crabcreeker

Greetings all,

Just reporting in. Sounds like you are all doing great! I have been on maintenance about a month now. Started it because I had hit a plateau for a month or more. I went to 4 and 2 for a week or two and then to 1200 cal. Once I hit 1200 cal I started losing again! I have been on 1200 cal for 3-4 weeks, even had a glass of wine once or twice a week and have lost 4 more lbs. Only 6 lbs to the original goal I set.

I have a cruise in a couple of weeks. My plan is to continue to eat as I have been doing - no desserts.....just don't want to start down that path. I will have a glass of wine once in awhile. No fruity foo-foo drinks for me. Hope to not gain any weight on the cruise! Will work out in the gym and get a baseline weight the first day on their scales so I can track it.

Just wanted to report some happy news since I had been struggling for so long. Feeling great and ready to cruise! Best wishes to everyone! :)

I am hanging in there...thanks for asking, Youngest.

I am on the 4 and 2 plan. Gained .4 lbs the first week.

On week 2 now. Maybe have dropped 1/2 lb so far this week.....we'll see when I weigh in on Tues. You are allowed one healthy snack and I am not even eating that. Can you say "metabolism of a slug"?! :(

I am exercising 4 times a week. I will stay on this plan another week or so and then transition to maintenance - whatever I weigh then - so I can make healthy choices for awhile before going on our cruise in late Oct.

As I said, I am down about 30 lbs since mid-April and happy with what I have lost. Seems my body is pretty much done losing.

Congrats to all of you....keep on keeping on.

Well, I had my appt. My weight was down .2 lbs....and so it goes.:rolleyes:

I really had to put my foot down and say I was stopping the weight loss effort because of poor results and wanted to go to maintenance. THEN, they suggested a 4 and 2 program to me (you get a total of 8 OZ of protein a day). They say it's what they use when some one comes in who has less than 10 lbs to lose. Why this hasn't been offered before now (?) - I don't know.

I said I would try it for 2 weeks and if little to no results, I want to go to maintenance and quite chasing a number!

Thank you, Hap, for posting and no, it doesn't offend me.

The center has not been all that helpful to me when I hit these plateaus. They don't seem to have answers except to "do a cleanse" and those can only be done every 3 months. When I do a cleanse is when I seem to lose for that ONE week. The cleanse or detox, however, is a week without protein and no wonder, when they do a body scan, my lean muscle mass has dropped - then they tell me to eat more protein and exercise more to increase the lean muscle......all this does is cause my body to think it's being starved! :rolleyes:

I hear you about the BMI number and I agree. I am tired of chasing numbers. I feel good at the weight I am at and am happy that I can fit back in to my closet full of clothes.

I also hear you about the centers and increasing their profit margins. I did find them helpful when dealing with all the digestive issues I had tolerating the food. But, they have not been helpful dealing with the plateaus. All the counselors seem to be "programmed".

I didn't know before I joined the center that you could get the food on your own. In the furure, that's what I will probably do. I go in today for my weigh in and I will report back on what happens. I hope to start maintenance or transition or whatever they call it.

Oh - and I do weigh myself everyday and always will now! The only times I haven't done that is when I have gotten myself in to trouble and the weight started piling on and I put my head in the sand and ignored it.

I have had a couple of people tell me that they didn't think I should try to lose any more.....they say I look good as I am and that if I lose more, I will look "too gaunt". Maybe they are right.

Is there another counselor you can meet with? I hate to see you put all your faith in someone and they're not right. (I'm not saying they're wrong, but it's worth a shot)

Thanks, but without the assistance of a dietician, I am not finding that any of these counselors have the answer to my problems. I have seen all of them at one time - they rotate them.

I am so disappointed....I am going to wave the white flag. I have pretty much decided to say I'm done! I have lost 28 lbs and can fit in to all my old clothes. Yes, it would be nice to lose the other 9 lbs, but I am ready to be done with this battle because I am clearly losing it and have exhausted all my available resources.

Maybe at my age I am not going to get there. The last time I saw that weight with the healthy BMI was in my early 40's after almost 2 years on WW - I lost 47 bls at that time. There is something pretty unusual with me becuase all of you are losing easily. It's not happening that way for me. I have been at this since Mid-April - it has taken me a LONG time to even get to this point. And I have been following this program exactly as written.

At this point, I can stop and do the 6 weeks of maintenance and then be eating regular healthy food in time for my cruise. That's looking like the best option to me at this point.

