Ava Alderman Articles

By Ava: Alderman: I sometimes hear from people who tell me that they are confused about certain aspects of the nutrisystem diet.  Some don’t understand how often you’re supposed to eat.  Others don’t quite get what types of foods you eat.  Many don’t understand how the add ins or the grocery store sides work.  And I’m often also asked about exercising and counseling and how both of these things come into play.  So, in the following article, I’ll try to explain just how nutrisystem works in the hopes of clearing up any confusion that you might have.

What, When, And How You Eat On Nutrisystem:  This diet is based on the idea of eating low glycemic foods.  The whole idea is to eat nutritionally dense foods that are low on the glycemic index meaning that your blood sugar is kept stable.   The diet provides foods that have been modified to be lower in sugars and carbs and higher in protein and fiber.  This not only keeps your blood sugar and insulin stable, but it keeps you from getting as hungry and it helps with cravings. You also take in a fewer amount of calories.  All of these variables work together to help you lose weight.

As far as the types of foods that are provided, I feel as if they do a pretty good job of making the food desirable.  It’s mostly comfort type foods and desserts like pizza, tacos, macaroni and cheese, cereals, bagels, cakes, sundaes, cookies, and cheese puffs, to name just a few examples.  The diet is set up so that you eat very regularly.  You’ll eat breakfast, lunch, dinner, plus two snacks and a dessert.  (All of these are diet foods that the company provides.)  In addition to this, you are allowed to add in fresh snacks with each main meal.  You get to choose from snacks in several categories, like lean protein, smart carbs, whole grains and extras like condiments.   This may sound more complicated than it is.  What it really means is that you’ll typically add in fruit with your cereal, red pepper strips with your pizza, and  a salad for your dinner.  These are just a few examples, but hopefully you get the idea.

Counseling And Exercise:  These two topics seem to bring about some confusion also.  The company clearly wants for you to exercise because they offer a lot of free resources to make this easy for you to accomplish.  With that said, it stops short of saying that exercise is a requirement.  And it’s not as if anyone is going to check up on you and demand to know why you aren’t exercising.  Yes, the resources are there, they’re free, and it’s probably in your best interest to use them, but no one is going to hold you accountable but yourself.

With all of this said, nutrisystem does offer free counseling and support if you like that accountability.  You can receive counseling by telephone or live chat, but no one is going to stand in front of you and make you weigh in. The counseling is free, but you have to take the initiative to use it.  Some people would rather go alone and just reach out if it’s needed.  Others really like having a cheerleader and knowing that there is someone in their corner.

Ordering And Costs:  How much the food is and how to order it are a few of the most common questions that I get about nutrisystem.  They offer several packages depending upon your needs.  It’s my belief that the most popular plan is the women’s basic plan.  But there are also plans for men, plan’s for older people, and plans for people with diabetes or for people who are vegetarians.  Additionally, you can go for one of the premium packages that offer the gourmet frozen meals.  Once you’ve chosen which package or types of foods is more desirable to you, then you can decide if you’re going to order your food a la carte or go with a 2 or 4 week package.  And which makes the most sense depends upon how much weight you have to lose.  The 4 week plans are often the most cost effective because they are heavily promoted and coupons are often offered for them. (A good example is this coupon for the new, popular nutrisystem success plan. Start Nutrisystem® Success™ today and get 40% off during our 40th Anniversary Sales Event!)

By: Ava Alderman:  I really thought that the Nutrisystem Success line sale starting January was awesome, but, as of today, Nutrisystem has rolled out an even better sale.  Due to their 40 year anniversary, they are offering 40 percent off.  For example, the basic or core plan is now being offered for only $259.99.  That’s a savings of over $157.   Right now, they are offering 28 days worth of the new protein shakes for free and they are throwing in seven days of chef’s table meals for you to try out.  If you want to try more of the chef’s table entrees as well as have some of the “select” or gourmet frozen meals in your order, then the select line is also on sale for only $299.99  That’s a savings of over $167.  With this plan, you get 10 days of the chef’s entree meals, 28 days of the protein shakes, and some of the premium select frozen meals.   This is really aggressive pricing, especially with their offering the chef’s table and the protein shakes with these two plans.  Here’s the link to that sale. Start Nutrisystem® Success™ today and get 40% off during our 40th Anniversary Sales Event!

