Anyone tried Nutrisystem?

I just started Nutrisystem today.  I initially started it because I need to get strict about balancing my nutrition and convenience and what I was doing was simply not working.  I am curious to see how many calories they will have us eating in a day (which I know I will not under any circumstances let myself create any more than an 800-1000 calorie deficit and not allow myself to go below 1200 cals). 

I am wondering if anyone else has used this as an option and what their results/experiences were with it.  My dietician did not think this was a bad option, providing I stick to my calorie guidelines and all ... but I am wondering if anyone has advice, tips, or experiences to share that will help me be successful.  I am hoping that this as an option will give me the kick start I need to get my weight loss and health back to a "healthy" state.

Thanks so much in advance for all your help!

What are your plans for when you lose your weight and have to start fixing your own food again versus eating meals that show up in a package?

Just out of curiosity, is Nutrisystem expensive? I wouldn't go on it anyway, I love cooking and prefer the flexibility, just have always wondered about those things.

my father-in-law used it and he lost like 80-90 lbs.  I don't know how many calories the plan allowed him each day.  He did gain some back after going off the program but his current weight is still a big improvement over his starting weight.

Jamibuch:  I have had a lot of success with calorie counting so I know I can do it without the pre-packaged foods.  I have lost 30 lbs without the pre-packaged foods but I am getting ready to start school (in addition to being a single mom and working full-time and running a home-based business) ... making healthy meals takes a lot of time and preparation and there are times where I skip the prep and opt for eating out.  I eat out and stay within my calorie limits and it is working for weight loss purposes but not doing much for my health.  I thought this option would offer me some convenience for my busy lifestyle, while at the same time providing a healthier alternative to fast food or subway.  Plus, I think it will end up being a lot cheaper in the long run.  I just need to get through the next 9 months of school and then I will be able to get back to cooking my own meals and doing all the prep to eat healthy AND stay within my calorie limits.

Bethany_Ann:  Bethany, today is my first day so I don't have all the details in terms of what I would be spending on groceries in addition to the pre-packaged foods they send me but my shipments are $299.00 for 28 days worth of food (breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks).  However, there are some things you need to purchase in addition to their food (fresh fruits, vegies, dairy and some "good carbs" like whole wheat bread and sweet potatoes, and some good proteins like soy nuts and/or almosts, etc).  So all-in-all, I am not sure what the total cost would be when it is all said and done.  I think in my terms, it will end up costing a lot less.  I eat out a lot and buy a lot of groceries ... my last two months of grocery bills (for myself, daughter and some of her friends) totaled 2,500 ~ which is ridiculous!  So in the long run I think it will be cheaper for me in the end.  I just need to do this for the next 9 months until I finish school and then back to the healthy home-cooked meals for me as well ... which I, too, prefer when I have the time!

c4giants:  Thanks for letting me know about your father-in-law.  I think as long as I stick to what I know with calorie counting and creating good deficits that are in a healthy range I will continue to find success while on Nutrisystem and once I get off of it.  I just wasn't sure if they provided reasonable caloric meals so I could figure out how much I will have to supplement.  I will not stray from what I have learned on calorie count ... after all if it ain't broke~don't fix it!  Right?  But, I do need to do something different than swinging into the Subway or another fast food joint when I don't have time to do the necessary prep!  I appreciate your response!

Original Post by raginheadache:

Jamibuch:  I have had a lot of success with calorie counting so I know I can do it without the pre-packaged foods.  I have lost 30 lbs without the pre-packaged foods but I am getting ready to start school (in addition to being a single mom and working full-time and running a home-based business) ... making healthy meals takes a lot of time and preparation and there are times where I skip the prep and opt for eating out. 

so, um...what do you feed your kids?

pgeorgian:  I only have one and she is a teenager ... she pretty much makes her own food (unless I am home to cook then of course I will cook for her).  I do keep my fridge stocked with healthy options for her and she is quite the great cook.  But, I do not expect her to prep all my meals to take to work/school, etc.  =)

Original Post by raginheadache:

I just started Nutrisystem today.  I initially started it because I need to get strict about balancing my nutrition and convenience and what I was doing was simply not working.  I am curious to see how many calories they will have us eating in a day (which I know I will not under any circumstances let myself create any more than an 800-1000 calorie deficit and not allow myself to go below 1200 cals). 

I am wondering if anyone else has used this as an option and what their results/experiences were with it.  My dietician did not think this was a bad option, providing I stick to my calorie guidelines and all ... but I am wondering if anyone has advice, tips, or experiences to share that will help me be successful.  I am hoping that this as an option will give me the kick start I need to get my weight loss and health back to a "healthy" state.

