Packaged Meals and Clinics - Nutrisystem, Medifast, Jenny Craig, Etc - Any Current Jenny Craig Members?

I'd love to have someone to chat with here about Jenny Craig. I don't find the JC boards to be as friendly as the chicks here.

Hi Vickie,

I've been doing JC this time around for about 2-1/2 years. I've reached my goal and then added five lbs. to it. I still haven't got there and gained a few pounds since then.

Jenny has really helped me with structure, which I seem to lack. I am trying to motivate myself to take off the extra lbs and then hopefully get to my ultimate goal.

How long have you been doing Jenny Craig and how do you like it so far? Looks like you are off to a good start!

Hi Chrstna! Sorry, I'm not sure what your name is. I'm SO excited that someone responded. I hope there are other JC lurker Chicks here.

How wonderful for me to have found a JC expert who has been so successful.

I've been overweight and/or obese most of my life. I've lost 75 pounds on a bariatrics diet, 60 pounds on Optifast, and 45 pounds on Weight Watchers and always gained the weight back. Clearly, I need to learn portion control and have someone help me learn how to get to my goal and then keep the weight off.

I'm 52 years old with a wonderful husband, family, and friends. My husband is doing Nutrisystem and everyone else in my life is completely supportive. I feel like Jenny Craig is my last chance. I don't want to have surgery. I feel like this weight has me as a walking time bomb. I have high blood pressure and who knows what else.

I know this sounds like a downer. I really am hopeful and feeling good about the program. But I'm also scared of failing again. My Center director and first meeting was awesome and supportive. And, I like my Counselor very much. I intend to follow the program faithfully for as long as it takes but I'm awash in emotions; some good and some bad.

AND emotions make me eat. Any suggestions for someone like me who has SO much weight to lose?

They have me on 1700 calories plus one starch. I'm still trying all the food and am pretty confident that I'll be able to come up with enough that I like to have some variety. I haven't been REALLY hungry which is important for me. I don't do hungry well! I couldn't get all the fruit down; 1 cup servings just seemed huge for cut up fruit/grapes, etc. so they cut me down this week to 1/2 cup. I'm in my third week and just incorporated exercise so I'm hopeful that I'll have a good third weigh in.

It was great to hear from you. I'm SO impressed that you've been on program for 2 1/2 years and have lost so much weight. It gives me hope.

Hi Vickie,

Please know you aren't alone. Our stories are very similar.

I was always the fat kid. As my earlier post said, this isn't the first time that I've used Jenny. I think I've been on this program 3 other times beforehand. The first time I had great success, but put the weight back on. I also did really well with Weight Watchers and there again, put it back on. In between there have been many, many attempts at other at-home/fad diets.

Even though I loved Weight Watchers, and I'd recommend it to anyone, I found myself joining the first of the year with everyone else, fatter every year. For ME, it gave me too much freedom and after the first few weeks of my own motivation, I was always back to cheating.

I believe I was born to be fat. Whether it be genetics or plain old socialization, I'm wired to be overweight. BUT, that doesn't mean I can't do something about it. I might have to work a lot harder than the skinnies out there, but if I did the work I could help change it.

This go around I tried to work very hard on forgiveness. That has been difficult. I have always had these ideas of fat/cheating/bad; skinny/deprivation/good. If I had fallen off the wagon and I was a bad person, why continue? But then I thought about how silly that thinking really is. How often had I quit? How often did I put the weight back on? Um, every time. I needed to quit the cycle. If I had a bad day or bad week, oh well. I couldn't go back, so I needed to just get over it and just keep doing what I had been doing before my "bad" episodes! I think that is what has helped pull me through this time. So far.

Vickie, I don't mean to get too "Dr. Phil" on you, but I do struggle all the time. In fact that's where I'm at right now. I'm hoping, perhaps, we can help motivate each other.

Take care,
Christina

Hi Christina! Thanks so much for your post. We do have very, very much in common. You seem to be faster about putting the brakes on than I am. That's something to be proud of. I love WW too. My plan is to lose all my weight on JC and then use a combination of both programs to keep the weight off.

I've definitely been socialized to be fat. Food is love in my family. I'm trying to break that cycle. I'd love to change from being a live to eat girl into a eat to live one instead.

I love your introspection. I, too, am working hard on not letting lapses become collapses. One bad meal or mistake doesn't mean to throw it all away. I'm sorry to hear that you struggle all the time but it's good for me to hear. I need to get over the thinking that this will ever be done. I will have to be vigilant for the rest of my life. That used to depress me but it doesn't any more.

The second week I lost 1 pound and the third week I only lost .4. I'm hoping for a really big loss this week. I haven't been able to exercise much and my life is very sedentary. I know that's hampering me. I only walked on the treadmill once last week, but have been on 3 times already this week. I'm following the program to the letter. That's all I can do.

I'll help you in whatever way I can. I have a feeling that you will be much more inspiring than I. So did you lose all 58 pounds on JC this most recent time?

I'm on JC also! It's slow gowing but steady, and I feel pretty good about it. I'm down 16 and need to lose another 56, maybe more, but I'll wait to decide that when I get there. I have a great JCC, she's been very helpful and keeping me on track. The thing I like the most about my experience with the program is that learning to change my approach to weight loss and food in my daily life - finding a way to stay on track and also manage social situations and other times that staying OP won't work.

Even while continuing to "have a life" I'm making decent progress. I'm averaging about 1 lb per week, and that's fine with me because I'd rather go slower with a managable lifestyle than power diet and gain it back after I can no longer maintain the lifestyle.

I'm glad to see this thread, as there is very little JC talk on the site, and this is my favorite WL board. I'm glad to have some folks to talk to!

Hello Ladies,

I weighed in yesterday and lost 0.4 lbs. I was hoping for more, after increasing my exercise, but alas not to be. Oh, well a loss is better then the gain I had the week before. Onward!

Vickie, yes I lost this 58 lbs. this go round. I think I tried Jenny about 16 years ago. The food is much better now. What are your favorites?

Welcome, Kimana. Sixteen pounds is a great start! Sounds like you have a great attitude. I have never been a fast loser, so I try hard to be patient.
How are you liking the program?

It's been raining here off and on for several days. I'm a walker, so it's easy for me to make excuses for not exercising. I usually walk at lunch, but since it was raining I forced myself to drive to the mall and walk there. I'm glad I did. Now I need to convince myself that I need to do a little more tonight. Perhaps, walk on my Wii Fit while watching TV.

Keep me updated on your progress. Hopefully we can get this thread going again!

Take care,
Christina

Hi Kimana! I feel the same about 3FC's. I've always liked the people here better than on other boards. I'm glad to meet you. I'd be delighted to lose an average of 1 pound a week. I'd love more, but who wouldn't. Like you, I don't want to become completely obsessed with this....just partially obsessed. I do want to have a life too! I have a menopausal body that gets in my way occasionally. I'm determined not to make excuses this time, though. I'd love to know more about you. Where are you from? Kids? Hubby? I'm 52, married to my best friend, with no children. We got married late in life (I was 35 and my hubby was 41). First for me, second for him. We met at work....I know!....and became great friends, then dated and got married. We'd been living and working together for years, now we are early retired from the Federal Government after working there for 30+ years. Now we are together 24/7 while retired. We like each other and that makes a difference. As I said earlier, I've been fighting my weight all my life. This time I am going to win. I'm going to lose it AND keep it off.

Great job, Christina. You were concerned you weren't going to lose at all. .4 is what I lost last week. I understand how you feel. Any loss is great but we always hope for more. Don't we?! AND, 58 pounds is just positively outstanding! Did you walk last night after the mall? I don't make myself exercise on my weigh in day. NO good reason. I'm just getting going again. I went from one day of exercise to 5 days last week. I do the treadmill in my living room. I'm starting out very slowly since I am VERY heavy and VERY out of shape. I'm up to 22 minutes at 1.8 mph. I'm going to keep increasing the time until I get to 30 minutes, then I'll increase the speed. Slowly of course. I usually injure myself by trying to do too much too soon and then I quit exercising all together. Not good or effective. So what's you life like?

My weigh in is on Monday. I lost 2.2 this week. My goal is to lose 1.6 or more next week so that I can be in the 200's!

Talk to you all soon.

Hey!
I just joined Jenny Craig two weeks ago and so far so good. I have lost 6 lbs so far so I'm pleased but it is VERY expensive so I'm not sure I can stay on it for as long as I need to because I have so much weight to loose! How do you like it so far???:woops:

Hello Lady Bug! You are doing great! We are both at the beginning of our journey, aren't we? I have 160 pounds to lose so I'll be here a long time.

I'm liking Jenny so far. I haven't tried all the food yet but I'm working my way through the order sheet. I'm going to try almost everything once. I thought I would like some things (the stuffed sandwiches) and didn't and I AM liking things I didn't think I would (chili, rotini and meatballs). I'm eating mostly frozen. I've read some at the JC board and didn't like it there very much. Everyone has different tastes/opinions about the food so I just decided to try the stuff for myself.

I joined the rewards plan, so I was able to save money on my food. Apparently, they only offer this program to people with certain health insurance plans. It would be expensive to eat healthy on any plan because fresh produce and fruit is expensive. My husband is doing Nutrisystem so I KNOW expensive. We've convinced ourselves that this is important and we are worth it. We'll cut cable or something else if we have to.

Hope everyone is having a great week.

:?: Started JC end of Dec08. My motivation is wavering..I haven't been in 2 weeks will try to get back this week. I am embarassed because I gained back a pound or two.sigh

Hi Lisa! Can you explain why you feel your motivation is wavering? If you give us details, maybe we can help.

Hi Vickie!

How's it going for you? I'm glad you are still keeping this thread going.

I, too, am wavering. I wish I could put my finger on it, but I've been a total binge eater. Last night it was almost a whole bag of mini rice cakes. I was going to eat the whole thing, but I stopped myself. Even though there were only a few left, I felt like I needed to at least leave a few in the bag to show myself I have a modicum of self control. Whatever!

I have been in this vicious cycle of trying to "start" over and then I sabotage myself with the binging.

Maybe it's boredom? I don't know. I just know it needs to stop.

Christina

Oh Christina, bummer! You weren't happy with your last loss so maybe that's derailing you. Just brush yourself off and get back on program, one meal at a time. Rice cakes, huh? Not such a bad binge. I know a calorie is a calorie but it's better than what I used to binge on. I know you think you're worth this, right?

