My first week on Take Shape for Life

Well I had 7.3 pounds to loose and so far doing well.  I have found it much easier to go back on plan with this one because you eat more frequently and stay full.  Plus you get to eat 5 bars if you want to.

Some examples of meals I've had thus far:

1st meal: Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal
2nd meal: Chocolate Mint Crunch bar
3rd meal: Smores Bar
4th meal: Brownie
5th meal: Hot Cocoa
Snack: Almonds (yummm)
Lean and Green: Beef Satay with low sodium soy sauce and chicken in a chili sauce and Summer Squash with Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Anise, and some other dried spices and 1/2 teaspoon of Smart Balance and of course I am still incorporating the Real Salt (which I love).

Sunday I had Chocolate Mint Soft Serve for a Medifast meal and it was so delicious!!  I added in my optional snack of nuts in there, and added in Walden Farms Chocolate Syrup it was awesome!!

Today so far:

1st meal: Chocolate Chip Pancakes (made with real chocolate chips)
I used Walden Farms Blueberry Pancake Syrup on this
alternative snack: Walnut halves - that's right I can have nuts once again, and boy did I miss them!!
2nd meal: Brownie (with real chocolate chips)

What I have available to eat for Medifast meals in my cupboard and again NO RESTRICTIONS on this plan so eat chocolate chip pancakes or brownies all day if you like! 

Chocolate Mint Bars
Peanut butter chocolate bars
Cinnamon Roll bars
Smores Bars
Hot cocoa
Chocolate Mint Soft Serve
Peanut Butter Soft Serve
Maple and Brown Sugar Oatmeal
Chocolate Chip Pancakes
Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal
Chicken Noodle Soup
Brownies
Strawberry Shake
Dark Chocolate Shake with Antioxidants

I have yet to try it all but the list above is only a small amount of options to choose from.  They have over 70 options that you can mix n match!!  Which is more than Ideal has because well, Ideal has restricted foods.

All the vitamins you need are packed into each packet of food, so no more vitamin costs unless you want to continue with your Fish Oil for Omega 3's and your probiotic which I highly recommend.
I went from taking about 5 different vitamins in the morning to 3.  I still take my probiotics, fish oil, iron supplement (even though it is in the food, I need extra iron for my deficiency), Cranberry supplement for urinary tract health, Vitamins A & D (these are in the food too but because I live in the northeast part of the states I need more of this for the climate here and Gingko Biloba for brain health and thinking.  I also take Supersnooze, a natural sleep enhancer, I have been taking less and less of these because I have been sleeping much better than when i was off the diet.  But I do still like to have at least 1 to help me fall asleep faster.  They are non-habit forming because they are made with melatonin and chamomile. 

So far my week has been awesome!!  This passed Sunday I did a 6 mile walk with my husband and son (in stroller), it was great and I helped raise money for a good cause.  I plan on doing more walks and eventually runs in the future.  I felt like jogging more than walking on the walk but I know now that I am ready to advance a bit and plan on starting to train for a run coming up in May.  And with the weather getting nicer it will be possible.  I also plan on getting a bike, I really want to ride a bike again, I genuinely enjoy riding but have not ridden for at least 10 years, I miss it.

Weigh-in is this week, I will share the results on Saturday!

Moving to Take Shape for Life - Update on what's going on..

I reached my goal weight 2 weeks ago, at 125 pounds!!!  Then I found out about Phase 2, which is basically the same as Phase 1 just that you take out 1 Ideal Protein meal and replace it with your own meal (same rules apply - 8oz of lean protein and 2 cups of veggies), that's right no other alterations.  So knowing I did all this hard work and got to Phase 2 only to have very little difference in diet once I was done with Phase 1, I decided this week that I am switching to Take Shape for Life.

I am a health coach for the program and the transition phase for Take Shape sounds a lot better.  You work in 2 cups of any veggie you want (on the plan or not) for 1 week plus you still eat 5 medifast meals plus 1 of your own.  Then week 2 you factor in 2 pieces of medium fruit or 2 cups of berries, you drop 1 medifast meal and still have the extra 2 cups of any veggie.  Week 3 you factor in low-fat cottage cheese or other low-fat dairy and keep the fruit and the extra veggies, and still it's 4 medifast meals plus 1 lean and green.  And it continues from there for about 6 weeks, there are 2 other additions to your diet for week 4 and 5.  But it is more interesting to me and makes me feel more motivated than the plan I am currently on.
I also won't have to factor in an additional cost for vitamins, hooray!  Those are probably the most expensive for me.

Plus I now will be able to enjoy the first phase for at least 1 week or so because I was unable to stay faithful to the Ideal plan during Passover, Easter and a birthday celebration last week.  Which means I gained some weight back and need to drop some pounds again to make it to my goal. 

So this blog's name will stay the same despite the plan change but you'll get to know a whole other plan that is well similar to Ideal Protein but it is cheaper and has more variety and teaches you a bit more about staying on track.  Best thing about the plan, anyone from anywhere in the USA can sign up, you don't have to have a location or health coach nearby.  If you are interested in joining and losing weight or maintain your weight please visit: www.KellyL.TSFL.com and sign up if you like what you see.