Well my Medifast Center called and will be closed tomorrow. So my dilemma is this: do I weigh in at home tomorrow (my regular weigh in day at the center) or forego it this week and just wait 'til next Saturday? I have not used the home scale at all (no so-called peeking!) so I am not sure of the difference in readings. The more I think about this the more I am prone to wait.

Decision made: I will wait until next February 11! I am so curious, but I would rather not be dismayed next week if the scales vary too much! Whew, now I feel better!

It has been an extremely busy week so I am sorry for the lack of personals. I am always amazed at how wonderfully everyone is doing! I couldn't be as successful thus far without our amazing group!

Good morning all!

I'm trying to be positive but am struggling. I weighed in this morning and lost 1 lb. My three week total is 16lbs which averages over 5lbs a week but I'm still disappointed. I know the number is going in the right direction and I'm trying to prop myself up. I just have so far to go that I need each week to have significant progress. I'll be okay, I just need to vent.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Cheers,
Laura

P.S. I am enjoying a nice breakfast of fully formed pancakes thanks to your advice!

Hi Everyone-Happy Saturday!!

Laura: Don't get discouraged, 16 lbs in 3 weeks is awesome. You and I started within a few days of each other and you have lost double the amount I have.. I remember the first time I tried this diet I lost a ton the first two weeks and the third week I didn't lose, the fourth week I lost a ton again. It could be so many things contributing.. water, hormones, stress, etc. Also-what is the alternative?? You go off the diet and gain back the 16 and be right where you started?? This diet works-there is enough evidence of that here in this thread, so I see no reason to give up or even be discouraged, you are doing great.

Last night I made the best lean and green. I had a can of fancy white lump crab meat, and I mixed that with a tiny bit of chopped red pepper, an egg, and crushed up a packet of the rosemary crackers for "breadcrumbs". I formed those into crab cakes and cooked them in my cast iron skillet. For my green, I peeled a turnip and cut it into wedges and put those into the oven at 350 for about 15-20 minutes and then flipped the and roasted until they turned a light brown. I had a huge plate of food, for like 350 calories and it was so delicious- the turnips legit tasted like French fries!! Yum Yum Yum. Definitely making this one again.

Ive been increasing my activity level the last few weeks and it hasn't really sped up my weight loss but Ive been feeling better all around. MOre energy and stamina. Ive been taking my dog to the park for a long walk so it is benefitting him and I. I cant wait until I lose these first 20 lbs so I can hit the gym hard core!! I plan on getting a trainer and I a going to focus on building muscle. I have always wanted defined arms and I feel really motivated to get there. Like Ive said before I am about to turn 40 and I plan on my 40's being my best decade yet!!

IN addition to getting myself as healthy as possible I am also trying to grow professionally and spiritually. Ive been on this journey for a few years now and I am amazed at how much better life gets when you actually make an effort to be a better person. I quit drinking a little over 3 years ago and that was the beginning. I went to AA and everything, worked the steps, you name it. I highly recommend 12 step programs for people. There is literally a meeting for everything.. Overeaters anonymous is another one. I cant tell you how beneficial it has been for me.

Anyways-just some of my musings this Saturday morning. I hope you all have a great weekend!!

Carmen

Thanks, Carmen. My brain knows not to fret but my spirit hasn't caught up. I have spent the morning looking at MediFast coach videos on YouTube to get my head back in the game. I love the crab cake recipe! I need to bookmark that to come back and try making them when I have the crackers.

I come from an AA family, I spent my youth in Alateen and totally agree with the 12 steps philosophy. I coincidentally stopped drinking after New Years because of how it affected my heart, so I have that going for me to make sticking to the program easier.

Today is my official 3 week mark where I can add exercise and I'm looking to take a walk later today or returning to light yoga to stretch myself out. Thanks again for the support!

