This time of year, weight-loss programs abound. Jenny Craig, Nutrisystem and Weight Watchers commercials are ready to help with your New Year’s Resolution to lose
weight, tucking themselves into every television show imaginable. They all offer solutions. But they all cost money. And right after the holidays, that can be hard to come by. Especially in today's economy.
So I’m jazzed about two free programs that offer instruction, recipes and support to all of us who are yearning to lose weight: USA Today’s Weight Loss Challenge and Self magazine’s Jump Start Diet. USA Today’s plan targets 10 pounds in 10 weeks. Self’s plan incorporates weight-loss guru Jillian Michaels and says you can drop a size in a month. I’m all for it! Let’s take a look.
This is the seventh year for USA Today’s plan. This year’s plan relies on Dawn Jackson Blather, a registered dietician in Chicago who wrote “The Flexitarian Diet.” You figure out how many calories you need each day and then follow her mix-and-match menus. From the story:
“The advice offered in this year's challenge is based on the latest scientific evidence, which shows that dieters generally lose about 5% to 10% of their starting weight in the first three to six months on a program. For many people, that's a loss of 10 to 20 pounds. After that, losing weight often gets more difficult.
“One reason it's hard to trim down more and keep it off is that there's a cascade of biological responses designed to return dieters to their pre-diet levels. A hunger hormone called ghrelin increases, and a fullness hormone called leptin decreases, research shows.
"Regardless of these hormone shifts, it is still possible to lose some weight and keep it off," Blatner says.”
Here are some of the 33 recipes offered:
Breakfasts (about 300 calories each): waffles and berries, vanilla maple French toast with raspberry sauce, granola berry parfait, herbed cheese and tomato bagel
Lunches (about 400 calories each): ham and Swiss sandwich with grape salad, chili and chips, barbecue chicken strip wrap, grilled cheese with turkey and tomato
Dinners (about 500 calories each): pesto-style chicken and pasta, steak and pepper tacos, pasta and ricotta with fresh herbs, maple-lime salmon with cilantro couscous
Snacks (about 150 calories each): corn chips and salsa verde, apple and cheddar, maple yogurt, banana strawberries romanoff, chive spread with whole-grain crackers.
I don’t know about you, but there are several things in there that got my attention!
Each day this week, the newspaper will roll out another aspect of their weight-loss plan. I, for one, will be watching.
Self magazine has also done their Jump Start Diet for several years. Readers sign up at the beginning of the plan, follow their progress and aim for a goal; those who make it are mentioned in a later issue of the magazine, which I think is a pretty cool commitment.
The Jump Start Diet offers online tools, daily newsletters, a support forum and exercise moves from The Biggest Loser trainer Jillian Michaels.
From the site: “You've seen her transform contestants into lean machines. Now SELF contributing editor Jillian Michaels is here to help you achieve better-body greatness, and this time it's personal. When the cameras aren't rolling, Michaels kicks her own butt with the unique blend of martial arts–based moves shown exclusively here. "This routine is fast and furious. You'll burn fat and build lean muscle in the shortest time possible," she says.”
No fancy equipment needed: just a mat and a hand towel, and the willingness to sweat.
I"M INTERESTED: Did you resolve to lose weight in the New Year? How do you plan to try to do it?
The USA Today Weight Loss Challenge:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/weightloss/2010-01-04-WLCtakethechallenge04_CV_N.htm
Their recipes:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/weightloss/2010-01-03-diet-menus-recipes_N.htm
The Self magazine Jump Start Diet:
http://www.self.com/tips/jumpstart/welcome
http://www.self.com/tips/jumpstart/services/about
Their Jillian Michaels exercises:
http://www.self.com/fitness/workouts/2010/01/let-jillian-michaels-train-you-slideshow#slide=1