Conference rocks::weight_control

    I have already passed this info onto Ann via MAIL, but I'll repeat it
    here again for the benefit of any other WEIGHTLOSS noters who have
    been asking themselves the same question:
    
    	Most supermarkets have the WW dinner entrees, deserts, and ice
    	cream novelty items.
    
    	GNC (General Nutrition Center) stores carry many of the other
    	items.  
    
    	For those who like the fruit snacks, I've also seen them at
    	some CVS stores.
    
    
    py

    The frozen food section is the place to be.  Thats the only place
    I have ever seen them.  The only thing that I have had trouble with
    is that each store carries their own selections.  Different store
    different things.  I go into the ones near work and get some of
    them and than I hit the local store (which is more expensive) and
    than I hit up the store I normally go to do my weekly food shopping.
    
    robn

Yesterday there was an ad in the Boston Globe for GNC. They are having a sale
on WW products this week.

Patti

    One caveat about WW products though.  I've found several items to be a
    bit more expensive than comparable products put out by other companies.
    This is especially true for items not found in the frozen food section,
    such as the dressings, puddings, jams/jellies, low-cal sweetener,
    spaghetti sauce, etc..  Wouldn't hurt to shop around and check out other
    brands as well. 
                                   
    
    py

Thanks for the GNC pointer, Paul!

My store (how possessive :-)), the Purity Supreme in Bedford (not horribly
far from Westford/Chelmsford), has a good selection now.  They have
frozen dinners, desserts, and some novelty ice creams (unfortunately not the
1/2 gallon size).

Recently, I've found the "dry goods" products in the "diet food section".
That's where the orange shake mix, choc. pudding, powdered choc. mousse,
microwave popcorn, fruit snacks, jam, spaghetti sauce, etc. are.

Jill

    Tried one of the newest WW deserts with breakfast this morning,
    the Black Forest Cake, and enjoyed it very much!  Worth checking
    out...
    
    
    Paul

    I heard that WW has a new (and much-improved) ice-cream out. Has
    anyone tried any yet? I'm curious....
    
    -Amy.
    

I've seen ads in the WW newspaper/magazine for their ice cream, and it was in
a newly designed container.  I didn't know if it was a newly designed ice cream
or not, but I haven't been able to find it anywhere!!  I've always been happy
with their ice cream products and desserts (can't wait to try that black
forest cake either!).

Sorry I can't help, maybe someone else can help us both, though...

Jill who could use some right about now :-)

    
    
    I've tried it and I can't taste much difference between the new
    and the old.
    
    Try Dryers Grand Light!  It tastes like the real thing and has almost
    the same caloric content as WW ice cream.
    
    Enjoy!

    I've tried the new WW ice cream and find it a big improvement.
    It was slow to show up in California stores though.
    
    Try the new Frozen Chocolate Mousse.  Outstanding.
    
    					Donna

    Someone mentioned buttery spray in a note recently,  I have never
    heard of that, and wonder what WW products are available.   I will
    be in the States on holiday in September, and could bring some stuff
    back, so long as it didn't weigh too much.
    
    
    Thanks,
    
    Jenni

The health food store in Searstown Mall in Leominster has a whole display
of WW products - stuff like microwave popcorn, salad dressings, puddings,
crackers, sweetener.  I've only tried the popcorn, it was ok but I still
prefer to make my own.

Susan

    If you want butter flavor without calories, you could try getting
    some Butter Buds (tm).  It's dehydrated butter with all the fat
    removed, leaving just the parts that give that buttery flavor,
    from what I remember of the package.  It really DOES have a good
    butter flavor.  You can use it dry in/on things, or you can mix
    it up with water and use it as a sauce (like melted butter) on
    potatoes and veggies etc.  I like it despite the fact that it's
    got all the chemicals in the book in it.
    
    --L

    Re:  .11
    
    Weight Watchers Buttery Spray is in just about every grocery store
    I know of in Dallas, Texas.  I think I found mine in the baking
    goods area near the Pam Spray.  It's two calories for each one-second
    spray, so you can add quite a bit onto your air-popped popcorn without
    having a ridiculous amount of calories added.
    
    Cat
    

    I've gotten into the habit of religiously reading labels, and have
    been surprised about some things I've found about WW foods.  For
    example, WW and Yoplait both make a 6-oz nonfat fruit yogurt that
    is 150 calories.  Not only does the Yoplait brand taste better than
    the WW (my opinion), it also contains considerably less sodium!
    
