I really hope things get better soon. Tonight, I didn't get any dinner. Oh well. Being OP had to take backseat. The munchkin had a fever of 102 (teething). She was miserable and just wanted to hug on me all night which I didn't mind in the least. Two baths and a sippy cup later, she's in bed asleep. Will have to go in during the night to give her more Tylenol and hope the fever breaks overnight. Luckily, DH is off tomorrow so she can stay home.

Poor girl and poor mommy!

Jen...
Hoping your sweet child is better soon. Don't worry about OP taking a back seat, you are very dedicated and you go right back when you can.

Re: Chinese Five Spice.. I bought mine in a gourmet kitchen shop.. I have never seen it in supermarkets here.

Patzi

Patzi, Thank you for the recipe. It looks really good and I will have to try it one day.

I had a gain this week of 2.2 pounds but I can't blame the stabilization menu for that. I went off program this past weekend. Hopefully some of that (plus more) will come off next week!

I am enjoying my dairy every day! Next week I add starchy veggies twice a week at lunch, a fruit three times a week at breakfast, and a starch at lunch every day.

Lost a half pound at my lunch WI (while PMSing). And, talked with hubby and the munchkin's temp is down from 102.6 yesterday to 99.1 at noon. Things are looking up.

Hi ladies! Just a quick question....Does anyone know of an MRC member that has gone thru the entire program (including stabilization/maintenance) and has kept weight off for a lengthy period of time?? Just curious about the success rate of the program we are all on.

San Diego is still going well...headed home tomorrow. Dinners out have been pretty OFF program...but the rest of the whole day every day have been ON~

The other plus is that I have been drinking all of my HNS each day and taking all of my supplements, too. Easy to forget those sometimes!

I don't have my WI until next week...on the 14th. My goal was to stay stable while away...while maybe going down an ounce so I can sign that 30lb board!!! Then, I forsee no more travelling for a while...so will get back OP and start losing again! I will make my goal....and I WILL sign that damn board!! LOL

Tami

Tamikl-- I've wondered the same thing about the success rate. My mother lost 80 lbs, and gained it all plus more back, and the lady from whom she found out about MRC had lost over 100 lbs. and has since gained it all back. It's quite depressing. However, I would honestly think the maintenance success rate is about the same for this diet as for any other. Unfortunately, relapse is much more common than not. It's not good to dwell on the negative about maintenance, but I think a healthy fear of regain is good. I don't want to live in fear of the scale for the rest of my life, but at the same time, we need to stay very aware to keep it from creeping back on.

Also, I don't see anyone on here who was here the last time I was on, which was three years ago. Meemo had lost a ton and was on maintenance. I've often wondered what happened with her.

I think there's as much hope for keeping it off if lost in this manner as in any other. Some people say that if you lose it in a "fad" diet type way, you're less likely to keep it off, but the statistics (look in the maintainers' forum) from the nat'l registry for maintainers show that that's not true. Any way you lose it, it will be another battle to figure out how to keep it off and not slip back into old patterns.

This type of eating is not sustainable (or healthy) for the long term. Stabilization helps, of course, but no one will go through life eating strictly from even that menu. I'm expecting to have to figure out a whole new way to eat when I get to stabilization/maintenance.

In my experience-- I kept about 30 off even through pregnancy. Ideally, I would have been back where I started from a year after the baby, but I overate and changed back to my old patterns during pregnancy. I don't know what would have happened had I been able to go through stabilization, etc. I'd like to think I would have kept it off, but I'm pretty sure I would have regained at least some. This time I'm doing a better job of prepping myself mentally-- reading up on maintenance, paying more attention to the mental aspect of dieting and maintenance, etc. Last time when I started, I didn't have much faith that I'd actually make it to my goal, and I didn't think about maintenance much at all. This time I know I will because I came so close last time, so I do feel that this time around is different for me.

Hi, Tami -

My husband lost 115 pounds with MRC four years ago. He went from being almost 300 pounds to 185. He's been able to keep with majority of it off (within 15 pounds) through sensible eating and excerise. He did run quite a bit, before a back injury prevented any more running. He's very meticulous about his diet (doesn't really do sweets or anything) and also changes his eating when he notices a fluctuation or his clothes fitting different. He said that being more conscientious about his weight is a small trade-off for how great he feels now. And he's VERY supportive of where I am in my journey, which is nice.

