Does Slim Fast really work? Well it has for me..

Let's see... the first 3 ingredients are sugar, modified sugar, and oil. Than fillers, stabilizers and a multivitamin (with questionable absorption properties).

Yeah, that seems to be lost on many people here... and don't forget the artificial sweeteners that are in there too (I'm wondering WHY, if the first ingredient is sugar?).

Anyway, I do not consider "food-like" to be the same as real food. But that's just me. I tried anything and everything to lose weight when I was younger and all I did was harm my health severely and get fatter than ever. So, when I was on a Slim Fast diet, it seemed to work, but it certainly can not be said that it worked in the end. Well, it did work to make me sick.

BTW it's not being "mean" and "unsupportive" if some of us are sharing opinions that Slim Fast is not healthy. It's because we DO care. Have you considered that maybe we have "been there, done that"? Did you read the post by the guy who experienced heart palpitations? Oh yeah, probably just a coincidence.

The OP didn't say "oh it worked for me so it must work for everyone so that's the way to go!" She was just letting people know that it worked for her so other people may consider it.

She isn't done yet, though. So she doesn't know if it worked for her, only that it is currently helping her lose weight. She may or may not have long-term success. The problem with Slim Fast is you really don't learn portion control, which is the key to keeping the weight off. It's the same reason people who opt for WL surgery usually regain the weight once they're able to eat more again.

As for the 1,200 calories thing, it does work and is sustainable for some people. I remember constantly being told a specific poster on here did so well eating far more than 1,200 and look how good she looks, so everyone should follow her lead! Well, yee, this particular MFP member looks fantastic and has made great progress eating more than 1,200 calories. She also is 5'10". I am 5'3". Don't tell me that I need and can eat the same calories as someone 7 inches taller than I am and get the same results.

And some people might be able to, but the simple fact is that while burning more than you consume to lose weight is a universal truth, people vary in their metabolic rates and not everyone can follow the exact same plan and get the same results.

I'm perfectly satisfied most days on 1,200 calories or fewer, even when I exercise. I don't even deliberatelt eat that little. I just eat high volumes of low-calorie foods (fruits and veggies) and I'm not hungry enough to eat more.

And, yes, I used to eat more than that, thus weight gain. But I was eating higher-calorie foods, so it added up in smaller quantities.

She stated herself Slim Fast is not permenant. So if she wanted to use it to begin her diet and has lost weight and can now start working out her own plan then it has worked for her.

What she said was that it has worked for her. It's the title of the thread. It IS WORKING for her at the moment. If she comes back in two years and has kept the weight off (or most of it), then she can say it worked for her.

If she develops and continues lifestyle changes due to the Slim Fast, then she can say it worked for her.

She hasn't reached that point yet.

I can tout the breakup diet if it's only about losing weight. I dropped 25 pounds in a matter of weeks by ingesting nothing but apple cider out of depression. I kept that weight off for years, too. Do I recommend the mehod? Nope. But it worked for me. :-)

Slim Fast is a better method, sure. But it hasn't "worked" yet.

You missed the point it HAS worked for her, it's doing exactly what she wanted it to do. It's kickstarted her weight loss and when she feels she's had enough then she'll go to adding food in. No where has she said she's going to use slimfast thru out her entire journey. So in fact even if she stops drinking it today it did do exactly what she wanted it to do.

Except that for those of us who have gone through the diet roller coaster for years and are tired of the lose/gain/lose/gain/lose/gain cycle that comes with crappy crash diet methods, knowing that someone uses slimfast to "kickstart" their weight loss is not only meaningless, but also an eye-roll inducing reminder of the dozens of times we too "kickstarted" our weight loss just to have it all come rushing back once the kickstart was over. Encouraging people to try slimfast (which is what you are doing when you say "look at what worked for me!") isn't something I see as positive at all, especially when I know what a tiny statistical likelihood there is that anybody will actually have slimfast work in the long term.

