According to the bottle of the Natura Potassium/Calcium tablets I got from my coach there is 800 mg of potassium bicarbonate and 200 mg of calcium carbonate in each tablet. I am supposed to take 1 per day.

Looks OK. My only concern would be the Acesulfame Potassium but it is a miniscule ingredient.

Lindac, the simplest (and my favorite) dressing for Romaine is 1 t olive oil and a good splash or two of organic apple cider. In fact, I now eat it without the oil, saving the oil for roasting vegetables. (The reason I mention Romaine is because it is so much richer in nutrients and fiber than other salad greens, especially iceberg -- which is valueless as a food.

I wondered about that too, but it looks like the IP pudding has that listed as an ingredient as well (at least according to the idealtogo.com site). So I think I'm going to order some - found some even cheaper on DPSnutrition.net. I'm going to try to make the "rice" pudding recipe (made with cauliflower). Should be interesting!

panda,

I have alternatives from Lindora, Noshua & Diet Direct. I just read the ingredients and am sure to buy the "aspartame-free". I also use Pure Protein Bars (Wal-Mart, Sams, Wegmans & Target), Muscle Milk lite & EAS shakes ( Sam's & Wal-Mart) & Detour Bars ( I get them at Sam's, but probably have other places)

I have never tried the rice pudding from Cauliflower, I just love rice pudding!

Just wanted to add that "ItsAboutime" lost all her weight ( I think at least 50 lbs) using alternatives and she used the Atkins products.

I am using Alternative products and have for awhile, my IP coach lets me buy what I want from the clinic. I do buy the K supplements, because after a long search, I really couldn't find a "good" substitute. I still buy the dill pickle zippers and wildberry yogurt drink from IP too, not every week, but when I stop over to get vitamins.

Bellamack,

I am glad to see someone who has been using alternatives and seeing significant results. I just started today using alternatives. I have seen a lot of people who have been using the EAS shakes, so I went and got some last night. I saw the muscle milk but wasn't sure if it was similar to IP products.

I am wondering if someone could just break down what a normal food schedule looks like for them?like breakfast, lunch, dinner? I have seen so many different variations. I just don't want to be eating too much or not enough?

This is my first day and I had a shake for breakfast and a hard boiled egg as a snack. I am 293 pounds. I am used to eating/grazing all day long. My stomach is growling already. I just have to tell myself I can do this - I have to do this. I am 26 years old and I feel like I've been dead for 26 years. If that makes any sense.

i can do this!

mrsmurphy,

You can do this! I will breakdown what I eat for you.

Breakfast: 1 chocolate EAS or Muscle Milk lite, mixed with 1 cup of cold German chocoate decaf coffee & 2T of Peppermint Mocha Sugar Free Creamer over ice.
or Egg beater omelet with about 1/2 cup veggies (mushrooms, peppers, non-carmelized onions & garlic

Lunch: Romaine Salad with 1 & 1/2 C extra veggies, like cucumbers, mushrooms, cabbage, peppers. Plus a protein, sometimes a Pure Protein Bar, sometimes another protein shake.

Dinner: Mostly chicken and sometimes whitefish, scallops or shrimp and 2 cups of veggies. I really love roasted zuchini or asparagus.

I use 2t of EVOO a day and sometimes a little more. I bought a bunch of Walden Farms dressings and marshmellow and it all gagged me, very chemical. The only one I can take at all is the Bleu Cheese dip which I mix with Franks chicken wing sauce and put on top of a salad, very good. I always have a good seasons dressing made with EVOO & vinegar for other salads.

I also make stir-fry alot. Chicken or shrimp with red/green/yellow peppers, garlic,mushrooms and cabbage, it is very filling. I use the low-sodium soy sauce.

You will be successful and as others have said, it improves after day 6 and after about 2 weeks, I had no cravings. I was content and not hungry for the majority of the time. If I got hungry, I reached for dill pickles, herbal tea or iced tea with lemon. Good Luck, if you have other questions, just ask :)

Thank you for breaking that down. It was very helpful.

I do not eat fish but i love chicken baked, grilled any kind of chicken.

Thankfully, I was off of work today for the holiday so it was easy for me to get a schedule for eating. I am a little worried about returning to work tomorrow and being able to upkeep the diet while at work. My co-workers are always bringing in mexican food which is my weakness. I will just have to keep myself occupied tomorrow. I am going to get my lunches ready for the week, boil eggs in advance for breakfast... and i have my shakes.

Day one is almost finished and I didn't starve to death as I thought I would! haha. i was looking at the diet regiment and thought, oh my god i'm going to starve. But I DIDN'T .. it wasn't that bad.

one day at a time.

Just curious. Why are you having eggs for breakfast? And as to your co-workers bring in Mexican or any other kind of food. They haven't committed to the IP Program and to getting healthy. You have. It's a whole new mindset.

I am new to IP alternatives also. I like to use my veggies as a snack as well as including them in my meals.

Breakfast: egg beaters with seasoning
snack: 1 cup veggies (usually celery or pickles)
lunch: salad wiht 1 cup veggies and walden farms dressing (I prefer ranch) with a protein packet
snack: 1 cup veggies
dinner: meat protein, 1 cup veggies and salad if I'm still hungry
snack: protein bar, pudding or shake

I did make the mistake of having spagetti and a protein bar in the same day. Both are restricted. Opps! I've heard conflicting statements. 1) You should only have 1 restricted a day. 2) You can only have 2 restricted per week. I know you should only have the spaghetti 2 times per week.

Linden,

I meant egg whites...

Whew! :D :D

linden, I thought on the original IP chart, I saw 2 eggs are on the list for protein 'item'.

yes, that is correct... 2 hard boiled eggs can be your protein for the day

ProtiDiet is on sale this week at Nashua Nutrition. It is what I have been using with pretty good success. I love the blueberry pancakes! And the tomato basil and the mushroom soups are awesome, too.