Laura

It's a beautiful, sunny but cold day here. Just seeing the sun makes me smile. This morning as I was packing to drive to visit my family in for the week, I decided to try on clothes. Wow, was that fun! It was great to pull those things from the back of the closet and even pack some for my trip. Others are too small still but not for long. I feel more motivated than ever which is great because for the first time since beginning this journey, I felt weak last night. Not weak as in, I want to eat everything in the house. But weak as in, I sure would love to go out and have an unhealthy dinner. I shook it off pretty quickly and told myself that this week, I will be eating out a lot and making smart choices will be critical.

My weight is same today. Since I am an every day weigh-in person, I am happy with because after a couple days of decent losses, its time for a few days of maintaining or even a show of a bit of gain or two. I am actually ok with that as long as I know I'm doing the right things. Overall, I've been at 3 1/2 lbs a week except for the first week and I am thrilled with that rate.

Laura, Carmen is right, try not to get discouraged. You are doing amazing things. The very reason most people don't like to weigh themselves daily, is the reason I do it. If I am up one day (which I have been), it generally falls off the next and even more then next. Weight fluctuates even during a diet. I would be more disappointed with seeing only a 1lb loss in a week than seeing a 1 lb gain in a day. I had that happen this week and I knew I hadn't done anything off plan except to lift weights. Within the next 2 days, I was down 3 lbs. I'm not advocating you start weighing in more frequently, only trying to show how much it can swing with no change in diet (totally on plan). I'm betting you just happened to weigh in on an "up" day. You've been doing amazingly well.

Carmen, I MUST try your crab cake L & G. I'm hungry just reading about it. What a great idea!

PQ Really excited for you to start the program with us on Monday. Please check in as frequently because Joyce is right, This is a wonderful support forum. The first few days are truly the hardest. Once you get past that, you'll feel great.

I wanted to weigh in on the topic of becoming healthier physically, mentally and spiritually. It really warms my heart to see both Carmen and Laura talk about their experiences with the 12 steps program. We all have something or someone in our lives that prevents us or them from being the best they can be (for a thousand reasons). It weighs heavy on the heart and soul be it yourself or watching someone you love. Generally speaking, everyone wants to put their best selves/A game out to the world. The reality is we all have struggles.

Several months ago, I spent the weekend with a group of women I lived with for year at the age of 18 when we all started college together. Its amazing that just shy of 40 years later, we still love to be together despite the differences in our lives. We spent hours sharing what had been happening in each one of our lives (it had been 10 years since we'd all been together). When I spoke, I told the good, the bad, and the struggles. I love and trust these women. We shared everything together as very young adults yet from listening to their stories, you would think that everything was rainbows and puppies. I shared that my ex-husband had become a compulsive gambler and how negatively that had impacted my sons lives as they were going through high school and college. And worse yet, his family history of addiction had manifested in one my own sons in the form of drugs. Soon, every single one of my friends was able to share what was weighing on their souls. Every struggle, big and small, matters to someone. Being able to share, helped us all.

I have no experience with the 12 steps programs because those in my family that need it, have flat out refused to even try it. But for myself, I find that sharing with those I truly trust, helps immensely. On a positive note, my youngest son's struggles with drugs has turned the corner for the first time in 3 years. I've invested more time and money in this child than I can count and wouldn't change a minute of it because he is still here. His father has also turned his life around in the past year. None of this came easily.

The point of all this rambling was certainly part vent but more to say, support, be it 12 steps, a message board on weight loss, or good friends and family along with a "get it done" attitude can make all the difference. For everyone here, remember, just being here shows you are making good choices and have the right attitude. That's 1/2 the battle!

Stay the course!

Sheila

Great Post Sheila!

Sheila and Carmen ~

Thank you so much for sharing a much appreciated glimpse into your private lives.
I, too, am on a spiritual and emotional quest. I have joined a small group led by a psychotherapist. We are delving into the emotions at play during binge eating. I have been rewarded with new insights into reasons why I had turned to this behavior.

