Hi friends! Ive spent the past few hours reading the posts (and by no means did I get through probably even half of them) but I have my initial meeting in a few days and I have a few questions--
1. Alot of the food posted does not sound as "yummy" to me as it does everyone else...I didnt get to this weight by eating that stuff, and I think I will have a really hard time coping without certain foods...any comments on how the first few weeks were for you guys??
2. I am only 24 and to say I will never have a drop of alcohol in the next few months is completely unrealistic. How does that fit in?
3. Everything I have read is so positive about the program...Can anyone tell me about struggles...(other than hitting a plateau?)

oh man, i can totally feel you on #2. i'm 25, and it's incredibly difficult to be surrounded by friends who are drinking and not be able to join in.

first, some tricks: at the bar, drink club soda with lime. it looks like an alcoholic beverage, so no one will give you crap about not drinking, and it's actually not bad tasting, either. another decoy drink for a house party is a grape concentrate HNS in a wine glass. take your glass with you to the bathroom, dump in the concentrate packet, and add just enough water to make it look like a legitimate glass of wine.

that said, sometimes you just REALLY want to have a drink! so what i recommend is to just look at the situation and decide whether it's worth it. for example, last weekend, my boyfriend and i hosted people at our house to watch the season opener, and i decided to have a vodka and club soda or two. last night, on the other hand, i was at a bar with friends celebrating an engagement and chose to just drink club soda, and it was totally fine. the vodka/club soda didn't really blow me completely off track, but i will say that it definitely slowed me down. just really think about whether having a couple of drinks is worth slowing down your progress, and if you decide that it is, go with the least caloric drink you can find--vodka club soda is a really good example.

does that help?

This program is an excellent choice if you're ready to lose the weight. I mean really ready. For me, I started on the yellow menu and that has you eating 1 oz of cheese, melba toast and a half an orange plus the HNS just for breakfast. The yellow and blue menus are tough, but if you have enough will power to make it to day 11 you can cook practically anything in the MRC cookbook which I am sooo looking forward to since I have until Thursday to get more variety.

Figure out what salad dressing you can make that is approved by the plan and that will help out a lot with the loads of salad veggies. This plan really opens you up to using spices in cooking, more than just salt.

And ask at the center when you go in for the initial meeting about alcohol. Another idea is to google low cal cocktails that you can make. Good luck!

I know what you mean about both. I have found that foods I would never have cooked, ie buffalo, were pretty good. I was never on the yellow or blue menu. I have heard they are tough. but temporary. Use your perspective, I don't know what your weight is or how much you need to lose but my perspective is, I was considering gastric bypass. I was willing to let a surgeon cut my body and the diet after that is ten times more restrictive then MRC. The key that I found is that it is all a challenge. So, no salt, stock up on other spices, Ms Dash will save your taste buds. You will find that after a while, you just don't miss it. I ate some things with low sodium taco seasoning, it burned my lips from the salt. The foods and they way I prepared or ordered them have gotten me to this point. Time to turn that around and find a healthier way to live. So list some of your favorite foods and try to come up with a creative MRC way to make them. You just might surprise yourself.
Alcohol- I agree that it is unrealistic to think we will go months without have an alcoholic drink. Especially with holidays coming up. So key here is moderation. If it is you don't want to be left out, have one alcoholic drink (try to stay away from fruity frufru drinks, very high in calories and carbs) and then deploy the hns methods, offer to be the designated driver (free nonalcoholic drinks for you), use some of the receipies from the cookbook to make something to drink. I like to go to the bar with my friends, order ice water and then mix my hns while the bartender is not looking, then watch the puzzlement when he tries to figure out what happened! But then I like to amuse myself like that. Good luck and let us know what how it goes!

Hi Jennabean welcome 2 the forum! this is a good place to gather info abt this program - u'l be more equipped when u meet with the counselors - they try 2 give u mostly all of the sweet talk and how u need 2 buy all their pills - ive saved on so much $$ by using the info out here!

as for ur first few weeks- depending on the program - u have different menus. I started with the yellow switched to blue on the 5th day & on green currently till program completion. it can be a lil tough in the first few weeks bcoz u see so less food on ur plan that by the time u come 2 green ur so grateful for ever single option listed there! the good thing though is that ur never hungry - the HNS does a good job of keeping u full ( u can have 4 a day) and use that as 'ur snack'. As for struggles - well i guess just sticking 2 the plan 100% is part of the struggle - socializing is painful 4 me sometimes - its funny how everything is alwayz tied around food! also u need 2 spend enough time getting ur meals ready - all the weighing and cooking within the given limits does take a good amt of time and if ur not organized (like me) it can be difficult on weekdays- thats a part of my daily struggle . Limiting salt and carbs is no picnic and can take time getting used to. but ther's lots to learn and lots to gain(lose?) in a good way so hopefully u make the right decision when ur ready! good luck!

I appreciate you so much...but your answers gave me more questions!

All those color diets left me confused! What is what???

And to put the rest of it out there....I am 5 ft 2 and I weigh 180...I wear size 14 on a good day...

