Yeah they really took care of me. I was really concerned because I didn't know what to expect, and of course Fed Ex made a good point. They said it was crazy to ship food ground no matter how much ice you throw in, and I could hardly argue with that, but I did my best. I see their point. We barely had a leg to stand on when you have food going two days in transit ground, and then sitting on a hot truck all day before it is delivered (and I know others that have had longer transit times, which is just nuts to me). I think those people got lucky if they received everything still frozen. That is why I think it's complete and utter lunacy to ship food ground in the summer using regular gel packs! Even with dry ice, you have problems but gel packs! That's called "the luck of the draw."
I really wish they did ship overnight, and just charged a little extra as they have a huge account and can get good rates. That's the only thing I miss with Jenny Craig (besides the french toast, pot stickers and desserts). They always shipped overnight Fed Ex with lots of dry ice. When I used Diet To Go, I got it the next day because of my location. I am nervous now that this happened to me because the fact that it happened to me once, means there is a good chance it will happen again before summer is gone. I hope not! That won't dissuade me though. I am doing very well on this food. In fact I have never been able to handle a meal delivery plan this long, and still be this content. Adrian in customer service is an absolute angel! The food is actually delicious, and food I would want to eat whether I was on a plan or not! That's a first!
As for maintenance, I am going to continue to buy this food for as long as I can afford it. I say this because it's actually very good and extremely healthy and well balanced. It saves me the hassle, worry and energy needed for cooking, figuring it all out and so forth. If I get to a point where I can't afford it anymore or do get sick of the food, I will have at least learned how to eat the proper way. I find myself doing things very differently then I did before. My boyfriend was going to Applebee's today for some take out, and asked me what I wanted and I said none for me. That has never happened! I splurged a couple of weeks ago and had some ice cream. Normally I would have eaten the whole pint. I had less than half a pint, and simply realized that this took up much of my snack calories for the day. By keeping the journal, I know exactly where I am at calorie wise every single day. Incredible tool! I am slowly learning many things. I am understanding portion control, and the right kinds of foods as opposed to what I used to think was OK.
By the way I just found an incredibly easy recipe to make cheese crisps that blew me away just now! Although I am not counting carbs and fat grams like I used to (and losing more by just counting calories), I still want to try and eat as few carbs as possible. Well I was buying those delicious and highly rated 1 carb cheese biscuits (J&M Foods) at Netrition.Com. Those were hot and cheesy and satisfied my cravings. I was stunned when I went to buy more, and found that they have been discontinued! I am trying their regular cheese straws (just like the biscuits only tastier and in a squiggly shape) which are still relatively low at 10 carbs per serving, but still, what a bummer! I have tried many cheese snacks, and most leave a lot to be desired like the so called "Just The Cheese" which is anything but! That is nasty stuff loaded with sodium nitrate, MSG and all kinds of crap. It is supposed to be just baked cheese but the ingredients almost knocked me out of my chair!
I looked online and many people were talking about their favorite no carb treat, which was just to bake cheese itself and I thought, it can't be that easy. Don't you have to mix it with stuff? I figured it would be a pain or something. Well I found a recipe that people were raving about, and I wanted to pass it on even though this thread is somewhat dead. It's delicious! So easy and so perfect! You just need to buy some Reynolds Parchment baking paper (its usually next to the regular foil in that area of the store-or the baking section of a store). Parchment is the only thing that will work, and they stressed that as it does stick to anything else pretty badly. I just bought some parchment paper, a couple of packages of my favorite sliced cheese (Sargento's Medium Cheddar). All you do is set the oven at 350, take out a couple of slices of cheese, and cut each slice into 4 quarters as it spreads out when it bakes...alot). Let those squares bake for maybe 5-7 minutes (you want to watch them until the edges get a little brown), then take them out and let them cool for a moment or two). You need a really thin spatula to make things easier. I put them between paper towels, and got tons of grease off of the cheese making it an even healthier snack. I just had some, and thought I had died and gone to heaven! No wonder people were raving (one woman said that they make these in the restaurant where she works when they close up at night). They are delicious! It's like the edges of macaroni & cheese that you wish there was more of! You don't need to add any salt or anything, although some people get creative and put some shredded cheese of a different variety on top, or add paprika and other spices before baking. I had to fight my boyfriend for them because he had one and then wanted more and more lol! Two slices gives you eight delicious crisps that total only 160 calories or less (especially when you get most of the grease off of the cheese after it bakes) and it was pure cheese and incredibly yummy! Simple to make and the clean up was just throwing out the parchment paper (which you can continue to use if you are baking up a bunch of batches, but then you need to throw it away of course right away. I never did see advice on how to store them, but now I see why (You can't hold onto them long enough to store them as they are soooo good). I just figure I will bake up a batch of two slices (8 pieces each time) and keep myself more honest that way.
Hope everyone has a great weekend!
Oh and about the breakfasts. You have to call them, and tell them you do not want to do breakfasts anymore. I must warn you that when you go ala carte (which is what they call that), it ends up being pretty much the same cost! The meals ala carte are expensive. You will save very little. I don't get the breakfasts either. Good luck to you.