BTW, I went to the Medifast web site and did some research and almost all the meal replacements I eat happen to be the lower Carb choices already! (except for the new cereal):(

So any list the counselor produces is not going to make any difference. I am already doing that.

The counselor is the one telling me to exercise more.

One of the reasons is that they did another body scan last visit and my lean muscle had dropped - despite consistent exercise. They told me to eat an extra ounce of protein per day or 1 OZ of string cheese. This has happened before. The last time it happened was why I started exercising a little more- to increase the lean muscle.

Maybe by not getting enough protein (despite weighing and measuring) my body thinks it's starving?

I don't know. Some one else mentioned they have a dietician at their center in a recent post......don't think mine does. I think I could use one, though. I'll ask on Tuesday. I was all set to call and have a chat on Monday and remembered it's a holiday.

Any other suggestions?

This soon to be 55 year old body doesn't work like it used to......BUMMER!

That's why I think maybe I should just settle for losing 28 lbs and start maintenance and not try to get to the healthy BMI.

Well, it's been a little while, and I was thinking about you ladies recently. So how are all you losers doing? I take it no news is good news??

 

Had my annual physical and the doc was really happy with my "new" self.... lab numbers WAYYY down along with the weight (about 30 pounds down from my start about two months ago). He even said my goal weight was too ambitious so he raised it by about 20 pounds. I'm a big guy to begin with so I only need to lose about 10 or so more pounds to be at MY proper BMI. Not to mention that I'm now wearing pants about TWO sizes smaller than I was wearing previously. Did a clean sweep of the bedroom closet and have a big pile ready for Goodwill. THAT feels good!!! Not to mention having to punch some new holes in a couple belts LOL... need to shop for a couple new ones there, too.

 

Hope everyone is doing well!!!!

 

Cheers... Hap

Wonderful news! Really happy for you! It's wonderful to fit back in to all the clothes in your closet again.:)

As to news - Well, I am back to losing very little bits again :rolleyes:.

.5 lb one week and .5 lb the next after losing 6 lbs on detox week and several weeks of plateau before that. Pretty frustrated! I have stepped the exercise up in an effort to increase the weight loss.

I am about 9 lbs away from goal. It's taking forever to get there. And then I am wondering how in the world I am ever going to maintain the goal weight if it was this hard to make it there. It's not an unrealistic number - just a weight that gets me to the healthy BMI for my height - upper end of healthy BMI - not lower end: If I were to quit now, I would still be in the overweight range for BMI. confused:

Supposedly, the counselor is going to produce a list of the meal replacements that have the least amount of carbs for me this week if I haven't lost much again. I have been strictly on program thru this whole thing, drink all the water, etc.

Does anyone have any recommendations for me? I don't know what to do.....

Edit to add: Plus, I have the pressure of a cruise coming up at the end of Oct and I thought I would be at goal and thru maintenance before that cruise.....now, I don't know how to manage that cruise.

Jedibryne:

Great that you have lost 30 lbs in such short time.....amazing!

And you have some great goals listed! :)

Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I finally broke thru the plateau I have been on and lost 6 lbs this week!

10 more to goal! :D

Hi Luetta! :)

The good news is.....you will lose inches in all those areas and the love handles will start to disappear!

Did you purchase any bars? The oatmeal and the soups are not my favorites.

I like the bars, brownies, pretzels, dark chocolate shakes, peanut butter soft serve, cereal, and chocolate chip pancakes.

OH - and the soy in many of the products should help the hot flashes. Make sure you drink 64 oz of water!

I think that's my biggest fear. I am using MF as a tool to get the weight off just as I would use any other program. But a huge part of the program is not just the losses, but the learning how to eat properly and how to work carbs (fruits/grains/etc.) back into your daily diet. However, I can't say I won't also keep some MF on hand - I like eating 6 small meals a day and that's so perfect for my blood sugar. So things like their bars and pretzels and shakes are perfect for me. But I don't want to jump ahead. I want to focus on getting to goal and taking it from there.

You are not going to a center, correct?

Do you have a health coach?

Do you have the booklet that goes along with the 5&1 plan?

In there, it describes a 6 week transition plan that describes how fruits and grains are added back.

I know I will want to keep eating the bars and brownies. :)

Crab, do you mind if I ask how exactly you accomplish the cleanse? I'm not doing this through a center.

