[Ogdog13]

Originally Posted by Sandrab

hi there everyone! been awhile since i have posted, and also since i followed the IP program 100%. I had a planned 3 day cheat over christmas, but what i did not plan on was a family emergency over the new year that involved alot of time and travel away from home. then of course for those that have been on awhile, know that we had our trip to mexico this month as well. i did the best i could with the circumstances (except mexico! quite carefree!) AND started back 100% yesterday. for having had trying circumstances etc, i am not too disappointed in the small weight gain, as i know i will lose it in the first week and by the time of my first weigh in, believe that i will start exactly where i left off in december. this is a little encouraging, as i had several weeks of no packets at all, and just being very mindful of what i ate. so gives me hope for life after IP...and then i had the 10 days in mexico, where - how can i put it - "when in mexico..." i did not monitor any dietary need, including beverages!!! but i did find myself staying away from silly things that i could eat any time, fries, bacon etc.....so i can say that i have certain things built into my mind as a result of IP. so i have pretty much lost a month - no weight loss....small gain, but feel more invigorated to carry on now. and was starting to lose that towards christmas. i was seriously thinking of moving to the WW program. Now i think i will continue with this for at least the month of february. which will be difficult because again we are travelling, (not for pleasure this time) but will be away from home again for an extended period. and i just find this a little bit harder when away from home!!! but going to try my best. best of luck to everyone.

Sandrab, welcome back!! Sounds like Mexico was a lot of fun. Congrats on keeping up the good eating habits while not at home. Yes it is hard, but you did wonderful, you'll do fine again. Again, welcome back.

[jordanna]

Originally Posted by showgirlaz

I am so sorry but I didn't do a serving break down. It really depends on the size of meatball you roll. It is still just 5oz precooked meat per. so, you might try rolling 1/2 oz to 1 oz meat balls then know that at 1/2 oz each you get 10 or 1 oz would be 5. Sorry I can't offer more help.

For simplicity's sake:

If you were using a pound of meat for the meatballs (which I believe is what the recipe called for) - then that would be 16 oz of raw meat...so basically about 3 servings before adding anything to it. So, just prepare the recipe, cook everything up and divide it out as three servings and you have your 5 oz of meat (with an extra .33 of an oz). That's how I would do it. I hope that's rigth anyway!

Oh and the recipe calls for 2 cups of veggies so if you were going to divide out the meat as three servings you'd have to do the same again for the veggies - so basically 2 cups of veggies / 3 would be 66 of a serving.

[showgirlaz]

Originally Posted by torchlaker

Hi everyone: Laughing....no, I am not lost. Am trying to keep up reading the posts (wow, there are SO many compared to when we started in September).



Showgirlaz - you have wonderful posts and a lot of knowledge. Wish you had been around when I started. Your recipes sound amazing....you and OgDog should start a recipe book.


For those of you who don't know me, I lost my husband in Iraq 2 years ago on New Years Eve. I think I might be going thru some depression from the holidays. Wish he was here to help me with all my vehicle woes, and the problems that my son has and just the whole bit of "being overwhelmed" by everything. I wish he was here so I could bounce things off of him....it is so hard to be by yourself after 37 years of marriage. I am not used to making these big decisions on my own.....always had Eddie. Oh well, enough pity party.....Just kinda wanted you to know why I haven't been posting much.

I am so thrilled for the newbies and all your enthusiasm. IP works...believe me. I lost my 40# from Sept.9th to Dec.15th...altho I had lost 8# on it BEFORE IP...since I tried giving up the things I knew I couldn't have on IP...(orange juice, ice cream, bread, etc.)....just to see if I could do it.

See - when I post - I post a novel.

Hey Torchlaker!

We haven't met yet but I have thoroughly enjoyed your older posts. Thank you for the compliments on my posts. I only hope they taste as good for others as they do to me. I really am trying to do this well and learning as much as I can. I am so grateful to have found this group! I am learning things from everyone each day!

I am really impressed by how much you have lost! Especially with other stressers that could have effected you.

