I wasn't able to weigh in last Saturday due to being out of town, so it's a little bit of a delayed celebration, but FINALLY, officially, I'm forever out of the 300's! For real!
I've lost 61 lbs in 15 weeks! I'm overshooting this, but my goal is to hit 100 lbs by Christmas... that's 9 weeks to lose 40 lbs. I think 30 will be more realistic, but it's worth working for!
Whew! I'm in the 200's for the first time in my adult life memory! I was probably a teenager or very young 20 last time I was in the 2's. Crazy.
Have a great weekend!
OH--- did salesgod's question ever get answered about green cabbage? I've seen lots of you talk about recipes with it, but I was told it was a forbidden veggie as well!
You are doing fantastic work! I love your attitude. It is hard not to want to move on as fast as you can, but be careful not to set your self up for disappointment. If you follow protocol the weight will take care of itself. Keep up the good work !!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by bella mama
Have a question for those of you that have been on this diet for awhile. I have been on it 8 weeks and lost 32lbs which is great. But I am having concerns about how I feel. Honestly, I am never hungry. Ever. The thought of food repulses me which is a strong statement but true. To even think about eating makes me very sick to my stomach. I am forcing myself to eat but gag on each bite or actually do get sick. Has this ever happened to anyone else? Concerns me some. Thanks for any input.
I would talk to my doctor - I have been on the plan for 6 months and have not had that problem (not that I wouldn't like that on days that I feel hungry). Take care of yourself - no one should feel miserable while on this plan.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Linden
The cynic in me says she probably wants to be on vacation and wants to guarantee that you stick around paying for packets for a longer time.
I agree with you Linden - I can't imagine a coach suggesting sabotaging your life changes that you have work so hard on. This is a life change and 75% of the work goes on in our heads. It is ultimately everyones own choice, but my thoughts are that I would feel guilty, mad at myself for readjusting my thinking patterns, and having to relose weight that I already had lost.
I tried the new orange drink as a Sunday morning treat, and now I am really annoyed! Why? Because it was a waste of calories, I don't feel fed, and I have to go hungry till lunch.
Here is my complaint. (I wonder if anyone from Ideal Protein ever reads these boards for feedback.) It seems that in the quest for the most bio-available protein, these brainy scientists forgot one thing - edibility. It makes no sense to have all that bio-available protein end up stuck to the side of the shaker and only edible if you take a spatula and scrape it off the sides of the glass or shaker you are drinking from. Impossible to drink these things conveniently! And you don't feel full after ingesting little globs of white stuff off a spatula.
Also the drink is way too sweet. I realize taste is a highly personal thing, and many people like the sweetness.
But this problem with the fruity drinks becoming undrinkable is shrinking the choices as far as I am concerned.
End of rant.
I found that for the peach/mango drink (which is way too sweet for me) adding a little bit of partially cooled off chai tea mixed well with it. I haven't had any problems with the flavor or it mixing poorly.
I tried the new orange drink as a Sunday morning treat, and now I am really annoyed! Why? Because it was a waste of calories, I don't feel fed, and I have to go hungry till lunch.
Here is my complaint. (I wonder if anyone from Ideal Protein ever reads these boards for feedback.) It seems that in the quest for the most bio-available protein, these brainy scientists forgot one thing - edibility. It makes no sense to have all that bio-available protein end up stuck to the side of the shaker and only edible if you take a spatula and scrape it off the sides of the glass or shaker you are drinking from. Impossible to drink these things conveniently! And you don't feel full after ingesting little globs of white stuff off a spatula.
Also the drink is way too sweet. I realize taste is a highly personal thing, and many people like the sweetness.
But this problem with the fruity drinks becoming undrinkable is shrinking the choices as far as I am concerned.
End of rant.
I think it takes time to figure out which packets will work for you. I can't tolerate a lot of the drink mixes. The most convenient thing I get is the prepackaged liquid vanilla or chocolate drink. They are both very yummy and not bad tasting. They also have only 3 carbs in them. They are great when in a pinch and have no lumps.
I tried the new orange drink as a Sunday morning treat, and now I am really annoyed! Why? Because it was a waste of calories, I don't feel fed, and I have to go hungry till lunch.
