The Medifast weight loss program has been in existence for about 25 years and it used to be that you could only get it with a prescription from a doctor. Things have changed and now it is available to anyone without a doctors orders.
There are pros and cons to this method of weight loss as you will learn below.
The company supplies you with meal replacements based on choices you make when you subscribe. The system works based on portion control and therefore, calorie control. The foods are nutritionally balanced and low fat with vitamins added.
The Meals come in individual packets that you mix with water and microwave or refrigerate. There is a wide variety of foods and flavors including shakes, soups, stew, chili, oatmeal, scrambled eggs, fruit drinks, iced teas, hot beverages, bars and puddings.
Medifast has been in business for over 25 years and has been recommended by over 20,000 doctors since 1980 and has been clinically proven at Johns Hopkins (Studies conducted by researchers from John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health).
Medifast does not claim to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
With the 5 & 1 Plan, you eat 6 meals a day: 5 meals and 1 Lean & Green Meal (real protein and vegetables). You can choose any 5 meals including shakes, bars, soups, pudding, oatmeal, scrambled eggs and more.
There are over 60 meals to choose from so there is some variety. Your daily Lean & Green Meal consists of a balance of lean protein (such as beef, chicken or fish) and salad or vegetables.
The plan lets you eat every 2 to 3 hours, so you won't get hungry.
Both Nutrisystem and Jenny Craig offer pre-packaged foods with the concept of portion-controlled weight loss.
Medifast is currently offering a special where you get $50 off any order of $275 or more. Use Medifast - Medifast - $50 off any purchase of $275 or more! Use Coupon Code: FEB28H good until 2-28-11 -or- Medifast - $25 off any purchase of $150 or more! Use Coupon Code: FEB28H25 good until 2-28-11
Here is an example of the Medifast for Women 4-Week Package
Medifast 4-Week Variety Packages allow you to order their most popular Medifast Meals.
They contain the exact number of Medifast Meals for you to use in your 5 & 1 Plan for 28 days.
All packages include:
Free Shipping, Free Shaker Jar, plus 3 Bonus Meals
49 Shakes (Dutch Chocolate, French Vanilla, Strawberry Creme, Banana Creme, Orange Creme)
28 Bars(Oatmeal Raisin, Caramel Nut, Chocolate Mint, Chocolate)
21 Oatmeals (Apple Cinnamon, Maple & Brown Sugar, Peach)
28 Soups (Tomato Creamy Soup, Chicken Noodle, Beef Vegetable Stew, Chicken & Wild Rice)
7 Banana Puddings
7 Cappuccinos
*This package cannot be customized. If you would like specific products, you can order them individually.
4 weeks requires 20 boxes of meals. Depending upon availability, we may substitute comparable products.
Price $275.00
You begin what the company calls 'Transition" after you have reached your goal weight.
Transition reintroduces you to foods you previously put on hold – foods such as fruits, low-fat dairy products, whole grains and higher-carbohydrate vegetables.
During this period you gradually add calories back into your diet, while giving your body the appropriate time it needs to adjust to the new levels of calories and carbohydrates.
The 5 & 1 Plan is supposed to help you develop healthful eating habits, such as portion-control and eating 6 times per day. Transition and Maintenance are designed to reinforce these patterns of eating to help you maintain your weight loss results.
The final stage is Maintenance in which you learn how to sustain your weight loss results by making healthy food choices and living an active lifestyle.
The ultimate goal of the Maintenance stage is to help you remain at a healthy weight for the rest of your life. The actual number of calories needed to maintain a stable weight long-term is individual – you may need to experiment with different calorie levels during Maintenance to find the level that's right for you.
Medifast offers an online meal planner, weight loss tracker, a community support forum and an exercise guide.
I'd like it alot better if they made exercise a mandatory part of the program throughout all stages of the weight loss program because it seems to me that muscle mass could and would be lost during the initial part of the program.
Another concern with the program is that stage 1 (5 & 1 Plan) is there are little or no fresh foods. It's not something that would appeal to me, but apparently it works for many people.
This diet is a low fat, low calorie blend of balanced foods and appetite suppressors which are presented in easy to eat shakes, bars, puddings, chilis, oatmeals and hot cocoa. I was kind of concerned about the 'appetite suppressor' used which is called ‘Super Citrimax’ and comes from a native Southeast Asian plant, “Garcinia Cambogia”.
Published studies have shown Super Citrimax to be a safe appetite suppressor; but the diet should only be followed under the direct supervision of a doctor to monitor your weight loss and health.
The effects of Super Citrimax, according to the studies, range from inhibiting fat synthesis, decreasing food intake, reducing depression, insomnia, migraines and other serotonin-deficient type conditions. Intake up to 2800mg a day of HCA has been shown to have no related side effects. You should understand though that the studies have been done only on lab rats.
It is another concern of mine that going off the program in the end and doing without the appetite suppressor could make it difficult to maintain your new eating habits.
Article Source: http://www.busywomensfitness.com