My wife has had significant success using the diet featured on Medifast1.com, so I sometimes get questions about it from friends of mine. Yesterday, a friend Emailed me asking about some of the Medifast foods. She wanted to give the diet a try, but she was overwhelmed by the variety of food choices she had. She asked me to recommend some of the most tasty and desirable Medifast ingredients. I figured, if she asked me, there must be more people out there who would benefit from hearing a bit more about the foods she asked about.
The Shakes
With 55 different shakes to choose from, it's almost impossible to NOT find one you'll love. I think almost everybody has a few that they love. The shakes are perhaps the most talked-about part of the diet on all of the forums and blogs I've seen, and no wonder -- they're great, and they're part of the basic package on Medifast1.com.
The taste and texture of the shakes are great. They're not too sweet, but they don't have any of the bitter taste that other similar shakes can have. The texture is always perfect because you can choose to add more or less liquid to the mix, so you always get the texture you want. If you want a really thick shake so you can top it with whipped cream and eat it out of a bowl, you can. On the other hand, if you want something you can suck out of a sports bottle while you run on the treadmill, you can thin it out easily, too. My favorite by far is the vanilla, but the dutch chocolate is also really good.
The Bars
These are perfect 'convenience' foods. They have great taste and texture, and all you need to do to enjoy one is unwrap it. I like all of the flavors you can get, but without a doubt my personal favorite is the chocolate mint flavor. It reminds me of Girl Scout's Thin Mint cookies, which I used to be addicted to. They are a bit richer than the other foods available from Medifast1.com, so you should only ever have one each day. The point is to eat lots of small meals, not snack excessively!
The Pudding
The pudding mix is really quite versatile. You can use it to make cake or muffins, just like cake mix. As long as you use applesauce in the place of oil in your recipies, this remains a health food. Oh, also, you should use agave syrup or stevia in the place of sugar.
The Eggs:
Don't eat these plain! I mean, you can if you like plain eggs, but you certainly don't have to. I make breakfast wraps, frittata, and scrambles out of them. You have to be careful that you don't add any sugary stuff to these when you make them, but that's easy enough. Medifast1.com has some pretty strict rules, so these can really add some flexibility to your routine if used carefully.
The Chili
Like the eggs, the chili is best used not plain, but as a basis for other recipes. Over some carefully-chosen hot dogs, or (because everyone cheats sometimes!) some sprouted-wheatberry tortillas, this versatile base becomes chili-dogs or nachos. These down-home creations can get you through some tough temptations like watching a football game with the guys - you can have nachos while they do, just make sure that yours are healthy ones.
Now don't get me wrong - I stick to the diet 95% of the time. But I know that to err is human -- I just figure if I err on the side of 'health-ified' cheat foods, I'll be much better off than if I give in and eat a donut.
I hope that this has helped any of you who are just investigating the medifast1.com diet to understand what kinds of foods are available, and perhaps which package you should buy. If you're still wondering if this diet is for you, I'd say give it a shot! It has worked for several of my friends and for me as well. Just click over to any of the sites related to medifast1.com and check it out!
Thursday, October 29, 2009
What is Medifast?
I recently started the Medifast diet, and when I did, it took me a little while to understand exactly what people meant when they referred to Medifast. Were they talking about the website? The product? The shakes? Some sort of dietary movement? It took me several days of talking to people to really figure it out. The answer is, all of the above.
Medifast is a company that designed and manufactures a diet and accompanying foods, that owns a website (medifast.com), and that labels it's concept, foods, and ideals with the Medifast name. "Medifast meals" are complete meals provided by the company, along with books, and kitchen appliances like Medifast blenders and shakers. They do own and run a few clinics, but not many compared to the number of followers they have.
The company and its diet have been around for more than two decades. Developed by doctors that were preparing obese patients for safe surgeries, it worked so well that it was expanded, modified, and made public as the diet that is so popular today. Respected institutions like the Johns Hopkins University have studied the Medifast diet.
Similarly, many well-known celebrities endorse Medifast, among them Kristie Swanson from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Genie Francis from General Hospital. Despite it's long-standing reputation, many people have an incomplete understanding of the nature of the Medifast diet.
