If you slept in you might get a headache. Sorry, my friends call me pollyanna because I always put a positive spin on things! My weight goes up and down for no real reason too. Often, when I have a "bad" day, the scale goes down and that makes no sense. I am not talking MF, start tomorrow.


We are in Neenah, right next to Appleton. It's so cold today and we have to go to the wedding show in Milwaukee. Brrrrrr....

Okay if I start a post with some specific questions??

Hope so.

Flo - Great job!! I see a "whoosh" in your future!!! :D

Andrea - Sendng losing <<vibes>> your way! :hug: Your little scale guy is SO cute!

Waving Hi to everyone - hope you all have a great day!!

Ahem, SweetP, :wave: <sending love vibes>

Brooke, you ask anything your little heart desires!

I HATE inservices. I learn more information from brainstorming with other teachers, taking classes, and stealing ideas from the internet. Honestly, most of the time, the info is only usable with the elementary folks. It's easier to be creative with little ones, but don't make me sit throught that.

So does anyone have anything planned this weekend?

Hi everyone, I like the weigh in stories! Does anyone else find themselves sucking in their stomach when they weigh? Like that is going to help!

I have a question about Take Shape for Life, does anyone use that program? I know health coachs are not supposed to solicit, but has anyone taken that step?

I am a little confused, I am doing the "Be slim" program but the main website says nothing about any of this.

Newbie in Pa
 

Hello everyone,

I am Lisa, married with 5 children ranging in age from 17 years old to 3 years old. I ordered a 2 week supply of Medifast to try it out. From reading all of the posts for the past week, it looks like I will be sticking with it.

I am 5'1" and weigh 193lbs...which I weighed in this AM. My goal is to get down to 140 by summer the latest. I wore a size 7/8 9/10 for over 10 years and after two children, my weight starting creeping up on me. My last child, I gained 50 lbs during pregnancy. I lost 25 lbs on WW earlier in the year.

I hate being short and "fat". My husband says he loved me the way I am but I am unhappy and uncomfortable with this extra weight. The other day, I bought a 50 lb bag of coal for our stove in the basement and I said WOW..this is all the extra weight I am carrying and I wanted to cry.

I think the end all was about a month ago when I started going to the gym and we went to visit my father-in-law who I hadn't seen in about 4 months and the first thing out of his mouth is "YOU HAVE NOT LOSE A POUND. I THOUGHT YOU WERE GOING TO THE GYM". The look on my and my husband's face was priceless. My husband told his father he should not have said that. I felt like crying but refused to let him see me cry over his comment. I love my father in law to death but at the moment, i regretted the 2 hour ride we took to see him.

SOOOOOOOOOO, sorry for being so lengthy but had to get that off my chest and hopefully my package will be here within the next day or so.

Thanks for letting me vent. Excuse any typing errors and I was just typing what I was feeling so I know it is all coming from my heart.

Bless your heart, borders. :hug: I know exactly what you mean, although my family knows how sensitive I am about my weight. My problem is that, with the exception of my stepsister, I am the smallest person in my family. Every occasion is an excuse to eat more for them. My mother, father, mother-in-law, father-in-law, sister-in-law, and brother-in-law all have Type 2 Diabetes. Do they use this as a reason to eat healthier? No....they do not.
Instead, they try to pump my daughter AND me full of sugar and carbohydrates. I have to constantly fight them to not give her junk - *all* of them.

I was 193 two weeks ago...193.4 to be exact. Just think...in two weeks you'll be smaller.

Vbevens...I ordered from Take Shape for Life. They offered a couple of specials that I didn't see on the MF website. I have a health coach who calls me once a week to check on me and answers any questions that I have that don't get answered on here. She's been very helpful.

Michelle...I don't have one thing planned except for getting my house clean and grading some papers. I may do a little shopping. I kind of want to wait a couple of weeks until I need a new pair of jeans. I have a pair of fourteens and a pair of twelves, but I think when I hit my 10 percent a new pair of jeans will be my reward.

