In 2001, while working in Sweden, Kari Gormley of North Wilmington put on some pounds. Hoping to lose weight for her brother’s wedding, she attended Weight Watchers meetings. “It worked well,” she recalls. “I needed structure and the weigh-ins made me accountable.”
When she returned to the United States and had a baby, she regained the weight. Again, she turned to Weight Watchers, this time dropping 30 pounds.
Since 2006 Gormley has led meetings for Weight Watchers, a job only given to members who’ve stuck to their goal weight. Emilie Crosser of Rehoboth Beach is also a team leader. Crosser lost 42 pounds on Weight Watchers, and she’s kept it off for five years.
Success stories like these—and the public slim down by spokeswoman Jennifer Hudson—have helped keep Weight Watchers in the limelight. Fans like that it involves “real” food, although the company does offer some prepared products.
Items are given points, and members stick to a point count each week. Exercise results in negative points. So, if you want that glass of wine at dinner, spend an hour on the treadmill to cancel out the wine’s points.
There are 72 meetings in Delaware, and for Gormley and Crosser, meetings are key. “There’s a different topic every week, and you get camaraderie,” Crosser says.
If meetings don’t work for you, opt for the online program, which has interactive calculation tools, message boards, recipes and tips. The $29.95 sign-up fee is often waived with a three-month enrollment. The monthly fee is $18.95. Remember, it automatically renews.
A $42.95 monthly pass, which automatically renews each month, gives you e-tools and unlimited monthly meetings. Other options: a 17-week pass for $194, or pay as you go for $13 a week.
Weight Watchers isn’t for quick weight loss, Crosser says. In six weeks, you may lose 10 pounds. Weight Watchers also requires accurate tracking. Forget to log that tablespoon of dressing and it adds up—on your thighs. (weightwatchers.com)