What's YOUR group like?

[Bernadette and mum]

I'm always curious to know how other groups compare to my own, I do like my group but it would just be interesting to know what goes on in other groups? What sort of raffle prizes do you have? What does slimmer of the week get? What do you discuss with your consultants? Do you set yourselves challenges or have weekly competitions? Do you have something to sample every week? Do you keep in contact with your consultant outside of meeting? What's your group like?!

 

[Lisawilson08]

My class is just fabulous!! I had been to another class before and it was nice enough, but when I started back at this new class, I realised just what a difference it makes!!

My class leader is fantastic, I only started 4 weeks ago. In the 1st week I got a phone call from her after a few days. Second week I got a card from her and 3rd week I got a letter. Its lovely to get things outwith class.

In my old class, there was 3 small raffle prizes, usually food items or little gadgets. In this new class it seems to be one big prize. 1 week it was a big wok and food things to go with it, and this week it was a slow cooker!!

I have been slimmer of the week two weeks and got a variety of things that people have brought in - usually fruit, mugshots and tins.

Image therapy is really good and my class leader doesn't rush it and always spends time on everyone. We set a mini target if we want after we have spoken.

We have had samples a few weeks but not every week.

Overall I love my class and actually really look forward to going

 

[Texty_F]

I really enjoy my class - my consultant is fab. She is motivational, understanding, funny, a good listener, and most of all there for each and every one of us 100%. Ive never seen anyone get so excited over the launch of a new hi fi bar lol shes like a kid in a sweet shop. I used to do WW and never once had a call, a text, a card from my leader to ask how I was doing. The class gets an inspirational text every week even if its just a couple of lines to get you thinking, but its what we all need to keep us going back. We have taster nights but not every week. Our slimmer of the week gets a basket of fruit usually, the raffle prizes are usually a voucher to spend in the sw shop and the 2nd prize is usually food that the consultant brings in this week was a BNS, peppers and stock pots. SW rocks

 

[Princess_Stevie]

I love my group and my consultant, and after many years of dieting and hopping between different diets/groups I am so pleased I stumbled upon my current group. I truely believe it is the reason I have stuck to this for so long and achieved so much. We have quite a big group, with quite a few target members and newbies regularly joining. A large proportion of the members stay to group and always have fantastic recipes and ideas to share.

We have a raffle every week which is always fantastic - our Consultant always puts together great prizes that we all want to win! One week it may be all of the ingredients and recipe for a soup, another it could be a £5 meat voucher for the local butchers or Slimming Worlds latest recipe book. There have even been times where the raffle has been for kitchen utensils, such as a wok, storage/lunch boxes, etc! It's always great quality stuff that has had a lot of thought put into it.

As well as the raffle we have a "2lb bag". Anyone that loses 2lb that week and is staying to group sticks there name in the bag (if you've lost 4lb you get 2 tickets, 3 if you've lost 6lb, etc), and our C draws it at random. The prizes are small but fun! There have been things like egg timers, herbs/spices, a packet of HiFi bars, etc. Again, it's something that everyone seems to want to win, so it really keeps you motivated and wanting to get your name in the bag!

Our SOTW gets the usual - the SOTW fruit basket, sticker and certificate. I really like our SOTW basket though - people make a real effort to put more than just fruit in. It's often got mugshots, HiFi bars, Velvet crunch, etc. Sometimes even diet fizzy drinks or NAS squash! Again, it's something that you would actually want to win.

At the beginning of IT, our consultant dishes out all of the awards, and everyone gets equal praise whether they have lost half a stone or 11 stone. Our C then goes around the group and asks what sort of week we have had, have we tried anything new this week, or if we have had a tough week - what would we like to change next week. It is never simply just going around reading "X has lost Y this week, well done". Some weeks we skip that part completely and play games - pass the parcel, SuperFree bingo, etc. And some weeks we will have a taster, to which there is always a great turn out! There are always lovely quiches, cakes, and other SW friendly goodies brought in. At our last taster our C even brought her Actifry in to make us all chips! Everyone goes to a real effort.