Nobody wants to believe that the 30lbs (or whatever) they have lost after a few months of slimfast are going to come back. Everybody wants to think that THEY will be the one to beat the odds, use this as a "kickstart" and then be able to go back to normal eating and maintain, that they really CAN use this to teach them about a long-term healthy lifestyle. When you are in the middle of that and you are seeing the numbers going down on the scale, you feel pretty darn good, and you just want to shout it to the world that it's working, and it's great, and you're definitely going to keep the weight off this time. I know. I've been down that road so many times that I've lost count, as have many of the people on this website. I've also lost track of the number of times I've had conversations with friends, colleagues, etc., who are in the midst of a crash diet that's working and just feel so positive and good about it, and I don't have the heart to tell them the realities of the statistics of those diets, but a few months later, there they are, back where they started (or worse). Those of us who have been there, done that, are no longer interested in these kinds of short term quick fixes because we know that no matter how hard we want to be, we are NOT special snowflakes, and we will NOT be the 5% or so who actually succeed at keeping the weight off when starting with these kinds of methods.

I wish the OP best of luck, and I hope that she's able to beat the odds and maintain the weight loss. I truly do. After all, somebody has to make up that small percentage that succeeds. However, I also know how rarely these things work out that way, so until she has evidence that it does, that this won't just lead to more future weight gain (as it generally does for most people), it hasn't actually worked at all - it's just provided a temporary stopgap that may or may not lead to future success. If that's all you require to consider that something works, then that's cool for you, but to me, it's misdirecting and inaccurate. Until the weight is kept off long term (which to me means at least a few years), I cannot agree that it has worked at all, but rather that it is an experimental step that requires a longer period of time to see if it will actually be truly effective. Given my own experience with slimfast (and Jenny Craig, and countless other diet programs that are supposed to "just kickstart your journey"), I'm not inclined to be particularly positive or supportive of these kinds of methods, and I kind of wish that 10 or 15 years ago someone had sat me down and made me understand how truly damaging this kind of mindset can really be, because if they had I might be in a totally different place in my life, my health, and my body right now. But hey, that's just me.

this thread was sooooo predictable

Yes. It. Was.

But entertaining, none the less...

You missed the point it HAS worked for her, it's doing exactly what she wanted it to do. It's kickstarted her weight loss and when she feels she's had enough then she'll go to adding food in. No where has she said she's going to use slimfast thru out her entire journey. So in fact even if she stops drinking it today it did do exactly what she wanted it to do.

I didn't miss the point. She hasn't reached the point yet. She very well may. She hasn't yet.

No one has ever said Slim Fast will not help someone lose weight. Ever. Never. Not ever. So her claim that is has worked for her -- in such an argumentative manner as the OP states it -- is untrue. IT IS WORKING AT THE MOMENT. There isn't enough evidence to show that this path will work for her long-term. I hope for her sake it does.

There is an important distinction in the terms that YOU are missing.

OH NO it's YOU that are missing the POINT, she's using it to "kickstart" her weight loss, even if she only lost 6lbs it did what she wanted it to do. It gave her a headstart on weight loss. She has clearly stated she does NOT want to use it long term and somehow people keep telling her it's not sustainable for long term use. She knows that, she clearly knows what she's doing and it's clearly working for her. All she wants is it to "WORK FOR THE MOMENT" and it's doing that. Again YOU missed the fact that she knows she's NOT going to use it for long term weight loss.

My doctor told me that Instant Breakfast is practically the same thing only it's cheaper with less calories. With the sugar free kind you can drink two for the same amount of calories. I still drink it or eat a slim fast bar when I am low on the amount of calories I have for the day. They had me drinking the sugar free kind when they were trying to up my protein to get a sore on my leg to heal due to skin cancer and having diabetes.

nevermind. not worth it.

WOW.. I did not realize talking about what has worked for me would turn on the mean like it has.. Geez... I appreciate the constructive criticizm to a certain degree because it can only make us stronger and better, but not the mean...

That's because people on this site are mainly really nasty about anyone who doesn't do it THEIR way. THEIR way is the only CORRECT way, don't you know.
As for the people claiming 1200 calories a day is unsustainable and wrong, that confuses me since MFP itself gives me that as a baseline intake. Maybe they are male, younger than me, or taller. *shrug*

At any rate, if Slimfast works for you, then it does. There's nothing really wrong with protein or other meal replacement bars/shakes, if you like them.