It's more than just shakes and bars. There are more than 70 separate foods on the diet's menu, and those are just the simple things you can do with them. It's easy, for example, to combine the Medifast eggs with the Medifast pudding and create some excellent baked dishes that come out like cake or muffins, but within the plan's limits. Since you must eat six times every day on this diet, it's important to have the kind of variety that they offer.
Just to keep you on your toes -- well, OK, not JUST to keep you on your toes, it's also because it's healthier -- the company asks you to put together one off-menu meal every day. Of course, they do ask you to stick to fresh, mostly-raw foods, to keep your nutrient level high. It's a challenge to get all of the nutrients you need in six 100-calorie meals, so their menu is carefully planned to make sure it can happen.
The idea behind the diet is that, by severely curtailing your intake of carbohydrates and increasing your intake of protein, your body is forced to burn fat for energy. They don't ask you to give up your sweet tooth, though -- the pudding, some of the shakes, and several of the optional drinks all have excellently sweet flavors.
The real power of the Medifast program, though, comes from its convenience. They sell each and every food product individually or in pre-packaged groups that go well together. I prefer the latter because it's not only cheaper, but easier to deal with as well.
Hopefully now you know what to think of when you think of Medifast. And if you think that perhaps this well-researched and highly successful diet is for you, just head over to Medifast and check it out!
Medifast is a company that designed and manufactures a diet and accompanying foods, that owns a website (medifast.com), and that labels it's concept, foods, and ideals with the Medifast name. "Medifast meals" are complete meals provided by the company, along with books, and kitchen appliances like Medifast blenders and shakers. They do own and run a few clinics, but not many compared to the number of followers they have.
The company and its diet have been around for more than two decades. Developed by doctors that were preparing obese patients for safe surgeries, it worked so well that it was expanded, modified, and made public as the diet that is so popular today. Respected institutions like the Johns Hopkins University have studied the Medifast diet.
Similarly, many well-known celebrities endorse Medifast, among them Kristie Swanson from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Genie Francis from General Hospital. Despite it's long-standing reputation, many people have an incomplete understanding of the nature of the Medifast diet.
It's more than just shakes and bars. There are more than 70 separate foods on the diet's menu, and those are just the simple things you can do with them. It's easy, for example, to combine the Medifast eggs with the Medifast pudding and create some excellent baked dishes that come out like cake or muffins, but within the plan's limits. Since you must eat six times every day on this diet, it's important to have the kind of variety that they offer.
Just to keep you on your toes -- well, OK, not JUST to keep you on your toes, it's also because it's healthier -- the company asks you to put together one off-menu meal every day. Of course, they do ask you to stick to fresh, mostly-raw foods, to keep your nutrient level high. It's a challenge to get all of the nutrients you need in six 100-calorie meals, so their menu is carefully planned to make sure it can happen.
The idea behind the diet is that, by severely curtailing your intake of carbohydrates and increasing your intake of protein, your body is forced to burn fat for energy. They don't ask you to give up your sweet tooth, though -- the pudding, some of the shakes, and several of the optional drinks all have excellently sweet flavors.
The real power of the Medifast program, though, comes from its convenience. They sell each and every food product individually or in pre-packaged groups that go well together. I prefer the latter because it's not only cheaper, but easier to deal with as well.
Hopefully now you know what to think of when you think of Medifast. And if you think that perhaps this well-researched and highly successful diet is for you, just head over to Medifast and check it out!
Get Thinner With The Medifast Diet
If you're struggling to lose fat -- not just weight, but actual body fat -- and you haven't tried the Medifast diet, you need to. The hustle-and-bustle of life often calls on you to sacrifice a "real" meal in favor of a cheeseburger-on-the-go, but the effects these decisions make on your waistline (and eventually your overall health) are devastating.
Enter the Medifast diet. Many, many diet programs have come out claiming to help you lose fat, and many of them even use the same basic theory as the Medifast diet. The difference is convenience.
The Theory
When you eat carbs, your body burns carbs for energy -- and then any carbs that aren't burned for energy are turned into fat and stuck to your butt. When your body doesn't eat carbs, you enter a metabolic state called ketosis where your body gives up on carbs and burns fat for energy instead. If you don't eat carbs OR fat, your body tries to burn fat for energy, but is required to draw on your fat reserves rather than on fat that you eat.
