Optifast 800 calorie diet

3rd weigh in and I lost 2.1 last week. One week at a time. I don't think I will lose 6 per week. I am starting to see other changes though. I have more energy and my clothes fit better. Lets see what happens this week.
Ruben.

Marya: I am not doing my plan through Kaiser, but through a Med Spa Clinic. I pay “ala carte” for all of my shakes & bars and then my health plan covers my bloodwork and EKGs. I was only on transition for a few weeks before I went back on full fast. My doctor said it was okay to do it this way. Don’t be scared about how much you lose! Believe me, time goes so quickly and by the time you get to transition, even if you aren’t at your ideal weight you will be so much stronger and more confident in yourself however much you lose that transition won’t be so scary!

Rebecah: I agree that when you have been athletic before it is easier to bounce back. I don’t think I could have bounced back from this spine injury if I had been out of shape when I hurt my back! My physical therapist was amazed how much I could do post-surgery and how much I could push myself.

But my metabolism does not seem to remember anything about me being thin before… Frustrating! But, you’re right again, once the weight is off I expect to have no problem keeping it off.

Good luck to you both,

Ava

I've seen the phrase 'full fast' here a couple of times. Does that mean eating only Optifast foods and staying at 800 cals a day, or does it mean really fasting, as in 'no food'? I hope it means the former and not the latter.

Rebecah wrote:

I've seen the phrase 'full fast' here a couple of times. Does that mean eating only Optifast foods and staying at 800 cals a day, or does it mean really fasting, as in 'no food'? I hope it means the former and not the latter.

It means no food just Optifast products (shakes,bars,soup) You will get use to it.

You can purchase a product similar to optifast online. It is called medifast if you really feel you cannot afford the dr visits. I would recommend the dr if you can afford it for health reasons though. if you go to the websites for optifast or medifast you can get information for clinics in your area. I recommend checking out pricing and plan details at several to get a doctor you feel comfortable with and hopefully a good deal!

Hey, everyone!

Been awhile since I checked the Board...Sheri is right when she says to "Stay close to the Board". I can tell my weeks don't go as well if I don't.

Glad to see some new folks out there. The lady who is doing the CMWL program..Good luck with that. I previously visited a CMWL in Omaha a few years ago, and their shakes were great, and very much like the Optifast shakes and pretty much the same program.

I'm currently in my 2nd week of transition. I started at 275.0 (5'4")at the end of July and am now 233.4. I'm in week 15, and did 12 weeks of 6 products a day (3 shakes, 2 bars, 1 soup). Now, I'm on 4 shakes, 1 bar, and one meal (4oz lean meat, 1/2 cup green vegetable, 1 small fruit). Next week, will add a cup of skim milk to that mix. And, for the next few weeks, I add another food group, etc. As you can see, I have 100 pounds to go...so, as someone else mentioned, this will be an ongoing journey. I like that someone said they set smaller goals for themselves...that is a good way to do it. Not so overwhelming. I envy the exercisers here! This has been my downfall on this plan so far. I am extremely weak in this area, and hope nail down a workable and definite 'activity' plan this weekend and stick to it. Sheri...your comment about the underpants...so funny! And, as it turns out, I've noticed that my underwear has gotten a bit baggy lately..so, guess I'll be shopping shortly!

Hello all,

I am on day 5 of Optifast and I have got to say I feel a little weak. I am a little more tired than usual at night, and my legs hurt.

The headaches have subsided and that's good.
A little hungry, but not bad. The garden tomato soup was so bad I could not finish it, but I like the chicken

Wish me luck.

Going from 232 to 170,
The first full week weighin in next Tuesday night.
12 weeks is begining to see a long way away.

obm

Oldbeerman,
Hang in there! I was just telling someone yesterday that the first week is by FAR the hardest. Day one was amazingly easy, day 2 was "eh", day 3 was the WORST! And it got easier and easier from then on. Wait till that first weight-in......that will kick in the motivation like crazy,'cause you'll will drop a lot!!
I'm a menopausal, low thyroid, diabetic woman....everything that could slow down your weight loss rolled into one.....I'm in my 10th week of the full fast, and I've lost 40 lbs. as of this morning.
If I can do it, you as a man (I'm assuming, looking at your name) should have NO PROBLEM!
:)
You can do it, and you will feel SOOOOOOOOOOO much better fast!

