Hi, I just rejoined and on big day 1. But I was REALLY surprised how much food had gone up. I paid 110 per week in 2001 and I paid 184 dollars for the first week yesterday and it was REALLY hard to swallow. It will be 150 next week but HOLY COW!!!

What is everyone else paying?

I averaged about $140 CDN per week. Now that I'm on maintenance, its about $80, but I don't buy the bars anymore, they are like $16 per box.

I also don't buy the cereal bags anymore, they're like $240 - $350 a bag and any box of cereal at the store cost that much and is good for about 2 weeks.

My weekly food bill is right at $110 - in centre. The AT bars are $9.97 / box.

im starting week 4 and im doing with husband so at 350 a week for both of us and then the veggies and fruit, this week, we got pria bars to replace the anytime bars and we got kudo's bars can have 1 1/2 of those to equal one of their snack bars and we are replacing the cold ceral for fiber one ceral. we also are replacing the cheese curls and their popcorn for hotair popcorn with spray butter and we bought vitamuffins mixs on line, blueberry flavored to replace their breakfast muffin and the vitmuffin brownie to replace their cakes and brownies. i baked them and put in ziplock bag and put everything in freezor downstairs and only brought up the portians that we are suppose to use for the week, brought our total for both of us to 150 bucks, we bought all their lunches,dinners and their breakfast sandwiches and their cookies and hot ceral. ive lost 12 pounds in 3 weeks...then today on the website i found someone that had a whole week of food, dinners and lunches that she gave me for free..so we totally saved there, will have our counsler incorporate into our menu next week.
she kind of is foo foo about the replacements, trys hard to discourage but like i told her im only doing the trial for 8 weeks and need to wean myself into replacements. the girl that i got the food from. she lost 35 pounds off jenny but like i can see with this plan after 8 weeks im going to get sick of the food and i can see myself binging so really just getting the portian control out of this in 8 weeks, i dont get anything from the counsling sessions, weigh in and get my food, its kind of hard to get encouragement from a counsler that needs to be on the program herself and the fact every single one of them are drinkng a huge starbucks when i walk in, i have only seen one thin person there and none of them are on the program trying to lose weight so hard to listen to her tell me to spend 3 times the amount of money for foods i can find that are soooo close to their counts and exchanges...

i dopnt buy the anytime bars i take the multiplus and eat a cheese stik....n theres no need for the soupitizers....mine is never more than 120

The substitute for the Anytime bar is a milk exchange and a vitamin. Pria bars and Kudos are not nutritionally equal. The Anytime bar is not just a snack bar.

If you need to cut back, make free veggie soup to replace the Soupitizers, and replace the Anytime bars with yogurt or fat free milk and a vitamin. Get a low fat salad dressing you like. If you buy the full planned menu without the dressings, Anytime bars and Soupitizers, your food will cost $118-$122 per week.

You can save about another $8-$15 per week by getting all shelf-stable breakfasts and lunches.

When I joined in 2000, my JC food cost me about $110 per week. I think it's pretty remarkable that it's only gone up about $12 per week in nine years. Everything I buy at the grocery store has gone up 20-40% or more.

I did the program in 2000, and three kids later....here I go again. I remember paying about 88 bucks a week then and now I am paying about 120. On my last visit I told them that I wanted to do my own snacks and two days a week do plain oatmeal. They didn't look happy, but o well. I have a family to support as well. The snacks I figure I can handle. Besides, I don't really care to have sweets before bed. And the oatmeal, I wanted to do because I love my oatmeal! Their oatmeal smells like vomit!
For snacks I stick with the 100 cal packs of popcorn.
Good luck.
I have lost 3 lbs my first week!
Oh and I dont do their dressings, syrup or vitamin bars.

yeah im going to replace my their oatmeal also with my own, love steel cut oats and they are better for you than their sugar filled cerals..will hopefully in 8 weeks trial program have everything replaced to foods on own. I really just needed the jumpstart and now that we have our portians under control. someone posted about saving money because of less money on going out to eat. I gave going out to resteraunts years ago. We just dont do it because of the big portians and always eating way more calories than needing and not really alot of healthy eating places out there.. Yeah we are pretty much off their snacks except for the cheesecakes...but once our 8 weeks are up will replace those with WW desserts. I have all the other snacks covered with vitamuffins mixes..

