So many of you have been successful with alternatives, I'm gonna give it a shot. BAD experience at my clinic this morning is making me wonder why I pay the money for their "coaching". I can weigh myself at home and get my my coaching here without the attitude, lol. I have about a 3 week IP stash so I'll read thru the alternative threads and place an order. For those of you on alternatives, do you also use alternative supplements in place of the IP vitamin, Cal-Mag, Pot-Cal?

On a positive note, WI this morning, down one more pound, sooooooo close to saying goodbye to the 2's Next week for sure!

Hi! Congrats on your WI!!! If you do a search there is a tread dedicated to alternatives, with tons of info on supplements. It can get tedious reading it all though...so maybe search magnesium supplement alternatives...OR maybe someone will just chime in here!!! GOOD LUCK!!!

You can actually get the IP vitamins online at plainprotein.com - I save about $20 every time I order by going through the website instead of my clinic. I know folks have used regular multivitamins, and GNC makes a comparable cal-mag. The potassium is a little more challenging - I have yet to find a K-Cal supplement comparable to the IP version. Most potassium supplements are potassium gluconate, which can be hard on the kidney and liver to break down. We already put a little strain on those organs just by doing IP. The "official" IP potassium is potassium bicarbonate, which is the broken-down version of gluconate and easier on our bodies.

I am just about to make the same decision. The only reason I see my coach, is to keep track of body fat% and muscle mass%. After reading about the Omron scale I'm thinking about buying it and switching to alternatives. Good Luck!

Thanks for the info!
scorbett, thanks for the tip on ordering the IP versions cheaper, I'll do that! mammabell, since I made this impulse decision this morning, I'm getting a little excited I must say! So many new products out there I haven't tried.

Hi yay for your WI also ebay is a great place to buy products this seller sells everything IP http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ideal-Protei...item23220ae50e

I've been very slowly phasing off of IP products for a while - there are a few that I will still buy from my clinic, but we have a local nutrition store that carries Proti-Diet, Health Wise, and Balanced Protein (I think it is a re-packaged version of the Nashua Nutrition healthsmart brand) so I've been replacing a LOT of IP stuff with their products.

The one thing I've found is that many of the alternative products have 15g protein, while the IP stuff has 18 or so. I just make sure to add a hard boiled egg on days when I do 2 or more alternatives to make sure the protein intake is up where it should be.

Thanks, my muscle mass kept dropping my first 3 weeks, which is why I'm afraid to go without BCA. I will keep this in mind.

I think someone had posted a while back that we lose 1lb lean muscle mass for every 4 pounds we drop - so keep that in mind too - if you had big losses the first few weeks it might be totally normal

I am also looking at alternatives. My 'coach' is over the phone as we live in the middle of no where. I found the Atkins RTD shakes at the walmart 40 miles away, but she said we can only have one a day. I love the weight that the hubby and I have lost, but it is getting cost restrictive. Is there any problems with going full blown Atkins RTD. They have 15 g protein, and 1 or 2 carbs.

Thanks!

Not sure about the Atkins RTD, though I did find a bar from them that is non-restricted and has 18 g protein, I will post the name of it when I am home (it's some combo of chocolate PB cruch, but i want to make sure I get the exact name!).

My favorite alternative product is Premier Protein RTD, which I buy at Costco. 30g protein in an 11 oz carton- you can't beat it. The rumor is that it is made by the same company as the IP RTD, but I cannot confirm that. A case of 18 is about $24.

I just had one for lunch (my soups have not arrived yet) and it was surprisingly delicious!! This one will be a staple for me for sure.

Agreed- I had been a big fan of EAS Carb Control, which are also very good (esp the Rich Dark Chocolate) but I wanted to up my husband's protein since his losses were not too good and he recently experienced a lot of muscle loss due to illness. I wasn't expecting it to be as good as it is, but it really is delicious- I would even drink them off plan. And you can't beat the numbers!

I get this at Costco.... Good Good Price for Serving amounts.

CytoSport 100% Whey Concentrated and isolated protein.

Stats:
1 Scoop
140 Calories
2.5 Fat
70 Cholesterol
170 Sodium
220 Potassium
3 Carb
27 Protein


75 Servings per bag $ 50 per bag
$.66 a serving


Sometimes I eat 2 sometimes 3 a day. When I added up 3 Chocolate shakes from IP I got around 55 grams of Protein. When you have 2 of these shakes you are at 54 grams. Makes good spinach shakes.

I think the Atkins RTD have 9g fat? I'd just doublecheck that (as well as everything else in the nutrition values label). Early on in my diet process with IP I used the Atkins vanilla RTDs as a milk substitute for tea, cereal, etc., but quit when I realized the fat level was much higher than the IP RTDs. Overall, Atkins doesn't restrict fat levels as much as IP.