The atmosphere at our group is so relaxed. Everyone talks to everyone and we are always garuanteed a laugh! I see group as a bit of "me" time, where I can let my hair down and be with like-minded people for one hour a week. I always come away feeling really motivated (no matter what kind of week I've had) and looking forward to group the following week!

 

[Texty_F]

Moves house and goes to Stevies group lol

 

[Bernadette and mum]

Sometimes I think I'd rather just do it at home too! x
Wow everyone's group sounds amazing lol, would make me consider shopping around for a different one! My group is okay, and I found my consultant good and supporting at the start, she is very lovely but recently I just don't feel she's been as supportive as I'd expect. We usually just do the standard happy clappy in group (which I must admit I quite like!!) then we have the fruitbowl for the slimmer of the week, (usually only has about four peices of fruit in it! Really irks me because me and mum go to group together and still manage to bring a piece of fruit each, so usually we contribute about half the bowl, yet it's still a very big group, only have to stand in the weigh in que for 15 minutes to realise that lol!) and then we finish with the raffle prize which is usually a slimming world mag and pack of hifis, or some plastic cutlery, or prepacked fruit salad fromt tescoes, something like that and then that's group finished. Consultant rarely texts anymore, and the last few time's I've texted her for help she just doesn't reply Though I'd almost feel disloyal swapping groups!

 

[Shirleen]

My consultant is great too, the last group I went to it was going through the motions!
The. SOW basket can be a bit low, I take flowers now (ok so they're reduced I'm not made of money lol), but others have put in syn free lager, tins etc.
Raffle prize is a hamper of fruit and veg, slimmer of the month gets a key ring, magnet and certificate.
IT is always informative, I love the way she doesn't take over , I mean she must know how to make SW quiche backwards but she always asks 'how do you make that?' For example.
She's even given permission for a woman to have more syns on a Friday night to keep her on track.
She's been doing it 18 years and loves the plan!

 

[*EB*]

I moved house in may and now go to a new group and its great. We have a good mix of people and quite a lot stay for image therapy...! I recently had a baby and I only went back last week but whilst I was away I was getting texts from my consultant and there is a Private Facebook group she has set up to keep us informed of new stuff and share ideas.

My old group was lovely too but is too far away!

Stevie your group sounds awesome!!!!

X

 

[*Emsie*]

I started a new group in July I don't feel that have settled in really. The consultant seems nice but I don't feel like theres any depth to the group and when she asks about my week etc I feel like its just going through the motions.I think I need to try a different group but I don't know if its because I started the group completely afresh and didn't say about how much weight had lost before though I did say had done well on it before.

 

[Shirleen]

I started a new group in July I don't feel that have settled in really. The consultant seems nice but I don't feel like theres any depth to the group and when she asks about my week etc I feel like its just going through the motions.I think I need to try a different group but I don't know if its because I started the group completely afresh and didn't say about how much weight had lost before though I did say had done well on it before.

I never felt at home until the FB page, it's fab it's like a week long IT with tips, recipes, laughs x

 

[Spikeysaurus]

My group is pretty good. We have SOTW basket which is mostly fruit, which would work for me as I don't eat mugshots etc (though as a slow loser I'll never win SOTW so it doesn't really matter!) and a raffle which is normally a big basket of veggies. If SOTW doesn't stay that gets raffled off too. Our constant normally makes something or brings something for everyone to try which is nice, and different from my old group. Image therapy is ok, we go round the group and the consultant says whether people have had a loss or gain, and how they are with it, and asks whether they know why or need help, and we clap regardless of loss or gain. I think going round the group is good in one way as shy people who wouldn't necessarily talk still get to contribute, but sometimes I'd rather have a big discussion about something (like whether anyone as ad a good food find that week, or ways to overcome lack of motivation etc) than go round the group clapping each loss or gain without really getting anything from it. We do discuss little bits, but not in any detail, and it feels a bit routine. The only thing I dislike is that we run over EVERY week, and since I don't eat dinner till after class I'm itching to get home!