Yes! You can get it in the spice section and it is DELICIOUS! He uses it on pork tenderloin, chicken, ribs (the no-no!), and many of the meats he grills as part of the marinade. I love it!! The brand we have is McCormick--probably other brands out there too!

Tamikl
When I hit maintenance I went to a maintenance graduation party.. I met two woman from another center that have kept the weight off.. One kept it off for 2 years, the other 1 1/2 years, but they never went back to the original eating habits they had.. If they went off Program, they would go back to one of the earlier menus till they got the weight off. I have been on maintenance since May, 2011, and I can't imagine letting myself ever have to lose the weight again.. Oh, there was a man that had lost 90 pounds and kept it off for a year. So it is successful if one does not go back to old ways.

Patzi

i'm planning on doing this for life (i hope!) i used to do WW for years and have reached Lifetime twice! over 20 some years but have gained it back & more. it takes too much time trying to figure out everything. what i like about MRC is it's one starch, one protein for b-fast, veggies, fruit and protein for lunch and one protein, starch and veggie for dinner. (Meta-slim) Easy and i'm losing approx 1-3 lbs a week. i don't feel stuffed , there is no guessing (like WW w/ points - too many choices!!)
i don't do any of the pills or vitamins they sell. i take fish oil, calcium, women's multi vit., and B-12. will prob. add B-6.
i buy my HNS's from Diet Direct (big cannister of Pink Lemonade mix- cheaper) and do buy some of their choc. shake stuff.
i would prob. lose faster if i took some ofthe pills but my doctor said once i stopped taking those extra pills they push, that i would gain back.
so i'm chosing to lose a little slower and increase activity. i walk 45 min. 5 days a week in the am. bought the cookbook so i can have some variety. to me the key is having the right salad dressing for all those salads! using spices on the chicken (Mrs. Dash spicy) and the spray butter on my cinnamon toast in the am! yum. i do have to watch that i don't overdo the protein bars - actually need to hide them!!
let me know what helps you all the most w/ this diet. i have gotten some great ideas from this forum. Thanks!!

bigdog-- are you planning to still use the HNS in maintenance? I do like the simplicity of MRC. I've done WW as well, and while I can lose on it, I too find that there are just too many choices for me and inevitably, I gravitate toward the carbs that don't keep me full, and then I end up cheating.

Unfortunately, unless this diet is modified for maintenance, it would be quite unhealthy for the long term. The extremely high protein levels would wreak havoc on your kidneys after a few years, and the lack of healthy fats, even though we supplement with pills, could also cause some long term deficiencies. Really high protein like this usually doesn't do damage for shorter periods of time, but that's why MRC asks you about your health conditions up front before you sign up.

I've been thinking about all sorts of things for maintenance. Obviously, I can't add the processed sugary carbs back in (at least not on a regular basis). I'm thinking I may try to follow the MRC program or similar at least (without hns) for breakfast and lunch and then have a more normal dinner with higher carbs. Carbs tend to trigger my cravings, so I would think those would be better in the evenings when I don't have so long before bed. Anyway, I'll see what stabilization holds, but I think it's good to consider several different options.

Hi all - I am here for a FINAL do-over!!! I am doing this on my own for financial reason, with all my prior information. My plan is to join once I am 20-30lbs from my goal to get the proper stabalization and maintenance support. Today is the start of a new me and new life. I am tired of always being tired and self conscious. Hoping to find some support on this forum, which I know I will becuase you all have been where I am and I can wait to be where you all are, once again!!

Welcome Kristih6 and good luck to you!

I noticed people talking about maintenance and I wanted to mention that there is a maintenance thread somewhere on here. I read through it a few months ago and it was interesting. Maybe you should check it out.
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/meta...intainers.html

These cooler temperatures are putting me in the mood for soups. What do you all use for the stock in your soup? I like the chicken bouillon and creamy chicken but I ran out and don't plan to buy any more since I am almost to maintenance. Tell me your secrets!

Had a maintenane weigh in this morning and not a good one.. I gained 1 1/2 pounds... Why ,not sure. I was experimenting adding more beans, and some brown rice in small amounts. It may be this, not sure. Will delete these items and see how I do Tueday. Needless to say, I am shocked, as my scale did not show a problem. Showed no gain. So, I will go back to the drawing board and see everythhing I ate since Tuesday and try to figure out what happened..

I sent a message earlier stating this, but it never showed up, so if this is a duplicate, sorry.

Patzi