hapster222

Good morning!!! Mea Culpa!!! Didn't hear the announcement for the call for blood on Wednesday night before I posted my original message.

Have only really skimmed the entire thread I started and I've already deleted all references to Cruise Critic from my computer hardware, but, I'll leave you folks with one final post -- read it or not. We were able to chat with one of the medical staff on board -- yes, and don't think that HIPAA rules apply on the High Seas like they do in the States. Anyhow, God Bless the passenger who offloaded in Cabo as she's receiving the help she needs, but come to find out that she boarded the ship with a PREEXISTING condition which featured the vomiting of blood that was the impetus for our schedule change. If that's not SELFISH, I don't know what is. It's not like it was a complete surprise that this would happen to her.

Lots of people traveled far and wide to come on this holiday, some for their first trip to Mexico and some repeat trips, not to mention the many months of planning. Contrary to popular belief, I really do feel for this woman and her family, but sorry, if you've got a preexisting condition that can cause a change to 3,000+ passengers' plans, then maybe you ought to rethink booking a vacation that is so far from medical attention that you're probably going to imminently need.

Okay... most of you will be glad to know that I'm done with Cruise Critic -- frankly probably also why I don't do Facebook and the like. What a time-suck. Have a nice life, everyone, and cruise well!!

Cool!!

Have a great holiday... and DON'T SWEAT going off the rails too much if you happen to. Just get right back on the horse... I've been in Maintenance now for a little over a year... have had my ups and downs with weight but haven't crossed my Maginot Line of 190 to the upside (but have come close).... but I plan to enjoy the holidays with friends and family -- and all the resultant goodies that come with those folks -- but am buying some more Medifast from my local coach today and will be doing my Medifast "Blitz" for a minus 10 pounds or so immediately after Thanksgiving next week to roll me right into our Sapphire Princess Mex Riviera cruise on the 15th.

Still no bread, rice, or potatoes for this kid, though, for a year and a half.... it's KEY imho.....

Cheers Everyone....

Hap

Yeah.. when you work out -- especially hard -- your body compensates by keeping all the fat IN you... so if you're working out hard and want to lose weight, you have to be sure you compensate for the extra work by eating MORE food (protein, mostly) than you otherwise would.... I'd take it easy and get the pounds off using the MF and then gradually increase your activity level.....I'm no expert, though...YMMV

Hap

Nothing keeps the weight off like getting rid of all your "big" clothes after buying the smaller sizes ;-)

Just don't eat the "crap" foods when stress eating... grab some raw almonds or carrot/celery sticks.... ;-)

WTG, Zulu... hang tough....

After a year now in maintenance, I've come to the conclusion that it's the bread -- well, and anything white: potatoes, rice, pasta -- that's EVIL!!! Stay away from it IMHO.

Hap

I always made the shakes into "frosties" by mixing the shake with 1/2 to 3/4 cup of water and adding a couple inches of crushed ice and blending it. Yum....

Hap

Save the 1,000 bucks and do it on your own... no need for a center, unless you REALLY need your hand held... this plan is a no-brainer as long as you commit 100% to it... don't bother if you're not willing to do that cuz you will just waste your money. You have to really be committed to change your lifestyle; if you don't you will lose the weight, but it will just go back on at the end. Medifast is just a TOOL; just like all the other plans; however, it's probably the MOST efficient tool out there...

I've got a bunch of files and have coached others (no charge ;-) ... I even have a source (MF Health Coach) that will ship anywhere and sells for $13 a box instead of $16 through Medifast....

Send me an email: hpmedifast AT gmail DOT com

(FYI: I just entered my 10th month of Maintenance after hitting goal last October (down 55 pounds, along with better health). Is it easy to maintain? Yes and no. I haven't had a piece of bread since July 2012...no potatoes or pasta, either... and amazingly I don't miss all that stuff... ) And, yes, you CAN cruise and have a great time with a different eating lifestyle. I have a post-cruise manifesto I wrote explaining it if anyone's interested.)

Way to go, Nana....

