Moderate Diets For Weight Loss: Weight Watchers

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Weight Watchers

Weight Watchers provides motivation, support, and education as part of a healthy lifestyle plan. The program teaches people to make good eating decisions and to stay or become physically active.

Basic concept

Weight Watchers has two eating plans. The Flexible Points plan allows you to eat anything you want as long as you stay within a certain number of points. All foods are assigned points. Nutritious foods are lowest in points. The Core Plan doesn't ask you to count points. Instead, you focus on eating from all the food groups.

How it works

Weight Watchers is a program that you sign up and pay for. You have a number of choices. You can attend meetings with other members in person or online. You can buy your own foods or purchase Weight Watchers’ products. You can pay month-by-month, or you can get a discount if you prepay for several months with one payment.

On the menu

All food groups (protein, carbohydrate, fat, grains, vegetables, lean meats, eggs, dairy products)

Off the menu

Nothing, but you must stick to specific guidelines.

For more information, see the topic Healthy Weight in Related Topics.

Last updated:	February 23, 2007
Author:	Caroline Rea, RN, BS, MS
Reviewed By:	Ruth Schneider, MPH, RD - Diet and Nutrition, Rhonda O'Brien, MS, RD, CDE - Diabetes Educator
Editors:	Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Pat Truman, MATC