Brooke....post away. :)

I'll talk to y'all later. I'm going to go clean....Hugs and kisses

Flo- That's so crazy that you have to go through all that trouble just to pee!!! LOL Fortunately, the staff restroom is literally next to my class, I can be gone for a total of 90 seconds if I need too. I've only left my class alone ONCE and I seriously thought I was going to wet myself. LOL Keep it up girlie...you are almost to the Onederland. I'm cheering for you!

Andrea- Thinking positive thoughts for you girlie!!!

Kim- I do realize how much they pay those dorks {er, I mean consultants!} The trainings I'm going to are down at the Los Angeles County Office of Education, sooooo hopefully they didn't spent their money on crap trainers. LOL, you know how much a v neck tee weighs!!! LMAO!!!!!!! I woke up at the same time as I do during the week ONLY because my kids were FIGHTING at 5 am!!! What's up with that????? :mad:

Brooke- ugh, don't go telling me if I sleep in I'll get a headache. LOL!!!! It's my only weekend guilty pleasure!!! You are starting tomorrow??? WOOHOO!!!!!!:cb: :cheer:

SweetP- HI!!!!! Have a great one too!!!

Michelle- OMG, I so know what you are talking about with ideas for the primary. Hate that!!! I have report cards that I have to finish up this weekend. WHich means, before I can finish those up, I have to finish up grading!! YIKES!!!! :book2:

Vbevens- Yeah, I suck in my stomach, I can't read the scale without doing that!!! LOL :o

Borders- :welcome3:

Magnolia- I totally understand!!! My husband's family is exactly like that!!! Congrats on your weight loss!!!!! :carrot:

My husband is going out of town tonight, so I might take my daughter to a movie. :corn:

Last night I had a dream about taking my kids to the BEACH!!! OMG, it was great to be able to sit on the beach and not feel ashamed of my body. It was the best dream ever. Now I have to turn that dream into reality!!!

Prep before package arrives
 

Is there anything I can do while I am waiting for my order to come besides clearing out the "junk" from my kitchen.

Vbev,
I have a health coach too. It's nice to ask her questions and get that one on one support and attention. PM me if you want her info.

Hello everyone - my we've grown!!

borders, your father in law needs etiquette lessons. Wow. Before I started, I ate what I wanted and wrote down how I felt after over indulging. I got my head together, read everything I could find, and found recipes. That's just me, but it really has made a difference in my attitude.

My grades were due yesterday, so I have nothing to do school wise this weekend. Although I'm taking a reading class because "we're all reading teachers." *sigh* I'm learning about phonics as I teach 15-18 year olds.

I think I'm going to go see Cloverfield. It looks good. This will be quite the test though cuz I LOVE the popcorn.

Be good,

Just a flyby to say I am so impressed with the progress all of you are making. Wow! Look at those numbers!

Sorry Michelle - :hug: - had intentions of returning this AM with personals but not sure where the day went :dizzy:

Vbens - I also use the Take Charge for lots of info!

borders - I agree about your FIL :hug: - some people :mad:

Hope2B - Great dream - see what you have to look forward to :)

Waving Hi to Magnolia, lettingslenderin, brookelizabeth, Ruth and Maya and anyone I am missing - sending :hug: to everyone...

I'm having a really hard time tonight. I didn't feel really great, so the scallops I bought for dinner are still sitting in the refrigerator. I'm queasy and shellfish didn't sound good. I took the baby to Sonic and got a grilled chicken salad. Curiously enough, a Sonic burger and tots sounds good...

Hanging on by my fingernails...

What are some suggestions to mix the shakes with? Water? milk? I ordered the strawberry creme, dutch chocolate and banana one.

Hi Everyone!

