You don't need diet clubs to lose weight

:It is beyond belief that Jenny Craig are advertising and operating in the UK again. In 1990, I handed over about £200+ to join based on a system of classes and then also purchasing their food. Within 48 hours of handing them the money, I had a phone call telling me they were in receivership. They should not have been taking new customers 48 hours before going into receivership as they must have realised they were in financial difficulties. I never got a penny back and then they had the audacity to write to ask would I like to purchase some of their excess food stocks! Beyond disgusting bearing in mind they'd just ripped me of for over £200. Not content with that, a year later I was contacted by Nutrisystem Weightloss Centres. I had no intention of joining but out of curiosity went along to see what their deal was. It was the same as Jenny Craig. A large registration fee for classes and would only sell the food which you had to take to be on the programme. They also seem to have disappeared in the UK in the 1990s but having done a quick check this morning, they're back too. Both firms have been successful in the USA but floundered in '90s Britain. That leads me to conclude that either (a) They are the same or sister companies or (b) Jenny Craig added insult to injury gaining further money from their victims in the UK by selling their client list to Nutrisystem to target. I have no gripe with Nutrisystem, my blood is boiling though for Jenny Craig's blantant distain for UK consumers in a vulnerable market. For a company that in the US attracts prominent celebrity spokespersons such as Queen Latifah and Kirsty Alley, they can't ever have been that skint! I can't say whether the programme would have worked but what I can say is that the only real pounds you stand to lose with Jenny Craig are £sterling. Buyer beware!

Loose Skirt, that's quite an impressive way of putting it. I always say you should think of it as a funnel, the calories are dropping through at a set rate (most of us are set in our ways in terms of the amount exercise we like to do). You've then got two choices: Make a bigger hole (more exercise) or pour less in the top (eat less calories). It's a really simple concept but many people are unable to get their head around the whole input/output thing.

Liked the immediate v long term reward bit. That makes sense!

No one needs a special diet to lose weight. You just have to eat less than your daily calorie usage over a long period of time. A bit of exercise helps but most overweight people don't want to be thin as much as they want another rasher so it often fails. A diet promises a future reward but another rasher provides immediate reward.

Sounds good doesn't it. But actually, just think about it ... I can eat eggs, but what do I put them on? Can't have bread, or rice crackers, or waffles. Again, butter ... yum yum ... but nothing to put it on - no baked potatoes, no bread. Cream I have in my coffee, which is great, and I do eat a little fruit now so I have cream on that, and cheese I love to eat in my fingers, so no problem there. But I am getting really fed up of a low carb diet, but I will stick to it because it works. You are never hungry, and if done properly, the diet is extremely healthy.

Nikki I am all for any diet that allows for eggs, butter, cream and cheese. Yum!

Edward W. I couldn't agree more. Weight control is so simple - if you burn more calories than you consume, you'll lose weight. I pity people who pay good money to join some madcap scheme to learn a 'secret' of weight loss. If you are fat, you are eating too much. I've given that 'secret' away for free because it's not a secret and it's not even difficult to understand. Eat balanced meals and take moderate exercise and it will come together sooner or later. If you can't even follow that simple rule, you must want to be fat. Fat women are tragic - spend so much time worrying about the size of their backside, that they don't put any time into planning their meals and exercise so it's no wonder they are obese. Mothers are the worst, as they blame their kids for taking up so much of their time that they don't have time to eat properly or exercise - sad! Stop making excuses and sort yourselves out!

I would doubt I would suffer from calcium loss, I eat such a healthy diet, but thanks for the tip. I eat plenty of cheese, cream in my coffee, a little meat and fish. My main item of food is loads of salads and low carb foods like olives, cheese, a few eggs per week. I will bear what you say in mind. I think I will only be on this diet for a few months, because I probably only need to lose another stone and I'll be done. I will then stick to a low carb diet, rather than no or very little carb diet.

Hi Nikki,

A very high protein diet can lead to loss of calcium in the bones so it can be worth getting bone density checked if it is a long term eating plan rather than a "diet".

Well done on the weight loss though!

It is similar to the Atkins Diet, Slim. I have a very low metabolic rate, with very low blood pressure, and I have lost 6 kilos since the new year, which is phenomenal for me. I have cut out all carbs.

Carbs are poison - we do not need them. A diet rich in protein, some animal fat with loads of lovely vegetables and salad and natural foods like meat, fish and eggs is the way for me. Unless you are young or an athlete, you do not need carbs - a hunter-gatherer style diet is much better than these low fat, low carb diets.

I went from 87.5kgs down to 78kgs in 3 weeks.

I followed the Dr Pierre Dukan regime: basically 5 days of protein only, for example;
Breakfast; scrambled egg and smoked salmon (as much as you want)
Lunch; breast of chicken (remove the skin) as much as you want
Dinner; slab of white fish (as much as you want). IMPORTANT No oil, No butter, No milk just black tea or coffee and loads and loads of water. Balsamic is your friend. After 5 days the same but add in green vegatables a few carrots BUT NO sugar rich veg like sweet-corn. IMPORTANT No potatoes, No rice, No pasta, No bread AND No Booze. Those 10 days are the 'attack'.
In the third period I added in an occoasional glass of wine with water. Five months on I'm at 78.5 and now I read packets and go for high protein foods mainly and I leave carbs alone, I thought it was the drink making feel tired, it wasn't, it was the carbohydrates LEAVE THEM OUT. Ready to do an 'attack' again and get down to my target 75 then I'll start working-out. In between times I had a full Christmas and just last week went on an unscheduled session and had 6/7 pints of bitter so you don't have to change your life style forever just watch what you eat overtime. Good Luck

Miserablemoaninggit and to everyone else who is trying to lose weight, good luck and aim to enjoy the food and/or exercise you opt for.

Cauliflower, thanks very much for taking the trouble to give some details of your fantastic weight loss. I've decided not to purchase any more cakes, biscuits or sweets - I mentally calculated how many I had consumed over the space of just a couple of days and it was quite surprising how much they all quickly added up. I've been buying the so-called 'lighter' biscuits, but I've been looking at the calories in them, and they don't have that much less than the 'full' versions, so to speak. Also, I've stopped taking any sugar now in my tea as a result of your post. I've tried the sugar substitute stuff, but the 'after taste' is too awful, so I've just cut it out completely. Getting used to it, I hope! Went out yesterday and bought a load of celery (which I love) and carrots, and have washed and prepared them and put them in a big tupperware container - to snack on, now that the biscuits have gone. I'm not keen on cabbage but love spinach, so bought a load of that too, fresh and frozen. I think I definetely need to exercise also, but finding it bloody difficult with this awful weather. However, will see how it all goes. I certainly agree that I need to change my long term behaviour. I've tried the diets, the fads, the short term 'starvation' periods etc, and none of it really works. Thanks very much for the advice!