Thanks Marya

Oldbeerman, my dr asks that we report any pain to her immediately. Leg pain can be a sign of electrolyte imbalance. Tell your Optifast leader, ok? Hang in there!

Day One, so far so good but I know day one is historically easy for many. It's 4:30 here, the time when the bulk of my daily eating usually starts. Not good to eat most of my calories in the evening and at night, so I have to reset my eating schedule. I am sure this week will be very challenging. Not thrilled with the taste of the food, but when I think about the others in my weekly group and hearing their stories, I feel very motivated! Looking forward to Tuesday night's meeting, and will be curious to see if I've lost any weight after five days.

I had my daughter take a full length beginning picture today. I wore shorts and a tank top. Ugh.

Ruben, thanks for the definition; that's what I thought, wanted to be sure.

Marya wrote:

Oldbeerman,
Hang in there! I was just telling someone yesterday that the first week is by FAR the hardest. Day one was amazingly easy, day 2 was "eh", day 3 was the WORST! And it got easier and easier from then on. Wait till that first weight-in......that will kick in the motivation like crazy,'cause you'll will drop a lot!!
I'm a menopausal, low thyroid, diabetic woman....everything that could slow down your weight loss rolled into one.....I'm in my 10th week of the full fast, and I've lost 40 lbs. as of this morning.
If I can do it, you as a man (I'm assuming, looking at your name) should have NO PROBLEM!
:)
You can do it, and you will feel SOOOOOOOOOOO much better fast!

Marya!! How great is that!! I envy you...40 pounds in 10 weeks?? You are doing so well. It took me 14 weeks to lose 40! I relate..I, too, am menopausal, low thyroid, and was diabetic when I started. What do you do for exercise or activity that has worked for you? I'm putting up my new treadmill in my guest bedroom this weekend, and thinking about joining Curves. Too many people at the Y. Since it's getting into the cold and snowy season here, I need have an alternative to outdoor walking.

Board:
Speaking of the Optifast food. Optifast doesn't have as many products as Medifast, and I'm not quite sure the ingredients are exactly the same. Optifast shakes and bars and soup are perfectly portioned and supplemented to keep us alive and mineral/vitamin, plus protein, carb, etc. balanced while on the meal plan. Newbies: I know you are looking at the 12 weeks which some of you call 'the fast', but my clinic calls this period 'active weight loss'. Keep that in mind. While none of this is 'easy', it isn't that hard, either. And, you'll be so surprised (if you stick with it 100%) at 1) how much better you will feel, 2) how much weight you'll lose and 3) how fast the 12 weeks goes by. DON'T WASTE ANY OF THAT TIME! This is the 'active weight loss' period..if you don't exercise and follow the program 100%, it won't work as well for you.

Rosemary

One more thing...

I grew to love the shakes, esp. the carton shakes. They are kind of like buying chocolate milk in the carton instead of mixing chocolate powder into milk. But, I enjoy the powder shakes, too...and they are so convenient. The bars are all great, though they recently changed up the bars, I think. While I used to like the chocolate/crisp bar, it tastes a little like it was 'burned' or something during the cooking process ..though maybe it was just the batch I got the last time. I understand they used to have a peanut butter crunch bar that was really good, but they have now discontinued that. The berry bar is excellent; and I've grown to love the fudge bar with my morning cup of joe. I didn't mind both soups..but that is just me. I did notice when I eat the tomato, though, I really have tooth sensitivity! What is UP with that? It doesn't happen with the chicken soup...so it isn't the 'heat'. I have mixed the vanilla powder shake with a cold cup of coffee for a mocha drink over ice. It's great. Otherwise, don't be afraid to mix your shakes with diet drinks, or the diet syrups that Sheri talks about if you need more variety to stay on the plan. You all can do it!!

I am towards the end of my 3rd week optifast now but somehow the weight did not go down as much as I have expected. Total of 12 lbs lost only. There are some days where I would lose few hundred grams and some days it goes up again. I have tried to walk more already and yet it doesnt seem to help. Can it be due to other reasons, do female weigh heavier when their menses come ?

