Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - Anyone ever try NutriSystem?

I have been trying to lose weight for a while now. It has not been going super well. The good news is that I know I have gained muscle and endurance and my clothes are looser than they used to be, but my weight goes approximately in a sine curve. I do well for I while then I go back up then do well, etc.

My biggest problem is controlling my portions and deciding what to eat. So, I am starting NutriSystem as soon as my food comes in in four days. Anybody have any luck on NutriSystem? Ultimately, I wish to lose something around 100 pounds (I'm 320ish now). But in the short term, I'd like to lose 30-40 before my wedding in 82 days. Possible?

Thanks for the input. My blog is in my signature.

Never did Nutri System but I started Weight Watchers 1/2/09 >I'm down 18.8 for the year so far.

30 to 40lbs in 82 days...I don't think that kind of weight loss in that time frame will be healthy or sustainable if possible at all.

Regarding Nutrisystem:

I have not used it personally but have first hand experience with a coworker who used it with moderate results. He claimed that the food isn't all that bad but the portions are tiny. Just like everything else, it looks so much better on TV. When you factor the cost of the system all you really are doing is paying extra for less food. Granted it is handy and supposedly well balanced along with being ready to eat. I think you would be better off going with controlling your own portions, use a smaller plate, take little bites, over chew the food, set the fork and knife down between bites. I certainly wish you luck no matter what you choose.

82 days eh? You already counting it down?

Most doctors recommend losing 1-2 pounds/week at most. By my calculations, that means 23-24lbs by the time you get married...

I don't know anything about Nutrisystem. What works for me is weighing/measuring everything I eat, keeping an accurate food diary of everything I eat, and adding up all the calories of crap I typically consume. Lately, I've been having success using The Daily Plate (http://www.thedailyplate.com) to track food and exercise. I think it over-estimates the amount of calories burned during exercise, but other than that it works pretty well.

Never tried Nutrisystem, but I have thought about it. Be sure to follow up your posts and let us know.

As for your weight loss goal....
82 days is about 12 weeks. If you lost 36 pounds, that would mean 3 pounds per week. That is a high pace to maintain considering you will also have wedding stress, fiance stress, family stress, job stress, and the extra stress you are putting on yourself.

So I have to ask, who did your fiance fall in love with and agree to marry? If it was you, then why the big rush to change for an arbitrary date such as a wedding date? Instead maybe just concentrate on the positive life changes you are already starting and let the numbers fall where they may. If you continue with those changes, portion control, healthier choices, exercise, the longterm benefit for you, your wife and any potential children will far exceed the benefits of "fitting that perfect tux".

Do what ever works for you ! BUT When you starting riding hard on those small portions IMHO its not going to work . But with lite workouts you might get away with it . But reg 20 mile or more rides every day and no way are they giving you enough or even the right things to eat . BUT this is just my 2 cents if its worth that ! YMMV

Iam basing my 2 cents on what I saw when my daughter was on it . Ive lost 113 lbs since last fathers day and there is NO WAY i could workout and ride as hard as I do on there food . But good luck you have to do whats works for you !!!!

8 months doesn't make me an expert but IMHO you need to make a life change in your eating leave the word diet out of your thoughts and think positive .And drink all the water you can stand and then have another glass :)

Points taken. First of all, my parents decided to pay for the program to help me lose weight for the wedding (I have gained since I met my fiancee). I know that makes me sound like a momma's boy or something, but they wanted to give me it kinda' as a gift.

As far as the weight loss rate, what most people don't realize (I'm not saying any of you don't) is that the more overweight you are, the more weight you can lose safely. For instance, these massively overweight people you hear about (700-1000 lbs) lose 10 or even 15 pounds a week. As a rule of thumb, you can lose somewhere around 1% of your body weight per week maximum safely. So, for me, about 3 pounds a week is attainable, whereas for most dieters somewhere down around 200 pounds, they should only lose about 2 pounds maximum. Anyway, I am no expert, but I think it's possible. 12 weeks * 3 pounds = 36 pounds. I said 30-40. I think it's reasonable for a guy my size.

As far as the portion size vs. exercise etc., I would add fresh fruits and vegetables when needed for energy. The whole measure-everything-you-eat business just won't work. I know I just won't keep it up. So the automatic portion control might be what I need to get myself started until my sweetie can fix me my meals (and then I'll gain even more :)....).

I'll keep this updated with how it works for me.

Well, my problem is that, while I might be able to lose weight faster, the second I lose more than a pound a week, my cycling performance goes straight to hell.... and that's no fun.