I made the MF "wings" recipe that I posted for my L&G and OMG it was absolutely DELISH!!!! UMMMMM... It became one of my favorite!!! Especially when my BF eats crappy food, I can feel like i am cheating... ;) but not really! I am really hoping to break under the 200 soon... I was right at 200 this morning...
Tonight i made some pancakes with the Oatmeal! I was kind of scared because the first recipe i tried was nasty but this one turned out great!!!
Here is the recipe i used if you all want to try to make this tomorrow for a great breakfast:

1 MF Oatmeal (I used Blueberries)
1/4 c of Eggs Beater ***
bewteen 2 and 4 TBS of water... Just enough to give the mix the pancakes consistency!

Then cook on a griddle!!!

*** TAKE THIS OUT OF YOUR LEAN FOR THE DAY

Yummie! I love all these recipes :D

Who would have thought that a diet could taste SO AMAZING!

Hi group,

I weighed in this morning at 204.4; yesterday at 204.2. Weeks ago that would have been discouraging now I am ok with it. I have noticed that even the little mini goals are so encouraging. I have moments where I think a nice warm dessert would be nice once a week, and then the desire fads. That is so unusual for me. I am hoping that next Sunday when I weigh in I will have hit Onederland. This is getting really exciting! I am starting to realize I can get back to where I used to be.

Jen

Borders - You mix the stuff with water - always. It's convenient, but not always the most tasty option. :)

I made it last night. This morning I'm not as sick feeling. I got up at 5:30, let the dog in/out, and went back to bed. This time I got up at 8 when my husband called from Hong Kong.

Drinkin' my cappuccino now, lookin' forward to the scrambled eggs.... :)

Good job Magnolia!!! I am happy that you are feeling better. :hug:

Flo, you are so close!

Borders, start cutting sugar out so that when you start you can avoid the headaches. And if you get headaches the first few days, drink more water and take meds if you can. Today is my first day, I am just telling you stuff I have read! I'll let you know how it goes.

I have not eaten yet, it's 9:15 AM. I have to take DD 2 back to college in Green Bay and fight Packer traffic so will take a bar with me. The game starts at 3:30 but people will be up there in the parking lot tailgating for hours before. It's -11 without the wind chill. INSANE!

We are having people over for the game so I will just sneak my shakes in. They know I have been dieting since April but they don't need to know the specifics.

Have a good day everyone! :dizzy:

Okay, I started cutting out my sugars and watching my calorie count. After I dropped my son off at work today, I stopped by Subway and got a turkey breast salad with lettuce,carrots, cucumbers, onions and peppers. I know carrots have a high carbs cut but I am trying to gradually get myself into the right mind set. I weigh myself this AM and I lost 2 lbs over the past two days by watching what I ate and cutting sugars. I also registered on mymedifast access this AM so I can log my meal and read through the tons of info while I am waiting. My WI day is going to be Mondays @ 7am as this holds me accountable over the weekends.

Brooke, what meds do I need to take? I am taking a multi-vitamin. I have also starting drinking around 4 half liter bottles of water a day. I have to figure out the ounces on them..lol

Okay...I figured out there are 17 oz to a half liter so I am drinking 68 oz of water a day

In addition to water, you can mix the shakes with just about any non-caloric beverage, and you can add flavoring for variety. To make it more like a "real" shake, cut your liquid in half and blend with an equal volume of ice. I measure 1/2 C water, then add crushed ice until it's a full cup. In a blender, the ice seems to fluff everything up. Not only do I end up with about 12 ozs, but it takes a bit longer to drink, it tastes better, and I find it more filling.

I like to accentuate the flavor by mixing with a diet soda of the same or complimentary flavor; e.g., diet strawberry soda + strawberry creme, diet orange or creme soda + orange creme. It may sound strange, but mixing with your favorite diet cola (Diet Pepsi is my biggest vice) can be pretty good too.