I'm plugging away. I lost 1.8 last week and am down 10.8. I'm just trying to be the little train that could. I don't even entertain eating other food. I'm just on JC....that's the rule. I eat one dinner out a week and even that is healthy.

You are doing SO good, Vickie. Thank you for the words of encouragement.

You sound very focused. This diet thing can be pretty easy when you are focused, isn't it? Can you rub off a little on me?

Yesterday was still challenging, but my scale was down a tiny bit, so maybe I just need to stop stresssing so much. I need to stop feeling sorry for myself and try to channel that energy on something more beneficial, like exercising.

Eventually I'll get back on track with you. I haven't given up completely yet, so I know there is still hope. Just be patient with my whining.

It was raining last week so it made it harder to get motivated with my walking, but we shouldn't be getting any more rain for a few days. It is very beautiful outside toda, we can see a lot of snow in the mountains, so I know that will help me.

Are you doing any excercise?

Christina, I just know that I have been where you are a million times. Never worry about whining with me. I do it myself. Yesterday, I had a very blue day but I pushed through it somehow. I really do want to succeed this time very badly. I'm scared for my health. My BMI is positively frightening. I was feeling very sorry for myself yesterday and didn't want to exercise. It took me until 5:00 in the evening to get on the treadmill but I finally made it.

I walk on my treadmill 4 or 5 days a week. I'm just starting out and am just under 300 pounds so I'm taking it easy. I usually start out too ambitious, injure myself to the point where I can no longer exercise. I started out quite slow and short but now I am walking at 2.0 mph for 28 minutes. My plan is to get to 30 minutes and then increase the speed slowly. Then I'll try to stay on longer. My treadmill is in the middle of my living room in front of a 36 inch TV with cable and a VCR/DVD. No excuses for this chick! Well, none that don't sound lame anyway!

I'm SO happy to hear that you haven't given up. You are so close to your goal. I need to know that it is possible to reach goal and maintain. So do it and I'll live vicariously through you for now. How about that?

I forgot to mention that last Monday's weigh in got me under 300. That was a great feeling. Still.....a LONG way to go. But, milestones are still fun.

Hello! I found this site literally years ago but believe this is my first post. 13 weeks after my first and only baby was born, I broke my ankle which required surgery and months of staying completely off the ankle -- I not only retained my baby weight but gained too. I am a married working mother -- very little, if any, 'me' time after work and family obligations. A couple of years ago I tried WW -- it worked for awhile but I lost motivation and gained back the weight. The last several months I have been thinking about hypnosis, acupuncture, therapy...and then I read an article about how weight loss businesses are struggling and Jenny Craig was mentioned as being a program that offers one-on-one coaching. Ding! I went last night and signed up for their Premium Success Program:D

I like to cook and will miss being creative in the kitchen but I feel I need to do something drastically different and Jenny makes eating healthy very easy. For now I am thrilled I no longer have to spend energy making meal plans for the week only to be sidelined by "I feel like Thai take-out tonight." I left with two big bags of food, stopped by the grocery store for a few more items -- I love that they give you the shopping list! -- and now I can concentrate on taking care of myself without worrying about 'what should I eat?' I feel a tremendous sense of freedom!!!

Of course this is Day One so the motivation is strong....the trick will be keeping the momentum going. I hope to connect with people on this board that will help me on the journey to a healthier place.

Stacy, Congratulations on beginning Jenny. I think, based on your description of your life, Jenny will work for you. I've got 148.8 pounds left to lose so I'll be here with you. My intention is to stick with JC until I lose it all. I always did Weight Watchers but never really took it seriously. I'm enjoying the one on one counseling.

Cute tracker! As they say...a picture is worth a thousand words.

Welcome Stacy! I, too, have done WW. It is a great program, but I had the same experience. Lack of motavation leading to weight gain. I think their principles are great, though. If you are looking for a lot of structure and easy of use, Jenny is the place for you. You sound like you are starting off with a great outlook.

Hi Vickie! It sounds like you are doing great. Slow and steady does win the race. So keep on doing what you are doing.

I weighed in last Sunday and gained a pound. This week I still continue to struggle, but feel like I'm doing a little bit better. I'm not excercising as much, but trying to get my mindless snacking under control. I'm not sure that it will show a loss on the scale this week, but hopefully it will contain the gaining.

Hope you are all doing well.
Christina

Feeling better is great, Christina. How come you aren't exercising? Just curious I hate it and have to force myself.

Thanks for the welcome Vickie and Christina. It's great to communicate with others going through the same struggle. Today is day four for me on Jenny and I feel things are going great! The food is tasty (although I did not much like the chicken carbonara) and I feel like there is plenty to eat. As a matter of fact, I can't always get to the snacks. I know I am in the honeymoon phase and the real work lies ahead -- starting a lifestyle change is easy for me, making it stick is the challenging part! I have not started any exercise program as of yet but I will work that in soon. The part I love about Jenny the most is that everything is planned for you -- it makes it so easy!!! Tonight I roasted a bunch of veggies for the week. Taking care of myself is finally becoming a priority. w00t w00t!

I saw Debbie H. speak today at a Jenny Craig Center in Seattle (she is a featured success story -- I can't post a link because I am so new). She was very inspiring and stressed how important it is focus, plan and believe in yourself. During her 17 months of weight loss she did not stray once from her food plan -- what determination! She is going to be featured in a commercial for Jenny to begin airing in April.

Good for all of us for wanting to make positive changes to our lives!

Hi Stacy! I'm so happy that you feel things are going great. I'll try not to nag but you do need to make sure that you eat all your food.

I didn't like the chicken carbonara very much the first time. I bought it again and liked it better the second time. I think you'll find that your tastes change the longer you are on program. I don't eat it every week, but it's definitely in my rotation. I tried just about everything once and gave them all a rating of 1 to 5. Some got "X's" through them because they didn't even deserve a 1 to me. If you are reading on the JC board, try not to be overly influenced by other peoples opinions of the food. Even the things I didn't care for, I was still able to finish. I had two exceptions....anytime bars and the soupitizers.

My favorites are the chicken fettuccine, meatloaf, turkey and dressing, and fish and chips baked in the oven. My lunch favorites are the turkey burger, chili con carne, and the personal pizza. I like the chicken sandwich too but it needs dressing up.

I can't believe you saw Debbie H.! She is my hero. I saw her poster in the Center the first day that I was thinking about signing up. I just learned what her name was yesterday and I just got to read her success story. I'll post the link. She lost 221 pounds. I'm so excited that she is going to have a commercial.

As a good friend of mine says, "Life is Good".

Here's Debbie H.'s success story and before and after pictures.

http://www.jennycraig.com/successstories/details/200623/

I do know I need to eat my food and a gentle nudge to do so is not a problem. Debbie H. said that she tried dropping her calorie intake down to 1500 and actually gained weight so had to bring it back up to 1700. Whoduthunk you would have to eat to loose weight?!!

I have glanced at the Jenny boards and the overwhelming thumbs down for the Anytime Bars is obvious. I don't find them unedible but I do eat them with a cup of tea which probably helps. I have really liked most all of the food in spite of leaning towards being a vegetarian -- the portions have so little meat its been fine. I agree the meatloaf was great, I liked the macaroni and the loved the mesquite chicken. Tonight I am going to try the fish and chips which I was told to cook in the oven.

We have a family birthday party tonight where everyone is meeting up at Claim Jumper for dinner. I am going to stay home and meet up with the group at an inlaws house for the present/cake part of the party. I am certain some family members will take it as a snub but I can't worry about them -- yes, I have been down this road before but (hopefully) this time will be different. My inlaws eat horrible food (pizza, chips, pop, chocolate) but somehow manage to maintain normal body weight. Prior to meeting my husband I successfully struggled to maintain my weight, after marriage and prekid, it was a difficult struggle to keep my weight 20 lbs. above what I felt was comfortable and then after the kid and broken ankle I just gave up and ate, ate, ate. One of my most difficult struggles is going to be coming up with creative ways to eat healthy when in the presence of my inlaws which is a frequent occurrence. I don't necessarily think they are saboteurs as much as I don't believe they have any idea what it is like to struggle with a weight issue -- they are just clueless. And even though my father-in-law has diabetes, his attitude is "I eat what I want and take insulin. No big deal." Of course he frequently crashes and his overall health is abysmal.

But back to me, I need to focus on what I need when these events come up and by not attending dinner tonight I am taking a huge step. The good news is my husband is perfectly ok with it -- whatever I feel I need to do is ok with him.

I promise to keep my nudges mostly to myself, Stacy! And when I can't help myself you can count on the fact that they will be gentle. Nothing worse than a know it all.

I did my fish and chips on a cookie sheet sprayed with pam spray for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. I flipped everything half way through. The fries were awesome and so was the fish. The fries got a bit crispy but the fish did not. It tasted good anyway, despite the fact that I am just learning to eat fish. I do the yogurt in place of the anytime bars.

I'm proud of you for putting yourself first in stead of caring what your inlaws think. Clearly your husband is very supportive and honestly, that makes all the difference in the world as far as I'm concerned. Awesome hubby!

I have an awesome supportive hubby too. He's doing Nutrisystem. I tried but could NOT eat that powdered food. He's already lost 21 pounds to my 11.2. Those darn men lose faster. Plus, he's on the treadmill for an hour every day. I'm only up to 40 minutes 5 or 6 times a week. I'm not competing with him. I'm proud, though!

Good luck tonight.

That is great you have a supportive hubby that is actually working his own program. My husband is willing to be supportive to a point but he does not want to go to any Jenny weigh-ins, etc. I am hoping I can purchase extra dinner entrees so we can at least have a similar dinner -- and he has agreed to bring a sandwich, sun chips and an apple for lunch at work.

Tonight went well. I did not get grilled about why I was not at dinner which made me happy. While they ate cheesecake, I had my chocolate walnut brownie and milk that I brought -- easy since I prefer chocolate over cheesecake any day of the week!

I have my second Jenny appointment tomorrow evening and I know I lost a few pounds -- I won't feel any sense of accomplishment until I get below 175 since I have lost these 20 lbs. over and over and over the last several years. Nonetheless looking forward to getting more food *lol* and having my first real appointment with a coach -- last week's meeting was essentially a sales pitch which was really not necessary since my mind was made up to join.

Cheers to a great week everyone!

Congratulations, Stacy and good luck at weigh in. Mine is today. Interestingly enough, my JC Center said Jim could join for $99 and they would not force him to weigh in every week nor would they make him come in for counseling. Essentially, they said he could just come in and get his food. I was surprised.

