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Weight-loss for women isn't all about the number on the scale—it's about getting to a place where you feel confident, happy, and most importantly, healthy. But by committing to a weight-loss program, you can reach your personal goals, and, yes, move the number on the scale. So if you have a goal in mind and want to make real, measurable progress toward it, trying a weight-loss program for women and tracking your calories is an excellent next step.
The Best Weight-Loss Programs for Women - Our Top Picks
- Best Overall Weight-Loss Program For Women: Diet-To-Go
- Best Popular Weight-Loss Program for Women: Noom
- Best Weight-Loss Program for Women with Pre-Made Meals: Nutrisystem
- Best Budget Weight-Loss Program for Women: WeightWatchers
- Best Training Weight-Loss Program for Women: Future
- Best Weight-Loss Program for Women for Heart Health: Cronometer
- Best Weight-Loss Program for Women for Food Tracking: Lumen
- Best Meal Delivery Weight-Loss Program for Women: Freshly
Fortunately, there are many different apps and plan options to choose from. Despite this, there is no single best weight-loss program for women because we all have different needs. Some people may want a quality heart rate monitor to pair with their healthy meal plan, while others may need some help with making better food choices to aid with losing weight.
These best weight-loss programs for women not only support your goals and needs, but also help you make sustainable lifestyle changes long term. To help you get started, we researched and chose the best options currently available based on a variety of factors like effectiveness, safety, and more.
Why Trust Us?
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Disclaimer: Always make sure to consult with your doctor before starting a new diet. Any weight lost that totals more than 1 pound per week over a long period of time is unusual and should be monitored by a doctor.
Best Overall Weight-Loss Program for Women - Diet-to-Go
SPECS
- Type: Meal plan and delivery service
- Features: 4 menu options, fresh fully-prepared foods
60% OFF DIET-TO-GODiet-to-Go is a meal plan and delivery service that has a diverse menu selection that includes a Keto-Carb30 option that is great if you want to restrict your carbohydrate intake. By replacing carbs with fat, you'll end up consuming only 30 net carbs per day. Each meal is carefully portioned and made using healthy ingredients to aid your lifestyle change and weight-loss goals. There's a lot of tasty options each week, and at five meals a day, you'll have plenty of variety.
After choosing your plan, you can swap your meals and manage your weekly menu right from the app. There's even the ability to pause your plan if life gets hectic. When you sign up, you'll also have access to resources made by their team of health professionals for extra support. This program is an excellent choice if you're looking to lose weight by following a ketogenic diet and you want help with portion control.
What We Like
- Food choices can be made using the app
- Meals are made with whole foods
- Wide variety of meal options available
What We Don't Like
- App does not track weight or exercise
- Calorie goals for weight-loss are not generated using the app
Read our full Diet-to-Go review!
Most Popular Weight-Loss Program for Women - Noom
SPECS
- Type: Weight-loss app
- Features: Simplified food tracking system, personalized daily lessons
TRY NOOM FREENoom is one of the most popular weight-loss programs for women because it focuses on establishing positive long-term changes by educating users about their relationship with food. This app is a wonderful choice if you've struggled with this or if you want to lose weight and make some beneficial changes to your health. Your customized plan is based on your personal information, habits, and goals. The app then generates your daily caloric intake and personalized lessons to help you change your habits and behavior.
Noom tracks your progress using data from entering your weight every day and logging all of your food. This may sound like a lot, but tracking food is actually really easy because they've implemented food categories using a red, yellow, and green light system. You can also track your exercise, blood pressure, and blood glucose levels in the app, as well.
What We Like
- Barcode scanner feature makes tracking quick and easy
- Everything is personalized based on your information and goals
- Community is monitored by coaches
- Instills good long-term habits
- Personal coaching offered
What We Don't Like
- No option for prepared meals
- Having to track every item you eat can be a tough habit to establish
Check out our full Noom review!
Best Weight-Loss Program for Women with Pre-Made Meals - Nutrisystem
SPECS
- Type: Meal plan and delivery service
- Features: Fully prepared foods, one-on-one coaching, free shipping
50% OFF NUTRISYSTEMNutrisystem is centered around an eating plan that chooses pre-made meals that get delivered right to your home. This is a great option if you don't want to cook or prepare meals while trying to lose weight, since these are nutritious and help with portion control. The most basic plan sends shipments every four weeks of essential foods and snacks, but you will have to buy and prepare foods to supplement them. The next plan incorporates frozen meals and snacks along with healthy versions of meals inspired by popular restaurants to give you more variety. The last plan takes it a step further by including premium frozen meals that don't need other foods to supplement them. With this plan, you also get access to the personalized nutrition plan in the app that adapts based on your progress.
No matter which plan you choose you'll receive weight-loss coaching for one-on-one support. This is really helpful if you have questions or concerns as you navigate through the program. You also get access to the app to track and choose meals, but only the top tier plan adapts based on your progress.
