Originally Posted by Birman (Post 3185387)

Swik, I am sorry to hear that you and your boyfriend are having problems on this diet. :(

My sister-in-law who originally told me about the IP diet last summer, lost 40 lbs on it. She had to quit it though, because she got so sick on it. Right after she started eating normally, she immediately felt better. (Sound familiar?) She was planning on starting IP again a couple of weeks ago, but after just one day on the diet she got so sick that she immediately dropped it. Now, I am NOT saying that I think this is an unhealthy diet. I don't. Dr. Tran has a Ph.D as well as an MD (and seems to be an honorable fellow), and when I read his book it seemed solid. While I do think that most likely this diet is safe enough for most healthy people for a modest period of time, fact is that it IS imbalanced. Dr. Tran himself says that. And given how few calories we eat, and how fast we lose weight, I consider the diet a bit extreme. There is probably some risk involved with that. (Of course, there are risks to being obese too.) So yes, after I am down about 20 lbs or so on IP and have a nice jump start, I will switch back to my regular diet for a while.

To answer your question, my regular diet is the Suzanne Sommers diet. It is based on a traditional diet from France. As we know, Dr. Tran is from France, so it is perhaps not a co-incidence that the SS diet is similar to Dr. Tran's maintenance plan which involves separating fats from carbs.

Usually I lose about 1.5 - 2 lbs per week on the SS diet. It's not as fast as the IP diet, but one can eat balanced and healthfully on it. Like, you can eat bread, fruit, and pasta. (Or … cheese and sour cream :D ) You can eat almost any healthy food on it if you do it in the right combinations. Heck, I can eat a whole avacado on it every day and still lose weight! Overall. the diet is very easy to do, you can eat yummy food (lots!), and it works well. If you like, I can PM you a brief synopsis of the plan. But if you are actually considering do it, I recommend that you get one of her books. Reading through the book will give you a much better understanding of the diet, so you will likely get better results. Knowledge is power. :)

In a week or so I will be switching over myself. When I do, I'll probably start a thread for IP'ers on a break, on maintenance, or cycling with a different diet. That way I can stick around here with my new friends. :)

(Or, you could go ahead and start one!)

Originally Posted by libbyshims (Post 3186399)

Major victory for me today!!!

Cleaned out closet yesterday and gave away to charity 9 bags of clothes that are too big!

Had weigh in today. Am on 4th week, so I got measured too and (drum roll pls.......)

I am down 14 pounds and 11 inches!!!!

I feel so amazing! It is crazy the differences from one week to the next. So excited --- this was just the motivation I needed to keep me away from the loaf of bread, tub of butter and bottle of wine!!!:carrot:

Originally Posted by dad (Post 3186530)

The signature option became available to me today so I'm trying it on.

Hang in there everyone!

Originally Posted by Birman (Post 3186647)

I too eat a lot of stir fry. What I especially like is to add Tofu Shirataki noodles to my stir fry. This special type of noodles has low calories and very low carbs and fat, but really adds to my enjoyment of my meal. Feels like I'm eating a LOT more food, too.

Originally Posted by Emichelle (Post 3186935)

OK so I am a little confused!! I read earlier in this forum about something with IP and birth control...I just started on birth control! YIKES?! Should I be worried?

Originally Posted by jen1125 (Post 3187014)

Where do you buy noodles like these? Are they like pasta? Since they do have carbs, does that mean that I should wait to try something like that until after they let me start on the restricted items, and then just not eat the restricted on days I have something like that?

Also, if something like that is ok, I'm wondering. We always use these packets of stir-fry seasoning before IP. I didn't tonight because I didn't think they would be allowed they have per serving: 10 calories, 0 fat, 0 sugar, 3g carbs. But, they also have 500mg of sodium. And even though it says 0 sugar, it does list sugar in the ingredients.

Originally Posted by BlueMermaid (Post 3186893)

Hi Everyone,
Congratulations on all the losses posted! I have finally caught up on all the posts that were made while I was gone. I had a great time in Vegas. Ate pretty much whatever I wanted and didn't drink as much as I thought I would. First day back on the diet was Tuesday and I was retaining a massive amount of water, my ankles had disappeared. I weighed myself Tuesday night and took a water pill. By Wednesday morning I had lost 7 lbs of fluid. I am currently at the weight I was before my planned break from the diet. It was really nice to eat some bread. I believe the break helped me mentally to recharge right back into the diet. I did not lose weight this week but did not gain weight either. My plan is to be strict on IP again for 6 weeks and then maybe take another break for a day or so. I kind of missed having my premade IP vanilla drink for breakfast while I was gone. :T

Originally Posted by libbyshims (Post 3187049)

I am going to Vegas in a month and have vowed not to cheat until then. I will be at week 8. I have been warned not to eat too much or I would get sick. How did you do with eating? Did you reduce portions or just eat what you wanted? Did you find you didn't eat as much as you would have in the past/you got full faster? Sorry for all the questions, but I am only going for 3 days (a much needed break for me and hubby) and I don't want to be stuck in the bathroom all weekend b/c I decided to eat a big-arse bowl of pasta!!!

Originally Posted by yinyang (Post 3187057)

Originally Posted by jordanna
moral seems low on the boards these days...I'm thinking we need to refocus and talk about how much we've accomplished and how far we've come to boost everyone back up!

Is there any other diet we could have lost the weight we have in this short amount of time?

Have you looked at your before pictures lately to see how far you've come?

Have you thought about how much better you feel with the weight off?

Have you gone to the grocery store and walked around with the bag of potatoes you've lost, or tried to carry the sticks of butter you've dropped?

Have a great weekend everyone!!

I was just thinking that same thing today. I am so new at this program and haven't yet got to being less hungry yet. Hopefully tomorrow, as this was my third day. I need the positive thoughts and encouragement that most everyone gives freely. I am still at the point where I am quite hungry before a meal. You all have said that this gets easier as you go. I so appreciate all the ideas for eating and things that many of you have learned as you go. It is invaluable.

I can already see that my tummy is shrinking and I "feel" smaller!