Thanks so much in advance for all your help!

I've tried it. It does end up being less expensive for me, but I ate out 1 or 2 times a day which cost more than the $10 or so a day the NS food costs. I quit, because I just didn't like any of the food. I ended up adding a lot of salt, pepper, lemon juice, anything I could to make the food taste better, but I wasn't doing myself any favors with all the salt.

However, my mom lost a lot of weight on it. She won't tell me how much she weighed when she started, but it is a lot. I have more positive feelings toward Nutri System than Jenny Craig. I don't believe you should have to pay to lose weight AND buy their food. At least Nutri System is straightforward that way.

Also, my friend who did it with me starting getting a rash after about a week. She went to the doctor and nothing was wrong with her. I read that the preservatives in the food (to keep it shelf stable) can causes sensitivities in some people and told her. She told her doctor, stopped the food and the rash cleared. Just thought I'd tell you just in case you're one of them. I didn't have any problems on that end.

And if you only eat the meals, you will not be getting enough calories. Make sure you eat the snacks and supplement with fruits and veggies.

I tried Nutri System about two years ago......I did lose about 15 lbs. (I was about 185 lbs at the time) in approximately two months.  However, I started weight training and exercising 3 times a week in addition to this.  

After about two months sticking to the food, I got REALLY sick of it.  It all started to taste the same.  I would suggest buying frozen veggies that you can steam in the package to go along with it.  Good luck  

I think the biggest thing that makes nutrisystem unhealthy is the amount of preservatives it takes to keep the food good for 30 days. No way that's healthy.

Original Post by jamibuch:

I think the biggest thing that makes nutrisystem unhealthy is the amount of preservatives it takes to keep the food good for 30 days. No way that's healthy.

I agree and it can cause reactions and sensitivities in some people.

I've never tried it, but I don't think it sounds healthy, or even helpful. And wayy too expensive. You could pretty much do what you pay nutrisystem to do for you, for much, much less.

All of their food is laden with preservatives and kept in such a state that it cannot possibly be as good as freshly prepared food. 

It works for some people because it's a certain serving size, and along with their "plan", basically all you are doing is eating less, so obviously you're losing weight. Why pay more to eat less?

I'm not going to tell anyone not to try it because that's their choice. I just don't think it helps with a better lifestyle -- for the reasons that it might teach you portion control, but as with any "modified" weightloss plan, once you get off it, you need to know what you're going to do without it.

That's why learning as much as you can and using CC to track your food intake is much better than using a "hardcoded" way of weightloss.

I prefer to eat real food. It's cheap, it's tasty, it's far more satisfying, and I know the ingredients that go into it.

Packaged food like Nutrisystem bothers me. I am not a big fan of eating artificial chemicals.

I am sorry to say that I did try it about two years ago or so. And the taste of it was just horrible.  I mean you could have substituted what ever the "meal" was with a kitchen sponge and I wouldn't have tasted a difference. I lasted about a week before I threw it all out.  If you are using this as a way of learning portion control buy a food scale and make your own foods.  Trust me, it is way more nutritious and delicious. 

I second buying a food scale for portioning if that is the issue and save money on the prepackaged stuff like Nutrisystem. My dad has been on Nurtisystem like 3 or 4 times, and obviously if he has used it a lot it wasn't a long term help as he regained weight and didnt learn portion control. If you are gonna maintain long term and have been successful with calorie counting, why fix something that isnt' broke?  - and your fridge you said already has healthy stuff in it for your daughter, why not just continue the calorie counting?

Original Post by sleepydumpling:

 If you are using this as a way of learning portion control buy a food scale and make your own foods.  Trust me, it is way more nutritious and delicious.

I am not using this as a way of learning portion control.  I have been doing CC for the last 9 months and I have learned a lot about balance, calorie counting and portion control.  I have recently added schooling (full-time with a very long commute) to my already busy lifestyle.  What was happening was that I was finding it difficult to continue pre-making all my meals for the week and freezing them because of my dwindling time.  What I found was I was opting to eat out like at Subway or even other fast food drive-thrus (choosing "healthier" options) and it was costing me a FORTUNE!  I was still able to lose weight because I maintained the appropriate balance but I was finding myself hungry and knew it meant I wasn't eating properly! 

