Weight Watchers Pro Points Australia

Along with the rest of the world Australians have been benefiting from Weight Watchers Programs for decades. So then why has Weight Watchers changed something as major as its highly successful points system?

What is Pro Points and how has it changed Weight Watchers?

Still the Same Program

The fundamentals of the Weight Watchers program remain the same. The 4 pillar approach focusing on exercise, support, behavior and food is still the foundation of the program.

What are the changes to Weight Watchers?

The main changes to the program will be in the way the food points are calculated. Before, Weight Watchers points were calculated based purely on the “calories in calories out” methodology of weight loss. The “Calories in calories out” methodology is completely valid, but ProPoints will now place a focus on proper nutrition which the Weight Watchers points system had previously failed to address.

Since the points system was first introduced, Weight Watchers treated a calorie as a calorie whether it came from an apple or some milk chocolate. Members were eating pretty much anything they felt like as long as they stayed within their daily allowance of points. The new Pro Points system is driving home to members that you should eat more nutritional calories than those which are empty.

Pro Points, the main differences

• Now Weight Watchers Pro Points will be based on nutritional content, taking into account
  > Fibre and Protein. Higher fibre and protein content is good and will drive down the point value of food.
  > Fat and Carbohydrates. A higher fat and carbohydrate content is less conducive to weight loss and will drive up the point value of food.
  > The thermic effect of food ie. The amount of energy used by the body to digest the food
• Existing members will find that they will have an increased allowance of daily points
• The number of bonus points per week has increased to a sizable 49 points. However, Pro Points will increase the point value of bad foods and this should somewhat balances things out a little.
• Vegetables and fruit (fresh or processed) will attract a points value of ZERO. That’s right, you can eat as much of these as you like. This will help people to satisfy their daily recommended intake of fruit and vegetable if they are not doing so already. Fruits and vegetables are of course rich in vitamins and minerals.

What do the points changes mean to members?

The changes brought about by the new Pro Points plan will not require members to change the way they do things. Instead, they will be guided differently in the way they eat, helping them to adjust to better, healthier eating habits and more effective weight loss.

Health and Weight Loss Benefits

• Members will be encouraged to eat foods with a higher nutritional content of fibre and protein which also bring about a feeling of fullness faster and longer then foods higher in empty calories, fat and carbohydrates.
• Foods higher in fibre and protein have a higher thermic effect, burning up to 30% more energy than fats and carbohydrates. They are a good way to boost your metabolism.

Does Weight Watchers Pro Points Work?

Some great success stories of significant weight loss over several weeks have already surfaced. At the end of the day the Weight Watchers program still remains the same and still is governed by the idea of creating a calorie deficit, Pro Points just places more focus on the types of calories consumed.

Criticism by Weight Watchers Members

For already existing members of the Weight Watchers Program there will be an adjustment of seeing a lot of the foods they enjoyed before with more of a point penalty. Many are commenting on why fix something that was never broken. It seems to be a common complaint that now members are having difficulty looking at food and estimating the number of points and that Weight Watchers has confused them with a whole new outlook on food.

Fine tuning

Weight Watchers takes the approach that Pro Points is based on scientific advancement, but to us it looks as if they have borrowed nutritional concepts from already existing diets and plans. The thermic effect of food is not new and more blatantly, neither is the nutritional content of food.

We do not think there is anything wrong with this we actually commend it. What Weight Watchers has done with the Pro Points plan is take their already successful system and integrated some well-rounded weight loss and nutritional concepts. The ultimate goal, as it should be, is a healthy but effective weight loss.