Here is my complaint. (I wonder if anyone from Ideal Protein ever reads these boards for feedback.) It seems that in the quest for the most bio-available protein, these brainy scientists forgot one thing - edibility. It makes no sense to have all that bio-available protein end up stuck to the side of the shaker and only edible if you take a spatula and scrape it off the sides of the glass or shaker you are drinking from. Impossible to drink these things conveniently! And you don't feel full after ingesting little globs of white stuff off a spatula.
Also the drink is way too sweet. I realize taste is a highly personal thing, and many people like the sweetness.
Thank you for ranting! I'm not much of a fan of the drinks for meals, especially breakfast. I found they were ok as a snack to bridge the long lunch to dinner period in my schedule.
As for the sweetness, you can add sweetness but you can't take it out! (ARGGGH!) I do, however, like the pina colada drink. I wish they'd reduce the sweetness of the packets and sell a liquid sweetener that people could use to increase the sweetness if desired. I've added a pinch of salt to the water to take the edge off the sweetness, though I then have to more water because of the solubility issues.
Quote:
Originally Posted by 100ButterflyKisses
I found that for the peach/mango drink (which is way too sweet for me) adding a little bit of partially cooled off chai tea mixed well with it.
Great tip! I mix chilled decaf coffee with the vanilla pudding powder for a latte-pudding or a drink; the bitterness of the coffee helps balance the sweetness.
Last edited by I'm svelting!; 10-24-2010 at 10:20 AM.
I needed a break. In other words I cheated. I am going through a lot of problems in my life. A friend invited me my husband and I over for a party. I ate and gave in. I know it will take 3 days for me to get back to ketosis, but I needed it. My husband is without a job and we are barely making it. I will know at the beginning of this week if we will have to move in with my brother. I am a major emotional eater and the party gave me a out. So instead of beating myself up I am going to just start over tomorrow with my weight loss. Yea I fill sick at my stomach and should not have done it, but I did and it's done, now I move on. I need to stay on track. Any emotional eaters out there with advise? This seems to be my track record. How can I over come this giving in to temptation.
Gabby, I have been an emotional eater for most of my life, but I finally feel like I might have that under control for now. Here's what I would be asking myself if I were in your shoes... should I be doing this diet right now? If my life is so stressed by finances, I would worry that not only does a break down to emotional eating beat me up a little, but then, I would worry about the money I'm spending but not getting the benefits. All of that would be me in a cycle to fail so that by the time I have less stress in my life and can really focus on losing weight, I will think that IP doesn't work or that it was just another stress in my life.
Ultimately, you need to make the right choice, but maybe you could make some less expensive changes in your eating without adding the guilt of expenses of IP, and then when finances are better, you'll be ready to go.
Tonight was weird - went out with friends to a pizza place for a birthday party. I did my research and knew that they had a good salad bar and that's what I stuck to for the evening. After my second plate of salad though, I was really full - like, the fullest I've ever felt since starting the program. The only thing on my salad that might have been a carb was the little bit of FF ranch (I accidentally left my dressing at home). But it was just weird. I haven't felt overfull in weeks...
But I didn't have the yummy cheesy crusty pizza!
I should mention that this is only the second time I've eaten out while on program, and my first time in a pizza place... Am I weird that I feel weird about all of this tonight?
I guess what I'm trying to say is... I feel like I failed tonight.
You did a great job. You had a plan and you stuck to it. Don't beat yourself up. You did better than me. I messed up big time last night. I am going to do what you did next time I am out. Have a plan.
I add 10-12 oz. of water to the drinks and that helps a lot with the clumping. Plus, I love them so it makes them last longer.
MY problem is the chocolate pudding which used to actually dissolve in 10-12 oz. of water is now all thick and clumped up, and this is the old version NOT the new higher carb version.
I tried the new orange drink as a Sunday morning treat, and now I am really annoyed! Why? Because it was a waste of calories, I don't feel fed, and I have to go hungry till lunch.
Here is my complaint. (I wonder if anyone from Ideal Protein ever reads these boards for feedback.) It seems that in the quest for the most bio-available protein, these brainy scientists forgot one thing - edibility. It makes no sense to have all that bio-available protein end up stuck to the side of the shaker and only edible if you take a spatula and scrape it off the sides of the glass or shaker you are drinking from. Impossible to drink these things conveniently! And you don't feel full after ingesting little globs of white stuff off a spatula.