(Don't be concerned that protein also has calories in it -- 99% of protein isn't ever burned for calories; it goes to build and rebuild muscle and organ tissues instead.)
The Medifast diet is custom-crafted to keep your body in a state of ketosis over long periods of time by limiting your carbohydrate intake -- but also to keep your fat intake down, forcing your body to 'eat' it's own fat reserves in order to have energy.
The Convenience
The main reason that people fail when they try other low-carb diets is that it's horribly inconvenient. The simple fact is that all of our easy-to-eat foods come in carbohydrate-based 'vehicles' like bread, tortillas, and pasta. The physician that developed Medifast noticed that, and came up with a startlingly long list of ways that foods can be made convenient to prepare and eat without relying on carbohydrates to get the good stuff into your mouth.
So the Medifast diet has over 70 foods that can be combined in a billion different ways to make a huge variety of meals. Since you'll be eating six times every day, that's very important to the diet's success!
The Stages of The Medifast Diet
There are three phases of the Medifast diet: the 5&1 stage, the Transition Stage, and the Maintenance Stage.
The 5&1 stage simply means that you eat 5 meals straight off of the Medifast menu every day, and 1 that you make yourself, provided it's composed primarily of fresh fruits and veggies. It's referred to as the 'lean and green' meal, because it should always have lean protein like a chicken breast, and green vegetables. This stage is designed to get your body to adapt to the diet, and lasts a few weeks.
The Transition stage lasts quite a while, and basically is the time it takes you to learn the principles behind the Medifast menu, and create your own version that conforms to your tastes. The idea here is basically to prepare you for the next stage. The list of foods that you can add to your diet starts very small, and increases over time as your body keeps adapting.
The Maintenance stage lasts for the rest of your life, and basically consists of you applying the Medifast principles to your everyday diet, without having to keep spending money on the Medifast prepared foods.
As you can tell, the Medifast diet isn't a short-term or fad diet. It's a lifestyle change, carefully crafted over 20 years of expertise to make the change from your current dietary failure into a perfect diet an easy one. Check out the Medifast diet for yourself today!
Enter the Medifast diet. Many, many diet programs have come out claiming to help you lose fat, and many of them even use the same basic theory as the Medifast diet. The difference is convenience.
The Theory
When you eat carbs, your body burns carbs for energy -- and then any carbs that aren't burned for energy are turned into fat and stuck to your butt. When your body doesn't eat carbs, you enter a metabolic state called ketosis where your body gives up on carbs and burns fat for energy instead. If you don't eat carbs OR fat, your body tries to burn fat for energy, but is required to draw on your fat reserves rather than on fat that you eat.
(Don't be concerned that protein also has calories in it -- 99% of protein isn't ever burned for calories; it goes to build and rebuild muscle and organ tissues instead.)
The Medifast diet is custom-crafted to keep your body in a state of ketosis over long periods of time by limiting your carbohydrate intake -- but also to keep your fat intake down, forcing your body to 'eat' it's own fat reserves in order to have energy.
The Convenience
The main reason that people fail when they try other low-carb diets is that it's horribly inconvenient. The simple fact is that all of our easy-to-eat foods come in carbohydrate-based 'vehicles' like bread, tortillas, and pasta. The physician that developed Medifast noticed that, and came up with a startlingly long list of ways that foods can be made convenient to prepare and eat without relying on carbohydrates to get the good stuff into your mouth.
So the Medifast diet has over 70 foods that can be combined in a billion different ways to make a huge variety of meals. Since you'll be eating six times every day, that's very important to the diet's success!
The Stages of The Medifast Diet
There are three phases of the Medifast diet: the 5&1 stage, the Transition Stage, and the Maintenance Stage.
The 5&1 stage simply means that you eat 5 meals straight off of the Medifast menu every day, and 1 that you make yourself, provided it's composed primarily of fresh fruits and veggies. It's referred to as the 'lean and green' meal, because it should always have lean protein like a chicken breast, and green vegetables. This stage is designed to get your body to adapt to the diet, and lasts a few weeks.
The Transition stage lasts quite a while, and basically is the time it takes you to learn the principles behind the Medifast menu, and create your own version that conforms to your tastes. The idea here is basically to prepare you for the next stage. The list of foods that you can add to your diet starts very small, and increases over time as your body keeps adapting.