I'm not a big cheesecake girl but I love chocolate like you do. I LOVE the triple chocolate cheesecake. It tastes more like chocolate mousse than cheesecake. It has a chocolate cookie kind of crust and hard swirled chocolate on top. I order two a week. The cherry one is good too but reminds me more of cheesecake. I love the lemon cake too. Very moist and lemony.

I understand how you feel about the losses. I feel I'll need to lose 25 pounds before I'll feel a great sense of accomplishment. I lost 45 recently on WW and gained it all back. Sigh.

Come on JC members! Jump in with us.

I lost 6lbs! w00t! w00t! The large drop is due in part to mother nature -- last week when I started Jenny Craig I was at the beginning of my cycle which means lots of water retention. Nonetheless I am happy because I felt like I got to eat a lot of food, I was never hungry and yet I lost weight:D

Tonight I had the turkey dinner and it was pretty good -- all the Jenny food is surprisingly tasty -- with a salad. For 'dessert' I had a sliced banana, a few sliced strawberries, a clementine orange all mixed with some strawberry yogurt and a couple dashes of cinnamon. I feel STUFFED but in a good, healthy way.

The thing I need to work on is making sure I drink lots of water -- I have been drinking it but sometimes the day gets away and I don't consume as much as I would like.

How was your appointment Vickie?

Stacey, GREAT first week!:bravo: 6 pounds is awesome and you should be very proud of yourself. Your dessert sounds good. Do you not eat the JC desserts? I'm enjoying them very much. I like the turkey and gravy. I eat it once a week. I do miss my own mashed potatoes though. I make great ones.

I lost 2 pounds this week. It was my best JC week so far. I don't know why I'm losing so slowly. I had TONS of blood work done today so we'll see.

I drink 8 eight ounce glasses of water a day. I just try to think of it as flushing the nasty fat away.

Let's both have another great week.

2 lbs is right on track :cp: Good for you!!!

I am following the Jenny planned menus -- I want as little 'thinking' involved as possible. In a 7 day stretch, you get three decadent desserts (ie. Jenny desserts), three fruit/yogurt desserts and one popcorn/peanut butter/veggie dessert (I chose celery and peanut butter and never got to the popcorn). I look forward to the decadent desserts but the fruit/yogurt/cinnamon combo is really good and has a lot more volume than a Jenny dessert.

I am surprised their are so few on Jenny Craig but at least we are here :carrot:

I should look at those planned menus. I think I thought I wouldn't eat everything on there since I'm a fussy eater. I heard that people who follow them lose faster. I'll have to consider that. Maybe having a dessert every night is a problem?

I think lots of people on on the Jenny Craig site but I didn't want to have to deal with so many people. Plus, I've always found the people on 3FC to be nicer.

Celery and peanut butter sounds great to me.

I would imagine Jenny desserts are a small enough portion that it would not be a bad thing to have one each evening, especially if that is important to you. Do you eat a Jenny breakfast, lunch and/or dinner? Right now I am in that 'I don't want to think about food all the time' mode so their menu plans totally work for me.

For dinner I had the chicken fettucine and added a TON of broccoli to it. I even had some broccoli on the side -- I feel very full after that and a chocolate chip snack bar and milk. YUM!

I made an effort today to drink more water too :D

Hey Stacy! I eat JC with the exception of three meals a week. I got permission from my JC Counselor to have shredded wheat one day and old-fashioned cooked oatmeal another day for breakfast. I used to eat them on WW Core program loved them and missed them a lot. Because they are so healthy, she lets me have them as long as I measure the portion. All my lunches and desserts are JC, and 6 of the dinners. My husband and I go out to eat once a week for our date night. It was very important to us and I wasn't going to give it up, nor was I going to eat just veggies and salad. They agreed and I order a very healthy local meal. I guess considering that one dinner out, I'm lucky to be losing at the rate I am.

I love the chicken fettuccine. I did a happy dance when I first had it because the flavor is so great. I also like the lunch chili a ton also. It's a good thing I like the food so much since I'll likely have to be on plan for 2 years to get to my goal.

Oh well.....what else do I have to do?

I'm glad you were full and satisfied. It's what will keep us going.

Super busy day today, glad it's winding down. I managed to stay on track even though I had a parent meeting to attend -- I ate before I went and brought some fruit/yogurt/cinnamon to snack on while everyone else grazed at the buffet. I had the chicken pasta parmesan with lots and lots of broccoli. I should have eaten more veggies but I only had a handful or two of baby carrots -- I did not have time for a salad and don't have any veggies cut and ready to go.

I want to mention that on the Jenny Craig site there is a coupon for a day of free food...and for the life of me I can't find it now although I did print it out. Poke around and see if you can find it -- I think it expires early next week. I will look for it too and let you know if I can find it again.

Wow, Stacy. I never saw a coupon like that but I will look for it. They did give me a free day before I signed up so I could try the food. I was pretty impressed. They let me pick 3 meals and a dessert, whatever I wanted. I'll see if I can find it for you. I just filled out a questionnaire after week 6 and got a coupon for a free entree. Pretty good since all the entrees are $5 to $7.

I think you did amazing staying on program yesterday. My DH and I have talked about how much determination and planning it would take if a person was working or had kids. I haven't decided how much I like the pasta parmesan or not. I just bought it to try again. I think I liked it better than some of the other Italian entrees. I'm not a big oregano fan and that doesn't have too much for me. I'm looking forward to trying the new chicken parm entree.

Here's one for a free entree.

http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/Utilities/getImage.zgi?SA=TH&dockey=WEB2266VHPUNPA

Hey everyone, i am also on JC and im glad to see some other are as well, i hear a lot of talk about WW and i was considering that because im only 20 and being a college student and going on vacations with my friends and all that good stuff, its hard to always eat jenny meals with a place to cook and store them. However, ive been on jenny for 3 weeks and 2 days, i like the structure, the food isnt too bad and my counselor helps a lot. The only thing i find is that there are only a few things for each meal that i like, and i'm getting sick of eating the same stuff all the time...

Welcome xpink! This is only my second week so I am still working through the Jenny menu. I am not a big meat eater but I am going to give most things at least one try -- so far most of the things are surprisingly good.

I realized the coupon for a free day of food was part of a welcome email -- sorry I can't share it.

Did better today on veggies and water -- 2 big salads and lots of water. Feeling thinner but also more hungry than I was last week. C'est la vie - I am still sticking to the planned menu.

Welcome Pink! Congratulations to you for working on your weight while you are still young. I wish I had done it then and kept it off. I, like Stacy, am slowly working my way through tasting everything on the menu, even some of the things I wasn't sure I would like. I get bored easily too. That's why I've gotten some no or low calories sauces and things to help change the taste of the food a bit. I bought a hot garlic chili sauce to add to my szechuan pork and some salsa and taco bell hot sauce to add to the cheesy enchiladas. I like garlic and spicy, and find many of the ethnic foods to be too bland for me. I understand that they have to be that way for the masses. It's surprising how much they change the taste of the food.

Good luck and feel free to hang out here with us whenever you want. Stacy and I are both pretty new to JC too.

Tonight I went to Trader Joe's and picked up a couple of non fat salad dressings -- I only like the balsamic JC dressing and I need more variety. I also picked up some baked cheese curls which I am going to bag up into 1oz. servings as a substitute for JC Cheese Curls.

I made a shredded cabbage, shredded carrot, sliced green onion and sliced red pepper salad tonight with TJ's ginger sesame salad dressing -- yummy! And a nice change from a regular green salad. Had it with the veggie and chicken potstickers which were really good -- although I could have eaten about three servings :lol:

I have stuck to the plan but I swear my body knows it is loosing and is screaming FEED ME!!!:hungry:

In response I am thinking back to how I quit smoking, I know the craving will pass and just hang on until it does.

It was so much easier to gain the weight than it is to take it off.

i blame the country and all its tempting fast foods... lol

Stacy, your salad sounds delicious! I'm doing something similar tonight. My favorite FF salad dressing is Henry's Honey Dijon. I'm going to use the coarse cabbage mix in the bag with green/red cabbage and carrot, add some finely chopped onion and the Honey Dijon to make a sweet/sour coleslaw. Then I'm having the Fish and Chips! Yummy.

I didn't care for the potstickers. I LOVE potstickers but I didn't like what was included with them. It was definitely and underfilled container. I didn't know any better, that you are supposed to tell JC when this happens. Maybe I'll try them again one day. I haven't liked any of the dishes with the meatless crumbles, so maybe it's the soy I don't like in there. Anyhow!

You're funny. How many calories do they have you on? I'm on 1700 plus a starch. I have to eat a ton of veggies every day and my water in order not to have my stomach growling. I make the WW zero points soup which my DH and I eat whenever we are hungry. It's made with all free veggies. Let me know if you want the recipe.

Pink, I see you are a nightowl and very funny too! How's it going for you?

yes! im a night owl... im always at work or at school during the day so by the time i get home its like.. 2am. lol. its going ok, its pretty early right now and im trying to drag myself to the gym, i dont really mind going its just so rainy and crappy here and im tired. so my bed looks way better. im hoping for 2 or 3 pounds this week... thas what i hoped for lst week but i only lost 1.4 i was upset. my favorite thing on the jenny menu is by far the pesto pizza. i LOVE pesto to begin with... and i add a little fat free feta to and it is sooo good. And of course the jenny cheese curls.

I'm headed to my treadmill right now. Thankfully, it's in my living room so not far to go. It's rainy and dreary here too and will be all day tomorrow too. I always hope for a big weight loss but you have to be careful so just in case you don't make it, it doesn't make you want to quit. How much do you have to lose? The closer you are to your goal, the slower it goes sometimes. Can you imagine having 160 pounds to lose like I do and only losing .4 in my 3rd week? ARGGGGGHHHHH......I was mad. The next week was 2.2.

I've never tried the pesto pizza because I like basil but not a lot. I'm not very big on some spices so if they put too much, I can't eat it. I was disappointed in the cheese curls and the sourdough nuggets. Not enough cheese flavor on the curls and not enough salt on either.

I'm Vickie and I'm a salt addict.

haha i love salt to... hence the feta. so delicious. the pesto pizza doesnt have a really strong "spice taste" to it, its just... delicious. i cant even tell you. try it! lol i thought i got two this week and aparently got only one because yesterday i was sooo looking forward to eating it since its lent and theres no meat, and i went to get it.. and it wasnt there. it was sad. I started at 221, i am currently 213, and my goal is 160. so.. 61 pounds total... 53 left to go. the cheese curls could def. use some more salt. but i still love them. also, the lemon cake is awesome.