By: Ava Alderman:  It’s not uncommon for me to get a lot of questions about nutrisystem’s select or frozen gourmet line.  But now that the new success line has come out (and includes more frozen foods,) I’ve been getting more volume of questions about it. One of the most common concerns is if it is worth it to pay the extra expense to get the frozen foods.  I believe that in most cases, it is.  I’ll give you three reasons why in the following article.

If You’re Careful And Observant, You Often Won’t Have To Pay Much Extra For The Select Line:  You might have noticed that nutrisystem often runs specials and promotions.  The select line is often featured during these offers.  Sometimes, the frozen food packages are not much more expensive (if any) than the basic line.  For example, as of this writing, they are offering 40% off of all of the plans, so you can get the select line for what you would normally pay for the basic line.  The company often discounts this package as an incentive to get people to try it. (And I always keep the latest offers on the right side of this blog, so you can check to see what’s available now.)

I know some people who will load up when these promotions happen because they don’t want to ever pay full price or a premium for these frozen foods.  The bottom line is if you keep your eyes open, you can sometimes find a promotion that allows you to get the frozen line for a similar price to the basic line so that you aren’t incurring any added expense.

 You Will Often Get More Freebies When You Go With The Select Line:  Often, the company packages very sought after or popular food on the select package.  And sometimes, when new foods come out, they offer them for free.  For example, as of this writing they are offering 10 free days of the new chef’s tables entrees for free on the select line. Here’s a link to that special. Start Nutrisystem® Success™ today and get 40% off during our 40th Anniversary Sales Event!.  But know that the company changes their promotions on a regular basis.

The Select Line Is Sometimes The Only Way You Get To Take Advantage Of The Best Foods:  I honestly think that many of the frozen meals are the best on the menu.  You’re not going to be able to get the ice cream sundaes, or the fresh toast, the paninnis or wraps, the glazed turkey, or the chef’s table items on any of the other lines.

Now, I don’t mean to imply that the food isn’t good on the basic or core line.  It certainly is.  Some of my favorite choices are on the basic line.  But with the select plan, you sort of get the best of both worlds.  You can get some popular non frozen foods from the basic package, and you get the frozen meals also.   You are not able to do this with the basic plan.  So while you get both basic and frozen foods on the select package, the opposite is not true on the basic package.

To me, the satisfaction that I get from my food day after day is important.  Sure, I might eat food that I don’t enjoy for a short amount of time.  But eventually, this will probably get old.  That’s why I think it’s worth it to pay a little extra (and sometimes you don’t have to) in order to know that I’m getting the best and most tastiest foods that the company has to offer.  Even paying a few dollars per day extra is worth that to me.  I realize that some people may disagree, but that’s my opinion on this topic.

By: Ava Alderman:  I often hear from people who are concerned about the amount of food or the number of meals that they will eat on the nutrisystem diet.  Understandably, they’re worried about hunger and cravings.  I heard from someone who said: “how many meals do you get to have each day on nutrisystem? How about the snacks and desserts? And do the new nutrisystem success shakes count as a snack or a dessert?”  I’ll address these concerns in the following article.

The Basics Of How The Nutrisystem Meals Work Each Day:  Here are the basics. This program is designed for you to eat three main meals per day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) as well as two snacks and a dessert.  The breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and desserts are all included with your food.  There are also many snacks included as well, but you also have the flexibility to eat regular, healthful and grocery store food as your snack.  (You could theoretically do the same with the desserts, but it’s very difficult to find decent diet desserts, so I think it’s just easier to use the diet foods for this.) To show you what I mean, I’ll outline a couple of sample meals.

On day one, let’s chose one of the nutrisystem cereals for breakfast.  They ask you to add in a fresh side.  This could be a piece of fruit, some yogurt, or even one of the new protein shakes.  If you add in your own side, then you could consume your shake as a snack later.  You are allowed to have a mid morning snack.  You could chose your own (like say, string cheese.) Or you could chose one of the diet’s snack foods like the popcorn.  For lunch, let’s chose the nutrisystem chicken salad.  You’ll get one more snack.  You might chose the new success shakes or you might opt to have a snack from healthy grocery store food like celery and peanut butter.  For dinner, we could chose the plan’s glazed turkey.  For dessert, you could pick nutrisystem’s ice cream sundae.  As you can see, you’ve eaten three large meals, 2 smaller snacks and one dessert.

