Has anybody tried

[doloresmc]

medifast meal replacements for weight loss. I don't have that much weight to lose (30-35lbs) but I want to take care of it before it's too much. I've tried a lot of different things but thought meal replacement would be a good way for me because then I don't have to think about what to eat.
Thanks!
Dolores

[SerenaWelsh]

Hi.
I have a friend who did lose quite a bit of weight on medifast. He and his fiance both used it before getting married. He says it's one of the easiest weight loss programs he's ever used, and he didn't get hungry or bored.
Now - 2 1/2 years later - he's put the weight back on. He's fat and happy, and says he'll use medifast again - when he gets around to it.

:)

[SusanD]

Delores...kudos to you for wanting to lose the weight. Your last statement "so I don't have to think about what I eat" is both a benefit and a drawback to meal replacement systems.

MR can be a good thing because they take the thinking and judgement decisions out of the picture and make it very clear clut.

However, because of this, these programs have incredibly high failure rates (i.e. weight gained back within a certain time frame) because old habits were not replaced by new habits. They do nothing towards teaching you lifestyle changes that you are more prone to stick with throughout the rest of your life.

Most of my patients will tell me "I've tried everything" and the harsh reality is they have not tried consistently an daily a program of regular exercise and an eating plan high in veggies and fruits, low to moderate in carbs and low in saturated fats. This takes a daily committment and unfortunately, is not the easiest way.

So the long winded answer is yes...they do work, but they are highly likely to end up on your list of "things tried, but didn't work" this time next year.

I am also hesitant to recommend such products to my patients who may be taking diuretics and some other meds that require maintaining a solid electrolyte balance. I don't know if that is you or not ?

I HOPE I did not discourage you in any way. When people ask me for an eating plan recomendation I usually recommend Weight Watchers or a diabetic eating plan. And no...I am not employed in any way by WW, LOL ! I just think there plan is very healthy, doable and well-balanced without having unrealistic expectations of quick weight loss.

[NursCEO]

I will also tell you that at the encouragement of my Cardio I recently started Optifast. Two months down, twenty pounds gone. It is easy, and I like it. We have a nutritionist talk to us and we also see an excercise specialist. They have pretty low failure rates where I am going because they make an effort to change habbits!!

You might look in to it.