Weight loss plans are empowering people to take control of their health in a whole new way.
As we enter 2023, it's a good time to think more about your weight loss goals and how to maintain any new targets you may have set yourself for the new year ahead.
As with any trend that is born, an abundance of options overwhelms the bright-eyed fitness seeker. Which fitness tools do you need to succeed? What weight loss programs are legitimate? And how much is this going to cost you anyway? If you are asking these questions, you are not alone.
Here are some of the most commonly asked questions and answers about health and fitness, along with recommendations for the best weight loss plans online in 2023.
Breaking Down our Top10 Choices: Which is Best For Your
Needs:
- Nutrisystem – Prepackaged low calorie meals
- Trifecta –
- Blue Apron – Farm-sourced ingredients
- Factor – Healthy meals prepared by professional chefs
- Gobble – Low calorie and low carb meals
- Diet-To-Go – Dietician designed prepared meals
- Bistro MD – Extensive menu of dietician approved meals
A Closer Look at the Best Weight Loss Plans
- The best for convenience, without cooking or counting calories
- PricesFrom $8.10
- Weight Loss Up to 13 pounds and 7 inches in the first month
Nutrisystem is the weight loss program for people who like to eat! This is because the diet plan allows you to eat 6 small meals a day. Eating constantly throughout the day keeps your body in fat-burning mode all the time, so you're not hungry and burning calories. Nice!
What makes Nutrisystem a great system for reaching your optimal weight is the fact that it prepares you nutritious, healthy and balanced meals. Half the battle to losing weight is food preparation. Nutrisystem takes that hassle away by preparing all your meals and snacks. This program offers a delicious selection of meals and snacks, ranging from succulent chicken and broccoli in a tasty cheese sauce to a delicious s'mores pie that you will lick your fingers after eating.
Nutrisystem also works great because it tailors your meal plans to your body, your weight loss goals, and your dietary preferences. You won't have to suffer with too few calories, restrictions that don't work for you, or foods you don't like. Nutrisystem makes a weight loss plan that works for you.
- Personally tailored to your body, goals and preferences.
- Nothing is off limits
- Easy to follow diet
- The meals come frozen.
- Not ideal for vegans.
The best for healthy eating and muscle development
PricesFrom $108. 34 per week
Weight LossNo Weight Loss Guarantee
Trifecta is the ultimate detox for anyone ready to start eating clean and treating their body right (and it's the optimal companion for those who are already doing it and need help maintaining that healthier lifestyle). This diet plan does all the work for you. Trifecta delivers clean, healthy, nutritionally balanced meals right to your door. And since the meals are ready, you can simply pop them in the oven and eat healthy in minutes.
By providing customers with whole, clean, healthy foods, Trifecta ensures that your body will begin to lose weight naturally. Therefore, you will lose fat and build muscle very quickly on this diet. Trifecta is the preferred diet plan of athletes, trainers, and doctors of all fields, providing clean protein, abundant vegetables and fruits, and all the vitamins and minerals your body needs to thrive.
Pros
- Nutritionally balanced meals aimed at weight loss and health.
- The best mobile app with recipes, workouts and more
- Supportive community to help you stay motivated
-
Cons
- I can't get a personal trainer through Trifecta
- Training videos are for paid app customers only
Best for Fresh and seasonal ingredients
Pricing $7.99 – $9.99 per serving
Weight lossNone
Blue Apron makes it easy for anyone to cook delicious meals. Their easy-to-follow recipes come with seasonal ingredients and are designed to accommodate anyone from novice chefs to experts looking for new dishes. You don't need any cooking experience because everything comes pre-packaged and prepared. Plus, the company provides information about how each dish came to be so you can learn everything there is about what you're eating.
Pros
- Freshness guarantee
- Large selection of recipes
- 3 WW weekly meal options
- No lunch options
- Free shipping not included with subscription
Best for Nutrition-centered eating
PricingFrom $11
Weight lossNone
Healthy eating is important. We all know it, but who has the time and patience to prepare those health-happy meals? Factor_ does, that's who. This health-conscious meal delivery service takes your health seriously and prepares the kind of meals that promote positive, healthy metabolism every time you munch.
