Use the above Medifast Coupons to save on your Medifast Diet Plan.

When it comes to losing weight, the cost can skyrocket fast without the right discounts and coupons. As Moms, we always look for ways to lose weight without emptying our pockets and struggling in the whole weight loss process. We’ve tried many weight loss plans, and found ourselves stuck hundreds of times. We got fed up, until we found the Medifast Diet. The best part of the Medifast Diet, is the constant Medifast coupons. Every single month they have a new verified Medifast Diet coupon code that allows us to save instantly. What’s not to love?!

How Medifast Diet Helped Us Lose Weight

One of the best parts about the Medifast Diet, is the structure. As Moms, structure is key. We already have enough to think about. Adding in a diet that overwhelms our lifestyles never lasts. Medifast, however, has developed the diet to be so structured it is hard to not follow it.

Now you may be wondering, how exactly did the Medifast Diet help us lose weight… easily. We followed the Medifast guidelines to a tee, and soon enough we were shedding the pounds. You are consuming 5 Medifast meals each day, and then one lean and green meal. We loved that we still got to enjoy a meal our entire family could have. It wasn’t hard to make the lean and green meal either, since there is endless amounts of information on meals that are lean and green.

At first, it took some time to get used to our meals throughout the day not being a stressful time. This not only gave us more hope with the diet, but we feel this also helped us lose weight. Minimizing stress is always an added bonus when you are a parent.

What Are the Medifast Meals Like? 

The Medifast meals are actually quite good. When you think of diet, you think of being hungry. Most diets aren’t satisfying at all, but Medifast has ensured it is. You don’t feel hungry all the time, like you’d experience with most diets. By consuming 5 meals a day, you find you are eating more regularly, which is actually a lot healthier for you then consuming 3 larger meals a day. Medifast provides those 5 meals with their weight loss plan, so you are instantly opening the doors to a healthier lifestyle.

The selection of meals from the Medifast Diet is huge. You can select meals for all times of day. Yes, this means you will have options for breakfast, lunch, dinner & snacks! You may be thinking, well I have a lean and green meal I have to consume everyday. You don’t actually have to consume this at dinner time. You could have it at any time that works best for your schedule. You just have to ensure you consume the 5 Medifast meals each day and the lean & green meal.

Is the Medifast Diet Expensive? 

When you think of the amount you spend on food, and the amount of it you actually eat, you waste a lot of food and money. By using a diet that structures your eating habits and life, you are right off the bat saving every single day. Medifast also offers their customers the option to use Medifast Coupons. Each and every month there are new coupon codes available to allow their dieters to save every single time they place an order. This is huge! Saving on your weight loss… it was right away good choice for us.

Since we started using the Medifast Diet, we’ve seen amazing results. We’ve lost weight, and also stopped going over our budget every month with our grocery bills. We know what we have to eat. We no longer stress about what we’ll be eating. We lose weight without much effort.

It is recommended that if you are going to use the Medifast Diet that you exercise. As Moms, this can be hard. Our time is not the most open. Instead of running to the gym and stressing ourselves out, we simply go for a walk every single day and ensure that we don’t lose focus on our dieting adventures. Exercising doesn’t mean you have to go to a gym, pay hundreds of dollars to use their equipment that in reality, has you walking in the first place.

Alright back to those coupons… Check them out now!

Medifast Coupons 

The following coupons are verified every single day. If they do not work for you, please feel free to contact MommyMatter and we will see what the issue is. We want to help you lose weight without breaking the bank!

Medifast Coupon - $50 off any purchase of $275 or more! Use Coupon Code Available Above.
Medifast Coupon Expiry - December 31, 2011

Medifast Coupon - $25 off any purchase of $150 or more! Use Coupon Code Available Above.
Medifast Coupon Expiry - December 31, 2011

Medifast Coupon - Become a V.I.P. Member and get 2 weeks of meals FREE! Use Above Coupon Code at checkout!
Medifast Coupon Expiry - Ongoing

Everyday we receive informative articles from LivingWell.ca that astound us. Occasionally we will share these articles with you, and this is one that we felt everyone MUST read!