I have also joined two spiritual groups within my Catholic church that are exploring the purpose of life, the need for gratitude and the outreach to others that can be extended in so many ways. I tend to "hibernate" with my thoughts and yet it is so good to get outside of myself and experience others' experiences with life's problems and how to cope with them.

Friends, as Sheila has so beautifully illustrated, are a key element in our recovery.
I meet with 4 courageous women in all stages of their lives who share weekly at lunch their innermost turmoil and their acceptance of their situations in a very peaceful way. And yet we still display our anger, resentment and resolution to those areas of our life in which we have no control.

I certainly do think that AA is very relevant in so many ways. The twelve steps deal with the internal development of our addiction and the map to overcome one day, one hour or one moment at a time, the physical or emotional pull to numb ourselves for whatever reason we discover on our journey.
I often hear people who say that alcoholics are different. They give up alcohol, never have to drink again, but we as bingers still have to eat! My response is it IS the same. We have to give up sugar (or whatever the addictive food might be) and not touch it again - just for today.

Medifast is a tool to physically orient our bodies toward a healthy lifestyle. And yet we know underneath the facade of control, there are all these emotions that need tending. I am so glad our discussion here has taken this turn. I believe it will beneficial in the long haul.

We are good for each other. :grouphug:

Wow you guys, I think I shared that I bought a few Optavia packets from someone who quit Medifast. I am now so glad I only bought a few. I had the Chipotle Mac and Cheese and thought it was just awful!! I made it according to the package and it was very soupy and watery. I added some cooked broccoli to take up some of the cheese sauce, but it was still just awful to me. I got most of it down and I have 1 more packet. Ideas to make it better? Then today I tried the Optavia honey cinnamon sweet potatoes. I love sweet potatoes!! These though, they had the smell of hot protein powder, which I hate, so I let it cool a bit until just warm. It tasted like warm protein powder to me. I am so disappointed. I thought these would be delicious. Maybe I am just too picky. I have one more packet of the sweet potatoes as well. I might just try making a shake out of it with some vanilla sf syrup. It might taste like pumpkin pie shake?

Editing to add, I tried the biscuit, sigh, not a fan either :( I guess I am just an old fashioned shake, bar, hot cocoa, and pancake kind of gal. I could probably live on just those things plus an occasional mac and cheese or pretzels.

Steph- I have also not found a single Optavia food that I like better than MediFast foods. Frankly, most are pretty bad (to me). SUPER disappointed. The upside is that I LOVE the MediFast foods, so I, too, will just roll with that for the next several months.

hi TWINCA! Glad I am not the only one. All the reviews and ads for Optavia online make them sound so amazing, and I admit I was excited by the idea of a biscuit or some sweet potatoes on plan, but I guess it is not to be. Like you, I like the old Medifast foods just fine so I will be okay. I am glad I got to try a few Optavia products so I know I am not missing out on something fantastic. Although those bars really do look and sound delicious. I only have one other new food to try and it is the pesto mac and cheese. I do not have my hopes up.

Happy Sunday all!

I'm feeling a little better today. I weighed myself again and lost .6lb. I think I will take it day by day and work this out in my head.

I am grateful that my husband is not a football fan today. He is a Red Skins fan, but when they're not playing, he's not interested. It helps to avoid the Super Bowl hoopla and the expected excuse for snacking.

Hope everyone has a great day!!

Laura

Steph & TWINCA ~

Thanks for sharing about your experiences with Optavia packets. I've been hearing that from many people. The higher cost of it kept me from buying it.

I order 5 kinds only now: ""Barnyard" oatmeal (my favorite), one kind of bar, hot cocoa, dutch chocolate shake, and a cruncher like the Cheese bites or Honey Pretzel. I have found these are my favorites and I don't stray from them. Some need the variety of food where I just need the consistency of the same meals. Weird, I know.

Karen

Laura ~

So glad you are feeling better today. It takes time to work things out in our heads. Good for you for making it through these last few HARD days.