I am truly sorry for the loss of y our husband. I can't begin to understand the emotions of losing someone like that. I have lost grandparents, best friends, my mother and sister (at the same time) but, to lose a companion/husband and person who is so much more... you must be a truly strong person to go through all that and to do as well as you've done! I look forward to knowing you more.

[charawayne]

Hi everyone!

I am new to this site, but I have been on Ideal Protein for 2 months and have lost 30 LBS

I was wondering if anyone had tried replacing there social meal of the day with another packet? If i skip the animal protein and add another ideal protein packet instead, would it affect my weight loss any?

And thoughts or suggestions?

Thanks so much!
P.S. I love all the recipe ideas!

[showgirlaz]

Originally Posted by jordanna

For simplicity's sake:

If you were using a pound of meat for the meatballs (which I believe is what the recipe called for) - then that would be 16 oz of raw meat...so basically about 3 servings before adding anything to it. So, just prepare the recipe, cook everything up and divide it out as three servings and you have your 5 oz of meat (with an extra .33 of an oz). That's how I would do it. I hope that's rigth anyway!

That works too! Thanks for helping break that down. I am really bad at the serving side. I just work it out as I am cooking and know how much/many I get. LOL

[BettyBoop50]

Originally Posted by jtvan

Welcome! You are off to a great start!

Thank you jtvan...

[showgirlaz]

Originally Posted by Byrdie09

Good Morning all! Day 7 here! and my first weigh-in is tonight! I am VERY excited however it is my TOM(timeofmonth) so I am a little nervous that I won't lose that much and get discouraged... I am just praying that something will still pull through because I really wanna make this work!
Torchlaker your story is very inspirational. Im not even married yet and I can't imagine the what its like to do this alone! I wish you all the luck and ease of the world in the rest of your journey!
Everyone else I'm really enjoying reading your posts and comments!
2 Questions?
What did you do to get rid of the taste in your mouth/bad breath?
Has anyone cooked the omlet in the microwave? How long if so?
Thanks!
Happy Tuesday!!!

Don't worry. You won't notice much this weigh in but next week will be alot. Go into this expecting to lose only 1 pound this week then anything more is exciting! Keep working on it and your week 2 loss will be fantastic!

I haven't had a bad taste in my mouth but know you can use a little peppermint oil or spice/herbs like clove, fennel, peppermint, parsely. For me the water helps. I just drink alot of it and it helps keep the dryness from my mouth.

[showgirlaz]

Originally Posted by Mystical Mamma

Hi everyone! Just wanted to share my own NSV! Yesterday we had my father-in-laws funeral and afterwards had a really nice luncheon (ate my soy nuts), family then went for drinks (I had water with lime) and then came back to my house where they all ate pizza, fried chicken, taters, coleslaw, chips, desserts etc etc. while I enjoyed my bbq chicken breast with 2 cups of veggies and a salad plus choc pudding for "dessert"
Been such a stressful week. I know that if I can get through this kind of emotional stress and not have a single lick, bite or sip of a "not allowed" item - then I am good for the long haul!

I am so sorry for your family loss. I sure this is a challenge for you. I am so impressed with how you handled the funeral foods/day. EXCELLENT!!

[cicibel]

Now remember girls (are there boys here too?) this is my first day with the food but I have a couple questions already. How the heck do you get the salt down? That is a ton of very salty salt and I have had lunch and it is barely gone. Also the loose saggy skin is a big concern for me. Once the fat is gone my now fairly smooth complexion will be all wrinkled and my arms will keep waving long after I've stopped. How do you fit jello into this diet and does that really work? Suggestions will be appreciated. By the way I have over 75 pounds to lose. Yuck!!!

[showgirlaz]

Originally Posted by jordanna

[B]

Showgirlaz - Well done again this week, I'll be happy if my #'s even come close to yours as the weeks go on!! I was down 12 lbs from the morning I started (on the 18th) to yesterday morning according to my scale...but according to my coach's scale I was only down 8...but she used a different scale this week and weighed me a week earlier than I actually started (the 11th) so I think my scale is more accurate. Either way I'll take it.