Just do it, TIME.... it's the easiest -- well, after the first week or so ;-) but it's the most efficient; let's say that -- diet you will ever do in a short amount of time... in fact, I just restarted this past Monday to finally lose the last 10-15 pounds I didn't lose the first time around.... I only regained about 7 of the 50 pounds I lost in my 9 months of Maintenance, but losing these 10-15 will be a snap inside of three weeks.....

Give me a shout at hpmedifast at gmail dot com as I have a bunch of material and resources to give you if you'd like.... I have a local source here (a Medifast health coach) that sells the food at a slight discount than you'd pay online, and he ships anywhere. And I suggest not going to a center, because it'll cost you a lot for that privilege....I'd be glad to guide you along; I've done it for others....

Here's to being a LOSER.....

Hap

Cool, Butterfly... that's great news....

Make sure you're drinking a sh!tload of water.....that helps keep you full....

Cheers... Hap

@Britney (re the yogurt):

Ah, okay... didn't realize they were allowing it as a lean and green as really NO dairy is allowed till T/M... but hey, who am I to argue with success.... and I know about those portions... yikes... some of those egg/egg beaters portions for a LG meal are gargantuan. As long as it's working for ya, GREAT.

Cheers... Hap

No problem Nana....glad to help... I've gotten kinda evangelistic about Medifast in the past few months and love to "spread the good word" as it were LOL...

Here are a couple of go-to's for us (I say "us" to mean my wife and me... she's lost about 20 pounds by osmosis as I'm the cook in the house.. so she eats Lean and Greens or she's on her own LOL).

Cauliflower, cauliflower, cauliflower...... love me some cauliflower..... very versatile and economical on calories.....

Since we don't eat potatoes anymore, I make my mashed cauliflower and I can tell you it's pretty much like the real deal and much lighter and easier on your system....

Steam 2 good sized heads broken apart of cauli till it's al dente. Let it cool a bit, and then drop the pieces into your food processor. Get some Laughing Cow low-fat cheese wedges (any flavor will do). For each food processor "load" put in one wedge, along with a couple tablespoons of parmesan cheese, some either Hidden Valley Ranch low-fat ranch dressing OR low-fat sour cream (about a tablespoon or so), some garlic powder and S/P. We're on maintenance, so if you're in weight-loss phase of Medifast, go LIGHT on the extra condiments and COUNT out your 1/2 cup servings of this when it's done. But since we're in Maintenance, I ALSO steam a cut-up onion with the cauliflower and process that, too.

So you process all of this mixture till it's the consisntency of mashed potatoes. Excellent... serve it with, say, a stuffed green pepper (stuffed with ground turkey or beef; again, count it all out if you're on Medifast), and you have a good old-fashioned comfort Lean and Green meal. We usually make TWO processor container's full and have a bit leftover for the next day.

If you're near a Costco, buy the ready-made rotisserie chickens and split them in half lengthwise....freeze the halves and that's a Lean for two for dinner on a night. Costco canned chicken drained is ONE Lean serving. Serve that on a bed of greens with some low-fat ranch on top: instant Lean and Green.

Along the cauliflower line again, take your cauliflower pieces and put them in a saucepan, cover with enough low-sodium chicken broth to just cover the top of the cauliflower. Boil till soft. Cool. Then take that cauliflower/broth mixture and blend it in your blender. That makes a FANTASTIC chowder base with NO cream, but you wouldn't know it by tasting it. Separately saute some onions, carrots, peppers, celery -- whatever -- add some seafood, or chicken, corn... whatever.... then put that cooked mixture together with your "chowder base" and you have some GREAT chowder (LOW FAT/CALORIES).

There's a couple ideas to get you started. Be creative... just make sure you WEIGH/TRACK everything if you're in the Medifast weight-loss phase. But these are our regular gotos now in Maintenance.

Hap

@Britney:

Yeah, strange about the lack of cravings, isn't it? This is one of the benefits of the ketogenic type of diet. I used to LOVE bread and potatoes. I mean, I would hit that burger bar on a cruise ship during the afternoon on the pool deck and absolutely PLOW plates of french fries dipped in ketchup and mayo.... not to mention that daily bread basket on the dining room table; right?