I have a SB party at my house today that I am hosting. The best part of hosting is that I've prepared some tasty healthy food that I'll be able to nibble on and use for my L&G. I'm certain everyone is bringing off plan food but I am rarely interested in it anymore.

I'll miss sitting and having a glass of wine with these friends BUT a glass of seltzer water is ALL I NEED and what keeps me on plan.

I hope we all enjoy the SB today. It is do-able to stay on plan on days like this...just takes a little bit of planning.

Karen

Laura, I am with you on the "I should have lost more" and "this needs to happen faster" headspace. I only lost 2 pounds this week and am trying to be happy with that. It really is about attitude. We are doing just fine overall and as long as we stick with it we WILL get to goal.

Karen, that was enlightening to read (about your being ok with just a few items). I have always felt like I want variety and lots of choices, but when it comes down to it I usually choose the same few things for my meals if I have them. I realize I could do this whole diet with just Hot cocoa, chocolate shakes, 2 or 3 kinds of bars, and some pretzels.

I was invited to a big Superbowl party this afternoon (featuring pizza and plenty of other party foods) and my son really wanted to go. But I am so thankful one of his school age friends invited him to a different, more kid-friendly superbowl party so I let him go to that one while I get to stay home for some down time with my MF shakes. LOL.

Happy Monday!!

Hope everyone came through the Super Bowl weekend unscathed. My new shipment should be coming later this week, while I'm away in Charlotte. Looking forward to new items to try and won't miss a few things, I'll admit.

Oh, I had a moment over the weekend when talking with my husband. I was still trying to work out my disappointment with "just" one pound and we were talking about the commitment that eating this way requires. I cannot eat this way for my whole life, and I'm hesitant at the thought of eating like this for over a year; life is not built to support that for that long.

I thought about a couple things: I am going to approach this like one trains for a marathon - an intense period of very strict behavior over the course of 6-8 months culminating in optimal fitness to run 26.2 miles. Interestingly one of my happiest times of my life was the time I spent training for a half marathon. That weekly distance increase gave me such a sense of accomplishment.

The other thought I had was that it takes 8-9 months to gestate a human, I can afford to take the same amount of time to reinvent myself; I figure if a pregnant woman can go without eating certain foods that are harmful to her baby, I can approach my eating plan a similar way.

Just some ramblings from my ever-busy brain.

Have a great day!!

Laura

Happy Monday!

I picked Monday's as my weigh-in day since I knew the weekends can sometimes be hard and knowing I have to get on the scale Monday morning keeps me motivated to stay 100% on plan.

So today I lost 3 pounds for a total of 58 pounds lost with 26 pounds to go. I feel great! I have found some good energy in this final stretch. The weight loss is clearly a factor in that, I'm sure.

I was thinking since my re-start on 12/12 how much I've changed the way I do Medifast this time around:

No caffeine
Drink about a gallon of water each day - pure water nothing added
Log my food everyday
Weigh food & use measuring spoons at every L&G meal - no eyeballing
Eat the leanest meat I can
Always have at least 1 liquid (shake or cocoa) daily
Only eat 1 bar daily- two bars seem to stall me and upset my stomach
Never eat any optional snacks or add them to Medifast meals
30 minutes of cardio exercise every day beginning week 3

There are days I grow tired of these rules BUT I keep reminding myself that these rules are getting me to the finish line.

I have to just keep getting up each day and repeat the day before and keep moving forward.

Karen

Karen, those are great guidelines! I'm not at the no caffeine stage yet myself, but only drink one or two cups a day. I had increased it last week (and maybe that's what stalled me), but I found myself not finishing the cup and not sleeping well, so I dialed it back.

Thanks!
Laura

TODAY IS DAY 1 FOR ME! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

So far I've had a vanilla shake with black coffee....iced...it was PRETTY GOOD!

Welcome on the journey, PQ!! Feel great about your decisions today!!

