mcdonald's partners with weight watchers

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grrrkgrrrl

New member
i am extremely torn about this piece of information... on one hand, i think it's good the more nutritional info they provide for the customers..

on the other hand i think it might make many people feel "it's ok" to go and have mcdonalds often.


i really dislike -personally- fast food and i believe the biggest part of my weight loss success has been to manage to stop any fast food/junk food intake completely and for life.

i also dislike weight watchers as i believe that everything they do, people can find out for themselves without so much extra cost. but since many people swear by it, i am prepared to accept them..

but now.. partnering with mcdonalds? :/

grumpy morning mood for me.
 
I tend to agree with you. However, all you can really do is supply people with facts and information, and let them make the decision from there.

Even if WW says a Mcdonalds burger is x points, deep down you know that burger/filet/nuggets ISN'T THAT HEALTHY. And, as soon as people aren't losing weight on a WW plan that includes McDonalds, i'm sure they will make some changes to retain customers.

Its all speculation though.
 
I think the point of the article is saying that McDonald's is changing the way they make fast food. The article points out that WW only accepts three of their current items as "ok" and maybe they are going to bring in more healthy options. They are not going to have a cheeseburger on the menu with a points value beside it because that isn't the healthy alternative. I think it's great for them to start incorporating these ideas - switching oils to make things better for you. I'm a fellow WW points counter and I know I can't get anything off the menu that won't ruin my points for the rest of the day but if they had some options listed that showed 6 points I might consider them.
 
grrrkgrrrl said:
i am extremely torn about this piece of information... on one hand, i think it's good the more nutritional info they provide for the customers..

on the other hand i think it might make many people feel "it's ok" to go and have mcdonalds often.
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There's nothing wrong with eating McDonald's regularly. It's just bad if you eat A LOT of it, as in quantity. My dad eats a Quarter Pounder w/ Cheese almost every single day and he's as healthy as a horse. Umm, assuming that horses are actually healthy.

Anyway, you can eat McDonald's as often as you want and still be healthy. You just can't stuff your face full of 3,000 calories from there on a daily basis and expect to be in peak physical condition.

chubbygirl said:
I think the point of the article is saying that McDonald's is changing the way they make fast food.
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McDonald's isn't changing a thing. The only thing that happens with this partnership is that Weight Watchers has "approved" certain McDonald's menu items to be accepted as appropriate food items for people who abide by Weight Watchers' style of dieting. McDonald's isn't trying to healthy up their menu items by changing the way they make them. They're still making the same exact things, they're just getting stamps of approval from Weight Watchers on some of their menu items.
 
I guess I misunderstood the quote in the article then:
“The switch to a healthier canola blend cooking oil means menu items such as the Filet-O-Fish and Chicken McNuggets contain 60 percent less saturated fat than they did six years ago,”

Source:
 
chubbygirl said:
I guess I misunderstood the quote in the article then:
“The switch to a healthier canola blend cooking oil means menu items such as the Filet-O-Fish and Chicken McNuggets contain 60 percent less saturated fat than they did six years ago,”

Source:
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McDonald's switched to using a canola oil blend (in the US) back in 2004, but they changed their blend shortly thereafter (I believe at the end of 2005), ending up with a canola oil and sunflower oil blend. They've been using that blend ever since, so it's not like they just changed it recently or anything. I can see how the way the article worded it would be misleading though.
 
Interestingly, there was a response movie to Super Size Me made by a guy who ate nothing but McDonald's and lost weight, and improved his cholesterol. He still ate hamburgers and fries rather than nothing but salads without dressing, but he didn't get double quarter pounders, had diet drinks, etc. You know, eating reasonably. I think it was called Bowling For Morgan.

Which is a good thing, because we don't always have the ability to cook every meal for ourselves, so being able to pick out healthier options is always positive.
 
Jeanette401 said:
Which is a good thing, because we don't always have the ability to cook every meal for ourselves, so being able to pick out healthier options is always positive.
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We do have the ability actually, because we choose what we eat. The way we eat has changed so drastically in the last 50 years. It can be just as easy, and much cheaper, to make our own meals rather than purchase them. Does that mean we should slave all day in a hot kitchen making bread? Heck no.
But is putting together our own sandwich and snacks for lunch THAT much more difficult than going for a nutrient lacking hamburger?
For my sake I hope not.