i know everyone talks about support for center and their support to us, but those people have different centers. its really hard for me to go into that center and try to have someone that isnt doing the program guide me, i really am not feeling anything from the center other than it being an expensive store to get my groceries and some to weigh me. I dont think any of them have even done the program. i use the site more than what they do for me. im really mad that she didnt give me the right menu and me not noticing until today and being so hungry, she gave me a 1200 calorie menu and i need to lose 15 more pounds before i get there..she didnt even ask if i exercised and or what my steps were...

there is no reason why we cant replace foods, this is all about behaviors also and i have to learn to have the self control....i think it would be different if it was just me, but to have both me and my husband and him having to have an extra meal a day...oh my gosh we could go out to dinner every night for what we are putting out....i really didnt realize that it was going to be so expensive until the first order total came through...

do you have any suggestions for the ceral other than the all bran..im trying to find something for my husband to replace he doesnt like bran ceral

OMG Yes! This is my third time on Jenny and I really do like the program because it's convenient but I have to say EVERYTIME I stopped Jenny it was because the cost of the food kept going up. Last week (my second week) I spent $120 and that is without the soupitizers or the bars (I take a multi & have yogurt). I have tried to calculate the cheapest way to continue and it appears that I may give up the snacks and do something on my own. I can't justify spending $2 on a peanut butter bar! The prices are really out of control. I am going to speak with my consultant and see if there is a "recession" program I can get into!

There is not, and like i said it seems like you get frowned up on by trying to replace and save a little money. They know people with weight problems will pay anything to feel better. thats why i posted my subsitutions. There food just repeats its menus after 4 weeks anyways, i see jenny's is the best way to get you a jump start and then do what im doing and find replacments. when i saw what i was paying for, for some of those snacks, come on now, 2 bucks for a cookie that is the size of a golf ball..girl costco has a big case of 100 calorie snacks for the same price as a weeks worth of your snacks. Go for it, you will get variety and have enough to last you a couple months, i just pulled out what we needed for the week and boxed up what we wont need and put in the basement. im telling you the vitamuffins on line are wonderful, buy the mixes, i took one day and baked up the whole bag of the blueberry muffins and the chocolate brownies and the chocolate cakes. i put each one in a ziplock bag and put in freezor downstairs and just brought up enough for my week to follow the menu..its nice to be accountable to a scale every week but in 4 weeks when my trial is over with, my husband and i will just weigh in together on our wii fit. im lucky im doing this with him and we have each other for support..

im telling you they can scream all they want about how its balanced, but 4 years ago i lost 60 pounds in 7 months and so did my husband, and alls we did was every two hours eat. we start out with 300 calories and then in 2 hours 150 calories and then in 2 hours 300 calories and we ate until 7pm at night being our last meal and it came off and fast, and everyone is probly saying and yes you put the weight back on. I only put 40 of it back on and it was because of foot surgery and then i fell and had liagment torn off my ankle so for 8 months i did nothing but lay around and eat, my husband gained his back because he quit smoking...so jenny is a great program for people that have money to blow but us frugal people, really i get nothing what so ever from my counsler, or even the center, they all have weight problems themselves and none are on jenny so hard for me to even think they can do anything for me. I didnt realize until after we signed up and the total came for our food, i just figured well we will suck this up for 8 weeks and we are out of here..

good luck and dont listen to those people that discourage replacing and or your counsler, it is all about calories and and calories out...

good luck,

I have been doing my own breakfast from the beginning...I use Fiber One cereal...the original....I also eat a Luna Bar...Choc. Raspberry....These bars are nutrition bars and help me not to crave some empty caloire dessert item from Jenny Craig.

I am Type II Diabetic and although their cakes taste great....I still have two lemon cakes and a double chocolate cake in my freezer. The are laden with sugar and very high in carbs and act as a trigger food for me.

yep i use fiber one to replace their cerals, my husband doesnt like fiber one,so still buying for him, but as soon as i find a sweeter one that can replace, his will go also, i just havent had the time to figure it out at the store yet, have all the numbers written down..i use the pria 110 nutrional bars for the anytime bar, about 2gm protein less but other than that totally match...girl if you want good for you sweet, has like 14 grams fiber, the vitalious muffins, i have only found on line...totally good for you and only 100 calories a muffin, have chocolate, brownie ones and also blueberry and corn..google it, if you buy the mixes end up only costing 76 cents a dessert or breakfast muffin..it has been nice to take our weekly cost from 375(hubby was on an extra meal a day) down to 230 this week..we will continue with lunches and dinners for the next 4 weeks, but we are very very focused now and when our trial is up, will go to healthy choice tv dinners...

