Over 1,000,000 people have lost weight with Medifast
Medifast 5 and 1 Plan
The 5 and 1 plan is made up of 5 meal replacements per day - generally shakes, but there are also bars, soups, oatmeal, and puddings :). One meal per day is a "lean and green" meal - a small portion of lean meat (see below), and up to 2 cups of salad or vegetables. This is fantastic to keep you feeling confident and makes the diet a whole lot more do-able.
Basically, you eat every 2-3 hours, and must drink a minimum of 64oz of fluid (water!) per day. Other drinks can be consumed in addition to this. The 5 and 1 plan is a vast improvement on some of previous programs.
How Fast Is the Weight Loss?
Weight loss is rapid - from 2-5 pounds per week. The Medifast 5 and 1 plan is technically not a VLCD (Very Low Calorie Diet), as the caloric levels are above 800 kcal/per day. However calorie levels are still low.
Sample Meal Plan and Foods
What Sort Of Foods can you Have?
Food Supplements: Homestyle Chili, Oatmeals: (Apple Cinnamon, French Vanilla Berry, Maple Brown Sugar), Hot Cocoa; Chicken Noodle Soup, Minestrone Soup, Peach Pro Tea, Chocolate Pudding.
Creamy Soups: Cream of Broccoli, Cream of Chicken, Cream of Tomato
Fast Soups and Snacks: Delicate Chicken, Robust Tomato, Savory Beef, Multi-Grain Crackers.
Supplement Bars: Chocolate Divine, Crunchy Lemon, Oatmeal Raisin, Peanut Butter, Chocolate Mint, Double Berry.
What about the "Lean and Green" Meal?
Lean Meat: Skinless chicken or turkey breast, Fish, including shellfish, tinned tuna or salmon. Lean cuts of beef, pork, or lamb. Grill, bake, or poach. Condiments allowed. For men there should be 6-7oz of lean meat, for women 4-5oz.
Green Salad: 1-2 cups of salad greens, up to 1/4 cup raw vegetables.
Cooked Vegetables: 1-1 1/2 cups of fibrous vegetables instead of salad.
*Note that shakes must be mixed with water (not milk). Medifast 5 and 1 is for both men and women. The difference is that for men, the meals have a higher level of protein than for women.
Medifast Specials
Warning
Medifast is not about taking off a few pounds - it is intended for those who are very overweight. It is a drastic diet that will put you into state of ketosis, and you MUST ensure you are adequately hydrated.
Exercising while on the diet should be kept at a low intensity level. This is not the kind of diet where you will build muscle and be doing heavy workouts down at the gym.
Maintenance Plan
This is important and also Once the desired weight is reached, the maintenance plan involves a gradual transition back to 'normal' meals over a period of about 16 days (however a much longer transition period is recommended). Beyond this, Medifast recommend 1-3 packaged meals daily and a moderately intense exercise routine (e.g. 30-45 minutes 5 days per week). This is essential to keep the weight off.
Does It Work?
It has been used successfully at John Hopkins Weight Management Center, among other places - it is one of the few diets that are medically proven to work1.
Over 1,000,000 people have lost weight with Medifast