10 Facts About Foods that Might Surprise You
You’ll raise your eyebrows and say “Really!” when you learn these food facts. But they’ll also help you eat healthier.

Do you know your way around a kitchen, supermarket, or mini-fridge? When you’re well acquainted with food, you can whip up a healthy meal out of a few ingredients. But if you’re mindless about what you feed yourself and your family, you might be missing out on key nutrients and the many ways that food can surprise you. Stash these 10 surprising nutrition tidbits in your food fact files.

Did You Know that Kids Copy Your Food Habits?

And we’re not just talking about table manners. Children pick up on everything, and they’re brilliant mimics. Kids see when Mom picks at peas on her plate or when Dad pushes aside pumpkin seeds in favour of potato chips. Studies suggest that kids pick up on parents’ fussy food and dieting habits, so be aware of your influence.

Did You Know that We Eat What We See?

Put a bowl of candies on your desk within reach, and you’ll probably eat more sweets than if the candy were tucked away in a desk drawer or kept in the office kitchen. Thing is, no matter how much candy we eat from the out-of-sight kitchen stash, we tend to estimate that we ate less of it.

Did You Know that If We Put Food in a Big Bowl, We Eat More of It – Even If It Doesn’t Taste that Good?

You’re at the movies, munching away at fistfuls of so-so popcorn from a mega-sized bucket. In no time, your fingers reach the bottom. And you weren’t even that hungry! In one study, people ate much more popcorn when given a larger bucket – even though they rated the popcorn’s flavour as “unfavorable”! Same principle applies when we graze at the snack bowls at a party: If a bowl is big, we eat more of the food inside it. Try this out by setting out a big bowl of fresh-cut veggies when your kids watch television or do homework.

Did You Know that Our Moods Can Affect Our Taste Buds?

We’ve all had emotional eating episodes now and then – a “drowning our sorrows in a tub of ice cream” kind of thing. But a sad mood may actually make us eat larger amounts of bad-for-us foods while a happy-go-lucky outlook turns our taste to healthier fare. Keep this in mind next time you feel your mood swinging.

Did You Know that Food Labels can Trick Our Taste Buds?

We’re inclined to believe and be comforted by whatever we see written on a food label. Many people will over-eat foods if they’re labelled low-fat, and overeating can negate the benefit of the health claim. Check labels and take note of serving size before over-indulging in what seems like a healthier treat.

Did You Know that How Long You Chew Some Foods Affects Your Appetite?

Research suggests that if you chew almonds 25 to 40 times before you swallow them, your body will digest more of the nuts’ unsaturated fat, which can leave you feeling fuller than if you’d chewed only 10 times. Chewing your food more thoroughly also gives you time to evaluate your level of hunger as you eat, rather than just wolfing everything down or clearing your plate.

Did You Know that a Cup of Cottage Cheese can Contain Nearly as Much Sodium as 2 Hot Dogs?

Only about 10% of our daily sodium intake comes from table salt. Loads of sodium hides in packaged and prepared foods, like cottage cheese and hot dogs. Check labels to keep your daily sodium intake below 2300 mg. Excess sodium raises our risk of high blood pressure, and high blood pressure is a risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Much of our daily intake comes from packaged and prepared foods, like cottage cheese and smoked meats.

Did You Know that The Way You Chop Vegetables Affects How Nutritious They Will Be?

The more finely you chop vegetables, the more surface area you expose to the air. And the more surface area exposed, the more vitamins and minerals can be lost from the food when cooked. Instead, cut vegetables into equally larger chunks for even and nutrient-preserving cooking.

Did You Know that Letting Food Sit Out can Boost Its Nutritional Profile?

Once you’ve chopped up certain vegetables – garlic, onions, leeks, collard greens, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower – wait about 10 minutes before cooking. This time helps to make nutrients more available and less likely to be released in cooking.

Did You Know that Microwaving Your Veggies May Up Their Antioxidant Potential?

The microwave doesn’t seem like a healthy cooking tool. But some veggies, like carrots and spinach, get an antioxidant boost from a spin around in the super-concentrated and quick heat of a microwave.