I made a wonderful soup today to get all my veggies in now...i took all my veggies that we had stock piling..brocc,sweet peppers,onions,mushrooms,zucchini and a couple cans of italian stewed tomatoes, and several cans of V8 juice, i roasted all the veggies in the oven and also some garlic cloves thru them in the pot of tomatoes and V8 juice and threw in dryed italian seasonings and omg, i fell in love....the sweet peppers gave it a great flavor and its all free or use for my veggies for the meal..i sooo will make a big pot of this every week and freeze out portians for my lunches and dinners and if i get hungry....love it...

Thank you for the vitamuffin idea! I have never heard of them and just went on the website to find some very yummy looking items! I just placed an order and look forward to getting them.

My first week was 122 plus tax. I had alot of extra food left due to eating out (I know...BAD) or working night shift and sleeping the next day through meals so the next week was 86 plus tax. But my consultant said you can do a budgeted meal plan.

youll love those vitamuffins, hopefully you got the mixes and makes it cheaper, they make 12 each package..you can use the corn or blueberry ones to replace the jenny craig and use the brownie to replace jenny craig brownie and use the chocolate cake to replace their cake...you are going to love them and they are healthier than jenny and you can actually have 1 1/2 of them to replace jenny calories they have way more fiber also...

you can get the pria 110 bars plus at drugstore.com is the cheapest place came out to be 56 cents a bar, they really are the bomb for a nutrition bar and match jennys almost to the T, like i said only 2 grams protein less..drugstore.com was the cheapest place....

and the kudos bars you can half one and a half to replace the evening snack bars or just eat another pria bar...kudos are cheaper so i save the pria for my anytime bar....

hope it helps on saving some money, dont forget to put muffins in ziplock bag as soon as you cool so no nibbling...

go to hungrygirl.com and sign up for her email listing, they send you alot of good ideas for receipes and foods that are good for you and low in calories...i have her cookbook and will make alot of her stuff once our 8 weeks is up with jenny craig....

I guess I'm still having difficulty figuring out why anyone would join a food-based program if they don't want to do the program. Weight Watchers and TOPS are available everywhere Jenny Craig is, and they have you eating all your own food from the start, and they tell you how to determine portion sizes.

I am always the one in here cautioning people about venturing out on their own in an unstructured way (merely counting calories or substituing nutrition bars for store brands that are not equivalent, is not structured), because it virtually always leads to eventual failure. I've never seen one person who has a lot to lose ever make it to goal by making lots of substitutions before they get to halfway, when we get instructions about how to plan two days on our own per week. Moreover, I've seen very few people who didn't have much to lose and started making a lot of substitutions, but nonetheless made it to goal, ever maintain the losses.

The program is structured the way it is because it is designed for weight loss and maintenance success.

Furthermore, if you aren't getting the coaching you think you deserve from your JCC, I have to wonder if they haven't just decided that if you aren't going to be serious about the program, and actually do the program, that you don't really want the coaching, just like you don't really want the program. They are trained to coach you through the Jenny Craig program, not the Sally Sue or Cindy Lou program.

I am offended by your comment regarding the JCC deciding that someone is not serious! How do you determine that from ONE meeting with someone? I have met with 4 different consultants in my times with Jenny and have NEVER found one that did anything but order taking. I actually had to beg a consultant to give me some motivational speech when I was hitting a plateau. I finally left that center because of that. I am working on my THIRD center and they are always the same. I enjoy the food, like the convenience, like the program itself and need a weekly weigh in where I feel accountable...the problem is I don't have $150 a week to spend on food plus still having to spend another $30-40+ buying fruits veggies and dairy products. Many of the people on this sight are merely asking others for advice on lowering costs yet still sticking with the program. I see nothing wrong with people trying to support each other.