Personally, when I start believing McDonalds is a viable lunch option, my weight loss journey will be over.
Fast food got me fat, It's silly for me to believe it will help me get skinny.

And Jeanette, please don't think I am attacking you personally, I'm not, but it was thinking like this that helped me rationalize buying all that junk in the first place.
 
i personally agree with kayshiz. it doesn't take me more than 10 minutes the previous night to prepare a packed lunch and many snacks for when i spend 14+hours outside the house.
and i do have a feeling that once i feel it's ok to eat at fast food restaurants again i will have failed a big portion of my lifestyle change.

said that, i also believe it is a matter of personal choice. what works for one doesn't work for another. some people might eat at mcdonald's once a year and be content about it, for other's this once will start a downwards spiral.

so, i suppose for the second lot of people, it's good the more nutritional info they provide, but for the first group it can be an ugly trap
 
OP: It is ok to have McDonalds as long as you are ok with what it does to the body. Weight Watcher is a joke to me anyway. I think there was a thread about this before where I went off on a rant about WW. My point, people think its "ok" to go there already, this wont change that.
 
Jeanette401 said:
Interestingly, there was a response movie to Super Size Me made by a guy who ate nothing but McDonald's and lost weight, and improved his cholesterol. He still ate hamburgers and fries rather than nothing but salads without dressing, but he didn't get double quarter pounders, had diet drinks, etc. You know, eating reasonably. I think it was called Bowling For Morgan.

Which is a good thing, because we don't always have the ability to cook every meal for ourselves, so being able to pick out healthier options is always positive.
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Then why not got to a healthy fast food place.Sushie world is open till 9 30.I mean theres so many better outlets than just the old KFC,Mcdonalds,burger king,Etc People just need to look out for the little people not the Big golden arches or the big glowing Bucket with a fat old man on it.
 
Kayshiz said:
We do have the ability actually, because we choose what we eat. The way we eat has changed so drastically in the last 50 years. It can be just as easy, and much cheaper, to make our own meals rather than purchase them. Does that mean we should slave all day in a hot kitchen making bread? Heck no.
But is putting together our own sandwich and snacks for lunch THAT much more difficult than going for a nutrient lacking hamburger?
For my sake I hope not.
Click to expand...

It can be just as easy to make your own meals, but, in today's world, it hardly ever works out that way.

I gained most of my weight when I was working as a chef in Chicago. I was working 16-18 hour days at a minimum of 6 days a week, and I was left with literally no time to eat or take a break. It took me about an hour to get to work and about an hour to get home. That left me with about 4 hours to sleep every night. Where exactly in the course of my day would I have time to make my own meals? I know it's ironic, considering I was working as a CHEF (HAHAHA), but sometimes people just can't take the time to make their own food. I was too busy making other people's meals to even think of having time to make my own.

grrrkgrrrl said:
i personally agree with kayshiz. it doesn't take me more than 10 minutes the previous night to prepare a packed lunch and many snacks for when i spend 14+hours outside the house.
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Some people can't get their lunches packed in 10 minutes. Mothers and fathers with multiple children, people who have an elderly person living with them, people with extremely busy schedules, etc. As I said above, I didn't have any time for myself. I woke up, showered, left for work, worked all day, came home and went to bed. I hardly had time to even go to the bathroom. And no...I'm not kidding.

So, some people just can't fit in time to make their own meals. It's a simple concept that seems as if it should have a simple solution, but it can very easily be a difficult task to accomplish for some.

bukendaa said:
Then why not got to a healthy fast food place.Sushie world is open till 9 30.I mean theres so many better outlets than just the old KFC,Mcdonalds,burger king,Etc People just need to look out for the little people not the Big golden arches or the big glowing Bucket with a fat old man on it.
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I've never heard of Sushi World. Why? Because it's not as popular as McDonald's. There are McDonald's almost eeeeeverywhere, which is why most people go there. Instead of driving 30 minutes away to hopefully find a Sushi World or a Subway, people are just going to go 2 blocks away where they know there is a McDonald's.
 
