General Diet Plans and Questions - FAT FLUSHERS...post here

I dont know why none of you are posting. I'd really like to share tips and recipes on this forum.
I just finished week 1 and lost 3.5 lb. I'm feeling pretty good. Losing inches for sure.
How's everyone else doing?

Good Morning Linda :wave:
Sorry that i didn't post over the weekend but I work 26 hrs over the weekends and usually do not have time to get online then.

Well, I weighed in this morning. I stayed the same at 123# and my stomach is bloated . I do know that yesterday I was so busy at work that i did not get to drink all of my cranwater or extra water, so I will work harder at that. I also need to get back into exercising, which I have not been doing.

How is everybody else doing?

Hello everyone! So far so good for me. I am extremely happy to report that I completed my first week and lost 8#s!!! The funny thing is that I didn't even stay on the program for 2 of the nights. I've decided that I will have to include a free night each week in order to keep my sanity. But it is definitly working. I feel really good and have lots of energy!! Hope everyone is doing great!

Wow, Jacklyn, EIGHT POUNDS! That's amazing. I think I may have lost more except I didn't realize until yesterday that we're not supposed to eat in the evening. Well, usually in our house we dont even have dinner until 8 pm, so now I have to make my own dinner earlier than dh. I was saving a fruit smoothie for evening but I guess that's a no-no. I just can't see that it makes any diff to the metabolism whether you have food morning, noon or night. It's all just fuel but what do I know? Nuttin. :dizzy:

WOW. I must have missed that. I don't remember reading that we shouldn't eat in the evening. If I eat dinner at 5PM and go to bed at 10PM (according to the book) that is 5 hours without food and it is my worst time of the day because i want a snack. That's IF we go to bed at 10P (yeah right!). I have always heard that having a protein snack at bedtime is a good thing.

I missed that too! I typically eat around 7-8 in the evening. If I don't I get pretty hungry and start wandering into the kitchen. I need to re-read the book because I know I missed tidbits of info like that.

Actually, I didn't read it in the book. I read it on the FFP website at ivillage.com in one of the threads. It could be wrong. I really enjoy my fruit/protein/oil smoothie in the evening and it helps me get through the night. I don't think I'll stop doing that unless I have a serious stall.

Hi there! I see lots of folk from Low Carb here.

I've been reading and thinking and even have the book. Now I just need to re-read it and commit to trying it. (I am a sort of diet slut - I buy into the last book I've read!)

LindaBC, this may be IT for us turtles! I just find Atkins to hard to stick to, especially with all the lovely fresh fruit that's around. I think I could give up salt - coffee is going to be a challenge.

If it's OK, I'll continue to lurk and post when I finally take the plunge.

Hi Ruth :wave: You can lurk and post all you want, even if you don't take the plunge. I'm still working on the "NO COFFEE" thing. I still have 2 cups each morning. I'm going to try to switch to decaf tea like Cranberry or Cinnamon with Stevia. That will be my best compromise.

My biggest problem is exercising. I have to get into a routine and STICK TO IT. That's my goal for the next few weeks.

Hey Ruth....I'm still not starting the FFP yet either, been atkinsing...is that a word? but fell off the wagon....in a funk, but am ready to start over. i ordered the book and really want to read it before i start (fat flush) so i'm going to do low carb until then....

hi everyone! Wow it's so good to see everyone experiencing these successes.
I am having a bit of trouble going from Phase 1-2, I keep blowing it. I had French toast for breakfast...
Anyway I miss phase 1 at this point. I'm thinking about designing my own eating plan around fat Flush principles. And then doing a strict Phase 1 every few months.

So I'm still around 180, no huge loss or gain. I take my supps and do the cranwater and LLC every day. My eating has not been as clean as before, I still opt for the ezekiel bread, but I've had a bit of refined sugar here and there. I still feel great though!

I also started Walk Away the Pounds on Monday, it was 17.00 at Sam's club with the weights, so I grabbed it, and I have to say I like it, it's not so exhausting that I won't finish (like tae-Bo) or feel spent the rest of the day, and it keep my HR at about 50% which is great for me now. I jumped right into the 2 mile and think it will work for a few weeks, it's just 30 minutes and so "easy" I have a hard time coming up witha reason not to do it. Anyway, I'm delighted that FF is working for so many of us, it really strikes me as being just such a sensible and healthy program, I have much less food guilt than I had before.

Well I have a blueberry smoothie awaiting me.

Oh and i found than the cran-water with some lemon juice and a litle stevia whirred in a blender with lots of ice makes a really refreshing slushie/fruit ice! ooh I should add some blueberries to it too, what a pretty color that would be!