You might also consider picking up some sugar-free DaVinci or Torani syrups. They are calorie-free and come in over 30 flavors, from almond and amaretto to German chocolate cake, Irish Cream, cookie dough, and praline, to watermelon. I love these, and use them to make a wide variety of calorie-free Italian sodas as well.

Newest Onederland member
 

Hi everyone!

Just thought I would share my good news...

I am proud to say that as this morning I am a new ONEDERLAND member!!! YEAH!:carrot::carrot::cb::cb::broc::broc:

I hit 199.0 this morning!!! I guess my body is back in gear and in losing weight mode!!!

I am SO excited!!! I never thought 15 days ago that I would already be part of the club!!!

They have specials right now ladies (higher self-esteem, :love: with your scale!!!) lol! Well I hope you friends will join me soon if you are not already there!!!

Got to go play with my toddler!!!

Congratulations!!!! :carrot:

This is where I got my flavor drops

http://www.capellacoffee.com/flavord...fast/index.htm

You can search for 10% off codes. I used one at a website I found defrag or something like that. I haven't gotten the drops yet.

Thank u brooke!

CONGRATS FLO!!!!!!! That is great news!!!!

Hi everyone!
After a crazy scale week I ended up being down 3 pounds! What have I learned from weighing myself daily? That I can't do it. It makes me crazy!
So, this week I have decided that I won't weigh in everyday...maybe every other day. :lol:

Flo: Congrats on entering onederland!

SweetP Thank you for your good weigh in vibes!

Lisa: I have a big family too...6 kids, ranging from 4 yrs. to 20 yrs. I also lost weight doing weight watchers. I am actually still attending meetings because I really like my ww leader and I have few 'buddies' there. I hit a plateau and held steady for about a year before I started to gain it back. I have been doing medifast for about 2.5 weeks now and plan to keep on going until I reach my goal...and then figure out maintenance. But right now that seems so far away. I am just taking it one day at a time, one MF meal at a time. So far, so good! I'm sorry about what your FIL said to you. It made me whince when I read it. :hug:

My little boy (OK...so he's 20, not really little) is coming home from Florida this week. Yay!

Everybody have a great week!

I find I am addicted to the scale also. I am going to try to break away from it after I weigh in tomorrow.

Great job on the 3 lb loss!!!! That might be a good idea to keep going to ww at least for the WIs.

Too New
 

I received a private message, but was unable to reply because I haven't posted enough yet. It also looks like I'm not yet allowed to have a signature (or one of the oh-so-cool-I-really-want-one weight trackers). Darn! I suppose if I post my reply publicly, it will count toward my total and bring me closer to the goodies that come with participation. Looks like you'll be hearing more from me.

Help!!! Today was day one for me on medifast. Meal one was maple and brown sugar oatmeal. I dont like oatmeal but it wasn't too bad. Meal two was a French vanilla shake. Meal three was the Chicken and wild rice soup not that great but I ate it. Then meal 4 was the chili...yuk I had to force myself to eat it. I had lettuce and chicken breast strips as my L&G meal. Then I had the choclate bar for meal #5 double yuk I only ate half and threw it away. Please tell me the food gets better! I am committed to sticking to this because I just spent $300.00 on food but it is going to be very hard.

Public Reply to Private Message
 

The following is a public reply to a private message that I am unable to respond to privately. Sorry.
--
No apology necessary. Venting and sharing are healthy and helpful. Your progress to date is very impressive, so don't be too hard on yourself. Once upon a time, long, long ago, I lost over 50 lbs. w/MF—back when there were only a few shake flavors (no snacks, pudding, bars, etc., and certainly no L&G). I went off plan only once over the course of 3 months (one slice of turkey and 1 C of mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving). I was able to stick with it and the results were soo worth it. I was so young and so mortified with my post-2nd baby weight, I was highly motivated.

