These Reviewers Say Slim-Fast Works

by Dr. Dan

What is Slim-Fast?

The Slim-Fast program is built around shakes, meal replacement bars, snacks and balanced meals.

You are supposed to replace two meals each day with either a Slim-Fast shake or meal bar.

Then the evening meal (or any meal really) you have what they call a balanced meal. This balanced meal is 500 calories and includes protein, starch and a fibrous vegetable.

In addition you can have three snacks per day. This can be nuts, fruit, vegetables or Slim-Fast 100 calorie snack bars. These snacks are to be limited to 100 calories.

Does it work?

So, the question is, how effective is it? Can you lose weight with Slim-Fast? Can you keep it off?

Read these reviews from people who actually used the Slim-Fast program. They say that it does work.

But there are two sides to every story. Click this link for reviewers who say the opposite, that slim fast doesn't work.

Slim Fast Diet Worked For Me With Modifications

by Elizabeth
(Greenfield IN)

After pregnancy

I used the slim fast diet after giving both to my second daughter. I had back-to-back pregnancy and never had a chance to lose the weight from my first pregnancy.

I went from a skinny size 3 to a size 14 within two years. After I had my second daughter I needed a diet I could use while breastfeeding to make sure my milk was not effected.

Slim fast fit well into my plan. I used slim fast from the time my daughter was 1 week old until she was 4 months old.

Lost 70 pounds

I ended up losing a total of 70 pounds in just under 4 months. It worked great but I didn't just use the shakes. I also used an elliptical machine for an hour a day 6 days a week.

I'm not sure if it was the diet or the exercise that worked but either way I could not have asked for better results.

Improved self esteem

It has brought my self esteem back and got me back into my pre-pregancy pants which I was wearing before I got pregnent with my first daughter.

It didn't seem to effect my daughter nursing and she didn't she seem to lack anything from the milk.

I have read that if you diet too much you can slow your baby's growth down. I never had that problem.

Feeling hungry

The only downside to the program is you do get hungry and it takes a couple weeks to get used to not eating as much food. I found eating mostly veggies for dinner rather than meat allowed me more food and helped me deal with the hunger issues.

In all I would use it again if I need to lose the weight.

Slim-Fast Tastes Great, Maybe Too Great

by Tanya B.
(York, PA)

Like slim fast -- like chocolate

A few years ago I tried the Slim-Fast diet. I actually liked the Slim-Fast diet.

I did not lose as much as I had planned to lose nor as quickly as I wanted to but being able to have chocolate all day is always a plus with me.

I had the Slim-Fast chocolate shakes that I drank twice a day. I drank one in the morning and one before I went to bed, as kind of a snack.

Not strict with diet

I have to admit, I didn't follow this diet exactly the way I should have. In the morning, I usually ate whatever I wanted with the shake but I made sure to drink most of the shake first to help fill me up.

The shakes do work well to fill your belly for a few hours but I had a late work lunch and was hungry by the time lunch rolled around.

At first I wasn't a big fan of the flavor, although it is not bad at all. I am just a chocolate aficionado and like my chocolate to taste like Hershey's all the time.

What I did like was how the cans seemed to be weighted so you always felt like you still had a lot left and just as you got to the point that you didn't really want to finish it, you would be done.

Frequent snacks

Besides the shakes, I also had the chocolate and peanut butter snack bar. These were so good. I ate them all of the time, another reason I probably didn't lose as fast as I wanted to.

They were like having low calorie, great tasting candy bars whenever you wanted. I ate 2 or 3 of these a day, yikes!

Difficulty with moderation

I know that my problem is with moderation and I'm still working on that issue.

Although the drinks have quite a few calories in them, I do believe that the diet does help to cut calories and snacking if you just follow it. Slim-Fast definitely has enough products and flavors to keep you content for a while.

Lost 15 pounds

In the end, I did my version of the diet for about 5 months and lost 15 pounds but I never lost the chocolate craving.

This is a great diet for people wanting to lose a few pounds, but for someone who is obese this diet should not be used because you really need something that will help you detoxify from the carb and chocolate cravings.

