Click go weight-loss shears for our computer dieters

Sun Herald, Sydney 12 February 2006 (Pdf 544KB)

By Amy Lawson

AUSTRALIA'S online weight-loss industry is booming, fuelled by time-poor, internet-savvy customers looking for diet advice at the click of a mouse button.

Providers of online weight-loss programs say that, while their websites are unlikely to replace face-to-face services, they fill a gap in the market that caters to self-motivated, health-conscious people.

Weight Watchers has followed the lead of several US-based diet companies in launching its online program in December.

Debra Chesterton, marketing and product development manager for Weight Watchers online, said meetings would continue to be the cornerstone of their business, but the online program tapped into another section of the weight-loss market.

"It's all about choice - no program is going to suit everyone's needs," she said. "It's aimed at the self-directed dieter who prefers to lose weight on their own, but who is still looking for a proven system and framework that fits around their lifestyle to help them achieve their weight-loss goals.

"And for people who live in rural or remote areas who may want to attend a meeting but can't, this is a good way of bringing Weight Watchers to them."

Subscribers to the site pay a joining fee plus a monthly cost. They can track their daily "points" intake online and identify which exercises will earn them extra points.

Australian-based Mikibo is another newcomer to the online weight-loss market.

Mikibo's founder and managing director, exercise physiologist Toby Heap, said the site promoted the sound scientific principle of balancing energy consumption - food - with energy use - activity.

Mikibo, an acronym for "My (mi) balanced (ki) body (bo)", is a free site that provides tools such as food and exercise diaries, training programs, dietary analysis, articles and support groups for those who want to lose weight or get healthy.

"I don't see my site as replacing face-to-face services, I'm not competing with that side of the health and fitness industry . . . I see myself as complementing them," Dr Heap said.

"I don't think you can ever replace face-to-face contact, particularly from a motivational aspect.

"Some people need a personal trainer or dietitian or nutritionist to give them advice and make sure they stick to it.

"This is just another tool in someone's arsenal to try and get fit and healthy."

Katherine Lowe, 35, has been using the Mikibo site for a few months to help her maintain a healthy lifestyle, rather than lose weight.

She said she was drawn to the convenience of an online tool that calculates one's daily energy intake and output.

"I do a lot of stuff online, more and more people are, and I wouldn't go to a personal trainer because I'm quite self-motivated," she said.

"I don't believe in fad diets and I think people need to be educated about how to eat more healthily, so it's fantastic from that point of view."

The online weight-loss industry is also hugely popular in the US, where websites such as e-Diets offer users personalised menus according to their diet of choice, including Atkins and South Beach.

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