Source(s): © McNeil Consumer Healthcare, division of Johnson & Johnson Inc. 2010

The growing obesity epidemic

Take control of what and how much you and your family eat, and balance that with regular exercise. Your family will thank you.

Experts tell us that there is a global obesity epidemic and, troublingly, our children are also at risk. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that obesity is one of the world’s most neglected public health problems, and it affects both adults and children alike, in both developed and developing countries. In 1995, the WHO’s records showed that there were approximately 200 million obese adults worldwide and approximately 18 million children worldwide who were overweight. In 2000, Canadian research showed that from 1981 to 1996, the prevalence of obesity more than doubled for Canadian children (girls and boys), and, during this time-frame, the rates of being overweight increased by 92% for boys and 57% for girls.

Why do these childhood obesity rates cause alarm in the medical community? One of the major concerns is that obese children grow into obese adults who will then arrive at an increased risk for diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and other chronic conditions. Officials believe that with such a large segment of the population facing increased risks of developing these conditions, the threat to public health is becoming serious. At the individual level, the consequences of these diseases include a possible decrease in overall quality of life due to the development of a chronic health condition, and even premature death. At a societal level, this epidemic will have financial costs as well as social implications, as families members will have to deal with increasing health care challenges for themselves and their family members.

So how can we counter these increasing obesity rates? The answer appears to be two-fold. It involves the food we eat and the amount of energy we spend. First of all, we need to modify our diets and reduce our intake of high-energy, high-fat foods. In North America, these types of foods are common, and they arrive in large portion sizes. Adults and children should consume diets that follow Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating. Keep in mind that the energy we take in through our food should not exceed the energy we spend on physical activity. And that leads us to the second part of countering the prevalence of obesity.

Increasingly, our society as a whole is becoming less active and more sedentary. Children report spending hours daily spent in front of the television or playing video games or other low-energy activities. More physical activity is needed! Experts have stated that children require 150 minutes of active physical activity every week — and appeals have been made to school boards to work this into the curriculum for students from kindergarten up to grade 12.

Why not take control of your diet and your amount of physical activity? Set the standard for your family and encourage them to follow. Children in particular need to learn healthy habits early on — it’s an important step to helping combat the epidemic of obesity. If you are looking for help with your weight loss and learning new ways to manage your weight, consider turning towards Weight Watchers. MommyMatter does happen to offer our viewers the opportunity to save on their Weight Watchers diet program with the use of our Weight Watchers Coupons!

Christine is also a die hard Medifast user! Check our the Medifast Coupons that are also available if this is a diet that matches your needs.

I know I like to be swim suit ready for summer, but I learned years ago that extreme dieting can be dangerous for women. Since I experienced a few health problems associated with dieting, I decided to take a healthier approach to weight loss.

Crash diets are those that involve starving yourself for several days or weeks or using “cleansing” concoctions as well as diet pills or laxatives. Not all diet products are bad for you, but be wary of crash diets that require a low caloric intake for more than three days.

Here are five negative health consequences of crash diets:

Dieting and irregular periods

Women who starve themselves can experience missed periods as well as irregular periods. Extreme exercise causes stress on your body that can also cause your period to become irregular. Your body needs proper nutrition and calories in order to function.

Diet pills and heart problems

I have tried several weight loss supplements such as the “3 Day Diet Cleanse” that never caused me any health problems, but my experience with taking phentermine diet pills was disturbing because of heart palpitations. I never tried the fen-phen diet pill, which was pulled off shelves after people started having heart valve problems. Eating disorders can lead to heart problems or heart attacks, especially if a person has anorexia and bulimia. Even disordered eating and crash dieting can strain the heart.

Dieting and slow metabolism

Ironically, women who starve themselves to lose weight slow down their metabolism in the long run. After decreasing daily caloric allowance to 1,000 for a few weeks, the metabolism slows down. When you begin eating more calories, you gain weight rapidly. Also called “weight cycling,” yo-yo dieting can take a toll on one’s self confidence. The opposite is also true. I was able to boost my metabolism with exercise. I had my resting metabolic rate tested, and was pleased to find out I had increased it to 2,174 calories burned a day at rest.

