I have been dieting for over a year now and doing Jenny Craig since May and I'm still where I started when I first begun the program. The part where I am having problems is a two part problem. The first is I work at Jenny Craig and get depressed when people are coming in losing and I am not. Secondly I think my calories are WAY too high for my activity level but my counsleor refuses to ever change it. I checked it out one day and for my activity level it should be lower should I change counselors and see what they do and if they don't lower my levels just lower it myself? I don't want to hurt my counselors feelings since I work with them everyday but I just can't spend the money anymore to eat the food but no lose anything. Please help me with ideas.
~ Lisa

Why not have your consultant contact the corporate dietician?
If she won't do that, then definately switch. Just tell her honestly that you want to see if another consultant can help you get out of the rut you are in. Just because you work together everyday doesn't mean that you shouldn't be treated like any other client.

Oh my goodness, that would be frustrating. Whatever happened to good old customer satisfaction--even if you are an employee. I would think your JC "higher-ups" would want you to be a shining example of the success of the program. Request another counselor; something's not right!

Thanks for your input. I think I will see about switching counselors. Luckily school is starting back up soon so I'm not that sure when I will be able to fit in consultations with a counselor so that may be just the excuse I need to change counselors. Jenny Craig is a great company to work for its just SUPER hard when you yourself are on the program especially when you are not losing anything.
I asked once to have the dietician called but they requests they had for me to do were just absolutely ridiculous and too much of a hassle to go through.
~Lisa

Jyeagersgrl,
Most definitely you should change consultants. I know it's really awkward especially because you work there, but this is your money, your body, and more importantly your life we're talking about here!
Your current counselor should not feel threatened or upset that you want to change, and if she/he does, frankly that's her problem! Just tell her you want to try someone else. You don't need to explain why. For heaven's sake ~ we're all trying to learn If what you're doing is not working - do something else! so your counselor, of all people, should not only appreciate your taking charge and wanting to change the situation ~ she should encourage it!
Good luck ~ and let us know how it goes.
KBThin
5’9” ~ 34 y/o ~ Goal is -40#
12/29/03 ~ 173.1
01/03/04 ~ 171.9 (-1.2) ~ better than +1.2
01/10/04 ~ 168.3 (-3.6) ~ Woohoooo!!!

It's a new year, and time for new starts.
That's all your present consultant needs to know. Talk to your center director, and tell her that you are making new starts, and that you don't want to hurt your consultant's feelings, but you want her help in letting your consultant know that you are starting over, and that includes a new attitude and a new consultant.
Then, follow through. Really give yourself a new start.
You don't say why you haven't lost anything, but it is my guess that there is at least one habit you haven't changed in that time. So it is time to start all over. Pretend that the first visit with your new consutlant is your first ever. Look at it all with new eyes.
It might be you are at the wrong calorie level, but it could be that you aren't sticking 100 percent to the program. It is amazing how as little at 10-100 calories extra a day can add up--you can gain a pound in a year from just 10 extra calories a day. Is this the case? If so, start working on changing the habits.
Have you been exercisig at the same level for all this time? If so, it may be time to increase the intensity of your exercise so you can burn more calories without having to decrease the amount of food you are eating.

The reason why I haven't been successful is two reasons my health had been giving me problems so I had some medicines that were making me gain weight and I'm not good when it comes to dining out which I am currently trying to change.
I met with my counselor today and just said I didn't know when to make my next appointment that with school I'd be busy so I would put it in next time I'm working. I also got her to look up my calories and change them which she wasn't thrilled about but I was right they should have been lower.
Thank you ladies for all your advice.

Glad we could help.

For some of us it is hard to work "in the business". When I got to goal at Weight Watchers they asked me to work there. I finally figured out that that was not the right place for me to be working. Instead of being a place to receive support, suddenly I was always giving support, so I pretty much stopped receiving support, if that makes sense. Then, same thing when I owned the fitness center. I felt like I was held up as a role model and couldn't share my struggles with anyone. Plus, I felt like people looked at me more critically (like "who does she think she is, owning a fitness center")...maybe that was only imagination, but that was how I felt. So maybe working at Jenny Craig is not the best way for you to get the support you need from them. I've decided that for me, I will never work in the weight loss or fitness industry again, because it messes with my head and actually makes it harder for me to stick with my own goals. From now on I will ONLY be a paying customer and not an employee, owner, etc. of a weight loss or fitness business. I know that there are people who can do it (e.g. lose a bunch of weight and then become a weight loss leader or personal trainer or whatever), and I'm thankful for them - but I'm not one of them.

