By Nanci Hellmich, USA TODAY  ' members are upset that the company has changed its popular weight-loss program, but others say the new plan will push them to make better food choices.  Last week, the company introduced PointsPlus to replace the old Points plan, which has been used by tens of millions of people for the past 13 years.  Members can't combine the old and the new plans but have to make the switch. One big difference between the two: Fresh fruits and most vegetables don't need to be counted on PointsPlus.  "I am equal parts cranky and excited about the new program," says Elizabeth Cullen, 40, of Wallingford, Conn., who lost 120 pounds on the original points plan. "Cranky because I have to learn and re-point everything again and excited because it's like starting new in the program.  "Nothing like a new program to put the fear of points into you," she says.  Cullen believes the plan is steering her toward making better food choices. On the old plan, she could choose whether to use two points at lunch for a chocolate treat or a banana. She says she selected the chocolate every time. Now that a banana has zero points, the odds are stacked in favor of fruit, she says.  Her husband, Martin Lilienthal Jr., 41, who lost 90 pounds on the old points plan, says the new one is encouraging him to cut back on processed foods. "The normal Weight Watchers desserts we eat and the snack bars seem to have doubled, but our daily points have not doubled, so we should be cutting down on those types of things."  Both Cullen and Lilienthal lost 3.8 pounds their first week on the program. "We haven't lost that much weight in a week in some time," he says.  Jim Stone, 53, of Madison, Ala., says originally he was intent on not doing the new program because he lost 73 pounds on the old one. "I ended up going to the meeting with an open mind, and I decided that I like how they have changed it."  He lost 2.6 pounds the first week on the program and says it seems to be working well for him.  Weight Watchers meetings were "packed" last week because many members came to learn about the changes, says Karen Miller-Kovach, chief scientific officer for Weight Watchers, who designed both the new and old programs.  She says some dieters are trying to create their own hybrid program instead of letting go of the old plan and following the new one. Doing that "won't result in weight loss, and it will result in unnecessary anxiety and stress levels."  The values for the new plan take into account that protein and fiber are important for fullness and warding off hunger, she says.  The company introduced the program right after Thanksgiving so existing members could learn the system before January when many new people typically come to meetings, she says.  You share in the USA TODAY community, so please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack other readers personally, and keep your language decent. Use the "Report Abuse" button to make a difference.
While some members are upset about the change, others are finding the new PointsPlus system is giving their weight-loss efforts a kick-start.