Dieting and dizziness or fainting

Very low calorie diets often lead to fainting spells, which can be dangerous especially if you are driving. Some people on extreme vegan diets have a deficiency of B12 which may cause shortness of breath or dizziness. If you don’t have enough electrolytes such as potassium, you may also feel faint. Your blood sugar may become low enough from dieting that you become dizzy.

Constipation and irritable bowel

Many detox diets such as the master cleanse or lemon juice detox diet can mess with your digestive system. I have a friend who depends on prune juice in order to relieve constipation. Taking laxatives, herbal dietary supplements for “cleansing” or excessive amounts of foods that act as laxatives can make the colon dependent. Laxative users are more prone to irritable bowl syndrome and colon cancer.

It’s tempting to want to find a short cut for fast weight loss, especially for summer, but crash diets aren’t the answer. Learn to love exercise and healthy foods and being thin will feel natural.

Weight Watchers is successful because it is not just an ordinary diet plan. In fact, according to Weight Watchers it is not a typical diet plan. People who join the plan learn how to select the right foods and live a much healthier life. A healthy lifestyle results in a healthier body. The Weight Watchers support group shares advice on achieving emotional, mental, and physical health. In other words it is all about changing behavior or behavior modification. One thing that many should find appealing is that there is an option to follow the plan with local support in your own community or follow the plan completely online. This makes for a very flexible weight loss program that many might want to follow. The weight loss plan online seems promising. It is easy to customize the plan to suit just about any lifestyle and food choices.

Weight Watchers

It is not surprising that Weight Watchers has many followers. This calorie based program has an exceptionally high success rate for losing weight. This is certainly something that you can’t say about many fad diet plans that promise quick weight loss. And the pounds return soon as the person starts eating normal meals. Accordingly, signing up with Weight Watchers is the first step in losing and controlling your weight. It is one of the best weight loss programs for the entire family. This programs supports sensible diet and exercise program. People are taught to make healthy food choices and encouraged to get active. They have an online and community support groups. Something many fad weight loss programs simply do not have. The Weight Watchers plan is easily customized for those with health problems.

An interesting difference with this calorie based weight loss program is that the women who follow this plan must use a new points system. This is where each food in th plan is assigned a point value. More points are earned for exercising. Clients have a daily point allotment. Research shows that Weight Watchers has the greatest success rate. However, Weight Watchers is not free. Must pay a small weekly fee and a fee to join. Check in your community to find out current local fees and cost to join..

Weight watchers is all about learning to make the right food choices, and enjoying a healthier lifestyle. Members learn to keep track of calories and burn more calories than they consume. Simple, basic, and it works.

5 Reasons that Weight Loss Programs Help You to Keep Off the Pounds

Losing weight is not easy for most people. If you need to lose a lot of weight, the problem is only compounded. In reality, many who are overweight have other issues in addition to their weight. These other factors can cause a person to continue to overeat even when they would rather not. Weight loss programs do not usually fix other things in your life, but they can help you lose weight in spite of them. Several immediate and obvious benefits come from entering some type of weight loss group like Weight Watchers.

Dieters need to learn to control the size of their portions.

Portion control is central to any successful weight loss program. When consuming certain types of foods, calories add up quicker than you might believe. Weight loss programs focus on encouraging their participants to restrict the amounts of all foods consumed. Tricks like cutting the entree in half before taking the first bite help to reduce caloric intake. The other half of the meal can be boxed for later or simply left behind to keep it from tempting you to eat more.

Good weight loss programs teach people how to juggle their choices to cut calories.

A program like Weight Watchers gives literature and instruction on food equivalents. You are taught how to compare quantities of certain foods to items like a slice of bread. This can make it much easier to choose what type of food to eat and how much. The menus offered by most weight control programs are designed to help the dieter have choices. Doing this helps keep the person from burning out on certain foods or having to eat personally undesirable foods. They also try to maintain a healthy variety of foods to be eaten.

Desperate or extreme measures do not guarantee permanent success.

