Hi all. I had to jump in to put in my 2 cents. My fiance and I saw a television ad for the "Discovery National Body Challenge" in January, and since at that time it was free, we joined. Our free membership to the website ended in April, but by then I had downloaded all the recipes to Mastercook and was able to continue the plan. We've been very pleased with the results.
I've lost a total of 38 lbs following their plan (except I haven't really exercised, just a little walking) and my fiance has lost about 45 lbs. We probably would have lost more, but we went off the plan for two months and just got back on it. This is the first time in my life I've successfully lost any weight. It teaches you how to eat healthy and teaches you about things like the difference between good fats and bad fats, blood-sugar levels, etc. Very helpful info.
The plan is simple: eat 5 meals a day/every three hours. Most of the recipes are delicious, though some are bad...stay away from the french toast. I've never felt deprived on this plan. When I wanted something sweet, I had one of the shakes (try a peanut butter banana shake!).
I know, cooking 5 meals a day sounds like a lot, but actually you don't have to "cook" all of the meals. For instance, I have either one of the oatmeals or one of the omelettes for breakfast. Then I have yogurt with fruit, nuts and protein powder. Then I have something like a chicken tostada. Then I have something like turkey chili. For the last meal, I have a delicious shake recipe.
WHAT WENT WRONG FOR US: we began listening to other people tell us that we needed a "cheat meal" every once in a while to keep us on track. That in itself is an innocent idea, but in our case, it is like telling an alcoholic it's okay to have one beer on occasion. We have a real food addiction and it didn't take long for a "cheat meal" to turn into a "cheat day" to turn into a "cheat every other day" and finally to a "cheat all the time". This time, we are NOT going to have any cheat meals or days. By doing so, it just reminded us of why we ate that way.
Back to the plan:
it is a balanced, healthy and safe way to lose weight. The food is flavorful and easy to prepare. I highly recommend it!