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The changes now are so amazing, playing with my kids and housework have never seemed so easy.

Medifast has changed my life in so many wonderful ways. I have lost 80 pounds in only 7 months and I have never felt so healthy. In-between having two children and my unhealthy eating habits, I have gained 100 pounds in the last 6 years. Playing with my children became difficult and just keeping up with my everyday housework became difficult as well, I just haven’t had the energy. I was feeling so unhealthy, it seemed I caught every cold and flu out there. I tried just about every diet in the book including, pills, Weight Watchers and cabbage soup, you name I’ve tried it.One day, while glancing through a magazine, I saw an ad for Medifast. I really wanted to lose weight fast, so I decided to give it a try. I did not know what food to get, so I ordered all the shakes and soups that looked appealing to me. I lost 14 pounds the first week alone. Of course it was not easy, my body was so used to carbs and other things, but the results were so motivating it became second nature to me very fast. I now have my favorites, like the Dutch Chocolate shakes or the S’mores granola bars, they’re very tasty. I eat a bar in the morning as a great meal replacement for breakfast.

The changes now are so amazing, playing with my kids and housework have never seemed so easy. I have more energy to workout on my elliptical machine or even go swimming. The best thing is I haven’t had a cold or the flu in the 7 months since I started this program. There is one downside though; my husband has to watch me buy a whole new wardrobe. I went from a size 24 to a size 10 in 7 months. Can you believe it?

I’ve had approx 15 friends and coworkers start this diet just because they were so impressed with my results. My husband Mark is so supportive, he always asks me what I want from Medifast so he can order it for me, he’s just so proud of my accomplishments.

In the quest to lose weight without really trying — which, though few people like to admit it, is how most want to lose weight — more and more Americans are turning to home delivery diet plans, where pre-packaged meals are prepared and delivered to the house every day.

There’s no cooking; no calorie counting. Though costs of delivery diets run high, consumers are shelling out for them.

“Just last year it’s gone up 33 percent, and they say it’s going to be $1 billion this year,” Tanya Steel, editor in chief of Epicurious.com, said about the sales of delivery diet plans.

Fresh ingredients can drive up the cost of plans to as much as $50 a day. The services may not be the most economically viable, especially for those with families who have to buy food for the rest of the household. But Steel said for people on the go, the cost may not add up to much more than a daily diet of take-out and Starbucks.

“If you take into account that you’re buying breakfast on the go and coffee and then you’re probably buying lunch at work, and then you’re probably buying something at a fast food store or going to the supermarket, it probably evens out,” she said.
Tips for Delivery Dieters

What makes the diet plans worth the cost? For most consumers, it’s all about convenience.

“A lot of people these days don’t know how to cook, frankly. And they don’t know how to cook the right stuff. So this takes all the thought and preparation out,” said Dr. David Katz, a nutritionist and Yale University professor. “Portion control is the second best thing about the pre-packaged meals. They provide a little bit of built in discipline here.”

Some of the most popular plans include The Zone, eDiets, Pure Foods, Jenny Craig and Nutrisystem. Katz said while there’s no perfect plan for everyone, consumers should look for the following when picking one:

Ingredients: Make sure the list is fairly short. With any packaged food, the longer the list of ingredients gets, the less good it is for you.

Chemical names: You don’t want to be putting a lot of chemicals in your body, so stay away from anything with lots of long, unfamiliar chemical terms on the ingredients list.

Sodium content: The number of milligrams of sodium in a meal should be no higher than the number of calories in that meal.

Fructose: A lot of fructose or sugar in any meal is unhealthy. Fiber: Fiber will fill you up without a lot of calories, so pick a plan whose meals are packed with it.

Delivery diets can help people establish healthy eating patterns, but Katz said they’re not a long-term solution.

“As soon as you stop getting the home delivery meals, you’re as senseless and clueless as when you started — instead of learning how to read labels and portion control, you answered the door every morning and ate what they told you to eat,” he said. “So if you’re going to do this, fine — but you need to also learn the good, healthy eating that’s going to sustain you in the long run.”