Ellen

First of all, i didnt start replacing until the 4th week and i never felt any support from the moment i walked into that center. Thats why i started figuring things on my own and saving money by replacements. They gave me this contest of steps to track and not once have they even asked me about how many steps i have taken, have i exercised, like i said i go in they bring out a menu for the week and take my order on what type of cookie or cake i want. They didnt measure me or take my picture until the second week when they did my husband and i asked why they didnt do that with me, then they did it. I just found out 4 weeks into the program that a meat is equal to 2 milks only because my husband has to have an extra meal due to his calorie count..ive been lucky that i have lost atleast 3-4 pounds a week so they just figure i am having no problems with the program, like i have said earlier, i dont think any of them have even done jenny, they are all fat, when we ask what things taste like they say well this is what other clients say, they havent tasted it..come on, give me a break, i tryed to do the jenny craig and felt for the money im paying i might as well replace with cheaper and lose on my own. since we have 4 weeks of eating every 2 hours down, and we are focused since we did get some weight off, why not...save the money, plus they just repeat the menu every 4 weeks, how boring is that going to get and lead us to binge..so dont be getting on your high horse because im giving tips on how to replace some things and help other people out in saving some money...the vitamuffins are way better for you than jennys cheescake,brownies,or snackbars. why not promote health. more fiber, less calories and doesnt get boring...and you save about 100 bucks a month switching...

i think jenny was a great jumpstarter for us, but to follow for several months, i would end up binging by repeats of meals and no support from fat consultants that have never even been on the program...the other center is 40 min drive for me..

just very disappointed in your response.. this website is more support than the center gives me and we should help each other out with tips....

I have to agree with Ellen, why do a packaged food based diet if you are going to substitute. I admit that my consultant does little more than take my food order, she does ask about any challenges I may have had the previous week and any upcoming challenges that I may have. She also keeps track of my exercising. But, as far as being inspirational, while she's very nice and encouraging. she's not very inspiring. The inspiration, for me, comes from inside myself. I purchase the 4 main meals/snacks for each day. I do yogurt for my midmorning snack and do not use the soupitizers. I am a participant in the rewards program and get a discount (now 30%), and because we eat out about 2 times a week, my bill from JC for 2 wks runs around $120. I try to not pick out the most expensive items (they will give you a price list if you request one) and I love the muffins and cereal for breakfast. I try to stay away from the french toast, it's one of the most expensive breakfast items. The salmon is also very expensive and I only buy that occassionally. I also find that the cost of the food keeps me motivated. I'm not going to blow all of that cash by cheating on the program. If you don't like the cost of the food, maybe you should consider another program. There are many wonderful programs out there where you purchase all of your own food.

Best to all of us on this journey, I hope we all find our way.

Linda

I also agree with Ellenwheels. The program is designed to work by chosing the foods on the menu planner. I totally understand that the food is pricey. Of course you can buy a breakfast or snack that is less in price but then that just changes the program and may also change your recommended calorie intake. Just my opinion .

Everyone can have their own opinion. I've been around here long enough to be able to observe what happens to the people who do substitutions instead of doing the plan the way it is designed. Over the years I have been maintaining, there have been many people who go to my center who have reached their goal. Out of curiosity, I ask them questions about how they did it. There are also many who are there for a very long time, malingering and never seeming to make any progress beyond their first weeks on program.

The successful ones have one thing in common: They all did the full planned menus with few substitutions. The malingerers also have some things in common: They don't buy much food. They convince themselves that after a "jump start" on the JC food, they can do for themselves what they've never been able to do before.

I've also asked one of my JCCs if there is anything her successful clients have in common, and if there are any who go through the program without plateaus or times when they bounce around with the same few pounds. I asked because I went through a time when I was doing the personalized menu, when that happened to me. Permission for substitutions led me to a permissive attitude toward my program. She told me that the ones who lose steadily every week are the ones who stick with the planned menus. So I got back on the planned menus without grocery store substitutions, and started losing again. After that, I stuck with the planned menus until I got to halfway.

I can't help it if someone gets offended when I point this out. I don't intend to offend, but rather to give advice people can depend upon, based upon my experience with the program through weight loss and eight years of maintenance. I have seen and experienced the perils of not following the program. It goes both ways. I get a little offended when I see people giving advice that I know is 99% sure to make the advisees struggle, and keep them from reaching their goals.