I have noticed some in here wondering whether Slim Fast's 3-2-1 plan really works or not. I originally tried losing weight with just exercise and healthy eating but I felt I needed something more to really kickstart things because my weight loss was beyond slow. Must be that over 30 slow metabolism..lol Anyway, I have been doing Slim Fast High Protein( 20 grams of protein and 2 net carbs) shakes as part of their 3-2-1 plan and I have lost 30 lbs(with many to go) on it so far in the time I have been on it. The first 6 days on it I lost 11 lbs and yes I know that was probably water weight but I have continued to lose everyday... The first 3-5 days seemed the hardest for me because you will feel hungry, but I stuck it out and my body has adjusted. I don't always use the Slim Fast snack bars for my snacks. I will eat fruit for snacks. Love apples. Veggies with some light ranch dip. I drink only water and green tea. No sugar drinks at all. I eat healthy dinners. The Slim Fast website has some great recipes you can use for your dinner, and the access is free(yeah!).. Most importantly, I exercise everyday.. I mostly do walking with some biking. Bottom line is, it has worked for me. I know that may not be the case for everyone. NO diet is easy and anyone who says otherwise, is either high or mental.. If losing weight were so easy, we would not have the obesity problem we have in the US.. Just remember, if you aren't truly motivated to lose weight, NOTHING is going to work.. Good luck to all in their weight loss journeys!!

With a 95% percent failure rate for long term weight loss success (more than five years), regardless of what dieting plan you follow to lose weight and maintenance, the odds are stacked against every single on of us here. Good luck to us both :drinker:

The OP didn't say "oh it worked for me so it must work for everyone so that's the way to go!" She was just letting people know that it worked for her so other people may consider it.

She isn't done yet, though. So she doesn't know if it worked for her, only that it is currently helping her lose weight. She may or may not have long-term success. The problem with Slim Fast is you really don't learn portion control, which is the key to keeping the weight off. It's the same reason people who opt for WL surgery usually regain the weight once they're able to eat more again.

As for the 1,200 calories thing, it does work and is sustainable for some people. I remember constantly being told a specific poster on here did so well eating far more than 1,200 and look how good she looks, so everyone should follow her lead! Well, yee, this particular MFP member looks fantastic and has made great progress eating more than 1,200 calories. She also is 5'10". I am 5'3". Don't tell me that I need and can eat the same calories as someone 7 inches taller than I am and get the same results.

And some people might be able to, but the simple fact is that while burning more than you consume to lose weight is a universal truth, people vary in their metabolic rates and not everyone can follow the exact same plan and get the same results.

I'm perfectly satisfied most days on 1,200 calories or fewer, even when I exercise. I don't even deliberatelt eat that little. I just eat high volumes of low-calorie foods (fruits and veggies) and I'm not hungry enough to eat more.

And, yes, I used to eat more than that, thus weight gain. But I was eating higher-calorie foods, so it added up in smaller quantities.

She stated herself Slim Fast is not permenant. So if she wanted to use it to begin her diet and has lost weight and can now start working out her own plan then it has worked for her.

What she said was that it has worked for her. It's the title of the thread. It IS WORKING for her at the moment. If she comes back in two years and has kept the weight off (or most of it), then she can say it worked for her.

If she develops and continues lifestyle changes due to the Slim Fast, then she can say it worked for her.

She hasn't reached that point yet.

I can tout the breakup diet if it's only about losing weight. I dropped 25 pounds in a matter of weeks by ingesting nothing but apple cider out of depression. I kept that weight off for years, too. Do I recommend the mehod? Nope. But it worked for me. :-)

Slim Fast is a better method, sure. But it hasn't "worked" yet.

You missed the point it HAS worked for her, it's doing exactly what she wanted it to do. It's kickstarted her weight loss and when she feels she's had enough then she'll go to adding food in. No where has she said she's going to use slimfast thru out her entire journey. So in fact even if she stops drinking it today it did do exactly what she wanted it to do.

Except that for those of us who have gone through the diet roller coaster for years and are tired of the lose/gain/lose/gain/lose/gain cycle that comes with crappy crash diet methods, knowing that someone uses slimfast to "kickstart" their weight loss is not only meaningless, but also an eye-roll inducing reminder of the dozens of times we too "kickstarted" our weight loss just to have it all come rushing back once the kickstart was over. Encouraging people to try slimfast (which is what you are doing when you say "look at what worked for me!") isn't something I see as positive at all, especially when I know what a tiny statistical likelihood there is that anybody will actually have slimfast work in the long term.

