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Old 07-20-2009, 12:06 PM   #1  
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Default DTG Review

So I wanted to report back on my 1st full week of DTG to assist those who are in the same position I was in a couple of a weeks ago. But first I want to give a little perspective on what I used the program for as I think your individual expectations will shape your opinion of the program.

About Me: From March to the first week of July I managed to lose 27 pounds on my own. I did this by adding in almost daily exercise and reducing the amount of times I ate out. I noticed I was losing weight but VERRRY slowly in relation to what I wanted to lose, so I started adding more protein to each meal and started eating only "whole" foods. Still I was losing but not fast enough. I finally decided I had to start counting my calories, I did this for about a week and got the scale moving again. Only problem was I was SICK and TIRED of having my life dominated by my "lifestyle change". What do I mean by this? I was coming home from work, walking my dogs, changing into workout clothes, working out, showering, making dinner, and preparing breakfast/snacks/lunch for the following day at work, then eating dinner. When all was said and done I was MAYBE getting an hour to myself in the evenings. SO to fix this I started cooking in bulk (although it's just me), the problem with this is I ended up eating the SAME foods for lunch AND dinner 2-3 days at a time! So I decided I wanted to find a place that would prepare my dinners for me but have them be portion controlled, healthy and with a caloric intake I could easily plug into my food journal. Hence I started doing a lot of researched and learned of places like Pure Foods Fresh Start, Freshology, and Diet to Go. Did some further research and found that DTG received a lot of positive reviews and offered a price/flexible plans that I desired.

My Order: I ordered 7-days of the lunch/dinners for the Low Carb plan. I started with week 2's menu and only found one thing that was 'bland' and that was the squash that came with the hamburger pizza. But I don't like squash anyway so I was probably biased. The other veggies I have found surprisingly tasty, seems like they may steam it in a veggie broth or something, but I tend to add black pepper to all of them b/c I am a black pepper freak! The proteins (i.e. fish/pork/chicken etc) have been OUT OF THIS WORLD! I was genuinely surprised at just how good they all are! Trust me, I don't blow smoke and if something tastes like crap, I will be the first to say. We work too hard for our money to throw it away but the food has been great. What I did at the end of each day was 'rate' my food, so if I decide to order long enough to repeat a week I will know what I LOVED, and what was Good.

Results: From last Monday to this Monday I have lost 4 pounds. This is A LOT for me, especially since I worked out 4 days last week and took it "easy" for two of those workouts. Further I have actually DECREASED the amount of cardio I was doing and am allowing my change in "diet" to account for my weight loss, which is more sustainble for me in the long run. I consumed anywhere from 1200-1700 calories a day, and I generally eat 5-6 times a day. I prepared my own breakfasts and snacks and supplement with the DTF lunches/dinners.

Advice: Figure out what YOU are really looking for and what you need and find a plan that fits those needs. But realize you have to start out with the basics yourself and understand WHY a plan works so you can figure out how to maintain your weight loss over time. For me, the most important thing is calorie control. Me 'overeating' was more a result of the fact that I ate out too much than it was that I didn't like or cooked healthily on my own. DTG does help you learn portion control and it has been great in giving me ideas for meals I can make on my own. I believe the reason I lost the weight was not because of "magic" DTG food but b/c it allowed me to stay within my calorie range for proper weight loss. I still had M&M's, waffles and sugar free fudgcicles last week! But I made it all fit within my calorie range. I am not sure if I will try the low fat plan b/c I tend to be "carb sensitive", I stay satiated longer with proteins than I do with bread for instance. But it's nice to have that option, as well as the veg option. I intend to use DTG indefinitely. I think I will try to go a full 5 weeks so I can sample everything in the low-carb plan. If I can lose steadily 2 pounds a week, I will be a happy woman. I think an individual can easily lose 3-5 pounds a week if they ONLY followed the DTG low carb plan for b/l/d; however b/c of my exercise habits and b/c I don't eat low-carb for weight loss purposes I choose not to follow this path.

I know this is long but hopefully I have provided some insight to those that were interested!
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Old 07-26-2009, 01:51 PM   #2  
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Thank you for the review, Deanna. I am seriously considering switching from Jenny Craig Direct to DTG. Here's the one question I can't find the answer to on the site: what about healthy snacks (milk, fruit, FF deserts, string cheese, etc.)? Do they give them to you or do you add them yourself? Or do the three meals already contain the 1200 (or whatever) calories, leaving no room for snacks?

Second, how much do they charge to substitute? To double up? Thanks in advance!
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Old 07-26-2009, 05:54 PM   #3  
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Hey Buttah! To answer your questions.

1. I do not believe DTG offers snacks even if you get breakfast, lunch and dinner from them. But you may want to call their customer service or shoot them an e-mail and inquire. I add my own snacks because I workout 5 days a week and am using meal delivery more as a convenience as opposed to a full meal plan.