I'm sure that NutriSystem has a chance to help you lose the weight. The problem is, if the only way you can control your portions is by buying their products, you aren't going to keep your weight off forever, because nobody is going to be able to stick without fail to their plans.

A much better use of your parent's money is seeing a real professional nutritionalist, IMHO, or a program that helps you figure out how to control a real diet.

I've been on a good downward trend lately, and I had bacon for breakfast every other day two weeks ago. :)

Save your money. A friend and her husband did this for 6 months and while they lost weigh it did not teach them how to eat correctly without their food. You still have to buy other food from the store (perishables), but ultimately once they came off, they gained their weight back.

I thoguth nutrisystems was something like Extenze. Nope never used the stuff, 3 hour erections without it!:D

Lose the weight for the wedding, sex is better and the thinner you are, the more your tummy tickles!:p

Here's a tip on portion control: Go through your pantry. Take all your plates and bowls and throw them out! Replace them with itty bitty plates and small bowls. We use paper plates and bowls, and I only buy the smallest size of them I can. It seems to work well.

Here's a tip on portion control: Go through your pantry. Take all your plates and bowls and throw them out! Replace them with itty bitty plates and small bowls. We use paper plates and bowls, and I only buy the smallest size of them I can. It seems to work well.

Neat idea.....

My dad did nutrisystem years ago and did manage to lose a fair amount of weight, around 60lbs if I remember correctly. I think he did it for close to a year though, and it didn't do anything to teach him about portion control as he wasn't preparing the meals himself. He exercised like a fiend as well, but the weight came back after he went off their program and started getting his own food again.

If I remember correctly (I was 10 when my dad started this) they give you a 32oz cup that you're supposed to fill with water before your meals, drink it down to help fill you up, then eat their meals. Once you start getting hungry again you'll drink more water.

Good luck with it.

V

I've never "done" Nutrisystem, but I've had some of the food - a fellow at work who tried and stopped gave me some of the meals. They were pretty depressing fare, and brought to mind the old joke about the eatery that always got too complaints: "The food is so bad" and "The portions are so small." The dinners were loaded with sodium and soy, IIRC.

As for losing 30-40 pounds in 82 days, if the OP is in good general health, it's doable. When I was 400 pounds, I lost 16 pounds in the first two weeks of my new lifestyle, and at least 25 the first month. I'd reached 35 pounds lost after two months. True, I was 80 pounds heavier than the OP when I started.....

As far as the portion size vs. exercise etc., I would add fresh fruits and vegetables when needed for energy. The whole measure-everything-you-eat business just won't work. I know I just won't keep it up.

This is where you'll get into trouble. Eating for energy will quickly become snacking on whatever is around. If you're not committed to portion control, Nutrisystem and any other diet will likely be a waste of time.

Your weight loss goal is definitely attainable. I lost 40lbs in my first 60 days when I first started, including 12lbs the first week. I basically ate 3 of those frozen weight watchers type meals per day, and a sandwich or something similar for dinner and I worked my butt off (literally) at the gym 7 days/week. Any diet can be a good start to long term weight loss as long as you're committed to making the lifestyle changes to make it stick. I started at the same weight that you're at now.

These food systems are like the manufactured food industry gone mad. It's terrible, lousy food, and the only thing special about it with respect to weight loss is that the portions are tiny. You can make your own small portions with good food just as easily as you can buy ready-made small portions of bad food which makes even army MRE's look good.

As already mentioned by someone else, throw away or hide all of your typical, modern, supersized plates and bowls. These are ridiculously large and they encourage oversized eating.

As also previously mentioned by someone else, be careful about dieting too much if you're also exercising a lot. The only good and lasting weight loss is slow weight loss.

The only good and lasting weight loss is slow weight loss.

I disagree. Seeing those huge weight loss numbers in the beginning motivated me to work even harder and to change my lifestyle in order to keep feeling and looking even better. Different things work for different people. My weight loss has slowed significantly because I've begun to concentrate more on building muscle and transitioning my diet into a long-term way of life, but losing weight quickly in the beginning was a huge motivation for me and got me addicted to exercise.

You can make your own small portions with good food just as easily as you can buy ready-made small portions of bad food which makes even army MRE's look good.


Somewhat off topic, am I the only one who hasn't had an MRE that he didn't like? I even like the eggs in the breakfast MREs. I don't know what that says about my pallet but if it helps I admit to being weird and liking the taste of medicine. Strange huh?