I just had the tuna salad kit for lunch -- it was ok but I prefer making my own tuna salad with a dab of mayo and a lot of salsa. I am saving the peaches for later -- going to mix them with some cottage cheese. I took a little of the leftover salad from last night and put it on some romaine/spring mix for my lunch veggies.

Looking forward to the lasagna for dinner tonight and especially the s'more bar for dessert!

I am Stacy and I am a carboholic ;)

My dad had/has high blood pressure so when I was young the salt shaker was removed from the table. When I got married, my husband was aghast I did not own a salt shaker. However, watch yourself if you get between me and some crusty french bread :T

Hi Stacy. The smores bar is excellent. I eat one every week. I hope you liked it. The lasagna had too much oregano for me. I really wanted to like it. The thing that really turned me off was the soy crumbles.

Tomorrow is weigh in for me. I hope TOM is gone by then.

I have weigh in tomorrow too. I am thinking I lost a little but not much. I weight at night which is a bummer but with my hectic schedule it's when I can fit it in.

Tonight I had the salmon. The hubby won't eat salmon so I have an extra one in the freezer now. It was ok -- I prefer halibut to salmon but with some fresh pepper on top it was fine. When someone else is cooking, I usually don't complain!!!

I am doing all sorts of things with veggies. Blanched some pea pods and drained them, sauteed some minced garlic in a little sesame oil, whirred up a little bit of sesame seeds and heated it all up together. Great way to eat pea pods although probably not 100% on program -- if I am going to bulk up on veggies, which I am doing, they need to taste edible.

Good luck with your weigh in and cheers to another good week:hat:

Weigh in tomorrow! my scale says something good, but im scared the jenny scale will say bad things. lol

I lost 3 lbs!!! w00t! w00t! :carrot:

Eating all those veggies for snacks when I was hungry paid off. It wasn't easy mind you, but I managed to do it :)

I have not seen 270-something on the scale in years....knowing that is possible in a few weeks makes me very happy.

The battle of the bulge continues...

congrats! i hope i have the same victory tomorrow! ill let you guys know!

I Lost 6.6 Pounds This Week!!!!!!!!!!!

I Lost 6.6 Pounds This Week!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow!!!! That is FABULOUS!!!!:cp::bravo::cp:

Overnight I came down with a horrendous cold...I didn't even see it coming.

I am going off plan and eating Campbell's Chicken Noodle soup although I am volumizing it with carrots :)

Stacy and Pink...you both ROCK! Congratulations on your outstanding accomplishments this week.

I lost 2.2 and I'm delighted. I feel like the little train that could. I wish I were losing faster but I'm happy to be losing at least 2 pounds now.

Stacy, I hope you bounce back quickly.

Pink, have a great week!

Hi! Today is day 2 on JC for me. I've been exercising, but apparently I need serious help with my daily menu! So far, everything I've eaten has been super yummy. I am a little hungry, though, and trying to have more veggies.

:)

Hi Sarah! Welcome and GREAT luck. Gotta eat those veggies or your tummy will be hungry. I make the Weight Watchers zero point soup to help me out on the super hungry days. Water helps and so does higher protein. Are you doing the anytime bars or yogurt? Planned or customized menus.

Hope you enjoy hanging out here. Good luck this week. How much do you have to lose?

hey sarah, welcome! im about a month in, ive lost 15 pounds so far! JC does a great job of helping out and yeah, most of the food is great.


BTW EVERYONE my name is Nicole. lol i would have a signature but i apparently have to be a member for 20 days before i can have one.

Nicole, I didn't know you were in ILLINOIS! Cool. That's fast to lose 15 pounds. Wish I'd done it when I was young before I ruined my metabolism. You are so wise.

lol. i just... im tired of looking around at girls who are my age who are enjoying life and dont have weight to hold them back from being confident and fun. i want to wear a bikini at the pool too. plus its not like my family is full of skinny people so i know its not going to get any better the older i get.

Keep it up chick!

The last few evenings I have went for a walk. Our family room, which usually has the recumbent bike and treadmill, is in the midst of a makeover so the exercise equipment is in storage. It was nice to get outside and enjoy some fresh air even if the weather was on the cool side. The husband and daughter joined me last night -- my daughter is 5 years old so she does drop the pace down but her company is worth it.

I have a quick business trip coming up -- I leave tomorrow and return Monday evening. I have a food plan -- bringing travel Jenny food with me, my hotel has a microwave and small refrigerator, I will bring some veggies with me and stop by a grocery store and pick up some 'salad in a bag', yogurt and milk. When I travel on business I enjoy room service so this will be a big switch for me.

Tonight is a family bday party -- we always have family functions:dizzy: I emailed the host and asked her if I could use her microwave to prepare my own meal since I am on a strict food regime -- she was fine with it. What's on the party menu: pizza, cheesecake and cupcakes! It amazes me that my inlaws manage to maintain a healthy weight the way they eat -- must be their metabolisms. I will be having chicken fettuccine w/ broccoli, Jenny cheesecake and milk:D

well good! its good to see that you will still stick to the jenny food, i find it gets a whole lost easier with time... i used to drool over the food at work. i of course would still like to have it, but... really i just know i cant. and it doesnt bother me. I am also going out of town next weekend, im going to canada for a girls weekend. ive already planned to bring jenny breakfast and lunch but we're going to be going out to dinner and for drinks.. soooo that will probably stop any weight loss i would have had. ill have to make healthy choices and drink light beer i guess. i cant stop living life all together... after my victory of 6 pounds in one week, i deserve to have a few drinks, right?

Sheesh, Stacy, you and are a lot alike. I had a family birthday party on Saturday. I brought the chicken fettuccine and a triple chocolate cheesecake. I didn't feel deprived at all. This is a huge NSV for me. I didn't bring cooked veggies but we brought a bag of baby carrots and some Marzett's FF dill dip. My DH brought his NS meal and dessert. We had free veggie soup when we came home and some homemade applesauce. The food didn't even look that good at the party.

Congratulations on going for your walk and not using the remodeling as an excuse. Good luck on your business trip. I do NOT miss those at all. At the end of my career, I was in DC more than in Chicago.

Nicole, you do have to enjoy life. Just try to make better choices than you used to. And when you come home, get right back on program. That was always my problem. I couldn't get back on. Good luck to you.

Off to the treadmill.

i think i feel a plateau coming on. uh oh. not cool.

Why do you think that?

i weigh myself every other day just to check my progress but i only record it every tuesday. and ive been pretty much the same as my last weigh in, plus - last week i lost 6 pounds.. and im at a total of about 15 so i just feel like its gona be a while before i lose a good amount again.

So you're a scale addict. Me too. My scale never shows a loss until Monday. I didn't even get on yesterday. I'm expecting a small loss or a gain today.

I gained .6 and I'm more bummed than you can imagine. I followed the program to the letter. JC Counselor was not much help. She wanted me to go to the planned menu. It doesn't make any sense to me and she couldn't explain it. What difference does it make if I follow the 1700 calorie preplanned menu or follow the 1700 pick my own. 1700 calories is 1700 calories. Actually, they have me on 1700 calories plus a starch so I decided to cut the starch this week. I don't know what else to do. We already cut the serving sizes of the fruit down from one cup to 1/2 cup. I'm so frustrated.

Stacy, are you on 1700 calories?

i was suppose to be on 1700 but i kinda refused because i didnt think id lose any weight so im on 1500.

I am back from my quick trip and managed to loose 3 lbs. although I did go off plan...

I am on the 1700 preplanned meal plan. One thing Debbie H. said was that she had to eat a lot of veggies to loose weight -- if she cut them back, she would not loose. IIRC, she mentioned it was the fiber of the veggies that is instrumental in taking off the pounds. Do you eat a lot of veggies? Debbie H. suggested washing up a bunch at one time and putting them in the fridge so they are easy to eat. I have been washing up a head of lettuce, a stalk of celery, slicing a cucumber, clean several bunches of radishes, slice up purple onion and always have baby carrots and broccoli on hand. At night I can make a quick salad and for lunch I pack a handful of celery, baby carrots and some radishes. Oh, I like baby tomatoes too -- they are more expensive but they are so much more flavorful.

Yesterday I decided, after nuking my lunch in the hotel room, that I wanted to do something else for dinner. One of my first stops after landing was to swing by a store and buy fruit, yogurt, milk and a salad in a bag. For dinner I went to a nicer place and got take out -- I got 2 skewers of salmon with a side salad. I brought it back to my room and broke open the bag salad and made my own salmon salad -- I even used the croutons! For dessert I had a yogurt and grapes -- not very exciting nor tasty since I did not have any cinnamon but I was thinking 'this is a good choice.' I did the JC oatmeal bar, yogurt and fruit for breakfast at the hotel. Worked until 12:30 and raced to the airport while eating a banana...at 2pm I still had not had lunch so I bought a salad and ONE slice of pizza -- in the past I would have bought at least 2 slices of pizza and skipped the salad. Sadly, the salad was nasty and after a few bites tossed it but I did relish the pizza slice! The bottom line is I am making conscience choice to eat better:)

well thats good! Congrats on your healthy choices, im hoping i do just as well this weekend considering ill be drinking... ehhhh. i know im only gona lose one or two pounds at my weigh in tomorrow since i lost 6 last week...which worries me because i know i wont lose hardly any IF i dont gain, NEXT week from my weekend off plan. ive only been at this for five weeks (lost 15 official pounds) but im extremely anxious to get under 200. (im about 206-207) everytime i get on the scale i pray for a miracle. nothing yet.

I have been gaining and loosing this 15 lbs. for years. Until I drop into the 270s the victories don't seem that great. As a matter of fact, when I joined JC I had never seen the scale so high :faint:

I feel I am still off the rails from the trip but I just packed some veggies for lunch tomorrow. I will pack some fruit in the am -- my fav choices are strawberries, blueberries, bananas and oranges with an occasional apple for good measure. And I am going to check my JC menu before going to bed so I can mentally prep for getting back on the straight and arrow tomorrow.

I think it is important when your routine changes -- a trip out of town for a day or two -- that you keep JC in mind but strike a healthy balance. I know one reason I am really enjoying JC is I don't feel deprived. Sure, the yogurt/fruit desserts four times a week don't compare to the three JC desserts but I look really forward to those three JC desserts which make them all the more satisfying.