What We Like
- Lots of meal options and delivery make following the program easy and convenient
- Free shipping
- Aims to support losing 1-2 lbs. per week
- Different plans for a variety of dietary and health needs
What We Don't Like
- Eating 6 times a day may not be feasible for some lifestyles
- Foods they send are sometimes processed which could make it difficult to make good choices when the plan ends
Read our full Nutrisystem review!
Best Budget Weight-Loss Program for Women - WeightWatchers
SPECS
- Type: Weight-loss app
- Features: Science-based nutrition plan, 12,000 recipes, weight and activity trackers, barcode scanner, supportive members-only digital community
GET 3-MONTHS FREEWeightWatchers is the best budget weight-loss program for women because you get the most bang for your buck. You can choose between a self-guided experience or if you're willing to invest a little more, the premium option is great if you want accountability through one-on-one coaching. We really like WeightWatchers because it's an excellent choice for beginners. You can track all your food using the app and a Points system, which is a simplified version of counting calories and macronutrients.
When you start, you're asked to take a quiz that asks you questions about your goals and current habits. From there, custom goals are generated based on the information you provide. Aside from helping you reach your target, WeightWatchers looks to instill healthy habits by teaching balance when making food choices.
What We Like
- Track food, activity, and water intake using the app
- Ability to connect with others and receive community support
- Weekly progress reports help you see where you're at
- Completely customizable based on your habits and dietary restrictions
What We Don't Like
- App has so many features it may be overwhelming for some users
- Having to track every item you eat can be a tough habit to establish
GET 3-MONTHS FREE: WeightWatchers
Read our full WeightWatchers review!
Best Training Weight-Loss Program for Women - Future
SPECS
- Type: Weight-loss app
- Features: One-on-one coaching, custom exercise plan
FIND YOUR COACHWe chose Future as the best training weight-loss program for women because it focuses on exercise, lifestyle change, and nutrition which are all supported by certified expert coaches. The app offers customization options that include choosing your preferred coaching style and from there you can select the personal trainer you want to connect with. They’ll work with you to create a workout plan based on your goals, needs, and schedule.
Future has online nutrition coaching with check ins which can include discussions about your lifestyle habits, schedule, fitness goals, and any other aspects of your fitness journey you feel comfortable addressing. If you’d like some nutrition support, there are coaches that have nutrition credentials that can help you select the most optimal food choices. Future leverages the Apple Watch and iPhone to record biometrics that you and your coach can see. However, it is important to note that at the time of writing, the Future app is only available for iOS users.
What We Like
- Frequent feedback and accountability check-ins from your coach
- Customized workouts
- Trainers have credentials and experience
- Progress and biometric data recorded
- No equipment needed
What We Don't Like
- Only available on iOS
- Expensive
Check out our full Future review!
Best Weight-Loss Program for Women for Heart Health - Cronometer
SPECS
- Type: Weight-loss app
- Features: Macro and micronutrient tracking, fasting timer, custom diet settings
CHECK PRICEWe chose Cronometer for the best weight-loss program for women who are focusing on heart health because it tracks various health metrics. Specifically, you can track your macros and micronutrients which can help support your cardiovascular and metabolic pathways. You can also log your exercise, and if you upgrade to Cronometer Gold you can track other biometrics such as blood levels, cholesterol, and more.
Setup is pretty simple, you just download the app and create an account by entering details that entail your personal information and goals. From there, your targets are automatically calculated. After that, it's up to you to add your food, exercise, and biometric information daily, so this plan may not be suitable if you're looking for more support and accountability. The app interface is easy to use, and there are additional features such as barcode scanning to make adding food effortless. You can also track your exercise and sync your workouts if you have a device that's compatible with the app.
What We Like
- Overall health and nutrition focus
- Large database of foods
- Ability to customize macros
- Interface is simple and easy to navigate
- Can be paired with an activity tracker
What We Don't Like
- Not good if you need accountability since there are no coaching options
- Many useful features are under the paid option
Best Weight-Loss Program for Women for Food Tracking - Lumen
SPECS
- Type: Weight-loss app
- Features: Golden CO2 Sensor, activity and sleep tracking, workout optimization recommendations
LUMEN DEVICE IS FREEIf you're ready to start a program where you track food, exercise, and other biometrics, we recommend Lumen. When you sign up, you receive your Golden CO2 sensor that syncs with the app so you get real-time data on your metabolism, activity levels, and workout optimization recommendations. This data comes from measuring the level of carbon dioxide in your breath, and this device is pocket-sized so you can discreetly carry it with you.
The app's nutrition coaching feature offers a daily personalized nutrition plan along with meal suggestions and recipes. Having recipe and meal suggestions available not only makes sticking with Lumen easy, it also instills good habits that can be implemented outside of their program. The app also has nutrition guidelines and other insightful information in their community, monitored by coaches, that is really helpful if you're just starting out.
What We Like
- High tech Golden CO2 sensor technology gives advanced insight to your health
- App is easy to use and navigate
- Highly personalized based on your goals
- Valuable resources to encourage user to make long-term healthy choices
What We Don't Like
- Device and data can be overwhelming if you're not tech savvy
- Expensive
Read our full Lumen review!
