Delivered Diet Food: Jenny Craig

The Jenny Craig diet delivery programme has been around for over 25 years, and was voted the best delivery diet in the US. Jenny Craig is a weight management service company with franchises all over the world. The company does not currently operate in the UK, having ceased its operation here in 2013.

This review is largely based on what the offering was for UK dieters when Jenny Craig provided a delivery service here. Hopefully it may still prove useful to our overseas visitors!

Their pre-packed meals are calorie counted and nutritionally balanced and the diet food is delivered direct to your door. The full diet package also gives you access to a personal coach whose role is to boost your motivation, give you tips and advice, and to offer support. 

How much will the Jenny Craig UK diet delivery cost me?

£9.90 per day paid in a single £277.20 for a 28 day diet food hamper as well as weekly phone consultations.

Membership prices are

• £50 for 3 months,
• £90 for 6 months
• £140 for 12 months.

With membership you get £25 off per hamper so each 28 day one costs £252.20.

How does Jenny Craig compare to Weight Loss Resources?

For just £11.95 per month you can use all of the tools and resources available from WLR.  You’ll learn about portion control and how to change your eating habits for life. We’ll give you the freedom to make you own choices, lose weight and keep it off.

Why not take a free trial and see how you can lose weight and control your own meals.

Take our FREE trial »

How does the Jenny Craig service work?

On the site is a 'call me back' phone icon. You enter your name and phone number and a member of the Jenny Craig team will give you a call. You discuss your goals and the advisor will sort out your diet delivery based on your personal statistics.

Advisors attend a comprehensive training course and are certified by a Jenny Craig Trainer.

The 0800 is free from a landline, but check your package if calling from a mobile.  

Diet foods are delivered in monthly hampers and you get phone consultations weekly to discuss your results and plot your weight loss on your personal graph.

If you are not a fan of phone calls however there is no way for you to access this plan as there is very little online information and no way to work out your plan without speaking to a consultant: basically you are driven to call in and then hooked by the sales team.

What is my calorie allowance on this diet?

The lowest calorie level is 1200 per day. This is optimised per person with your weight loss consultant to result in a 1-2 lb loss per week. The range is from 1200-2300 calories per day.

A typical menu for Jenny Craig

Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner	Snacks
Baked Beans on Toast	Tuna Pasta Salad	Beef Lasagne	Sour Cream & Onion Potato Bites
Muesli with Raisins & Hazelnuts	Salmon & Durum Wheat Salad	Chicken Provencal with Durum Wheat	Cereal Bar with Wholegrain & White Chocolate
Chocolate Coated Wholewheat Flakes	Bacon & Mushroom Risotto	Tuna Ratatouille with Durum Wheat	Milk Chocolate Wafer Bar

What support is offered by Jenny Craig UK?

The plan did come with weekly 15 minute long phone consultations. Providing the opportunity to talk through how your week went, good or bad, why, and how to combat any issues. It can give peace of mind if you have to go out to a party or barbeque or anywhere were you will be eating differently to your normal Jenny Craig boxed meals. The consultant can offer advice on what you should do in these situations.

Can I try before I buy?

No, unlike Weight Loss Resources, there is no free trial. You have to buy at least 28 days worth of food and either go from month to month or longer for cheaper membership plans. Any questions can be answered via their telephone service.

Will Jenny Craig Work For Me?

The Jenny Craig diet food delivery would work if followed strictly. According to their advertising, Cheryl Baker lost 2.5 stone in 6 months with it. This would total a cost of £1801.80 for a 2.5 stone loss, which does seem quite excessive, especially when she could have lost nearly 4 stone for £47.70 with WLR!*

Another problem with the programme is that in reality we don’t eat at home, on our own every night of our lives. People go to restaurants, friends or families for dinner and also enjoy cooking. This means a severe lack of control over the programme unless you become a social recluse.

Also only having a 15 minute talk with your consultant each week might not prove enough to keep your head in the right place and stay on track with your goals.  

How much weight could I lose?

By following the plan strictly you could lose 1-2lb per week.

Weight Loss Resources' View

The Jenny Craig Diet operates like many other diet delivery schemes currently on the market.

As always, it’s a reduction in calories that will shift those pounds. The Jenny Craig diet delivery is yet another way to do this and might suit you if you can afford the cost of the Jenny Craig Meals.  But ultimately, it’s just as easy – and much cheaper – to follow a 1,200-1,400 calorie diet based on foods from the four main food groups.