Jenny Craig

Jenny Craig is a popular and well-known weight loss 'brand' with franchise outlets in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The Jenny Craig weight management program is a portion-controlled diet plan based around the traditional US dietary guidelines (i.e. USDA food pyramid).

This is a calorie controlled program where all your meals are shipped to you. It is a sustainable (1-2 pounds per week weight loss) long-term program that works. The program involves visiting a Jenny Craig center for weigh-ins, and consulting one-on-one with one of their weight loss consultants.

Pros vs Cons

The Jenny Craig program is EXPENSIVE!

All the meals must come from Jenny Craig, and the food costs can really mount up. What is disturbing is that Jenny Craig do not list their prices anywhere - they require you to ring up first - which involves an aggresive sales pitch.

Sign a Contract

Jenny Craig require you to sign a contract - and once you have joined the initial deal (which typically lasts 2-3 months), you must then sign up for either Gold or Platinum membership (at $199 and $299). What do you get for your membership? Someone to weigh you each week, and quite frankly to increase sales for more products (everything from pedometers to cookbooks).

Counseling

Many people report that the center-based meetings vary from center to center. Some are as simple as a weigh-in - other counselors may be more helpful.

Fitness

Recently Jenny Craig have introduced a fitness and exercise component which is good, however the costs of the program just don't really justify the benefits (despite the paid endorsement of former actor Kirstie Alley).

Home Delivery

Delivery of diet meals is available in certain location throught the Jenny Direct program.

Better Alternatives

Portion-controlled packaged foods can work and will suit many people. Have a look at NutriSystem - which is about half the price of Jenny Craig and has free membership (and requires no contract signing).