Medifast Review

 

Medifast - the liquid, low calorie meal replacement diet - has been around nearly 30 years. Originally it could only be prescribed by medical doctors, but it's now widely available via Medifast clinics, "Take Shape for Life" (a Medifast subsidiary) distributors and online outlets. Note: you should only consider and undertake a Medifast plan in consultation with your doctor.

Medifast meal replacement diet plans are high protein, low calorie, vitamin-rich affairs allowing dieters about 800-1,000 calories per day. They now offer some 70 meal replacement products for their diet plans, expanding upon the original shakes to include portion-controlled puddings, chili, oatmeal, soups, bars and eggs. Soy and whey protein are the foundational components of these products, which, according to the company, are all formulated for the highest "fullness index" - which means an equation of fiber, protein and calories that should manage your hunger pangs.

Medifast's far and away most popular plan is called the 5 and 1 - on which you'll eat 5 meal replacements and one "lean and green" real meal (5-7 ounces fish or lean meat, veggies and salad) per day. For your 5 meal replacements you can choose anything you wish, and you create your "lean" meal on a rating plan of "lean", "leaner" and "leanest". As you'd expect, the meats in the lean meals are prepped healthily - grilled, broiled, etc. - and the veggies are rated by their carb and other nutritional content. Prohibited items include booze, caloric sodas and juices, fruit, dairy, grains, sweets, and most fats. However, the leaner the meal you create for yourself, the more healthy fats (olive oil, etc.) you are allowed to incorporate into it. Some snacks are also allowed, though they include yawn-inducing items like sugar-free popsicles, a couple of celery stalks or sugar-free gum. According to Medifast, you should lose 2-5 pounds per week on the 5 and 1 Plan, which will run you $275 for 4 weeks plus the cost of your "lean and green" meals. Specialized Medifast plans are also now available for new mothers, vegetarians, seniors, teenagers, those recovering from bariatric surgery and gout sufferers.

Upon reaching your goal weight with Medifast meal replacements, you'll roll into a 4-16 week "transition to maintenance" phase. Here you'll slowly incorporate more real food - higher carb vegetables, fruit, dairy, whole grains - while you learn to choose and prep healthy, portion-controlled meals and your body adjusts to consuming more calories. You're instructed to exercise five days a week now, though this will be a permanent part of your life. How long your transition phase is will depend on how much weight you lost on meal replacement. Available support services include registered dietitians, personal trainers, exercise guides, nutrition guides, behavior modification education and online communities.

Medifast is a tricky one. An 800 calorie per day meal replacement diet is drastic, and Medifast itself warns that it won't be easy, nor comfortable at times. It is not meant to be a vanity diet to shed a pesky 15, 30 or even 50 pounds - it is a diet often prescribed for people prepping for bariatric weight loss surgery. And that being said, there are many people in serious or drastic situations with their weight, in which case a program like this with medical supervision could be the first step towards saving their lives. But bear in mind that it is only a first step - one cannot live on 800 calorie liquid meals forever. Lifestyle and behavioral changes made and kept during and after the transition to real food phase are the only factors that will determine whether the weight stays off.

If you weren't already aware, researching commercial diet programs will enlighten you to the fact that very, very few programs actually have any clinical study results to show for themselves and their claims to success. Though it's important to note that Medifast funded the study, the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health evaluated Medifast patients and their research showed weight loss to the tune of an average 67 pounds for men, and an average 57 pounds for women. Talk to your doctor.