Medifast low-calorie meals

Lose weight without shopping, cooking or counting. Medifast low-calorie, nutritionally-balanced meals taste great and are delivered directly to your door.

Eat 5 Medifast Meals each day, plus one "lean and green meal." You will lose weight without being hungry.

Medifast has been helping people for over 25 years and has been proven effective in multiple clinical studies.

Zone Diet recipes do contain moderate amounts of whole grains

The Scoop on Whole Grains

From the Zone Diet

Yes, whole-grain food products are "politically correct," says Dr. Sears. And whole grain is always a better choice than the highly refined grains found in white bread, pasta, and commercially baked goods. But Dr. Sears advises shoppers to approach whole grains with caution. Why? "First, most foods labeled 'whole grain' really aren't," he says. "Real whole-grain products contain fats that go rancid at room temperature, and that's why they are found in the frozen section of the supermarket." Dried whole grains, like steel-cut oats, need to be cooked for at least 30 minutes before eating, he adds.

Even when you have identified a truly whole-grain product, it must be eaten sparingly. "Whole grains still have to be eaten with a certain degree of moderation because of their carbohydrate density, which quickly increases the glycemic load of a meal." Case in point: It takes just 1/4 cup of whole-grain pasta to equal the glycemic load of 4 cups of broccoli.

All that said, Zone Diet recipes do contain moderate amounts of whole grains, which add heartiness to dishes, even in small amounts. Try this delicious recipe for Stuffed Zucchini "boats," which uses dry oatmeal:

Stuffed Zucchini

Ingredients
1 medium zucchini
2 ounces extra-firm tofu
1 tablespoon shoyu sauce
Garlic powder, to taste
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 ounce low-fat ricotta cheese
1 small onion, chopped
2 medium stalks celery, chopped
6 mushrooms, chopped
2 1/2 tablespoons dry oatmeal
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup tomato sauce
Fresh seasonal herbs, minced

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F

2. Leave zucchini ends intact and blanch or steam for 5 to 7 minutes. Cut in half lengthwise. Remove pulp but leave enough meat so the zucchini will stand upright.

3. Mash tofu with a fork and integrate shoyu sauce. Add garlic powder and sauté in olive oil in a skillet for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add to ricotta in separate bowl.

4. Add olive oil to same skillet and sauté onion, celery, and mushroom until slightly browned. Add to tofu-ricotta mixture with oatmeal and egg.

5. Stuff zucchini boats and place in baking dish on a layer of tomato sauce. Top with remaining tomato sauce and herbs. Bake 20 minutes, covered, at 350°F. Uncover and bake 5 minutes longer.

South Beach Position On Fats

Fat: Friend or Foe?

From South Beach Diet

Because fat is the most concentrated source of energy (i.e., calories) you can get from food, it's often vilified by popular weight-loss plans. Not all fat, however, deserves its bad reputation. Actually, good fats -- like extra-virgin olive oil and canola oil -- are an essential part of a healthy diet. Did you know that fat transports fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K through your body, cushions your vital organs and bones, and keeps your cells healthy, all while helping food taste better?

The South Beach Diett encourages you to enjoy the good fats. Not only are they considered essential fats, meaning you must consume them in your diet to maintain good health, but they also add flavor and texture to foods and help you feel satisfied. Certain fats, the so-called bad fats, should be avoided, since they contribute to heart disease and stroke. Here's a rundown:

Good fats:
Unsaturated fat (mono and poly) generally exists in liquid form at room temperature. These are the good fats that we encourage you to enjoy on all Phases of the South Beach Diet. Unlike saturated and trans fats, unsaturated fats can lower your risk of heart disease and stroke. Monounsaturated fats include extra-virgin olive oil and canola oil. Polyunsaturated fats include the omega-3s found in fatty fish like salmon and tuna.

Bad fats:
Saturated fat usually exists in solid form at room temperature. It's found in animal products, like full-fat cheese and red meat, and some vegetable oils (coconut and palm kernel oils). Eating too much saturated fat can lead to high LDL ("bad") cholesterol, which can ultimately contribute to heart disease.

