The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[Bseaton]

Terry or Nancy,
I have been on Medifast since Jan 1 and i love it. I have lost 20 plus lbs lost 3 inches in my waist and gone from a xl in shirts to a large. However I was running tight on shakes and it wasnt my payday yet to i placed a order for 1 case of shakes just to get me through until the next day. I payed with a money order and the order was placed on hold until the money order arrived. I should have received the shakes on Friday the 23rd however no shakes. When i called they said the order was still on hold and they had not received my money order which was sent over a week ago. I immediately placed a order for 70 more shakes which i payed for by credit card but i knew they would not arrive until monday. I talked to the nurse and she told me i was going to have to go back to regular food this weekend but just try to make wise choices. My concern is i ate only 3 meals a day, no sweets i did not pig out nothing inbetween but since friday my scales showed a 8 lb increase from 212 to 219. Thats huge for 1 weekend. I received my shakes this morning and truthly i would rather have them than the food i feel better and better about myself. My question is that i plan on getting down to 170 and then i plan on taking over and start running again which is what i always used to do. I used to run road races over and enjoyed it but since i had gained my weight roughly 80 lbs there was no way. At the rate it came on this weekend it would only take a few weeks to be back where i was. could you please tell me what was going on or do you have to take medifast the rest of your life to stay where you want to. There was no change in the way my clothes fit it was only on the scales that i noticed a difference. Please let me know what you think.

[Nancy]

Barry,

Well, I am sorry that you ran out of product. That is a scary thing for me. I know that when we first started on the weight loss program, our finances were really tight, too. I had nightmares about running out of Medifast! First of all, if you run out of product and are in an emergency situation, you may have a glass of milk in place of your shake.
I noticed that you mentioned that had three meals – I don’t know if that is all you had or not but please know that it is VITAL to eat every three to four hours – so have an eight ounce glass of 2% low fat or non-fat milk every three to four hours. It will sustain the ketosis level and protect you from caving in to harmful foods. You could even have small portions of lean meat or a boiled egg and veggies.

Some of your weight gain was most likely due to fluid fluctuations. This does occur when undergoing transition so it is important to reach your actual goal weight before you begin transition, expect that there will be some weight fluctuation initially but that it will even out and you’ll be able to maintain your weight loss.

You didn’t mention about your fluid intake – did you drink your usual amount of water? Perhaps this last weekend you consumed saltier foods than what you’ve been eating.. When on Medifast you are taking in very low sodium levels. Are you on the modified plan or the full fast? – if you are having shakes only, then consuming some regular foods would indeed raise your sodium input considerably which would result in a water weight gain. It ought to come off right away, Barry.

When you begin to run again, it is important to begin your regime gradually. Keep your water intake high – since Medifast is somewhat dehydrating, TAKE IN SOME EXTRA WATER. Build up to your running speed and distances gradually. Sandwich your exercise sessions between a shake and a bar to keep your muscles fed and to prevent fatigue or dehydration. Have a shake just before your run and then follow up with a bar. If you are especially tired or feeling puny, have an extra shake. While we do not recommend that you have two bars on the weight loss program, there have been times when I needed to have two bars – we were kayaking and hiking in Kauai and it was hot and I was working really hard. I increased my water intake immensely and I had a bar before my adventure and then a shake right after and then had another bar about an hour later as I was hungry and weak. I should have had a cup of bouillon but I was in the jungle and didn’t have a cube with me. NOW I carry bouillon with me all the time.


Once you get to maintenance, you may consider using the Take Shape shakes. They have more calories and will provide the needed fuel for harder workouts. While losing weight, concentrate on the losing part, drink adequate amounts of water, and keep your exercise program at moderate levels. You’ll have lots of time to ease back into your running.

I noticed that you also said that you like how you feel on Medifast – it DOES make us feel better than the foods we used to eat. This brings me to your inquiry about having to use Medifast all the days of your life. I DO use three Medifast products a day. First of all, I want the good nutrition it provides and also it makes me feel great. It helps my joints – I have arthritis in my hands and I need a couple of shakes a day to keep the joint pain at bay. Medifast is a low calorie tasty fast food and it makes an awesome snack – so I use it – it is faster and cheaper than visiting the vending machine at work, plus the health benefits are substantial. It also keeps me looking fabulous – why would I wanna go off of it?