 

[Shirleen]

My group is pretty good. We have SOTW basket which is mostly fruit, which would work for me as I don't eat mugshots etc (though as a slow loser I'll never win SOTW so it doesn't really matter!) and a raffle which is normally a big basket of veggies. If SOTW doesn't stay that gets raffled off too. Our constant normally makes something or brings something for everyone to try which is nice, and different from my old group. Image therapy is ok, we go round the group and the consultant says whether people have had a loss or gain, and how they are with it, and asks whether they know why or need help, and we clap regardless of loss or gain. I think going round the group is good in one way as shy people who wouldn't necessarily talk still get to contribute, but sometimes I'd rather have a big discussion about something (like whether anyone as ad a good food find that week, or ways to overcome lack of motivation etc) than go round the group clapping each loss or gain without really getting anything from it. We do discuss little bits, but not in any detail, and it feels a bit routine. The only thing I dislike is that we run over EVERY week, and since I don't eat dinner till after class I'm itching to get home!

Take something in! I *think* one of the reasons they do the going round the group is so they know who stayed/how many stayed. Maybe SW flag up if a certain percentage walk out??

 

[StarGir1]

...

 

[Claire_R]

I absolutely love my group. My consultant is great, she's so supportive and always full of ideas and a little bit mad! She's set up a facebook group for all her members and it's always a hive of activity with people posting pictures and recipes for meals they've tried or asking questions about syns, or even just asking for help if they're falling off the wagon.

She texts us all regularly with helpful tips or motivational quotes. During the meeting as she goes round she asks us different questions like what has been our favourite meal that week, what we had for lunch, how we use our healthy extra's etc which means we always come out of the meeting with a few new ideas. She also splits us down the middle into two teams, and offers points for the best ideas/recipes etc, and everyone racks their brains to get the most points for their team (nothing up for grabs except the prestige of winning, but thats good enough for me )

The week before last she gave everyone a little exercise book, and last week she gave us all a pencil, to keep in our slimming world folders and jot down any good idea's we've heard during the class.

If we're struggling she gives us a giant cuddly carrot or brocolli to keep for the week to keep is motivated (or to stand guard in front of the fridge). If someone's had an exceptional week they get a trophy to take home for the week.

There are some proper characters who go as well. My meeting is in a sports hall and there are always blokes playing football, and they must think we're a load of cackling women upstairs but I genuinely do have a laugh when I go, in fact it gets a bit raucus sometimes!!

Slimmer of the week basket is the usual fruit/veg/mugshots/smash etc. The raffle is uaually a massive basket of fruit and veg, and sometimes she'll have extra prizes like kitchen gadgets as well.

I really love going, once or twice I've not been able to stay for image therapy and I've felt really hard done by!

 

[Supergirl1980]

Usually, I like my group. The consultant is a genuinely lovely woman who really believes in the plan. What irks me though, is that there are a few members who talk loudly, which I think is just plain rude. (though that's another thread somewhere on mini's!). And mainly, the ones talking are the same ones who sound really negative all the time but don't actually follow the plan.
This week though, I don't like it, something has been said (too much of a faff to get into). And for the first time in 13months I am considering looking for a new one. Which I don't want to do, but the thought of going back next week is making me very uneasy.

 

[Texty_F]

Is it something that can be discussed in confidence with your consultant? Maybe give her a call and tell her your not happy/comfortable. Its a shame to move if you like the group/consultant and its only the minority making you feel that way. I hope you can get it sorted

 

[Supergirl1980]

I have spoken a little bit to my consultant, and she knows what is going on. I haven't told her that I am thinking about moving groups though. Perhaps by next week, i might be feeling a bit better, and I really don't want to give the minority in the group the satisfaction of driving me out.

 

[Texty_F]

Go you stick to ya guns. Why should they, your just as good as them. I hope it works out for you it would be such a shame to let them win