The battle of the bulge continues...

yeah i plan to make sure i stick with it. i did some shopping today for cooler food, Im going to bring jenny cereals with me, and snacks of course, i bought stuff to make delicious salads for lunches and ill bring them in tupperware and put the dressing on later, i bought yogurt and reaspberrys, blueberries, pineapple, and apples. and i will be saving all my calories for beer. lol

Ok, then. I'll just stick to the 1700 calories this week with no extra starch. I hate to mess with things or make it so that I can't stick to it.

I do eat a huge salad every day at lunch; mixed field greens, baby tomatoes, mushrooms. Dinner is always 1 1/2 to 2 cups of fresh steamed veggies. Some days I eat about 2 cups of free veggie soup if I'm really hungry. I hate this.

Maybe my Internist will have some suggestions for me today.

That sounds like a good amount of veggies to me. And I know you exercise too. Are you near your TOM? I know that can cause one to retain horrible amounts of water which are reflected on the scale. Not to be too graphic but a good trip to the ladies room and you could expel .6 lbs! And I am guessing you already know this but if you don't think your JC coach is helping you, consider seeing a different one. Hang in there. Weight loss, as we all know, is a struggle.

The former Internist had no good advice. I asked if I should be on 1700 plus one starch and he said to follow JC. I asked if the fruit was too much or the servings too big and again he said to follow JC. Arggggghh......ok.

But, in the end, I do what I want anyway. I'm going to not eat the extra starch as many days as possible. So far, I went without on Monday and Tuesday and I've been hungry. Not starving, just hungry. It could be in my head.

Thanks for the support, Stacy. It isn't TOM but I did just start taking my progesterone the night before weigh in. That's supposed to stimulate ovulation....so who knows. I won't quit but it is beyond upsetting when you follow a program to the letter and GAIN!

i cracked a little... :( my brother had a 6 inch subway sandwich in the fridge... it had pepperoni and cheese on it, and its been staring me in the face for days... and i thought if i took just one bite it would satisfy, and i could leave it alone. it didnt. i ate the whole thing:( i know im just gona have to get back on track tomorrow, but ir eally picked a bad week to cave since im going out of town this weeked. im gona gain weight for next weigh in... i know it.

If you are hungry eat veggies. You should not be hungry.

Here is a recipe I use for broccoli and last night I added carrots and zucchini and it was good.

Steam some broccoli -- if you are going to steam carrots and zucchini keep in mind they take longer to steam than broccoli so add them 3 minutes before you add the broccoli.
In a separate small pan heat till bubbly:
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar (sometimes I don't add this)
Mix broccoli and sauce together. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. Eat!

I LOVE this recipe and use it all the time.

I am going to try Maple Mustard Carrots this week from the JC recipe site. I would post the link if I could...

As we all know, you gotta mix up the veggies both in style and type to keep it interesting.

I had weigh in yesterday, ive officially lost 18 pounds and 9 inches!

How do you count the "sauce" Stacy?

Nicole.....OUTSTANDING job! How long have you been on program? I wish I was doing as well as you

Excellent Nicole! That is FANTASTIC!!! w00t! w00t!

I count the sauce as my 'fat' -- instead of the 2 tsps. of margarine I use the tablespoon of olive oil.

The carrot recipe on Jenny Craig only counts it as 1 veggie exchange although it uses margarine.

Honestly, I wouldn't worry about too much about counting it because I believe the benefit of eating the veggies outweighs the calorie count of the tablespoon of olive oil. Also, I leave the extra sauce in the bottom of the bowl -- I don't pull out my spoon and eat it ;)

i have been on the jc program for 4 weeks, and i did one week by myself before i started jc

Awesome, Nicole!

You're right, Stacy. I'll definitely consider some volumizing and side dishes.

Exactly. Volumizing -- the JC buzzword! I have this HUGE bowl I use for my evening salads. HUGE. And I eat at least 1/2 of it before I start with the entree -- and I make sure I always finish the salad. Usually I am STUFFED after dinner.

I am hoping I forgot my menu at work today grrrrrr I carry it around everywhere I go - I swear I put it in my bag before I left for home today.

Now I am thinking....what am I going to eat tomorrow?!! What do I need to pack?!! It is very frustrating. I tried to call the 1-800 number, which I thought was 24/7, but it's not.

I will pack some yogurt, cottage cheese and some Jenny food but I truly feel lost without my menu *sniff sniff*

I have been walking this week -- two good walks yesterday and one today. Hope to keep it up over the weekend.

I went off the rails the last few days. Saturday found a box of See's candy that I had not finished -- it's gone now. Sunday my Aunt Flo arrived and I ate that bag of M&Ms that has been lying around. Today had some Good&Plentys. I NEED to get back on track. I only gained .2lbs. which gives me this "It's ok to cheat a little" attitude which I know will come back and bite me.

On the good side, I have been walking. Every night since Wednesday. At least one mile and sometimes three. I am certain that is what helped keep my weight gain down.

*sigh* I knew my momentum would wane....

Stacy, I'm glad you're back on track. I've been using the triple chocolate cheesecake and the smores bar to satisfy my chocolate cravings. You gained less than me and I stuck to the program faithfully!

Well, I lost what I gained last week but not an ounce more. So for the last 2 weeks, I have lost NOTHING despite exercising for 5 days each week. Even though the exercise is quite mild, it's better than nothing. I'm quite CRABBY and I told the JC Counselor that I want to quit. This was after a week of dropping the extra starch and being back at 1700 calories and hungry.

I've decided not to eat the JC breakfasts because they have too much sugar. I'm going to eat just shredded wheat and oatmeal. I was shocked when I learned that JC does not use artificial sweeteners. The breakfasts are loaded with sugar. Now, I knew JC was processed and I was okay with that. I needed to have enforced portion control, which is why I sacrificed the fresh food for the processed. However, I assumed everything was so sweet because of the artificial sweeteners but apparently not. She added a dairy instead of the starch. So now next week is about 1700 calories, plus a milk with less sugar.

We talked about cutting out the desserts/snacks too but we didn't want to change too much at once. Sheesh. I can't even tell you how sad and frustrated I am. I worked so hard.

I hear you Vickie. I would be VERY frustrated if I knew I was staying on program and yet nothing. I swear sometimes our bodies just don't want to shrink :mad:

Yesterday I went out and bought a bunch of veggies. Tonight I am going to roast some onions and carrots -- I had roasted onions at my parents over the weekend and they were yummy! Maybe roasting carrots will be the trick I need to make them tasty. I also got some asparagus to steam -- I will mix that with some sliced red onion and balsamic dressing for a salad. I also bought some asian eggplant that I am not sure what I am going to do with but I am thinking stir fry it up with some asian sauce and green onions. I am going to bulk up on veggies again this week and try to increase my water intake.

I have signed up for a year and although I know I will reach a point where I do not want to go I am going to continue going -- this is not an easy journey but I know the pay off with be worth the struggles. It seems many of life's great achievements are of the 'no pain, no gain' variety.

I am happy that all the contraband chocolate is out of the house!

Hey guys! i am back from vacation to canada! i had a great time! I brought all jc cereals, three huge salads, a ton of fruit, and lots of free food likes pickles, i ate out for dinner but i chose healthy options like sushi and spinach dip and such even with the drinking i did, i managed to lose 2 pounds for the week! which totals in 20 pounds in 6 weeks!

my family ordered pizza... it stares at me every time i open the fridge.

Awesome Nicole!!! You are really doing fantastic!!! Bringing those huge salads was great thinking and making healthy choices when you did eat our paid well at the scale. Excellent.

Great job, Nicole! Planning pays off for you. I'm happy for you.

I'm doing okay this week but have lost faith in the program. I'm entering my food in fitday and I am still coming up way too high in carbs.

Hi Ladies!

I had been thinking about joining Jenny Craig for awhile and after reading some of your posts, I felt inspired so I joined yesterday.

I really hope this works for me. I have lost and gained the same 10 pounds more times than I can count so I really feel like I need a program that will help me stay focused.

It sounds like you ladies have done great on Jenny Craig. I hope it can do the same for me.

Jenny craig really is a great program. the only down fall is that youre always relying on frozen meals so if you have a vacation or something coming up, its good to get the dining out guide and it takes a little extra planning. However, i really do recommend it. ive never been able to stick to anything, I think that the responsibility of having a weigh in every week helps a lot. its also very inspiring to watch the numbers drop every week. it makes me excited for the next week instantly! good luck i hope you like it! what kind of food did you get? most things are good, but there are somethings... i wouldnt recommend lol.

Welcome Emily! I hear you about loosing the same 10 lbs. over and over and over. I have been in that self-defeating cycle for a few years and I am hopeful that JC will help me get out of that pattern.

Tonight I went off plan, however, I would not say I was bad. I went to the store today and read labels until I could find a spaghetti sauce that did not have sugar. I made meatballs, sauteed some onion, red pepper and zucchini. I had planned to eat my JC dinner but.....I had some veggies and sauce over broccoli and it was great! I HAD to try the pasta and meatballs but the good news is I did not have much -- a very small serving w/ three small meatballs. Portion control -- whoduthunk I would do that?!!

If anyone finds that they are still hungry on jenny craig, i would recommend trying the new clasico chicken, its pasta with marinara sauce, and chicken strips with cheese and some broccoli on the side, its really good but i can NEVER finish it. i ate like 3/4 of it today and was so full my stomach hurt.

I think that you are right about the weighing in once a week. I think the fact that I know I have to be accountable for what I eat during the week will help me a lot. I'm a waitress at a pizza place so it is easy for me to eat some pizza without really thinking and then the next thing I know I've gained weight. I'm going to stick to the food they have given me though. I mostly got the food that was on the preplanned menu. I figure I'll try stuff once and decide what I like. I didn't get any of the anytime bars though (I don't like chocolate). So far everything has been good! Is there anything in particular that you would suggest I avoid?

I'm already excited for my first weigh in, although I saw in some of the literature they gave me to expect a big water weight loss the first week so I'll try to keep that in mind.

And StacyLee, it looks like you've already lost at least 12 pounds so it sounds like you are off the 10 pound rollercoaster already! Also, your dinner sounded SO good!

