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.