The cleanse is supervised and lasts for a week. They call daily to check on you for that week and the cleanse if very strict - I would never have attempted it on my own. Matter of fact, I don't think I could have done much of this program without their help as I had lots of GI issues and also probably would have quit when I hit the plateau for close to a month if I were "on my own". You eat certain foods (including fruit) on certain days, liquids on others. There are supplements that go along with it and last for a month.

I'm still 18.5 pounds from the goal I first set when I started MF. When I get closer I'll see if it's realistic or if I'd like to lose 5 more after. I want it to be manageable. I am so much more comfortable now, but don't want to get complacent and stray. I want to stick with it through goal so I can really work it in maintenance. I think that following through to maintenance is the key to this program. Good luck!

We may be on maintenance about the same time (given my slow rate of weight loss - hoping this detox causes things to go a little faster).

I have heard that if you don't follow through with maintenance, you will gain the weight right back. The price you pay for the center includes weekly followups for a year from hitting your goal weight.

Hi Luetta! Good luck! The first week is a week of change - more water (and peeing!), less calories and sometimes less energy. But starting after week 2 you'll feel great and be amazed!

 

I just took measurements on week 12. I compared them to my week 8 measurements and I had lost 8 total inches in 4 weeks (I measure 5 places - thigh, waist, hips, chest and upper arm). I'm currently wearing a size 12 and in May I was in a tight 16.

 

Stick to it - especially in the beginning. Learn the tweaks as you go, but if you follow it as directed, you WILL be a success story! I've lost a 41.5 pounds in a bit over 12 weeks.

 

I'll say it again, but I think it's a great tool to help you lose weight, but also to learn how to eat - smaller meals, knowing the amounts of carbs/protein/fat/calories, etc. I'm looking forward to maintenance and really putting all I've learned to the test.

 

You'll do GREAT! Keep posting here - Hap and I are on pretty regularly so it's great support. And Hap has great ideas for mixing flavors. :)

 

Also, I subscribe to the thread, so anytime someone posts to it, I get an email - it doesn't fill your inbox but it's nice to know when someone posts :)

 

Mary Beth

Welcome to Luetta! :)

It is a good program, a little harder for us ladies, I think, to lose as much weight as men and as quick a weight loss as they seem to have. But, at my center, they tell me we women lose a lot more inches than the men! That has been the case with me. They measure me once a month in many different spots and I have lost a lot of inches! The whole point of this was to fit back in to my closet of clothes and that is happening - happy to say!

I have been on this program since mid-April and have lost 22 lbs. I have stalled for 3-4 weeks. This week, they have me doing another cleanse or detox. I have already dropped about 5 lbs and the week is not over! They believe you should do a cleanse or detox every 3 months. It does jump-start the weight loss when you have a plateau. After I weigh in this week - I should have 10 more lbs to reach goal.

I will be very happy to start maintenance. Mary Beth, how many more lbs do you have to lose? Are you getting close to goal?

....and the sad part Hap is you're right. I can't five on so easy. I do fine until I eat out. But I can't isolate myself...especially work related. This weekend is my long weekend...32 hours. And I have been back on the horse today. Bit when I ate that forbidden meal all I could think about was all those days of ketosis gone sown the drain. Now 5-6 more days before I start losing again. My fault!:mad:

 

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Hi Karen,

Just wanted to pop in and give some support....

I hope you are back on program.

I know the temptations......I have been on since mid-April and am still on a plateau right now and would really like to have a nice BIG glass of wine and say to heck with it all......BUT....I am not going to do that!

I do know this....you could put me on a deserted island with no food for a month and I would be the last survivor because this body doesn't like to give up any weight! :eek::rolleyes: Very frustrating! :mad:

Anyway....what I do if I am going to go out to eat (and I really don't like to on this program) but, I will study the menu ahead of time - if I can find one posted online and decide ahead what I am going to order. Most every restaurant these days has some kind of entree salad with grilled chicken or grilled salmon. I will order that or an entree that is grilled....like salmon, chicken, small filet and have steamed veggies and side salad. You could eat your side salad while the rest of them pig out on appetizers.

Edited to add: Salad dressing...balsamic vinagrette on the side!

Hang in there and come back and tell us how you are doing. :)

I'm also in my 50's and the weight is so much harder to.come odd and a lot easier to gain. I tried WW. First week lost 10 lbs and nothing else. I do pretty good on a carb restricted

plan. WW gave me too much freedom. So far Medifast is going good with my Take Shape for Life coach.

