Medifast Meal Plan Foods
The Medifast weight control program consists of roughly 800-1,000 calories per day. This begs the question of just exactly what is it that makes up these calories. With Medifast you eat six meals a day, five of which are ‘meal replacements’ that you purchase from the company and the sixth you prepare yourself at home. Does it work? It basically saved my friend Joanne‘s life.
The most popular of the meal replacements are the shakes, but there other varieties as well. You can choose from puddings, eggs, oatmeal, chilli, soups or bars. There are 70 different options to choose from. The base of the meal replacements are soy or whey protein. These high protein and low carbohydrate meal replacements are designed to fill you up and control your hunger even though they are low in calories.
Participants on the Medifast diet plan are also allowed one ‘normal’ meal per day. This meal is supposed to be lean and green, meaning 5 to 7 ounces of lean meat or fish and green vegetables. The plan suggests you choose between ‘lean,’ ‘leaner’ and a ‘leanest’ option. It is recommended that you boil, bake, poach, broil or grill your lean meat selection, never fry. So long as you go for the leaner options you can add some of the more healthy fats to the menu.
For vegetables your ‘normal’ meal should consist of three portions of either raw, grilled, steamed, boiled or baked greens. A quick scan of the nutritional material that comes with the program yields a list of the carbohydrate content of all vegetables ranked from highest to lowest. The very highest on the list are forbidden. These include peas, corn, onions, potatoes, carrots and Brussels sprouts.
Alcohol is naturally a no-no, but so too are dairy, grains, sweets and fruit. Most fats are off the list as well. You should consume 64 ounces per day of zero calorie beverages like: coffee, tea, diet soda, other sugar free drinks and, of course, water. It is recommended that while you are on the low calorie diet you limit your servings of caffeinated beverages to just three servings per day.
For a snack it is suggested that you eat celery stalks, popsicles, sugar free gum, Jello, or dill pickle spears. Carbohydrates are limited to just 80-85 grams per day during the initial phase, however once you transition to the maintenance period you will be allowed to add them back to your daily menu.
A sample menu might include the following:
Breakfast: Medifast oatmeal.
Snack: Medifast caramel nut bar.
Lunch: Medifast chilli.
Snack: Medifast shake.
Dinner:
LEAN: 5 ounces of salmon, lean beef, lamb, pork chop, three eggs, or 15 ounces of soft tofu.
LEANER: 6 ounces of swordfish, trout, pork tenderloin, skinless chicken breast, or lean ground meat. 15 ounces of firm tofu or two eggs plus four egg whites, plus one serving of fat.
LEANEST: 7 ounces of cod, crab, shrimp, lobster, flounder, grouper. A Boca Burger or two cups of Egg Beaters and two additional servings of fat.
With these dinner choices you must also have three servings of green vegetables, either boiled, grilled, steamed or baked.
Bedtime snack: Medifast chocolate pudding.