I already read "the advice for newbies" and what i am hoping to learn, is someone telling me their struggles at first, and if anyone has anything bad to say about this diet--i would like to hear that too--Everyone says great things, and that makes me scared that its too good to be true...anyone feel up to be my mentor??

and if anyone is wondering...I am completely committed to cutting back and being healthy--I am so committed that I havent told any of my friends or family that Im doing this...Im doing it for me, and me alone, however, Im also scared bc i have failed at so many different expensive diets...i hope this is different...and I really want to lose weight, but I dont want to tell anyone in case I fail....Is there anyone who felt like me when they first started???

jennabean u will first go thru precondition - this is a "normal" diet where u gradually reduce carbs n sugar n caffeine - to prepare u for the upcoming program - u then go 2 yellow menu for 4 days -( u have carb only 4 dinner), then blue menu for 5 days n finally green . I think u will find the menu info in detail on the newbies thread plus karen has some posted in detail in a recent thread (by coybug ) i think. that shud help.
as for ' bad' hmm let me give you a critical viewpoint of this program -(this is my 2 cents ) - mayb this diet is not the healthiest one out there - n this is because most ppl atleast (at some point on their program) are dependent on weight loss supplements (appetite suppresants, weight loss pills) to jumpstart their weight loss - now apart from alli there is no fda approved "safe" weight loss pills. Same goes for aspartame or artificial sweeteners - all the drinks mandatory on this program are spiked with aspartame - again is this healthy?? . This program is a high protein diet - in the long run again its not the most healthiest one. My husband has gout and the doc has advised him 2 stay off high protein stuff as it taxes the liver or kidney (or something like that - cant remember -sorry !). Also this diet is impossible 2 follow longterm without mrc supervison. Portion control is emphasized (which is a good thing) but the HNS keeps us full so it can be difficult 2 watch portions n not feel hungry once ur off the program.On any given day I'm taking 10 pills - vitamins included with each meal! makes u wonder ....
Phew! did i tick u off?? i hope not n thats definitely not my intention! just a real skeptical viewpoint mayb! well u knw its like this - most of the ill effects i mentioned above may or may not afflict me . Well i'd like 2 look at it this way - the potential "ill effects" mentioned above may or may not afflict me . But if i dint do this now n i continue putting on more weight i know for sure that ive signed up for some definite health problems. U just have 2 pick ur battles.

I felt just like you a week ago. You can ask my DH, I was scared to start the program because my hopes were so high that it was going to work because of all the promises from the center and from hearing good things here. I lost 7.5 pounds in my first seven days. You just have to remember that everyone is different. I started at 187 and am 5'4" and 28 yrs old.

It's going to be tough, you're going to want to quit sometimes. Just remember to stick with it and come here for support or call your center.

From reading in the forum it sounds like as long as you're healthy and have around 50 or so pounds to lose or currently weigh less than 200, you're probably going to be put on the yellow/blue/green menus. I don't remember the other plans right off-hand. This is the Meta-Slim plan and as my counselor explained, it's supposed to help jumpstart your weight loss by cutting the calories faster.

Stick through the yellow menu for four days, spices are your friend and the MRC dressing is great. You will feel hungry, and you probably will feel bloated from all the added water you have to drink (unless you stick to drinking 64oz during preconditioning which I didn't). This is your body adjusting to the new diet. I am on day 2 of the blue menu and I'm finally feeling loads better and actually starting to not feel hungry.

Once you hit the blue menu, the added creamy HNS and the diet soda can be a lifesaver for the cravings. The puddings aren't so bad, especially when you mix them. But like they said above, by this time you won't be so hungry.

I have lost 17# in about 18 days so I can tell you this program works. You will only get out of it what you are willing to put into it. I went today and bought slacks and tops that are two sizes smaller than what I was wearing a month ago so I am not going to blow my progress by having a glass or two of wine. I was 179 when I started and I am 5'1 so I am quite short. If you are really serious and willing to shell out the money, this is the real deal. You won't be sorry, I sure know I'm not.. Welcome and good luck! Glad to have you here..

Cheers!
Ronnie

I'm also a little worried about the no alcohol for 3 1/2 months... I found that Diet Coke, vodka and a splash of lime is 56 calories. You could also so crystal light lemonade with raspberry vodka.

I don't think I will even have a sip for at least a month... Better to stay on course than fall off the wagon.

if you're going to have a drink, i would recommend staying away from flavored vodka and just going with the plain stuff. flavoring i imagine would add sugar or calories somewhere?

I'm seeing your post was in September and am relatively new to this and wondering how things are going at this point. I can so relate to what you've typed--that fear of failure...feeling like what if it works for everyone else but not for me? Afraid to get your hopes up.....and yet I am hopeful....even if scared. I did preconditioning last week and am on day 2 of yellow menu--which I felt like crying when I saw----but it's been okay and I'm taking it a day at a time. What about you?

Thanks porchmom84. I know your new at this too but this has encorage me to stay strong. I just started preconditioning today. Me and my family go out to eat every Sunday after church. My husband wants to eat at places I know is cheap and unhealthy selections like Cici's Pizza. I've told them to go without me if they go to those places. I was afraid that they would but my husband said no I will go somewhere else or we can come home and eat. I thought WHEW! I want to cheat so bad but I can't. I've paid my money because I need help and support. Between this forum and the counselors I believe I can make it.

Oh that's GREAT news! We'll get through this together!