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Can you tell me more about the Take Shape for Life coach?

Is this offered online?

How do you get one and what do they do for you?

I only knew about the centers.

I didn't even know you could buy the food online and do it yourself until I read that here on cruisecritic. Oh well....

Hap I've read that you cannot walk in and buy. It's much more expensive to go to a center and they don't allow people to just buy foods. I've read some people are quoted $1000+ plus the cost of food. Sounds like a lot of money because I'm doing it just paying for food online.

I think you are probably right.

You probably have to be signed up to buy the food.

Thanks for the info. Was just wondering about the centers. Haven't heard much about them lately. The chocolate chip pancakes are one of my favorites. Next month I'll order 2 boxes of those. Like the plain ones too. Yea going into a center and having to weigh in once a week does hold you accountable. Is the food still purchased on a monthly basis or weekly?

 

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Weekly.

Other than the weekly weigh In and immediate does purchase what so the centers have to offer?

Do they offer supplements or appetite supressants? Just wondering....

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Well, the good news is I weighed in and stayed the same....at least I didn't gain! :)

The Medifast center.....you sign a contract to lose weight, set your goal. They measure you and take 2 pictures initially (front and side view) and do the body composition analysis.

They do measurements monthly, a body fat composition (by machine) monthly, they counsel, they recommend a cleanse and call you daily during the week you do the cleanse to check on you. They are available for questions daily.

They offer all the products that are offered online, plus they have supplements like Vit B 12, Omega 3 capsules, probiotics, appetite suppresants, fiber, etc. They also sell the blender, cookbooks, food scales, etc.

For me, I tried to do WW online and it didn't work for me because I need the accountability of having to go weigh in. I lost the 47 lbs with WW when I went every week and stayed for the meetings. With the Medifast center, you must complete a weekly food diary and turn it in at your weigh-in.

BTW: I saw online they now have a new product - cereal. I didn't think they'd have it yet at the center, but they did. I bought the cinnamon one and it's good! Also, they had the parmesan puffs - which have been unavailable the whole time I have been OP...anxious to try them and the choc chip pancakes (which I have never had).

Well, "going" when there's basically nothing in there is not uncommon. It's not like we're getting the bulk we usually get other than the L+G. I wouldn't be too concerned about it. Keep on drinking that water, and I think I read somewhere in my MF internet travels about using sugar-free Metamucil. Might help things in that direction. It's a few carbs, but nothing earth-shattering.

 

Good luck with the move ;-)

 

Here's a link from one of my favorite resources

http://ichoosethin.com/thinblog/medifast-and-bowel-movements/

 

H

That link is excellent. I have read it before but it really helps. I go to a Medifast Center and they had me do a cleanse. That helped some. Now I seem to have to take additional fiber whereas before, it was a constipation problem. Don't we love having to focus on all this? I feel like an old ____! :rolleyes: NOT!

Thanks for the welcome. I have 15 lbs more to go to get to goal. Like I say, I have lost 22 over 3 months. I have never been one to drop wgt easily. Took me a long time on WW 10 yrs ago to lose 47 lbs - almost 18 mos. So this is faster.

I do exercise some. They emphasize not to do more than 45 min 3 X a week. I swim some and I get on the treadmill for 30 min 2-3 X wk. My body is NOT wanting to give up the last 15 lbs without a fight! BTW, I am a gal and in 50's.....weight comes off much harder now than when I was younger! :rolleyes:

I weigh in today and have lost nothing - by my scales. Another plateau. I am due for one because the past few wks have been pretty good. I amgetting bored with the food. Today I am going to try some choc chip pancakes since you say they are good. Hints on how to make them? In a mug - so they are like a muffin?

Things I like: Brownie, Dark choc shakes, choc mint bars, choc crunch bars, pb bars, cinn pretzels, rasp tea. Can't stand the oatmeal - and I like oatmeal normally. Oh and the eggs? Horrible!

Hi Folks;

I am new here,but have been following your conversations and got my courage up to post!.

I have been on Medifast since Mid-April and have lost 22 lbs. I have been strictly "on program" and it has been good, a bit of a struggle and a bit diappointing all at the same time.

I amhappy I have lost 22 lbs....of course they estimated I would lose 3 lbs a week and that has not happened! I thought it was unrealistic to expect that. The biggest struggle has been trying to get the GI system on tract! Fiber, no fiber, benefiber, probiotics....you name it!