I'm beginning week 4 of IP, and I must say the first two weeks were hard. Week 1 I did have carb cravings like mad. I didn't cheat because I knew the goal was to get through them and get into Ketosis at which time they would subside. To get through them, my coach encouraged me to have up to 5 packets a day for the first week, which I did (4-5 each day). She also said I could have as many pickles as I wanted. I personally LOVE dill pickles but had avoided them forever since they used to give me terrible reflux. Not on this plan tho... so I bought HUGE jars of pickles and kept a container of them with me at all times so I could snack on them all thru the day when I just wanted to EAT! PLUS they count as some of your veggies -so for me that's a double win.
Week 2 was better as far as cravings, but I got headaches EVERY day, so it was pretty trying. I stuck it out... took Excedrin when I needed it, and reminded myself of all the reasons I was doing this plan. After the end of week 2, things changed dramatically for the better. I now am pretty content with 3 packets and hardly think about food. I've been exposed to several situations where I'm surrounded by the sights & smells of some of my favorite old carb foods and I've been able to get through pretty easily. I have a new found sense of peace and disinterestedness around food which is magical. I actually think I may not ever add back some of the foods I used to crave so badly because I love the freedom I have, and the self-posession I feel now that I've gotten them out of my system and my head.
Veggie tricks: my coach said her clients who have trouble/hate eating all their veggies are allowed to use a product called "Greens First." It's a veggie powder that you mix into water or shakes. One serving (scoop) of Greens First subs for 2c veggies - and she only allows me to sub this for ONE of my 2c serving a day. But that made the veggie thing a lot more manageable for me. You can ask your coach about it. I ordered it on Amazon. It tastes ok - kinda like minty grass (LOL) - but I don't sip it for enjoyment. I mix it into about 10 oz water and pound it to get it overwith. Still preferable to figuring out how many ways I can fix broccoli.
My other veggie trick is: On sundays I dice up the following veggies into containers that I put in the fridge. Celery, zucchini, onion, and lots & lots of mushrooms. In the evenings, I prep my lunch for the next day by sauteeing 2c of these mixed veggies in our allowed oil and lots of sea salt (careful not to let the onion carmelize), pre-prepare a soup package (leek and cr. chicken are my fav), and add the sauteed veggies & soup to a microwavable container. When I nuke the soup the next day, the veggies make it very hearty and flavorful. The chunky, still slightly crunchy veggies make it seem like I'm eating something very substantial which helps my mind as well as my stomach. I really like the soups better doctored like this so I'm willing to eat them pretty much every day. And that takes care of one of my veggies servings.
It's also great to keep those (and other) pre-sliced/diced veggies in containers in the fridge so you can throw together a salad on the fly and don't have to chop veggies every time you are going to have a meal.
Hang in there, don't give up, don't cheat (it totally stalls you out and delays the peace of Ketosis) and remember why you started this diet in the first place. Lie down, pet your dog/cat, walk outside, buy yourself some flowers or a good magazine as a treat, remind yourself that your thoughts about food are just that - thoughts - and they will pass. You can do this!
Last edited by SKeeter1; 06-12-2011 at 12:52 PM.
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has this happened to anyone else?