Here’s another sample day.  Let’s say you chose a bagel with low fat cream cheese for lunch and a protein shake for your mid morning snack.  You could have the hot dog for lunch with an apple.  Then for your mid afternoon snack, you could chose the plan’s cheese puffs or you could go on your own and decide on some low fat chocolate pudding.  For dinner, you could go for the ravioli with a side salad and the diet’s carrot cake for lunch.

Again, you’re looking at 3 large meals, 2 snacks and a dessert.  For most people, this means eating every couple of hours which really helps with hunger.  And since you have several opportunities to have sweets, most people don’t find the cravings for sweets all that bad.  As I said, most people will use the diet’s desserts (that are included) because this way you can be sure that your sweets are safe enough to eat since they are low in calories and carbs.  Many people will opt to have the diet’s snacks sometimes and then add in their own grocery store items at other times just to have some variety.  Plus, this helps you to learn how to make good and healthy choices for the day that you will go off of the diet.  The protein shakes can count for either a side item, a dessert, or a snack depending on your mood and on how you intend to use them. Hopefully this article has made it clear that you do eat normal larger meals and still have room for sides and desserts.

Want more tips on how to be successful on nutrisystem? My NutriSystem Review Website features videos, tips, coupons ($100 off or weeks of food for free), comparisons to other popular diets, information on the diet’s counseling, and FAQs related to success on this diet. I also offer a free ebook (“Getting The Most Out Of NutriSystem”) to help you get started. You can visit at http://celebrity-diet-review.com/nutrisystem.

By: Ava Alderman:  Lately, I’ve had a lot of people asking me how often nutrisystem offers 40% off like they are right now. The answer is not very often.  While the company always seems to have a promotion offered, these promotions differ, especially during certain times of the year.   The reason that they are offering such a huge discount right now is because they are celebrating their 40th anniversary sale, so they are offering 40 percent off to celebrate this.   In short, this offer is pretty much as good as it gets.  They are deeply discounting their packages so if you’ve been wanting to try nutrisystem, now would be a good time to do so.  Here is a link to that promotion. Start Nutrisystem® Success™ today and get 40% off during our 40th Anniversary Sales Event!

By: Ava Alderman:  Nutrisystem has rolled out a new line in anticipation of 2012.  It’s called the success line.  I’m starting to get some questions about how it works.  I’ll be writing more articles about this in the days to come.  But as of right now, as best as I can tell, the cornerstone of this new plan is the new entrees (called chef’s table inspired and developed by popular chefs.) For example, there is the Arroz Con Pollo inspired by chef Carmen González.  From celebrity chef Mark Estee comes the butternut squash ravioli.   Kent Rathbun brings citrus glazed pork. Michael Solomonov was the inspiration for the  Moroccan inspired chicken. And Chef Tony Mantuano brings us steak tagliata and whole wheat ricotta crepes.  They’ve also added a couple of new items to the breakfast menu (chocolate frosted donut and a bagel – awesome!)  And they’ve added an entire new line of protein shakes (in flavors like chocolate, coffee, vanilla and strawberry.) These shakes pack a whopping 15 grams of protein to help you fill full and to help with lean muscle.

Additionally, Nutrisystem has  added a new exercise program called “my daily 3″ to help make fitting in exercise easier.  Plus, they have added new maintenance and transition plans.  In short, it appears that they have made all of their programs a bit more easy and inclusive.  All of the new items are already factored into the program meaning that they are free and won’t cost additional money.  So, you’re getting a lot more when you sign onto nutrisystem.  In short, I give it a thumbs up, especially the new celebrity meals and shakes.  Here’s a sample of the new creative.
Special Limited Time Introductory Pricing on Nutrisystem® Success™! Breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and protein shake—for about $9 a day!

By: Ava Alderman:  For a while, there has been buzz about nutrisystem announcing a new spokesperson.  Many people had their theories as to who it was going to be.  Finally, nutrisystem has announced the identity of this new, and very cool, partnership.  The diet company has partnered with Janet Jackson, who has had some very public, and very dramatic, struggles with her weight.  Apparently, nutrisystem approached Ms. Jackson after company officials read her book “True You” about her battles with weight.  They gave Janet some foods to try while she was on tour and apparently she enjoyed them enough to sign on.  (She’s said her favorite are the cheese puffs.)

