New tricks to trim the fat

Amy Hunt lost 34kg. Photo / Supplied

Wine, curry and even the fastfood giant Big Mac can now be enjoyed guiltfree by WeightWatchers members, who are set to abandon their calorie-based food tracking system for one that takes a wider range of factors into consideration.

WeightWatchers will launch its ProPoints plan in January, but it is being rolled out to current members from this week. It includes a weekly number of bonus points that can be used on alcohol or fastfood.

"In the last decade, weight-loss science has moved on from counting kilojoules and saturated fat. Evidence shows there are much more accurate methods to calculate the impact of foods on weight loss," said a ProPoints guidebook, distributed to Kiwi WeightWatchers members this week.

The change is being touted as a way to revitalise weight-loss efforts and re-motivate members.

According to the ProPoints guide, members can lose up to 1kg a week by sticking to their allocated points allowance.

"The new ProPoints plan is more flexible and liveable than ever before," the guide said.

The WeightWatchers programme is based on a points system and members are allocated a certain number of points to "spend" on food each day, calculated according to their age, gender, weight and height. In the past, every food was assigned a points value, based on the number of calories and the amount of fat it contained.

However, the new points system is based on the amount and types of protein, carbohydrate, fibre and fat in food.

Under the old points system, a hamburger had a points value of nine but under ProPoints it totals 13. Points values of many foods have gone up but members will get more points to spend each day - members will now have an average of 29 points a day instead of 18-20.

On the new programme, members will also have a weekly allowance of 49 ProPoints on top of their daily points. "From now on, there's no need to cut back, to save points values for a special occasion or a night out.

"Instead you just use some of your weekly ProPoints allowance whenever you need more than your daily allowance provides for," the guide said.

The programme has already been rolled out in the United Kingdom and it has been reported that a bottle of wine will wipe out about 20 of the extra ProPoints, curry with naan bread and rice will use 40, a pint of beer six points and a Big Mac 12 points.

WeightWatchers members could eat these things on the old points system, but it came out of their daily allowance.

WeightWatchers Australasian spokeswoman Clair Cameron said the ProPoints plan was the biggest change to the programme in 15 years and was "exciting, new and flexible". WeightWatchers has been operating in New Zealand and Australia for 40 years.

There's a point to it

Amy Hunt writes down everything she eats every day. And she's lost 34kg for her efforts.

The 26-year-old Palmerston North mum is a WeightWatchers member and credits her life-changing weight loss to their points programme.

"It's hard work but it's good, I still track my points to this day," she said. "I've tried every diet possible - the Atkins diet, the starve-yourself diet - but for me, the points programme is just so manageable."

Hunt said the new ProPoints plan sounded like a great idea.

"I think that it's awesome. It's nice to know that they're looking at balancing all the different things in your food."

Hunt also liked the idea of having extra points outside her daily allowance to spend on "real life" things.

"You can just live normally. I think it will help with the whole guilty feeling thing, too.

"Some people will eat something that's considered naughty and then feel like it has wasted their whole week, so they give up.

"If they know there is a bank of points and they can have their treat they will keep going."

Hunt was looking forward to trying the ProPoints plan but not for the next five months.

She is 13 weeks' pregnant with her second child, so she is not trying to lose or maintain her weight. She lost 20kg before falling pregnant with son Dante, now aged 3. After his birth she returned to WeightWatchers and lost 34kg.

anna.leask@hos.co.nz