Jenny Craig vs. Weight Watchers

willgetthere

Interesting topic and great feedback. Sorry to hear some people feel JC doesn't teach them to maintain. Without being rude, did they make it to their goal and go on the maintenance programme? I've seen many woman complete their year long maintenance and be within their goal range. I was a consultant, so I guess I'm happy to report that I've helped/seen a few ladies reach their goals.

Jenny Craig does help it's clients to learn maintenance. The problem lies with people not trying to LEARN anything while they are on the program. If you have someone that just joined the program when their girlfriends joined and then quit when their girlfriends quit then most likely they didn't TRY to learn anything. These people were "interested" in losing weight, but not "committed" to losing the weight. The program isn't magic. The food isn't magic. It requires a lot of personal responsibility. The program didn't fail, they failed the program.

willgetthere

Well said Edorice. You only get out what you put in, on ANY plan!

Stephanie08

I did weight watchers and for me it was a waste of time and money. I get more from this site then i did there. Sitting in the meetings hearing things i felt i already knew deep down. Paying someone to weigh me pretty much. And have them sell me products that i felt i needed at the time. The only thing i bought there that i still use is my scale. If you need support add as many people on here as possible and turn to the boards. Nothing feels better then completing my diary and logging exercise and having a bunch of people give me positive feedback (even tho i dont know them personally lol) Log everything you eat.. like you would on weight watchers anyway (without wasting time figuring out point values). Jenny craig is almost the same thing i believe but you pay them for food?? Just portion and weight everything!! I personally am living on a tight budget right now and i still manage to eat great. So if you need some cheap healthy meals or ideas or just support you can add me!! I like to buy mini carrots and fruits and wash and portion them and put them in snack bags. Also you can hard boil eggs, bag them and just grab them and go. Save yourself the money i say!! Log into here everyday and track everything. Put an honest effort into exercise. You can do it girl!!!

DITTO!

souldancer

Gill, look into different options. My mother had to have the gastric bipass in October 2009 due to her health problems. My mother has not stopped with surgery for a health solution , she has been exercising and balancing healthy meals. She joined TOPS and has found it to be a great support system as well as educational. My Mother has lost over 220 lbs and no longer has diabetes. My mother is still losing weight and living happy and healthy. I hope you find what you are searching for.

BrattyLori

BULL *kitten*.

When we ASK our Jenny Consultants "How do we learn to do this" they shoudl say, "OH - we teach you that when you get to maintenance" - instead of just "Duuuuuuuuh... uhhhhh."

Stopping handing over money to a program in favor of learning how to take personal responsibility for our bodies is NOT FAILURE.

BOO.

AngChambers06

I'm thinking about starting a program like these two. So I'm hoping I can get some opinions on both. Have any of you done either, or both? If so, what are the pros and cons of your experience? Thanks in advance for your responses.

--Gillian--

personally I wouldnt pay for either after finding this site! weight watcher does what this site does except it assignts point values. and with Jenny Craig u have to pay for the food! use you're tools here!

dbanks80

I did WW 10 yrs ago. I got the book and my point allowance and my husband and I did at home. We both lost significant amount of weight. But we gained it all back and then some.

In saying that it doesn't matter what plan you are on Nutrisystem, JC, WW, SouthBeach,LA Weight Loss (did that one) HCG (just learned of this week) if you don't learn how to eat properly and exercise as a lifestyle change the weight will always come back and you will spend hundreds or thousands of dollars making someone else rich.

karensoxfan

Interesting topic and great feedback. Sorry to hear some people feel JC doesn't teach them to maintain. Without being rude, did they make it to their goal and go on the maintenance programme? I've seen many woman complete their year long maintenance and be within their goal range. I was a consultant, so I guess I'm happy to report that I've helped/seen a few ladies reach their goals.

Jenny Craig does help it's clients to learn maintenance. The problem lies with people not trying to LEARN anything while they are on the program. If you have someone that just joined the program when their girlfriends joined and then quit when their girlfriends quit then most likely they didn't TRY to learn anything. These people were "interested" in losing weight, but not "committed" to losing the weight. The program isn't magic. The food isn't magic. It requires a lot of personal responsibility. The program didn't fail, they failed the program.

