Hi,

There was some talk about LA weight loss and I was wondering if anyone has tried Jenny Craig. My friend has a good 50 pounds to lose. I believe she has lost at least 25. She pays on average $50 to $100 a week. It seems she has a sugar addiction and I thought she might like low-carbing, because in Jenny Craig you are allowed sugar, which seems a hard way to break addictions. She said she believed low-carbing "was bad for the heart", and I told her I didn't believe the research supports that. Anyway, I do like the idea of having the pre-packaged food, but just wonder if people can keep it off. Any Jenny Craig thoughts?

R.M.

I haven't done Jenny Craig but a friend of mine did. She had to put out all that money for the pre-packaged foods, then she had to go to the grocery store to buy all of her fruits, veggies and things NOT included in the pre-packaged foods, i.e, condiments, milk and so on. After she starved herself into submission for several months, successfully I might add, she stopped eating all of the pre-packaged stuff and promptly gained her weight back - and then some.

Not to bash you, just to make you think - do you REALLY want to starve yourself into losing weight on a low fat, low calorie and VERY expensive plan or do you want to eat an abundance of whole natural foods at a much less expensive cost and healthily (not hungrily) lose your excess pounds?


It's your call.

shortstuff

I agree with what you're saying shortstuff. I was just impressed with her weightloss. I kind of think she will gain it back, because she does not exercise. I guess everyone wants a fast answer.

-R.M.

Hi There!

I am an ex-jenny craiger, now on a low carb program. The prepackaged meals are easy-to-use, but it was an expensive plan. You do have to go shopping weekly as well for fruits, milk, bread etc. The big thing I found is that you just get SICK of eating the same thing all the same - the weeks rotate every 3, but many of the meals are the same. I did lose weight - it was slow though, about 13 lbs in two months - which considering the costs you pay was pretty frustrating. I also found the support pretty weak. I would say 95% of the girls in my center had never had a weight problem, and had only ever lost say 10lbs max in their lives - pretty hard to relate to someone with 60lbs to lose.

Personally, I wouldn't go back.

I've done Jenny Craig -- twice! The first time I was in my late 20s and I just wanted to be a size 4 (can you believe it?). I was already at a fairly healthy 138, but I told the "counselor" there that I wanted to lose 20 lb., and she didn't bat an eyelash, despite the fact that I'm 5'6" tall. For all she cared, I could have told her I wanted to lose 30 lb. -- that means I would have stayed on the program longer.

I DID lose the weight and reach goal, but I didn't keep it off for long. Once I got off the packaged foods and had to start eating normally again, I just couldn't stick to the caloric restrictions for the weight I wanted to be. I was too hungry. I now realize that weighing 118 lb. at my height, with my build, is too little for me. I liked the feeling of being really thin, but all I did was obsess about food all day (or how little of it I was eating).

The second time I went on it I was trying to lose weight after having my second baby. Again, I lost the weight, going from about 145 to 130. By that time, however, I was fed up with low fat, low calorie diets. The weight came back, plus more.

This December I started Atkins at 150 lb. I've lost 10 lb so far and my goal is to get to a healthy 125. I'm not interested in doing it fast, I'm just taking my time. Atkins is 100 times more satisfying than Jenny Craig! Atkins is a WOE and Jenny Craig is a short term fix. Also, the JC plan is expensive, the portion sizes are too small, and the food does not taste good -- sodium and sugar are not limited in any significant sense. I'm a lifetime member of JC but as far as I'm concerned someone can have my membership! I'm sticking with Atkins.

Oh yeah, I did JC allright... 3 times.
First time when I was in college, pretty successfully. I think I lost 30+ lbs. Then again in my early 20s, didn't last very long that time... then again a couple of years ago. That was when I lost about 8 lbs, then stalled for 8 weeks (yes, 8) even though I was faithfully following their diet, and exercising. That's when I first switched to Low-Carb... needless to say, I fell off the band-wagon, so to speak.