Meals are prepared by highly trained chefs and then delivered to your door. But what really makes Factor_ meals great is the quality of ingredients. Each meal is prepared using grass-fed, pasture-raised, antibiotic, hormone, and GMO-free ingredients. There’s no soy, no refined sugars, and no gluten either. So, anyone on any type of diet will benefit from eating these meals, and no matter how restrictive your dietary restrictions are, you'll find plenty to eat in this mix.
You'll get to choose from menu options like turkey ragu-zucchini bowl, artichoke and spinach chicken breast, and steak au poivre. Every week, you get a new list of delightful menu options to choose from.
- Highest quality ingredients only
- Responsibly sourced, earth-friendly ingredients
- Meals delivered ready to eat
Cons - No family meal plans
- Only a few vegetarian options
Best forEating healthy on a busy schedule
PricingStarting at $11.99 per meal
Weight lossNone
Gobble's wholesome, easy-to-prep meals are a solid alternative to greasy meals and other obstacles to weight loss. With thoughtfully sourced ingredients, accessible recipes, and tasty weight-loss entrees that are ready to eat in 15-minutes, Gobble can be a helpful tool for those trying to lose weight or improve their diet without breaking the bank.
Most notable is its Lean & Clean menu, a specific weight-loss offering that features a rotating number of low-calorie, low-carb meals that are tasty and easy to make. Lean & Clean meals feature a robust amount of lean proteins, omega-3s, and healthy fats while doing away with the carbs and staying under 600 calories.
Whether you order from Gobble's Lean & Clean menu or its regular dinner menu, you'll find plenty of options to customize your entrees based on your dietary needs. Ultimately, Gobble can be a helpful tool for anyone striving for an easier, more convenient way to eat healthy and get in shape.
- Lean & Clean menu features low-carb, low-cal meals
- Wholesome, easy-to-make recipes
- Great alternative to eating out
- Doesn't deliver to all of the US
- Recipes unavailable for viewing online
Best for Convenient, portion-controlled
PricingFrom $8.57
Weight lossNone
Diet To Go is all about making healthy eating and weight loss easier for you. Doing away with the hassle of expensive diet foods, meal prep, and constant shopping trips, Diet To Go balances the meals for you, cooks your meals for you, and even delivers your meals straight to your door. So, it takes away all the problems, leaving nothing but a healthy meal to consume and a great weight loss program to follow.
Diet To Go also offers great support. You can get advice and answers from real health coaches and dieticians. This way, if you have any problems, aren't sure which meal plan is good for you, or want to understand your diet plan better, there's somebody there to answer the call.
Diet To Go also has a lot of specialty diet options, so if you are restricted in some way, then this is a good option for you. For example, Diet To Go has special meals and menus for vegetarians and diabetics. You can also get along very well on this meal plan if you are vegan or looking to restrict your carb intake.
- Prepared meals delivered weekly
- Personalized menus:
- Lots of dietary specialties
- No fitness program
- No totally gluten-free meals
Best forHealth-friendly, specialty diets
PricingFrom $9.80
Weight lossNone
If you are looking for a meal delivery service that will promote healthy eating and not starve you of flavor, then BistroMD is your destination. A perfect balance between nutrition and taste, BistroMD prepares meals that are jam-packed with all the nutrients that you need to live a healthy life. The meals are prepared by expert chefs, too, so you get the kind of cooking you can look forward to (and not dread coming home to).
What’s more, BistroMD meals are all designed by doctors. So, not only are these meals delicious, but they are just what the doctor ordered. Meals are designed to contain all of the necessary vitamins, minerals, and calories you need to feel fuller and promote healthy digestion.
BistroMD also provides you with personal support to help you achieve your weight loss and fitness goals. Dieticians are on call to answer your questions and help you tailor your plan to fit your needs.
