I have been overweight for man years now. I have lost weight in the past, but I would regain the weight lost and often gain even more. I have tried many diet programs. I believe for me it is not so much the "program" I choose to follow, but the mindset. I have finally had enough. I do not want to be this heavy (219lbs, down from 238!!}. So I made the decision to try a radical approach to weight loss. I started the Medifast Diet. I will stay on Medifast for a while and then perhaps I'll transition to something else. I do not reccomend this for anyone else, this is my choice and what I felt right for me at this time. I have approx. 80lbs to go. Is anyone else out there doing Medifast or a similar program, would like someone to talk with. I am 50 now and I just do not want to be fat,( which means I am not healthy) any longer.

Hi Donna,

Thanks for your encouragement, and I wish you the best too!
I haven't any serious health issues at present, I did have a little blood pressure problem, but my doc says the meds for that will need to be reduced as I continue to lose weight.That is a good thing, I have Thyroid problems which may have contributed to some of my weight, but certainly not all of it. I too have some aches and pains, but that is because I am carrying around too much weight!
I like the taste and variety of the Medifast products, they have oatmeal,soups,bars,cappuccino,hot cocoa,and a choclate pudding that is so good. I usually have a salad or some chicken or fish and veggies for lunch so it is not all liquid intake. There are some days when I have only Medifast products, but not always.
As I said in my post, I am just determined to do this. I want to lose the weight!! and I guess that I am just ready to do this.
My husband is on Medifast too, but he only has a little weght to lose, and he will not be on the program much longer.
I think this site is great and I am loking forward to the support and information found here.
It is very hard to lose weight, I just can't believe I got in this shape. But that is not good, I need to move forward. I am reading some books and some of the Medifast literature deals with why we eat the way we do and the patterns and motives for our food choices.
I like to eat, I like food. I live in Texas and Mexican food is one of my favorites! I am learing that moderation is key, but exercise, calorie control, and the type of food we eat all are important issues.
I am just trying to take it one eay at a time, Medifast is great to me because I only have to decide about flavors, and nothing else. This is gona take a while and I may have minor setbacks, but I'm gona keep at it!!

I think you are doing great, I think the first hardest part is getting your mind right to start! So if you need to switch down the line ok. I think the first and most important thing is do what is best for you and your weight loss plan. What ever keeps you on target and motivates you. I'll support you! I really believe that no matter how much weight a dieter needs to get rid of, we all need the support. I only have 46 pounds to lose but I'm looking at a long time.

I just keep remembering a lot of diet books I've read that say, the longer it takes to lose (this was a discouragement in the books against quick fad diets that you drop 10 lbs quickly and then normally regain back 15) the more opportunities you have to make life style changes that will help in keeping it off. Also, I believe it is the education process. My goal is to get it off this time and I just don't give a darn how long it takes, 5 months or 46 weeks, and then to keep it off and stay healthy by exercising and keep that good feeling going about myself and have some serious self-confidence. And thento have a serious shopping spree for myself, and then throw out everything from underwear to shoes that do not fit, so I can live inthat new body and it becomes the new me!

Hi Magnolia and Aggie,

Just read your post while sipping the morning coffee.

I too have read so many diet books and tried so many diets. It alls comes back and then some. It seems they can tell us exactly what will go wrong and how quickly, yet they can't figure out why its so hard to stick to a program. I quit over a yr ago. Never thought could stick to that. Yet to eat the right foods and exercise(which isn't like quiting cold turkey, you still get to eat) is so hard to stick to. I just want to be healthy again.
My dh is great, never complains about the weight. We spend lot of "quality" time together that's never been an issue. I just do okay for a few days and then too much. So sometimes I look for the quick fix because you drink a shake or eat a bar and thats the end of it. When your constantly planning what you will eat or avoid, your mind is set on food all the time. I know when I'm busy with other things, sometimes I don't think about food at all and get to experience "real" hunger. So I would love to find a way to get off a big bulk portion of the weight and then work on life changes at a more reasonable amount. That's why I think Aggie might have the right idea. You lose 50lbs in a fairly quick amount of time and feel better physically and mentally to make changes in the way you live to conquer and keep off the remaining weight. I really wish you the best with that. I went onto a medifast site last nite and the testemonials seemed sincere. Of course to me they always have. Probably why I always try everything. But I thought you had to go to a medical Dr for supervision. Is that how you are doing it? or did you just order products on line? I think I may ask my physician how he feels about it. They have a line for type II diabetics and if I could reduce some of my meds my head would be in a much better place