WELL MAYBE IM JUST A LITTLE BIT STRONGER AND HAVE MORE WILL POWER THAN YOU DO....IS JENNY PAYING YOU ALSO TO KEEP PEOPLE FOCUSED ON BUYING THEIR FOODS, ITS NOT JUST ABOUT EATING JENNY FOODS, ITS ABOUT YOUR INNERSELF CONTROL, SO SORRY YOU CANT PASS UP AN EXTRA CHIP WHEN YOU PUT YOUR MIND TO IT...

Girls, let's not forget why we're here........for support from one another. It's beginning to get a little testy. I still am a JC fan and believe as Ellen does. That's why I'm back. I was just a few pounds away from goal and thought I could do the rest on my own. I bought grocery store substitutions and tried to lose, but life happens and I also lost my serious committment. I'm back at JC because it is a tool that I choose to use. If you, munoz, choose to use substitutions that's up to you. but do not chastise others because they are committed to the program. Committment to this program is only one way to lose weight. You can still be committed to weightloss without using JC. Apparently willpower is also something you struggle with, or you wouldn't be here. I'm not saying you can't lose on your own, but for one reason or another you initially turned to JC. Let's all be nice to one another, nastiness and negativity are not productive for anyone.

Linda

Linda, you make a valid point when you said "life happens and I also lost my serious committment". I seriously thought about trying to substitute also a few pounds before I hit goal, but to be honest paying the money for the program really did/does make me stick to it. Everyone is different I know but for me, spending that amount of money, I wasn't going to blow it! lol

I don't think Ellen intended to be offensive, but I can understand that you are frustrated by the cost of food.

I think the cost of food is a bit high (and I haven't even seen the price list), but I guess my line of thinking is that I've tried to do it on my own...many times. While I've always chosen healthy items, my sense of portion size is poor. I buy the JC items because it helps me keep in check with the portion sizes. Furthermore, I'm only on Week 4, so I don't feel like I've truly internalized the portion sizes yet. I've tried to do it on my own with the guidelines of WW and other programs, but even still, the flexibility of those programs and my ability to "calorie budget" on those programs allowed me to calorie-budget to my own detriment...such that I wasn't eating enough and I was skipping meals to make room for others.

I have done meals on my own since I joined the plan. And I have made a strong effort to stick within the guidelines. But even when I order the healthiest thing on the menu that I can most easily substitute into my daily plan, the portion sizes are still a little too big. (I don't feel guilty about eating the mahi-mahi with the steamed veggies and salad last week, but I know the mahi-mahi was probably a little too big...maybe 5 or 6 ounces.)

I can also understand that you are frustrated with the counselors. Having perused this message board quite a bit, it sounds like it is a common frustration. I was very happy with my counselor (the center manager) initially, but she has since switched me over to another counselor who seems to just go through the motions. It sounds like, though, that I am getting a better counseling session than some other people are on this message board. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that they don't assign me to the counselor that is severely morbidly obese....for some reason, I just don't think I'll be inspired or gain much knowledge from her.

I think it's a personal choice that you need to make for yourself. Understand the risks of veering off of the plan too early. Don't let the counselors push you into buying foods you don't want to buy. Be smart about your choices and be aware of why other plans haven't worked for you in the past.

Hi everyone. I too am returning to JC after the frustrations of not being able to do it on my own. It is quite a bit more expensive then I remember. I have been trying to replace two lunches and two dinners on my own to keep my costs down, but even with doing that my bill has been over $100 each time. Coming into this program, my husband and I talked and we gave myself a $2000 total budget (which sounds crazy when you look at the charges all up front), but really that works itself out to about 17 weeks (after membership charges). I figure I can work hard and get to what I consider a good goal in 17 weeks and after that I need to use the tools (portion size and extra veggies during the day) that I learned from JC and do it on my own. So each week when I spend the money I try to tell myself not to freak out and not to quit because of it. I know that if I tried again on my own, I'd only come up with other excuses as to why I was not buying what I needed to at the store.