Nope... haven't had a potato or a piece of bread since last July and I'm not even missing any of it. I'm perfectly fine with that as long as it lasts. Will it last? Who knows, but I'm enjoying eating "clean" carbs now every day and just simply healthy foods. Do I overdo it some days with a little extra red wine? Sure... but I weigh myself every day and make sure it doesn't get away from me.

After all, I gave away all my 38-waisted pants for 34s, and I'm NEVER buying bigger pants again -- EVER...... ;-)

Hap

I'm pretty tuned into the Medifast program and have "coached" a few people as well (not for $$ ;-).... I'm pretty sure that yogurt in ANY form is NOT approved during the weight-loss phase. Now, once you get into the Transition phase -- and WELL into the Transition phase -- then you can have dairy. But during the weight-loss phase, the ONLY foods allowed are the Medifast meals themselves and one "Lean and Green" meal you make daily for yourself, and that meal is simply protein and an approved vegetable.

Anyone who would like to email me, I'd be glad to pass along some information you might not already have -- i.e., the Medifast Quick Start Guide, which explains the program and the Lean and Green meal in DETAIL, and also the Transition and Maintenance Guide to be used once you've hit or are about to hit your weight-loss goal.

My email: hpmedifast at gmail dot com

Cheers... Hap

You go, girl... that's FANTASTIC news... so sounds like only a few months to go to hit your goal... GREAT!!! Hit me up again when Transition/Maintenance comes around and I've got a lot of material for that.... just make sure you do Transition BY THE BOOK!!! You might even want to spend a little more time on each phase of it (like I did), just to make sure you don't just jump into bad habits again....

Cheers...

P.S.... any cruises coming up?? We're going on a week down to Mexico on the Sapphire Princess in December... no worries....gonna eat lotsa protein and not a lot of crap like I used to LOL...

WTG, Butterfly and Britney... just keep at it... it gets a LOT easier... and when you hit your goal, you will be surprised that you won't crave all the crap you used to eat before the plan.

Hap

What's "long term"? I started in July 2012 at 230 pounds and hit my goal of 180 pounds at the end of October 2012 (12 weeks) for a 50-pound loss. I've been maintaining ever since now going into my eighth month of maintenance.

It's all about lifestyle changes. ANY weight-loss program is just a TOOL. The easy part is losing the weight; the challenge is in KEEPING it off for the duration -- which I COMPLETELY plan on doing. It's easy now, now that I know what to eat and what NOT to eat anymore.

So again, what's "long term" in your book?

Cheers... Hap

What do you mean you're finding yourself eating whatever you can before you get the Medifast? Are you talking about pigging out on bad-for-you food before you start the program? This is the main reason most people DON'T succeed with Medifast -- or any other weight-loss program out there. Medifast is just a TOOL to lose weight. KEEPING it off is the hard part and changing your lifestyle is a MUST post-MF once you hit goal.

I feel bad for you because it doesn't sound like you're going to do very well at this. I hope that's not true, but I'm just bein' real here. I hit my goal last October and have pretty much kept my 50 pounds off -- even having gone on a couple of cruises since then. YOU MUST change your lifestyle after you hit your goal, PERIOD!!!

While I was waiting for my first box of Medifast meals, I started eating Lean and Greens for that week while it shipped, and I jump-started my weight loss by 10 pounds. You're not doing yourself any favors if you're pigging out "one last time" before the box comes.

Contact me at hpmedifast at gmail dot com if you have any questions or problems during your journey and I'll be glad to help you out. I've been there and know all the tweaks to make the weight-loss phase tolerable, but once again, you better get your head in order or you're just wasting your money on this.

Cheers... Hap

Just watch the carbs on the cruise... I wrote a post-cruise/post-Medifast review and put it up on Medifast website.... I have it if you're interested.... the main thing is to ditch the bread and potatoes and rice, mainly.. concentrate on upping your protein if you're going to up anything... stay away from fried stuff, too... this is all about changing your lifestyle FOR THE DURATION... the Medifast plan is JUST A TOOL......you have to change the way you deal with food... simple as that.

Hap... (entering my sixth month in maintenance and STILL defending 185 or so = 45-50 pounds from my starting weight!!!!)

Hi, Buckeye... good luck on your redux of Medifast... it really is a great program, as you know.