Sorry I rambled. Keep me up to date, and to you and your dh. It must be great to have a partner right there with you. Please don't get discouraged if he loses faster. We've all read the men always lose faster ( figures they get all the breaks, they have portable plumbing and shorter lines, they lose weight faster, and hips and thighs aren't usually an issue, they start losing hair, they shave their heads and are in style, no visits from "Aunt flo or sister the hor-mona " ) Anyway need a second TTYL

I was on Adkins for 3 weeks, could never get past the tired and kept a headache. Guess that just means that wasn't the one for me. I would love a faster way to lose, but I am what Iam as pop eye says, lol. I'm just glad, thankful, and all the rest that somewhere inside of me a button rolled over and I found the motivation to start, now to just handle the sticking part. I will then face the next challenge gladly, the maintaining part. I think all those books are great, and we should go back and reread them again because I think they will motivate us more now, then they did then because our heads weren't ready to be where we are now. Two other things that have worked great for me before, may be silly but I 'm going to use them in the losing side of this house, and try and pick up some great things to help with the other side that is hard down the road. (1) I put up a motivational poster, usually where I will see it and no one else will, like the room I walk in, This poster has cut outs from magazines, mail order catalogs of good looking clothes that I like and I paste to a poster board and then I look at each picture and imagine myself wearing that outfit and how I will feel, sexy, confident, sassy, slim or what ever as I walk I glance over and look at the clothes and let myself feel again and see what other feelings come, and I really use my imagiation on this and feel myself wearing that and see myself looking at the mirror.

The second thing is (when I'm down or feeling discouraged) I will buy every magazine WW or any others that have before and after stories or any articles on dieting. This has really got me through some down times. Reading the articles really helps me refocus. Never did anything to help get me to start a diet, but once on it helps me feel encourged and focused to handle that next hurdle. By the way, ya'll are all just great!

Hey Magnolia&DonaD,

I hope everyone is having a great day today. About Medifast, I am doing this with my Doc's blessing, she used to do the Medifast program in her office many years ago, but got it was challenging keeping all the products and she doesn't do that anymore. I was going to go to a clinic but it is about an hour away so, I am just ordering the product online, from the Medifast site. I purchased many of their books and am finding them a big help. My Doc is keping track of my progress and will do the appropriate test, the web site gives suggestions for tests, however I am sure that your doctor will know how to monitor their patients. I am not trying to lose the weight as fast as I can, I want to stick to the suggested intake of shakes etc, but sometimes I do not drink the reccomended 4 shakes. I find I am not hungry, I am very satisfied and as I said I do eat a lunc consisting of "regular" food, regular HEALTHY food.
We are all in agreement that when a person is really ready to do the work it will get done, the way you do the work is secondary (barring something really bizarre).
everyone keep in touch, this is great!!

I'm glad you get to eat lunch. My cousin was on in 18 years ago and couldn't eat anything but the shakes. She lost all her weight. I think our bodies tell us when we need to be on different programs and we just need to listen.

hello everyone, wanted to say hello to aggie, and congrats on your weight loss so far. i am not on medifast, but if it works for you, glad you found something. what did work for me, and i noticed in your post was you talked about lifestyle changes. everything i lost and gained back on diets. well that cycle we all know about. i never saw change that stuck until i started changing my whole lifestyle.last december i was 230, this year i have plateaued at 182 but i realize that it is me and my lifestyle holding me back. i think that the most important thing is realizing that no diet will do for you what you can do for you.

I just want to say congrats to blugrl, I am happy for you. That is great. Lifestyle change are important, we just can't keep doing the same things and expect changes. Magnolia, that is a good idea about the poster, it is the uniquness of each of us that shows that no "ONE" thing works for everyone, and their are exceptions .(we probably all know someone who can eat anything and everything and not gain an ounce) If those of us who are "fatchicks" want to become skinny we have to change our old habits and adopt serious changes. I was watching Discovery Health Channel today and watched a group of men and women who made serious lifestyle changes and for the most part they all had dramatic results, it was encouraging. Granted, they also had some collagen injections, and similar cosmetic procedures, but their weight loss and the changes to their bodies I felt were a direct result of ther food choices and the commitment to exercise. They all had different exercise routines,(and food programs) but the point is it was not just diet alone, they exercised too! That's what I have got to get serious about.
I really have a hard time geting motivated to exercise.
Hope everyone has had a great weekend.

Aggie and all the rest

the motivation poster does help me, right now I need one too, but a bit short on the material I need to get it done. My favorites are clothes magazines, I like to focus on things I would like to wear and look good in.

I have watched that show to and you are right, it does mean making life style changes. For me, it means getting off this yo-yo! I want to lose this weight and keep it off, so changes will have to be made. I think I will need to keep myself aware of the calories my body needs and what I consume, in addition, to making better choices in food and food preparation.

