Medically Supervised Diet Programs at Weight Management Program—Manhattan

Providers at NYU Langone’s Weight Management Program—Manhattan offer medically supervised diet programs, which are prescribed meal replacement products that can be shipped to your home. 

Depending on the program, the plan includes one to five meal replacements per day. The number of calories in each meal depends on your sex and weight. These programs help you learn how to keep hunger at bay with behavioral tools and low-glycemic, high-protein foods at every meal. 

The goal is to help you develop your own healthy eating lifestyle. We also recommend that you exercise at least 150 minutes per week while on the program and as part of your weight loss maintenance. 

These programs work best with long-term follow-up to maintain weight loss, monitoring of health issues related to obesity, and managing expected deviations from a maintenance program.

New You and Metabolic Boost

The New You and Metabolic Boost diets are designed to trigger ketosis, a natural metabolic state caused by low intake of carbohydrates. Once your body uses up all its available carbohydrates, it uses body fat, in the form of ketones, as an energy source during fasting, exercise, or overnight. A medical evaluation is required before starting either of these programs, and we provide you with nutritional and behavioral support. 

• New You is offered in 4- or 12-week packages. Weight loss averages 3 to 5 pounds per week. You meet with a doctor, physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or dietitian once every two weeks.
• Metabolic Boost is a carbohydrate-free two-week diet that results in an average weight loss of 5 to 10 pounds per week. You meet with your doctor or dietitian once a week.

Recent studies confirm the safety and effectiveness of ketogenic diets. While in ketosis, appetite is naturally suppressed, so significant hunger is uncommon. During the first week, you may feel slightly hungry as your body uses its remaining carbohydrates, but this usually passes. If hunger persists, please contact us.

Some people may experience minor side effects while in ketosis, including dizziness, fatigue, or muscle cramps, especially if dehydrated. Initially, energy levels may decrease as the body adjusts from burning carbohydrates to fat, but many people experience increased energy after the first week. If this doesn’t happen, please reach out to us.

Flex Plan

The Flex Plan is an eight-week nonketogenic, dietitian-led program that incorporates certain carbohydrates into a healthy eating plan. Estimated weight loss is 1 to 2 pounds per week. You have weekly visits with a registered dietitian.

Follow-up Care

Follow-up appointments for medical supervised diet programs take place at our main office at 530 First Avenue, Suite 10S, in Manhattan, or through an online visit through the NYU Langone Health App. Your provider may ask you to use digital tools such as health tracker apps to monitor your blood pressure, heart rate, and weight. This data can be uploaded to your NYU Langone Health MyChart account for review during your online appointment.