Worried about starting SW and how it works

frankied

Silver Member
I'm planning on starting a SW meeting not this Thursday but next. I know the basic rules and I'm worried about how it works.

I have BMI of 42 and a lot of weight to loose. I know that there is lists of foods that are unlimited that would add up to large amounts of calories. I'm worried the reason it works is because you end up eating less making it uneffective if you do eat unlimited amounts. And I'm worried I wouldn't end up eating less so it wouldn't work.
 
Personally I would forget calories. I have never counted the calories since I started SW. If the book says unlimited (free) then it really is. The key is to eat until you are satisfied and not just eat and eat because it's free. you do ned to have some self control, but only to know when you are full.

I have never portion controlled, I'm very rarely hungry and I've just recently got target. It really does work.
 
I must admit I struggle to get my head around it sometimes but it really does work. I think the basic principle is the amount of fat it cuts out of your diet x
 
SW does not work by calories alone - it is also based on satiety or how long those calories fill you up for.

All calories are not the same you see! 300 calories of chocolate would fill you up for a very short time - half an hour later you could be hungry and looking for something else, probably more empty calories. But 300 calories of pasta and veg will fill you up for a long time, particularly if the pasta is wholegrain. So you fill up on free foods like this making you less likely to binge on the less nutritionally sound foods. And because they fill you up you are unlikely to overdo them which also keeps the calories in check.

And it really does work (check the stats)! I eat way more on SW than I ever did before but what I eat is high quality, nutritionally sound food rather than empty calories. I have large plates of pasta, rice and other carbohydrates but make sure that vegetables form a large part, if not the bulk, of each meal - and if I'm still hungry after that I can and do go back for seconds.

There is still a need for some common sense when using free foods - yes mullerlights are free but eating 10 a day would not be sensible - but if you are really hungry then there are plenty of free and superfree foods for you to choose from!
 
Firstly if it didn't work there wouldn't be so many people losing weight with SW, or target members here.

Secondly, the diet works by allowing you to eat unlimited amounts of foods which are low in calories, and both fill you up and keep you fuller longer. On the Extra Easy plan (which is just that) you have to have 1/3 superfree foods (Fruit and non-starchy veg) with each meal - this helps to control your portions.

On top of that there are portion controlled Healthy Extra's, which are quite literally healthy bits the body needs, but are measured to stop you having too much. Then there are the syns, which can be used on whatever you want. They allow for flexibility, but still keep you following a healthy diet, without over-indulging.

If you want the plan to work you need to forget every other diet, including calorie counting, and trust the plan. It really does work, and it is easy!

(just as an asides, I used to worry I was having too many calories, so I counted what I was having for a few days on SW. I was eating LOADS, and my calories varied between 800-1600 a day, so the theory really does work)
 
Thanks for the replies, they really helped :)
 
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