Now on the plastic surgery, I would love to have a tummy tuck when I've lost my weight. I have a ugly pouch, I've had about four surgeries, just between the bikini line and the belly button, even when I was smaller it was there. I would love to get rid of that and any fat deposits in it, but not sure if I have the nerve to go under the knife as a volunteer. My cousin had it and she loved it and offered to make an appointment with her doctor and go with me, I told her to "hold on and lets see how I feel when I've got all my weight off" I know I will probably feel the same but don't know about the surgery thing.

Exercise: Is there one you do like or that you find easy to fit into your life style? For example, walking on a treadmill is easy for me and fits easily in my lifestyle, and I make it entertaining by listening to audio books so I will get caught up in the story. This is an idea don't know if you will like it or not but here goes, do you have a room that you could have some privacy in? If so make you a CD or tape of songs that you like to dance to or that make you feel like getting down to boogie, be sure to include 1 or 2 slow songs that you like in the beginning to help you do some stretches and warm up breating etc, then dance, dance, and dance, then include 1 or 2 different songs on the end for your cool down, if the sound will travel, get head phones. I for one like privacy when I exercise at home, yeah, I know he (hubby) has seen it all before but he doesn't have to see it in that form and in that kind of moving.

hi everyone,

im new here and love this.

my highest weight was 228 got down to 204 then started back up to 221 so i joined t.o.p.s.(take off pounds sensibly) it is a non-profit weight loss support group. 20.00 to join and very low weekly dues (our chapter is .50) There ard thousands of chapters around the world. go to www.tops.org to find one near you if you are interested. i guess my motivation is the weekly weigh in and knowing it is being recorded. we have information, support, contest.and more, but most of all we have a lot of fun.

i tell myself every day that i am NOT on a diet but that i have changed my BAD eating habits. i will get healthy and i will survive. it took me 44 years to get to where i am now so dont expect to get rid of it overnight.

i didnt even realize how much i ate when i wasn't even hungry. like at work
( buzzer goes off for break so i would eat) or hubby wants lunch and i would eat too even tho i was not hungry yet (we have been maried 21 years and he still wears 32" waist jeans and weight is 145) . or just board so i would go to the fridge. now i am only eating when i am trully hungey and am eating healthy .i am exercising somewhat but nothing to extreme (walk a mile in 25 mimutes) i joined tops march 11 at 221 1/2 and on march 25 was at 212 1/4 so hope to keep going at this rate, but i wont let a gain discourage me.

Well i beter end this and i will keep coming back here for more motivation and support.

TALK TO YOU ALL LIGHTER !!!!!

Peg

Peg

You sound motivated, I got motivated just reading your last post. I will check out tops, I've heard of them before. I understood what you were saying about how you ate. I am an emotional eater and I think that is one of the biggest contributors that got me where I am today, or Has made me the woman I am, lol! Now that you have my mind thinking, I think I will go a check out some books on that and do some reading and see how I can change my thinking!

Type to you lighter!

Peg, It's like you read my life story. I'm 44 yrs old, been married 26 yrs, he doesn't have a weight problem (the belly gets a little out of control and he cuts out some of his junk for couple of weeks and it goes away ) I probably wouldn't eat as much if I wasn't preparing for him or watching him eat junk. Boredom is a terrible thing. I shouldn't be bored as I have many things to do and projects to tackle but with the extra weight I have no energy and get bored and eat, vicious cycle. I checked out TOPS link that you posted and will try to make my first meeting wed. I am considering medifast but just considering. I like to check out all my options. So I will truly try to attend. Thanks for the tip.

And congrats on 9lbs in less than 2 weeks Thats great. Are you following a specific plan. Does TOPS just support whatever plan you currently do or do they have a plan for you to follow?

Anyway, Here's to continued success

donna,

tops is a support group that wants you to see your dr for a diet and exercise plan tailored to your needs. meetings allow time to share weight loss successes and challenges and keep your spitits high. they do have a 1500 calorie sample diet but you dont have to go by it.they ask that your dr set your goal weight for what is healthy for you.you also get a monthly news magazine that has success stories ,heath articals, recipes and more. it is a lot of fun and for me knowing that i have to face the scales every thursday and someone is going to write it down is very helpful. i have learned already that if i cheat i only cheat myself. i AM what i eat and it is there for all the world to see how foolish i have been. they have contest, games , skits and other things to help. there are area or state recognition days for best loosers and once you get to goal you become k.o.p.s. which is keep pounds off sensibly so that you dont backslide. like i said before it is non-profit so it is very afforable. in my area weight watchers is 16.00 to join and 12.00 a week that was just too much for my pocket (because my 17 year old daughter is in too) i beleve tops allows children as young as 7 to join. and the cost is about half.

hope you join and talk to you LIGHTER!!

Peg