I hear ya about the restaurant thing. I work at buffalo wild wings.... talk about a heart attack on a plate. One thing i would say to def. avoid is any of the chicken soupatizers. the tomato one is really good, but the chicken ones have a funky taste to them... and not so good. pesto pizza is awesome, beef chow mein is fantastic. im not sure what religion you are or if you follow one, but if you follow lent, the fish and chips are really good for fridays. and youre lucky you dont like chocolate...lol

Has anyone ever tried roasted red pepper salad dressing? I had it at school.. and it is AMAZING. so the other day my mom made some grilled chicken in a red pepper sauce, so i mixed it with some fat free ranch for a dressing. yet again. AWESOME. i def. recommend that if you can find it anywhere. im on a mission to find it in a store.

i cheated a little bit.... my best friend is moving away so she had a going away party... i ate some bad food. like cream puff dessert and garlic bread with marinara. i definitely restricted myself and didnt eat like.. the whole plate like i could have.. but i still feel guilty. now im nervous for the scale. i was really hoping for a big week this week too.... also.. my scale keeps varying every day. its either 200.5 or 197.5, everytime i weight myself its one or the other.. im def. wishing for the 197... come tuesday when i weigh in at jenny, but i wish i knew what my actual weight was! 197 would mean five pounds this week... and onederland! which would be awesome... but like i said, now im scared my garlic bread will mess that up.

That would be great if you made it under 200! Either way you are very close. I can't wait for that milestone. I can't remember the last time I was under 200.

I weigh in for the first time tomorrow. I'm a little nervous! I ate pizza a few times this week at work but only one slice a night and it didn't have sauce or cheese, just lots of veggies (sounds gross but actually very good). I guess I'll see tomorrow.

i burned 700 calories in 60 minutes today! it was awesome. however... scale is still trippin' me out.

Wow, that's amazing! What kind of exercise were you doing? Whatever it is, I need to try it!

the elliptical! i love it! it always burns a ton of calories especially if the machine youre using has different programs you can try, i was doing "interval" we'll see if it paid off or if my friends going away party really messed things up. weigh in tomorrow!

Wow! I always do the low setting on the eliptical. I'm going to try the interval today.

I weighed in today.. I lost 8.6 pounds!! I know it is just the first week and probably mostly water weight but it still makes me feel really encouraged and happy!

Huge congratulations to you, Emily! I'd be SO happy too. Whenever or however.

It's taken me 10 weeks to lose 10 pounds. They raised me to 2000 calories today. We'll see. I lost .4 for the week.

WOW! 8 pounds! thats huuuuuge. my first week i only lost 4! and vickie your .4 is also great! slow and steady! we'll find out about mine tomorrow.

Excellent Emily!!! :cp::cp::cp: That is a fantastic start!!!

I was bad over the weekend. Friday I had pizza, Saturday I ate a bunch of cashews and chocolate covered raisins instead of dinner -- I was being lazy. Sunday I took two very long walks in penance and got back on program. When I weighed in yesterday I had *surprisingly* lost 2 lbs. I am certain that part of what saved me last week was I ate a lot of veggies. (I adjusted my tracker a bit to reflect my actual start weight and pounds shed.)

I was very happy about the weight loss but also realize I am in this “how much can I push the envelope and still loose?” pattern which will be my downfall if I continue. This week my goal is to stay 100% on program, do a lot of walking and eat lots of veggies – to that end, you should see what I brought for lunch today: a container of asparagus (lightly steamed w/ non-fat sesame salad dressing) and two containers of cooked broccoli with a little Asian sauce for flavor.

yeahh... i did that whole "how far can i push it" thing... it resulted in a 1.8 pound loss this week. sucky. im 200. I WANTED TO BE IN THE HUNDREDS SOOO BAD. i was pretty angry. im hoping for a big week next week. my goal is to also stay on plan 100% this week.

I just joined JC today....yeah me!

awesome! its a great program. what kinds of food did you get? whats your weight loss goal? tell us about yourself

I got the week one planned menu.....today I had french toast, beef chow mein, and chicken carbanara......everything was really delish....

my current wt is 222.....goal 170 (im 5'7")

wow we're about the same! my starting weight was also 222, im headed for between 160-170. im 5'11

However, i drank some beer tonight. which not a huge deal since i only drink miller lite and its only 90 calories each. but i was playing pool with some people from work (i rock a pool table after a few beers... haha) and.. i had to drive home so i wanted to sober up. did not do it in the bst way.. i ate some doritos. i feel pretty bad about that. extra half hour at the gym tomorrow because of it.

We are the same....in my mind I'm also 5'11"....lol.....when the con. told me my highest weight should be 145....I almost fell out of my chair. I was 5'2" 135lbs in the 5th grade.....lol

Hello,

Do any of you Jenny folk have over 100 to lose? If so, how goes it?

i have a total of 60.

I do, Baby. I've lost 10 and have 150 to go.

I joined JC on 2/24/09. I have lost 16 lbs. and want to loose 120 more. I use the preplanned menus and find the program easy to follow. I have strayed a few times -- dinner out, a night of junk food, etc. but I get back on track quickly.

i dont know what im doing wrong. everytime i weigh myself its either more then last week, or the same. i switched up my exercise routine this week because i thought that could be the cause of only losing one pound last week, ive been strictly on the jc diet, have not strayed from it at all. i dont understand it. all this at the end of a bad day to begin with. i really want to say "screw it"

You've lost a lot, quickly, Nicole. Your body may be just taking a small rest. Keep at it. You're young. The scale will move again.

:) Vicky, Stacy....Im so glad to see people here who have a long journey as do I. I have maybe 140 to lose. Do you think Jenny is good for people like us? Are you hungry? I did go in before, bought a weeks worth of food, to be honest when I looked at it I called it Barbie food. To me it seemed so small. This was beefore the Volumizing concept.

I am planning on joining this week.

Hello everyone! My name is Erica, I'm 27 and have struggled with my weight my whole life. I did JC for in 06 and lost 40lbs in 5 months. But somehow along the way, I lost myself and gained it all right back + 10lbs! I recently picked up the "Fat Smash Diet" book and thought it was a good way to get back into the groove of things. The problem is the book doesn't give many recipes and I'm not much of a cook...actually not a cook at all. :^: Anyway, I did a google search for recipes and came across this site. Of course when I saw the posting on JC, it made me think about the success I had when I first started and I want it back!! :carrot: I don't cook so JC was perfect for me. The problem was I let myself get away and forget everything I learned about portion control. JC food is delicious and I actually don't mind eating the same things over and over. They are constantly revamping the program to make it more effective.

So here I am, the beginning of April 2009 wanting to lose all of the weight...for good! I weigh 260lbs and my goal is 135 so obviously I have a long way to go but I figured if I set small goals along the way, I will reach my ultimate goal eventually.

I hope I can get the support I need on this site and I hope I can provide support as well. Any tips/advice/words would be greatly appreciated!

Heck, if anyone lives in the LA area and wants to do a buddy system...please let me know!

Hey erica.....I understand your frustration.....I'm 28 and top the scale at 222. My goal is between 160 and 170. I started JC this past friday but don't think the numbers will be that impressive when I weigh in on friday (TOM). I'm also in need of a buddy.....most of my family and friends are debbie downers....."why are you spending so much money on a program that you won't stick too".....therefore I've been reluctant to tell anyone.

welcome! youll find lots of support here, i know i have. well - today is weigh in day for me. i bought a new scale because the old one was WAY off and it kept frustrating me when the jenny scale would be different. so hopefully this new fancy one that calculates body water and fat percentages will be more accurate. if my new scale is correct then ive lost 4 pounds this week, which means i only have 5 more until im half way!

do any of your friends or family members tempt you by accident? my big weakness is mcdonalds breakfast. and my stepdad bought me a sausage mcmuffin this morning. i was glad he thought of me, but he knows im on a diet. i am proud to say i DID NOT eat it. i stared at it while i ate my jc breakfast, and i gave it to my brother.

ok so just got back from jenny, not quite 4 pounds more like 3. something. either way i am 197! and no longer in the 200's!!! GOOD BY FOREVER 200'S!

Hi there~
I am starting Jenny on Saturday -- and I'm pretty excited! I currently weigh at least 260 (don't even own a scale b/c it's too depressing). Approx one year ago I lost 50 lbs on WW and have now "found" all of it!! Anyway - I have reached my "too fat" point where I am uncomfortable and want to lose weight... hmm each time it gets a bit higher :o

I am a busy mom of two girls (3 & 6 yrs old) and I work full time. I have been heavy my entire life. Everyone in my immediate family is slim, but there is obesity on my mom's side of the family (2 of her siblings) so I'm going to say it's genetics :-) PLUS I LOVE FOOD! I used to laugh when at WW they would say "nothing tastes as good as being thin feels" -- they just weren't at the right restaurants!!;)

Anyway, my goal is 190 since I was able to reach that once before in my adult life so I know it's physically possible. I need to work on some mini-goals & things I want to do when etc.

OK so what I REALLY want to know is.....which foods are the best tasting? I want to be ready and pick my selections so I don't get stuck with the gross stuff! My first week will be hard so I need everything to be tasty!

Here is what I've gathered from other posts and coworkers:
AVOID: soupitizers, anytime bars
GOOD: Chicken sandwich, Fajitas, Chili, Pesto Pizza, Toffee bites

I think I need more suggestions. If anyone has a list of favorites, I'd love to see it!

Also - how many snacks will I get since I am around 260 lbs? I'm assuming more than one?

THANKS EVERYBODY!

Definitely avoid soupitizers and anytime bars. I don't really like any of the shelf stable food, except for the lunch chili and the barley stew. I also don't like any of the soy "meats". I don't eat the pizza with the soy crumbles or the pancakes with the veggies sausage. The potstickers and the cheesy chicken enchilada also have the soy and I'm not crazy about either of them.

I love the turkey burger but it is more like a meatloaf (green pepper, onion, garlic). Some people say it has a weird texture but I love it. I also eat the chicken sandwich every week but it is a bit bland. I also love the personal lunch pizza. I love the bee chow mein although the beef can be a bit tough. The flavor of the noodles is great.

I never had the pesto pizza because I'm not a big oregano basil person. Those who like a ton of basil and garlic say this is very good. I didn't like the pocket sandwiches in the microwave. I hear they are better if you bake them.

I love the fajitas and the fish and chips. You have to make the fajitas stovetop and the fish in the oven. The meatloaf is yummy. My all time favorite is the chicken fettucine. I don't like the chicken carbonara since the bacon is too smokey for me. The turkey and dressing is awesome.

I used to eat the desserts and loved them. They have too much sugar for me so I've had to swear off. The triple chocolate cheesecake and the lemon cake are to die for. I enjoy the cinnamon crisps, the chocolate walnut brownie and the smores bar. I thought the chocolate cake had a weird flavor and wasn't nuts about the oreo cheesecake.

