The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[KimKim]

Okay, hear me out before you jump on me ;-)

This is question #2 to a series of questions I have relative to my 4 frustrating days as of late.

A while ago I introduced myself as a (partial) health nut with a sweet tooth and penchant for juice. I think I conquered my juice addiction. But I clearly have not conquered the carb addiction. So, I'm at this gathering of family and friends and a vegan buddy brings vegan tofu & kale lasagna and vegan pumpkin / chocolate bread. Folks . . . I am not a vegan and I was shocked that nobody else brought any leans and greens that I could eat. I know this is my fault for leaving my eating plan in the hands of other folks but I was truly shocked that nobody thought to bring a nice salad or a grilled chicken or fish or anything. It's part of a long story but anyway, the best choice, I saw (and I was quite hungry by that time) was to have the lasagna. I figured I would stay away from the pumpkin / chocolate bread.

Well, I indulged in both and they were both quite tasty. I know this is cheating but isn't it funny how I would actually be excited to be eating this tofu / kale mixture? I didn't know how to log in the pumpkin bread on Mymedifast, as it was someone's recipe, so I just logged it in as pumpkin bread from a mix and called it a day. It rang up as a lot of calories ;-( I put the tofu / kale lasagna in as Amy's vegetable lasagna and it rang in at about 300 calories. There was no dairy in either the lasagna or bread, so I don't know how to really measure what I ate but figured I would err on the side of more calories than less in terms of logging them.

So, here's the question after my confession:

Based on my logged calories, it totaled about 1500 calories and, unfortunately, about 200 carbs. I was horrified, of course and sad. I mean, I could have had a burger for this much, right?

Anyway, on the Medifast log site, it says I can have about 2300 calories without gaining weight, so according to the site, I was still about 800 calories less than "maintenance", so I should still be losing, as long as I'm 500 calories less than necessary per day.

But you all know *exactly* what happened. After three days of this activity, I gained 5lbs. I am angry with myself. My new book by Dr. Spangle came today (100 days of weight loss) and I'm going to do the activities so I can stay on track.

But my question is, why did I still gain so much weight when I cheated, even though I kept my caloric intake lower than what the Medifast says my body needs for a daily total for management and weight loss?

My guilt has also fueled an increase in water intake and I felt so guilty, I also walked twice a day, everyday. That's more than I've done in quite some time. I wasn't exhausted, I felt good and I will continue.

But why did I still gain weight if I exercised and also kept the caloric intake even lower than 2000 calories per day? The calorie burner calculator said I burned 800 calories one day, bringing my intake to about 1100 one day.

Yes, of course I'm going back on program but it's clear that I simply don't have the willpower yet to be around alot of different food (I do great at home and not at these gatherings) and I need to watch myself and be proactive about my eating plan.

Thanks for answering and listening.

I'm embarrassed.

<<sigh>>

Kim

[BerkshireGrl]

Water gain?

That's my guess.

[loriannk]

I would guess water also. I went off plan on Sunday and on Monday I was up a lbs & 1/2. I drank a boat load of water yesterday and stuck to plan and today I lost that plus a lbs.

Hang in there and try hard to stay on plan. Drink lots of water today and you will see any weight your scale said you gained will be gone.

Lori

[Sarya]

It is probably water gain, but also your glycogen store. On MF we are in a mild state of ketosis, so our glycogen store (which is normally 2-4 pounds I believe) will be lower than when we are out of ketosis. I would imagine it will clear up within the next week.

[Prancer]

Have you looked at your sodium count for those days? With the higher calories maybe the foods you ate were also higher sodium. That will make the water thing an issue. It might also be the ratio of carbs to protein. I have PCOS and I find that I lose more when my carbs are lower and protein higher.

[alpha femme]

are you by any chance taking an ssri?

i just found out that they are well-known for slowing the metabolism. even without added calories, the average weight gain is 20lbs. depressed the hell out of me. pun intended.

[Sarya]

csula, I take Lexapro, and honestly I haven't noticed any problems with slower metabolism. I've also started hormonal birth control since I started MF and again.. it hasn't made much of a difference besides my cravings being off the charts the first week on.

[KimKim]

Hi Everybody,

Thanks so much. Well, I checked my sodium and, amazingly, I was at 1300 one day, 1800 another and 2000 on the last and worst day (the lemon meringue pie day).

I checked back on other days and my sodium is but 1/4th of that. Clearly, water is a big issue and I guess the glycogen storage. I've been drinking more water but will make sure I take in *alot* all this week and then some.

Lori and all of you, when you go off plan, what is it that you eat? What takes you there?

