The Jenny Craig weight loss program relies on its dieters purchasing and eating prepackaged meals and snacks, according to "Jenny Craig's What Have You Got to Lose?: A Personalized Weight-Management Program." According to "NutriSystem Nourish: The Revolutionary New Weight-Loss Program," the NutriSystem approach utilizes both prepackaged meals and snacks and foods purchased at the grocery store. Both programs aim for a weight loss of 1 lb. to 2 lbs. per week. If you are interested in Jenny Craig or NutriSystem but do not want to purchase the prepackaged meals, you can follow the principles of the weight-loss plans by making your own meals.
Step 1
Determine how many calories you should be eating with each meal and snack. The Jenny Craig program allows women three 300-calorie meals and two 150-calorie snacks for a total of 1,200 calories per day; men are allotted three 400-calorie meals and two 200-calorie snacks for a total of 1,600 calories. NutriSystem allows the same amount of calories as Jenny Craig but splits up the calories differently. On the NutriSystem program, women are allotted three 350-calorie meals and one 150-calorie snack; men are allotted three 450-calorie meals and one 250 calorie snack. According to the book "Contemporary Nutrition," weight loss is not impacted by how you break up your calorie allowance or when you eat your calories. Therefore, it is acceptable to choose whichever caloric breakdown fits best with your lifestyle and personal needs.
Step 2
Purchase frozen or prepackaged meals several days in advance. Read the nutrition labels of the meals prior to purchasing them to ensure that they do not contain more calories that you are allotted per meal. Both Jenny Craig and NutriSystem rely on prepackaged meals to assist their dieters in controlling portion sizes. "Contemporary Nutrition" suggests looking for meals that are low in fat, high in fiber and free of preservatives. Nearly all prepackaged and frozen meals are high in sodium, so drink extra water when eating these meals to maintain proper fluid balance, warn Lois White, Gena Duncan and Wendy Baumle, authors of "Foundations of Nursing."
Step 3
Purchase low-fat yogurt, fresh fruits and fresh vegetables several days in advance. Both Jenny Craig and NutriSystem incorporate these foods into their meal plans.
Step 4
Eat fruits, vegetables or yogurt with meals that have fewer than necessary calories. For example, if you are a woman eating 350-calorie meals and your chosen prepackaged meal has only 290 calories, you may choose to eat a small apple, which has 60 calories, according to the USDA National Nutrient Database, to increase the caloric content of your meal to the required amount.
Step 5
Eat fruits, vegetables or yogurt for your snacks.
Things You'll Need
- Frozen or prepackaged meals
- Fruits
- Vegetables
- Yogurt
References
- "Jenny Craig's What Have You Got to Lose?: A Personalized Weight-Management Program"; Jenny Craig; 1996
- "NutriSystem Nourish: The Revolutionary New Weight-Loss Program"; NutriSystem and Dr. James Rouse; 2004
- "Contemporary Nutrition"; Gordon M. Wardlaw and Anne M Smith; 2007
- "Foundations of Nursing"; Lois White, Gena Duncan and Wendy Baumle; 2010
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