Good For: Healthy low calorie meals delivered to your door – as if you have your own personal chef
Overview:
Diet Chef claims to be the largest diet home delivery company in the UK and Republic of Ireland, with more than 50,000 customers – also claiming to have more food choices than any other diet delivery company in Europe. Their premise is the delivery of calorie counted meals (choose from 1200 calories a day, or 1500 calories a day) delivered in a hamper direct to your doorstep. The hampers include breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.
Diet Chef offers diet options for men and women (1200 calories a day is ideal for most women wanting to lose weight, while their 1500 calorie option is ideal for men or women who are very active or have a lot of weight to lose – the latter includes an extra milkshake each day). The meals are designed to be low calorie, as opposed to low carbohydrate or low fat. Simply order online or by telephone to have the hamper delivered within two to three working days. The food needs warming up in the microwave or oven.
Pros:
- Quick and easy healthy meals already prepared for you, with no shopping or heavy cooking to do
- Portion control means you aren’t tempted to eat too much
- Three meals a day plus a snack allows you to eat frequently throughout the day, preventing cravings
- All food is already calorie counted for you; no need to mess around totting up the food you’re eating
- The hampers come with a 48 page diet guide covering fruit and vegetables, help for eating out, weight maintenance and exercise.
- Diet Chef has an online weight tracker to follow your progress
- Speak to trained diet advisers online or on the telephone if you need further help
- Chat with other dieters on the Diet Chef forums
- No need to give up favourites such as curries or pastas; they’re included in the meals.
Cons:
- For truly healthy meals, you’re recommended to add your own vegetables so there’s still some cooking to do
- Exercise is covered in the free diet guide but the emphasis is more on the meals
- Hampers are delivered by UPS so usually demand a signature, meaning you may have to be in for collection
- You may struggle to maintain the weight loss when you start cooking for yourself again
- Limited options for vegetarians
- If you need to return items, you must send them back at your own cost
- Delivery is free if you pay monthly, but costs £4.95 for pay as you go standard delivery or £9.95 for pay as you go named day delivery on top of the price for the meals.
- Doesn’t teach you how to design your own healthy diet plan yourself
Sample Meals:
The following are samples choices for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. There are more on the Diet Chef website.
- Breakfast: Treacle & Pecan Granola (40 g, 196 calories); Apple & Cinnamon Porridge (40 g, 150 calories); Chocolate Chip Muesli Bar (50 g, 191 calories); Luxury Muesli (40 g, 165 calories).
- Lunch: Lentil & Vegetable Soup (300 g, 156 calories); Chicken Couscous Salad (270 g, 265 calories); Strawberry Milkshake (330 g, 210 calories).
- Dinner: Macaroni Cheese (250 g, 273 calories); Mild Chicken Tikka Masala (300 g, 291 calories); Beef in Ale (300 g, 201 calories).
- Snacks: Chocolate Chip Oat Biscuits (20 g, 90 calories); Chocolate Chip Snack Bar (27 g, 99 calories); Salted Popcorn (23 g, 107 calories).
Exercise:
Diet Chef recommends that you do some light exercise such as walking or swimming. They also have a Shape up at Home exercise DVD.
Checklist:
Alcohol: Not banned but advised against and not included in your calorie counting.
Family friendly meals: No. Meals are for one.
Caffeine: Fine as long as you don’t take sugar.
Eating Out: Tips on eating out are included in your guide.
Summary:
If you’re on the go and struggling to lose weight because you don’t have the time to prepare healthy meals or research the calorie content of the food you’re eating, Diet Chef could be the answer. It will still take will power not to add anything unhealthy to the meals or not to splurge on calorie-laden alcohol, likewise to do exercise alone, but it should give you a good head start with a minimum of fuss if you’re prepared to pay for it.
Health Warnings:
Not suitable for pregnant or breast feeding women, under 18s or anyone undergoing cancer treatment.
Where to Buy:
Sign up at www.DietChef.co.uk
Latest Discounts/ Offers: Pay monthly and get one free week – 7 free breakfasts, 7 free lunches, 7 free dinners and 7 free snacks – and free delivery every month from £5.57 a day (for Diet Chef 1200). Click Here to See All Offers.