Back on though, and feeling much better for it. I don't know of anyone other than one counsellor that was able to lose the weight with Jenny Craig and keep it off. Therefore, I wouldn't reccomend it.

Kate

Thanks for your thoughts everyone! I haven't heard anyone say they've kept the wieght off. My friend really shouldn't be spending the money because she has to stay home with a child with Rett's syndrome and doesn't work. You hate to knock a person's diet when they're losing.

I have a feeling weight loss is going to be slow for me. I've only lost a pound during the first week. When I was in college and got up to 158. I made up my own diet and easily lost the weight. It just seems harder as you get older.-R.M.

Yes, I tried it. Lost some weight - can't remember how much -- but did not keep it off.

The food was pretty expensive, and as others have said, you still had to shop. It tasted mainly like cardboard as I recall, and the portions were very, very small, and did nothing to curb my addictions or cravings, because the foods contained sugar, flour, etc. Plus, it was a pain to have to make another meal for DH.

Nothing has EVER worked for me like Atkins, nor given me back a feeling of control over what I eat. Best of all, you eat REAL food, in quantities that satisfy and you don't have to buy anything to do it, except the book.

It makes so much damn sense I still kick myself every day that I did not start years sooner.

I can't afford to try jennie creg, or weight watchers for that matter. Not only do you have to pay for them to tell you what to eat, you then have to buy the food, often thier products which aren't cheap.

With Atkins I first read the web site. Besides any related isp costs (which could be elivated by using a library or other public computer) there was no cost. I then spent $6 on the book. I still have to buy my own food, but I don't have to pay a monthly fee, or a per pound fee. I've since then bought alot more LC books, cookbooks and some occasional LC products, but overall those were my choices and it was still much cheaper then a plan.



Why? How is eating alot of veggies, protien, and later fruits bad for the heart. Isn't eating very high level sof sodium often found in the prepackeged meals much worse. Not to mention many of them contain hydroginated fats which have been proven to be bad for the heart? I relize you can follow weight watchers by eating whole food,s and probably the same with Jennie Creig. Using the prepackeged and ocnvience foods as a regular way of eating is bad on any plan though, even LC ones.

My ex-boss did...lost 40 lbs in about 5 months. Basically kept most of it off even after she went back to normal eating. I remember her eating a lot of their pre-packaged foods...I thought the portions were rediculously small...could never live like that.

Ive tried every diet under the sun. I am now on Atkins, for the second time. Here's a quick analysis of my experiences:

Anorexia: First two years of college I was anorexic. I no longer exercised, but I also didn't eat. I was down to 115 pounds (5'7") and when my boyfriend started making me eat I didn't just go back to my normal weight, I skyrocketed 90 pounds in two years.

Metabolife: Believe it or not, my first dieting experience. Quickly lost 30 pounds, I ate literally whatever I wanted but stopped eating due to no hunger.. I was in perma-PMS. Stop taking the pills and went through 3 weeks of caffeine and ephedra withdrawl migraines, puking included. I had always prided myself on being drug free...this I can no longer say. Promptly gained back 50 pounds.

Slimfast: Hahaha, this didn't even last a day. I was STARVING.

Jenny Craig: I was spending 112 dollars per week on prepackaged food and another 40 bucks on grocery food. At the same time, I joined a kickboxing class for 2 hours a day 6 days a week. I lost 40 pounds. Got tired of so much exercise and so much money for JC. Quit JC, gained back all the weight. Went on JC AGAIN, but exercised much less, lost very little and very slowly. I think honestly it was all the intense exercise and of course calorie starvation but I'd NEVER be able to maintain this diet long term.

Wieght Watchers: I did this program online. It's only 15 dollars per month and has a "system" where you count points instead of calories. For some people this system is great-it really tries to balance low fat with high complex carbs etc. At 15 bucks, it's a great price and has a LOT of support for users. However, I followed the diet to-the-letter and gained 15 pounds before giving up. I think personally I need high meat/protein and lower carbs. Unfortunately on WW you cannot eat copious amounts of ANY meat, no matter how lean it is, because meat contains so many points. I was filling up on starchy vegetables which ended up making me all that more hungry. For people who can lose on low fat diets, I recommend WW all the way.