So, you want to bite into a brownie that will give you the sensation of being on a cool mountaintop somewhere? Well, that is asking an awful lot from a brownie, don’t you think? But, fortunately, we have the perfect recipe for you! The chefs at Cooking Light recently took some time off to go to the movies. When they returned to the kitchen, they brought back plenty of yummy Junior Mints. They have now created a desert that combines the rich taste of fudge brownies with the cool peppermint flavor of Junior Mints (um, or York Peppermint Patties… or whatever chocolate-covered peppermint candy keeps your particular boat afloat)

Junior Mint Brownies

Cooking spray
1/4 cup butter or stick margarine
32 (about 3 oz.) creamy, small-size mints in pure chocolate (such as Junior Mints)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 large egg
1 large egg white

Note: Two large (1.5-oz.) mints or 6 miniature chocolate-covered peppermint patties (such as York) may be substituted for 32 Junior Mints.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Coat bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray.

Combine butter and mints in a 2-cup glass measure; microwave at high 30 seconds or until soft. Stir until smooth, and set aside.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup and level with a knife. Combine flour, soda and salt in a bowl. Combine sugar, cocoa, egg and egg white in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well-blended. Add mint mixture; beat well. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until blended. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Preparation Time:15 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Makes 16 brownies (serving size: 1 brownie). Nutritional values per serving: 121 calories, 19.5g carbohydrate, 14mg cholesterol, 3.9g fat, 81mg sodium, 2.1g protein, 7mg calcium, 0.7mg iron and 0.2g fiber.

If you’re considering the eDiets Deliciously Yours weight loss plan, expect to receive the following:

• 4 meals a day: breakfast, lunch, dinner & snack or dessert!
• Chef-prepared, delivered FRESH with no preservatives and stay-fresh packaging
• Choose from 50+ fresh meals/desserts with our menu planner

What is the Jenny Craig @ Home diet like?

These are some of the things you can expect to receive while on this weight loss program.

• Weekly scheduled phone consultations from your home, office, or a location of your choice
• Ideal for anyone who may be too far to go to a Jenny Craig Centre or for busy individuals that need the convenience of phone consultations
• Bi-weekly food delivered directly to your home (shipping fees apply)
• 24/7 online message boards and live chat provide additional support from your peers

1. Drink your water faithfully! Don’t skip this - the water makes a big difference in your weight loss success.
2. Be kind to yourself! If you slip up, or plan a “special treat”, don’t beat yourself up. Allow yourself the enjoyment of something special then get right back on the plan.
3. Do not skip meals! Make sure you are eating everything that you are supposed to each day. If you eat too few calories, you can sabotage your weight loss by slowing your metabolism.
4. Get some support! Whether the support is the online community, family, friends or your own journal, be sure you have somewhere to turn for encouragement and support.
5. Get moving and exercise! This is a key factor in keeping your weight loss steady and in helping to lose inches. Remember that building muscle increases your metabolism and keeps it faster!

The Medifast program is absolutely unbelievable!

I am 39-years-old and live in Sacramento, CA. At the height of my weight gain, I was 368 pounds. At that time, I suffered a myriad of medical problems, including high blood pressure, heart palpitations, and back spasms.

I have attempted virtually every diet available though the years, including the Scarsdale Diet, Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, Slim Fast, Body for Life, Atkins and even a professional dietician. These diets worked for a brief period, but I soon found that I could not keep up with the program and not only gained the weight back, but more. The future looked hopeless, and I thought that gastric bypass was the only option.

However, in researching gastric bypass options, I stumbled upon the Medifast site on the Internet. After reading the material, I decided to give the Medifast program a try before committing to surgery.

The Medifast program is absolutely unbelievable! The food is outstanding, nutritious and satisfying. It is also extremely easy to follow and the meals are quick to prepare. It is also relatively inexpensive. The thing I like about the plan the most is its simplicity – five Medifast Meals a day from a large variety of choices and one sensible meal. It virtually eliminates the shopping and preparation factor that is prevalent in most other diets.

Since beginning my diet, I have lost approximately 163 pounds. I went from a size 54L suit to a 44L. In addition, each and every medical problem I had prior to losing the weight is now gone. And I did it all on Medifast and did not have to resort to surgery! I can very sincerely say that Medifast has changed my life. Thank you!