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I think this review offers good points about the pros and cons of the diet chef plan.
I can not comment on the issue of maintaining a healthy diet when you stop using this plan because I am still on it. However, what I can say is that after being on the plan for over three months now, my personal opinion about diet chef is that it is a very good diet plan for acheiving a good amount of weight loss quite quickly and in a healthy manner.
I have had no problems with the deliveries, the food tastes very good and is quite filling, the price is very reasonable, and I have lost over a stone in the time I have been on the plan (which I am most pleased about!)
So overall I would recommend diet chef.
Diet chef? No.
I bought this – realised I could do it cheaper myself.
Breakfast – porridge with banana in it to sweeten it
11:00 apple
Lunch – soup (watch calories -190)
Afternoon – fruit/low cal biscuit bar
Dinner – low cal meal – stores own or labelled
Evening – fruit
Works just as well for less tan half the price – obviously some sort of exercise is always needed, try vibrasize if you have one near you
Hey guys, I’m on diet chef two weeks tomorrow, n I’ve lost 8 pound. I’m so shocked.. I didn even feel hungry. The food is lovely apart from mushroom stroganoff, it’s not my cup of tea! But all in all I think it’s a good programme so far so good.
I don’t have a lot of weight to lose, feel like my goal weight is not far away. Good luck to anyone trying the programme
hi ive been doing diet chef for 3 weeks now and ive lost 11 pounds which i am really pleased about because i dont feel like im on a diet,i have tried every diet you could think of but this one is great i know i wont give up,i do admit i still have my drink at the weekends
First day on diet chef! The cereal portion for breakfast was a fair bit smaller than what im used to so already im learning to redress portion sizes whic I know will be helpful in the long run for weight loss. Having said that it was delicious and because I took my time 2 eat it for once I Did feel genuinely satisfied. And the soup I had for lunch was divine! Diet Chef love it already!
I agree, I struggle with portion size, being in supermarket and not sticking to list, running out of food and buying on the go so for me Diet Chef is perfect. I am so pleased that this option is available as I am very unorganised and can not stick to w.w etc, this is a no-brainer you just ding the food and away you go I like this as I don’t obsess about dieting the way w.w dieters do! I have been on a month now, and have lost l0lb only 10 more to go! very happy with options, taste, price and results.
Diet chef has been the answer to my weight loss prayers. I have tried every diet possible and with little or no success. Started Diet Chef 5 days ago and I have already lost 5lbs. I am so over the moon with the progress. I am confident that in three months time I will have lost the 3 stones I set out to loose in time for the summer. Diet Chef is a no brainer… it is the best diet programme that delivers the results you want in no time and without noticing you are on a weight loss diet.
Hi, I’m on my 3rd week of diet chef and have so far lost just under 10lbs! Of all the diets I’ve tried (and I’ve tried a few!) this is the best thing ive ever done. The food is lovely , there were a couple of things that weren’t my cup of tea so I rang diet chef and they just said to return the ones I didn’t want with a note of what I wanted in exchange and they just sent me what I wanted back. There customer service is very good and I have used their on line chat facility to talk to them. If you ate thinking of having a go then do it now..
have lost 2st on dietchef but wish you could just purchase their soups alone
I have been on Diet Chef for 6 weeks now and loosing weight and feeling great, it’s so easy and it works!
I have just started Diet Chef and so far have been impressed with the food and customer service. There is lots of choice and the price isn’t too bad compared to some other diets that are delivered to your door.
I have found other diets hard to stick to but it is easier having things prepared for you and I now have less reason to visit the supermarket and therefore less likely to fall off the wagon. Fingers crossed!
