by Debbie N

Created on: September 27, 2007   Last Updated: December 30, 2011

On the Weight Watchers Flex plan, the nutritional value of the food is taken and combined together to created a point value. Calories, fat, and fiber are calculated in a way that creates one number, the points, to determine the nutritional value of the food.

The basics of the points system and what needs to be remembered is the higher the fat, the more points the food will have, and the higher the fiber, the less number of points the food will have. For example, A slice of lite wheat bread has 40 calories, 1 gram of fat, and 4 grams of fiber. This together equals one point. If the fat were increased to three grams or the fiber lessened to one gram, the points value of the bread would potentially go up a point.

Fiber is very important in the Weight Watchers diet, but all fiber cannot be counted. Weight Watchers point's calculators will not calculate a food with higher than four grams of fiber. In other words, whether the item has four grams or 15 grams, it is still counted as four. This is to avoid people eating foods in excess thinking they have no points, when in fact they do.

Fat is also important in the Weight Watchers plan because of how much it increases the points of so many foods. It is important to limit fat intake so that foods can stay low in points. The difference from three grams of fat to nine grams of fat per serving in any food can mean a two point increase.

The Core Plan is followed differently than the Flex plan, and there are foods on Core that are forbidden under certain circumstances.

Only natural foods are to be eaten on the core plan. Natural foods consist of lean meats, most vegetables, and some grains. Anything eaten that is not listed in the core foods list could be considered forbidden, although Weight Watchers does allow even core followers a way to enjoy these foods by giving them the same additional 35 extra points per week that Flex users have.

I find that the only real problem I have eating what I want with Weight Watchers, as a Flex plan follower, is when I cannot locate the nutritional information for a food or foods I want to eat. If I am eating at home, this is never an issue, but when dining out, it can be. I tend to choose restaurants that list their nutritional value on their menus, such as PF Chang's or The Macaroni Grill. Even if the food I want has 20 points in it, at least it is something I can figure in to my daily or weekly point's allowance.

Knowing this information makes the food okay to eat. If I eat at a restaurant that does not list nutrition information, then I'm not able to know exactly how many points I'm taking in. To me, that's somewhat forbidden because if I don't follow the plan and stick to the allotted number of points I'm given, I will not accomplish my goal.

I have been on many, many diets and Weight Watchers has always been the best and most flexible plan for me. Yes, there are foods that I stay away from because they hinder my weight loss, but as long as I can figure out their point's value, I can eat them if I want to. Nothing is really forbidden on Weight Watchers which makes it a plan I can live with for life.

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