The one thing I've never done is stayed off plan. I've just been frustrated at having three days of cheating episodes, my longest in the almost two months I've been on Medifast.

I'm really proud of the people who have had zero cheats and their weight loss shows. I've just never been on a set diet before and the discipline is hard for me yet Medifast is so easy and it works and I ask myself why the sabotage? After doing some soul-searching, I realize it's fear of all of this actually working. My clothes are loose, I've lost inches, I've lost 17 lbs and I know that I am not getting off of Medifast until I've reached my goal and I don't care how long that takes (I do but you know what I mean).

I know many of the people here who have been successful (even Dede, whom I admire) have had alot of "restarts" and "rededication" moments to Medifast, yet I've never fallen off the wagon as some of them have but still feel so horrible about the cheats and want to remind myself that if I could lose 17lbs while cheating, imagine what I could do without it.

At the same time, my guilt over cheating propelled me into a consistent walking program that even my previous weight loss had not done.

Life is something, ain't it?

Today I had a shake for breakfast, oatmeal mid-morning and I've got my bar and soy crisps in my purse.

I've learned to not get too comfortable. I still have a problem and I cannot leave my goals to 'chance' or in other peoples' hands. Proactive it is, at all times.

Here I go again and thanks so much for the encouragement,

Kim

[Prancer]

I keep thinking to myself "what will it take to cheat?" I had one spoonful of mac salad on July 4 and that was it. I cant seem to find something that is so good it justifies cheating. For me it will end up being stuck at some place/some point where I failed to prepare for my meals.

[KimKim]

Just to give you an update, my friend's scale earlier said I gained 7 pounds and I was horrified. But I drank my water just like Lori said and after you all pointed out I probably had alot of sodium and her scale showed I was down 3 pounds. I will weigh myself on my own scale tomorrow to see what kind of damage and damage control I was able to do but I am starting day three on 100 days of weight loss and I just have more determination and two ideas to keep in mind:

Be Proactive.
Stay Ever-Vigilant!

Kim

[Mike]

I got to this thread a bit late. I was going to venture my guess as water weight gain as resulted from the increased sodium intake. Cheese is loaded with sodium, and since you didn't make the foods, who knows hopw much was actually added.

[Serendipity]

I cannot leave my goals to 'chance' or in other peoples' hands. Proactive it is, at all times.

Kim,

I was all set to give you advice, but I see that you have done it already. You can't count on other people to keep you on plan. When we go to parties, I either take a shake or bar, or I make sure there will be a l&g there for me. If it's a dinner party, I ask the host beforehand what's on the menu. (Of course all of my friends know I'm on Medifast and they are very supportive.) I always stress to them that I don't want them to cater to my needs, that I will take care of it. I have taken my own salad to a few dinner parties. I have slurped a shake before and after dinner parties and just had coffee with the others.

Until we take charge of our success, it won't happen. Remember, these get togethers are surrounded by food, but they aren't about food. They are about spending time with friends.

Food for thought: It's much easier to stay compliant than to add cheats......really!

[ascicles]

When you cheat, this kind of thing happens. It has more to do with the body adjusting than anything.

Last week was my birthday, and I cheated A LOT. When I left town, I weighed 291. When I came home, I was up to 306. I gained 15 pounds over the course of a week.

Did I actually gain 15 pounds? Of course not.

Well, I have been back on plan for four days, and I am down to 287 pounds. I also know that I didn't really LOSE 19 pounds in four days.

It will work out, just get back on the plan and stick to it. From my experience, cheating on this plan is much worse than others.

[KimKim]

Asicles,

What did you eat when you were off plan?
Have you noticed that you still eat differently when you cheat?
I've noticed that I still eat much less than before and my "cheats" are off-plan but if I were on maintenance, most of what I've eaten would be okay.

But I am not on maintenance ;-( One day, I will be.

Kim

[KimKim]

Jo,

Thanks and I agree. The sad part is that I packed and was "fully prepared" for my absence, with the exception of the L & G. The last time, there was plenty L & G and *I* chose to go off plan, despite the choice. This time, there was none and I chose probably the healthiest option but still off-plan and out of ketosis ;-(

I just can't relax and think I can act as if I can't be on-guard. But I hear you, I have had shakes before and after events, bars while in certain places, etc.

I'm amazed at how prepared I've been so many times and then how a slip up will sort of blindside me with the slightest lack of preparedness.

I'm amazed at the level of water weight one can gain when cheating. The scale showed 7 lbs of weight gain but you all are right, there was no way I ate that much.

I suppose this is why one should not go immediately from Medifast to non-Medifast without transitioning out of it.

Very interesting.

Kim
p.s. Jo, I am committed to the program, I had to jump right back to full compliance ;-)