The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[bikipatra]

I have been following my MF Diabetic Diet to the letter EXCEPT when it comes to salad dressing. I have a weakness for bleu cheese and ranch. Fat free versions have too many carbs so I eat the full fat ones that are adding 100 calories to my small salad! I feel deprived when I eat just vinegar on my salad. What salad dressings do you all use?

234/220

[doglover]

I use fat free ranch which has 50 calories and 11 carbs for 2 Tbls. However, I only use 1 Tbls and put it on the side and dip. Hope that helps and maybe Nancy will chime in w/ ideas.

Also, have you tried the MF dressings? I tried one flavor and did not like them, but others do.
Donna

[kassilou]

I've been using the Walden Farms honey dijon. I like to dip my chicken in it, too.

[bikipatra]

Do you have to buy the Walden dressings on the internet or are they available at the store?

[Mrsshrinkinglady]

I have found them at the store, but think there is usually a much wider selection online.
Shrink aka Mary

[raederle]

You could try using salsa instead of dressing, as long as you check labels before buying and avoid ones that might have lots of added sugar or oils. I surprised myself by finding that after a while, I liked the taste of the veggies and lettuce so much that I didn't need any dressing (and I used to be a HUGE fan of blue cheese, too!). So hopefully your cravings will subside a bit... but don't worry; when you've reached goal, your fave dressings will still be there for you-- you'll just need to use 'em in moderation.

[bikipatra]

I surprised myself by finding that after a while, I liked the taste of the veggies and lettuce so much that I didn't need any dressing

Even when I wasn't on MF I ate salad almost every day. I really think that if I didn't want dressing I would know by now!!

[bikipatra]

raederle!!! I tried the salsa (not too much) instead of dressing and it was great! I am so happy! Thanks!

[raederle]

Great!!! I was never a big fan of low-cal or low-fat dressings because they always tasted, I dunno, "off" to me. So I side-stepped the whole issue and tried salsa one day, and never looked back! The great thing is that many restaurants will be happy to bring you a side of salsa with your salad instead of dressing, so it's pretty easy to avoid the hassle of figuring out which dressing to order when you dine out.

[tonisch]

I JUST NOTICED THAT LAST NIGHT ABOUT THE LOW CARB VS THE LOW FAT. ISN'T THAT AMAZING. I DECIDED TO TRY THE MEDIFAST DRESSINGS. OR IF YOU WANT YOU CAN TAKE YOUR DRESSING AND PUR SOME OF IT OUT AND ADD PLAIN VINEGAR TO THIN IT OUT SO IT IS NOT SO THICK AND YOU DON'T NEED AS MUCH. I THINK I WOULD DO IT TO THE LOW CARB SINCE THIS IS A LOW CARB DIET. SO TO REDUCE THE CALORIES WATER IT DOWN WITH VINEGAR. IT WILL DECREASE THE CALORIES AND YOU WON'T NEED AS MUCH.

[raederle]

Just be careful-- low carb often means high fat. MF is not a low-carb diet like other low-carb diets. MF does restrict carbs, but it also restricts fat and calories, and is carefully formulated to provide you with a certain ratio of fat/carbs/protein/fiber. This ratio is critical to maintain not only for ketosis, but also for giving you enough nutrients and energy while also restricting calories for efficient weight loss. It's best not to mess with the MF formula and start winging it with low-carb foods!

[doglover]

Hey Rae - I keep forgetting to follow-up but wanted to tell you I tried salsa on my salad and LOVED IT!! Man, you are SO smart!

I have told so many people this and they look at me like I've gone crazy but I keep telling them to just try it! I one time added a teeny bit of FF Ranch to the salsa and it was to DIE for! I was actually moaning at the dinner table. My kids think I'm nuts!
Donna

[raederle]

Ha ha-- well, you *are* nuts! But hey, any time I can help cause moaning at the dinner table, I'm happy...

That's a *great* idea to combine salsa with a little ff ranch-- I normally don't even keep ff ranch in the house cuz I don't really like the taste too much, but I bet with the salsa in it, it would taste pretty darn good! Must try! You should check out the "gourmet" salsas in the grocery store, if you haven't already-- I found that even my local chain gorcery store has a section in the "international food" aisle (where Old El Paso taco shells are considered authentic Mexican cuisine, apparently-- lol) where I can find some yummy tomatillo salsas, garlic-lover's salsas, cilantro-lover's... etc. They cost a little more than the usual brands, but they make great dressings!

[Nancy]

It is important to watch the calories and the carb levels of what you put on your salad or vegetables.

The Take Shape for Life program using the Medifast products is designed to teach us how to eat appropriately for maximum health support and weight loss. The total calorie and carb content of the salad for the Green part of the Lean n’ Green Meal has been determined for us and when we begin to add a bit more of other foods, especially high-fat/ high calorie foods, we jeopardize the integrity of the weight loss program.

Salad dressings typically do not add much in terms of carbohydrates unless the mayonnaise or oil has been replaced with corn syrup but they certainly do increase the calories consumed. Nearly all commercially made salad dressings are one-third fat. Fat = flab on the bod and in the arterial system.


The Medifast products are specially designed to have the correct ratio of protein to carbs and when we add more food to the equation or foods with higher fat and calories, we get the balance out of alignment.

It is during the weight loss phase that we learn and develop habits to enable us to maintain our appropriate weight for a lifetime. During the 7 months of weight loss for me, I wanted to learn all the lessons necessary to be able to maintain my 135 pound loss.

I had no intention of ever having to do a do-over.

Like you, Bleu Cheese or Roquefort was my favorite dressing and before Medifast, it was easy for me to ladle a couple hundred calories of fat onto my low-cal salad to make it more palatable. With every ladleful, I added plaque to my arteries and flab to my hips and thighs. No more.

I rarely eat salad dressing. I did have some Bleu Cheese the other evening – it came in a small 2 Tablespoon container on the side and I enjoyed several fork dips for the cucumbers on the salad but I was ever mindful of the calories in that teensy serving.

The protocol listed on page 8 of the Quick Start booklet for the Salad dressing is 1-2 Tablespoons of low-fat or non-fat salad dressing. The total calories for the salad and the dressing should equal 80 calories and 10 grams of carbohydrate.

Most nutritional charts depict Bleu Cheese as having 180 or more calories per 2 Tablespoon serving.

Yes, some of you are likely thinking that you will use what you want to use on your salad and it matters not what others say or think. A person is certainly free and able to select how they will choose to follow the program.

People who follow the program as it is designed have the best weight loss and weight maintenance success because this is a proven program.

As for me and my household, we wanted to do everything within our power to follow the program exactly right.

The scales that registered my weight at 265 pounds and my tight-fitting queen sized clothing indicated that I had not been doing a very good job of judging serving sizes and selecting appropriate foods so when I began to Take Shape, I decided to do it for more than a month – I decided to do it for my entire life – my life depended upon following the plan correctly.

I couldn’t emotionally handle any more diet failures. Medifast products and the program proved to be the answer I had been searching for so if I never have a bite of Bleu cheese dressing again, it is fine with me and my waistline!

[raederle]

Ta-da!!!! *That's* why we're all so glad Nancy's back!!!

Thanks for the awesome post, Nancy!