2. I currently do the lunch/dinner option which has a calorie range of anywhere between 700-900 calories depending on the meals for that day. I add my own breakfast/snacks to get my daily range anywhere from 1200-2000 (I calorie cycle). I am currently on the low carb option, the daily calories for the low carbs meal average about 1300 (again assuming you get b/l/d from them), but each individual meal can range anywhere from 260-700 calories. If you go with the low fat option, the 1200 and 1600 calorie range is if you ordered breakfast, lunch and dinner from DTG and does NOT include snacks. DTG has a nutrition section that gives you the calorie count for each meal on their website so you can check out the calories in each meal if you'd like there.

3. There is no charge for substitutions. The only stipulation is you get your substitution in to them before their requested deadline, which for mail order customers are typically before noon, eastern on Friday. So far I have not had a problem with my substitutions and I am now entering week 3.

Hope I've helped some!
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Old 07-26-2009, 11:15 PM   #4  
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Deanna, do they give guidelines or suggestions of snacks that don't bust the diet (for 3 meal a day people, I guess)? Or are you completely going by calories and adding whatever snacks you feel like?
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Old 07-27-2009, 06:37 AM   #5  
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Deana, thanks so much for the DTG review! The low carb plan does look excellent. I've bookmarked the site and may try it some time in the future.
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Old 07-27-2009, 01:21 PM   #6  
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I just spoke to someone named Mike, who was not very helpful. I think he was filling in for the person who usually answers calls like this. He said the low carb diet calories fluctuated from 1200 to 1600, which I knew couldn't be right. Sure enough, I checked deeper into the website, and they offer two different PLANS, one 1200 and 1600, and within those there seems to be a smaller fluctuation (for example, the 1200 calorie diet dipped down to 1100 and up to 1400). Is that correct?

When I asked him if the calorie count left room for snacks, he said I would be full and wouldn't need snacks! But that's not the point, as we all know - it's good to eat more frequently, and I prefer to have room for 2 snacks. Not to mention it offers a little variety here and there.

It's unnerving to call and get someone who doesn't seem to know a lot and overall talked to me like I'd never been on a diet before. Is this the typical experience?

Last edited by buttah; 07-27-2009 at 01:21 PM.
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Old 07-27-2009, 02:47 PM   #7  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by buttah View Post
Deanna, do they give guidelines or suggestions of snacks that don't bust the diet (for 3 meal a day people, I guess)? Or are you completely going by calories and adding whatever snacks you feel like?
Hey Buttah! I go by calories and add what I want, but I don't add junk (typically haha). A typical snack for me is sugar free applesauce and a low fat cheesestick, or nuts (which I measure out to get the exact calorie count), fat free yogurt, a 100-calorie fiber one muffic toasted with some jam, etc. etc.
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Old 07-27-2009, 02:48 PM   #8  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mizski View Post
Deana, thanks so much for the DTG review! The low carb plan does look excellent. I've bookmarked the site and may try it some time in the future.
can't beat the convenience! Plus it gives some great meal ideas! I'm starting week 3 tomorrow. Lost another 2 pounds this past week.

Last edited by Deana; 07-27-2009 at 02:58 PM. Reason: had to change 'be' to 'beat'!
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Old 07-27-2009, 02:58 PM   #9  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by buttah View Post
I just spoke to someone named Mike, who was not very helpful. I think he was filling in for the person who usually answers calls like this. He said the low carb diet calories fluctuated from 1200 to 1600, which I knew couldn't be right. Sure enough, I checked deeper into the website, and they offer two different PLANS, one 1200 and 1600, and within those there seems to be a smaller fluctuation (for example, the 1200 calorie diet dipped down to 1100 and up to 1400). Is that correct?

When I asked him if the calorie count left room for snacks, he said I would be full and wouldn't need snacks! But that's not the point, as we all know - it's good to eat more frequently, and I prefer to have room for 2 snacks. Not to mention it offers a little variety here and there.

It's unnerving to call and get someone who doesn't seem to know a lot and overall talked to me like I'd never been on a diet before. Is this the typical experience?
Well I think Mike and you are both right. On the Low Carb plan you do NOT choose a calorie level. Everyone gets the same type/amount of food. The daily calories in the low carb plan seem to fluctuate anywhere between 1000-1800 but the daily average is about 1200-1400. I believe they are also trying to tie in some calorie cycling concepts here, wherein you don't eat the same number of calories every day but you do eat the same number of calories overall for the week. So although you aren't eating exactly 1200 calories a day, I would bet if you added all the daily calories for a given week, it will still hit or be very close to 8400 calories (the same as eating 1200 calories for each day of the week).

However, you are also correct in that if you order the Low Fat plan, you can choose your daily calorie level which would either be 1200 or 1600 calories. And the individual daily meal calories will also vary but for the week should even out.