Trans fats are created when an unsaturated fat (like vegetable oil) is chemically altered so that it stays solid at room temperature. Consuming trans fats can lead to clogged arteries. Trans fats are found in processed foods like chips, baked goods, and fast foods. You'll see the words "hydrogenated" or "partially hydrogenated" on the ingredient label if trans fats are present. Also, since January 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has required food manufacturers to display the amount of trans fats on all of their product labels. Note: Children under the age of 2 should not be on a fat-restricted diet, since fat is important for proper brain development.

The Paleo Diet and Neanderthin

By Tom Venuto
Burn the Fat

The "paleolithic," "stone age," "cave man," or "neanderthal" eating plans have been around for a while and there are quite a few books that have been written on the subject.

In general, with a only few minor constructive criticisms, I think they areright on point, and will benefit your health and definitely your fat loss efforts.

A "Paleo Diet" is actually quite similar to my Burn The Fat program, only withthe starches and grains (and dairy products) removed completely.

In fact, a "paleo" or "cave man" diet is very, very similar to the "contest" (bodybuilding or physique) diets I recommend in Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle and this is most definitely a great way get very lean, very fast.

On physique competition diets (bodybuilding, fitness, figure, etc), you leave the lean proteins, lean meats, nuts and seeds, the green veggies (fibrous carbs), and some fruit in the diet, while reducing or removing ALL processed foods and SOME of the grains and starches. (usually the dairy products go too).

When it comes to MAXIMUM FAT LOSS, the removal or reduction of grains and calorie dense starchy carbs in favor of lean protein and veggies will definitely help speed the process - even if that's only because it reducescaloric density of the food intake, although there are other reasons.

Lean protein (fish and meat) + good fats & nuts + lots of green veggies + some fruit = LEAN!

And thats basically what the "paleolithic" diets recommend, because the principlethere is to eat like our "stone age" ancestors did - before there was McDonalds, Coca Cola and other junk food.

The premise is that since our genetic code (the human genome) has changedless than 0.02 percent in 40,000 years, this means that our bodies are still expecting to get the same foods and nutrition they were getting 40,000 years ago.

By eating what our "stone age" hunter and gatherer ancestors ate, say the paleo diets, we will rid ourselves of the health problems and the obesity problem that has only recently begun to plague us as a result of modern lifestyle and processed manmade foods.

Forty thousand years ago, you had to eat nature-made food. There was no food in cans, boxes or packages was there? The packaging was peel, a skin or a shell!

There were no TV dinners. There was no drive in fast food. There were no convenience stores.

There was no corn syrup. There was no white sugar. There were no hydrogenatedoils. No chemicals. No preservatives. No artificial anything

There was only what could be hunted and gathered: Meat, fish, nuts, seeds, plants, vegetables, fruits.

My only real constructive criticism is that some of these programs not onlyrecommend removal of all grains and starches (and even dairy), they outright condemn them - sometimes unfairly, I believe.

They say that agriculture arrived on the scence only 10,000 years agoso foods produced as a result of agriculture should also be on the "banned"list and that includes 100% whole grain products and even rice, potatoesand other starches which are not manmade.

the truth is there are some starchy carbohydrates and grains which are very minimally processed or completely unproceseed (the only processing beingcooking).

Also, some people can metabolically handle starches and grains just fine, while others cannot. The same can be said for dairy products.

This is known as metabolic individuality. Because this individuality existsfrom person to person, I don't believe it's necessary to recommend that "EVERYONE" cut out "ALL" the starches and grains "ALL" the time.

I do believe that many people are getting an overdose of refined carbs and sugar and that moderating intake of concentrated carbs almost always accelerates fat loss.

However, the nutrition program you choose should depend on your metabolic/body type, your current body composition and state of health as well as your goals(maximum fat loss vs. muscle growth vs. maintenance, vs. enduranceathleticperformance).

I don't believe that "agriculture" and everything that came with it is "evil."

I believe that highly processed and refined and packaged foods are the"nutritional evils" we should be aware of.

To remove brown rice, 100% whole grains, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, legumes and so on for healthy carb tolerant people, especially those who are highly active and or already at a normal body fat level doesnt make a lot of sense to me.

In particular, for athletes with a high energy expenditure, eating theconcentrated complex, starchy carbs and grains - from natural sources -can be quite important.

