Big Changes Coming to Weight Watchers

Sound the alarms: On November 29, Weight Watchers is unveiling a new program. From what I’ve read, ProPoints (as it’s called in the UK, and possibly here) will still be points-based, but fruits and vegetables are free. Which must mean they’re adjusting the points values of everything else as well; word on the street is that we’ll be encouraged to eat more of not just produce, but also lean protein.

I’m pretty thrilled about this. When I lost that 100 pounds, the program was called Fat & Fiber. All I counted for three years were fat grams and fiber grams (aiming for a low number on the former and a high number on the latter). Loved it, although it did require me to do quite a bit of studying about nutrition. After all, if those are the only specific parameters, who’s to say you can’t eat exclusively fat-free brownies and fruit? You’d get your fiber and keep your fat count low, but it wouldn’t exactly be healthy. (True confession: For a while, about 85 pounds into the loss, I ate a good five pieces of fruit a day, plus a pound of either grapes or cherries, depending on the season. Wonder why I hit a plateau…) Presumably this new program is going to be a little more complicated than that.
Here’s what I’ve seen so far:
A post that just went up on Weight Watchers’ blog, answering a few much-asked questions.
A video announcement from Weight Watchers, which explains that the new program reflects the most up-to-date nutritional science. That’s what I like about Weight Watchers: it’s based on actual, proven science. No theories, just knowledge.
A story on NPR about the program that’s just been introduced in the UK, which seems to be very similar to what we’ll be getting. There’s a fair amount of detail here, though since it’s a news story, not a how-to, it’s short on specifics.
The UK’s Daily Mail published a story on the changes that’s so glowing, it reads like an advertorial.
Here’s another story on the UK program, this time from a UK food-industry journal. It says the program “has been recalibrated to factor in the energy used in chewing and digesting the food,” which seems to suggest we should be prepared to eat a lot of celery.
And of course, if this new plan doesn’t work, there’s always the Twinkie Diet.
Have you ever been on Weight Watchers’ points program? If you could change anything about it, what would it be?