I wouldn't suggest adding anything to the shakes that's Off Plan -- i.e., the sugar-free pudding mix. It's all about ketosis and low carbs. Though that pudding mix is low-cal, the carb count is probably what'll get you in trouble if you veer off the 5/1 plan of Medifast. I'm not saying it's forbidden in the Medifast plan. All I'm saying is you're probably adding up to about 10 carbs extra that you wouldn't be adding if you follow the directions below. In the weight-loss mode of Medifast, it's all about LOW carbs and keeping them at around 80 a day tops up to but not more than 100 a day -- the closer to 80 the better.

Your best bet to make the shakes better tasting is MIXING TWO Medifast meal packets together -- i.e., a Vanilla shake and a Maple Oatmeal packet for instance to make a BUTTERSCOTCH shake.... then split the resulting product in your blender into TWO meals... or a strawberrry shake with a mango soft serve to have a mixed shake... chocolate and peanut butter MF packets, for example.

This way you stay completely ON PLAN. That's the idea. Once you start adding stuff that's not in the plan, then you might as well not spend the $300 bucks on the food every month. I went direct online and lost about 50 pounds in 12 weeks and have kept it off now since October, even with cruises. It's all about a lifestyle change, as you know.

Email me at hpmedifast at gmail dot com .. I've got LOTS of recipes for great Lean and Greens and all kinds of info that I'd be glad to share. MAKE IT PERMANENT this time!!!!!

Hap

Hi, Aniemi...

WOW... 30 days... yikers.... 'nuf said...

If you want to see how I handled our 15-day Hawaii cruise, tune in here:

http://forums.medifastcommunity.com/showthread.php?116467-BACK-from-the-Thanksgiving-cruise!!!

It's from the men's section of the Medifast website... you oughta read some of the posts over there and you'll get MORE inspired....

Cheers.... Hap

Good job, Staci!!! I found not eating bread anymore -- well, or anything WHITE for that matter (especially on cruises, which that bread basket used to be my downfall at EVERY meal in the dining room) has helped immensely...have kept about 40+ pounds off since October and had a long cruise inside that time.

Cheers... Hap

Hap - I think I missed you, but have an amazing trip. You must feel so fabulous! Your plan is a good one - blitz if you need to when you get back, but it sounds like you have the mental part of this plan down as good as you have the physical part.

 

Can't wait to hear about your trip - Happy sails!!

Thanks for this note a couple weeks back... yeah, I think I missed it, but we just got back from our cruise. Total weight damage: only about SIX pounds. I TOTALLY have ingrained in my mind this new lifestyle post-Medifast and am really proud of myself. Indulged a bit too much, yet stayed away mostly from extra carbs (those bread baskets are the KILLER) in the Main Dining Room for lunch and dinner. Didn't eat ONE -- and didn't miss it, either. Something's definitely changed in my head, which I am so grateful for. Going to do the Medifast Blitz starting NOW and will be back to precruise weight in no time, no doubt!!! I'll probably write a review of the cruise in a few days which I'll post in the Celebrity Century area of the Member Reviews.

Cheers... Hap

Well, the day has finally arrived -- well, tomorrow, anyhow LOL...we leave on our 16-day Hawaiian adventure on the Century tomorrow. I've been in Maintenance for about a month and a half and am at the low point of my entire weight-loss journey at 179.5 pounds (starting weight of 230 pounds in July).

Haven't had any Medifast food since being in Maintenance, except for an occasional bar or snack bag or a shake that I mix with other off-the-shelf-type shake products, but I've got my Medifast kitchen cupboard ready to go with about two weeks' worth of MF food for my return in a couple weeks, if need be that I need to do the Medifast Blitz. There will be NO Medifast food on this trip for me and we are going to enjoy ourselves. Even splurging on the Celebrity "beverage package" so as to turn this trip into a genuine "all-inclusive" experience.

I'm not too concerned what weight I might come back to. I know that I'll be eating differently than I ever have on a cruise before; that said, I'll probably eat more than I'm normally used to, and for sure will be drinking more than I'm used to. But that's the beauty of this whole Medifast experience over the past several months: I know exactly how to get rid of the weight should the need arise.

Hope everyone has a great holiday and are where they want to be in their lives!!!

Hap