Thanks for the replies. So far today has been fine. I only added a banana to my shake this a.m. and blended it up good and then had 1 slice of dry sprouted grain toast with my salad and chicken soup packet for lunch. I plan on doing a egg white frittata with feta and spinach for dinner. I am not a meat eater really so that is why I got tired of the program before. I just could not stomach anymore meat. I also cannot have much soy so I stick with the shakes for the most part. I am about an hour from a center now so I order the shakes from New Lifestyles Diet online and get the exact pre-made chocolate shakes (in different packaging of course) for a lot cheaper. I would love to hear updates on how you and your loved ones who are doing this are doing.

hi Prettygirl, I am on the Ip alternative program with ip products. This is my second time around with the ip diet. First time I joined 2 years ago through a chiro's office and they were not helpful at all- I think they were in it for the $$$ and certainly not for the health of their patients. but I did manage to loose 55 lbs. with the support of 3fat chicks and family. the "coach" was a male who had lost about 10 pounds on ip (a requirement by IP to have been on the diet and no clue about the emotional and support part for clients struggle with years of weight issues. every time i weighed in, even though i lost - his comments and his business like attitude made be feel awful about myself, like the only reason i was fat was because i couldn't control myself- jerk. I am type 2 diabetic and they put me on the regular program. Needless to say I had lots of issues with low blood pressure, very cranky and low blood sugar levels and almost listless all the time. My doctor didn't like that I was on ip and would not support it or adjust my metformin or work with me on it. I got so frustrated with the lack of support that I quit and gained 30 pounds back. In March I rejoined at a different clinic supervised by an actual medical doctor and he put me on the alternative program and is monitoring my blood sugars regularly. he has already adjusted my dosage and says if I continue I will be off it completely in another 6 weeks. I will then switch to to the regular program. Sorry if this is a bit long winded but wanted to let you know that the alternative program is meant for diabetes but you need good medical support. Stick with it and shop around for a good coach and doctor to support your journey as it makes a huge difference. I am still losing 2 to 4 pounds a week and 5th week in I lost 6.5- all the best in your journey.

I did IP through a physical therapy office last year and had a coach but then I moved and am currently too far away from an office to be able to go in every week. When I left the previous state my coach gave me the plans for the alternative protocol. I am trying to do this on my own. I pretty much use whatever IP foods I have left and I order the premade shakes from another website. They are cheaper and are the EXACT same thing but in a blue packaging. The company that makes them just packages them in green for IP. I have never been diagnosed as a diabetic but it runs in my family and I also don't like to eat meat or any of the SOY IP packets so my calorie intake is very, very low and I think that stalled my weight loss last time. I was getting about 650 cals a day. Adding one of each of the extra group foods a day just gives me a little more calories and makes this program easier to stick to. I guess I will see how it goes in the next few weeks. I am in a crunch to lose some belly flat, which is what disappears on me first, before we head on vacation. I also wanted to continue to work out so the extra food helps with that. Thanks for your reply. Please keep me updated.

Is anyone doing the actual IP Alternative Plan....

I am not talking about using alternative products as a substitute for IP foods....

I am talking about the Official IP Protocol Alternative Plan??

No... but tell us more!

nothing to tell....i was thinking about trying it and wondered if anyone else had gone that route and wanted to know their success.

I am in my second week on the Alternate plan. I started IP in late March, and though I was losing weight consistantly, I felt terrible. Was never able to get past feeling dizzy and had really low energy. These problems combined with the fact that at the end of June I'll be going to Hawaii for 3 weeks where I'll be very active every day, compelled me to switch. I didn't want to go off plan while on vacation, but would never be able to keep up with my family if I wasn't getting more food.

My weigh-in last week had me down 1 lb and 1.5 inches. My initial reaction was disappointment, but I've gotten past by reminding myself that having a way to steadily lose weight and learning to be healthy trumps instant fix.

I think Nola was doing the alternate phase one. She's a maintainer now, not sure if she checks in on the other threads that often.

Forgot to add that I am feeling MUCH better since switching. The hardest part is the mental games of being fearful of adding in foods I had just trained myself to be forbidden.

A former colleague does the alt plan and was losing and felt good. I don't know what her weekly losses were but she was going down in sizes in a relatively short amount of time.

Here is the link for the alternative plan
For newcomers, this is different than using alternative packets.
This plan is for diabetics and people with other medical contraindications for being on the strict IP.

I've been on the alternate plan since I began mid Feb. Averaging 2 pound loss per week. Not as fast as some others, but I feel better and I think it is helping me to understand what I will need to do in maintenance. I also was afraid of not getting enough food for my body size and being dizzy etc. I was a diabetic when I began this plan but I'm off all of the metformin and have reduced some other meds as well.

I should also add that I'm the alternate/alternate plan. Mostly proti-diet and now delicious Quest bars.

thank you!!!!! this is what i was looking for. that is great news about your medicine!! keep up the good work!

Thanks and good luck to you if you decide to go with the alternate plan!