Also the drink is way too sweet. I realize taste is a highly personal thing, and many people like the sweetness.
But this problem with the fruity drinks becoming undrinkable is shrinking the choices as far as I am concerned.
End of rant.
Have you tried to mix your drinks in one of those small blenders? I bought a Magic Bullet and it seems to eliminate the globs of powder but created all kinds of foam. I have to pre make the drink and let it set for awhile for the foam to subside. The bullet is great for mixing up your pudding and then putting it in small tupperware containers in the refrigerator. I used to hate all of the puddings but now I like them! Also keep in mind that according to several on the boards, your tastes may change and you may like the sweet drinks someday. I'm with I'm Svelting the Pina Colada is great. Still, my favorite is the chocolate drink - no globs.
For everyone else who has had hair loss during IP... how long did it last? I have been losing hair since mid-September now! Hoping it is going to stop soon before I'm bald. Luckily I had really thick hair to start with, but it's really thinned out now! I don't want to be skinny and bald!
I think the hair changes are interesting - I have naturally curly hair and it has gone STRAIGHT.
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Quote:
QUOTE=ginBAM;3535193]Glad to hear everyones weekend is going pretty. I have been catching up on reading post today, as the last 2 weeks have been pretty busy. I have a cold right now so none of the food tast good to me the packets don't tast at all, well so much for enjoying food. I am hoping that I can tast again soon because, it makes it hard to stomach the food.
I have never experienced food not tasting or not tasting good. I have wished for that many times though in my history of relationships with food.
Last edited by rosemary2612; 10-24-2010 at 11:40 AM.
Yes, that's right, two weeks--one off protocol and one to get back to where I was before I went off protocol. And no worries--I don't feel picked on
I'm not sure if my thought process is the same as others who've taken a hiatus/break/off-protocol time. The thing is that for me the issue is not about food, or about money, or about the weight-loss time line, so much as it is about psychology, knowing myself, and understanding what has set me up for food-based backlash and diet failure in the past. For me, because I have so much weight to release (and I want this time to be the last time), from the very start I have needed to feel that this diet is sustainable over the long term. In the best case scenario, if my weight loss stays the same, I am looking at a full year plus of IP. So since my bday was 10 weeks from my start date, and Christmas 10 weeks after that, I started with the intent of taking this in 10 week stages to make the task feel less daunting. I couldn't imagine being on a diet for 65 weeks, but I could imagine doing it for 10 weeks 6 and a half times. Jackie[\QUOTE]
The fact that for repeated dieters, this is about what is in our heads and how we handle that, is correct. We do have to know ourselves and we have to be honest with ourselves and others about why we make certain decisions along our journey. This makes it reality and long lasting for changes that we want to accomplish. No one gets up one day and says, "Gee, I think I will start gaining weight today". Of course we don't. Our head, or our brain, our psychological makeup drives us to repeatedly turn to the same solutions to what is "eating us". What we are trying to do with the IP plan is to change some of those solutions to ones that we like and can live peacefully with. We have to repeat over and over again the response that we give ourselves each time the little guy in our heads says "eat it". Eventually we will be doing it because we want to and because we learn new ways of handling the issues in our lives. to everyone that has ever found themselves in this place.
Last edited by rosemary2612; 10-24-2010 at 11:38 AM.
Good morning fellow IPers!
It is a blustery Fall day here on the west coast. Had quite a wind storm last night and there is still a wind warning in effect.
Had a great time last night bowling to raise money for Kids Help Phone. Our team dressed up as lady bugs, complete with wings, antenae, false eyelashes etc.
I didn't cheat, but it was a challenging evening to stay on protocol. I did wonderfully the first part of the day (lots of water and proper breakfast and lunch) but it was too early to eat dinner before the bowling event. Drank perrier there and didn't have dinner until 8:30. We went to the pub next door and I ordered the sirloin steak (probably closer to 7 oz than 5), asparagus and mixed green salad. By the time I got home (an hours drive) it was almost 10:30 and I just couldn't take the thought of another packet, so missed my third one for the day. I thought this might be a lesser sin since I had extra protein at dinner? Thoughts?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jacqueline
Hi Mamadancer. Welcome to another Ontarian! Re phasing out for Christmas: I'm with EatAnts aka Sheila. It should be completely your decision whether you phase off or not. By now you know the program well enough to do a week or two on your own without seeing your coach, so if you choose to stay on protocol or not phase out completely, you can do it on your own.
