Diets to Keep Off Weight

Fad diets might take off the pounds in the short-term, but they don't offer the best solution for long-term weight loss. The dietary restrictions just aren't realistic in everyday life. Combining exercise and a sensible diet can make weight loss more manageable as a lifestyle. Choosing the right plan can help keep weight off and stop the cycle of yo-yo dieting.

Jenny Craig Diet

With the Jenny Craig Diet, participants get a personal consultant who helps customize a meal program and contacts you weekly. According to a study in The Journal of American Medical Association, 92 percent of participants stuck with the Jenny Craig program for two years, losing on average 8 percent of their weight. The Jenny Craig Diet includes three prepackaged meals and one snack for each day, supplemented with your own fruits and vegetables. The prepackaged meals can cost up to $100 per week, not including your own groceries.

Weight Watchers Diet

Jean Nidetch founded Weight Watchers over 40 years ago, providing 50,000 Weight Watchers meetings each week around the world. Weight Watchers uses an integrated approach, combining portion control, exercise, and a support system. Using a recalculated PointPlus formula gives users an easy-to-follow plan, based on simple numbers. Depending on your weight loss goals, users are given a set amount of points, which they can use in a variety of ways. It offers both recipes and prepackaged meals.

The Zone Diet

Barry Sears, PhD, created the Zone diet with the idea of re-setting metabolism. This diet offers higher fat and protein quantities than traditional low-fat diets, according to Nancy L. Cohen, PhD, RD, professor and head of the Department of Nutrition at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. Users focus on balance, receiving 30 percent of their calories from protein, 30 percent from fat, and 40 percent from carbohydrates. The diet offers a wide variety of meal options, but it can be expensive, especially when purchasing prepackaged meals and bars.

Slim-Fast Plan

The Slim-Fast Plan utilizes meal replacements, meaning shakes and bars replace certain meals. The "3-2-1 Plan" recommends users eat three snacks, two shakes or bars, and one sensible meal, meaning users eat six times a day. The shakes and bars keep users from having to think too much when eating. They simply need to choose a flavor. While this can make dieting choices simpler, the diet does risk missing out on the vital nutrients of whole foods. The Slim-Fast Plan does offer online support groups and fitness tips.