Now (22 years later with five kids plus grandkids), I'm older, unhappy with the weight that's gradually accumulated over the past 15 years, and looking forward to reaching my ultimate goal, but I'm less mortified and more comfortable with my somewhat slower progress. There are two primary reasons for my comfort level. First, I have 100% confidence that I will be successful with MF. I know from experience that it's a quality product, and if I could do it back in the day when it was a strictly liquid diet, I can certainly do it now. Second, the fact that I am now able to eat anything at all is such a bonus in my mind that I actually feel a little bit of a cheater's high every time I eat solid food. The fact that I have been able to lose as much as I have in my first three months on the current plan has reinforced for me that it works. I know that if I stick with it, I will be successful. Period. My only regret is that I waited too long to return to the plan. Now that I have, I am committed to it, but I have twice as much to lose this time so I know it's a longer-term commitment that I'm making.

If I allowed myself to stress over every special event or moment of weakness, I simply wouldn't make it. I prefer some flexibility (control issues? me? no, absolutely not. well, maybe), which is not to say that I regularly stray, but I made a deal with myself. If I do stray, it will be brief and I will "get back on the horse" without looking back. I wish I could say that I lost 50 pounds in my first three months back on MF, but I think losing 44 in under 4 months—while eating a meal every day—is great.

Regarding trouble with deprivation. I don't often experience real hunger, but feeling deprived can be much worse because it's emotional. I deal with this by adding as much variety as I can. This may not be sanctioned, but I figure that if the plan will allow me to have 70 calories of soy crisps, then 40 calories of sugar-free chocolate meringue cookies are probably okay too. Similarly, if I'm allowed to have a 160 calorie bar for one of my meals, but I prefer a 90-110 calorie shake, then in my mind I can justify an additional 70 calorie snack if I need it. In all honesty, I rarely have that second snack, but believing that it would be perfectly okay if I did makes all the difference for me. I am the one in control of deciding what I can have—so no deprivation. That having been said, there are some things that leave me powerless, and as such must be banished from the house (e.g., chocolate frosting :devil:).

It sounds like you're off to a fabulous start. Believe in yourself and you will be fine.:hug:

It sounds like your tastes and mine are similar—when it comes to dislikes anyway. I didn't care for the oatmeal, wasn't thrilled with most of the soups, and hated the chili. Fortunately, my husband didn't mind the oatmeal, so he ate it instead. I haven't tried it myself, but he added some of my DaVinci syrups to the oatmeal and said it was a major improvement (e.g., a couple dashes of sugar-free pumpkin spice or cinnamon, plus a sprinkle of Equal).

I don't mind the chocolate bar, but chocolate mint and lemon are what I usually reach for first. I love that there are so many options, but my preference is a shake (with vanilla being my last choice). I'm a chocolate fan, with cappuccino tying for first, followed by the hot cocoa, and an occasional pudding. Even with the flavors that I like most, I rarely have any of them straight. I almost always add flavoring (DaVinci or Torani), and with 1 oz each of pineapple, banana, and orange, even a vanilla shake can be pretty tasty. In my opinion, the least diet-tasting shake is the pre-made Dutch Chocolate. I do like the snacks. The soy crisps are much better than I expected, and I thought the robust tomato soup was actually pretty good.

Keep trying different things until you find what works best, and don't be afraid to experiment with flavorings. Oh, another thing that helps with the flavor of shakes is ice. The colder the shake, the better the flavor.

Hang in there! I've read that if you don't like something hang on to it and try it again later cuz your taste buds change. If you go to the recipe board here (or there is also one on the medifast site)can get some ideas for spicing things up a bit.
I always freeze my shakes...I add garlic and onion to the soup. I prepare soups and oatmeals in advance and reheat them. :stir: That seems to help with the taste and texture. Hopefully you'll find some tricks that make the food more palatable to you.

tjjs,
Repeat after me - SOAK and SPICE, soak and spice!! It is absolutely essential that you soak the soups and chili and spice them. I've found the soups just need pepper. The chili (oh the chili!!) needs pepper, a touch of hot sauce, and some garlic. I prefer the apple and cinnamon oatmeal over any of the others (peach, yuk). I add 3/4 cup of water and cinnamon extract and let it sit while I shower and get ready in the morning (almost an hour) and then nuke for 2 minutes. Most of the time I don't add anything to the shakes; I like them fine. You'll try lots of ways and find what you like, don't worry.