I personally did make it to my goal on JC back in '95, and had a few weeks of support, but couldn't afford a year of it. The method they taught at the time was basically the food groups & portion control, but it was d@mn near impossible to even work in a slice of birthday cake (too many "fat" servings for the day) and still be "on-plan".

I don't think that constitutes a failure on my part. I think that was the program teaching a too-rigid maintenance plan, and in retrospect, a too-strict diet before it. I'm sure JC has several women who are able to maintain a more structured approach to eating, and I'm sure they're very healthy doing so, but to call anyone who didn't learn to maintain this way a failure is rude & disrespectful, IMO.

On WW, the lesson is learning to choose your own good nutrition within guidelines of moderation. They understand that birthday cake (and lots of other situations where a pre-made meal is just not appropriate) happens, and situations where you want more than 3 or 4 servings of "fat" in a day happen, and they teach you to work it in or get around it in a lot of different ways. I'm also sure JC has probably evolved since then, and I hope they've incorporated more flexibility into their maintenance approach, and I hope they've incorporated earlier lessons in maintenance by having people choose their own meals more often than just as they approach their weight goal.

trishkinna

I have been on both Jenny Craig and Weight Watchers. Both are good. Both teach you how to eat. WW is cheaper. BUT I have never been successful on WW because there were too many choices. When I am trying to lose weight, I need a more rigid diet at first. This is not WW's fault! For me, Jenny worked. Jenny's counselors were great and the food pretty delicious.

Just a "little" note: I found it better to weigh in on a Monday so I wouldn't binge on a weekend....but after weighing in, I would go to IHOP and have pancakes, butter, and syrup! YUM! Monday was my "gorge" day, and then Tuesday, I'd start again! (That was the only "reward" I wanted.)

I don't think that's what JC means when it says it's "flexible" :happy:

JC is a good program, but a person has to go into it, as with any program, with the intention of losing weight, learning the proper way to eat , and how to handle the B-Day cakes and pancakes as they come into our lives.

fitterpam

One plan that hasn't been mentioned worked really well for me....to a point. I started with LA Weight Loss in February 2006 - I'd picked up a starter package at an auction around the holidays. I loved how simple the plan was and I did learn some things. Like corn should be treated as a grain, not a vegetable (think about it....LOL....it does make sense, like a potato). Between February and April, I dropped close to 40 lbs. I was never hungry - loved their bars (LOVE LOVE LOVED them - it was like eating a chocolate bar twice a day).

I hit a plateau in late March and they really worked with me. I was fully committed to the program, except during one of my visits I'd told the girl that I'd joined the gym and was doing 45 minutes of cardio and 15 of weight training 4x a week. She told me to ease off the weight training since muscle weighs more than fat and it wasn't going to help the scale move. :noway: Now I know that muscle burns more calories than fat so in the long term, it increases your metabolism. The people that work in these centres are not medically trained, they don't have nutrition science degrees nor are registered personal trainers. Looking back, I was relying on them desperately for answers and they had been to company sponsored training...not necessarily what I was looking for.

My point is this: You can get the same kind of support through this site that you do through those programs. There are lots of knowledgeable people that have been there and have come out of it (similar to the counsellors). If you`re looking for convenience foods, people have pointed out that there are less expensive options. If you learn to do it on your own, you`ll never need to rely on these programs again, even if your journey has a few starts to it. If you rely on these programs, you`ll always rely on them - and if you`re honest with yourself, you`ll see that they are businesses and ultimately, that is their goal. There is a cross purpose.

JLeeAlton

I honestly wouldn't use any of the programs, waste of money. I would rather spend the money on awesome workout DVDs or cookbooks to find new recipes to use. I think educating yourself with the right foods to eat and the right exercise to do is more helpful in the long run. I LOVE to cook and every weekend I make my meals for the week for myself and for my FH. I just couldn't eat the premade boxed food and not know how to make the proper foods myself. however I will say I have eaten a few Lean Cuisines and Smart Ones for lunch but that is only in a pinch. For the most part its all homemade items for me!