I haven’t talked about it explicitly. It’s not something I am proud of or like to talk about. However, some of the regular readers have read between the lines and picked up on the fact that I am currently unemployed.
I’m also financially depleted to a degree that I haven’t experienced before.
For the last year, I had been working on a pretty massive project that totally crumbled a couple of months ago. I don’t want to get into the details, but it was financially and emotionally devastating. I’m still a little depressed which is probably why I’ve spent so much time blogging when I should be using that time to look for a job.
There have been some upsides.
- I’ve had the time to give some serious thought as to where I want my career and life to go from here.
- I’ve spent a lot of time with family which has been great.
- I’ve been able to stay on program with Medifast pretty religiously and I have been losing weight and feeling great.
But now it’s time to re-order.
As I put together my Medifast order, the numbers started to add up and I started to seriously rethink things. The numbers add up fast. I took a step away from the computer to rethink things. (Right now, dealing with anything related to money is not a fun situation, so I do a lot of stepping away and re-thinking.)
How much does a day of Medifast really cost?
The average Medifast meal costs about $2.25. That’s if you’re going heavy on the shakes and reducing the bars which are a little more pricey. And you need 5 of those a day which comes out to $11.25. But you still need a lean and green meal. So let’s say those are going to average out to $5.
The average DAY of Medifast costs $16.25.
Let’s put the cost in perspective
In my glory days (which were really only last year), I would easily spend 5x that on one dinner at a nice restaurant. I cut that practice out before my unemployment, because I had started Medifast and it didn’t fit in with my new lifestyle.
Given my current situation, even $16.25 sounds expensive, but when you really think about it, that’s not a terrible amount for a day of food in which you’re getting a good balance of healthy eating.
When I analyze that number, I can see ways that I could get my daily food budget down quite a bit. It would involve ramen noodles, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and various vegetables and meats that come in tin cans.
But I know myself, and if I did go back to the college-style of eating, I would lose energy and feel a lot worse. I might even end up back in the drive-thru line where I can get a sack of grease for around $5. And once I do that, I am throwing my daily food budget out the window. Along with my health.
All of these considerations are purely financial. None of them take into account weight loss.
For roughly $16.25 a day:
- I am losing weight.
- I have lots of energy.
- I feel great.
I have decided to stick with it.
I am re-ordering and I am pretty excited about it. All things considered, I think I am actually making a wise financial decision. Since my life is somewhat chaotic now, I actually find a lot of comfort in the structure of Medifast. I don’t have to waste brain power on what I am going to eat for lunch. Instead, I can save my brain for sending out resumés and going to interviews.
And looking slimmer and healthier can only increase my odds at landing my next job.
I would love to hear your thoughts on the financial side of losing weight with Medifast. Am I being a financial idiot? Please take a minute and leave a comment below.
I think you are absolutely correct and you should be so proud of yourself for realizing it! I’m so glad you’re sticking with it because I LOVE reading your blog!!
Thanks for reading and thanks for your comment. I am definitely going to keep with it and should have some interesting things to write about for some time to come.
I spent much MORE money on food prior to MF. A lunch in my city is close to $10 (sub, chips, drink). This doesn’t count snacks.
I fear that eating for less money means mostly processed carbs (mac & cheese, cereals, bread).
Hi April. Welcome to the site and thanks for your comments! Even though I am in a pretty low-cost city at the moment, I still have trouble spending less than $8 on a meal and that isn’t even a good one.
To really get your food costs down, I agree with you that pretty much the only way to go about it is processed high-carb junk. Unfortunately, I have had plenty of experience trying to squeak by with very little income and have spent lots of time scouring grocery stores for ways to stretch food dollars. It usually comes down to ramen noodles, generic cereal and 2 for $1 microwave burritos. Not healthy stuff by any stretch of the imagination.
Check out Medifast deals on e-bay and Craigslist. Granted, you have to live with what is being offered, but I have picked-up a supply of MF meals for less and $1.00 each. There is usually a good variety.
Hi April. Welcome to the site and thanks for your comments! Even though I am in a pretty low-cost city at the moment, I still have trouble spending less than $8 on a meal and that isn't even a good one.
To really get your food costs down, I agree with you that pretty much the only way to go about it is processed high-carb junk. Unfortunately, I have had plenty of experience trying to squeak by with very little income and have spent lots of time scouring grocery stores for ways to stretch food dollars. It usually comes down to ramen noodles, generic cereal and 2 for $1 microwave burritos. Not healthy stuff by any stretch of the imagination.
I started Medifast about 3 weeks ago. I've already decided that I'm happy to trade high grocery bills for the cost of Medifast. Here are several advantages of Medifast that I think outweigh the expense:
1) I'm not paying for produce that I don't get around to eating anymore. I used to waste a lot of food. Now I just buy what I need for my lean and green meal.
2) Less time wasted in the grocery store. I used to browse a lot and read labels, trying to figure out what was healthy. It's much simpler and faster now!
3) I spend less time in the kitchen on food prep. I love to cook, but I'm also pretty busy, so Medifast works great with my schedule.
4) I know that I'm eating healthy and keeping portion sizes and calories in check with Medifast. It takes the guesswork out of losing weight.
just started MF, on day 3, and have had lots of questions like this. thank you for the helpful info. i have not had a chance to figure that out. just knew i needed to do something and heard it was fast weightloss.
i have only ordered 2 weeks supply as a test run so far 5.6 pounds, but i am attributing that to the martini bloat i had gained in the week leading up to this.
read your other post about the social drinking and that you have still lost 11 pounds in 2 weeks, way to go! i am hoping to be able to do that as well.