- Doctor-developed meal plans
- One of the top prepared meal services
- So many options to choose from
Cons - Not good for a tight budget
- Doesn't offer 24/7 support
The Best Diet Plans to Lose Weight
The general idea of all weight loss programs is the same. giving people a structured plan to help them lose weight. Of course, the weight loss programs can vary considerably depending on the one you are following.
These programs will teach you the concepts you need to follow and the lifestyle you need to maintain in order to achieve your optimal weight and other fitness goals.
Many of these programs also come with dieticians you can consult for weight loss and healthy eating advice. Others will include professional trainers you can speak to as well as cover the fitness aspect of your weight loss program.
How Do Weight Loss Programs Work?
Basic weight loss programs come with a general diet plan. This tells you which foods are healthy and which foods to avoid. This is helpful if you are just looking for a basic guideline and have the willpower to stick to it on your own.
A little more involved weight loss program may offer more specific diet plans. This could be a detailed menu for you to follow. This is easier for people who don't know or don't want to make a menu for themselves.
Even more detailed weight loss plans will give you a workout program to follow. This can help promote further calorie burning and help you achieve your weight loss goals faster.
Another type of weight loss program comes in the form of ready-made meals. These are the easiest ones to follow since all the work is done for you. Menus are created, ingredients are shopped for, and meals are even completely prepared for you. All you have to do is just heat and eat. It's the easiest way to lose weight and stick to a diet.
What Types of Diets Help You Lose Weight?
Weight loss programs have been studied intensively, and those studies have shown that these programs can and do help people lose weight. This is because a lot of research has gone into designing the programs for optimal results.
The best diet plans are designed by doctors, dieticians, and experts in the field of nutritional science. A good diet plan might focus on calorie count, ingredients, or portion control, and sometimes incorporate all three into a single diet.
Nutrisystem, for example, offers customized diet plans that focus on portion control and eating habits. Noom, another successful diet plan, blends calorie counting, fitness tracking, and personal coaching.
Some weight loss plans may focus on specific diets like keto and gluten-free meals, while others may take an ingredient-based approach and offer organic or plant-based foods as a route to getting in shape.
How to Choose a Weight Loss Program
From medical diets to clean-eating programs and portion control, there are myriad types of weight loss plans out there. The best diet to lose weight is the one that works for you. for your body, your lifestyle, and your weight loss goals.
For example, if you need help with discipline, you may want to opt for a program that offers personal coaching, motivational resources, and diet tracking. If you have a medical condition such as diabetes, it's best to find a program like Diet to Go, which offers medically-based plans designed explicitly for those with health issues. Other factors to consider are cost, convenience, and availability.
And last but not least, there's taste. Just because you're trying to lose weight doesn't mean you can't enjoy your food. Today's best diet plans enlist professional chefs to create delicious entrees. Before you settle on a weight loss plan, peruse the menus online and make sure the entrees appeal to your tastes.
How to Lose Weight When You’re Staying at Home
Sheltering in place adds another element of difficulty to losing weight. We're forced to spend all day within arm's reach of our refrigerators and snack drawers, and we have less distractions that may keep our minds off of eating.
If you can't seem to stop snacking while at home, it might be a good idea to simply replace your snacks with healthier alternatives. This is the approach Nutrisystem takes. It understands that eating is not only necessary but a comfort, and instead of forcing us to avoid food, Nutrisystem designs its weight loss plans around eating frequently but eating healthier.
The plans are structured around 6 small meals a day, supplemented by healthy snacks that ensure even though you may be snacking, you're snacking on healthy, low-calorie, portion-controlled meals and snacks.
How easy a weight loss program is to follow at home really depends on the structure and style of the plan. A program that gives you the basic guidelines will be harder to follow since you need to do all the work. On the other hand, there are generally fewer restrictions on these types of programs.
So, it might be easier for you to maintain in the long-run. Ready-made meal programs are the easiest to follow. Plus, the ones that come with plenty of options help keep boredom at bay, so you want to find a weight loss program that works best for you and gives you the type of variety you can live with.