Nobody wants to believe that the 30lbs (or whatever) they have lost after a few months of slimfast are going to come back. Everybody wants to think that THEY will be the one to beat the odds, use this as a "kickstart" and then be able to go back to normal eating and maintain, that they really CAN use this to teach them about a long-term healthy lifestyle. When you are in the middle of that and you are seeing the numbers going down on the scale, you feel pretty darn good, and you just want to shout it to the world that it's working, and it's great, and you're definitely going to keep the weight off this time. I know. I've been down that road so many times that I've lost count, as have many of the people on this website. I've also lost track of the number of times I've had conversations with friends, colleagues, etc., who are in the midst of a crash diet that's working and just feel so positive and good about it, and I don't have the heart to tell them the realities of the statistics of those diets, but a few months later, there they are, back where they started (or worse). Those of us who have been there, done that, are no longer interested in these kinds of short term quick fixes because we know that no matter how hard we want to be, we are NOT special snowflakes, and we will NOT be the 5% or so who actually succeed at keeping the weight off when starting with these kinds of methods.

I wish the OP best of luck, and I hope that she's able to beat the odds and maintain the weight loss. I truly do. After all, somebody has to make up that small percentage that succeeds. However, I also know how rarely these things work out that way, so until she has evidence that it does, that this won't just lead to more future weight gain (as it generally does for most people), it hasn't actually worked at all - it's just provided a temporary stopgap that may or may not lead to future success. If that's all you require to consider that something works, then that's cool for you, but to me, it's misdirecting and inaccurate. Until the weight is kept off long term (which to me means at least a few years), I cannot agree that it has worked at all, but rather that it is an experimental step that requires a longer period of time to see if it will actually be truly effective. Given my own experience with slimfast (and Jenny Craig, and countless other diet programs that are supposed to "just kickstart your journey"), I'm not inclined to be particularly positive or supportive of these kinds of methods, and I kind of wish that 10 or 15 years ago someone had sat me down and made me understand how truly damaging this kind of mindset can really be, because if they had I might be in a totally different place in my life, my health, and my body right now. But hey, that's just me.

Speak for yourself, I am a special snowflake and I believe "everyone" is a special snowflake. While our bodies are made the way with the same parts we all have different genes, different DNA that's what makes us so special, we are all different. Our bodies do not work the same. If they did we'd all be skinny, or we'd all be fat, or we'd all have cancer, or none of us would have cancer. Our bodies have the same componants but were made to work differently to react differently to the same situations. 1800 calories may be good for you to lose weight for someone else it will make them gain weight. There is not one perfect thing out there that works for everyone. We are all special snowflakes, go out and enjoy your being special.

You missed the point it HAS worked for her, it's doing exactly what she wanted it to do. It's kickstarted her weight loss and when she feels she's had enough then she'll go to adding food in. No where has she said she's going to use slimfast thru out her entire journey. So in fact even if she stops drinking it today it did do exactly what she wanted it to do.

I didn't miss the point. She hasn't reached the point yet. She very well may. She hasn't yet.

No one has ever said Slim Fast will not help someone lose weight. Ever. Never. Not ever. So her claim that is has worked for her -- in such an argumentative manner as the OP states it -- is untrue. IT IS WORKING AT THE MOMENT. There isn't enough evidence to show that this path will work for her long-term. I hope for her sake it does.

There is an important distinction in the terms that YOU are missing.

OH NO it's YOU that are missing the POINT, she's using it to "kickstart" her weight loss, even if she only lost 6lbs it did what she wanted it to do. It gave her a headstart on weight loss. She has clearly stated she does NOT want to use it long term and somehow people keep telling her it's not sustainable for long term use. She knows that, she clearly knows what she's doing and it's clearly working for her. All she wants is it to "WORK FOR THE MOMENT" and it's doing that. Again YOU missed the fact that she knows she's NOT going to use it for long term weight loss.

I think that anyone using the term "kickstart" is denying the truth and they know it. Truth is you can do it without meal replacement magic.