I took a modified "off protocol" week and as I mentioned above it's taken most of this week to get rid of the extra pounds. Basically, that one week off cost me an additional week, so where I might have lost about 7 lbs in two weeks (I've been averaging a little over 3lbs/wk), I lost 1 instead. I don't really regret it, but by the end of my week away I was firm in my resolve to stay on program over Christmas. What this week gave me was the knowledge that I can now handle the traveling and time with extended family without emotional eating. It's a BIG change, let me tell you!!
After discussion with my coach, we decided that I wouldn't phase out. She said that it would be easier to get back on track if I kept eating the 3 packets a day, and that's what I did, and it hasn't been hard to get back on track at all. My off protocol stuff was mostly about dairy products and low carb toast and PB for breakfast. What was surprising was how little it mattered in the end. Yup, I enjoyed it. But not as much as anticipated. I was surprised that I chose to snack on IP stuff (bbq chips, bars) during the week, rather than other off-protocol possibilities. And when I left there was some of everything remaining--I didn't finish the bottle of red wine in a whole week that included my birthday, we didn't finish the cheesecake (2 net carbs/slice) and I was never tempted to snack on it, which surprised me. What became clear during the week was how little "meaning" the off-protocol foods contains for me now.
My now 11 weeks on IP have helped me to have a major head-shift in regard to food. Before, I was afraid that I would have a huge emotional back-lash if I didn't have some "treats" for the trip and my birthday, but having had the experience I am now very comfortable with the idea of staying on protocol for Christmas. There won't be a backlash, because unlike with other diets I just don't feel deprived with IP. And there's NO GUILT, which for me has been associated with food for most of my life. When I want sweets, there are guilt-free bars and drinks, when I want salty/crunchy I can have the bbq chips and FEEL GOOD about it! It's like some kind of miracle since I've had such a fraught relationship with food in the past.
For Christmas I'm pretty comfortable with this decision. My social circle is quite small at present, so I'm lucky in that I won't have a huge number of events and temptations, and I'm just going to bring RTDs and IP snack foods everywhere I go.
So, all this just to say, "follow your gut" on this one. Do whatever feels right to you. My off-protocol experience was a good learning opportunity for me to see how much I've changed and now I know that I don't need off-protocol "treats" anymore. But I wouldn't know that without this experience. Phase-out or don't, it should be entirely up to you.
Jackie
Jackie, thank you again for putting into such great words my own feelings on this. I've never been an emotional eater and I don't believe (for me) that going off protocol over Christmas is a 'license' to go nuts on food. I've gained my weight over the years through drinking too many glasses of wine each evening (stress reliever ) and being lazy about preparing proper meals. Leading very busy lives we too often relied on packaged entrees at home and went out to eat too often.
Over the holidays I don't expect I'll do things much differently than I do now, EXCEPT, when I do go to an event, I won't feel guilty if I haven't weighed everything exactly or if I have a restricted vegetable or, of course, if I have ONE glass of wine. I am not dreaming of having chocolate or baking or any of the other holiday goodies. As you commented, Jackie, my thoughts and awareness of what I am eating and drinking has changed, and this is a journey.
My coach is not taking a vacation during the holidays because she wants me to continue to come in each week to see her even if I don't buy packets. I am not paying her for this. Together we'll make sure I don't gain weight. Yes, the journey will take a longer. I'm okay with this. For me it's not about the money either. I haven't worked it out but I may actually be saving money since we're not going out or ordering pizza like we were. I wasn't going to at first, but after reading Jackie's post I might continue on packets over the holidays. I'll discuss it with my coach. Thanks again Jackie!
Sorry for the long post. Just trying to be clear where my head is at on this.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LAShutterbug
Besides I can't shake the Big C even with a laxative once a week. I guess I'll need to do something more regular cause I feel like once I'm cleared it takes 4/5 days before anything happens again with aide. Never been a Big C kind of person but have noticed it's getting worse the longer I stay on this program.
I have been the same way the past couple of weeks. I have always been very regular, but right now I need to take the Floralax once or twice a week to clear things out. I find that it works very well though and seems to be very natural. If I take it mid afternoon/early evening I'm generally right as rain by the next morning.