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Originally posted by jyeagersgrl:
(...) Secondly I think my calories are WAY too high for my activity level but my counsleor refuses to ever change it. I checked it out one day and for my activity level it should be lower should I change counselors and see what they do and if they don't lower my levels just lower it myself? I don't want to hurt my counselors feelings since I work with them everyday but I just can't spend the money anymore to eat the food but no lose anything. Please help me with ideas.
~ Lisa

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Hello Lisa,
I think you know the answer to your question, because it lies within your posting. Your body is your own, and your counselor is not your boss or god. She is a person who--let's be frank!--wants to sell you food. If you feel you need less food, you need to buy and use less food. If your counselor doesn't listen to you, then think about switching counselors.
I noticed that you now weigh over 200lbs and you have a very ambitious weight goal (110lbs). Have you considered whether or not this is a realistic goal for you? Was there any time in your life that you actually weighed 110? Do you have any idea the time & life-long effort that it would take you to reach & maintain that low weight? Upping the total activity a lot in conjunction with the lower calories might help you begin to reduce again.

Laura40 Good for you for seeing what wasn't working and doing something about it. Most Psychiatrists go to see their own shrinks for support, Doctors still see other doctors, Chiroprators visit others for adjustments, and hopefully many in the weight-loss industry will soon realize that just because you may be fabulous at helping others does Not mean you are always equally fabulous at helping yourself. For heaven's sake ~ a reason so many of us are here in the 1st place is that we've spent too much time and energy taking care of others and not caring for ourselves. Now it's our turn!
KBThin
5’9” ~ 34 y/o ~ Goal is -40#
12/29/03 ~ 173.1
01/03/04 ~ 171.9 (-1.2) ~ better than +1.2
01/10/04 ~ 168.3 (-3.6) ~ Woohoooo!!!

I attended a lecture by Dr. James Hill last week, and got some really interesting information about things that make for lasting weight loss success.
Dr. Hill is the founder of the National Weight Control Registry, and has been studying these issues for about 30 years.
For realistic goals, he suggestes that people should go on an active weight loss phase for about 12-16 weeks at a time, aiming for a loss during that time of about 6-10 percent of your starting weight. So if you are 200 pounds, that would be a loss of 12-20 pounds for that three months. He said to lose more was not, but that 6-10 percent should be considered a success. Then he recommends that people spend some time maintaining those losses and focusing on their new habits rather than active weight loss.
The reason is because at about 12-16 weeks, most people hit a real plateau, and can make themselves nuts trying to lose more at that time. After about a month of maintenance, then he says to start another weight loss phase if you have more to lose. He says that in research at the University of Colorado, they have found that most people can lose all they want or need to lose in three phases like this that take about a year.
He also said, in essence, that haste makes waist. If you get in too big a hurry, or if you lose too quickly, your chances for longterm success decline significantly. They have found that a higher percentage of people find success at maintenance if they approach the weight loss phases in these stages, interspersed with phases of practicing maintenance.

Ellen, I found your last post very interesting. I lost steadily for about 13 weeks and was just about at the 20 pound mark (i started at 188, so that is close to the 6-10 percentage you mentioned) and my body after that point started to plateau. I have maintained basically around 168 since Thanksgiving. I think that starting to work on it again will really start working since my body has had more than a month to rest and get used to its weight. It also showed me that while I was off the program for a month I did not have a significant gain, and that proved to me that JC is not a fad diet. My portions were larger than JC portions, but body still stayed around that 20 pound mark for over a month! This information is going to help me really get a boost on hitting goal in the next few weeks. Thanks! It makes a lot of sense to me. My whole weight loss journey entails around 30-40 pounds, and that may not seem like a lot to those who are trying to lose over 100, but my body feels soooo much different after 20 (i am always FREEZING!!) that I think it was safer for me to take the time off for a bit and see if i could manage alone for a bit. Let's hope more success is to follow! I think after reaching goal, I would like to maintain another month, and then re-set my goal to fifteen pounds lower than that! 145!