Warning...I feel a rant comming on...here goes!

In the past month...there has been more than one occasion that someone has posted on our Medifast board asking for help, advice or motivation...For whatever reason, people who are following other plans feel it is their duty to disuade anyone from following Medifast. Even though the plan has been around and continually proven for more thann 20 years. I understand that it goes against the ideology of other diet plans but I support others who follow other plans. I'll be the first to admit that the plan is not best for everyone. I just don't think there is one right path to the ultimate goal...And I am glad...since I tried and failed at so many of the so called "right" plans!

I'm not sure if they havn't been paying attention to what happens after the weight is lost or what...but there are successes and failures for every diet out there. I have seen people yo-yo on every concievable diet...I challange anyone to show me a diet that has 100% permanant weigh loss among all of it's alumni! Maintenance takes a plan also. Some will follow it and succeed. Others will fail...regardless of how the weight was lost.

Of course you have to make a lifestyle change to maintain weightloss...You have to do that regardless of the plan you choose. It works better for me to have the motivation of substantial weightloss to make the needed changes...Some make them gradually and some make them and stick to them from beginning to end. Different people are motivated in different ways.
Telling people that are genuinly interested in a plan other than your own that it is nonsense to consider it is simply showing ignorance of our differences.

Last night the attack on Medifast to someone seeking advice was so blatant and severe that it was evidently removed by a Moderator...Still...It made me quite angry and I posted a response to it that probably looks kinda silly since the attack that it was intended to address was removed from the thread.

So don't be discouraged by those who are uneducated about Medifast...There seems to be a lot of distain out there by people who are struggling. Perhaps they think we are taking the easy way out...I wouldn't call this easy...just the right plan for me.

Rant over...I think I feel better now.

Ok, I didn't get to see the original "rant" ... so I don't know how severe it was, but I did go find (I think) the thread you're talking about.

Here's why *I* would respond to that thread if it were me and what I might say. Maybe it'll give you some perspective.

First of all, I use the "new posts" button at the top of the screen to find out what's new on the board. That means I see the posts, but I often don't notice what specific forum they're in. I've responded to threads in the 20s board (I'm 40) as well as in boards for plans I'm not participating in (I calorie count) just because I saw the title of the thread and it looked interesting and I felt I had pertinent information. So that's the first thing: It's not about trying to horn in on someone else's plan - it's just about browsing all the new posts and responding to what interests me.

Next. I would likely have responded to this one asking if Medifast was the right plan for the OP *not* because I have any sort of vendetta against the plan (although I don't think it's a great one), but because the OP stated right up front that this was her 3rd round on the plan and that she wasn't able to continue/maintain her weight loss. That would prompt me to post that she might consider if it is the right plan for her.

I certainly wouldn't consider the Medifast plan the "easy way out". And I will be the first to admit right up front that I consider their advertising misleading and bordering on bait and switch tactics. I personally don't think it's a very healthy plan for *most* people, nor do I think it's sustainable. That's my opinion and I think that as long as I'm respectful about it, I should be free to share that.

But not everyone who speaks out against a plan is necessarily "bashing" it. Some of us are truly trying to help the OP who is expressing concern about sustaining her loss after 3 rounds.

FWIW.

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After reading this I wondered how many posters do not know that it's easy to call the Mods' attention to questionable posts. Just click on the exclamation point in the bottom left corner of a post. You'll even have a box to explain why you think the post is unseemly.

This might also be a good opportunity to remind folks to read the forum rules.

Now ... back to your regularly scheduled programing ....

I was reading in the "Carb Counter" forum and was shocked to see that Atkins starts you out at 20 g. carbs, and alot of those carb-counters were talking about 60 g. limits and numbers much lower than Medifast's 100 g. It made me feel reassured about chosing this plan over something like Atkins which I know I could never do and is too radical, IMO.

I don't think I saw that last post on that MF thread, but I had read the initial few. The past history of the original poster did make it seem obvious that MF was not right for her- like she was a square peg trying to force herself into a round hole.

PhotoChick

Firsr let me say that I read many of your post's and agree with a lot of what you have to say...Though I beg to agree to disagree with your opinion of Medifast. Also You have provided a lot of support to me since I first started this forum and I thank you for that.

I am not referring to someone questioning whether the diet is the right one for someone who has had problems in the past...but the assumtion that the reason for the failure is that Medifast is a bad plan.

I would never assume that the reason that someone had failed at calorie counting after 3 times was because calorie counting is a bad plan. And I think it would upset you if I camr to the Calorie Counting board and said that.

I want everyone to find the plan that works for them. And celebrate all victories along the way!

DJ

Me too! I do this all the time accidentally. Soemtimes people write back saying this is the "specific forum" right? Then I'm like Woops! Sorry Just trying to be helpful, friendly and reply. But definitely I agree with you not any one plan is for someone. There are lots of things that do work, I think Medifast looks great, and I'm glad it is working for you

I don't know much about Medifast, and whether it is a very low calorie diet as well as a meal supplement plan. I'm guessing that the main arguments against the plan are one or the other argument (it's too low calorie, or that meal supplements don't teach you how to eat).

The exact arguments used probably aren't that important. Emotions run high among many dieters (ok I now the word dieters isn't PC, but new lifestylers just sounds dorky), but many people ARE opinionated about what works, what doesn't, what's a sensible plan, what's foolishness. That opinion is probably going to be rooted in personal experience (either their own or that they've been told second hand). Even when it's based on research the person has studied, it's still personal, as the person is unlikely to have read ALL of the research - just what they've personally encountered.

While I try not to be judgemental against specific plans, I have my own biases, not only based on my personal experience with the plan, but with my education and professional experience (having a bachelor's and master's degreen in psychology), but also with the statistical success rate of the plans I have researched. To say that plans don't fail, people do - isn't completely accurate. Plans with the most successful statistics aren't just "lucky" they've taken into account what variables people tend to find more successful in the long term. Plans with the most dismal statistics are those that aren't compatible with most people's needs.

Now I don't know Medifasts success statistics either, but I know which plans were dismal failures for me - and I tend to be most biased against those. Any plan that shares those characteristics, I'm likely to dismiss out of hand, and even have some animosity against.

I've been on several food replacement and meal delivery diets in my four decades of dieting - the Cambridge Diet (which it is my understanding is somewhat similar to Medifast, at least in it's origins), Nutrisystem, and Seattle Sutton's Healthy Eating. The closer the meals were to "real" meals, the more sucessful they were for me (at least in the short term). It's natural that I would have a personal bias (and even strong opinions) against some of these plans, and I do. It's human nature to use one's own experience as the standard for criticism.

Personally, I am rather passionate in my belief that very low calorie diets did more to contribute to my obesity than to long-term weight loss. I've spoken with many people with the same experience, and my understanding of the research, is that we probably are in the majority. It takes an exceptional person, not the average to succeed under those circumstances. Doesn't mean that no one can, just that the deck may be stacked against such plans.

Hostility (name calling, anger aimed at an individual) needs to be drawn to the moderator's attention, but strong opinions alone shouldn't be construed as a personal attack, or necessarily inappropriate.

We're all drawing on our personal experiences (because we can't draw on any one else's). Strong opinions (often in opposite directions), I think add to the quality of information on weight loss. I think if we were all careful not to criticise any program, regardless of our personal experiences, something of value would be lost. I don't agree with every opinion I encounter on this site, but I value the opportunity to share opinions - even (perhaps especially) the strong ones.