Is The Nutrisystem Diet Any Good?

I often get emails asking how "good" Nutrisystem really is.  This is sort of a loaded question.  I often ask for clarification, just to make sure I answer what the reader wants to know.  Does the writer mean is this diet effective? Is it healthy? Is the food decent tasting?  I'll try to answer all of these questions in the following article.

Is Nutrisystem Effective?: This diet works in a few different ways.  First, you're taking in a relatively low amount of calories (around 1,000 -1,200).  Second, the company is careful that the foods contain only "good carbs" and have a high amount of protein.  This makes your consumption more "glycemic friendly" and helps to nudge your body into ketosis where it is burning fat rather than sugars. 

If you eat the foods that you're sent and follow the guidelines as to what foods / or sides that you're adding in, it's my opinion that you should not have a problem getting in or reaching ketosis. If you doubt this, you can use ketone strips to check if you've reached this level.  Getting there pretty much ensures weight loss for most people.  The key is to not make unfortunate choices with your sides (or you run the risk or having to start over.)

Still, most people who follow along as directed don't have any trouble.  The bottom line is that the diet is well designed to work.  You eat five times a day so you're not that hungry and you don't have to count calories or carbs.  Most of the food is prepared for you so the only thing that you have to worry about is following the directions and monitoring your progress.

Another big plus in my opinion is that they offer totally free counseling and support. This would cost a lot of money if you were paying for it.  And, the counselors are very knowledgeable, professional, supportive, and appropriately motivating without being too pushy.  I'm not the type of person that likes to work on personal issues with others, but once I got over my reluctance, I found this very helpful.

Is Nutrisystem Healthy?: A lot of people worry that this is a starvation diet.  It really isn't. 1,000 – 1,200 calories per day is not really reaching dangerous levels unless you start cutting or skipping meals, which the company obviously does not advise.  (Keep in mind that you have to eat regularly to stay in ketosis so you don't want to do this anyway.)  All of the foods are fortified with vitamins and minerals and you eat fresh add ins at every meal to ensure that your body is getting what it needs. 

Of course, there has always been controversy about low carb diets, but the good news about this one is that you aren't eating high cholesterol foods like meats and fats. The diet's foods have been modified to be low in carbohydrates and high in protein, but you eat regular foods and snacks like cereals, chips, and desserts.  You're not eating pork skins and beef jerky all day so you don't have to worry about that.

Is This Diet Convenient? How Does The Nutrisystem Food Taste?:  This is a pretty low maintenance diet.  Most times, the food is prepared for you and you just have to add in a dairy, fruit, or vegetable.  Each meal will give you a suggestion as to a good side, but you can make you own choices.  Still, you're not asked to do any major shopping or food preparation, so this one is very high on the convenience scale.

In terms of taste and variety, I believe that this diet is better than most. There are 170 choices and you really do get to eat pizza, burgers, tacos, ravioli, cereal, and chocolate cake, etc.  (Granted, the pizza isn't Uno's, but it's not awful either.) The company has recently added in some frozen entrees which I think are really quite good.  And, they have some that they say are like restaurant quality food that is better than most diet food I've tried.

Ava's 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. She also offers a free ebook ("Getting The Most Out Of Nutrisystem") to help you get started. You can visit her at http://celebrity-diet-review.com/

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