The other day, I received an email from someone wondering if buying frozen meals like Lean Kitchen or Smart Meals at the grocery store would give you the same weight loss results as the Nutrisystem diet. He perceived that the frozen meals were cheaper, although he suspected that they were not going to give as drastic results. Still, he hoped he could achieve at least some weight loss at the grocery store, and he asked my opinion on that. I tell you what I told him in the following article.

The basic weight loss equation and why Nutrisystem goes further: Everyone knows this, but it bears repeating. You will lose weight if you repeatedly eat fewer calories than you are burning. This equation has been around since the beginning of time and is very simple. However, its simplicity does not guarantee that we will have more success with it. As a population, we are fatter today than ever before, so this may not be so simple after all.

Nutrisystem takes this a step further by bringing ketosis into the equation. Basically, carbs and protein also come into play. In this way, this diet takes what works from both low-calorie and high-protein diets. Foods are designed to be low in calories and carbohydrates, but low in protein. This also sounds pretty basic, but it actually makes your body burn fat much faster. The reason for this is that you are no longer giving it the carbs it used to burn. So instead, you have to rely on your fat stores.

Any diet we are comparing to Nutrisystem should also be able to put your body into ketosis if you are going to have similar results. Therefore, I am going to break down lean cooking in terms of nutrition, calories, fiber, and carbohydrates. For the sake of comparing apples to apples, I’m going to compare two similar foods: Nutrisystem pizza and Lean Cuisine, both of which are popular items.

Lean Cuisine Pizza Nutritional Information: This product has 320 calories, and 80 of them are from fat. In total, it contains 9 grams of fat. There are 17 grams of protein and 2 grams of fiber. The most problematic thing for me here is the carbohydrates in it. There are a whopping 42. I find it highly doubtful that you would go into ketosis even with a few of these daily meals. And, if you limited yourself to one, you still have to be very careful during the rest of the day, especially if you are preparing the food yourself.

Nutrisystem Pizza Nutritional Information: This item has only 250 calories, 70 of which come from fat. There are 8 grams of fat. There are 11 grams of protein. But, there are only 28 grams of carbs. This is 14 less and this can make a big difference over time. You’re also saving 70 calories that can add up, too.

Another thing to keep in mind with the Nutrisystem is that you won’t have to be careful or mindful of what you eat for the rest of the day. They balance meals so that you don’t eat more than 1,200 calories per day and consume a low enough amount of carbs and a high enough amount of protein to put you in ketosis. They provide you with food (three meals, a snack, and a dessert). Dinner options (such as pizza) are the highest in calories and carbohydrates. But lunches and breakfasts are light in both. Everything is designed to give you the nutrients you need while making sure you address both equations correctly.

Proof of the effectiveness of a diet: If you’re still not sure which route you want to take, you can get ketone strips at most drug stores. These will tell you if you are in or getting close to ketosis. You can do this after a week or so on lean kitchen meals to see what happens. However, I suspect those extra carbs and calories would add up after a week, but see for yourself. I can tell you from experience that a week of this diet will most likely put you in this place as long as you follow the instructions.