Wedding Blog
…or at least she will quite soon. That’s because, as I said before and will (probably) say again, as the time between now and my wedding shrinks, my ass and upper arms do not.
Wedding dieting is tough and WeightWatchers was not working super well for me. (Mostly because I really stopped counting points. Also, because just this Sunday now and again I would eat a bacon cheeseburger for breakfast.*)
I realized my only hope was for someone else far wiser in the ways of dieting (and less inclined to choose cheeseburgers) make my food choices for me. I understand that an “assigned” diet may not be the lifestyle change that a really good diet provides, (i.e. WW), but i’m really not so worrying about my lifestyle right now as much as not having my arms jiggle around as my begowned self busts-a-move on dance floor. It’s about portion control, essentially, and since I haven’t been doing it myself, I thought some entity could do the dictating for me.
From what I can gather, there were three potential diet options: the Zone (which I had done before with great success); Jenny Craig (big ups for the commercials in which Kirstie Alley seems thisclose to punching the woman who lost more weight than she); and NutriSystem (my mom did this diet in the 80s and they had a burger that was all freeze-dried and when you added boiling water to it, it turned into delicious. No joke.)
The Zone has a few services in Manhattan that offer daily food delivery for between $30-$40/day. (See Mrs. Bee’s post on the same). I knew, though, that these rates were entirely negotiable, as I found out when I did this diet in law school. (I also did Atkins, via the Atkins Center, and lost a TON of weight, but also had my cholesterol shoot up. Again, I blame the cheeseburger.) But I also remember not liking a lot of the food. This happened particularly since I am allergic to several varieties of fresh fruit, and when those fruits were removed from the meal, the meal was kind of beat. (i.e. Ricotta breakfast crepes with peaches. Sans peaches. Lame!) However, the convenience of all meals outside my door was a definite perk.
Jenny Craig sounds like a great plan. But it requires attending meetings. Which sounded like a great big pain in the butt. I haven’t the time right now to get to meetings. (Hell, I haven’t the time right now to get acupuncture for my no-longer-functional-neck) so the “Jenny Twenty” wasn’t going to happen.
NutriSystem. Ok, the first thing about this diet is that it’s CHEAP. Like Æ’¼bercheap. Three meals + a snack/dessert come in at under $8/day. Insane. I usually spend about that for lunch alone. So right there, I was liking the diet. But then they won me over with the complete self-determined menu. You just pick 28 breakfasts, 28 lunches, etc.; give them your credit card #; they ship the food to your door; you buy a couple of fresh fruits, vegetables and dairy products to supplement; and voila– you’re thin.
So I dialed the magic numbers “1-800-321-THIN” and joined NutriSystem. It turns out they throw in a week of free food, then give you this discount and that discount, free shipping, and before I knew it I was paying $274.46 for 35 days of food. Seriously crazy cheap.
If any of you want to join, let me know b/c my sales rep said that he’d give an additional discount still to anyone who was a referral, so I can give you his name and extension. (Plus, I’ll also get an extra discount).
And I got to pick stuff like mac & cheese, chicken marsala, various pastas, etc.
The food should get here this weekend, so I will definitely report on how it tastes. I happen to be a fan of processed food, so this diet doesn’t seem like it will be a problem for me in that respect, but I guess if I were into the whole “fresh foods” thing, then the Zone presents a better option. (And one I will definitely try if the NutriSystem food is gross.)
What other diets are out there? (Or at least ones that supply the food for you?) Not that I need a back-up plan or anything, but I wouldn’t mind other options to prevent me from once again falling victim to the siren song of the burger…
~~~
* I challenge anyone to find a better hangover remedy than a cheeseburger deluxe with the fries well done. Cheeseburgers make it all ok.
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Share this post: Fatty McButterpants Has Left the Building
oooh please let me know how this is! i tried south beach and although i lost weight like crazy i wasn’t happy with the foods that i was eating. it was really hard to find foods that fit the diet but at the same time….. i loved the pounds coming off. now i’m on the poppy diet… eat what i want when i want. and boy does it show! hahaha
hey where did you get that cheeseburger? it looks good!
I love South Beach, and I’ve lost 75 pounds on it since December. Got about 75 to go, but I love it! I’m a chicken fiend…lol
I did the zone delivery with a friend from work and her fiance. she was half her fiance’s size and 2/3 of me, so obviously should all be getting less food than me. Would would compare and notice that, for example, we would have the same size portion of x, but she would have less of y. well .. doesn’t that mean one of us isn’t “zone balanced” We called Zone Chefs on it and they admitted that … well .. perhaps every meal isn’t “balanced” but the entire day is … which is kind of bs, since the whole point of the zone is that EVERY meal & snack is supposed to be balanced. I lost weight, but that’s because the food they gave me probably had 1200 calories and not because they made my metabolism burn more fuel, etc. kind of felt ripped off and after about a month, i couldn’t look/smell at the food without gagging (so I wouldn’t eat the meal and lose more weight). Plus, half the time my food would be on my doorstep WARM because they didn’t put in enough ice trays (another reason that i didn’t eat some of the food and lost more weight).
