If you’re Googling “Medifast opinions,” “prepackaged diet opinions,” etc., I would suspect that there are a few things you’d like to know about this diet, as follows.  You want to know if the diet really works.  You want to know how hard it is to stick with (not too bad) and how a typical day and your life will be if you go on this weight loss system.  I’ve been on this diet since last fall and have lost over 75 pounds on it, so I hope to answer these questions for you in this article.

My Opinion On Medifast’s Effectiveness: With out a doubt, the best thing about this diet is hand’s down it’s effectiveness. I spend a lot of time on weight loss forums and, after seeing my experience, many of my friends are on this diet as well.  I don’t know anyone who stuck with this diet and who followed it as directed and didn’t lose a decent amount of weight.

This diet works a lot like the South Beach or other low carb diets. Because the foods are low in carbohydrates, high in protein and low in calories, your body is put in a metabolic state called ketosis in which it is forced to burn it’s own fat. In this way, you are getting the benefit and quick, dramatic results of low carb diets like Atkins without having to eat meat and eggs all day and worry about your fat and cholesterol intake.

My Opinion On Medifast’s Foods (Taste, Convenience, Cost, Etc.): The basic premise of this diet goes something like this.  You eat six times per day – five of the plan’s prepackaged meals that are provided, and one “lean and green” meal that you make on your own.  There are over 70 food choices available.  Although the shakes are very popular, this isn’t a liquid only diet if you don’t want it to be. There are eggs, oatmeals, stews, chilis, soups, cappuccinos, pudding, bars, etc.

I find most of the food quite decent and taste much better than I was expecting.  Additionally, it’s quite possible to take the core foods and make them into something else entirely. For example, I add fat free cheese and veggies to the eggs for an omelet or a tortilla for a breakfast wrap.  I add fat free cheese and sour cream to the chili for a burrito and fat free syrups or fat free whipped cream to the shakes for variety (or a mock milk shake).

You can also use the pudding to make all sorts of recipes like muffins, cookies, or cakes.

The foods are very convenient. Most are grab and go, but some require minimal assembly. Your lean and green meal can be as elaborate or as simple as you’d like to make it (as it is really just lean meat / protein and veggies.)

The cost of Medifast is about $8-$10 per day depending on which plan you go with (the basic women’s 5 plus 1 is the most popular and is what celebrities Genie Francis and Kristi Swanson are on.) But there are always coupons, discounts, specials and freebies running that can cut this down quite a bit. Since this has cut my individual grocery and junk food bill down to almost nothing, the cost hasn’t been an issue.

My Overall Experience On Medifast: What Is A Typical Day Like?: Over all, my experience on my diet has been extremely positive. This has been the only diet I’ve been able to stick with long term.  I believe that eating so often really helps with hunger and cravings and since results come so quickly because of ketosis, motivation is pretty easy.

As the weight started to come off, I became even more motivated and added a bit of exercise in my routine. I no longer look like the same person and my outlook on life and my health has changed dramatically.

As far as a typical day on Medifast, this will depend upon your personal preferences. I prefer to mix the plan’s cappuccino and hot chocolate for a mocha (I’ve sworn off Starbucks) to start off my day.  (On weekends, I go for the eggs or oatmeal). I’ll usually have a shake at mid morning.  For lunch, I prefer chili or some wrap / variation of it. My mid afternoon snack is typically a bar. I have my “lean and green” meal for dinner with my family.  My afternoon snack is usually pudding or one of the fruit drinks over shaved ice for a snow cone.

I really don’t think much about what I am eating any more.  I’ve gotten used to the routine and actually find it comforting now.  Because I know if I follow it, I will continue to get the good results that have changed my life much for the better. Yes, some days I miss the junk food, but when I look in the mirror, I get over this pretty quickly