Ruth, welcome, I am a diet slut as well, I stockpile the books just in case.
Jacklyn- wow what a great first week loss, congratulations
2befit1- Are you about done with phase1? I struggle with the coffee as well, I allow myself a cup in the AM and then decaf if I need more. I had some unsweetened ice tea at dinner last night and was coming out of my skin the rest of the evening couldn't fall asleep till after 1AM.

Linda BC- I cut my eating off at 8:00 in the book it says that the LLC should be mid-evening, I try to make it my first and last of the day. I used to eat right up till bedtime, but haven't since starting this program, now that it's not a habitual thing, I don't think about eating unless DH is eating right in front of me, then I have a little herbal tea or something, If I need that intimate late night kitchen interaction that is ;)

Sundrop....Are you doing the 3 day diet also?

Actually, I did do it at one point. I lost about 30 pounds with it. Why????
Have you tried it?

You lost 30 lb in THREE DAYS? That's unbelievable!
As for coffee, I had already cut back to one cup a day of half decaff so it wasn't a big leap to cut it out completely but I found I missed the taste. So, I went to the health food store and found an instant coffee called Bambu which is all natural. I couldn't find the stuff the FFP book recommends. Probably not available in Canada like so many things. Anyhow, this Bambu is really good. It tastes like the real thing (actually BETTER than most instant coffees I've tried) and just satisfies my desire for the comfort of a morning cuppa. Very mellow.

No No NO not 3 days, about 6 weeks. Of doing it 3 days on and then 4 days of mindful eating and lots of exercise.

I need to be more explicit in my posts.

Well, I've come to a decision. This diet is to restrictive for me to stay 100% clean everyday.
I am now on a modified low-carb/FF diet. I still do the LLC, flax seed oil and supplements because i believe that they are a healthy addition. But i will keep to a low carb (40-70gms ) not counting the cranwater. I don't always feel the need for 2 fruit portions and sometimes I want some oatmeal or SF jello.
I also will be adding in some exercise starting next week.
Good luck to all.
~~~Sil
:flow1:

Now you see why it's only 2 weeks.
It is really restrictive but pretty effective.

I have done the same as you.
I have taken the cran, supps and Ezekiel bread and now I'm just aiming for 1100 moderate carb calories a day.
i can deffiniteley see the strict regime as a seasonal clean out and a healthy way to drop 5-10 pounds if they start to creep back up once I'm at target.
I'm also trying to make everyday exercise just as important as eating well.

I think all in all, Fat Flush principles are a great tool to have in one's arsenal. But perhaps not suited to the lifelong reality of needing variety.

So not to discourage anyone at all from fat Flushing, I lost 19 pounds in 4 weeks doing it and have not regained, and I beleive that my skin quality, cellulite appearance etc have really improved due to the cran. And there are people who can do this WOE for months or years and I'm sure they are really healthy.

So Fat-Flush on.

Sundrop

Hi Sundrop :wave:
I absolutely agree with you on everything that you said. Last night I told my husband about my decision to stop the 100%FF and he agreed that since I am only a few pounds from goal that I can allow some variety in my diet.
But he also commented (and has mentioned in the past few weeks) that this FFing has improved my skin and I look thinner. I can also see a difference in the mirror and how my clothes fit.
So it has been worth it to try FF and I will continue to do some of the things in my diet daily.
I will continue to check in at times, but mostly over at low-carb . You are welcome to post there. They are a very supportive and funny group.
Keep up the great job :cb:
~~~Sil :flow1:

Come on over Sundrop!!!!! (to the Low Carb group)

Awwww, is everybody going to leave me? Can't you post here AND in Low Carb? I do.
I also post in the ivillage.com FFP website and it's excellent for information and support. It was there that I learned that it's probably BETTER to add a bit of salt to your daily diet, especially for diabetics like myself. Cutting out all salt apparently makes blood glucose levels go UP, a thing I'm trying to avoid. This is the news I needed to hear to keep me on this woe. I was getting really depressed about the blandness of the diet, even with all the herbs that are allowed. They just can't replace salt. Anyhow, today I'm starting Week 3 of Phase 1. I have decided that I will begin to add one slice of Spelt bread each day (I can't find Ezekial bread so far but one HFS has ordered some in for me).
I weighed myself today and have lost 5 lb in the first two weeks but I've also lost inches where I haven't been able to lose them from before...my big gut...so something is working. I'm feeling really good too so I think I'll stick with it for a few more weeks. I have a wedding coming up in early October for which I'd sure like to be a few more pounds thinner.

Hi gals, I'm new here, P1 D2, a real newbie.

