How To Keep Your Weight Loss Resolutions In Check
BOSTON (CBS) - The commercials for weight loss and exercise equipment started right after Christmas this year. They did not wait until the first of January to begin.
Two-thirds of adults are overweight. Thirty-four percent are obese. That is scary! And a study published in the AMA Journal found that only 25% of dieters stuck to their diets for over a year. It's hard to diet.
We are being tempted every day to over indulge. We human beings are wired to eat when food is plentiful and it is always plentiful. And there is truly something to the See Food Diet. If you see food, you want more even if you are comfortably full.
So I thought we would review some of the more popular diets and their costs. Do not expect to lose more than 1-2 pounds a week. The Biggest Loser losses are unattainable for the average person.
Weight Watchers has a program, Weight Watchers 360, with lots of local meetings and a very active website. Weight Watchers has been around for over 45 years. You can go to as many meetings in a week as you need (sort of like AA).
They promote learning to survive in the real world with real food and real temptations and the people who work for Weight Watchers must be Weight Watchers graduates, meaning they have lost weight on the program. Jennifer Hudson is a spokesperson for them and she has lost 85 pounds.
The weekly meeting fees are $10 to $13. Or you can deal just with their website for $5 a week. Then there is the cost of food.
Jenny Craig has a program where they provide one on one counseling, usually 20 minutes a week. Valerie Bertinelli and Mariah Carey have both worked for them and lost weight.
Membership fees vary with free introductory offers to $399. Then you must purchase your foods thru their Center, which is where they make their money.
Their prepackaged food costs on average $12 a day, which is about $350 for four weeks. Plus the cost of fresh fruit and veggies and milk. They have a new plan; diet for 5 days and eat on your own for 2, presumably the weekend.
NutriSystem is also a prepared food program, which is being advertised a lot on TV. Janet Jackson and Marie Osmond have done ads for them. You need to purchase all of your meals from them. Cost about $350 for 4 weeks of their food ($11 a day). Plus the fresh fruit, veggies, and anything else you purchase.
All of the celebrities noted above look great but remember they had trainers working with them during their weight loss program.
And for the record, I'm a card-carrying member of Weight Watchers and have reached my goal.
One more thing: A weight watcher tip: use a journal to keep track of what you are eating. If you bite it, you write it! If you nibble, you scribble! And do not bother trying the cabbage soup diet. It is boring! And unappetizing. I made my soup with purple cabbage thinking it would be more nutritious and it looked gross.