Good luck, Rosemary. I'm looking forward to trying some of the flavored shake recipes in the recipe booklet. Day two for me, and so far, so good. Early days yet, I know. Had a couple of moments of cravings, then realized I wanted just the taste and wasn't actually hungry. I like the soups; I'm having three shakes, two bars and a soup per day. I have the berry yogurt bar for breakfast. Unlike some, I like routine, such as having the same foods in the same order each day. I end the day with a chocolate or peanut butter bar, after soup.

I'm going to work though to get out of the habit of sweets at the end of the day. We also call this stage 'active weight loss', instead of referring to it as a 'full fast'. It may be a fast from 'regular' food but it's not an actual fast at all, so I wonder why that term is used.'Active weight loss' is far more motivating.

My first weigh in will be at group Tues after five days on the program. It will be interesting to see if I've lost, and how much.

Angie, I think most women have a couple of extra lbs pre-menstrually.

I'm walking 30 mins every other day this week and will walk more often next week.

Angie, I think a 12 lb loss in three weeks is wonderful! I'd be thrilled with that.:)

Thanks Rebecah. You are right, at least I should be grateful that I am losing the lbs. But I was hoping I could lose 22lbs (10ks) in a month during the active wt loss phase! The active wt lose phase here in Singapore is 12 weeks only and transition 6 weeks.I can't imagine how much I can lose during the transition if this is the rate.

Hopefully I would get to lose more this coming week as I have increase my walking and bought myself an exercise bike. I am envious of you guys in US, are able to get bars and soups as alternatives. In Singapore, there's only the powder milkshakes (3 flavors). I have ordered the soup and bars from Optifast australia and tried their veg mix soup and berry yougurt bar. The soup tasted awful and I wonder how am I going to finish the rest of them. The Berry yougurt bar taste not bad and quite filling but when I read the labels that it contain 238 kcal, I dont think I can eat this often.:( I heard the chicken soup is not bad, I wonder where can I get US optifast products at a cheap rate besides ebay.

Hey Beerman - I've just started the program as well, with Tuesday being my first weigh in. Going thru Kaiser. Our facilitator recommended the Torino sugar-free syrups to jazz up the shakes - They work wonders!!!

To Everyone..A question..I've started a pretty rigorous exercise program as well. Much to my chagrin, when I weighed my self on day 2, I had gained .5 lb!! Sticking to the program loyally I might add! I weighed myself this morning, day 4 and managed to lose only 1 pound. Any suggestions?
I am thrilled to have found this blog!!!

Hi everyone, I have decided to order some bars and soups from ebay. Because of the shipping fees are quite high and I do not want to waste my money. Can I know how is the taste of the replacements bars and the soups ? Should I get the tomato soup ? Some people have commented that the bars and the soup tasted awful while some said the chicken soup is nice. So what are you guys favorite optifast products ? Pls share. Thanks.

Hi Everyone:
It seams like it has been weeks since I have been on the board. Almost scared to look at when I was last.

I have been experiencing a lot of my fears of loosing weight they have hit be big time up side of the head. And upside the scale as well. A gain of about 9 lbs last month. It is hard to deal with the WHY's of WHY we gained weight in the first place. And I believe we all must figure out our own WHY's and yet dealing with the WHY's can at times be over welming. Such as it has been with me the last few weeks. At least I know my WHY's however what to do about them and how to deal with them is another story. I know I must try and remain in the present moment and not deal with the past since it is gone. But old way's of life keep coming back and at times I think it is so much easier to go back to what we were more comfortable with rather than to deal with the new parts of life which are scary and are unknown.

I hope this month will be better than last month weight wise, however November has always been a BAD BAD month for me. Too much past too much loss in November. It is a month I would just love to wipe off of the calender. Dec and Jan as well. OUCH!!!
unfortunatly my November and my WHY's are also related so that makes it more difficult.

Oh well Onward & Upward

I hope your all doing well. And unlike me staying on plan and having great success on your journey.

I hope it wont take all day to read 3 weeks of posts lol. Think I will start from my last entry to today.

Onward & Upward
Sheri