I also wondered how long I'd be able to go without salt, let's see :)

Hubby is pretty happy about the food so far, she loves everything I cooked the last 2 days. And I am not spending more than when I was a vegetarian: special products from the health food store, oat milk, rice milk, chocolate soy milk, and fancy veggies end up being as expensive as meat! So I am happy abou that side of the plan, too.

Linda, if you introduce bread you are no longer in phase 1 but 2. I love speld bread, spelt flour is much yummier than wheat flour, especially the unrefined variety. Dought made with spelt doesn't rise well because it's heavier, but it's yummy!

I plan to stay on Phase 1 for a month and then take it from there. I might keep on it if I manage or move onto a phase 1.5.

Dairy are only allowe on Phase 3, right? Ouch, skipping dairy until I reach my ideal weight! That's tough in Switzerland (That's where I live, dh is Swiss). Oh well, gotta give something up to have results, right?

xxx,

Elisa

Elisa welcome to our little group. It sounds like you are on the right track. I'm not a vegetarian so I haven't a clue how to do the program that way, but there are lots of ideas over at ivillage.com.
I guess I am on Phase 2 with the addition of the one slice of bread per day. I'm just going to try it for a week and if I don't lose...or even GAIN...I will go back to Phase 1. I'm drinking extra water to compensate for the bit of salt I'm now using so hopefully I don't bloat up.
Are you able to find cranberry juice in Switzerland? On the other website there are posters from Great Britain who can't seem to find it. Heck, we grow the darned berries right in the valley where I live and I still pay $11 for a jar of the concentrated juice. It lasts for about three days when diluted. I tell myself it's no more expensive than some of the other foods I was eating on a regular basis before FFP. When I first started the plan I bought frozen cranberries and made my own juice. It was pretty good and quite a lot cheaper but I am lazy. lol

It sure would be nice if a few more Fat Flushers would post here. I'm feeling very lonely.

Hi Linda, i'm still here, around, not totally fat Flushing anymore but still incorporating many of the principles.

How are you doing?

cranberry juice concentrate is priced like gold isn't it?
I have a bottle here that was 18.00 and it will last me 9 days. I can't wait for the stores to start stocking frozen berries for the holidays!

I am really digging into exercise this week. Wish me luck!

SunDrop

Hi again, sorry been away for a few days.

Thanks Linda for the welcome, it's nice to have people to share things with.

I am no longer a vegetariananymore, just a healthy eater (most of the time at least :))

I do find cranberry juice in Switzerland, but not the totally unsweetened variety. The one I am using now is from the health food store and it's midldly sweetened with a very low-glycemic index sweetener, agave extract. It's the best I can get right now, if I see that it stops being effective I'll have to start drinking water with apple cider vinegar, yuck! Not looking forward to that. Each bottle of the juice costs about 8.5 dollars and lasts me for 4 days.

I was looking for frozen cranberries to make my own juice but I didn't find them. I found raspberries, blue berries, mixed berries... no cranberries.

Oh well. It's working so far. I just completed my first week and lost 3.7 kilos (about 8 lbs). I never knew I suffered so much from water retention!

Elisa

Wow, Elisa, that's an incredible weight loss. Good for you. As for the cranberry juice, I don't think it's that common in Europe anyhow. I know some people from UK have posted that they just can't find it anywhere. If what you are doing is working for you, then you may as well stick with it.
I had a bit of a mini-binge on Tuesday. I think I waited too long to have my lunch and then I just kept right on eating...poppy seed kuchen, blueberry pie and then a bowl of ice cream. Luckily my brain finally kicked into gear and I quit and got right back on FFP but I sure gave myself a scare. I will find out tomorrow morning if I totally ruined the week for weight loss.
My biggest problem seems to be forcing myself to exercise. I try to get to the pool three times a week and do a deep water workout on my own there, but land exercises just don't appeal to me. I have this new recumbant bicycle that is sitting in the guest room, facing the small tv but I still can't seem to get inspired to get on it. I know that exercise is a major key to weight loss but I'm such a SLUG! When I read the posts about what everyone is doing I wonder how the heck the can motivate themselves to do that.

Thanks Linda, I am also pretty satisfied about how things are going, when I got on the scale this morning the weight had gone down a little more, about 1 pound, which is "great going"!!!

Yes, the cranberry juice with the mild sweetener has worked for me, but yesterday I actually found the unsweetened one!!! I am so very happy! Because the one I was using was sweetened, I was using only 1/2 cup of berries in my morning smoothie and was eating no fruit at mid-morning, to kind of balance it out. Now I just have to make sure that they always have the juice on stock, as I'll need 3 bottles a week. This one is more expensive, it's almost 13 dollars a bottle, and with 3 bottles a week... well, you do the math. My main worry is that I'll be spending 2 and half months in Italy, from January to mid-March, and I know they won't have it there, so I guess I'll have to drink water with acv, yuck!

