Thanks for the encouraging feedback! I found that I will definitely have to get in a different frame of mind with this plan. Today I had a couple of meals that I almost bypassed because I forgot that I had to eat. I enjoy the additional fruit and dairy - I have missed my yogurt.

I had decided in December that I needed to start working out more now and make it a habit before I met goal and had to go into maintenance. I cannot believe that I am enjoying working out for the first time in my life. I found kickboxing and yoga to be my favorites. I have so much more energy now and with the Metabalance plan I won't have to worry that I am working out too much (over 200 min/week).

Don't get too down on yourself about cheating. Just start back on plan and drink plenty of water tomorrow to help flush the off program out of your system. You have look at this as a sustainable, lifestyle change. There will be times that you eat off program. It happens. But you just get back on at your next meal. Don't beat yourself up but do start back on immediately.

Congratulations Teacherlady!!

At WI yesterday I stayed the same but they took measurements. I lost 10 1/2" since the beginning of January. And over 40" since November 1st. My fat mass decreased by 38 lbs however I have only lost 27 lbs in total .. muscles are developing ... working out is paying off. Its hard to believe some times. The consultant said that typically people lose 1" for every lb lost. She thought I had lost more inches than lbs due to taking MR6. And since I have been taking since the second week on the plan, I have no way of knowing for sure. Just keep up the good work.

Make this a wonderful week!

I love reading everyone's post. Tomorrow I go in for my first weigh in since I started last week. Can't wait. My scale at home shows a lost, so I think that's good news.

I find that I have to remember to eat sometimes and find out the evening is here, and I still have stuff to take. I'm not as hungry, I think, since I haven't had carbs for a week. And fruit and veggies fill you up with smaller quantities. Who knew? LOL.

I'm wanting to speed up time, so 9 am will get here. I want a loss. Hurry Hurry.

Good luck to you! I think you'll do great at weigh in!

Welcome to the mrc forum. Remember that this is not a sprint and things happen. Take it one day at a time.

Yay! That is awesome!

So I ended up making the chili in the cookbook. I ate a little bit of it but crumpled when it came to my hubby's chicken wings. We had friends over and I tried really hard, but I ended up eating a couple of wings. Boo! I know i'm going to be kicking myself the rest of the week. I hope everyone had a great night & weekend. Here is to another week op!

I am brand new to MRC. I bought 10 boxes of drinks/soups for $90 from MRC.
Is there some place to get it cheaper?

Sometimes dietdirect dot com has sales. They sell hns under another name.

How did you like the chili? I LOVE it and eat it at least once a week.

Make sure you drink lots of water to flush the sodium from the wings! I didn't realize how much salt tends to be in chicken wings--even homemade ones--until my husband made some this winter for a football party and made a separate "low sodium" batch specifically for my father who has high blood pressure.

Hi there! I started out on metaslim and finished on metabalance. I had completely stopped losing on metaslim for a month. When I switched, I felt so much more energetic and continued to lose at a rate of 1-3lb/week. All of the working out was just tearing my body down with the small amount of calories on metaslim. After I started stabilization and added even more calories, I lost 7 more pounds. Just make sure you stick to your exercise program and weigh/measure carefully. I found it hard to go down to 3oz protein, but because you eat more often, it's ok. I just didn't really feel "full" after meals, but was going to eat within 2 hours anyway.

Good luck! ps. my favorite evening snack was plain yogurt mixed with a mixed berry hns.

It's a menu for people who exercise vigorously over 200 min/week. It adds some dairy and an extra piece of fruit back in to your plan.

It's really hard to stay on plan during the first few months, but it's possible. Just remember that when you cave and eat those things that aren't on plan, it makes it much easier to cave the next time and the time after that. On the other hand, every time you say "no", it gets easier for the next time. Getting back on track is a matter of making good decisions one meal at a time. Just focus on breakfast, then lunch, then dinner. Good luck and keep posting - it helps keep you accountable!

Debi,
You really seem to know the ins and outs of this program. I love to read your advice!
I was wondering, do you know what happens if I don't reach my goal in time? I know I should focus on today, but I'm really trying to decide if I need to switch to a different program, like metabalance. I was doing really super well for the first month, but my weight loss has slowed drastically and, unless it picks up again immediately, I'll still be about 15 pounds above my goal after 17 weeks.
I've been averaging 2 - 3 hours per week at the gym (1 hour of which is weight-training). Should I change this to more cardio/less weights or more weights/less cardio? I've been great about staying on plan, but I've not seen the weight fall off for the past 2.5 weeks. I get weighed today, so hopefully I'm down (I'm dying to sign that 20 pound board!).