Hope this helps! Good luck! I'm sure the others will jump in.

They base your menu off of your weight and activity level, the most they will give you is 2000. im 5'11 i started at 222, and i work out 4 times a week and they wanted me on a 1700 calorie plan, i refused it and insisted on 1500. im pretty sure you only get one snack, you just get more yogurts and things of that nature. as far as things that arent very good - the pesto pizza is AWESOME. i am not a fan of any other pizza though. not very good. the tomato soupitizer i love. its just like regular tomato soup - just not as creamy. the chicken soupitizer however, taste like vomit. lol.

my favorites: pesto pizza, beef chow mein, mesquite chicken, sunshine sandwhich, breakfast scramble, french toast, chicken sandwich, classico chicken, and the lasagna is good too. good luck!

I just got back from my first weigh-in and i'm down 4 pounds....the cons. told me that's good considering it TOM. Thats 4 gone and 46 to go.....

Tomorrow is my first day I'm so excited! Good thing I will be at work (I'm sure I'll be hungry and work will be a distraction).

They put me on 1500 cal plan - which I think is low. I weighed in at 254 lbs, but I don't exercise regularly (other than running around w/my kids). Anyway - I plan on taking it slow and I will totally add in the 200 cal if nec. Seems like 1500 is so drastic (when I am surely eating around 3000 currently - right?) I did get the speech about adding in the free foods. Those are good for when you just want to munch, but SF Jello typically will not hold me if I am truly hungry. When I started WW I was insanely hungry for approx a week - then I was fine -- so I'm going to go easy on myself this week.

My goal wt is 190 so I need to lose 64 lbs. Totally do-able for me! First day at WW the leader TOLD me I had to lose 100 lbs to reach my goal weight of 150!! WHAT? 150? I haven't been 150 since I was like 12!! Crazy! Maybe it was a mental thing - and for the most part I didn't let it bother me, but it seemed like a joke to me! No way was I going to set out losing 100 lbs! I lost 50 and quit.

I LOVE that Jenny makes it about what I want! Not what a chart says. I really liked the staff at the center - and my food looks delicious! I can't wait to start tomorrow - made a trip to whole foods to pick up produce (feels like a treat from there). I CAN DO THIS!


***STARTING MY JOURNEY***
m.bumblebee

you def. can!!!


how was everyones easter? ...ehhh i ate a lot of food.. lol. well i think i did pretty ok. i loaded my plate with veggies, i had a small amount of ham, some shrimp, and some pieces of cheese. however, i munched on feta cheese with wheat crackers for quite a while, and when dessert came i searched for the smallest sliver of (home made) cheesecake i could find. and i was ok with that. im not looking forward to weighing in after today.

Nice to see some new faces in this thread :)

Last week I lost only .6 lbs. I was disappointed, however, chalked it up to not enough water and a few nights before getting weighed I ate sushi which when dipped in soy sauce is salty. Still, I was really down.

This weekend we took a short weekend trip to Vancouver, BC. Rented a place with a kitchen and brought Jenny for breakfast and dinner -- for lunch I ate out but thought about what I was eating. The hubby and daughter stopped by the cupcake shop in the evening for dessert, I ate my yogurt and fruit -- and thought about what mbumblebee said: "I used to laugh when at WW they would say "nothing tastes as good as being thin feels" -- they just weren't at the right restaurants!! ;)" That kept me giggling inside all weekend long :lol:

Today I weighed in and had lost 5 lbs.:broc::broc::broc:

What is odd about the weight loss is that even at a total of 21 lbs. I am not feeling it. I look in the mirror and am still FAT. My clothes are barely any looser. I am still winded when walking uphill for a block (I am pushing myself in the walking department, a couple days in the past week racking up over 20k steps). I wish I could feel the loss more than I do.

That being stated, I am glad I am here and plan on sticking to JC until I reach my goal. I know the road ahead is long but at least I am on it :D

Well I lost 3.4 this week on 1700 calories and more exercise. This was after last week's failed experiment of 2000 calories and a 1.2 gain. I was SO upset after that.

I'm sticking with it as long as it works.

Congrats, Stacy. It's outstanding that you are losing so great. I just hit 18 pounds at 13 weeks. I can't feel it either but I've way more to lose than you do.

im so happy for both of you guys! i dont know what to expect today for weigh in. im really not proud of how i ate on easter... i did try really hard though. it was the cheese cake that got me. (i atleast only had ONE piece.. but.. it was homemade) ha.anyway - last night i was 197 which is no weight loss from last week, but this morning i am 194! so we'll have to see what jenny;s scale says.. obviously im rooting for 194. and also, im going to florida on friday.. and so that means i have to get a swimsuit today.... eek

Hello Fellow JCers!

I started with JC in 2006 and lost 71 pounds in a little over a year. There for a while the pounds were just melting off.

I tried to go back to JC in 2008, but I was lucky to get a .2 pound loss each week.

Now its official... I have officially gained all of my weight back.

When I went to JC in 2006 I had no energy and walking to the kitchen was my only daily exercise. Even though I had gained some weight back, in 2008 I was extremely active.

It seems as though JC wasn't working for me possibly because of my high level of activity. Also, I ate out once a week, but ate out sensibly.

I know it sounds odd, but did anyone else find JC LESS effective due to activity? Also it seemed like JC had no room in it for even small splurges. Anyone else have those experiences?

If Erica is still hanging around... I live in the LA area and would love a buddy!

The only good thing about being this heavy again is that I'm trying not to lose my activity level.

I keep thinking about going back to JC, but I would hate to spend the money and not have it work. But, I know I need to do something.

Big hug to you all!
Lorie

It's day two and I'm still on!

Still feeling positive -- and I see everyone on this board posting impressive losses...Candace, PinkGlow, Stacy Lee, Vickie...it's so EXCITING!! YOU GO LADIES!

Ok, during this "journey" I am trying to really find out things about myself that may help me actually adopt healthy eating for good. SO, today at home (had to stay home from work b/c DD had a fever) I noticed that I always seem to unconsciously go to the kitchen. If I don't necessarily have something to do, I go to the kitchen. Or, say I have to do something in the kitchen, I would then stay in the kitchen even after I was done.
Several times, I found myself just standing in the kitchen.

Pre-Jenny I would have found something to snack on (hungry or not). That is so crazy that I just now noticed this! I am going to try just staying out of the kitchen (unless it's meal time etc). Can't believe this didn't come up in our WW group at work.

I am feeling hungry, but what can I expect going from 3000 cal to 1500! It was like this when I started WW - I'll be fine after a week I think. Adding the veggies helps a bit - oh and I used my last "milk" last nite to make a slim-fast optima shake (200 cal). Maybe this isn't really allowed, but I needed something to hold me over.

The food does taste great - I like everything so far! Thank you for all of the recommendations! Yesterday I had the breakfast scramble, cheesy enchiladas, and turkey dinner w/triple choc cheesecake for dessert. Today I had the sunshine sandwich and chicken sandwich - dinner will be the fajitas - and lemon cake for dessert - can't wait!!

OK, all this talk of food is not helping me!

THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE!!

mbumblebee

i find that i had the same problem with the kitchen - or even worse - i would call someone and be like " hey lets get something to eat" so not only would i be consuming endless amounts of calories, id be spending money. i honestly think i went out to eat about 7 times per week. thats every day! i would eat at work three times a week when i got off (buffalo wild wings... not healthy) two days a week im at school so during my break time i get some kind of greasy pizza or something else un-healthy, and the two days i am off work and school i would go out to eat with friends. ridiculous! no wonder i was big. not to mention i eat more then once a day... so.. it would always be out.

bumblebee- not sure if you like pickles, but they are a free food, and i find that having a diet coke and a pickle, and maybe a piece of low fat cheese with it, fills me up quite a bit for a little snack. sugar free jello is also a free food.

i went in today and lost 3 pounds! the 194 won the battle! they also have some new foods in. i got white cheddar popcorn for a snack (the bag is HUGE compared to the other snacks..like 2.5 times bigger) my counselor said its awesome! this weekend ill be going to florida, so hopefully i can make good choices.

has anyone tried those new 350 calorie meals from long john silvers? they have shrimp.. salmon and tilapia, i tried the salmon, it came with steamed veggies and rice, it was very filling and it was realllyyy good. hopefully i find lots of long johns and subways on the way to FL (we're driving. UGH)

Hi everyone,

I'm getting married on August 15th. I've been engaged since January 18th, and instead of getting a head start...I'm at my heaviest weight ever. It seems like whenever I try to diet, I end up bingeing and telling myself that I'll start tomorrow. I think that this program sounds great and could really work for me but I have never been successful at weight loss and I've broken so many promises to myself I don't really believe in myself anymore. Any success tips, insights or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated! Also, what is a realistic goal for between now and August 1st? I ordered my dress 2 sizes too small....

I have never been able to stick to anything except this. im not sure if it was because of an "Aha" moment, or because this program just really works for me. but just remember that you CAN accomplish what you need to, if you set your mind to it. everyones body is different so i cant say what you should or shouldnt be able to lose. but for me - i have been averaging about 2-3 pounds per week. so by august my personal goal is to lose about 30 more pounds.

Thanks for the encouragement. Ever since graduating college (2 years ago) I've put on nearly 30 pounds. I've developed some nasty eating habits since going to work full time (in a very boring job)- the most troubling which has been a tendency to binge eat. I think that the accountability and planning with a counselor will help me stick to the program. The biggest issue I have is believing that I can do it- has anyone else had issues here with confidence when starting a diet, and was JC helpful in this regard? Any tips/inspirational stories would be appreciated!

How expensive is Jenny Craig? Can anyone help me with this? I need to lose about 80 lbs!

Dear E - you will totally be able to stick to Jenny! Ok, so this is still my first week, only day 6 -- but I can honestly say that Jenny is by far the easiest weight loss plan I've tried...and over the years I've tried quite a few!! South Beach, Fat Flush, WW etc.

Here is my opinion on Jenny...

-the food is very convenient (no planning, shopping, cooking etc.) -- for me this is a huge plus, since I work full time and have 2 small kids so I never have "spare time". I am finding that I feel more relaxed knowing my meals are already done (at least for me). Usually on a diet I feel insane like I have to think about food 24-7 (what to eat, what not to eat, what will I make, how many calories is it ...blah blah blah). It really would drive me crazy & I'd end up cranky. W/jenny it's not like that at all. Now I'm like "I can't wait for the fish & chips and chocolate brownie!"

