Congratulations ahobb!!
2.5 lbs is great. I've been thinking about getting an eliptical myself but they are so huge that I am not sure I want to committ that much space in my house to it yet !! I'm still thinking about it though. I used to use one a few years ago at the gym and loved it. I no longer have gym membership but hope to get back into the gym in the near future. My losses have been all over the place lately... The WI before last I had no loss for a week and then dropped 4 lbs last Monday giving me 18.5 lbs down... I was hoping to sign 20 lb board by Saturday but couldn't go for WI. Ran out of time b/c we had to leave for FL sat morning. I weighed at Mother-in-law's in FL who has the tanita and it showed I was down 20.5 lbs total.... hmmm .... unsure what will happen when I weigh in tommorow. It is hard to stay perfectly on plan when travelling and going to social events. We went to a B-day party Sat night - the only thing on the buffet that was MRC friendly was the veggie platter - I ended up eating 1/2 an egg white (scraped out the deviled egg center), 5 peanuts, 2 almonds, 3 grape tomatoes, 2 strips of bell pepper, 1/2 Diet Coke. I know I should been more prepared but I wasn't. I did have cottage cheese in the car but didn't want to leave the party for it so I waited until the end and hubby and I ran to a local restaurant where I promptly ordered grilled chicken and broccolli. B/C I was starved, I overate and had 2 pcs of grilled chkn and then ofcourse Sun am we went out for breakfast w/the family and I had 2 scrambled eggs and a piece of dry toast Sun am. I know I went overboard on the cals there - the waitress chuckled when I asked for it to not be cooked with butter or oil and replied "honey, we have to use some butter or it will stick to the pan"... gotcha Wishful thinking I suppose I think I did alright the rest of the day. I finally tried the cinnamon tortilla crisp things with dinner tonight... I love these!! Very Fun dessert. Anyways, heres wishing a great on plan week to all of you out there! Hang in there

Hey Everyone,
I plan to sign the 20 lb board this week and exercise at least 3 times!! What's your goal for the week??? Have a great one!

My goal is to sign the 30 lb board on Tuesday... Only 2 lbs to go! I have been looking forward to this goal, because this will put me half way to the END GOAL!

Hope everyone has a great week!
~Shannon (from NE)

Hi everyone. I just joined MRC this friday. Im on my pre-conditioning and already I'm cheating by not eating three balanced meals per day. I feel like giving up because I'm tired of myself. I keep going on all these diets and I'm never able to fully committ myself to them. Did any of you guys feel this way in the beginning? To just give up and ask for your money back? You would think that even the amount of money you've put into this program would keep you more focused right? so what is wrong with me? please help. Any advice will help. I'm also really good with taking criticism.

I am very frustrated with this program. I think that it is a good program for some, but too restrictive and does not teach you how to eat in the real world- traveling, night out with family etc. I am going back to calorie counting. I have cheating every week since beginning MRC. I think that it works better for me when I can eat what I want and when I want and learn to eat within the correct calorie/portion limits. I am going to eat my HNS in addition to my daily meal plan and continue with most of my supplements. Thanks for the support here and good luck to you all.

I am in the same boat as you are. I cheated all off and on in pre con and now the same in my regular plan. I lost 50lbs this past year working out and calorie counting. MRC appealed to me because of the promise of fast WL and no counting ( i was tired of calorie counting), but I cannot eat the way the want with my lifestyle. I have to be able to make my own food choices and factor that into my daily healthy eating plan. Life is not always going to work around the meal plan MRC gives you. I also did not like the fact that if you mess up then you set yourself back three days because of ketosis or "being in chemical balance" (which I have heard is a bunch of garbage, it is basically calories in calories out not food combos). I feel that I have wasted money and if I continue on the plan I will continue to waste money on HNS.

I think this a good program for some, but it is not for everyone. Just think about the whole picture when you make your decision. Good luck.

ahobbs55, do you weigh in at the Bentonville center?
I was there on Friday taking the orientation class & I thought the lady that led the class was cranky! She definitely wasn't friendly or supportive & she rushed through everything so fast I don't even know if I learned anything!

I know things can seem kinda rough right now. But having been through the program before (and restarting again) it can seem hard at times. Pre-cond isn't suppose to be perfect it is too help you get use to eating three meals aday. Plus adding in the water and vit supplements too. So don't put yourself down. By the way if you do come off program and I mean really come off like a whole day of bad eating then yes you can slow yourself down. Just start the next day fresh. Don't beat yourself up about it. Things happen its called life.
As far as bad food classes. You can ask your questions here and we will try and help.

My goal for this week is to lose 2 lbs.
As far as this diet helping you eat like normal, it is the most normal I have ever eaten. I do not have a colon. I have a very limited diet of food that I can eat that is easily digestible. The HNS helps my digestion. I have learned to eat stage 1 green beans and stage 2 apples and blueberry baby food for lunch when I am on the run. I eat a well-balanced diet. No, most people don't eat baby food like me, but I would bet many now feel more energized and healthy now that they are eating like they should. I know my body. I have been very off- program for several months, but have been back for 2 weeks. I know I will never be able to indulge in desserts and high fatty foods all the time once I have reached my goal weight. The main component that will help us for life is stabilization and maintenance. This is where we learn what foods are "triggers" that help us gain weight or retain water. Then they help us get track on a more "normal" eating routine while keeping an eye out for weight gain, etc. Most of the people I have talked to who have reached their goal, but gained some or all back did not stay on stabilization and maintenance.
We did not become overweight overnight. It will take time to lose weight. If we ate "normally" on this diet, we would not lose weight. We have to pull back our portions and choices and stick to it until we have met our goal weight. It is not forever. The closer we stay OP, the quicker we will reach our goal. If we continue to snack and go off-program a lot, we will continue to snack if we reach our ideal weight and gain some or all of it back. I do not know of any weight loss plan where you are able to "snack" and lose weight effectively. When I feel the urge to snack, I take an HNS or I drink water till I am so full I cannot drink another sip at the moment. That ruins my appetite right away.
Anyhow, this is one person's opinion. Everyone needs a diet that will work for them, but he or she must WORK at whatever diet is chosen and follow the plan. Otherwise, no weight will be lost.

Yes, I go to the Bentonville center, there are a couple of ladies I do like but for the most part I hate going in. I have actually starting only going in once a week for weigh in. They don't like it much but they pretty much discourage me most the time.

This is my second week and I am three pounds from signing the 10 lb board at my center! My plan is to stay OP all week to reach that goal. I can't wait!

That would be AWESOME...let us know if you make it!!

My goal for this week is to exercise at least four times for 30 minutes with one of them being lifting weights. I wish I was close to signing a board, because I would make that a goal as well, but I'm not. I am going to go for three pounds by next Monday though. I haven't lost 3 pounds in a week for awhile!!

It has been some time since I have gotten on here and boy do I need your help. I have been stalling for the last month between 41-47 pounds lost. My goal is 51 and I just keep sabotaging my efforts. Has anyone encountered this issue? What can i do to get myself motivated again like before? I am so close to stabilization! Please help!!!