I think that Janet Jackson will be a very good fit for nutrisystem.  But to me, the coolest thing about this partnership is that both the company and the celebrity have found a way to give back.  For every pound that all nutrisystem dieters lose (that’s every one – not just the spokesperson) the company will donate $1 in food to those that need it through a new venture / food bank called Nutribank.  Nutrisystem dieters lost 10 million pounds last year (wow!)  And the company  has committed to donating up to $10 million in food contributions to NutriBank in 2012.  That’s truly amazing and that’s why I love the partnership so much.   What an awesome collaboration.   This has the potential to help a lot of people.  Here’s a sample of the new creative.  I think it looks awesome!

By: Ava Alderman:  I’ve been getting a lot of questions about nutrisystem’s new success line that includes the new chef’s table meals (inspired by celebrity chefs) and including the new protein shakes.   Many are intrigued by this new program but they assume that it’s going to be a lot more expensive.  I often hear comments like: “is the nutrisystem success plan more money than all of the others?  If so, how much more does it cost?”  I’ll try to answer these questions in the following article.

Whether The Success Line Costs More Depends On How Many Chef’s Tables Meals You Want And Whether You Want The Frozen Or “Select” Meals:  As of this writing, the company is offering some chef’s tables meals and shakes with the core or auto delivery basic plan.  For example, the core or basic plan that is currently around $259 includes 7 days of chef’s table entrees as well as some shakes.  Beyond that, you get the soft canned foods on the basic line.  The core plan does not include the frozen meals on the select line.  However, some of my favorite meals are on the basic line including the pizza, the sloppy joes, and the pancakes.

Now, if you want more than 7 days of the new chef’s line and you want gourmet or frozen meals included in your order, then the select plan is just a little more at around $299.  With this premium, you get 10 days of the chef’s table as well, the new protein shakes, and your other foods will include frozen or “select” foods.   I have to admit that many of the frozen foods are quite good including the glazed turkey and the french toast.  So to answer the question, you are looking at around $40 more to get more of the chef inspired food and frozen food options instead of just the soft canned meals.

When I explain this, many people ask me if it is worth it to pay more.  I suppose that depends on your budget and how satisfied you are with the basic line.  I think that most people can find plenty to like on both plans.   However, the company often offers such deep discounts on the select line, that it ends up not being such a huge premium.  In this case, it’s not much more than an additional dollar or so per day.  I would say that this is worth it to me, but your opinion could certainly differ.  I think that if you ask this question to many different people on the diet, you might get several different answers.  But it might make you feel a little better to know that even if you chose the cheapest option (the basic,) you will still have access to the new chef’s line and to the new shakes.  But if you also want additional frozen meals, that will cost a little more.   Here is the latest offer for the new success line. Special Limited Time Introductory Pricing on Nutrisystem® Success™! Breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and protein shake—for about $9 a day!

By Ava Alderman:  I’ve started receiving a lot of correspondence about the new chef’s table entrees from nutrisystem, which are part of the new success line.  One of the more common questions is about the nutritional make up of these foods.  Some have expressed concern that these new meals might be higher in calories or carbs while being lower in protein.   The assumption is that if the meals are inspired by chefs and are of restaurant quality, then surely something has to give.  Many assume that it would be very difficult to keep these meals low enough in calories to be in compliance with the rest of the diet.  Some have even told me that they want to make sure that consuming these meals doesn’t affect their overall results.  To address these concerns, I’ll look at some nutritional information for some of these chef’s table entrees.  Since the biggest concern seems to be about the calories and protein,  I’ll then take the averages of both to give you a better idea of what you’d be taking in if were to consume these meals on a regular basis.

It may make you feel better to know that the chef’s table meals are in line with the other meals on all plans, including the core or the select lines.  All of the meals are pretty low in calories and pretty high in protein.   For example, the steak tagliata has 260 calories, 22 grams of protein, 2 grams of fibers, and 18 of carbohydrates.   The whole wheat ricotta crepes have only 210 calories and 12 grams of protein, with 3 of fiber and 12 of protein.  The bar b que glazed pork is very high in protein at 19 grams.  And this entree only has 240 calories.  The arroz con pollo is also high in protein at 22 grams and only 270 calories.   Here’s one final example.  The Moroccan inspired chicken also has 22 grams of protein and it has 270 calories.

