A bunch of us in the "Maintenance" thread have been discussing what alternative products that we like for our Phase 1 days and I thought it would be a good idea to start a separate thread for "Reviews". What you purchased and if you liked it or not. Maybe we can start to compile a list of what tastes good and what we shouldn't waste our money on. What do you think?

I will get us started. I placed an order from Nashua Nutrition, here is what I ordered:

* Proti-thin Chocolate Drink
* Proti-thin Cappucchino Drink
* Proti-thin Strawberry Drink
* Proti-thin Caramel Nut Bar
* Proti-thin Chocolate Peanut Bar

My reviews:
- Proti-Thin Chocolate Drink- the chocolate drink is drinkable at best. It was a little chalky, but like I said, it is drinkable. It doesn't taste anywhere near as good as IP chocolate drink (packet). Next time I am going to try a different chocolate drink
- Proti-Thin Cappuccino Drink- the cappucchino drink was great! It is comprable to IP, and tastes pretty much the same (from what I can remember). I made it hot and thought it tasted really good. I would definitely order again.
- I have not tried either of the bars yet, but both are in the same exact packaging as IP, so I can only imagine that they are identical.
- I also haven't tried the strawberry drink yet, but will post a review as soon as I have.

Proti diet -maple and brown sugar oatmeal-delicious and unrestricted!
Proti diet-blueberry pancake - very good, especially with Waldron farms syrup
Simply bars-very good. No malitol

I mainly use ip products, but was looking for some unrestricted alternatives and bars with no malitol as it does not agree with me.

/agree on the proti-thin chocolate drink. Try the protidiet chocolate shake - I find it's almost as good as IP.

Try the Healthsmart Protein Puffs in Taco Cheese; they're quite good, especially if you like the Southwest cheese curls.

Thanks harmothoe! I am going to place another order next week and will try the Protidiet shake.

So, since I posted, I have tried the Strawberry drink, the Choco peanut bar and the Cappucchino drink cold.

* Proti-Thin Strawberry Drink- DELISH! I love it. I was always a fan of berrry flavored drinks and this one does not disappoint.
* Proti-Thin Chocolate Peanut Bar- Excellent! It is exactly like IP
* Proti-Thin Cappucchino Drink (cold)- Not so much. It tastes much better hot.

Finally, the last review of what I purchased-

* Proti-thin Caramel Nut Bar- Identical to IP. So, delish!

Awesome thread! Thank you for starting it jennydoodle. I just began P2 today and want to have a "stash" of yummy protein items for my life in maintenance!

I am a fan of Lindora products. I LOVE the Lindora Chocolate Mint shake, Berry smoothie, and the cheesecake (its like a pudding)

In the time since I started this thread, I have tried a few more items. All of the alternatives were ordered from Nashua.

- Healthsmart Protein Bar- Peanut Butter. Awesome! Very Reese's like.
- Weightloss Systems Cocomint Cream (aspartame free) shake & pudding. Delish! I made it as a shake and it was great. The chocolate was smooth tasting and there was just enough mint. This will be a staple for me.
- ProtiDiet Shake Chocolate- excellent substitute for IP chocolate drink (powder).

I did order a few more new things, so I will post as have a review.

I have a question, not sure if this is the right place to post or not, but do you have to use protein 'products' on your "phase 1 day" after the fun day? I was thinking you could just have eggs or meat instead, but maybe that is too much fat?? I was thinking of trying the Designer Whey shakes or bars for snacks. Anyone tried these? Are they good?
I am still in phase 1 but getting close to my goal.

So I can have these foods on Phase 1?

I've found the Nashua Nutrition puddings to be very runny if made how they tell you to make them. I have something like 8 (LOL!) boxes, so I'm going to have to tweak the water amounts to see what works. They are great as smoothies though

I'm on phase one and wanted to save a little money so I ordered alternative products after reading comments on the forum. I got my order yesterday, here is what I had up until now...the rest with come soon ;-)

HealthSmart Hot Chocolate - Variety Pack - I tried the Amaretto one yesterday night before bedtime and I really liked it.
Proti-Thin Protein Wafer Squares - Mocha - I really liked it - felt like a real treat. Restricted one so only on special occasion ;-) I worked out this morning so I deserved it - eheh ;-)
ProtiDiet Liquid Concentrate - Grape : really tastes like Welsh's grape juice. I had this prior to workout and it worked out just fine. Thought it would be great for when we go hiking or on a bike ride.
ProtiDiet Cereal - Chocolate Soy : I tasted them while DH was following a similar program. That was his favorite snack at night :-) I never used them with milk, only as dry snack

Reviews to come:
HealthSmart Oatmeal - Apples n' Cinnamon
HealthSmart Protein Bar - Caramel Crunch
HealthSmart Protein Bar - Peanut Butter - Jenny, with your review...I can't wait to try these ;-)
HealthSmart Protein Cookie - Oatmeal Raisin with Icing
HealthSmart Smoothie - Aloha Mango
Proti-Thin Dinner - Vegetable Chili
ProtiDiet Pancakes - Blueberry

Great idea to have this post ;-) Have a great long week-end!

Yes, most definitely!

You can do either. For me, I love the simplicity of packets and the P1 day is usually a let down after your free day. But yes, you can simply do all proteins. The whole point is to limit your carbs.