[nikolas]

Starting #4---WOW. I have been at this now for four months. Hard to believe. Went to my group last night and have now lost 45 lbs. It has been so much easier on Merida although the type of group I am in has had a lot to do with my success.

I love rice cakes. Has anyone tried the Quacker Crispy Minis? Yum. Another good thing to try is called Priate's Booty. It is made of rice, corn meal, non fat milk & cheddar cheese. Comes in a 4 oz bag and each oz. has 120 calories and 2.5 fat grams. Not bad.

I got my start up kit from the Point of Change program today. Can't wait to get the savings.

Take care.

[CeeCee]

I gained 9 pounds last weekend Aack. I didn't binge, but I had huge amounts of sodium (The proof of that was in losing 5 lbs from Monday Morning to Tuesday morning. I'm still a bit puffy, so I need to drown myself in water to lose the rest of the water weight.

[saggy]

Pirate's Booty???? I've never heard of it, but would like to try it. Where do you buy it???

saggy

[MrsJim]

Saggy -

I haven't tried it myself, but I did see it at the two local Jamba Juices here. (I don't know if you have Jamba Juice in your area though - there's lots of them here in the Bay Area!)

Can't say for sure but I think I also saw it at Trader Joe's, which is a great place to find lots of stuff you don't get at your local Safeway or whatever (just wish they'd improve the checkout lines...sooooo sloooowww...)

[saggy]

Thanks Mrs. Jim. We don't have any of those places here in Cincinnati, but I will check out a place called Jungle Jims which has lots of unusual foods. Hope all is going well for your quest to make it to 145. ( I keep tabs on you cuz you are very motivating!) How much exercise do you do a day???

[MrsJim]

...I'm doing the Body for Life challenge right now, which basically alternates days of 45 minutes of weight training (alternating upper and lower body workouts) with 20 minutes of intense cardio.

So on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays I do weights; on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday I do that intense 20 + I usually tack on an easy 40 minutes (kind of like a racehorse, I figure; after a fast intense race, they are 'hot walked' to cool down). Sundays I'll usually do some moderate cardio in the morning, plus on nice weekends Jim and I go bike riding.

Jamba Juice is so prevalant around here - I thought they were EVERYWHERE now, like McDonalds. It's a chain of smoothie/juice bars. The smoothies are very yummy but also very high in calories - 470-500+ in a typical 24-ounce smoothie - so it would probably be best to split one with someone!

[nikolas]

Well, the long Memorial Day weekend is almost at a end----7:30 p.m here.

Went to a barbacue yesterday and did what I have been doing ever since starting this journey. Had a little bit of everything (no hamburgs, hot dogs, or steak tips) but everything else and avoided the deserts except for fruit. Main thing was that I enjoyed myself. I am finding out that I can actually have a good time without eating everything. Amazing for me.

Hope everyone is doing well.

[robijax]

Hi guys!

I am brand new to this board and new to Meridia. I have been on Meridia for about a week and a half now. I am also following the Weight Watchers program. I love WW because it's healthy, it's do-able, and it can be a lifestyle. I haven't noticied much from the Meridia. Is it too soon? What exactly should I expect? I was hoping for appetite control and for it to help keep me from obsessing about food all of the time. Maybe it's working and I just don't realize it. I am on a strength of 10. What does everyone else find that it does for them? How long did it take initially?

Thanks for the input.

[commit2it]

Hi Robijax,

My doctor told me that Merida took some people up to 4 weeks to feel it working, that it was a cumlative affect. I was surprised that I felt it working after 1 pill. I am sure it affects everyone differently. It has taken the obsession of food away from me, which has been a huge burden lifted from me. I now know I can lose the weight.