    Slightly off the subject (but not enough to start a new basenote),
    I've been ranting for a long time about the fact that no one has
    bothered to market a fruit yogurt that is artifically sweetened.
    They're all full of sugar.  Well, last night at the grocery store
    I discovered that Yoplait is now marketing a new "Lite" yogurt --
    a 6 oz carton in various fruit flavors, sweetened with nutra-sweet.
    Instead of 150 calories it has 90.  Oh happy day!
    
    							Pat

Pat, as I'm sure you already know, you have to count the yoplait as
strictly optional calories if you are on WW.  And, as I'm also sure
you know, your body probably doesn't know the difference!  I say
that because I've compared the nutritional content of some of them
to the WW brand and they're so close.  BTW, are you saying you don't
like the WW a la Francais yogurt?  I think it's wonderful.  Ah well,
there's no accounting for taste! (mine, that is).

I found a couple new entres the other week, chicken fajitas and beef
fajitas.  They're fairly good.

    I'm on WW, and I've pretty well followed the WW program to the letter
    (with some few exceptions I'd like to forget).  And by and large (or
    should I say small), I've been successful doing what WW tells me to do.
    22-1/2 pounds in 13 weeks has convinced me that the concept works,
    and works well.
    
    But in cases like the WW yogurt vs. the Yoplait, I believe WW is just
    pushing their own brands and I have a problem with that.  The quantity
    is the same, the ingredients are within a micron of being the same
    (except Yoplait has less sodium), and the calories are the same.  Yet
    WW yogurt counts as a fruit and a milk but the Yoplait has to count as
    optional calories.  I don't buy that marketing hype for a minute.
    
    As far as which tastes better, I personally prefer the Yoplait,
    but who's to say?  What tastes better to me might not to you --
    that's what makes the world an interesting place, right?
    
    Anyway, I fully intend to start eating the Yoplait Lite and counting it
    as one milk, and I'll bet if I follow the WW program in all other
    aspects I'll continue to lose! 
    
    							Pat

We were talking about counting things as milk exchanges in WW a while ago.
What it came down to was if there was enough calcium and protein in the
milk-based food, you could count it as a milk exchange.  I don't recall what
the numbers were, but you can compare the product to skim milk, or the WW
yogurt to see how far off the "other" product is.  Or ask your WW lecturer...

Jill

    I went and bought the Quick Success Program Cookbook and it's  full
    of gems like how much  calcium should be in a milk exchange:
    
    "Reduced -calorie flavored milk beverages or puddings that contain
    at least 6 grams of protein and 200milligrams of calcium may be
    used to fulfill the Daily Totals for milk. Products that contain
    4 or 5 gms of protein and 150 to 200 milligrams of calcium may be
    used no more than once a day."
    
    There's no explicit reference to yogurt. I looked atthe yoplait light
    and noticed that it hadthe requisite amount  of protein, but I didn't
    know about the calcium since it was givenin the form of % of RDA.
    I tend to treat yogurts with  20-25% (like WW) as ok to eat. 
    
    By the way, if you want the cookbook, don't buy it at your meetings.
    They'll charge you full price ($18.95). I got mine at Kmart- $12.70.
    
    

Speaking of WW cookbooks, I noticed at Target (here in Colorado Springs)
that they have the paperback Quick Start Plus and one other (can't 
remember which) packaged together for 14.50 or so.  Not a bad deal.

How is the Quick Success one in your opinion?  I LOVE the Favorites
book and use it almost all the time, but am always on the lookout
for new ideas.

I agree, I don't think the yogurt really makes any difference.

    How is the Quick Success Program cookbook? It's ... ok. They come
    out with one cookbook a year, and I have the last 5 of them. My all-time
    favorite was the Quick Start Program cookbook. One good thing about
    the program cookbooks is that they go into great detail about the
    exchange lists (like what 1/2 medium banana *really* means ). 
    
    I notice that the current program cookbook has only 1 recipe for
    scallops.One good point is that there are a fair number of vegetarian
    recipes -- the vegetarian tamale pie was ok, and the hummus soup
    was terrific! 
    
    I get them because the variety helps. That's also why I get the
    Weight Watcher magazine. 
    
    

    ...I vote for the WW International Cookbooks.  I have both the "old"
    and the "new" versions and have made dishes from both.
    
    Lynn