Slim fast-should i try it?

It is just like any other quick fix. I lost weight but as soon as I quit doing it I put it back on because I hadn't changed my lifestyle. Now I count calories, exercise and eat a wide varitey of foods. I am doing much better. I do have a slim fast shake for breakfast everyday now. It is easy, good and helps me get a good start to my day. I sometimes eat one of thier meal bars for lunch if I know I am going to be gone and won't have access to healthy foods.

My advice would be to use them as a tool and not exclusivley. HTH!

NO no no! These types of diets are painful for no reason. You torture yourself for 30 days to loose what 10lbs? Then when you eat something there goes the weight back on. These diets are not long term and when you gain the weight back you feel even worse like you failed. The best way to loose lbs is to eat and to eat well. Of course you have to work out; 80% of weight loss is diet (the way you eat every day).

Slim Fast tricks your body into thinking it is full by using chemicals and fillers. Take a look at the ingredients on their website and if you don't know what one or many of them are, just google each one for info. IMHO it is a very unhealthy way to lose weight. It is cheap and convenient, but not healthy.
Risa

I've tried using this program with the meal replacement bars, and even just a week or two in, I couldn't stand the smell or taste of them. If you think you'll get sick of eating the same (crappy) food every meal then stay away from this. Eating a balanced healthy diet composed of REAL food would be much more effective. I would only use these products as a supplement if you happen to be too busy to put together a real meal. As well,all the chemicals and preservatives in them scared me away.

This also may have just been me, but the bars give me wicked heartburn.

I occasionally will drink a slim fast when I am rushed for breakfast or in a hurry. Personally I like the taste but don't drink them that often. I have never done their entire plan though.

Stay away from anything that promises those "quick" results, plus . . . check out all of the ingredients . . . part of this whole process is to be "healthier" and not not just weigh less. A good rule is to not eat anything if you cannot pronounce or do not know what some of the ingredients are. This is just another company's way to make money, not to make people healtheir.

I learned for the amount of calories in one of those shakes I tried years ago I could make a nice low cal breakfast and feel full and satisfied till lunch.., Plus I was getting headaches..and lightheaded..

I don't do the whole plan but they do help me stay on track. If I'm running late getting out the door in the morning I'll grab a shake. I like the taste and it's better than stoping somewhere. I think it is ok as long as it is part of a plan of exercise and counting calories. I enjoy food too much to not have any real food.

When I was a freshman in high school I did Slim Fast with my mom. And it worked, but like everyone says I gained everything right back when I went off.

I think it's important to note that losing weight shouldn't be a "diet" but a LIFESTYLE CHANGE -- something that you can continue for the rest of your life, so not something that you just stop doing because you get to your goal weight.

So really, is the Slim Fast program a lifestyle change? I don't think so.

I do however drink their shakes when I need a fast breakfast, but I drink that and eat some Fiber One or some fruit so it's filling and not so restrictive. But it's not like something I do every morning; only when I'm short on time.

I'm glad you decided not to do it.

I am glad that you decided not to. I started on here doing it. I exercised 5 days a week, and even ate food also, and didnt lose a pound. Its got milk in it so its got more fat than I care to take in most days and it never got me above 1200 calories. And I was so scared to go over 1000 calories that I kept doing the system. You will see better results if you stay away from slim fast. My roommate and another girl I know did it with good results. But now my roommate is back to eating out EVERY night and this girl stopped doing it and gained back a little bit of the weight.

Its true easy/quick fixes dont work. My fiances cousin was addicted to weight loss pills and was SO skinny... the moment she got off em, she gained like 100 lbs.

Interestingly, research has shown that you are likely to end up with a lower net weight doing a program like slimfast. By this I mean - something like 90% of people who lose weight gain some back... now the research shows that those who do something like slimfast (ok Optifast but it's roughly the same thing) lose say 70kg and regain say 40kg, those who lose weight with a low calorie diet lose say 30kg and regain 20. So I guess what they concluded was that because you lose more weight in the first place you were more likely to keep SOME of it off. Obviously, as with all research... that's the average/majority result of the group so there will always be individual variations.

It can be a great option for people that have tried other methods of weight loss and failed. Why? because you get super fast weight loss which motivates you to stick to it and it's super convenient... no cooking involved!

That said, I think it's something that should be done under medical supervision, preferably initiated in hospital so I wouldn't recommend it to someone just wanting to pick it up off the shelf.

On a personal level, I've tasted optifast for work (oh you would not believe some of the things us dietitians have to try hahaha) and I couldn't drink a single shake of it let alone replace all my food with it!!