I'm curious to know the sodium content of these dishes. Are they in tolerance? I cant imagine eating three frozen meals a day plus a snack and dessert would have an acceptable amount of sodium as salt is the most basic and cost effective preservative.

i disagree. Seeing those huge weight loss numbers in the beginning motivated me to work even harder and to change my lifestyle in order to keep feeling and looking even better. Different things work for different people. My weight loss has slowed significantly because i've begun to concentrate more on building muscle and transitioning my diet into a long-term way of life, but losing weight quickly in the beginning was a huge motivation for me and got me addicted to exercise.

+1

Nutrisystem will work great for temporary weight loss. Most people will gain the weight back again after going off the diet. I find that these prepackaged weight loss foods are great to supplement a regular "real food" diet. If you weigh 320 pounds I recommend that you start with a crash weight reduction program providing that you plan on switching to a different program as you lose weight. The advantage of the crash diet programs is psychological, you get results. The problem is that you MUST switch to a more sustainable diet to keep the weight off. You can never go back to your old ways that got you to 320 pounds.

Well, I see there are obviously mixed thoughts about faster weight loss and about NutriSystem. I will take points from both sides. The plan is already paid for for two months, so I'm going to try it. I will do my very, very best to change my regular diet when I get off NutriSystem--what else can I say? I'm not just going to waste the food.

Thanks for the input--on both sides.

Good Luck Man!

[QUOTE=bautieri;8417288]Somewhat off topic, am I the only one who hasn't had an MRE that he didn't like? I even like the eggs in the breakfast MREs. I don't know what that says about my pallet but if it helps I admit to being weird and liking the taste of medicine. Strange huh?
QUOTE]

No, you're just lucky. Ever had the "hot dogs" or the "Ham slice"?

V

Well, I see there are obviously mixed thoughts about faster weight loss and about NutriSystem. I will take points from both sides. The plan is already paid for for two months, so I'm going to try it. I will do my very, very best to change my regular diet when I get off NutriSystem--what else can I say? I'm not just going to waste the food.

Thanks for the input--on both sides.

Not saying NutriSystem does, but some of the special foods and supplements offered by some companies contain appetite suppressants, which is why the program appears to work really well. Of course once you stop, then your appetite comes back, and nothing in the diet dealt with eating habits, so for many people the 100lb they lost finds them again and brings a few friends, they end up worse then when they started.

My wife started a few weeks ago with "Physicians Weight Loss" and after her first week or two, I kind of joined her. Their plan is a high protein low fat, no carb diet with 'special' foods. Basically, you get a bar for breakfast, a 'shake' for a snack, a bar for lunch, a 'shake' for a snack, followed by a supper meal that is a plate full of fresh veggies, and about 5 oz of lean meat, usually chicken or lean pork, beef one time a week. I'm about two weeks in, and have lost 8 lbs, down from 288 to 280. It works. Most of the 'shake' mixes, and the bars, have an appetite supressant added to help you keep from feeling empty. The wife is strictly on their diet, with their bars and shake mixes, but the stuff is expensive.

I have not been buying the bars, but do have a shake (drink mix plus water) about once a day, but have found that Special K Protein water (30 calories) does the same thing. I have been eating Powerbar Protein bars (about 300 calories) for breakfast and lunch each day. My supper, after ten hours at the ranch, is as I described, followed by one or two sugar free popcicles (30 calories each). Along with all of that, I make sure to drink 3-4 24oz bottles of water each day, and then have a diet soda when I get home from work.

I tend to fall off the diet a bit on the weekends, when I will have a small bag of popcorn, and on Sunday we go out for a big salad at one of our favorite local joints.

It's a system that works for me, simple, fast and easy to follow. When I get to 240, I'll take a look around and see how much more to go....

Tractor Tom in Okeechobee, FL

That sounds fine but how is any of that "no carb"?

Good luck with Nutrisystem. Pay very close attention to the portion sizes. When you go off it in a couple of months, try to maintain those same size portions. Otherwise all that weight is likely to come back, and then some.

I tried it and still have half the box full of their meals in the closet. If you or anyone else wants it, pay the postage and I'll send it along. As has been pointed out, the portions are small and most of the meals don't have much taste. I started buying Healthy Choice frozen dinners, sticking with the chicken and turkey for the most part. The have approximately 300 calories per serving and taste much better. So two of those meals a day, plus Rye Crisp and other low cal/non-fat items keep my total calorie intake to 1200-1400 per day. Haven't been able to ride much but do walk the dogs an hour in the morning, an hour at noon and 1/2 hour around 5p.m. Since January 6th I've lost 22 lbs, 210 lbs down to 188 and counting.
The dogs aren't real happy with this program because there aren't any table scraps for them.

