Nutrisystem is a diet meal program, designed to replace all your meals and help you lose weight, fast. You can order a month’s supply, buy weekly meals, or try different combinations for just a few days. The complete meal program can be bought directly from Nutrisystem, while partial sets are available at Walmart and regular grocery stores.
Nutrisystem helps you lose weight with meals that are extremely low in calories, but otherwise offer balanced nutrition. It’s not easy to stay on strict program like that, but people definitely see results, however short they may be.
I feel qualified to judge Nutrisystem program because I tried it, for just a month, but it can be enough to see what would work and what wouldn’t. I tried to feed my husband some of the meals too, but he had none of it. Because of his dissatisfaction and resistance I decided to explore what other people have to say about Nutrisystem and what complaints are the most frequent. This is what I discovered:
Not tasty
This I am totally in agreement with and it was number one issue for my husband. How tasty can frozen entrees be and how long can you live on just that? As soon as you start microwaving your meals, the smell is overpowering. Some meals smell good, others – like a throw up. If I would like to feed myself frozen or dried food all the time, I could just shop at my grocer’s frozen section or order TV dinners.
I didn’t like almost anything and I tried quite a few things. I like my food made from scratch and always stay away from long shelf life and frozen foods. Pizza, soups, and pastas were bland and tasteless, snacks too sweet or too salty. My idea of diet is not only eating smaller portions of modified pizzas, but also including more veggies and greens. Nutrisystem definitely has nothing green.
I offered my dog a couple of meals that I simply could not stomach, he was excited about the smell at first, but did not eat Nutrisystem meat pastas mixed with his dry food. That says it all.
Expensive and for one person only
This is a big one. If you decide to go on this diet, you will most likely do it alone as it is not advised for kids. This means that $300 per month will feed only you, and you will still have to cook or buy food for everybody else.
If you and your significant other will diet together, your food will cost over $600 + some fresh produce. It’s not bad for a single person, but completely not good for families.
See Nutrisystem Coupons:
- 50% OFF Plans + Free Shipping
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- Free Italian-Style Dinner 7-Pack with all 4-week Plans, First Order Only when use code 7DINNERS
Frozen and full of preservatives
How natural and fresh can food that is good for months frozen and for years on a shelf be? It is full of sodium, chemicals, and preservatives to stay fit for consumption for that long. My husband is very healthy and watches what he eats, so after reading some of the meals’ labels, he said that I should never serve Nutrisystem for lunch or anything else, especially for kids. And I have to agree with him here.
Too few calories
I don’t have huge weight problems, but I could always lose 8 pounds. This is why I thought I can have Nutrisystem for some meal replacement, when I want to lose a few pounds, but not for constant dieting. The reason people lose weight is because they get to consume 1,000-1,200 calories per day. I asked my boot camp trainer if it sounds good and he was horrified. So if you are active, this diet is definitely not for you!
Bad for long term
While initial weight loss is almost guaranteed with strict adherence to the program, as soon as people reach their weight loss goals and go back to normal eating, almost all eventually gain back. The first month you can lose 13-20 pounds and shock your system. Later most people lose 1-3 pounds per week and continue as long as needed. After that the program is over and you venture out again. Some dieters learn portion control and maintain healthy weight, but most people can’t do that for long. The same problem is common among all meal replacement diets.
No workout program
Nutrisystem encourages its customers to move and engage in some type of fitness routines, but there is no focus on that. The program is not about that and thus they don’t pay any attention physical movement part. I believe that what we eat is 80% of dieting, but 20% of how we look and feel belongs to fitness, even something as simple as daily walks. Nutrisystem misses on that big time.
No fresh ingredients
Since all meals are dry or frozen, there are no fresh veggies, fruit, or dairy included. Nutrisystem booklet advises to supplement with fresh fruit and produce, but just like with fitness, it’s not very important to them. I feel that all Nutrisystem dieters should not only buy produce, but take supplements to make sure they get enough calcium and vitamins. A few traces of red peppers in a frozen meal can’t be called vegetables, at least not for me.
Wrong extra charges happen
Just like with all kinds of businesses, sometimes people get wrong charges or extra charges and often experience a run around from customer service when trying to correct the mistakes.
Food delivery late and melted
This is another problem that happens sometimes. My food arrived nice and frozen, but I ordered only one time. Many customers complain that order gets lost in transit or are so late that arrive all thawed and melted. Some of those issues are not Nutrisystem’s fault though.
Damaged food, maggots in food
This sounds completely disgusting, but there are people who have had it happen. If I saw a maggot in anything, I would never ever order from them again. I am sure it is not a frequent problem though, because how could you have maggots in that frozen food loaded with preservatives?
Hard to cancel
Finally, as per usual, Nutrisystem is not easy to cancel once you sign up for monthly deliveries. It is in their interest to keep you around, so a call to customer service might be in order. According to their rules, you can cancel before the next billing cycle and you won’t be charged. Due to perishable nature of products, Nutrisystem doesn’t like accepting returns, and that is understandable.