The Maintenance stage lasts for the rest of your life, and basically consists of you applying the Medifast principles to your everyday diet, without having to keep spending money on the Medifast prepared foods.
As you can tell, the Medifast diet isn't a short-term or fad diet. It's a lifestyle change, carefully crafted over 20 years of expertise to make the change from your current dietary failure into a perfect diet an easy one. Check out the Medifast diet for yourself today!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Look Better and Save Cash with Medifast Coupons
Millions of people check out the Medifast diet every year, but many are turned off because of the cost -- but that cost can easily be reduced to managable levels with Medifast coupons.
Let's face it, looking great and having a positive attitude is worth any amount of money. But in today's economy, it seems like sometimes it's a question of trading your health for your car payment. Fortunately, the people at Medifast see the delimma, and have responded. But before we look at the Medifast coupons, let's look at Medifast itself.
The Medifast Diet
The Medifast diet works on the principle of ketosis -- basically, if you don't eat sugar, your body is forced to burn fat for calories; if you don't eat any fat, either, your body has to hunt down the fat that it has stored and burn THAT for calories. Thus, you get thinner.
So the Medifast physicians have carefully crafted foods that replace your typical munchies with low-carb, low-fat variations that still maintain plenty of flavor. At first, you have to buy their foods and eat them for five out of the six daily meals that the Medifast diet requires you to eat. There's pretty strict guidelines for what that sixth meal allows as well.
Fortunately, there's a huge variety of foods available for purchase, including favorite snack foods like pudding, shakes, chili, and more. They want you to be able to enjoy something appropriate to any circumstance, from a nice dinner-by-candlelight with your significant other to watching the game with the guys.
Ideally, the plan will net you about a thousand calories each day, and provide you with complete nutrition while doing so. Diabetics have their own custom-crafted options to ease them off of insulin while helping them lose weight as well.
If you need to lose a significant amount of weight, the Medifast diet can do that, generally at a rate of between eight and twenty pounds every month for as long as you need. Keep in mind that some people have health issues that might keep them from participating, such as serious liver or kidney diseases, people taking certain medications, and people that are very young or very old.
The Medifast Coupons
The beauty of the Medifast diet is that it's designed to help you STOP needing the premade, purchased food that they sell. The idea is that you will only need those foods for a few weeks while your body adapts to a state of continuous ketosis, and then they train you to choose the right 'normal' foods so that you don't have to keep paying them forever. For that reason, a one-time coupon is often all you need to get past the 'pricey' part of the diet and move on to the next phase.
The Medifast coupons generally provide a discount of between sixteen and twenty percent off of the price of the foods. There are always different coupons being tested by the company, because they want to best serve their clients. This is the best place to check for live ones: Medifast Coupons. Check the Medifast coupons out and get started on your path to weight loss today!
Let's face it, looking great and having a positive attitude is worth any amount of money. But in today's economy, it seems like sometimes it's a question of trading your health for your car payment. Fortunately, the people at Medifast see the delimma, and have responded. But before we look at the Medifast coupons, let's look at Medifast itself.
The Medifast Diet
The Medifast diet works on the principle of ketosis -- basically, if you don't eat sugar, your body is forced to burn fat for calories; if you don't eat any fat, either, your body has to hunt down the fat that it has stored and burn THAT for calories. Thus, you get thinner.
So the Medifast physicians have carefully crafted foods that replace your typical munchies with low-carb, low-fat variations that still maintain plenty of flavor. At first, you have to buy their foods and eat them for five out of the six daily meals that the Medifast diet requires you to eat. There's pretty strict guidelines for what that sixth meal allows as well.
Fortunately, there's a huge variety of foods available for purchase, including favorite snack foods like pudding, shakes, chili, and more. They want you to be able to enjoy something appropriate to any circumstance, from a nice dinner-by-candlelight with your significant other to watching the game with the guys.
Ideally, the plan will net you about a thousand calories each day, and provide you with complete nutrition while doing so. Diabetics have their own custom-crafted options to ease them off of insulin while helping them lose weight as well.
If you need to lose a significant amount of weight, the Medifast diet can do that, generally at a rate of between eight and twenty pounds every month for as long as you need. Keep in mind that some people have health issues that might keep them from participating, such as serious liver or kidney diseases, people taking certain medications, and people that are very young or very old.