Unlimited counseling and dietitian support services @ Nutrisystem.

At NutriSystem, you never pay extra for weight loss counseling or support. As a NutriSystem member, you get direct access to an entire team of NutriSystem nutrition weight loss counselors and dietitians, all free of charge! There are no meetings to schedule and no public weigh-ins. You just hop online, or pick up the phone, and you can get the information you need, at a time that’s convenient for you.

For more information, visit the Nutrisystem website.

I found that it was a no-brainer to follow the diet.

I would like to share my success story with everyone because I am so happy to have my new and improved self!

I just turned 40 in December 2005 and decided that I did not want to go through the rest of my life as a size 14! When I got married 14 years ago, I was a size 10 bride and I wanted to turn back the clock. Well, after 4 children (ages 8, 5, 4, and 2) it was time to start taking care of me! I wanted to run, climb, go crazy with my children. I didn’t want to be self-conscious about how I looked in shorts (I haven’t worn them in many years). I wanted to wear skimpy bathing suits again. I was ready to weigh less than my husband again!

I began to look for the perfect diet because I knew that there would be one out there. My only problem was that I always said that it was against my religion to exercise. So many other weight loss programs out there emphasized exercise. What was a girl with strong anti-exercise beliefs to do? When I read the article in People magazine profiling people who lost a great deal of weight and kept it off while following the Medifast diet, I had to investigate. My husband, who is an OB/GYN, and I researched the Medifast plan and philosophy. He liked the fact that the plan did not deprive me of carbs/proteins/fats/nutritional supplements, just calories. I liked the fact that exercise was not emphasized until I approached my target weight. We both liked that fact that it was a simple diet, drink lots of water (good for you), finish the packets and bar every two hours, and have a light meal. Well, that was simple enough; it was time to go for it!

I received my first shipment in late February 2006. We packaged the meal packets in zip lock bags for each day, bought lots of water, and weighed in. My starting weight was 189 pounds. Great, 70 pounds to my target, and my tiny Body Glove bikini that I bought when my husband was in medical school awaited me. I opened my first packet, Dutch Chocolate shake, and was on my way. I was pleasantly surprised that packet food was tasty!

The smell of food was torture; no more popcorn at the movies, no rich desserts, but I must hang on. Each week, I lost 2-4 pounds! I found that it was a no-brainer to follow the diet. I had more time to my day because I didn’t have to worry about eating. I know what I had to eat at what time. My husband loves to barbeque and with California’s great weather, I could eat his cooking with the family dinner. While I was losing weight, no one seemed to notice the first 20 pounds. Hey! Doesn’t anyone see what I’m going through?

I began to notice that my clothes were not fitting to well as the weeks passed. I began donating my clothes on a weekly basis. I needed to go shopping and as fast as I bought clothes, I had to donate them and buy new clothes! People started looking at me and noticing my weight loss! Yahoo! Finally, gratification for my hard work! My 8-year-old son one day said “Mom! You’re a hottie!” Size 14 – 12 – 10 – 8 – 6. I know why tiny girls are always dressed so cute – the designers save the cute styles for them! I am becoming a “stiletto mom” – you know, those stylish moms who drop their kids off at school in stilettos!

On January 12, 2005 Kate Stelnick, a 115 pound sophomore at the The College of New Jersey (formerly Trenton State) from the town of Princeton, completed her 96er in 2:54, making her the first person, male or female, to beat the time needed to claim the spoils of victory.

The 96 refers to the number of ounces of meat after cooking, apparently equivalent to 24 Quarter Pounders. Twelve slices of cheese, an onion, two tomatoes, half a head of lettuce, an inundation of condiments and a bun specially prepared by a local bakery increase the total mass to about eleven pounds. This represents about ten percent of the early childhood education major’s weight. When people speak of the “freshman 15″, the period for that approximate weight gain is generally considered to be the whole first year of college and not a single afternoon (and the time required to lose that increase is usually longer than the several days Kate needed to return to her original mass.