you earn in a day and you have the option of eating some or all of those points(with Cathe could be an extra 4 to 6 or more points). I too have had success with WW. I lost a total of 23 pounds. I did it on line and have remained a member. Good luck in whaterver you decide!
P.S. Eat those activity points and use those flex points if you are hungary. You will find there are days when you are hungrier than others and WW is a lot more flexible to accomodate those type of days now.
P.S. Eat those activity points and use those flex points if you are hungary. You will find there are days when you are hungrier than others and WW is a lot more flexible to accomodate those type of days now.