I do have to say that I have the same problem as a lot of others on this board, concerning my consultant. I actually asked to change people, and hopefully my next will be better (I meet with her on Saturday). I had the most amazing consultant when I was on the program 6 years ago and I know how helpful it is to have someone that I feel truly cares about me and my accomplishments. My new consultant seems a bit clueless about weight loss. One thing that I think JC could learn from Weight Watchers is that they make their consultants actually lose a bit of weight on the program before they can work for them (at least they used to). It would be so beneficials for members to have consultants that have tried the food, know about the struggles of weight loss and cared about them not as a number but as a person.

Thanks to everyone for your support.

Long time JC'er here too (Joined in June 05, lost 100lbs, had 2 babies in the meantime, and am back again to lose the baby weight that I gained this time around again) and I absolutely 100% concur with Ellen. I've been on these boards and have seen people come and go, and people stay the course, and the difference is absolutely those that think they don't REALLY need JC food and "this is as good as that" or whatever.

Those that do the program, and do it right, lose the weight and keep it off. Those that think they can do it on their own and don't REALLY need JC for the long haul end up stuck on the same hamster wheel of weight loss they've been on for a long time. Hello, I know, that was me too! I cannot lose weight by myself. I don't know why, I have intense, insane willpower on JC, but on my own, screw it. I NEED JC. The structure, the support, their food...

And for me, I think the cost is actually a GOOD thing.

A box of 6 granola bars that costs $2 or $3? No big deal to eat the whole box in a day or two.

ONE granola bar from JC that costs $3 or $4? Screw that, I can't AFFORD to binge Investing our money that we don't have a lot of, with my husband in school, and 2 small children, keeps me on the straight and narrow. I HAVE to lose this weight, and not cheat or mess around, b/c I can't afford *not* to!

Sure, we all have lean $$ weeks when we simply have to put something here or do what we have to do...but JC is a program that costs money, and if you don't have the money to invest, then I'm not even sure I understand why people do it? Why not go to WW or any other weight loss program (many online!) that allow you to utilize grocery store foods? And if you could lose weight by buying your own food, measuring out portions, etc, why did you come to JC? Why are you overweight?

I'm not trying to be harsh either, but simply be real. If you can't afford it, JC might not be the right program for you right now. I don't like to see people do JC but then whine about how it doesn't work, when they are the ones not putting 100% into the program.

If you don't like your centre or person you see, then switch. Find another one.

I have seen the same girl since 2005, she's really awesome.

So, good luck to everyone.

"Coming into this program, my husband and I talked and we gave myself a $2000 total budget (which sounds crazy when you look at the charges all up front), but really that works itself out to about 17 weeks (after membership charges). I figure I can work hard and get to what I consider a good goal in 17 weeks and after that I need to use the tools (portion size and extra veggies during the day) that I learned from JC and do it on my own."

I would urge you to look at it a little bit differently. You bought the full program, and that includes halfway and maintenance coaching. It would be a shame not to take advantage of that.

Based on how much you usually lose each week, think about changing your goal to accommodate your time limit. So if you had a goal of eventually losing 45 pounds, but your 17-week limit will only get you halfway there, use the program to its full potential. Reset your goal to what was originally your halfway point. That way, you should realistically be able to reach the new goal in your time limit. You will have the advantage of getting the halfway training earlier, and stretch your budget a little further, because with a successful transition to the halfway menu, you will be doing two days a week on your own, and learning what you need to learn about menu planning and eating on your own. If you stay focused, it can help to "buy" you a few extra weeks within your total budget. Take avantage of that time to learn exchanges and menu planning thoroughly.

Then, when you get to the new goal weight, you will start the transition to doing whole weeks on your own, and learning lots about yourself and maintenance. Go all the way through the maintenance program, maintaining your weight for that year, and you will be able to get half your membership fee back.

Does that sound workable?

Well i started back last week and i was paying around 100 about five years ago and now its 135. Yes I agree it has gone up incredibly, but i'm hoping that this time around it will not take as long and hopefully they will have some incentives to allow people that can't really afford this every week. i not only have this to worry about but i'm sure like everyone else i am still making separate meals for my family which can also be pricey.