So you had a mini-binge... I could never resist sweets if I had any in the house, so I just don't get any (except for my hubby's Kellog's cereal and cocoa powder). But sometimes I'll be giving my daughter something that I really like, like today, when she was eating surimi, which is one of the very few processed foods I adore, and I tell you, it's really hard not to eat the rests! I found that cranwater and visualizing reaching my goals work for me to fight the munchies... did you try that?

I know exercise can be hard to get done at times. I found a new motivation now, I started going power walking with my heart monitor 3 times a week, the twoo days that my daughter is at preeschool and on Sunday. I live in the countryside and it was wonderful to be there, alone, listening to the wind moving the leaves on the trees, and looking at the corn fields around. It was an amazing feeling. I think it was a "runner's high" that feeling of euphoria I had when I got home.

There must be something you like doing. Do that. Find how to include exercise in it. Do you like going window shopping? Walk faster from one store to another, and don't take any public transportation. Do you have a dog? Take it for a longer, faster walk every morning and stop somewhere to play and run around on the way home. Just an idea. I tried many kinds of exercises and I found that I need to feel exergized, powerful and strong at the end of a workout, and so far the only things that do that are strength training, kickboxing and my newly found power walking in nature. I have been trying to get into Pilates, but it's just to slow for me. I'd like to find someone to trade this tape with.

Elisa

Hi ladies :wave:
I thought that I would stop by and see how you are all doing.

Linda, you have shamed me into posting. You are right, I can post more than 2-3 places. It's great motivation and I sure do need that :)

I'm glad to hear that you are doing so well on FF. I also have a difficult time getting in a regular form of exercise. I tend to count my hours of yard work and i really should be lifting the weights and doing some cardio. That will be my goal for next week.

Welcome to Elisa :D WOW, 8 pounds in one week is great!!!
You could use the pilates as a form of stretching and relaxation rather than exercise. I want to learn some pilates to do at the end of the day to help me unwind and relax.

I can't wait until Fall when the fresh cranberries will be in the stores. I plan on stocking up big-time!
~~~Sil :flow1:
137/123/120

I have bought bags of frozen cranberries and made my own juice. It's really easy to do and I think is cheaper than buying ready made although I didn't really do a comparison.
I had another binge day yesterday. WHen I got on the scale and it hadn't budged in a week and no inches were gone either, I decided to give myself a break but I certainly could have made wiser choices. I don't think waffles with butter and syrup qualify as a healthy alternative. :o Well, I think I got it out of my system and I'm back on track today.
Thanks for all the exercise tips. I don't have a dog and I really don't like walking much. Even though I've lost 35 lb in the past year I'm still very heavy and it really hurts my lower back to walk very far. That's why I prefer the water exercises.
I have a set of weights that I should be using too (also sitting idle in the guest room with the stationary bike) I am going to make a real effort to get more physical. HONEST! :D

Hey Linda, you know what? I"m trying to phase myself into the "fat Flush"...I also have a wedding in early October, and the low carb is working, but kind of slow...so this week i'm phasing out coffee, next week, i'll go no dairy, and then i think i'll start the official fat flush...that way i'm still giving the low carb it's three weeks, but......
so see, you have a wedding buddy!

Great, Princess. I'm glad you're going to give it a try. Have you visited the FFP website yet? It's full of information and inspiration.
I really went off the wagon over the weekend and am now on Day 2, Phase 1.5. I realized after the first two weeks of strict Phase 1 that I just can't live like that. I have added some salt back into my diet and I allow myself one slice of spelt bread with my eggs each morning. It fills me up for a long time.
This plan is sure great for the complexion. I usually have dry, itchy skin but it feels really smooth and moist now. Must be the Evening Primrose Oil./??

Linda
I'm totally getting so discouraged. I know the point is to have a healthy "Life style" with food, but i need RESULTS NOW! I'm freaking out. I havent seen the people at this wedding since college (about 3 years ago) and I dont want to look like this! i need drastic measures for the next month.....

Sometimes I think that the more you want to lose the weight quickly, the slower it comes off. You have to fool it and pretend you dont really want to lose THAT bad. LOL
I guess I'm at that point in my life where I realize there are no quick fixes. I have over 100 lb to lose and there's no way I'm going to lose a significant amount before Oct 11, which is when the wedding is that I'm going to. I won't know that many people there and they've all known me fat, so I guess I'm not as worried about making an impression.
You can only do your best. Short of taking a knife to your fat (not something I recommend) you can only stick to the plan and exercise and be happy with what you do lose. On FF, you can be almost certain you will lose inches even if the pounds are slow to come off. It's quite amazing, really.