I think zone chefs is a good thing to do for a month when you need to drop a dress size pronto, as long as you know that you’re not really “in the zone” but just going on an expensive crash diet.
There’s something in the midwest called seattle sutton’s healthy eating- it was started by a nurse/dietician… I kinda looked into a little bit but some reviews said that the food was dry and tasteless so I stopped looking into it, they can deliver 2x a week or you can go pick it up 2x a week, depending on your location… been going to a personal trainer and trying to manage my diet myself - some days are better than others :). I’ve lost ~13lbs since starting training in march, which is the healthy way but not as satisfying. With 6 weeks left I wanna lose a minimum of 10 more pounds :).
Gosh that burger looks good. You’re trying to sabotage my diet, arent you?! =oP
Good luck with yours, Miss Daisy. The first photo is too funny.haha
i’m stahvin’.
J, Mrs. Bee has a good eye– it’s exactly that: In-n-Out Double Double Animal Style. (wow, i need to get back to California once this diet is over to grab one).
Mrs. Firefly– that’s been my thinking about *all* of these diets. they work due to portion control and calorie reduction. no more, no less. that said, you may have triggered a latent memory of mine. i’m starting to remember that i loathed (loathed!) the Zone mahi mahi dinners as well as something about the chicken lunch wraps. an aftertaste was the culprit. hopefully, NutriSystem will be delicious (if not necessarily filling).
K and Debbie, i am VERY impressed with your weight loss and hope i have as much success. good luck going forward, and definitely keep us posted here about how it goes!
ooh. i am very interested in the nutrisystem system. both me and my fiance would love to try that since we’re so busy and rarely have energy lately to make a good dinner.
but i would like your insight into whether it’s good after you get it first.
I honestly don’t believe in diets of any kind. I believe in moderation and of course excercise helps too.. I’ve lost 15 lbs in the past year. =)
Miss Daisy, you crack me up. I love this part of your post: “I happen to be a fan of processed food, so this diet doesn’t seem like it will be a problem for me in that respect, but I guess if I were into the whole “fresh foods” thing, then the Zone presents a better option.”
Ha! Good luck and keep us posted on your progress!
let us know how it tastes when you get it. diet or no diet, i cannot do rubbery dry tasting bland food.
I tried the Nutrisystem “Favorite Foods” plan and hated it. I did manage to lost 10 pounds but it wasn’t worth the terrible food they make you eat. One thing is for sure, you will definately lose weight on this meal plan.
omg! you’re from california! i am seriously addicted to in-n-out…i take all of my out-of-state friends there and then they’re mad because there aren’t any in-n-outs where they’re from. hahaha. the animal style fries are the best.
i see those nutri-system commercials every weekend and wonder if they’re any good. good luck with the diet.
Ha ha, “Fatty McButterpants”…you’re hilarious
that double double looks so good 
not that i recommend it, but my sister-in-law just bought Carmen Electra’s new Diet Pill called NV. supposely it’s the NEW IT pill…
here’s the linky:
Tea, i’m sorry to say i’m from new York. but i lived in SF for a while between college and law school. (and my smartypants sister lives there now, so i visit a bunch!)
ocicats– oh no! why was it so bad??
C, i will definitely report back! (i have fingers crossed that it’s not ick…)
thanks for the ups, Miss G. i’m looking for the levity. b/c seriously, the next couple of deprivation months are going to s-u-c-k.
p.s. oops! just re-read and had to clarify my comment. i didn’t mean that i am sorry that i’m from New York (that part i love). i meant that i am sorry i may have misled you all into thinking i was a Cali girl!
hahaha, it’s okay miss daisy, you’re a cali girl at heart 
well la-di-da miss violet, aren’t you just better than everyone else.
fyi, no one likes the girl who “doesn’t believe in diets” - sanctimonious jerk.
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Mrs. Daisy, New York
Age and Occupation: 32, Attorney
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 32, Finance
Engagement Date: December 10, 2005
Wedding Date: November 11, 2006
Blogging Since: June 7, 2006
Venue: Metropolitan Club
About Me: My favorite activities used to include knitting, cooking, doing the crossword puzzle and about a million other relaxing pursuits. Since my engagement, well, not so much. Wedding planning has become my primary hobby. So much so that I am downgrading my work schedule to part-time in order to more fully dedicate myself to my wedding (and reality tv, as well, if I'm being honest).
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