Weight Watchers

Diet & Fitness:Weight Loss:Consumer Diet Guide

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History

Weight Watchers, one of the most celebrated weight-loss plans of all time, had its humble beginnings in the apartment of an overweight New York City housewife in the early 1960s.

Jean Nidetch, then more than 200 pounds, brought together some overweight friends to discuss how they could all lose weight. Soon the women were meeting every week, confiding in each other about their common desire to overcome their food longings. In this supportive atmosphere, each woman was successful in losing weight.

Word spread quickly and Weight Watchers was incorporated in 1963. Today, an estimated one million people continue the tradition worldwide.

Philosophy and Program

No jaw-dropping promises of shedding pounds at a breakneck speed here, just a healthy up to two pounds a week if you get with and follow Weight Watchers. The program incorporates the essentials for successful weight loss: healthy nutrition, effective calorie control, and livability. You’ll learn how to make wise choices, eat healthy, and enjoy food and exercise. Weight Watchers believes all are needed for proper long-term weight management.

There are different ways to make Weight Watchers work for you: Weight Watchers Meetings provide coaching and real-life insights to help you make the positive changes needed to lose weight. They give you the support and guidance to help you reach your goal and stay there. In the words of Nidetch, "empathy, rapport and mutual understanding" are the energies that make the plan work.

Now with Weight Watchers Online, you can also follow the plan step-by-step online with interactive tools, tips, recipes and more.

The Diet

The diet giant sells its own pre-made meals plus books and magazines, and recently introduced the new Momentum program, which replaces the traditional Flex and Core plans. Momentum revolves around the POINTS System and offers strategies for beating hunger and temptation.

Weight Watchers helps you build the skills to enjoy a healthy, balanced life by showing you how to boost your activity level, become aware of how your habits affect your weight and learn how to set achievable, step-by-step goals to build on your weight-loss success.

Susan Woodward lives in Olympia, Wash. She writes on topics that include health and indigenous cultures, and she works with the non-profit international health organization Amazon Promise. Her writing has appeared in The Los Angeles Times.

Join the discussion!

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Tuesday, July 28, 2009 3:37:57 AM

This does work. I have been a member since 11/4/08 and I have now lost 50 pounds...slow and steady wins the race. They do not however sell premade meals. They offer oatmeal, mini bars and other snack foods. They educate you on the nutritional values of what you are eating. I was amazed that I did not have any healthy eating habits at all! I thank God for the weight watcher programs. The meetings are encouraging, it helps to be with others that struggle and keep going with you!