Nutrition Class: The Big Sell

On the morning of day three, it's time for nutrition class. This is where we get to see exactly what we will be eating for the next 26 weeks, the weight loss phase.

The class isn't bad and takes about an hour. They cover the two plans Slim4Life offers (see below) which detail what classifications of food must be eaten each day. Most likely you will be on plan 2.

Plan 1
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2 Entrees
2 Vegetables
2 Fruits
2 Starches
1 Fat

Plan 2
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2 Entrees
4 vegetables
2 Fruits
2 Starches
4oz Skim Milk
1 Fat

You'll also find out that after being gorged on beef for the three days of prep, you will now need to avoid beef and tuna for the next three days. You also must eat 1 supplement bar and 1 drink mix per day. You are allowed to substitute a drink mix for a bar, but never a bar for a drink mix (more on this later).

At a future point I will post the food chart. This chart explains exactly what foods fall into each category and how much constitutes a serving. But for some idea, entrees are meats (beef, fish, poultry) and you can have between 4oz and 6oz depending on the type. You can also never have beef two days in a row. Dairy and eggs also fall into the entree category. Vegetables include just about all of them but corn and carrots and you can have 1 cup raw or 1/2 cup cooked. Fruits include most fruits and you will be eating a cup or less depending. Starches include several different types of diet breads available at your grocer, rice cakes, etc. Fats include diet margarine, Promise Lite and Ultra, and diet mayo. In addition, you must continue to have 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of Morton's Light Salt, this helps prevent cramping and you can have 1 tablespoon of mustard per day.

They then start explaining the pills. You'll be required to take a metabolizer and vitamin, but they will recommend some optional items. These are essential fatty acids (fish oils), carb blocker (blocks up to 300 calories per day), and Thermobooster (energy drink that supplies many vitamins like A,C,D,E,B2,B6, and B12).

For the first two days you will take the following 30 minutes before each meal:
Breakfast: 1 metabolizer, 1 vitamin, 2 EFAs, 1 Thermoboost
Lunch: 1 metabolizer, 1 carb blocker, 2 EFAs, 1 Thermoboost
Dinner: 1 metabolizer, 1 carb blocker, 2 EFAs

From day 3 on, you'll take the following 30 minutes before each meal:
Breakfast: 2 metabolizer, 1 vitamin, 2 EFAs, 1 Thermoboost
Lunch: 2 metabolizer, 1 carb blocker, 2 EFAs, 1 Thermoboost
Dinner: 2 metabolizer, 1 carb blocker, 2 EFAs

After your given all the nutrition information, they hit you with the big sell. They bring out some samples of supplements (i.e. nutrition bars). These of course all taste pretty good. But from what I read elsewhere, they give you the best to try and the other flavors are suspect and since they are nonrefundable you may want to steer clear.

After you've had your little bits of flavor, which you likely now relish since you have been on bland street for the last couple days, they want you to get out your wallets. They'll tell you that if you purchase all 32 remaining weeks (25 weeks of weight loss, 6 of stabilization - remember, you all ready bought your first week in the consultation.) you will receive the biggest discount.

While this is true, you may not want to make the jump. Buying for the full 31 weeks will get you your supplements/bars and drink mixes for around $9 a box, this is about a $1 cheaper than what can be found online. But, since you pick everything now, they may be out of something or you may dislike something and will be stuck with eating boxes and boxes of it over the next six months.

If you are not going to purchase week-to-week and do want to order in bulk, I suggest not moving above the 5 week pack for the reasons stated above. Here are the prices I was quoted for the full 31 weeks:

31 weeks - required items only (31 bars, 31 mixes, 5 bottles of metablozier, 5 bottles vitamins) - around $1100.

31 weeks - all items (31 bars, 31 mixes, 5 bottle metabolizer, 5 bottles vitamins, 5 bottles carb blocker, 5 bottles of EFAs, 10 boxes of Thermoboost) - around $1900.

As you can see, this becomes pretty pricey, pretty quickly. Combined with the start up costs, the minimum you will be spending on this diet plan will be approximately $1700, and more likely closer to $2500.

I definitely recommend buying your bars and mixes online. It will keep your costs down and allow for the greatest variety of choices. Plus, you won't have to figure out where to store six months worth of bottles and boxes.