Kayshiz said:
We do have the ability actually, because we choose what we eat. The way we eat has changed so drastically in the last 50 years. It can be just as easy, and much cheaper, to make our own meals rather than purchase them. Does that mean we should slave all day in a hot kitchen making bread? Heck no.
But is putting together our own sandwich and snacks for lunch THAT much more difficult than going for a nutrient lacking hamburger?
For my sake I hope not.

Personally, when I start believing McDonalds is a viable lunch option, my weight loss journey will be over.
Fast food got me fat, It's silly for me to believe it will help me get skinny.

And Jeanette, please don't think I am attacking you personally, I'm not, but it was thinking like this that helped me rationalize buying all that junk in the first place.
Click to expand...

I understand what you're saying, but eating at McDonald's won't automatically make you fat. And there have been times when I've been on travel where cooking my own meals was, if not impossible, then extremely difficult. Which leads me to whether or not it's worth the effort to find a grocery store in a strange town, make sure I have a hotel with a fridge, prep my food, carry a lunch bag around with me, etc. Or pick something that's healthy at McDonald's. A McDonald's hamburger isn't automatically less healthy than a hamburger I cook at home for myself, after all.

Don't get me wrong, I personally haven't been to McDonald's in years. So I'm not saying "Everyone eat there, yay!" But a lot of people fail diets because they are too restrictive. And to me, saying you HAVE to cook all your own food is pretty restrictive. Saying 'Okay, you can eat at McDonald's but make sure you don't use it as an opportunity to load up on crap is a valid alternative.

grrrkgrrrl said:
i personally agree with kayshiz. it doesn't take me more than 10 minutes the previous night to prepare a packed lunch and many snacks for when i spend 14+hours outside the house.
and i do have a feeling that once i feel it's ok to eat at fast food restaurants again i will have failed a big portion of my lifestyle change.

said that, i also believe it is a matter of personal choice. what works for one doesn't work for another. some people might eat at mcdonald's once a year and be content about it, for other's this once will start a downwards spiral.

so, i suppose for the second lot of people, it's good the more nutritional info they provide, but for the first group it can be an ugly trap
Click to expand...

I think the point I was making was that if you're in the first group and you can't not cheat eating at McDonald's then yeah, you probably shouldn't eat at McDonald's. But if you can eat reasonably at McDonald's with proper information, it's good that the information is out there :) Like I said, I haven't eaten at McDonald's in years - but that doesn't mean you have to avoid it to lose weight.

bukendaa said:
Then why not got to a healthy fast food place.Sushie world is open till 9 30.I mean theres so many better outlets than just the old KFC,Mcdonalds,burger king,Etc People just need to look out for the little people not the Big golden arches or the big glowing Bucket with a fat old man on it.
Click to expand...

There are no Sushi Worlds where I live :) And in fact, it's like you're asking "Why go to a fast food restaurant." Usually to get the food quickly ;) If time is of the essence, and the only place within 5 minutes is McDonald's... that's the place to go. But realistically speaking I don't know of any restaurant where I couldn't get a meal that's less healthy than a McDonald's grilled chicken salad, hold the dressing. In fact, if I were at Sushi World I'd probably eat more calories, have more simple carbs, and spend more money than at a McDonald's or Wendy's ;) Ditto for Subway, the 'healthier' choice. Even at home I could make myself crazy unhealthy lunches. ... Mmmmm. Pizza....

Anyway, I think part of the issue with the low fat craze was that people saw "Low fat" and thought "I can eat as much of this as I want! It's 'diet' food!" and then overate. By the same token I think it's dangerous to think that just by avoiding fast food restaurants like McDonald's you're safe. I'd rather judge by the actual nutritional information of what I'm eating than where it came from.

That was more long winded than I meant, lol. My 2 cents :D
 
ChefChiTown said:
Some people can't get their lunches packed in 10 minutes. Mothers and fathers with multiple children, people who have an elderly person living with them, people with extremely busy schedules, etc. As I said above, I didn't have any time for myself. I woke up, showered, left for work, worked all day, came home and went to bed. I hardly had time to even go to the bathroom. And no...I'm not kidding.