If you average the calories and protein of all of these meals, then you have an average of 250 calories and an average of 19.5 grams of protein.  Nutrisystem is designed for you to take in approximately 1200 calories on the women’s plan and about 1500 of the men’s plan.  So having an average of 250 calories at dinner gives you a lot of room for breakfast and lunch, as well as the healthy sides that you are supposed to add in at each meal. So long as you are reasonably careful about what you add in for your sides, you should not have any trouble reaching your daily caloric goals.  Also, it might help to remember that the folks at nutrisystem want you to succeed.  If you didn’t, then you wouldn’t keep buying the food.  Their whole goal is to make this diet simple so that you don’t have to worry about keeping track of what you are taking in.  Essentially, it is designed so that you can chose any of the entrees and be well within compliance.  It’s in their best interest to keep this diet easy, and I think they do a pretty good job of that.

If you have any questions about any of the foods on the nutrisystem diet or how the plan works, feel free to check out my nutrisystem celebrity review website.  There’s a lot of tips and tricks as well as the free ebook “Getting The Most Out Of Nutrisystem. For a free copy, (no information required) click here or you can visit http://celebrity-diet-review.com/

By: Ava Alderman:  I sometimes hear from people who want to try a more flexible form of nutrisystem.  Many want to take meals or days off and they wonder if they will still lose weight.  I heard from someone who wanted to take off every Friday through Sunday, but she worried if she would still see the results that she wanted.  She asked, in part: “if I took three days off every week on nutrisystem, would I still lose weight?  I want to take off every Friday and every weekend so that I can enjoy meals with my family.  But would I still see results if I did this?”

While it’s impossible for me to see into the future or to definitively answer this question without knowing what this person was going to be eating on her three days off, I do have some thoughts on this, which I will share now.

Nutrisystem Does Have A 2 Day Off Program That Still Offer Weight Loss If Followed Correctly:  The person who wrote to me didn’t realize this, but nutrisystem already has a plan for people who want to take some times off each week.  It’s called the flex plan and it allows you to take off two days each week.  Most people take advantage of this on weekends, but you can theoretically take any two days.  I’ve heard of pretty good results with this plan as long as you stay within the guidelines on your off days.  In other words, you can’t just eat whatever you want in any quantity that you want.  You can’t and shouldn’t just eat junk food.  Because if you do, then you could jeopardize the work that you have done all week.

When you are on this diet, you lose weight in two ways.  First, you are eating more protein and less carbs so your body burns more fat.  But you are also taking in less calories than you are burning.  However, if you take in many more calories than you are burning on your three off days, then, you are compromising those five other days.  Let’s look at it another way.  With the women’s plan, you take in around 1200 calories per day.  This is an estimate depending on which meals and snacks you chose.  This is a pretty decent daily calorie deficit for most women.  How many calories you burn depends on your activity level. However, if you are reasonably active, you should be taking in a good deal less than you are burning.  The question of weight loss with taking three days off depends on if you take in enough calorie excess on those three days to counteract the calorie deficit you have already created.

It appears that taking 2 days off is definitely possible as many are doing just that on the flex program.  But your success with taking 3 days off would likely depend on what you ate during those 3 days and your activity level.  I have vacationed while dieting and have still lost weight because I stayed pretty active and still ate reasonably healthfully.  Of course, I lost less weight during that week than I would have if I had been in compliance for all seven days.  But it’s my opinion that you can still lose at least some weight taking 3 days off if you are careful with your choices and remain active.  It likely wouldn’t be as much weight as you would lose during seven days of compliance, but many consider taking some time off to be a fair trade off for losing a little bit less weight, especially if they don’t have aggressive goals and only want to lose reasonable or gradual amounts of weight.

If you’d like more help getting started on nutrisystem no matter which plan you chose or if you are opting for full or part time, feel free to check out the free ebook “Getting The Most Out Of Nutrisystem,” which includes detailed tips and tricks, coupons, and motivation.  For a free copy, (no information required) click here or you can visit http://celebrity-diet-review.com/