will become bored with pre-packaged foods. They
praise the level of support the program offers through
their online site and telephone contact, but question
whether the program prepares dieters to go back to
preparing regular food once the first stage of the pro-
gram is completed.
The Jenny Craig Web site offers many testimoni-
als and inspiring success stories, but is thin on results
from independently conducted research studies. One
preliminary study that looked at weight loss, triglycer-
ide levels (an indication of the amount of fats in the
blood) and carotenoid levels (an indication of vegeta-
ble intake) was paid for by Jenny Craig and performed
by a former Jenny Craig advisory board member.
Resources
BOOKS
Craig, Jenny.The Jenny Craig Story: How One Woman
Changes Millions of Lives. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley
& Sons, 2004.
Craig, Jenny.Jenny Craig’s Simple Pleasures: Recipes to
Nourish Body and Soul. Birmingham, AL: Oxmoor
House, 1998.
Craig, Jenny.Jenny Craig Diabetes Cookbook: Easy
Homestyle Recipes for Healthy Living. Birmingham,
AL: Oxmoor House, 1997.
ORGANIZATIONS
American Dietetic Association. 120 South Riverside Plaza,
Suite 2000, Chicago, Illinois 60606-6995. Telephone:
(800) 877-1600. Website:http://www.eatright.org
Jenny Craig Official Website:http://www.jennycraig.com
OTHER
Harvard School of Public Health. ‘‘Interpreting News on
Diet.’’ Harvard University, 2007.http://www.hsph
.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/media.html
Health Diet Guide ‘‘Jenny Craig.’’ Health.com. 2005.
<www.health.com/health/web/DietGuide/jennycraig
_complete.html>
Hitt, Emma. ‘‘Jenny Craig Diet Promotes Weight Loss,
Other Health Benefits.’’ Medscape Medical News,
October 19, 2005.http://www.medscape.com/
viewarticles/514849
Northwesternutrition ‘‘Nutrition Fact Sheet: Jenny Craig.’’
Northwestern University, January 2007.http://
[http://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/nutrition/factsheets/](http://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/nutrition/factsheets/)
enny-craig-diet.html
United States Department of Health and Human Services
and the United States Department of Agriculture.
‘‘Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005.’’ January 12,
2005.http://www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines
WebMD. ‘‘Jenny Craig: What It Is.’’http://www.webmd
.com/diet/jenny-craig-what-it-is
Tish Davidson, A.M.Jillian Michaels diet
Definition
The Jillian Michaels diet focuses on self, science,
and sweat to help dieters achieve weight loss, toning,
and increased health and fitness.Origins
Jillian Michaels is best known as one of the stars
of the popular television program ‘‘The Biggest
Loser.’’ ‘‘The Biggest Loser’’ aired on NBC, and pitted
two teams of significantly overweight individuals
against each other to see who could lose the most
weight. Jillian Michaels was the strength trainer and
life coach for one of the teams of contestants. The
strategies that she used to help her contestants lose
weight are some of the techniques that inspired her
diet and exercise program.
In addition to being a television personality, Jil-
lian Michaels is also the co-owner of the Sky Sport and
Spa fitness club in Beverly Hills, California. She is
certified by two programs that certify personal train-
ers, the National Exercise and Sports Trainers Asso-
ciation, and the American Fitness Association of
America. She also has been doing martial arts since
the age of 14, and is experienced in Muay Thai and
Akarui-Do, two forms of martial arts. She has
achieved the status of black belt in Akarui-Do.
Michaels believes that she brings a special understand-
ing of the needs of people struggling with their weight
to her program because she has not always been fit
herself. At one time she reports that she was 50 pounds
overweight. She used her own experiences becoming
fit and healthy to help her design a program that
would help other people reach their weight and fitness
goals.Description
Jillian Michaels’ diet begins with a very basic
premise. This premise is that for weight loss to occur
calories going out have to be greater than calories
coming in. Calories out include all calories lost
through basic day to day activities and the calories
burned providing energy to the body’s cells during
the day. This base line caloric use is added to the
number of calories that are burned during exercise.
Calories in include all calories from any food and
drink consumed during the day. To lose weight the
calories out need to be greater than the calories com-
ing in. This way fat will be broken down to provide the
additional calories needed by the body.Jillian Michaels diet