Slim Fast Worked For Me

by Adam
(West Fairlee, Vermont)

Immediate results

Slim fast seemed to work for me – I like milkshakes and beverages though – so I guess any diet that consisted of just milkshakes would have worked for me.

I started using it and immediately noticed results (well after the first week or two). After that the results began to taper off – but I was still losing weight.

Convenience

The thing that I liked the best about it was the convenience. Prior to slim fast I was eating junk food for breakfast and lunch –- pretty much whatever I could get my hands on. To substitute this diet of convenience is difficult –- there are no places around me that sell healthy foods that are easy to obtain.

With Slim fast though it was quite simple – I just packed two shakes before I went to work and some fruits and vegetables or an energy bar for before the gym.

Taste not great -- not too bad

The shakes aren’t the best tasting drinks that I’ve ever had – but they are far from the worst thing I’ve tasted as well. It really wasn’t all that bad and I got used to it after a while.

Importance of exercise

I’ve seen a lot of people fail to lose weight on the slim fast program and I think that is due to the lack of exercise. The plan clearly states that you should do 30-45 minutes of exercise each day and without this I’m not sure if the slim fast would work. I joined a gym at the same time and ended up meeting my goal weight in a few months – and I feel great.

I did stop taking slim fast after the recent recall that they did –- some sort of contamination. I’ll probably wait a bit and go back to slim fast or a generic version.

Good Results From Slim Fast Diet

by Jennifer
(Tallahassee, FL, USA)

Weight loss after marriage

Ahhhh...the never ending need to lose weight. After getting married and cooking a lot more than I did before, I needed a diet to lose 15 pounds.

I didn't want a complicated diet where you had to count calories and figure out how much food you could eat at each meal. Not for me. So, I tried Slim-Fast.

The diet plan

This is what the diet included. I had a shake for two out of three meals. Usually for breakfast and for lunch (along with a few crackers for something to munch on).

Then, for a snack in the morning and the afternoon, I chose one of the Slim-Fast bars to eat.

Then, for dinner I ate a healthy, small meal. I watched the portions for dinner. For an evening snack, I had fruit or a Slim-Fast bar.

Lost 15 pounds

I tried the Slim-Fast diet for 2 months. It took a lot of will power, but with reducing my intake and exercising more, I was able to lose 15 pounds and keep it off!

The only way to be successful at this diet and any diet, I believe is to exercise along with the diet!

Exercise is a must

At least for me, I can't lose weight just by cutting back on food intake. Or, I would have to eat so few calories that I would feel so hungry all of the time. Making exercise a part of the diet is a must for me.

When eating out at a restaurant, I would eat either chicken or a salad. I definitely changed the eating habits when eating at restaurants. That was hard!

I would try the diet again, if needed. It is easy to do and once the pounds start coming off, it really motivates you to continue. I would recommend this diet to others.

Slim-Fast Can Work If You Stick With It

by Karen
(USA)

Lost 35 pounds

I lost about 35 pounds on Slim-Fast. It took about a year and a half.

I had shakes for breakfast and lunch, and nothing other than that until dinner time. I felt like I was starving most of the time!

No access to other food

I think the main reason it worked is that I was at work and I didn't have access to any other food while I was there. Even though I was hungry, I didn't have anything else.

I gained the weight back in a couple years because I got tired of limiting myself to the shakes and being hungry all the time.

Karen

Note from Dr. Dan

Karen,

Your story shows a couple of things about weight loss.

One, you can lose weight on almost any diet, even one that makes you feel like you are starving and miserable.

And then two, what's the point of struggling that way? If you haven't adjusted to a diet that is healthy and leaves you satisfied you'll just gain the weight back.

So what's the alternative? Learn what foods and other changes can make you stronger and healthier and leaner. When you do that you'll finally solve the weight problem.

Dr. Dan

Slim-Fast Works As Long As You Use It

by Kathy
(Sheboygan, WI, USA)

Lost 35 pounds

Several years ago, I lost 35 pounds in about a year and a half using Slim-Fast shakes. I would have a shake for breakfast and another one for lunch.

The shakes were the only food I would have until dinner time. I had an office job and didn't do a lot of exercise, until a few months into the diet when I started walking to work every day, which was about a mile and a half.

