Hello! Magazine: Diets that deliver

Want to look fabulous without counting calories or coming up with low-fat dishes? The answer could be right on your doorstep

One of the worst things about dieting is the effort involved in thinking up and preparing low-calorie, low-fat meals and snacks. How much easier it would be to slim down for summer if, like Karl Lagerfield who famously lost 92lb in just over a year, you had your own personal chef to do all the hard work and preparation for you.

Now, a number of celebrities have discovered the next best thing: a diet delivery system. These elite services helped both Jennifer Lopez and Desperate Housewives star Marcia Cross successfully lose weight after giving birth to twins. Super-slim and glowing Jennifer Aniston has her Zone Diet meals – with the regime’s prescribed 40 percent carbs, 30 percent protein and 30 percent fats – delivered daily to her door. It’s even rumoured that when Gwyneth Paltrow needs to get into Iron Woman shape she reaches for her phone and places an order with a local delivery service.

The best doorstep diets offer a bespoke service that tailors meals to take into account your likes and dislikes as well as your aims – whether you need to shift those stubborn few pounds to get into your bikini for summer, to flatten your stomach in double-quick time for a special occasion or simply to give yourself more energy for a new workout regime.
All the hard work is done for with calories, protein percentages, GI and fat units counted out and portion sizes pre-determined. Food can be delivered to your home or office; all you need to do is heat and eat. And the prices can be surprisingly slimline, too.

Here, HELLO! weighs up the best of what’s on offer:
Meals are delivered by courier in chill-packed hampers containing a three- to four-day supply of food. You can choose from six eating plans – the Flat Belly, the Vegetarian, the Low GI, the Premier, the Detox and Superfoods. The Premier is a 1,2000-calorie eating plan, nutritionally balanced with lean protein and very low in saturated fats and sugar. It’s dairy-, wheat and red-meat free and features three meals a day, including one dessert – but no snacks. The website also helps you calculate your BMI, or body mass index, which tells you exactly how many calories you need to eat in order to lose weight.