Only people who feel desperate about their weight will maintain a strict adherence to a protracted period of dieting. Most diets eventually fail and the weight is regained regardless of the health risk or other incentives. This has been found to be true even in those who choose the surgical methods to restrict food intake. Some after losing a hundred or more pounds learn to get additional calories into their daily meals until the weight begins to come back.

Having something or someone that holds you accountable is a better option.

This is the real edge that most weight loss groups have over individual dieters. When a person has to go face a public scale every week, it becomes a way keep the diet on track. As long as an individual is committed to the group and the process, the weight will continue to be lost or at least maintained at an acceptable level. Having a partner to help you stay strong also adds another layer of accountability. Most addiction programs rely on both of these measures to help members succeed. For overweight people, eating is just another form of addictive behavior.

Weight Watchers encourages you to be faithful to yourself, your diet, and the group.

Many weight loss programs teachings available to help build self esteem. It is hoped that this information will take root and teach people to find other outlets besides eating to solve stress issues. Doing exercise to vent stress can reduce the need to eat for comfort. Staying with a weight loss program with some accountability and diet training until old habit patterns are broken is the goal of these programs. The old ways of regarding food have to change permanently for pounds to stay lost.

Well we’ve had some pretty good days with this whole exercising and eating healthy routine. Yesterday we took a break from the gym, since it isn’t entirely necessary to exercise every single day. Tuesday and today we went. Wow was today a little exhausting. Guess taking that day break may not have been the best idea.

Tuesday was superb! Felt great the entire day, but of course by the end of our day I was exhausted. This week has been quite a busy one between work, gym, rearranging house and the kids being constantly whiney. Literally constantly. As I sit here I am being poked while Wee Man is whining for a “special granola bar”. He calls them special which is great. I can get him to eat anything if I call it special.

The program we’ve put the kids into is awesome! They are both interacting with the other children wonderfully and Wee Man is getting a good trial run for school. Doing this will make it much easier for him leaving me for a few hours each day. He has absolute tantrums when we are leaving the gym wanting to stay and play with all his friends, but sadly they have a two hour time limit. Baby Girl was a little hesitant at first but now the moment we get in there she is running to the play room raring to go. She doesn’t fight as much to leave, but that will guaranteed change.

I use to be someone that was quite active when I was younger, so this whole exercise thing isn’t entirely new to me. I am mainly sticking to treadmills, bikes and the elliptical. Ever since I had the kids I’ve had back issues due to the epideral I got with them to ease pain. They informed me when I had it that it could cause back issues in the future and man were they not kidding.

Since I have to avoid straining my back I tend to avoid doing weights and stuff. The Hubby keeps getting me to try, but after a few crunches or whatever you call them I can feel the pain. I know I should push it a little bit and strengthen my back a bit, but I’d rather have no pain and amazingly toned legs! What I am doing will help me lose a lot of unneeded body fat (even though I am not technically fat for my height), but after having the kids I did gain over 100 pounds. I’ve lost 50 of that already over the past 3 years, so it will be exciting to lose the rest. Yes… I use to weigh 95 pounds and by the time I had Wee Man I was over 200 pounds. I put on weight purposely so I wouldn’t be a tiny twig anymore, but didn’t think I’d put that much on!

Now that Wee Man is turning 4 and Baby Girl is turning 3 it is time that Mommy gets back into tip top shape. They are hitting that very active point in their lives and I want to have the energy and stamina to get through it all and still be able to keep going. Motherhood does require constant services, so being in shape for it all will make it much less complicated.

Well… since I am on the verge of losing weight and none of my clothes fitting I’ve been doing some “window shopping” online. I am one that won’t buy something that is ridiculously priced so it will take me lots of time to find exactly what I want. Right now one of my biggest obsessions is TOMS Shoes. I know… shoes. I am female! And it is for a good cause so I can’t resist, I even have found tons of TOMS Shoes Coupons too so I can save myself some money for other adventures I may get into over the future. I am the budget queen… I can budget every single penny that comes into this house perfectly.

So… since I am continuing on with this whole diet/weight loss thing you may want to keep coming back. I am determined and when I get determined I tend to push until complete. I am not one to give up until I am successful, so help me through it! If you are dieting yourself tell me how it is going for you, I’d love to hear it. All I can say is I’m real glad I have the Hubby doing it with me. Having a partner through this path makes it much easier and he’s always going to help motivate me to keep going.