Well, unfortunately paperwork at the office is calling my name. Happy Sunday everyone!
Hi all, how are you all making out this weekend?
I am here trying to be strong and mom is frying up some chicken to go with her famous potato salad....argh! You can smell the chicken from way down the street and I am here.....baking cauliflower...(*sigh*).
This plan is so expensive though. I literally cannot afford to slip up!
In the best case scenario, if my weight loss stays the same, I am looking at a full year plus of IP. So since my bday was 10 weeks from my start date, and Christmas 10 weeks after that, I started with the intent of taking this in 10 week stages to make the task feel less daunting. I couldn't imagine being on a diet for 65 weeks, but I could imagine doing it for 10 weeks 6 and a half times.
At the beginning, I imagined that those weeks off-protocol would be like coming up for air after holding my breath underwater for 10 weeks. That I would need them in order to keep going for the next stretch. What I learned from actually taking the off-protocol time was that as well as my body changing, so has my mind. And this has been a big, very welcome, surprise. It's as if I've learned to breathe underwater! The "treats" and "regular food" no longer seem emotionally necessary in the way that they did at the beginning. And it's amazing. But I would not have understood the depth of this change unless I had "come up for air," so to speak, in the off-protocol week. What I learned is that I no longer need to "come up for air" 'cause I'm breathing just fine where I'm at everyday. IP has become my new normal.
Jackie
I LOVE your metaphor!! You are putting so much thought into your life and your future and that is why you are so successful now, and you will make this work in the long haul!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Crystal88
It makes no sense to have all that bio-available protein end up stuck to the side of the shaker and only edible if you take a spatula and scrape it off the sides of the glass or shaker you are drinking from.
Also the drink is way too sweet.
I couldn't agree more! As people suggested, adding more water will both cut the "sweet" and get it out of the container more easily. Also, I learned that basically anything cut with vanilla RTD or vanilla pudding is better. So, I will make the orange drink and vanilla pudding (with about 16-20 oz water) at night, refrigerate (which helps with the lumps overnight). Then split it over my next 2 breakfasts. Or the same with vanilla and lemon pudding (turn it into a drink, add LOTS of water), same with banana, the mango drink etc. I think they over-sweeten AND over "flavor" in a monochromatic way. I also pretty much add something to almost every drink...cinnamon, nutmeg, cardomom, a couple drops of hot sauce in chocolate, etc.
Last edited by Rocky Monarch; 10-24-2010 at 02:06 PM.
All I see is success and honoring your commitment to stick with the IP plan. I'm curious, why do you feel as if you failed?
I think I was just feeling last night like I was frustrated with the program and the failure feeling came from the feeling overfull. I haven't felt "overfull" since I started this and last night was the first time I felt like that. Even though I know that 85% of what I ate last night was lettuce!
For me, feeling overfull was almost like me feeling like I had just eaten that piece of pizza. Clearly I still have food issues to work through!
Thank you ladies. I'm glad that you're here to listen.
I tried the new orange drink as a Sunday morning treat, and now I am really annoyed! Why? Because it was a waste of calories, I don't feel fed, and I have to go hungry till lunch.
Here is my complaint. (I wonder if anyone from Ideal Protein ever reads these boards for feedback.) It seems that in the quest for the most bio-available protein, these brainy scientists forgot one thing - edibility. It makes no sense to have all that bio-available protein end up stuck to the side of the shaker and only edible if you take a spatula and scrape it off the sides of the glass or shaker you are drinking from. Impossible to drink these things conveniently! And you don't feel full after ingesting little globs of white stuff off a spatula.
Also the drink is way too sweet. I realize taste is a highly personal thing, and many people like the sweetness.
But this problem with the fruity drinks becoming undrinkable is shrinking the choices as far as I am concerned.
End of rant.
My issue with the fruity drinks is that to me, they seem SOOOOO salty. I tried the pineapple-banana yesterday and gagged my way through the last few ounces. I DO add more water, and sometimes I add another 8 oz of crystal lite on top of it to make it more palatable...
Good thing my favorite drinks are the chocolate drink and the cappucino!
!!!!
) and being lazy about preparing proper meals. Leading very busy lives we too often relied on packaged entrees at home and went out to eat too often.