Flo - YAY!!!! Way to work it!!! I'm gonna try the pancakes - sounds yummy!

Magnolia, Good job chickie! It's tough, but worth it on weigh in day.

Good night all,

It was my first day too! We made it, it is day 2!!! I liked the chocolate shake, the vanilla mixed with coffee was good, the chocolate pudding was fine, the cocoa not as good. The caramel nut bar good, the smores okay. I detected a smell with the cocoa but I'll get used to it. I think I like the shakes the best.
I'll try the cr of brocc. soup in a few days, I did not order any other soups and my oatmeal hasn't arrived yet.

My daughter started with me and didn't do as well. She is a constant snacker and by 4pm was saying that she might need to modify. She is a vegetarian who doesn't like eggs, fake meat etc so it's going to be harder for her. I hate to admit it but I thought, if it doesn't work for her, I can stay on it longer because it is $$!! Bad mom.

Have a good day everyone!

I always soak my soups and have to add, at the very least, salt and pepper. Nothing, though, is going to taste like you think it should at first. I think that's the key. When you think "chicken and wild rice soup," you can probably taste Campbell's or Progresso. It's not like that.

I still don't *love* any of the food. It tastes good and it's satisfying. What it has done has made me quit obsessing over the taste of food. I don't keep eating anymore because it tastes soooo good. I think this must be what most food is like for some thin people I know who seem disinterested in eating.

Where is my signature and why isn't it in the User CP?

I agree with you Magnolia! The food is ok... and at this point you don't really eat for pleasure but then again... I LOVE modifying MF food by cooking it... so I guess it depends on personal taste :)

Thanks Michelle, Andrea, SweetP and everyone else that was happy for me reaching the Onederlands!!!

Hi, fellow MF-ers!
I'm not finding much time of late to check in here--but have been trying to keep up with the posts. :comp:
Congrats, Flo!!!! :hat:
Welcome to all the new folks! :welcome3:
You have all made a great choice with MF--I'm sooooo glad I started 10 weeks ago. And I found alot of inspiration to start on this forum. Thank you, Maya--where ever you are. I know we all can't wait to hear from you again! And thanks to Meowee and RuthXXX and Fab50 (Tex) and Lettingslendin for all of your supportive and helpful posts. Sending love to everyone--:grouphug:

Things are going smoothly here and I plan to move into maintenance in 3-4 more weeks.
Since I started this MF-ing diet on Nov. 14, 2007 I've lost 33 pounds. I am now 11 pounds away from my goal. I'm wearing size 10. I'm jogging daily. :running: AND I'm loving it! (Ummmm...my healthy life, not :mcd:) I haven't weighed this low since grad school in the early 90s!
The good news is ALL of you can be successful. Stick to it, it's sooo worth it. And you are more than worth it!
:cheer2::cheer::cheer2:

Later,
Carol

Do you guys worry about the calories being too low and having our bodies go into starvation mode and slowing metabolism down? I tried to vary my calories between 1,200 and 1,500 for about 5 months because I was convinced that my metabolism would slow down. I really didn't lose very fast.

Day 2 almost done. I have a cold and am not hungry so may not get all of the MF in. I am sure that won't be a problem in a week!

I love the cappuccino! I'll try chai but I am a bit afraid to!

How are the other newbies doing??

Hi Brooke,
I haven't added a link before so I don't know if this will work. If not, there's a post title Ketosis at the top of the medifast forum and that explains it.

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=130572

I was concerned about my metabolism slowing down, too. But it sounds like
this diet is really different than what I've done in the past.