Sure, there are some "renegade' nutritionists who prescribe high fat dietsfor endurance athletes and claim that will provide high energy and highperformance, but that is controversial.

Also, an explanation for athletes successful on such plans may be that they are metabolically suited for more fat and protein to begin with, so that conclusion shouldn't be generalized to everyone.

thats the trouble with so many programs -- the creators might say, "It worked for me and for some of my clients, so this is the way EVERYONEshould do it."

Everyone is different, so the true inquiring minds will inquire aboutwhat is best for THEM, not the other guy... In the case of highly active healthy people and athletes, I would lean towards a decent amount of natural carbs forperformance goals (and pull back on starches and grains whengoals change to maximum fat loss).

The key word here is NATURAL!

There is a HUGE difference between natural starches and grainsand refined starches and grains.

For example, look at old fashioned unsweetened oatmeal versus sugary, white flour cereal grains. How can you throw those together into the same category??? They are no where near the same, but often they get lumped together by thosewho are adamantly "no-grain" or "no-cereal" allowed.

What about sweet potatoes? why cut something like that outof your diet? They are not processed or man made at all are they?

Aside from that minor quibble I have with some of these programs beingtoo strict with their "Absolutely no grains or starch allowed," there isa lot anyone can learn from the "paleolithic" eating concept.

The questions raised from these programs and books are good ones:

"What were we eating tens of thousands of years ago?" "What are we genetically and environmentally predisposed to eat?"

"what has gone wrong with the modern day diet that has led toso much disease and obesity which didn't exist thousands of years ago?"

I believe that too many people get caught up in low fats or low carbs or whatever the trend of the month is, but the real source of our problem is neither fat nor carbs, it is an excess of processed, refined man-made food! (combined with a serious shortage of exercise)

If you study and understand the concept of eating according to your personal goals and your unique body/metabolic type first, which I discuss in chapter 5 of my book, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle, then I believe you will get even more benefit from the further study of the "paleo" eating concept, as youwill be informed and flexible enough to adapt it to your personal situation.

Loren Cordain and Ray Audette have written two of the more notable works on the subject (the Paleo diet and Neanderthin). You can get either of these at almost any bookstore or Amazon.com. You can get my Burn The Fat program.

ANY good nutrition program - for health or for fat loss - is going to befocused on natural foods and it will teach you how to get the processed food OUT and the natural food IN

Keep in mind what Fitness Icon Jack Lalanne has always said,

"If man made it, dont eat it!"

THAT is the essence of eating how we're supposed to eat!

Your friend and coach,

Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCSCertified Personal TrainerCertified Strength & Conditioning Specialist
Fat Loss Coach

South Beach Diet Fitness Club

Join the new South Beach Diet Fitness Club and take another step toward enjoying a healthier life. Dr. Arthur Agatston, leading preventative cardiologist and creator of the South Beach Die , says, "I know that achieving optimal health and maintaining a sensible body weight involves two key components: following a healthy eating plan and getting regular exercise. With The South Beach Diet I brought my patients -- and you -- a delicious eating plan made up of fiber-rich, nutrient-dense foods, like poultry, fish, lean red meats, and fruits and vegetables, as well as beans and whole grains. That was more than a decade ago, but the overwhelmingly positive response endures because it's easy to follow, beneficial to your health, and fits seamlessly into your life so you can follow it forever. And that means you don't just lose weight, you keep it off.

I've also long recommended, as well as participated in, cardiovascular exercise, along with resistance training and stretching. And I'm pleased that our Web site can now bring you The South Beach Diet Fitness Club so you can easily make exercise a consistent part of your healthy lifestyle and reap its benefits. What kind of benefits? I'm talking about reducing your risk of diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and stroke, as well as enhancing weight loss and maintenance, lowering blood pressure, reducing stress, and improving how you function in your daily life.

If you've tried -- and failed at -- adopting an exercise regimen in the past, you might be skeptical about this program being any better than others. I'm here to tell you from personal experience -- and from the experience of my patients -- that it is."

You can enjoy all the benefits of The South Beach Diett Fitness Club right now. Simply subscribe by logging on to southbeachdiet.com and clicking on Fitness Club in the left-hand tool bar of the Web site.