The Zone: This is a good way of eating. You can really balance good nutrients, fats, proteins, and carbs within your food. Like Atkins, you only need the book. You generally feel better, although I was constantly hungry. I didn't lose or gain weight on this diet, but it's a nice way of eating if you're maintaining a healthy weight, I'm guessing because it truly advocates moderation and balance for the long haul.

The Body Type: Another book diet-This sort of made sense...but I equate it with reading my horoscope. I'm type O...so I should do well with high intese exercise (true) but be lactose intolerant (not true)...yada yada yada. When I wanted to believe in the diet, I focused on all the stuff that was true for me. ie. "Yeah! That's SO true! The book must be right" while not giving enough credit to the stuff that wasn't. This is just a weird way of eating in my opinion. And I lost zero pounds.

Yoga for Food: This book was really cool, although I only started reading it and heard an interview with the author. The basic idea is...listen to your body tell you what is good for it and what isn't. If you learn to hear your body, you will realize that a piece of chocolately cake just isn't as good as you think it tastes. He wasn't advocating Atkins in any form, but all the food I'm eating on Atkins is SCRUMPTIOUS...and I'm listening to my body's hunger/dehydration/fatigue signs much better, lol. So...in a way I'm doing yoga for food, hehe.

Atkins: When I first did Atkins the book was MUCH different than it is now. Unfortunately, it really is true that the Atkins diet follows any other mass marketing technique to make money. Originally you didn't have to "count" carbs in any form, you just had a list of food to eat or not eat. Cheese, bacon, sausage and all the other things that contain carbs were unlimited foodstuffs. And there were no "frakenfoods" for people who just truly love a dinner roll. (which was the first item I broke my diet with). Every once in a while I really want a muffin...now I can have one without breaking diet. This makes it much easier. I lost 15 pounds, but I just couldn't maintain a no vegie no fruit no wheat no sugar diet.

This time, though, there are phases and fiber is really stressed. There are not only limits to how many processed meats you can eat (bacon, lunchmeat, etc) but also cheese. Bad views of trans fats have been introduced, as well as bad sugar substitutes. I feel REALLY good about Atkins this time around because not only is it low carb...it's low processed/unatural foods. I think we're all going to be healthier simply because there is a diet that tastes wonderful, fills you up, and is generally healthy for you. I am obsessing about food less, I have more energy, I dont take naps, exercise is easier, my pocketbook is happy-and the weight is dropping. What more could we ask for?

-Lizzie

I personally had a great experience with JC. Lost 60 pounds in 6 months or so, without exercising. Went from 333 to about 270. And, I kept it off for 4 years! I was being made to eat ALL the time that I rarely ate everything they wanted me to eat. To this day I have cravings for their microwave pancakes...

After gaining back about 15 pounds from poor eating a couple of years ago, I couldn't afford to go back on it, so tried Atkins instead.

Now, although I'm losing slower than I did on JC, my mood swings are less frequent and I'm not a manic-depressive psychobunny. And I feel healthier, too.

Just want to add that ANY weight loss program can work...its up to the individual....otherwise, these companies would not be in business.

Slimfast: Hahaha, this didn't even last a day. I was STARVING.
Thanks Lizzie, that's quite an analysis. I bet everyone has tried slimfast!! I lost my 15 pounds once and then last year about 5 pounds on SF and gained back about 8! It seems you do lose quicker on these low calorie plans(sometimes), but people always gain it back plus interest, if you don't exercise, and it seems to get harder with successive attempt. These low calorie diets make me too weak to exercise also.-R.M.

I tried Jenny Craig many many years ago. Lost about 40 pounds on it, but eventually gained it back. That pre-packaged food gets old really quick. Plus you spend about $100/week in food alone. The program works, but its hard to stick with it.