Hi, Kids ~
Sounds like Gina is ready to get things shakin' here and is all prepared for thinniness to happen to her, too. Welcome to you and thank you everyone for helping each other along.
Let me answer your two questions here, Gina and then elaborate more on the cucumber issue.
re: I am understanding that I can replace my lean meat with 2 eggs? No more then three times a week, is that correct?
Exactamundo
Can I break my lean and green meal into two different times of the day? Example: 2 eggs for breakfast then a salad for dinner?
Nope
And, if that is or isn't allowable. Is it okay to eat the lean green meal at say 2 or 3 in the afternoon instead of dinnertime?
Yup. You can have it for brunch, lunch, linner or dinner.
re: cukes as a snack...
Generally for a snack, Medifast recommends that we have one snack per day. The snack can be any of the following: 2 dill pickles, 3 celery stalks, 1 c Sugar-free Jell-O, 1 Bouillon, 1 Packet of Medifast Crackers, or 1 Medifast Fast Soup.
The reason we recommend only one snack per day is due to the additional carbohydrates and calories. When we are on the weight loss phase of the program we try to maintain between 80-85 grams of carbohydrates and 800-1000 calories to stay in the mild dietary state of ketosis.
Cucumbers are un-brined dilled pickles. True. If we say that it is ok to have cucumbers for a snack, then this is what people will do - they will get their high heels and furcoats on, get their hair all fussied up and stomp off to Wally World SuperDuper Mart Grocery Center and haul home a truckload of English Cucumbers or those big honkin' cukes from the garden and nosh away all afternoon on them -
Cukes are mostly water but they do have carbs. The average medium cuke has 8 carbs, a biggy has 12. One large dill pickle has about 3 carbs max.
Part of what we are learning is to eat balanced meals - each Medifast packet is already balanced perfectly in terms of protein to carbs to fats. We do not want to add more carbs or fat to it by adding little extra things to a Medifast packet. All we need for a three hour window is in that little foil-lined packet.
If we get hungry between meals, we need to look at our schedule - have we been eating our meals on time? Going longer than three hours is not the best for most of us and when we stretch out the time between meals too often or too long, hunger returns and we start cruising the cupboards.
When a person has little snackster episodes multiple times during the day, we are upping the carb levels and we need to remember that we are in a very mild dietary state of ketosis here - it is what empowers us to not have cravings and to experience hunger, it is what makes it possible for Gwenski to stick to her plan for all this time, it is what allowed me to stick to my program for 7 months, to go thru the transition phase for 2 months - transition and maintenance are HARDER, People because we are not in the fat-burning state and this is when hunger returns!
When we follow the TSFL Program, we will be in the fat-burning state, our energy level will be good and our muscle tissue will be spared.
Medifast uses a specific ratio of protein to carbs. When you mess with the plan - yes, adding just a little more meat or a little less green vegetable, you can get the balance out of whack and then hunger returns.
Having additional carbs throughout the day can make us crave more. It isn't easy, is it?
I feel like I have to be on my guard all the time or I will slip off into a fooder. I must plan my meals daily and stick to my plan. Sometimes I feel like I am still a teacher - writing daily/weekly lesson plans!
I doubt that I will ever be 'cured' in a sense from wanting to eat praline turtle pie or wanting to scarf down a whole loaf of hot french bread while standing in the check-out line at the Safeway (I avoid shopping from 4-6 PM for that very reason!) and it takes discipline to daily walk the narrow way. I do not always win but I am better off than I ever thought possible. Follow the guidelines, Gina - the narrow way is the best way. You will be more likely to reach your goal and stay there when you begin your program with the mindset of not tweaking anything. Your determination and red hair will get you there - be stubborn about following it - look at others who have made it - they don't tweak!