My Medifast Journey Begins

I'm on a DIET. After deciding I couldn't afford $15,000 for lap band surgery, I knew I needed to do something. I sought for higher power as I looked at my options, and the phrase 'aggressive dieting' kept coming to me, so I began to do some research into gluten free meal programs. I knew Jenny Craig still didn't offer gluten free meals, but I wanted to double check. I looked into Nutri-System also, then researched Medifast. Well knock me over with a feather! Medifast has a gluten free track of meals including brownies! After a quick prayer for guidance, I took the plunge and ordered 4 weeks of meals.

Here's the plan:
Every day I eat five 100-125 calorie 'meals' (one every 2-3 hours) and one "Lean and Green" meal of my own consisting of 5-7 oz of protein, 2 cups of non-starchy vegetables and a small amount of healthy oil. That's a total of between 800 - 900 calories per day.

Here's how it's going so far:
Thursday was a busy day at work, so I think that made my first day easy. I had eggs for breakfast-- powdered scrambled eggs with southwest spices. I was very surprised that they tasted good. I had a Cranberry Mango drink for my next meal at 10:30. It was okay--I thought it was a shake, so I wasn't blown away by the flavor and consistency. I ate Chicken and Wild Rice soup at 1:00. By then I had already drunk 60 oz of water, so I was pretty busy dashing to the ladies room every hour. My next meal was a chocolate shake which tasted exactly how I expected--satisfying. After work is where I ran into an trouble. I stopped at the store to stock my fridge with Lean and Green meal components and was feeling quite shaky and hungry by the time I finished. I ate my 6 oz of turkey on the way home, then made my green salad. At 7:30 I ate my brownie. Heaven! It's one of those 'make in the microwave and eat while it's hot' brownies--fudgey, warm, and very satisfying.

Friday was a bit less intense at work. I had a pancake for breakfast (tasted fine), then a shake. For lunch I ate a 6 oz chicken breast and 1/2 cup broccoli at Chili's. Tasty! I could have had a larger portion of vegetables, but I had dinner with book club that night so I wanted to save some 'green' for that. Before dinner I had my tomato soup meal, then I ate 2 cups of arugula at Settabello. Okay... that was torture. Sitting for 2 hours with friends who are eating authentic Italian style pizza and gelato and trying to make myself content with straight lettuce as my meal? I should get an Oscar for pulling that off!

Saturday was difficult. Without the routine and distraction of work, it was harder to control my cravings and emotional need for food to 'tame the savage beast.' Still, I did fine. I added two celery stalks and a package of Medifast Soy Crisp snacks to the menu and ate my Lean and Green meal at 3:30 instead of for dinner. It was the hardest day so far. I had a headache and lots of sinus pressure--probably has nothing to do with the diet, but that's how I felt physically. Emotionally I struggled, but I made it!

As of this morning I've lost 7 pounds! That's what I call aggressive. I know it won't be like this all the time, but it feels good  to see immediate results.

I prepared for this by doing the following:
1. I purged my fridge and cupboard of any non Medifast compliant food.
2. I deleted the Food Network from my favorites list on cable.
3. I only watched recorded television shows so I could skip food commercials.
4. I still got on Pinterest, but skipped the food pins.
5. I organized all my meals into reusable bags so I can grab and go for the next 5 weeks.
6. I told my family, friends and co-workers.
7. I signed up for a free Medifast coach (her name is Mary, so I call her Medifast Mary) and have spoken with her nearly every day.

So, that's the latest. I am full of hope.