I'm still pretty new. (Day 11). I just read a testimonial on MRC's facebook page about a woman who lost 32 pounds in 8 weeks. That's about how much I need to lose. Is this really possible? Have any of you consistently lost at least 4 pounds a week? I want to be hopeful but not naive.

Hi bbygrl77, great question! I'm guessing that person either a) has a lot of weight to lose (like >300lbs) and it certainly comes off a lot quicker the higher up you start at the beginning or b) doing the hcg diet which isn't supported by this forum and can't really be discussed, but if that's the case, she's losing a lot of muscle along the way and probably not getting good habits started.

MRC does say 2-5 lbs a week, but for *most* of us we hover right around 2-3 lb a week average. (I fight to keep mine above 2). I suppose there are some "super losers" out there where this program is just so perfect for their exact metabolism that they can pull of stable 4-5lb/week averages, but it's not an average i've seen here much.

If you're working on 35lbs, expect about 3 months and for me, it's been the duration i've been on program that has helped reinforce the good behavior. If you flit into this for one month and then get back to normal, chances are higher it will come back on. Keep your chin up, those lbs will be off before you know it and by Christmas you'll be as skinny as you hope. It's going to go by quick and be a great investment in yourself. Just remember, a semester of a college nutrition class lasts longer than that, so I like to think of it like i'm in school for 6 months to learn to eat right.

Good luck!

I just started the actual program on Saturday, I did the preconditioning but don't think I did it right because it wasn't explained very well. (instead of saying I could only eat what was on the sheet, he said add these foods in) but I am still down 5 full pounds as of this morning. I haven't cheated at all and even brought my food over to a friends house to eat while everyone else ordered out. Seemed a bit wierd at first but I just explained that I have to eat healthier without going into the whole program explaination.