The Medifast Coupons
The beauty of the Medifast diet is that it's designed to help you STOP needing the premade, purchased food that they sell. The idea is that you will only need those foods for a few weeks while your body adapts to a state of continuous ketosis, and then they train you to choose the right 'normal' foods so that you don't have to keep paying them forever. For that reason, a one-time coupon is often all you need to get past the 'pricey' part of the diet and move on to the next phase.
The Medifast coupons generally provide a discount of between sixteen and twenty percent off of the price of the foods. There are always different coupons being tested by the company, because they want to best serve their clients. This is the best place to check for live ones: Medifast Coupons. Check the Medifast coupons out and get started on your path to weight loss today!
Friday, September 18, 2009
Medifast Diet
Is Medifast the Ideal Diet Program for You?
Is it necessary for you to shed some pounds? Like numerous other people, you might be sorting through a sea of diet plans, to locate one that's ideal for your needs. If so, then think about Medifast!
The sheer number of diet plans available today can seem exasperating. But will they help you to shed pounds and then keep them off? Medifast is a diet program that delivers.
Because low-calorie diets are so commonplace, it would seem practical to burn 200 calories by skipping breakfast. However, that solution isn't as practical as following the Medifast diet.
Over a quarter of a century ago, a doctor who wanted overweight people to lose weight created a dietary supplement called Medifast. However, today Medifast is a full diet program with a complete line of products and support. The medical profession and dieters alike have given Medifast their seal of approval.
What makes Medifast unique is that it quickly provides results. The pre-made meals help to make dieting easier. Furthermore, with no herbal supplements involved, you can lose weight to look and feel wonderful. The focus is on consuming healthy food during meal and snack time.
By consuming meals that are balanced well and low in calories, the Medifast diet will probably help you to lose five pounds during the first week alone. After that, it's common for dieters to maintain weight losses of 2-3 pounds each week.
When dieting, safety is a huge issue. That's the reason why Medifast doesn't include herbal supplements. In fact, they can be harmful to dieters. Conversely, many scientific studies at John Hopkins University have confirmed that Medifast is indeed a healthful weight loss program.
Regardless of which stage of dieting you're at, Medifast can work for you. Teens can shed pounds that they gained during their growth spurts. New mothers can lose the “baby weight” they put on recently. Diabetics, seniors, menopausal women and even vegetarians can ALL benefit from the Medifast diet.
Women who are menopausal can avail of Medifast Plus for Women's Health, in order to maintain weight loss. The tasty shakes include various ingredients to help with symptoms such as hot flashes and night sweating.
Medifast is also an easy and safe way for type-2 diabetics to lose weight. One scientific study revealed that diabetics lost 200% more weight with Medifast, than with the ADA's (American Diabetes Association) diet. Furthermore, with Medifast, they were more likely not to quit their diets.
Additionally, Medifast is accessible and affordable. You can access the pre-made meals at nationwide weight-loss centers and online. Meanwhile, the cost is only about $80 weekly, and allows you to eliminate the high costs of unhealthy snacks.
Through means that are low-calorie, low-sugar, correctly-portioned and healthy, you can achieve success. In fact, thousands of people have already experienced long-term success by using the program. They not only slimmed down, but they've lost the weight permanently. Instead of simply losing weight, they've gained a new lifestyle. Medifast will continue to better the lives of numerous other dieters. Will you be the next one?
Medifast Coupons
Medifast Burns Weight without Adding it Back on
As any dieter will tell you, gaining weight is always simpler than losing it. That's particularly true in modern times, when there doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day. This can cause stress and eventually obesity.
Halting this never-ending cycle can be quite challenging. However, it's still possible for diet plans such as Medifast, to be effective. Medifast alters your lifestyle, which includes your meal and snack habits. You can lose weight rapidly and safely.
What are the root causes of obesity? Some of the main factors are malnutrition, overeating, and skipping meals. Furthermore, the complexity of everyday diets can compound the problem. On the other hand, doctor-created Medifast has been designed to give you meals that are healthful and balanced.
Since its inception, the cornerstone of Medifast has been healthy foods. The program started out as a supplement that doctors supplied to their patients. However, since its formation in the early 1980s, Medifast has blossomed into a complete diet program. It provides a cornucopia of meals that are low in calories and fat, but are bursting with vitamins and minerals.