So, some people just can't fit in time to make their own meals. It's a simple concept that seems as if it should have a simple solution, but it can very easily be a difficult task to accomplish for some.
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I know your not kidding. I've known many people that ran days like that. I agree, my post was overly generalized. And honestly my gripes against McDonalds go way past anything weight related. In a perfect world I would hope no one would have to eat there, skinny included (and yes, HAVE to). I don't have anything against people that understand what McDonalds sells and chose to eat there anyway. It's the people that either have no other option or are forced to feed their family fast food because they can't afford to feed them anything else (this is how my husband grew up).

I wish we had more options for fast nutritious foods. The few options we do have are either few and far between or cost more.

Hopefully more restaurants like Chipotle and the sushi place someone spoke of will become the norm (and yes I know these places don't offer up lower calorie options necessarily, but they are more nutrient dense).
 
Jeanette401 said:
I understand what you're saying, but eating at McDonald's won't automatically make you fat. And there have been times when I've been on travel where cooking my own meals was, if not impossible, then extremely difficult. Which leads me to whether or not it's worth the effort to find a grocery store in a strange town, make sure I have a hotel with a fridge, prep my food, carry a lunch bag around with me, etc. Or pick something that's healthy at McDonald's. A McDonald's hamburger isn't automatically less healthy than a hamburger I cook at home for myself, after all.

Don't get me wrong, I personally haven't been to McDonald's in years. So I'm not saying "Everyone eat there, yay!" But a lot of people fail diets because they are too restrictive. And to me, saying you HAVE to cook all your own food is pretty restrictive. Saying 'Okay, you can eat at McDonald's but make sure you don't use it as an opportunity to load up on crap is a valid alternative.



I think the point I was making was that if you're in the first group and you can't not cheat eating at McDonald's then yeah, you probably shouldn't eat at McDonald's. But if you can eat reasonably at McDonald's with proper information, it's good that the information is out there :) Like I said, I haven't eaten at McDonald's in years - but that doesn't mean you have to avoid it to lose weight.



There are no Sushi Worlds where I live :) And in fact, it's like you're asking "Why go to a fast food restaurant." Usually to get the food quickly ;) If time is of the essence, and the only place within 5 minutes is McDonald's... that's the place to go. But realistically speaking I don't know of any restaurant where I couldn't get a meal that's less healthy than a McDonald's grilled chicken salad, hold the dressing. In fact, if I were at Sushi World I'd probably eat more calories, have more simple carbs, and spend more money than at a McDonald's or Wendy's ;) Ditto for Subway, the 'healthier' choice. Even at home I could make myself crazy unhealthy lunches. ... Mmmmm. Pizza....

Anyway, I think part of the issue with the low fat craze was that people saw "Low fat" and thought "I can eat as much of this as I want! It's 'diet' food!" and then overate. By the same token I think it's dangerous to think that just by avoiding fast food restaurants like McDonald's you're safe. I'd rather judge by the actual nutritional information of what I'm eating than where it came from.

That was more long winded than I meant, lol. My 2 cents :D
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Well i was not really talking about the people who eat for the "Taste" more so the people who just buy because its quick and easy.I mean "2 big macs and a large coke please" is alot more unhealthy than to California roll with a bottle of water.
 
bukendaa said:
Well i was not really talking about the people who eat for the "Taste" more so the people who just buy because its quick and easy.I mean "2 big macs and a large coke please" is alot more unhealthy than to California roll with a bottle of water.
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I live in Cleveland and there is absolutely nowhere even close to here where you can order a California Roll with a bottle of water. Not every city has the same fast food options, which is why the huge majority of people eat McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, etc. - because they're readily available.
 
Well, I love sushi, lol. Good, fast sushi would be dangerous to me.

But the difference between a California Roll and a bottle of water and 2 Big Macs and a Coke seems to have more to do with the decisions you make at a restaurant than the restaurant you pick. I could do the reverse and compare the hamburger + side salad and bottled water to the Super Sushi Combo with sake ;) I could never go to a sushi place and order a single California roll and feel satiated afterwards though. Somehow I always end up with several orders of maguro & salmon sashimi... plus the locally created "Yummy Crunch" and the miso soup, and the salad with Asian dressing... There's a reason besides price that I don't go for sushi all that often :D
 
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