Worried about carb cravings while on the Medifast diet? Chill out! For most dieters using Medifast for weight loss, carbohydrate cravings are typically only a problem for the first three to four days of starting the diet. After that, mild ketosis kicks in, and that should curb cravings for the sorts of things that could get in the way of your weight loss, like donuts, hot bread, and heaping bowls of pasta.

Still, it doesn’t hurt to have some tips to get you through those first few days, so here’s how to deal with those carb cravings while taking Medifast.

First things first, make sure you have your plans in place for the first few days. Clear out the cupboards of any particular foods that are especially problematic for you and shop for your lean and green meals. Plan ahead and figure out what you are going to eat for your lean & greens and that should help a lot.

Be sure to eat all five Medifast meals per day, but don’t eat any of the bars. While Medifast bars are perfectly appropriate at any point in your diet, if you’re particularly concerned that carb cravings could throw you off track, it wouldn’t hurt to leave them alone for now. Just give yourself a few days to adjust to the diet before adding them to the menu.

Also, make sure you eat all six meals a day, even if you’re not hungry. Making sure you eat the right foods at the right times will keep you on track. So be sure to eat your six Medifast meals and your lean and green diet.

Drink more water and try to space your meals no more than a few hours apart. Drinking at least eight glasses of water every day is an important part of any diet. It will also help curb your appetite. But in addition to drinking water, pay attention to how you space your meals.

With six eating opportunities each day, it should be fairly easy to make sure no more than three to four hours go by between meals. Try to keep it up for three hours and you’ll find that by the time those carb cravings kick in, it’s time for another Medifast shake and you can curb your appetite.

Now, this is all good advice for the entire duration of your diet, but if you pay close attention to them for the first three or four days on the Medifast plan, it really should make it much easier to deal with carb cravings that arise. . . After that, if you stick with the plan, you probably won’t have to worry about those cravings while you continue with the program.