The Medifast diet places its users in a moderate state of “ketosis,” which creates energy by burning fat. Through keen observation, you can manage the state of ketosis and boost how much weight loss you can achieve.
The “5 and 1” plan is Medifast's most popular one. It includes five replacement meals and one meal containing veggies and lean protein. Dieters daily eat approximately 800-1,000 calories.
Portion control remains one the most important factors when using dieting to shed pounds. You should think of food as fuel, rather than as calories. Medifast not only instructs you about which foods you should eat, but also how large your portions should be. To put it another way, forget about “super-sizing” any of your meals.
You should also avoid skipping any meals, as this will result in hunger and then overeating during meals or snacks. Instead of consuming three huge meals daily, you should consume six small meals. This will balance your metabolism, which will then assist you in burning weight.
The Medifast diet works and works well. However, remember that you should stay with the plan for the long haul. That will prevent you from constantly losing and gaining weight. Focus on losing weight and keeping it off.
It's also important to have the proper perspective when on the Medifast diet, in order to achieve success. Instead of simply losing weight for a short term, focus on changing your lifestyle instead. However, it's quite easy due to Medifast's delicious and convenient pre-made meals. Instead of constantly taking measurements, you can focus on losing weight permanently. And ultimately that will increase the likelihood that your weight-loss will last beyond the short term.
Medifast can help you to shed weight permanently, by changing how you understand food. Rather than perceiving food as simply something to fill your stomach, you'll see it as fuel. And that fuel can keep your body at an optimum performance level today and forever!
Medifast
Medifast Diet Plan Helps to Lose Fat and Gain a New You
How many diets have you learned about in the past week? You may feel overwhelmed by how many new diets keep popping up.
More than half a century ago, the Medifast meal-replacement program first became available, but solely through doctors. Today, Medifast is also available online and through various weight-loss centers. This diet program includes various meal-replacement options that include health bars and shakes, and pre-made meals.
Simply visit Medifast's website to obtain all the meal-replacement items and support that you require. Additionally, about 15,000 Medifast physicians' offices are available throughout the USA; and through the network of health coaches, Shape for Life. You can avail of personal trainers, educational information, and so on.
Medifast's methodology is low-calorie. By using its pre-made meals, you don't have to fret about counting fat grams and calories, weighing foods, and other tasks. Simply daily consume six delicious and filling meals. This allows you to control your portioning and also sustain a steady blood sugar level.
Medifast's primary program is “5 and 1.” You're required to consume five pre-made Medifast meals, and also an extra “lean and green meal.” The sixth meal includes either fish or lean meat, and one serving of a green vegetable.
With Medifast, you'll consume approximately 800-1,000 calories each day. The goal is weekly to burn 2-5 pounds, while simultaneously saving muscle mass. Medifast has special dieting plans for various groups, including teens, new moms, seniors, and vegetarians. Each plan contains special characteristics that make it ideal for whichever group Medifast designed it for. However, most Medifast dieters lose more weight during the program's initial weeks.
Are you concerned about an expensive diet program? Medifast costs approximately the same amount as you would normally spend monthly on food. Medifast's cost is roughly $300 monthly, plus the “lean and green” meals' costs. The good news is that the absence of dietary supplements keeps the costs lower than other programs.
What makes Medifast so outstanding is that you won't have the urge to eat unhealthy food, and you won't need to make significant choices about your dieting. Whey and soy protein will help to keep your hunger at bay.
The Medifast diet's “lean and green” meal remains one of its key components. It typically includes 5-7 ounces of fish or lean meat. If you select a leaner meat, then you'll be able to eat a marginally larger amount. On the other hand, the “green” aspect of “lean and green” includes certain vegetables based on their glycemic index and carbohydrates. Ideal vegetables include potatoes, onions, corn, and peas. The veggies should be raw or prepared via being grilled, boiled, steamed, or baked.
Furthermore, it's critical to avoid foods that are high in sugars and fats. Meanwhile, low-calorie snacks such as celery stalks and sugar-free gum are allowed.
Truth be told, the Medifast diet can help everyone, ranging from teens to seniors. By keeping the dieter's blood sugar level in check, the urge to consume unhealthy snacks vanishes. This will allow you to shed pounds and keep them off!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