I am sure you had such a lackluster experience with the rep. I have personally never called in to speak with a rep. It's been easier for me to communicate by e-mail, but I also am using the service for convenience and already knew what I wanted my daily calories to be and what I was going to eat to get there. After I finish my first full 5 weeks of lunch/dinner for 7 days a week, I am going to change it to lunch/dinner for 5 days a week. I, personally, felt that if I ordered the full plan (including the breakfasts) it would limit would I could eat for the remainder of the day and still be within my target calorie range. That is why I choose the flexibility of just doing lunch/dinner and then adding in my own breakfasts/snacks. Eating the DTG lunch/dinners and the rest of the food at my own choosing, I have more flexibility in what I eat and am still hitting my daily calorie goals. I just completed week 2 and have lost 6 pounds to date (even though during the past two weeks I have had m&ms, a honey bun, and hotdog) but again it was all in my calorie allowance.

I hope I helped/clarified some.
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Old 07-27-2009, 06:14 PM   #10  
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Thanks, Deanna. I checked out the calories of all four weeks of DTG low carb on the website. Most were between 1100 and 14-something. I'm all for carb cycling, but I don't want any 1600 or 2200 days! At this point, it's between DTG low carb and PFFS. I think I might have a faster weight loss start on PFFS, from what I've gleaned from these boards. Quite a few people reported little to no weight loss starting DTG, but they didn't specify which plan they were using, and there was also some concern about sodium content. Did you ever get an answer about that?

Last edited by buttah; 07-27-2009 at 06:19 PM.
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Old 07-27-2009, 07:34 PM   #11  
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Since I am doing my own breakfasts and snacks, I am able to control the sodium content for what I want it to be for the day. I do, however, think that some of the meals in DTG are a little high with the sodium but especially if you ordered all three meals from them. My weightloss has been pretty good thus far, I can't complain at all. I intend to stick out DTG for two weeks (that will end a full 5-week cycle for me) and then maybe try PFFS and from that point decide which one I favor more. I believe when I priced it out PFFS was a little more expensive than DTG but I do like their A LA Carte section that allows you to pick all your meals. Let me know what you decide!

Oh by the way, I believe most people that did not have weight loss with DTG was on the low fat plan, but I could be wrong!
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Old 07-28-2009, 06:00 PM   #12  
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Ladies, I too am debating between DTG low fat and low carb? I have tried both in the past but was cheating heavily on it, so I can't really blame the food for my lack of loss. I also hated that there were times, my meals were floating in water, Deana is this still happeneing? Cause I read somewhere that they had changed their meal packaging?
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Old 07-28-2009, 11:25 PM   #13  
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I started DTG Jan and lost almost 40 lbs in 4 months. Was doing the low fat 1200 lunches & dinners. I didn't find the breakfasts to be worth the money. Would rather have yogurt and cereal or string cheese and fruit.

When I first called, the gentleman I talked to wasn't too friendly. He said if you need a snack...have something from the ground. Like fruit or veggies. I do have about 10-15 raw almonds each afternoon. However, I have found the customer service department to be exceptional.

After the first couple of days, I wasn't craving anything. Needless to say, I was in a car accident, stopped excercising, stopped delivery and started eating junk.

After putting on about 15 lbs (just a few) in about 2 months, I called and placed an order. Picked up today, and it was so good. I did substitute the meatloaf with parmasean (sp?) white fish, carrots. Was really good. I had forgotten how easy and tasty the meals are.

Brenda

I'm hoping some of the regained lbs will come off quick.
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Old 07-29-2009, 02:30 AM   #14  
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40 lbs in four months!!! Ten lbs a month for four consecutive months. Um.... Wow. I'd think that would be difficult on the low fat plan vs. the low carb. On any diet for that matter.
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Old 07-29-2009, 08:00 AM   #15  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by oseybaby View Post
Ladies, I too am debating between DTG low fat and low carb? I have tried both in the past but was cheating heavily on it, so I can't really blame the food for my lack of loss. I also hated that there were times, my meals were floating in water, Deana is this still happeneing? Cause I read somewhere that they had changed their meal packaging?

Hey oseybaby, I can't say that I have had any meals "floating in water", and I am starting week 3 of the lunch and dinner. BUT I also don't heat my food up in the carton it comes in, so I guess if your food is still frozen and you just heat up in the carton then the ice will prob melt and linger in the tray? Just a guess, but for one I always make sure to heat my food up for atleast 7 minutes even if it's been in the fridge a day. I love my food really hot, and I think maybe this is evaporating any water that may be in it.

Also the DTG intstructions are to place 3 days worth of meals in the fridge, and then on the 3rd day put the remaining 4 days of meals in the fridge. I think if you did this, it will also eliminate any excess water b/c it slows the defrosting process. I personally pick my meals the night before, so I only keep one day's worth of meals at a time in the fridge.
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