I chose Nutrisystem (select) which is the fresh to frozen food delivered to your door (much like we would do if we pre-made things and froze them ourselves) because I wanted to save money and have the ability to stay full (which so far after 3 days is working and saving me about 500 this month).  Once school is over, I plan on going right off of this Nutrisystem frozen pre-packaged stuff and right back to what I was doing the 9-months prior.  You are right that doing it yourself is tastier (and probably healthier) but in my situation I just wasn't getting the job done and it was costing me!  I thought this might be a better and cheaper way to stay on my plan until school is over!

Thanks for your response.

Original Post by j_u_l_i_e000:

 why not just continue the calorie counting?

My time has become limited because I recently went back to school.  I sort of answered this in a previous post.  I don't want to fix something that isn't broken ... but I also DO want to save my pocket book and opt for convenience until I graduate and then right back to doing it myself.

Thanks for your response.

Original Post by merylwhite1:

I prefer to eat real food. It's cheap, it's tasty, it's far more satisfying, and I know the ingredients that go into it.

Packaged food like Nutrisystem bothers me. I am not a big fan of eating artificial chemicals.

Normally, I would agree with you 100%.  But, I also know what MY reality looks like and what isn't happening is me preparing those healthy meals ahead of time to get them on my 4 four hour commute and through 5 hours of school, a job, a business and a teenage daughter and working out.  When I do have extra time, I find myself sleeping or spending time with family, etc. and preparing meals in advance is not high on my priority list as my time gets more constrained.  I look at this as a better solution to eating out, which is what has started happening over the last 3 months -- causing me to spend way more money than I want to on meals AND leaving me hungry and vulnerable to snacking on unhealthy options. 

So far, after three days, the pre-packaged fresh to frozen meals delivered to my door have tasted great and have kept me full while saving me a ton of money!  I think this is looking like a great alternative to eating out ... and it is only for the next nine months until I graduate -- then right back to making all my own stuff!

Original Post by missmoonlight:

All of their food is laden with preservatives and kept in such a state that it cannot possibly be as good as freshly prepared food. 

I'm not going to tell anyone not to try it because that's their choice. I just don't think it helps with a better lifestyle -- for the reasons that it might teach you portion control, but as with any "modified" weightloss plan, once you get off it, you need to know what you're going to do without it.

That's why learning as much as you can and using CC to track your food intake is much better than using a "hardcoded" way of weightloss.

1) the option I chose is fresh to frozen delivered weekly so I don't think it is as laden with chemicals as the stuff that is like field rations.  I look at it much like I would be doing this myself anyway and now I am paying them to do it for me.

2) for me this isn't about learning portion control, been doing CC for a long while now but time is getting in my way and money for eating out is getting burdensome.

3) I whole-heartedly agree with your outlook on CC and tracking your prepared foods but this not really about weight loss for me ... it is about making practical choices under extreme circumstances and hoping to still lose weight. 

Original Post by raginheadache:

Original Post by sleepydumpling:

 If you are using this as a way of learning portion control buy a food scale and make your own foods.  Trust me, it is way more nutritious and delicious.

I am not using this as a way of learning portion control.  I have been doing CC for the last 9 months and I have learned a lot about balance, calorie counting and portion control.  I have recently added schooling (full-time with a very long commute) to my already busy lifestyle.  What was happening was that I was finding it difficult to continue pre-making all my meals for the week and freezing them because of my dwindling time.  What I found was I was opting to eat out like at Subway or even other fast food drive-thrus (choosing "healthier" options) and it was costing me a FORTUNE!  I was still able to lose weight because I maintained the appropriate balance but I was finding myself hungry and knew it meant I wasn't eating properly! 

I chose Nutrisystem (select) which is the fresh to frozen food delivered to your door (much like we would do if we pre-made things and froze them ourselves) because I wanted to save money and have the ability to stay full (which so far after 3 days is working and saving me about 500 this month).  Once school is over, I plan on going right off of this Nutrisystem frozen pre-packaged stuff and right back to what I was doing the 9-months prior.  You are right that doing it yourself is tastier (and probably healthier) but in my situation I just wasn't getting the job done and it was costing me!  I thought this might be a better and cheaper way to stay on my plan until school is over!

Thanks for your response.

If it is a matter of convenience and cost cutting (and who couldn't use that) and it really will help, I hope it goes well for you. Let us know at the end of the month how it worked for you.

Ragin- I have lots of friends who have tried nutrisystem with results, but short lived ones. Not because they couldnt stick with the routine, but because the food was soooo bad and horrible tasting. I hope they have improved it recently, because the stuff they were eating looked terrible.

You could probably buy lean cuisine or smart ones for about the same cost and they taste better. Let us know after you try it.