You might also choose to make an adjustment temporarily for one reason or another; again,
we recommend talking with your Leader before you do so.
Does my daily ProPoints allowance ever change?
It can, for a couple of reasons. Your ProPoints allowance might change with a birthday. It also might
change as your weight loss progresses. Most often, weigh-ins will show that your daily ProPoints allowance
should remain the same, but your Leader will check it regularly. Your Weight Watchers eTools* and
ProPoints Calculator** will recalculate your daily ProPoints allowance every time you update your weight.
How do ProPoints values work?
ProPoints values reflect the energy that’s available after you’ve processed a food, by factoring in the
way key nutrients — protein, fibre, carbohydrates, and fat — are processed. Your body works harder to
process protein and fibre, which also contribute to feelings of fullness. The kilojoules spent on processing
are used by your body — that’s good news for weight loss. Your body doesn’t work as hard to process
non-fibre carbs and fat — this is not as good for weight loss. Also, fat and non-fibre carbs contribute less
to feelings of fullness. Even when their kilojoules are the same, protein and fibre-rich foods have a lower
ProPoints value than foods containing a lot of fat and non-fibre carbs.
How do I find out the ProPoints value of a food or drink?
You can look up ProPoints values in our many resources: The Weight Watchers eTools* database of
foods, available on your computer, smartphone, and tablet, includes values for over 20,000 foods.
There are also printed lists: Your Pocket Guide and the Shop and Eat Out guides.**
You can calculate ProPoints values using the information on a food’s nutritional label — protein, fibre,
carbs, and fat. Just use Weight Watchers eTools or enter that info into the Weight Watchers Mobile
Tracker app* or a ProPoints Calculator.**
How do I calculate the ProPoints value of a recipe?
There are several ways to figure out the ProPoints value per serving of a recipe.
•
Use our Recipe Builder tool, available on eTools.*
•
Enter the nutritional information (protein, fibre, carbs, and fat) into the calculator on eTools, or into
a ProPoints Calculator.**
• Use the ProPoints Kitchen Scales** to accurately weigh ingredient portions and to calculate the
ProPoints values for any food or recipe.
•
Use simple recipe calculations: Add the ProPoints values of the ingredients and then divide by the
number of servings. Note: This method is less accurate than others because it adds up values that
have already been rounded (ProPoints values are always rounded to the nearest whole number).
How do I calculate the ProPoints value of a restaurant menu item?
The Weight Watchers eTools* database includes the menu items of many nationwide chain restaurants.
So does the Eat Out guide.** Start with one of those. Check the restaurant’s website — does it list the
nutritional information of its menu items? If all else fails, estimate. Usually, by asking the waiter questions
about preparation and examining the dish's ingredients, you can get pretty close. The “Portion Sizes”
section in your Pocket Guide or on the Weight Watchers Mobile Tracker app* can help you assess the
number of portions in your dish. Then just factor in how many portions you’re going to eat.
Why are certain foods — like alcoholic drinks — difficult to calculate?
Alcoholic beverages do not require a nutritional label unless it carries a nutritional claim such as
low-carb beer, which makes it difficult to calculate the ProPoints value for these items. The presence
of alcohol contributes towards a higher ProPoints value. Government-released nutritional data for
4 f r e q u e n t ly as k e d q u e st i o n s