If you aren’t already aware, as of November 2022 Weight Watchers shifted away from the WW name and the former Personal Points program to a new program that provides more consistency across program members.
We’ve had a variety of chats where we discuss the ins and outs of the new program and as we continue to learn together, all info will be compiled into this post.
If you’d like to know more, here are the chats in which we’ve discussed the new program:
What’s Gone?
- Adding back points with non-starchy veggies or water is gone. We still need to keep them front of mind, but the new program has those points allocated elsewhere
- Rice, pasta, potatoes, oats, and avocado as zero-point foods. You can still enjoy them, you just need to count them
- Different daily point allowances for each person
- The personal points engine / assessment to create a completely unique set of points and zero-point foods
What Stays the Same?
- Points value calculation method for non-zero-point foods will remain the same (fat, fiber, protein, carbs, calories)
- All non-starchy veggies are still zero points
- All foods are still ok!
- Weekly budgets will remain
- We can still earn points for activity
- Unused daily points will roll over to weekly points
- The Blue Dot Range will still be up to 8 below your daily and up to 10 over your daily to earn a blue dot
What Will Change?
- The name going forward will just be the Weight Watchers Plan. Effective 12/11/22 the Personal Points plan will no longer be available on your app.
- Those who are diabetic or pre-diabetic will have new exceptions to the zero point food list. You can still enjoy them, they just need to be counted to keep you “aware” of the sugar or carbs in that particular food
- There will be NINE CATEGORIES of Zero Point foods. The full list will be available on the app and I will go over it during next week’s chat but the NINE CATEGORIES ARE:
- Non-Starchy Veggies
- Fruit *
- Chicken and Turkey Breast
- Fish and Shellfish
- Eggs
- Tofu and Tempeh
- Fat Free Plain Yogurt and Fat Free Cottage Cheese *
- Beans, Peas and Lentils
- Corn and Air Popped Popcorn *
*categories marked with an asterisk will be different for diabetics or pre-diabetics
Q&A
Q: When does the new program start?
A: Monday (tomorrow if you are watching this live) Nov 14th, 2022
Q: What time does it start?
A: Well that’s a good question…they are trying to make sure everything is working, all the apps will update, etc…. so it could be anytime after midnight. I will try my best to get up at midnight eastern time and check for you!
Q: Why is it changing?
A: Because “life is complicated, losing weight shouldn’t be” (unknown author) Weight Watchers is a science-based program with a vested interest in making sure the most people lose the most weight in the most healthy way possible. Not all changes have been popular, but they have all been ultimately in our best interest. Also, if they didn’t continue to change with the times we would all still be eating liver and cottage cheese.
Q: Why is it changing again so soon?
A: While the most recent Personal Points plan was just a year ago, the smart folks at Weight Watchers realized that a completely individualized plan was affecting something very important – the WW community. This change will allow us to share recipes, talk about points values without confusion, and get back to the community we know and love!
Q: Is the new program the same for everyone in every country?
A: Great question! We will cover the “same for everyone” details later but I’m not sure about every country. I will try to find out!
Q: Is this the old Blue Plan?
A: No it is not! While there are some similarities this is NOT the old Blue Plan as rumored by some other WW bloggers
Q: Do I have to change to the new program?
A: Technically no… not until Dec 11th, anyway. When your app updates tomorrow you will have the option to go ahead and start the new program or delay starting until December 11th, 2022. After 12/11 everyone’s app will automatically only be on the new program.
Q: Will I still be able to add back points?
A: More about that later, but this new program should eliminate the temptation to “points hoard” by either saving or adding points for later just in case you need them.
Q: Will my recipes and saved foods / meals automatically update?
A: Yes they will! And it will be even easier to share recipes with other members of the community because we will all have the same zero point foods (diabetics will have slightly different ZPFs)
Q: What is the new name?
A: Weight Watchers Program. Yep, that’s it. No cutesy, hard to remember, doesn’t really make sense names. Whatever “it” is for the rest of time…it’s just the Weight Watchers Program!
Q: How many zero point foods are on this list?
A: There are over 200 foods on this program…TWO HUNDRED!
Q: Do I have to track zero point foods?
A: Part of the beauty of this plan is you do not need to weigh, measure, or even track your zero point foods if you choose not to.
Q: If you don’t have to, why would anyone track their zero point foods?
A: You do not need to track your zero point foods. But, some people will still track to see trends in weight loss, hunger, changing things up, or just to make sure they are getting enough non-starchy veggies for example.
Q: Do I have to update my app?
A: Your app should be up to date now and most of the minor glitches seem to be taken care of although I have found a few pointing errors on foods I’ve scanned (more about that later). If you are still having problems seeing the latest information and zero points lists try uninstalling and reinstalling your app (make sure you know your user name and password)
Q: What if I forgot my password?
A: Using the device you registered on click “forgot password”, enter the email address you used to sign up, and they will email you a 7 digit code to get back in.
Q: Does activity automatically add points or can I turn that off?
A: Points earned through activity will automatically add to your availability. Currently the only way to prevent this from happening if you do not want to track those earned points is to turn off syncing with your fitness device
Q: How many points will I get a day?
A: Points are calculated based on your age, height, weight, and sex assigned at birth—which make up your individual metabolic rate—your Budget is personalized to your and designed to help you lose weight at a healthy rate.
Q: What is the lowest number of points a person would get per day?
A: I believe it’s 14 but I am still trying to verify this.
Q: Why do some foods have higher / lower points values?
A: Foods that are higher in fiber, protein, and unsaturated fats will have lower points values that foods that are higher in calories, added sugars, and saturated fats.
Q: Why did my zero points food list still say oats the first few days?
A: Like all new rollouts of a computer program with that many data variations there is almost no way to account for every single anomaly and still roll out to the public at one time. I saw a few that still had things like oats or avocado as zero. I saw even more that did not include fish as zero the first few days. I believe all of those are updated, anyone else still having issues?
Q: You mentioned some point errors earlier, what does that mean?
A: Even though thousands of programming hours go into a rollout like this there are millions of food items that have to be individually updated! I have found several brands of beans for example (most of them store brand) that are scanning as points instead of zero. I just made sure there were no funny things like meat or added ingredients and then saved them as a new food. If we have time, let me show you how to add a new food to your app. If not, be on the lookout for a short video tutorial on YouTube tomorrow!
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