Good luck,
Elle

[littlebear]

I have just started taking the Meridia 6 days of today. I can feel it somewhat but I do believe its more determination to do it for you than what the doctors say. Mine said it took about 6 weeks before I could tell anything. I have been cutting back a lot though. Have you looked at the menu that Meridia has online? It has some good stuff to try and keep you in line. A friend of my Moms lost 45 pounds the first month. She said she drank a lot of water and ate a lot of veggies, and fruit. She needed to loose a lot. Her doc put her on one month and takes her off another. Back and forth like that so she wont get hooked on them. I dont see how that is possible myself, but who knows. I myself want to lose about 75 pounds. So, it is going to be a long summer I think. Hope this helps. But you know what, we all are here for each other and that helps out greatly. Have a great day and just take it one day at a time. Life is too short.

[CeeCee]

Hey everybody. I drank 3 quarts of water today and a couple cups of watermelon (I feel like I'm going to float away). The water retention seems to be less of a problem. I just read in a Prevention magazine that you should divide your weight in half and that is how many ounces of water you should drink daily. Their example for a 160 lb woman (80 oz, 10 glassess) is all well and good, but by that token, I need to drink over 5 quarts of water a day. Not likely.

Littlebear, I don't think I'd do very well on every other month. The effects of Meridia on me have been subtle and definitely cumulative. Meridia takes the edge of my hunger/food obsessions, and has increased my motivation and energy level, but old habits are extremely hard to break. I'll do fine as long as my doctor and I are patient.

Speaking of, I see my doctor on Friday. I've only lost about 10 pounds since seeing him a couple of months ago. (I say ONLY, but my weight hasn't been this low and I haven't lost weight in consecutive months in over three years). Still, I'm afraid he won't be satisfied with my weight loss, and I'll get discouraged (or worse, that he won't renew my prescription).

[nikolas]

Welcome Robijax----glad that you joined us. I think everyone has a different experience with Merida. My experience was that Merida took about 1 to 2 weeks to work. I have never "felt" anything but one day I realized that I was not as hungry and my obsession with food had diminished significantly. Although I am not with Weight Watchers there is a lot of positive feedback on this board and in the live chat room. Think you will do very well with the combination of WW and Merida.

CeeCee, I see my doctor on Friday (tomorrow) also. I think that you have done very well. Any weight loss is an improvement from a weight gain which is what I was doing. As long as your blood pressure is fine, I'm sure your doctor will be pleased and prescribe the Merida.

I have never heard of one month on---one month off on Merida. From what I've read this is a pill you need to take every day.

Littlebear, good luck on Merida. Let us know how you are doing.

We can all do this, TOGETHER.

[littlebear]

Just wanted to say that this is number eight day for me and that I am still working at it. I have to say that it does keep you from thinking about what to eat and I dont seem to be as hungry between meals. I have cut back a lot. Fruit or toast in the morning, very little at lunch and the same, very little at night. Chicken and veggies or just a micro.meal low fat. It is so late when I eat because I work late. I guess that is my down fall. Eating late and falling into bed. But, I am working on it very hard. Hope everyone else has a great day.

[nikolas]

moving #4 to top---there was a post to #3 which I tried to copy unsucessfully

[CeeCee]

I had to reschedule the doctor's appointment, because of my new work hours. New appointment on Thursday (I'm taking the day off).

I've started a food journal. It's really necessary for me I think. I'm so used to thinking of a certain amount of food as the "bare minimum" for me based on my pre-Meridia experience. In the past, if I ate fewer than 2000 calories or so, or went more than a few hours without eating I was literally on the verge of passing out. Today I've eaten around 1100 calories (which is lower than I would normally reasonably expect to eat), but have suffered no ill effects.

On a personal note, my little pet Gus isn't doing very well (possibly pneumonia). I've had her over a year, and I've gotten more attached to her than I ever expected to (she's "just" a rat)

Yes, I did say rat. I can't have ordinary pets in my apartment, and I'm not very fond of caged birds. I worked with rats in college (psychology major). They have very sociable personalities, and can be taught tricks so they're almost like very tiny dogs. If you can get past the fact that they're "vermin", they make great little pets despite the "icky tail" and the fact that male rats are embarassingly "well endowed" (which is why I chose a female even though some say the males tend to have sweeter personalities).