Best Meal Delivery Weight-Loss Program for Women - Freshly
SPECS
- Type: Meal plan and delivery service
- Features: Suits a variety of dietary restrictions, meal choice and tracking using the app
50% OFF NUTRISYSTEMWe love Freshly because they send you a nutritious prepared meal that can be heated and ready to eat in 3 minutes or less. These meals are not only prepared by chefs to be flavorful, but also have less sugar and processed components. Each meal includes nutrient-dense ingredients that include complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, and quality proteins that keep you full and feeling your best.
Their calorie-conscious meals are fully balanced and are thoughtfully portioned so you have control over your calorie intake. Using their app, you can sort your meals by calorie count which helps ensure that you're staying on track to lose weight. However, your calorie goal is not generated by this app so you may need an additional tool to help with that. There are also gluten-free and plant-based meal plans if you have those dietary restrictions.
What We Like
- You can choose your meals and track deliveries using the app
- Focuses on whole foods so meals are less processed than other meal delivery services
- Menu has a variety of meal options to choose from
What We Don't Like
- Calorie goals for weight-loss are not generated using the app
- No plan for pairing with grocery store foods, so it may be difficult to make healthy choices if you end your subscription
Read our full Freshly review!
What is a Weight-Loss Program?
Weight-loss programs provide a structured way to lose weight and help you build and establish healthy habits to keep the weight off. In general, a good weight-loss program will focus on losing 1-2 pounds per week. This is a steady rate that allows you to lose at a safe pace because your body is still getting the nutrients it needs. You are also more likely to stick to this kind of program because it's not restrictive so you won't feel like you're starving all the time.
Is a Weight-Loss Program Right for Me?
Not sure if a weight-loss program is right for you? We broke down who we recommend a weight-loss program for versus those who can pass.
Best for:
- Those who want a guided, more structured approach to weight loss
- People who want to be held accountable by either a coach or a program
- Those frequently on-the-go who may not have time to plan or cook meals
Not best for:
- Anyone with a history of disordered eating
- Those who want a more intuitive approach to weight loss
How We Chose the Best Weight-Loss Programs for Women
Curious about how we chose the best weight loss programs for women? We kept the below factors in mind when doing our research to ensure the programs we selected were nutritionally-sound and backed by research and evidence.
Nutritious Value
We took into consideration the nutritious value of each weight-loss program offered. We looked at aspects like the overall health of the meals, how well-balanced each meal was (healthy combination of carbs, proteins, fats, and micronutrients), and whether nutritional information was available for each meal.
Easy to Follow
We made sure to select weight-loss programs that are easy to follow and sustainable. That is, they don’t promote short-term weight loss and instead focus on changing your eating habits overtime with no major restrictions.
Quality of Information
We prioritized weight-loss programs that excel at teaching users about proper nutrition, portion control, and how to make well-balanced meals on your own. Bonus points for programs that offered additional learning through the form of modules or chapters.
Goal Attainment
Finally, we made sure to select programs that actually produce results and are effective. Bonus points for programs that are backed by scientific research and clinical studies.
What to Consider When Choosing a Weight-Loss Program for Women
Type
Some weight-loss programs for women focus on recipes and meal plans for you to follow while others include fully prepared meals. Others allow you to track food with apps, exercise, and other biometrics that could impact your progress. Many offer coaching, which is a great feature that helps with accountability, and your coach can help guide you through any questions or concerns you may have. Some focus on improving other aspects of your well-being such as heart health or offer specialized programs if you have medical conditions such as thyroid disease. Also, if you have dietary restrictions or concerns, certain plans have vegetarian, keto, and other tracks to follow.
Time Commitment
Weight-loss programs can be followed for a certain number of weeks or months depending on which plan you choose. Other programs can be followed until you reach your goal, and based on what that is, you may opt for a longer plan or a shorter plan. As mentioned, losing around 1-2 pounds per week is considered a safe place to start, but it's always a good idea to check with your primary care physician to see what they recommend. We recommend committing to a program for four to six weeks at first and evaluating if it's the best plan for you. Overall, you want to lose weight and build healthy habits, but not get burnt out and slip back into old habits.
FAQs About Weight-Loss Programs for Women
What is the most effective type of weight-loss program?
That depends on your goals and needs based on current health factors that are specific to you. Generally, you'll want a program that is convenient and easy to use and follow. However, this can vary depending on your experience, goals, and other health factors that may impact weight loss.
What is the fastest way for a female to lose weight?
We don't like the word "fastest," because it can sometimes be interpreted as finding the quickest way to shed pounds by taking dangerous measures and not establishing healthy habits. The most efficient way is to consistently follow a program that safely reduces caloric intake while establishing healthy habits that will stick with you long term.
Who should try a weight-loss program?
If you have a weight-loss goal but are unsure of where to start, a weight-loss program provides a structured plan for you to follow. Following a program is also helpful if you want to be held accountable or want further support through coaching. These plans are also suitable for people who don't have time to carefully prepare meals, since there are many options available that include pre-made meals.
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