I tried it and still have half the box full of their meals in the closet. If you or anyone else wants it, pay the postage and I'll send it along. As has been pointed out, the portions are small and most of the meals don't have much taste. I started buying Healthy Choice frozen dinners, sticking with the chicken and turkey for the most part. The have approximately 300 calories per serving and taste much better. So two of those meals a day, plus Rye Crisp and other low cal/non-fat items keep my total calorie intake to 1200-1400 per day. Haven't been able to ride much but do walk the dogs an hour in the morning, an hour at noon and 1/2 hour around 5p.m. Since January 6th I've lost 22 lbs, 210 lbs down to 188 and counting.
The dogs aren't real happy with this program because there aren't any table scraps for them.

Everybody's got to figure out their own way I guess, but you are starving yourself and experiencing significant muscle loss.

Bigger guys shouldn't be concerned with losing weight so much as losing body fat. It's relatively easy to lose weight by going on a starvation diet and losing a bunch of muscle, but you'll end up looking "skinny fat".

I'd like to lose 30-40 before my wedding in 82 days. Possible?


Yes. The meals are so small, so tiny, so minuscule, so relentlessly bland, you'll lose weight. My recomendation for quick weight loss is the Atkins diet.

You know, at the end of the day - it all works. It's all about the amount of fuel you consume vs. what you burn off. I have the same problem as a lot of us - I love food. The experience, the company and so on. Anyway, a few weeks back somebody posted here about sparkpeople.com - totally free and I log everything I eat...what a surprise, the weight is falling off. Good luck to you and all of us - no matter how much I ride, I have been struggling with weight most of my adult life.

Bigger guys shouldn't be concerned with losing weight so much as losing body fat. It's relatively easy to lose weight by going on a starvation diet and losing a bunch of muscle, but you'll end up looking "skinny fat".

I won't question the second statement, having seen people drop a lot of weight without exercising and appear like partially deflated balloons. But for a big guy losing weight can be as important, if not more so, than decreasing body fat percentage. Weight loss can lead to an increase in mobility, for instance.

I won't question the second statement, having seen people drop a lot of weight without exercising and appear like partially deflated balloons. But for a big guy losing weight can be as important, if not more so, than decreasing body fat percentage. Weight loss can lead to an increase in mobility, for instance.

I won't disagree. My statement is true for guys that may be merely overweight (ie, 200's) whereas much larger people can benefit greatly from just dropping weight fast.

The poster I responded to is on a starvation diet with effectively zero exercise and is at 188, having lost 22 pounds in seven weeks. It's his choice I guess, but that is very unhealthy.

Just my 2 cents, but I am not a fan of any of the "diets" hyped on TV. I am, however, a big fan of eating food in its natural state. In other words, food that has not been altered by man via cooking, bleaching or chemical processing.

I am not 100% disciplined at doing this, nor am I completely trained in how to do it (I have been at it for about 5 years, and still rely heavily on the little woman to "create" most of these meals). However, I have constantly evolved, in that I can now eat tons of extremely coarse foods like kale, chard, and red cabbage uncooked. A lot of my intake is also in the form of smoothies that my Baby puts together using our Vita-mix. These drinks consist of hemp nut, chia seeds, cocoa powders, blue berries, banana, dates, and lots of water.

Besides just eating fruits and salads and drinking smoothies, we use (err, my honey uses) a food processor to mix up nuts and oils into a variety of pastes which taste great and carry a heck of a punch.

Treats for me are avocado based chocolate pudding, coconut oil spread onto sprouted hemp bread, raw apple pie, and (believe it or not) a tall glass of celery juice.

The idea is that this is a diet that we are really meant to eat. It is something that I can stick with for the rest of my life.

If there is a problem, it is here at work. It is very difficult for me not to be led astray by all the goodies sold at the FF joints down the street. However, I've been on a roll lately and seem to no longer crave that stuff like I did back in December/January.

Because of my wife's health issues I've been responsible for our evening meals for several years and turned to Schwan's to make it as easy and quick on days I don't get home til 6:45 or so. Recently Schwan came out with a two week diet plan which is mostly controlled portions of the same foods I've been eating and I've lost 5 lbs in about 10 days.