The success story here, if any, is from the OP's deep rooted determination to lose weight.

Came in to say "yes it works for some who otherwise eat sensibly."

Left when you got too snarky when someone gave you a valid and reasoned opinion, which you sought out with this post.

Do what you want, OP.

Same as above, if you post (with appalling grammar, by the way) in a public forum and expect a completely positive response you're a bit oblivious to the real world.

Anyway, I, personally, have only seen Slimfast work well with one person out of a rough estimate of about twenty and only after she joined MFP. After she'd lost the weight, she looked terribly thin at the end she gained weight back a bit to regain a 'healthy look', then struggled to keep the rest off. I then suggested she used MFP and she's doing well now.

Enjoy your nutritionally poor life style

I never realized talking positive about what Slim Fast has done for me would generate such a firestorm of criticism. Wow.. The whole reason I started Slim Fast was because my weight loss was going nowhere. I was eating very healthy and exercising.. Trying to do things the "right way". I was lucky to lose 2 lbs a month. That is not very motivating for someone who has a lot to lose. My motivation was very low and I needed something to "kickstart" things. I am happy about my success so far and wanted to share it. I feel bad for those this did not work for. Everyone is different and I hope those people have found something that does. I wish everyone in here good luck on their journeys to a happier healthier you.

If healthy eating and exercise part did not work for you, means you did not get that part right. That's what predicts failure, even if we put horrible nutrition composition of Slimfast aside. You have to get the eating and fitness part right, and one indicator of that is being on track with your (reasonable) goal. If you are eating well and are active and are not loosing weight, you are off in your estimates of either what you are eating or what you are burning. That is it.

Food scale is the best weightloss aid money can buy.

Came in to say "yes it works for some who otherwise eat sensibly."

Left when you got too snarky when someone gave you a valid and reasoned opinion, which you sought out with this post.

Do what you want, OP.

Same as above, if you post (with appalling grammar, by the way) in a public forum and expect a completely positive response you're a bit oblivious to the real world.

Anyway, I, personally, have only seen Slimfast work well with one person out of a rough estimate of about twenty and only after she joined MFP. After she'd lost the weight, she looked terribly thin at the end she gained weight back a bit to regain a 'healthy look', then struggled to keep the rest off. I then suggested she used MFP and she's doing well now.

Enjoy your nutritionally poor life style

So if my grammar was better, I would get more positives? :drinker:

What kind of "positives" were you looking for? Only "attagirl", "congrats", and/or "Slim Fast is the best!"?

My impression wasn't that some were "mean", seemed to me rather you received a variety of input and food-for-thought ~ IMO that's a good thing.

I never realized talking positive about what Slim Fast has done for me would generate such a firestorm of criticism. Wow.. The whole reason I started Slim Fast was because my weight loss was going nowhere. I was eating very healthy and exercising.. Trying to do things the "right way". I was lucky to lose 2 lbs a month. That is not very motivating for someone who has a lot to lose. My motivation was very low and I needed something to "kickstart" things. I am happy about my success so far and wanted to share it. I feel bad for those this did not work for. Everyone is different and I hope those people have found something that does. I wish everyone in here good luck on their journeys to a happier healthier you.

If healthy eating and exercise part did not work for you, means you did not get that part right. That's what predicts failure, even if we put horrible nutrition composition of Slimfast aside. You have to get the eating and fitness part right, and one indicator of that is being on track with your (reasonable) goal. If you are eating well and are active and are not loosing weight, you are off in your estimates of either what you are eating or what you are burning. That is it.

Food scale is the best weightloss aid money can buy.

I was working with a registered Dietician. I was following a very specific 1500 calorie meal plan. I never cheated. Ever.. No sugar drinks.. I did EVERYTHING the dietician told me to do. I exercise everyday.. It might be hard to believe but that just didn't work for me.. Two pounds a month is not a good weight loss for me.. I needed something more motivating and this did it.

Do you think your more rapid loss was not so much due to Slim Fast as to reducing your calories from your dietician recommendation of 1500 down to approx. 1200 daily calories?
From an earlier post of yours: "...I do make sure I get no less than 1200 cal a day on this plan.. The shakes are low cal so I make up for that with my healthy snacks and with dinner to make sure my calories are not below 1200..."