Well, clock says bedtime for the kiddies so off I go to put them to sleep and get a little R&R myself.

Today is the beginning of a brand new life, diet and health for myself and the Hubby. We’ve decided it is time to get ourselves back into shape and eating healthy, so we are going to do it! This morning we woke up, made breakfast, didn’t have any coffee (I usually drink 4-5 a day) and off we went to the gym. Yep that’s right, the gym!

We registered ourselves and the kids with GoodLife Fitness. I’ve looked into this gym in the past but never had the drive to do it. Now that I have him wanting to do it with me we can push each other each day and keep on going. And hey! 2 hours away from the kids while we work out, why the hell not. The price is right for doing it, $16 every other week for 2 kids… think it is worth it

So, today is day 1 of our new healthy life. Now you are probably wondering, what do you mean healthy? Well, our diets are changing, our exercise habits are changing and our daily life is changing. We aren’t two people that generally eat mass amounts of unhealthy foods and we really aren’t overweight at all. It is just the want and need to be healthier. Not only will it help us, but it will help the kids develop proper health skills as they get older.

Well, let’s get into our day.

Breakfast

• 1 1/2 cup of plain oatmeal mixed with chocolate whey protein.
• 8 ounces of cold water
• Hydroxycut Advanced Weight Loss Supplement
• Centrum Vitamins

Now you might be thinking, wow how were you even full? Well… the protein helps with that and then the weight loss supplement pills also assist with making you feel fuller longer. Combine that with a big glass of water and it was the right mixture for a good morning work out.. and yes I know that picture does the oatmeal no justice, but hey… not everything looks good when it is good for you.

We went to the gym from 10am until 12pm. Once we dropped the kids off in their Jump! play program we were out on the gym floor working out. We worked out for about an hour and 15 minutes, I did a cool down at the end on the gyms fancy massage chairs just to avoid aches and pains later into my day.

Lunch

The hubby and I made together a very delicious lunch. There really isn’t a name or anything for it other then that it was delicious! Please note just about every meal we consume has an 8 ounce glass of water combined with. For our water with lunch we incorporated an 8 ounce glass of Berry Burst Metamucil… yep we take Metamucil! It helps all around to keep our systems running in tip top shape while we interchange our diets.

Ingredients

• Avocado
• Red Onion
• Red Pepper
• 2 Roma Tomatoes
• 2 cups of fresh chicken

Directions

• Peel and cube avocado
• Chop up red onion
• Chop up red pepper
• Gut and slice roma tomatoes
• Chop up pre-cooked (fresh) chicken

Mix all of these items together and eat like a salad or spread onto whole wheat bread. We chose the whole wheat bread route and it was delightful.

Afternoon Snack

It is very important to snack throughout your day. For our afternoon snack we had another 8 ounce glass of water combined with Skinny’s Multi Grain Harvest French Onion Chips. Don’t worry everyone, they are baked not fried, only 110 calories per 28g serving. They are 40% less fat and 20% fewer calories compared to the regular multigrain chips that we consume.

Since it is only 2:30pm we have yet to do dinner, but I know exactly what we are having! Turkey burgers!!! Homemade of course. The hubby looked at the non-homemade option and I just couldn’t do it. If we are going to go all out healthy, fresh is the best. So I guess I am making myself a little extra work each day with cooking, but hey, I’d rather spend more time cooking and being healthy then spending less and having health issues in the future.

Weight Loss Goal

I have decided upon a weight loss goal for where I’d like to be at again. Anyone who knows me from before the kids, I was lucky to weigh 100 pounds soaking wet before I had them. Well… this is not the case anymore. I might not look like I weigh what the scale says I do (I think it was lying anyways), but I want to lose 41 pounds before I am satisfied with the results.

Current weight - 161.8 pounds
Goal weight – 120 pounds

This is very doable and I will do it!

Are you on any sort of weight loss plan? Are you trying to lose weight? Tell me what you are doing to lose weight! I’d love to hear it all.