Laura - Thank you! I'm feeling pretty good so far... :)

Karen ~ You continue to amaze me! Congratulations! 3 pounds is awesome, especially this close to goal! Obviously your rules are paying off! :high:

Also, a big cheer for coming in at 1st place this week in the New Year, New You Challenge! :cheer3: For all the newer members here, check it out. It is the thread under Chicks for a Challenge! Anyone can join in. It goes until the March 15. Just another fun incentive!

PQ glad you liked the shake! How is the rest of your day going?

I have had an Orange drink at 7am, a chocolate shake at 10, and the Optavia pesto mac and cheese at 1. I have to say this mac and cheese is better than the chipotle, but I would never buy it again. The Wonderslim cheese steak macaroni is so much better (blasphemy, sorry!). I have 2 more packets of the pesto kind. I can eat them, just not great.

I took a walk outside today maybe a mile. I am going to try and start walking more as the weather warms up.

Steph - so far so good!

This morning I had a vanilla shake with black coffee iced, then my 2nd meal was the berry cereal with 1/4c of unsweetened almond milk and in a few minutes I'll be eating my 3rd meal the Ziti Marinara. I hope it's good.

I would like to try the mac and cheese, probably on my next order. I LOVE mac and cheese! :)

I live in Alaska so it's been too cold to walk outside but I've got my fitbit and it buzzes me to move every hour so I'm walking around our office alot lol. I have a desk job :(

So, my first order took forever to ship from Texas. I just got confirmation that my latest order is shipping from Maryland and arriving tomorrow! Woot!! I'll be able to organize it before I leave for Charlotte and have the fifth meal I was missing for my last travel day.

So excited!

Laura ~ Yea for fast shipments! When are you leaving for Charlotte?
You sound very chipper - that shipment is like Christmas all over again! :present:

Polynesian Queen ~ You are doing so well on your first day! Stick with us as the second and third days may be a little tricky...but then it is smooth sailing!

As far as the Mac 'n Cheese - order a single packet of the Medifast Mac to try. There's not much, and some people have a very hard time getting it to thicken.

I agree with Steph: the Optavia brand of the Chipotle Mac is awful and the Pesto Mac is okay.

Day 1 Done!
 

It's almost 9:30p and I'm about to have my brownie for the night.

These were my meals for today:

1-Vanilla shake with coffee iced
2-Berry cereal with 1/4c unsweetened almond milk
3- Ziti marinara
4- Honey Pretzel Sticks
5- L/G 3oz Tilapia & 3oz chicken breast with lemon pepper seasoning and 2.5c spinach and 1/2c mushrooms baked together
6- Brownie

I've had several spots of hunger pains today. I try not to think about it and drink water...it's hard but not as hard as I thought it would be. I hope I can make it to 3 days!

PQ! Great first day!! Knowing that the most difficult days are the first three helps a lot. You've got one down, two more to go!! Great job!

Joyce, I leave for Charlotte early Thursday morning. I had plotted and prepacked my meals already but now I'm tempted to swap some things out to try. Maybe I'll just take one of the bags of popcorn I ordered this time. It really is like Christmas!! :dance:

Cheers,
Laura

Laura - Thank you :)

PHEW! I had a really rough night last night when I went to bed. I mean I was fine the whole day. I did have a few spells of really bad hunger pains but drinking water helped, but when I went to bed I started having a mean headache and I just felt so sick like I was starving and it was painful like my stomach was trying to come out my throat. I was so UNCOMFORTABLE! :( I couldn't handle the pain so I ate one of the maintenance bars and that helped a little but I just laid in bed uncomfortable until I passed out about 2am-ish.

This morning when I woke up I was fine. I hope this doesn't happen to me every night :*(

PQ, sounds like the worst of it may have happened. I didn't have as bad a reaction as you, but I did get the hunger between meals and did find that water alleviates that a lot. It also helps flush out your system so double the benefit!! Stay strong!!!

Polynesian Queen ~ So sorry you had such a rough night! Unfortunately this carb detox is par for the first 3 days. Just remember all of us - we went through it, and we are here to tell you that you will survive! After those first couple of days life is grand. You will feel better than ever and the cravings will disappear!!