Slim Fast only food at work

I think the diet worked for me because I was at work where there was no other food available. The Slim-Fast was the only thing I brought to work, so I really had no other choice.

People would ask me at work if I got tired of drinking those shakes every day. I actually liked the taste of the shakes and didn't mind it.

Afternoon hunger

Many people eat the same thing every day, like cereal for breakfast and a sandwich for lunch, so it's really not that different. However, I did get hungry, especially in the afternoon. I was starving by dinner time!

Another reason I think the Slim-Fast diet works is that if you have the shakes as your meals, it's an automatic portion control. In theory, you could do this yourself by figuring out any 300 calorie lunch.

You could have the same turkey sandwich, carrots and celery and an apple every day for lunch, and the calories and nutrition would probably be the same as a Slim-Fast shake. But it's much easier to have it done for you and stick to a rigid plan that says "This is what I must eat".

Gradual weight gain

I gradually gained the weight back. I'm a stay-at-home mom now, and I know that the Slim-Fast diet wouldn't work for me in my present circumstances.

I'm at home and have access to other food, and I'm sure I wouldn't stick to drinking only Slim-Fast shakes when there are other things around.

Kathy

Note from Dr. Dan

Kathy,

You bring up several interesting points.

You mention, "Many people eat the same thing every day..." That's very true.

In fact, it turns out that many people that lose weight and keep it off do it by eating the same few foods over and over. It is easier to control portion sizes when what you are eating doesn't change.

And you started walking to work. With the recent increase in gas prices a lot of people couldn't afford to use their car. It caused difficulties for a lot of people.

But sometimes you can turn these problems to your advantage. And if you walked to work (where that is possible) or rode a bicycle, you might end up a lot healthier and a lot happier, with a little more money in your pocket. Just a thought.

Dr. Dan

Slim-Fast Diet (PLUS Fiber) Great Success

by Robert
(North Grafton, MA)

Diet success

I had really great success with the Slim-Fast diet about two years ago.

As so many know, the diet calls for drinking a shake for breakfast and another for lunch, with reasonable snacks in between, such as fruit. Then for dinner, a sensible meal.

Why it worked

My success was based on two things, namely:

(1) I summoned the strength to stick to it and enjoy the shakes for two meals and

(2) I ALWAYS included a high fiber food like beans with my full meal.

A typical meal would be chicken, salad and beans. I dropped pounds like crazy.

Most important of all, I kept the weight off.

Slim-Fast Diet Shimmy and Shake

by Rebecca Van Heusen
(State College, PA, USA)

Slim Fast diet wonderful

I am grateful that I was able to use such a wonderful program as the Slim Fast Diet and that it was quite affordable to a poor college student!

Growing up, I was always the skinny kid who got teased on the playground. Never in my life would I think I could so easily put on weight.

High metabolism

I had tried to gain weight many times in the past, but I always seemed to have a high metabolism.

In high school, this was worsened by the fact that I worked in food service where I was constantly standing in and around large, hot and humid, pieces of equipment (fryers, ovens, dishwashers) so in the summer, I would LOSE weight.

Changes with medication and alcohol

This all changed when I was in college. I started taking birth control pills to help regulate my menstrual cramps and I started drinking. Before I knew it, I had put on 30 pounds!

For most people, it would have been awful to deal with; but for me, it was horrifying. Because, despite putting on 30 pounds in the middle, thighs and face, I still had scrawny arms and legs!

Slim Fast to the rescue

So I decided to go on a diet the summer between my freshman and sophomore years of college and start working out. Fortunately, I had free access to a gym all summer and -- yet again -- I was working in a kitchen.

After researching many diets and weeding out the ones that lack well-balanced nutritional programs, I chose to go on the Slim-Fast plan.

I would have a shake for breakfast and a piece of toast (too much milk upsets my stomach), a shake for lunch with some fruit, and a well-balanced dinner and light snack.

More exercise -- less alcohol

I also spent at least 30 minutes each day working out. It took most of the summer, but I lost that extra 25 pounds and kept the extra 5 pounds around the middle.

Since that summer, I scaled back my drinking and my metabolism has returned to normal. For the first year, I monitored my eating habits (quitting the shakes altogether) and I was surprised to find my metabolism had returned to normal!