Originally Posted by Readyforchange:
Yes, I think it is very important to eat things when they tell you. I know that some of the menus have you eat fruit in the morning and some at lunch, but I don't know of any that let you eat it at night. From what I understand, your metabolism responds to the different food combos that they give you.

Hope that helps! :)

Oops.

Originally Posted by SlimInside:
Oops.

Chalk it up to learning the program. That's why it's important that we write down what we eat at each meal so they see what we are doing. I remember making quite a few mistakes in the beginning (Not that I'm perfect now) but it does happen and they want to help you understand the reasoning behind it all.:hug:

Originally Posted by SlimInside:
I have a quick question... does it matter when we eat our food? A couple of times, I've forgotten to eat my fruit at lunch. Is is okay that I had it after dinner, or does that mess everything up?

Thanks for the help...

I was specifically told not to switch foods or rearrange the menu at all, so apparently it DOES matter :dizzy:

Originally Posted by SlimInside:
I have a quick question... does it matter when we eat our food? A couple of times, I've forgotten to eat my fruit at lunch. Is is okay that I had it after dinner, or does that mess everything up?

Thanks for the help...

I wouldn't have the fruit and bread both for dinner - too much sugar & starch at one meal which can set you up for cravings (it does me, at least - but I also know I'm pretty carb sensitive). If I forget it at lunch I just skip it for the day. OR have the fruit for dinner and no bread. But usually I skip it.

There's a reason we weigh & measure our food - it's all about keeping the correct proportions of protein/carb/fat at each meal so that we don't get hungry between meals.

Originally Posted by Meemo:
I wouldn't have the fruit and bread both for dinner - too much sugar & starch at one meal which can set you up for cravings (it does me, at least - but I also know I'm pretty carb sensitive). If I forget it at lunch I just skip it for the day. OR have the fruit for dinner and no bread. But usually I skip it.

There's a reason we weigh & measure our food - it's all about keeping the correct proportions of protein/carb/fat at each meal so that we don't get hungry between meals.

I've been really, really faithful to the program, and my home scale indicates I'm losing like crazy, so I'm going to keep my fingers crossed that it won't hurt me too much at weigh-in tomorrow. I should have asked sooner.

And who knew I'd miss carrots, of all things? :carrot:

Originally Posted by SlimInside:
I've been really, really faithful to the program, and my home scale indicates I'm losing like crazy, so I'm going to keep my fingers crossed that it won't hurt me too much at weigh-in tomorrow. I should have asked sooner.

And who knew I'd miss carrots, of all things? :carrot:

I miss them too!!!

When to eat...
 

Originally Posted by SlimInside:
I have a quick question... does it matter when we eat our food? A couple of times, I've forgotten to eat my fruit at lunch. Is is okay that I had it after dinner, or does that mess everything up?

Thanks for the help...

I was told at the center to try to eat everything for that meal within an hour. Otherwise skip it, but they frown upon skipping any part of your meal because everything works together.

Originally Posted by busyink:
I was told at the center to try to eat everything for that meal within an hour. Otherwise skip it, but they frown upon skipping any part of your meal because everything works together.

Thats good info to know because sometimes while cooking my protein I will have my HNS and lunch takes me forever to eat!! Does anyone else notice this?

Hungry after dinner
 

I am on day 4 of the preconditioning menu, and I'm having a hard time not eating something after dinner. I'm truly hungry, so I don't think it's me craving something. It could be that I'm breastfeeding, or that I'm use to eating more than 3 times a day. I'm also drinking 96 oz of water a day. Does anyone have a suggestion on how to beat these hungry mode in the evening?

I use my creamy at night as my fourth HNS for the day (or a regular HNS in herbal tea) & if I'm really feeling hungry, I drink a fiber drink too, but honestly, there are not very many times I feel hungry - quite the opposite - I am having trouble eating all of the food - I am usually stuffed!

The first four weeks of the program, I did take the appetite suppressant herbs from the center, and I guess they helped because I was never hungry.

Hope this helps.
Good luck to you! :)

Thought I would update you all - since my husband hid the scale, I am a MUCH happier person. I don't care what the number reads on the scale, especially since I had to get rid of some slacks the other day because they were too BIG! Wow! What a great feeling! :)

Thanks for the encouragement to keep going - so glad I didn't give up!

Originally Posted by andifaye:
I am on day 4 of the preconditioning menu, and I'm having a hard time not eating something after dinner. I'm truly hungry, so I don't think it's me craving something. It could be that I'm breastfeeding, or that I'm use to eating more than 3 times a day. I'm also drinking 96 oz of water a day. Does anyone have a suggestion on how to beat these hungry mode in the evening?

I struggle with this at times too. Try the fiberfill drinks and make sure you're drinking the maximum allowed protein drinks. I'm sure breastfeeding has a lot to do with it! Are you on the center's BF plan? I've heard that it is higher calorie to support BF. I thought I read that you needed 1900 a day which would be way over the regular MRC menu. You are also burning cals like crazy...make sure and talk to your counselor and see what they suggest. You might also want to increase your water. It will be beneficial for breastfeeding, will help you feel more full, and will help w/ the weight loss. I can't remember the exact number, but I think they recommend an extra 8 ounces for every 25 lbs you are trying to lose. Someone please correct me on that number if I'm wrong!

I just re-read your post and noticed that you are still pre-conditioning. I would think that having some veggies, fruit, or low fat cheese as an evening snack would be ok. Call your center and see what they say. Good luck!

Originally Posted by andifaye:
I am on day 4 of the preconditioning menu, and I'm having a hard time not eating something after dinner. I'm truly hungry, so I don't think it's me craving something. It could be that I'm breastfeeding, or that I'm use to eating more than 3 times a day. I'm also drinking 96 oz of water a day. Does anyone have a suggestion on how to beat these hungry mode in the evening?

I know you won't want to hear this, but more water might be a good idea. Their baseline for water is 64 oz, plus 8 oz for every 25 lbs you're overweight. Add to that the water you need for nursing...if they told you 96 oz then stick with that, but you might want to add a little & see if it helps.

Also, you might want to add a little protein and/or fat to your evening meal. Maybe some of the low fat string cheese. Once you get into the actual menu you can have a protein drink or fiber drink (or both) in the evening to help. And you may just be used to eating so much with being pregnant & breastfeeding that your body is screaming for that food it's gotten accustomed to having. Don't take preconditioning too seriously though - if you need bigger portions, have them. Not crazy bigger, just a little.

Or...you could try...
 

I started getting hungry about Day 4 also--- once you can start your creamy HNS's -- you can do what I'm doing right now--having a nice cup of hot chocolate. The puddings are great too. In the meantime, I relied on decaf coffee. Just the warmth helped fill me up-- a little sweetner, and if you like flavored coffee...just a dash of cinnamon. It did the trick for me. Granted, I wasn't breast-feeding, but if you are a coffee drinker, maybe it can take the edge off for you.
Oh, and if it helps-- that Day 4-5 have been the only times I've been hungry.

Does anyone know if Metabolic Research guarantees that you will lose your weight by the date that they set on your first visit? Because I am losing very slowly, and I know that there is no way the initial goal weight will be met by my "end" date. What do they do/say if you have not met your goal? Thanks! :)