-it's TASTY! It's real food - just smaller portions. I love having a REAL dessert at the end of the day! I never would have allowed myself that when I was on WW. OMG triple choc cheesecake!! Oh yes, it's real!

-Price - Food quality is important to me. So, when I decided I needed to find a weight loss plan I looked into the diet delivery services. There are several out there that look very good -- but they are extremely expensive (like at least my entire grocery bill for a family of 4). Yes, Jenny is more expensive than Nutrisystem -- but my coworker is currently using NS, and neither she nor I consider it real food. The other day she had a freeze-dried hamburger patty -- it was DISGUSTING. She actually told me that she feels like she is losing more weight b/c she barely wants to even finish the food (even though the portions look much smaller then my JC entrees).

So I say GO FOR IT!!

I too had a problem w/binge-eating. I didn't really have a plan for my meals so I would just eat EVERYTHING while I was making meals for my kids etc. Not healthy at all. This week I have not binged ONCE!! I didn't even want to! It helps have your meal already planned. This week I ate dinner actually sitting down, then dessert w/coffee or tea - it was nice! Like a treat!

PINK - CONGRATS!! That is aweome, I can't wait to hit ONEDERLAND!! Have you tried the JC salmon? I think I'm going to pick that one up this week and give it a try. Thanks for the tip on LJS-- I'll keep that one in my hip pocket! I like pickles too! OK, I'll have to give that a try!
Have fun in FL - we are going in June to seacrest (near Destin)...and there is a Jenny center nearby so I can get my food ;-) We will be there for a full week in a house so I figure I might as well.

I'll post tomorrow nite - I go for my 1st week weigh-in tomorrow!!! Crossing my fingers!!

:) mbumblebee

Thanks so much for the advice. MY first meeting went really well and I think this will work- I am very excited.
One potential obstacle I am worried about is just being able to space meals appropriately. I often get hungry and eat my midmorning snack with my breakfast or eat lunch at like 1030 or something, which sets me up for problems later in the afternoon. I have a plan mapped out, but I want to make sure I stick to it. What times do you (anyone reading this on Jenny) use for your meals and snacks? What strategies do you use, if any, to delay eating if you're feeling hungry?

HEY ALL!

I just had my first week weigh-in and I lost 7lbs!! FABULOUS! *Results not typical*
HA I just had to add that in -- can you tell I've been reading the success stories on the JC site? I crack myself up!

Anyway - it was my first week, so you know how you lose a bunch of water etc. PLUS, I was totally pms-bloating when I got weighed last week so that makes it look like more of a loss. BUT impressive none-the-less.

I should also add that I did go to happy hour on thurs and had two margaritas (IMO they were super tiny on the rocks, but I know they are full of sugar). At first I was stressing and planned on only having iced tea. BUT in the past I have been way too restrictive on diets (WW) which then makes me obsessed with food. This always backfires - and I end up bingeing and quitting all together. This time, I am going to do this the right way and even have the occasional splurge and not constantly obsess about food.

E - Congrats on your first meeting!! It's so exciting!!

This is how I am spacing my meals. For me the worst was the first two days -- so it's better to have some diversions (work, projects, errands -- anything that kept me from thinking about eating). Posting on the website works, also reading the stories on JC.com was good.

I typically eat breakfast around 7:30 - I use my morning fruit serving for orange juice, but you could totally eat fruit. THEN I drink a HUGE coffee on the way to work (w/splenda and a little sugar-free torani vanilla syrup, soy milk and a tiny bit of half and half). This is kinda helps fill me in the morning. I don't like the anytime bars so this past week I ate fruit and a lite yogurt (alternated lite string cheese or sf pudding -- now ok per my centre) for my mid-morning snack around 10:30am. ALSO I made sure to drink a FULL bottle of water.

I typically eat lunch around 1pm or so (after the noon rush in my office). After lunch I would typically want something sweet - so that is when I would bust out the crystal lite packets and mix up a Morning Sunrise drink. Then it was fruit (typically fruit salad for me) again in the afternoon. I am INSANELY hungry at 3pm. I bought a pack of fruity sf gum - I think it's extra. The funny thing is that on the package it has some kind of promotion with the Biggest Loser called the "3pm Snackdown" where you are supposed to eat gum instead of a snack. That kinda makes me feel better like EVERYONE is hungry at 3! Plus "snackdown" just makes me laugh! I have to chew like 3 sticks of it b/c I'm so muchy. Anyway, then I make another Crystal lite (typically use the other half of the packet since I think those are too strong anyway). That would get me to 5:30 when it was time to leave the office.

Then it's pick up the kids and make dinner. I eat my dinner then my dessert right after-- I can't stand to wait (and I've tried and actually made it like 2 minutes) -- it's the best part of the day!! Also this gives me a full-satisfied feeling for a while. Then I have some more coffee to finish off the nite.

I think having hot coffee or tea helps.

And don't worry - it gets easier by the day!

HEY I just found a great substitute for the ANYTIME bar and I couldn't wait to tell you guys!! Saturday while we were at the girls' swimming lessons at the YMCA - they were having a "healthy kids" fair with games and activities. They were giving out "Z-bars" which are Cliff Bars for kids. My husband ate one and thought it tasted great - so I checked the nutritional info, and it is very similar to the Anytime Bar, but less protein and more fiber (so I'm gonna call it an even trade). Calories are 120-130 whereas the ATbar is 110. BUT let me tell you these bars are DELICIOUS!! I bought some at the grocery store to try -- they are JUST AWESOME (and made with all natural ingredients). I've tried the chocolate brownie and the chocolate chip, both are fantastic. I am going to be rotating these with my yogurt and SF pudding for sure. Also, I've heard some people use Pria bars - those are good too- but I think the Zbars have more protein & fiber.

After my first week, I am completely 100% sure that Jenny is the right plan for me! It's so much easier to follow than WW, and so convenient. When I went to the center today, I felt really positive (even b/4 getting weighed) - like I was finally doing something to take care of myself. Prior to joining, I only used food to "care" for myself since it was something I could do WHILE taking care of my kids etc. It's like I am re-learning what it really means to take care of myself.


*PINK - I hope you are having a blast in FL, the weather here was pretty good yesterday, but today it's raining.

I hope everyone has a great week!! Thanks for being here!

:hug: mbumblebee

Hi Coybug -

I think there is a promotion where you can join and only pay $20 for 20 lbs (or something similar) plus cost of food. The food will vary depending on which entrees you choose, but for me it's around $130. I don't buy the Jenny supplements or the anytime bars, so that would be more.

I joined with a premium membership -- which is kinda like a lifetime membership where you can renew each year for a nominal fee (I think they said $30). Anyway, This membership was $400 - but if you have insurance, they can give you a discount (I got 20% off for Aetna). Also I know some major employers get discounts too - up to 25% according to the Jenny website.
I picked the premium membership b/c it came with little incentives --they gave me $50 off my first food order, then I get another $50 off when I reach my goal then they give me half of the money back when I maintain for a year or something like that. I want to lose 60 lbs, so the 20 lb promotion wasn't going to cut it for me. I plan on being on Jenny for quite a while so I needed something long-term.
Previously, they offered a plan that didn 't give $ back, but gave discounts on the food. I really wanted that plan b/c I heard that after a while it was like 30% off food! If you are on it for a while, that could add up to real savings!! But, when I went in last week, they said that plan is no longer offered.

Anyway, I say it's worth it to go in and check out all the plan options to see if one will work w/your needs.

Good luck,
mbumblebee

hey guys i am back from florida. talk about a trip FROM ****. i went down there because my best friend was moving so i drove with her to help her move all her stuff and then flew back. before we even left IL a fuse blew in the car that we needed so the navigation system could be plugged in because it only stays charged for 2 hours. so we sat at a gas station for a half hour trying to figure that out, by the time we got to kentucky we got stuck in a two hour bumper to bumper traffic jam. Finally we make it to tennesse, only one more state to go until we could stop and rest!!!! except for the fact that the only road leading into north carolina was closed, so we were re-routed by the navigator in a giant circle, this set us back about another 2 hours. it ended up taking 24 hours to get to north carolina which should have only taken 12 hours. finally we get there and get about 3 hours of sleep, until we head out to florida. we then leave north carolina, hit a pot hole and half a flat tire and bent rim, so we sat at a gas station for three hours until we could get it fixed. finally... we make it on our way. we get to florida at about 6am where i got to sleep on a pull out bed that shouldnt be called a bed. the mattress was a whole two inches thick. i have back problems as it is, so my back hurt for 2 days, until today when i flew back home. i took a late flight (11pm) so i could spend a little more time with my friend. as luck would have it, my flight was delayed 2 hours. the airplane was the most ridiculous cramped space ive ever been in. i am 5'11 and my knees did not even fit in the seat, so i sat with them in the aisle because there was literally four inches between my seat and the seat infront of me. my other friend who also came to help our friend move, was with me and her boyfriend was suppose to pick us up from the airport. her boyfriend decided to go to the bar instead and got to drunk. so some girl we know had to come pick us up. where i had to sit in the back of a two seater car. again with no space. it is now 5am. i am finally home. to top it all off. i gained a pound this week.

EDIT: SO funny story. if you read the above then you know my week hasnt been the best of weeks. guess what! its not done yet! some great loving person decided it would be fun to through a brick through my windshield. isnt that just AWESOME!

hello everyone. I stopped going to JC because I couldn't afford it. Then one of my patients came in..she lost 75lbs with JC and is now a consultant! She looks great. I told her my dilemma with the weekly food cost. So I have switched somethings..I eat a slimfast food bar 220 cal for breakfast..this keeps me full. Then I have a ff yogurt and fruit before lunch. So I am just buying lunch and dinners. It is not so bad. 2 weeks 5lbs down so far. My consultant says exercise is the key..she really advocate fast paced walking or just moving as much as you can. I try to get off the couch more now and am doing Jazzercise 3 days a week..and walks on the other days.

Hello Everyone!

I just signed up for JC on Wednesday, and started the food plan today. So far, I liked the food. I had the turkey burger for lunch, and will have the pizza for dinner.

I can't wait til next Thursday when I go for my first WI, to see if this will work for me. I've tried other programs (LA Weight Loss, Weight Watchers), but I have a problem with committment and sticking to any weight loss program, even though I desperately need to.

I look forward to chatting with everybody, and hearing lots of tips!!

Hey Chicks! I'm starting a new thread for us since this one is getting long. I'll call it Jenny Craig Chat.