Keep coming here. We will get you through it. Your menu looks beautiful. Don't give up!!!
You can do this!

Laura - Thank you. I hope that it was temporary because I can't go thru another night of that but I'm trying to stay strong! :)

MorningGloryThank you! I love this site and grateful for all the support here! :)

I had a point of frustration this morning. While I have no cravings, I cannot seem to shake my appetite triggers. My husband made his breakfast this morning (bacon and eggs) and while I had already finished my cereal and was literally NOT hungry, I was really wanting to sample his bacon. This is a behavior that I know is one I need to wrestle.

The last time I lost a ton of weight, I was able to eliminate 'boredom' eating from my behavior. It appears this time it is going to be resisting my appetite impulses. I think it plays into my avoidance of the Super Bowl hoopla; I'm a marketer's dream. I subconsciously 'buy in' on advertising. One of the things that I used to do when I was regaining all my weight was get triggered just by WORDS. I worked in television and placed the commercials in the system. Just SEEING the words Dairy Queen would send me there on my way home from work. This issue is so much bigger than boredom eating for me. Need to figure out how to reprogram my brain!!

Thanks for listening!!

Laura

PQ, YOu are really doing great! I know its hard the first few days but then, it is so so worth it! I know I was mostly ok until day 3 when I was light-headed and had a terrible headache that took all day to shake. I drank a lot of water, had some broth and advil and just tried to sleep it off. Once you come off that carb detox, you really will feel so much more energetic and the cravings fade. From that point forward, its mind over matter rather than the physical cravings. Fight through the first couple days and then let the scale be your reward. Its an amazing feeling!

We are all so proud of what you are doing!

Stay the course,

Sheila

I'm on my week visit to my home state to see my family. I'm also working so my time is very busy but fulfilling. I'm seriously challenged without a handy scale to track myself. Its far to easy for me to go into denial about what I do eat if I don't check the scale.

That being said, I went to a "gender reveal" party for my new grandchild on Sunday. Yes, I am told that is a thing now! It's a boy BTW. The party was at an Italian restaurant served as a catered meal. Only pasta, bread and salad (with the dressing already on top). It was a challenge but I ate a bar before I went and pulled the chicken (like 2 ozs) and spinach from the pasta, ate a tad bit of salad, no bread and no cake. All in all, I did well. I was going to make that my L&G but it really wasn't enough food so I had peel and eat shrimp during the Super Bowl and...my demise, a triscuit cracker with 3 small pieces of sharp cheddar cheese. Oh, and 4 ozs of red wine.

I am trying very hard to make this week a test of maintenance eating combined with my MF food. Yesterday, we had Mexican and I ate some meat and veggies from one the kids fajita platter. Overall I've done well but it sure is easier at home to stay with the program! I'm even finding it harder to drink enough water for some reason. I guess the proof will be in the scale when I return home on Sunday! Ultimately, we have to live in the real world with real food and temptation. I am trying very hard to make good choices this week with a eye toward portion control no matter what I eat.

Stay the course!

Sheila

Good morning everyone! I am on Day 3 :) I didn't sleep well my first night. It was bad, but last night I slept just fine and was able to fall asleep without any problems but I think it's because I didn't get much sleep the night before.

I have lost 2lbs! Is that normal?

So far I dislike the pretzels, cheese puffs and mashed potatoes. I love the shakes, all the bars, the berry cereal and soft bakes....

PQ, we have similar tastes. Hang onto the ones you don't like because later in the diet your taste buds change and they may taste good to you. If not you can either find "recipes" for those packets online to make them taste better, or you can trade them with someone else for ones you do like.

Two pounds is great! Usually people do lose faster right at first because when you go low carb a lot of water releases from your body. Enjoy the fast losses!

Steph THANK YOU. I'm getting excited about this. I'm halfway into day 3 and I feel fine!...