I just paid $115. I don't buy the Anytime bars nor the vitamins and I try to buy my own dressings and syrup. It is more expensive, for sure!

its interesting watching people sign in and out on this board and complain about the rising cost of JC food. forgive me but wasn't gas cheaper 5 and 10 years ago? Wasn't a gallon of milk, a loaf of bread and a pound of butter cheaper too??

I feel you get what you pay for and that some of us need to focus on the positive attributes that go along with the JC program.

I do agree with a lot of you here, if you don't like your consultant, than change. We all click with different types of people, find someone that works for you.

Good luck, Sheila B.

They have so much more to offer than in 2001...many of foods they had were cheaper and because people wanted better tasting it cost money. You can choose to buy the cheaper foods from 2001...they are still on the menu. The cost is no different than the groceries in 2001 vs. 2009...same increase. Everything is more expensive. Nutri System is worse...they say free shipping...nothing is free and all of their stuff makes me gag.

You should try and see if you can switch consultants! Or do you feel the same way with all the consultants at the center?

I went back to Jenny Craig purely on the reason of the one-on-one support I receive from their consultant. (Otherwise, I would have stuck with Weight Watchers or Nutrisystem). It's what's worked for me in the past, so I'm sorry to hear that it's not working for you. Anyway, you are PAYING for the consultant's salary--hence why the cost of the food is so high-- so you DESERVE to have a consultant who will listen to your needs and help you along.

By the way, back to the original topic: I was actually quite surprised the cost of food hadn't gone up that much in a decade. Back in 1996, I was paying around $110 for a week, and now it's $124 (1700 calorie-plan). And increase of $14 is a 10% increase, which is close to inflation, if I am doing my math right.

I've only been on JC for a year (just under) but have seen dozens of these types of threads. Let me distill this whole argument into a very MARS view.

We can argue all we want about the VALUE of the program but this has nothing to do with the COST. If you PERCEIVE that the VALUE is high to you personally, the COST will seem reasonable. If not, it will appear high.

People act this this is some mystery and it amazes me. It's like arguing about the COST of a luxury car. If you think it's worth it, you will pay more for it. If not, you wont and will drive the more affordable car.

So, if the VALUE of this is LOW to you, go do something else. Just get on with it. Why troll these boards that are specifially paid for and operated by the very company you think gives you no value? If the VALUE of this is high, you will find a way to make it work. If I could do this alone using any one of the dozens of other methods, I WOULDN'T BE HERE! Ifyou want help with trying to make it work, feel free to ask, just keep it positive.

So, seriously, if you want to do WW or TOPs or any one of the other great weight loss programs, go ahead. If you still want to come here and share input or advice, go ahead, everyone has an opinion. BUT please please please stop coming here shooting holes and being negative about something many of us are trying very hard to make work. WE DONT NEED THAT NEGATIVITY. And if you must be an enabler to someone that is waffling on the program, be a little more circumspect about doing it.

I'm sorry because I know this is coming across harsh but it gets tiring of seeing these threads and the negativity over and over and over.

You sound like an Oakland Raider fan.... The team always sucks but the fans will literally kill a fan of the opposing team.

Someone started this thread because they noticed an increase in the food prices. Big deal and everyone on here that chimed in with good ideas got chastised. I didn't read anything on here that they are not doing the program because of price. What I did read is a lot of people on here that was on the plan years ago and are back. So somewhere along the way they failed the first or second or third time.

On any open forum like this you will have debate. All you can do is voice your opinions or facts and hope you can inspire someone who is struggling. But what you shouldn't do is be an A-hole about it because you are not agreed with.

wheels you have been on here for a long time like me. Believe me any board readers here know a thousand times that you have maintained for years. I hope people listen to you because you are proof that this program works.

WOW, I didn't think my post would have gotten so many people riled up! Well just to be clear, I didn't quit and come back. Jenny worked for me and worked well. I lost 20 POUNDS in one month!!! I stopped to have my 3 children which is why I bought the platinum plan so I could do that. Come back when I was ready.


Jenny works, no doubt in my mind. I buy the plan and I stick to it. No substitutions. As ellenwheels has said.

I believe that greater success is gotten from this program if you follow it as it is meant. We should be listening to the ones who have been around a long time and who have gotten to goal and beyond.

I agree that we are here to support eachother. Negativity only breeds more negativity and it is that which sets us up for failure.