Good luck this week!

Thanks Jordanna! Yes, I keep waiting to see what is next. Like you my coach changed scales on my too. It is a bit more accurate and like my scale. I love my scale. It is a high quality, precision, digital that does body fat accurately too. His is one of the new weight watcher digital scales. I was all of the place weighing in at 5, 7 or 10 days apart at first. Now we have it worked back out to a 7day schedule. It doesn't matter much. Just watch how much you lose over a set number of days as a average and see how it varies.

[showgirlaz]

Originally Posted by cicibel

My husband and I had our weigh-in last night. The numbers are not pretty but it is good to know they will only go down. Based on how much faster men lose he will be done long before me. That is not fair!!! He wants to set up scheduled weight-ins based on his other clients (He just started this program beginning of Jan so there are less than 10 of us so far). We are to go back on Friday. How much weight can I lose in 4 days? I hope I am not disappointed.

Don't worry. The numbers went down, right? That is always a step in the right direction. As far as the 4 day weigh in. You may lose 1 to 2 pounds or more. Drink alot of water and follow the plan very consistently. The 3rd weigh in for you will be your best because it will have the most time between! Be brave, stick to it! Don't compare yourself to hubby. Just allow him to be the person you can relate to on this journey who can also remind you of how much success can be had and that this works!

[showgirlaz]

Hello everyone! Well, I think I finally caught up for the past few days. I will be moving my recipe posts to the board over the next few days.

Just wanted everyone to know I won't be posting much the next week. A bit here and there as I can and to share my weigh in next monday.

I have my dad home from Mexico and my sister and here family here from Virginia. I am so excited to see them all. Sister and brother-in-law haven't seen me since october. Dad hasn't seen me since before Christmas. This is will be interesting to see what they notice and how they respond.

Anyway, I will be rather occupied with babysitting and entertaining so, I will hope to stay caught up as I can and post at night.

Talk to you all soon!
Carla

[ritiki19]

cicibel,
I too have a hard time with the salt and I'm normally a salt lover! I don't measure mine out, but instead just sprinkle some on every meal I eat. I know I'm not going over and if anything I'm probably not getting enough. I didn't experience any headaches the first week, which is often a sign of not enough sodium so I don't worry too much about the salt. I hope this helps! Congrats on taking the first step to losing weight! One more piece of advice...don't focus on the big number! I too have 75+ pounds, but if I think about that number it seems impossible. It is possible with this protocol if you stick to it! Keep up the hard work!

[Ogdog13]

Originally Posted by cicibel

Now remember girls (are there boys here too?) this is my first day with the food but I have a couple questions already. How the heck do you get the salt down? That is a ton of very salty salt and I have had lunch and it is barely gone. Also the loose saggy skin is a big concern for me. Once the fat is gone my now fairly smooth complexion will be all wrinkled and my arms will keep waving long after I've stopped. How do you fit jello into this diet and does that really work? Suggestions will be appreciated. By the way I have over 75 pounds to lose. Yuck!!!

Cicibel, there are some boys too. LOL! I put the salt on my salads, I use homemade dressings as I can't stand the Waldens Farms dressings, and when I cook at night. You may also want to put a little in water. Sagging, the IP jello, which is the jello you are supposed to eat, not regular jello, has hydrolized collegen in it (sp on all that). http://www.matol.com/corpo/HBoutique...m=03720545&E=3 That is supposed to be good for the skin, along with Omega fatty acids. And, you will lose the weight!!!

[jtvan]

Originally Posted by showgirlaz

WOW!! I am so amazed! That is great weightloss on 4 packets. How many weeks have you been doing this?

that was my 4th week weigh in. I am just starting my 5th week. I am not exercising, I can't actually because I just had hernia surgery so it seems to be fine for me to eat 4 packs. I tried only 3 yesterday but I was starving! I'll stick w/the plan they gave me!