Nutrisystem....Medifast....

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jancie84
jancie84 Posts: 83 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Thoughts on these programs? Easy to use.....Food tasty? I understand the point of shopping and cooking as weight loss is a lifestyle change.

Anyone tried these?

Replies

  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
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    Thoughts on these programs? Easy to use.....Food tasty? I understand the point of shopping and cooking as weight loss is a lifestyle change.

    Anyone tried these?
    Waste of money, in my opinion.

    Figure out your calorie goals to lose weight, practice moderation, weigh all food and accurately log, and eat less than you burn and you will lose weight just for the cost of a food scale if you don't have one and the price of real food.
  • mysmileighs
    mysmileighs Posts: 103 Member
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    My boyfriend was on Medifast for a few months, and I tried it with him for a couple weeks. It. Was. AWEFUL. It only adds up to ~1000 calories for the day. I was sooo tired and hungry all the time. :grumble:

    That and the food is *okay* but for the price? SOOO not worth it. (~$300/month :noway: ) I am SO much happier just counting calories and getting to have my ice cream. Medifast does not allow for any flexibility and we visit family a lot. I looked at the "maintenance" materials, and as far as I understood it, it looked like to some extent he would be buying the food for life.

    We have a ton of the food left and occasionally I use the "meal" bars for a snack.

    Hope that helps. :flowerforyou:
  • lorib642
    lorib642 Posts: 1,942 Member
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    I tried nutrisystem. The food wasn't very good and I got hungry so I didn't stick with it. They are all measured. You could lose weight, I am doing better this time eating regular foods

    I think medifast is similar. Everyone I know who has done medifast swears by it but they also have become health coaches and sell the products.

    I wish I had started with counting calories first.
  • Kontxesi
    Kontxesi Posts: 86 Member
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    My dad and his wife-at-the-time spent a bunch of money to get started on Nutrisystem. The food sat in totes in the basement after the first few weeks.

    When the wife left, Dad and my brother went into bachelor mode. My brother survived off of premade cookie dough and those terrible, terrible Nutrisystem meals. He's not sure how he made it out of high school.

    Lately, what was left of them were given to my sister, who is living paycheck to paycheck. I haven't asked her, but I'm pretty sure she'd eat the cardboard it's packaged in before she actually ate any of that food.

    Moral of the story: Nutrisystem food is terrible and super expensive. Would not advise.
  • Matp75
    Matp75 Posts: 67 Member
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    I lost 88 lbs on medifast... I spent a small fortune and was tired and hungry all the time 3 years later. I gained every pound back.
    Because you don't learn to eat correctly.
  • 33Freya
    33Freya Posts: 468 Member
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    Quick fixes like these are very rarely effective in the long run. Make little changes to what you are already doing, LOG everything, and develop new habits.

    I did Medifast for three months, until I could not choke down another powdered packet of "food" and like everyone else I know that has done Medifast, I gained it all back.

    This type of "Program" (diet) also puts you in danger for lowered metabolism since you lose muscle as well as water and fat, and we usually gain all the fat back without picking up much muscle along the way.
  • samammay
    samammay Posts: 468
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    I did nutrisystem for 2 months. Lost a lot of weight. It was VERY expensive. Like 5 or 6 times what I would have spent just measuring out portions myself. You end up buying a ton of groceries in addition to the plan.

    The food was ok. Ive had better and much much worse.

    The thing about it is that its one size fits all, which we humans are not. I was starving all the time because I was a 240 pound guy.
  • KMJ1686
    KMJ1686 Posts: 106 Member
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    I've tried Nutrisystem before - I know why people lose weight...they don't eat...the food is horrible! I couldn't believe how gross some of the food tasted and smelled! If you want pre-packaged food, try lean cuisine or smart ones, I found the nutritional facts were quite similar, and so much cheaper.
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
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    You won't learn sustainable habits. The weight you lose will come right back as soon as you start adding in food from the real world since you will not have learned how to prepare/portion food yourself.
  • gnalani
    gnalani Posts: 126
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    Maybe a slightly different perspective. I did Medifast for 4 months and lost 55 lbs. The food was okay but not great and it was very expensive. I also didn't have a lot of energy and they don't recommend working out. I stopped the program and gained some weight back. But I am very glad I did it, it showed me that I do have a lot of will power. It also gave me a taste of the amazing feeling of losing weight and feeling great about myself! So while I wouldn't recommend it, I'm grateful I did it.
  • AskTracyAnnK28
    AskTracyAnnK28 Posts: 2,817 Member
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    I lost a ton of weight on Nutrisystem about 9 years ago, but slowly gained it all back (plus an extra 15 pounds) when I started eating real food again.

    I actually thought the Nutrisystem food tasted really good, and the plan was easy to follow. But MFP is free and you can eat whatever you want as long as you can fit it into your macros :smile:
  • missiontofitness
    missiontofitness Posts: 4,074 Member
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    A family member did Nutrisystem. I say did, because they did not stick with the program, and are now on to other methods. My personal stance is that their calorie plan works for something like that family member, since they are short and their calorie needs are already low. But for someone my height, the calorie restriction is far too huge. I don't like that it's a one-size fits all type of program. And the cost of it! You are far better off saving all that money and investing it into actual foods that you can cook with, and learning sustainable habits.
  • starznholes
    starznholes Posts: 170 Member
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    I've done Medifast in the past..more than once actually. I would usually last about 3-4 weeks max and then I just couldn't hang anymore and I'd gain the weight that I had lost back.
    It was terrible. Expensive, food tasted horrid and I constantly had headache's and felt tired. I still have a full cabinet of the food and I just cant do it. For quick loss, it does the trick. But you don't want to go about it that way.

    I've been constantly losing weight now and that's just with eating at a deficit and exercising.
  • xmichaelyx
    xmichaelyx Posts: 883 Member
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    Matp75 wrote: »
    I lost 88 lbs on medifast... I spent a small fortune and was tired and hungry all the time 3 years later. I gained every pound back.
    Because you don't learn to eat correctly.

    This last part is really important. These plans lock you into a way of eating without teaching you anything at all.

    All you need to lose weight is knowledge, which is free.



  • Aniluz7
    Aniluz7 Posts: 12 Member
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    My aunt did Nutrisystem. It didn't work and she blew a ton of money. xmichaely is right, education is most important. Teach yourself and you will have amazing results.

    I did this by doing meal replacement (Herbalife) shakes. I was able to do them while learning what is good for me and what is not. Taught myself to enjoy veggies and eliminate bad carbs. It was very helpful because it was hard for me to cook three healthy meals a day that I would actually eat and not want to cheat. So, it made a huge difference.

    Now a year later (and 40 pounds down), I don't NEED to rely the shakes because I have learned how to cook healthy, enjoyable meals. I have learned what works and what doesn't and I am creative enough to not get bored of eating the same thing everyday. I continue to drink them because they are 1-very easy and quick so I don't have to worry about cooking breakfast or packing a lunch and 2-delicious ... they are like a treat for me so I love it.

    The number one thing is to learn about healthy eating. Yes, those programs seem convenient and like they will be the reason why you lose a lot of weight, but it ultimately comes down to you. If you don't have time to cook a bunch of meals, try meal prep services that deliver. OR you can take one or two days a week and cook everything up and store them for consumption during the week. If you don't have knowledge in healthy eating, try getting lessons or buy a cookbook. If you want to get info on meal replacements I can help make suggestions and help you with a meal plan. But the main thing is certainly teaching yourself because once you stop those programs and go back to the way you ate before, you will gain everything that you lost back.

    Best of luck :)

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