30 replies to this topic

[Pamela1961e]

Does anyone buy the 100 calorie packs instead of buying Jenny snacks? Seems you can buy a whole 10 pack of snacks for the cost of what Jenny charges for one

[Abiehl]

Yes I started sub snacks and cereal on my 4th week.. I had a good weigh in (down 2.6 lbs that week) I use my own cereal, and my own snacks. (popcorn, smart ones deserts and the 100 cal pack chips). Has brought food cost down and still loss weight!

[AshBo]

Does anyone buy the 100 calorie packs instead of buying Jenny snacks? Seems you can buy a whole 10 pack of snacks for the cost of what Jenny charges for one

Absolutely! Just watch the fat content in some of them. They can be tricky little boogers.

[Becca16]

I DO THIS OCCASIONALLY BUT YOU JUST HAVE TO BE CAREFUL ABOUT WHAT'S IN THEM...CHECK THE LABEL

[Meia]

I have done this the whole time on JC. I sub snacks,dressings, and breakfast cereals.I should be checking for the exact exchange values, but I don't.

Lately, my favorite breakfast cereal is Optimum Power cranberry/ginger oatmeal. I lost a lot of weight during the first month despite my substitutions. However, I think its important to know your own limits with substitutions. Also, make sure you are not going to be tempted by the extra snacks around the house. This was a downfall for me during the last few weeks. It can be very psychologically disruptive to have several bags of 100 calorie pack M&M's in your kitchen if you are not incredible devoted to your plan

[rbrambley]

I substitute the anytime bars with Kashi Go Lean bars I get from Sam's club. There is the same amount of fat and calories as well as protien and fiber. The anytime bars make mne sick, can't get them down. I also use sugar free syrup instead of JC syrup. Saves like 15 calories. and you can have more of it. I won't order the JC cereal again, my Special K will do just fine. I also bought the 100 cal packs, but you do have to be careful as they have a lot of salt in them.

[Inkiri]

How did your consultant allow it? Did you bring it up to her, or did she suggest it?

[luleena]

I use the Pria Bars in place of the anytime bars. Come in Peanut Butter & Mint (taste like girl scout thin mint cookie). Very tasty and only cost $4.50 a box at Target rather than $10 per box at JC. If they are out of Pria Bars I'll substitute the Slim Fast 120 cal bars. The peanut butter one is like a butter finger and the nugat one is like a snickers (can you tell I like my sweets !!! ). Also use Paul Newmans's Asian Sesame Ginger salad dressing - yummy. Very good and low cal. Using all these substitutions and still losing. Down 17 lbs so far

[Jenniemomof3]

I have only been doing this for 8 weeks and was under the impression that I have to buy their food. I told her I bought my own sugar free syrup and she told me I still needed to use theirs.

Do they get weird about it. My dad lost his job due to downsizing and I need to try and save a little without sacrificing the diet. I have lost 24 lbs in 8 weeks and am on 1500 calories a day. What would be exact substitutions?

[cdundas]

Our counselor works with us if we are trying to save money (my husband and I). The first few months we did totally by the book, but it can get a little expensive, so we started some substitutions. I think all counselors should be a little flexible if people cannot afford all Jenny food. If not, I would start to wonder if they are more interested in selling food than helping their clients.

Christine

[bnykki]

wow, this is great topic!! i have been wondering the exact same thing...
geez, that would save so much money.....

i might start doing the 100 calorie snacks, they usually taste better anyways!! lol.

Thank You Guys.... please keep adding, ill keep reading for new ideas!!

[Kim.l]

wow, this is great topic!! i have been wondering the exact same thing...
geez, that would save so much money.....

i might start doing the 100 calorie snacks, they usually taste better anyways!! lol.

Thank You Guys.... please keep adding, ill keep reading for new ideas!!

I substitute several things: breakfast, snacks, and dressings. For breakfast, I will either have Quaker Weight Control Oatmeal (banana bread is my favorite), Special K, Kashi Go Lean cereal, WW muffins, or Smart Ones breakfast sandwiches. Just be careful with measurements on the cereal- I use a digital kitchen scale. For snacks, I do Smart Pop popcorn (~100 calories per bag), Smart Ones Desserts, or Skinny Cow Ice Cream Cones (LOVE LOVE LOVE these- they are my usual nightly snack). For dressings, I use Kraft Light Ranch. The store I shop at has single serve packs of it, so I buy it so I can carry one with me and subsitiute it if I go to a restaurant. I also use FF dressings occasionally. Many people will tell you not to do sub out anything because it will slow down your weight loss, but it has NOT slowed down my loss at all. I have been subbing breakfast, snacks, and dressings for over a month, and I am losing just as much now as I did when I was buying the JC stuff. You just have to try it and see if it works for you. Also my weekly bill for food has gone waaaaaaaay down!

[bnykki]

yea, i might start doing the same thing?
do you think we could have cherios? bc the frosted oats are pretty much cherios aren't they?

i could prob eat cereal everyday! lol.

[freshest]

I've read here on the boards that JC and their consultants do not promote the 100 cal snacks, but my JCC does.

I haven't done the prepackaged 100 calorie snacks myself, simply because I want to move to a more whole food based diet. But I have had 100 cals worth of dark chocolate from green & black's when doing DOMO, and I still drop consistantly every week.

[runnergirl09]

Has anyone tried VitaMuffins? I eat them as a snack all the time...full of fiber and great taste. Buy on-line or at Whole Foods. Also WW muffins in place of JC for breakfast. Three in a box for the price of one JC. Pria bars are good too but I like to get my calcium from real food so I eat two low fat skim cheese sticks at work each day. 2 lbs from goal weight...gotta go...riding my bike an hour today.

[NYSharon]

I agree with everyone here. Once I reached Halfway I cut down on the amount of breakfast I ordered. Instead of seven days I ordered five days. Cheerios have all the same things JC Multi-loops cereal has. Then I stopped ordering dressing and syrup. I substituted sugar free syrup, 1 calorie spritz dressing or fat free. I am three lbs away from goal and I am incorporating Smart Ones desserts and 100 calorie snacks. I have a week left of JC food and I did not order food this week.

[needanap1]

The key is to look closely at the nutritional values and not just the calories. I think I'm going to substitue Fiber One bars for the JC snacks at least a few days a week (30 for 9.99 at Costco). They do not have as much protien as some of the JC snacks, but they have more than others.

I have just rejoined, but my center is good about not pushing food on you if you have substitutions. I only buy a few dressing packets to keep in my car for unexpected meals out, and I didn't buy the syrup after the first week. I will also probably start subbing some cereals as time goes on. I think if we are buying all of the lunches and dinners (or most of them), they shouldn't have an issue--they will still make money and we will stick around longer if we can afford the program.

Have a good day everyone!

[singing_shieldmaiden]

I started substituting snacks and breakfasts. I use 100 cal packs and baked cheetos (same calorie and fat content, or very close to the JC brand). I separate the cheetos into single serving bags. For breakfasts, I've been using multigraing cheerios with skim milk and a banana. Tomorrow I may scramble an egg with some fat free cheese, we'll see.

[quackers]

url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/weight-loss/w9UiE09/]

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Yes, i love the 100 calorie packs!

[artdiva]

Yep! I use the mini luna bars, (80 cals) and the mini clif bars, (100 cals) among other things! I also like some of the 100 cal packs that are out there. It saves me a lot every week.