Stared Diet Chef just 2 days ago and so far I haven’t felt too hungry. I’m looking forward to my meals which are nicely varied and tasty too, one of the great things about this diet is it’s making me feel much more in control. I’m optimistic!
ive been using diet chef for 5 weeks and have already lost over a stone-
i found it hard at first because untill you try the food you wont know what you like, but once you figure out your personal tastes i found the diet really easy to stick to, although i feel extremly tired since starting this diet ( down to the cut in the amount of calories) – i have also found that my daily calorie intake is actualy never above 800, granola, shake, main meal plus snack and a bottle of diet coke even with vegetables added to main meal it never comes anywere near the 1200- any1 else find this??
in reply to marlne- you can buy the soups in packs of 10 on qvcs website ( im nt a fan of the soups and have actualy just posted 25 of them back to be exchanged for shakes)
Jayne, you should be adding at least 2 portions of fruit to bump up your calories. The website tells you how many calories you need to add extra. 800kcal a day is not enough and you will make yourself ill losing weight so fast.
can people tell me what extras they are having with thier diet chef meals for an idea
I’ve been on this diet for about a month now and I have enjoyed most of the food. Yes you could do the diet cheaper but for me living on my own and being a lazy cow it gives me more choices than I would get normally, and it’s nice to come home from work and decide what I want there and then with out having the bother of cooking!
I tried the cottage pie last night and i have to say that it was’nt very nice. The mince was bland and the potato was brown and tasteless
Hi, I have almost 7 stone to loose, don’t eat millions of caloris abt 2100 per day. I gained the weight while pregant and cannot shift it
really what to loose weight! tried everything, but get frustated trying to find time to good healthy! starting to try for a baby, anyone no if this is healthy enough? Im sure more healthy that what i’m doing at the mo!
On week 3, have lost 8lbs so far. During week 1 I was soooo hungry but that is receding slowly
I’ve got 40 lbs to go, but if it goes at this sort of rate I’ll more than happy, caught a glimpse of my toes yesterday, woohoo, haven’t seen those for a few years from a standing position!
On a serious note, I would confirm what the others have said, the food is very tasty, its quick, its healthy and its cheap really, I’m actually spending less than before, but then I was a fat bu**er !
I have been on diet chef for 5 weeks. Unfortunately i still have to cook for the other 5 members of my family and i have started to pick and taste the food i am cooking. Also they refuse to give up their takeaways on a weekend so i am really struggling at the moment but am determined not to give up. I add broccoli, peas and spinach to my tea, i bought frozen veg and mircrowave bags so i just put them in that and microwave them. With the curry i found low calorie frozen rice with veg in tescos, think its 160 calories so i have that with it. Good luck to everyone trying to lose weight.
I really enjoy this diet as it is so quick and simple. I find the food very tasty.
I tend to eat the ‘dinners’ for lunch and add as much veg as I want, avoiding things like pasta and rice. I then have the soups in the evening.
The only issue that concerns me, that no one else has raised, is what additives and preservatives must be added to the food. They are tasty and last a long time but this is not natural and I am worried about the amount of sugar they are putting in (which is so so much worse than fat)
In reply to Jayne, myfitnesspal.com is brilliant for keeping check on what you are eating and adding up the calories so that you make sure you are getting your 1200 a day.
and I add things like quinoa to main meals or low calorie bread.
Jan – i tend to use a baby bel cheese and a petit filous yoghurt as wellwhich means i can still have the things i want.. cheese
Hi
I need to loose a few stones and not really sure this is right for me.
Please can someone advise me.
hi there,i have read the reviews i am having opertion and need to lose 1 stone im worried that this wont work for me can someone advise me that this is good for month or 2??thnks
I did three months on this diet last year, I lost 3 stone, but could not carry on because of the lunches, the soups were to thick and a lot of them had to much tomato in them, the breakfast were okay and the dinners were very good and great choices, if only they did some more of the ordinary British vegetable soups, since stopping I have been stuck at the same weight I got down to but still need to lose 2 more stone.
Been on Diet chef for 2 weeks now and have lost around half a stone!
Reducing my calories left me a little hungry at first but now I get too full if I try and eat a large sized meal!
I use a calorie counter app which has all the diet chef meals on it which helps me to keep track of any extras I have.
I would personally stay away from the Chicken Cous Cous and the oat bars…. But everything else is lovely ;o)
Rebbecca,
Im aiming to lose 1 stone in a little over a month in order to fit into my wedding dress … After 2 weeks I have lost 1/2 stone…. My body was used to eating 1000′s of calories so the fact that it has reduced to 1200 has done it a lot of good!
My best advice is to use a calorie counter app as it helps you to be conscious about calories in food without having to read every label. Im still able to treat myself to pre-wedding temptations because I keep track of calories!