Well, I made it through birthday season. Both my kiddos, two weekends in a row. Cake, chips, cookies....bread! I was able to hang in there. Hopefully weigh in #7 is good this week to reward me.

Hi, I have not started the program yet, I am trying to figure out the best choice from the number of places it is offered here in the city. But I just wanted to comment on the concerns some people had several pages back about this being a "starvation" diet. I have spent all of July carefully following the "balanced" Richard Simmons plan. I tracked everything on fit day and never went above the 1200 cals advised for my height. At 1200 cals a day I gained a half a pound a day. I ended up with a one pound gain for the month so far only because I was really sick with the flu for one week and lost weight then. So low cal & "balanced" does not work for me.

Also for constipation problems magnesium suppliments work well.

I have been on the diet for 13 days now, minus one cheat night. I have not felt well on this diet. It. Is not very many calories to consume even if all the food recommended is ate. You will be told that lettuce and pickles can be ate whenever hungry, but they are no calories and are not filling. I am losing weight so I will continue for a while longer. I have always been a migraine sufferer and I notice that I get a headache, not always a migraine, almost instantly after consuming any of the ip products. I keep hoping that will go away. I will talk to my coach about that today. I was told to start my normal exercise this week 2 of ip, walking 3 miles a day, without incre asing my calories. Not sure how well that will work as I just started that yesterday. You may have to try this diet out yourself, other people say they feel great. Best wishes whatever you decide:)

Talk to your counsler but also listen to your body. If you are getting headaches right after eating IP foods then you may have an allergy to one or more ingredients. Not all diets are right for everyone! All the best and I hpe you are feeling better today.

Good Morning, sounds like most of us had great OP weekends, coliep, way to go, yes, it was a cheat, but MUCH better than cheetos, doritos, and ice cream would have been!!!! Going to try to cook some rhubarb today.... Also, nice sunburn belly from being at the springs all day yesterday (I know a native Floridian should know better, but used sunscreen, and not like my belly sees the sun much :)

Ok, so I am feeling a weeeee bit discouraged on IP right now. Since my last weigh in, I have lost all of 1.2 pounds. I mean, seriously, at about 1000 cals per day, I would lose that anyway regardless of my diet choice. I am not feeling thinner measurement wise either. I get that not every week will be stellar, BUT I am not dropping $130/week so I can lose weight at the same rate as if I were not on the plan. While my brief digressions may have affected ketosis slightly, I have reviewed my carbs and know that the impact should not be too detrimental. I am actually up in weight since my lowest low this week, so I am assuming that was a fleeting moment. I have been stuck at 145 for this week :/

Have you went for your official WI and measurement yet?

Colliep, please don't give up. Give your body another couple of weeks to adjust. 145 is a great weight for your height and your body just may be a little resistant to letting go right now.

Today is Day 1 for me. I'm using alternative products but I would love to hear which IP products are favorites for everyone. I would like to try to duplicate them using WonderSlim or ProtiDiet foods.

I'm bracing for a few days of withdrawal because while I generally eat low carb, I had more this weekend. I HATE "upcoming diet" mentality!

Have a fun day everyone.

Not for this week, but last week the doctors office showed .6 lb weight loss (i was ok with that bcz I just had a liter of water and breakfast), a teeny reduction in arm size and chest, an increase in hips and everything else stayed the same. I use my clothes as a guage when at home and don't feel much change.

Oh, definitely resistant! I haven't been able to push past this point, hence the drastic use of IP to attempt the change. I have been at and maintained a lower weight and know that it isn't too small for my height so I am convinced I can get there . . . eventually. The problem I have with the "couple more weeks" is that I anticipated (and the dr anticipated) 5-6 weeks on the program. I am in the middle of week 3 already and am not quite half way to goal. I know when I stop, I will regain 2-5 pounds so I am thinking to myself, ok a "net loss" of 5 pounds in 2 1/2 weeks. Big deal.

WHat IS keeping me on the diet for now is (1) I don't want to gain back those 5 and hit 150. It would devestate me (2) DH is gone out of town the majority of the next 2 weeks so there is no reason I shouldn't continue since its not like I am passing up food or entertainment as a result of it (3) I cannot justify the 500+ spend for a whopping net loss of 5 pounds. I am trying to stick out Phase I until i think the cost is justified. I guess I just expected to see it sooner . . . like 3 pounds per week after my first drop.

I will keep on keepin' on, but I need to shift to a more positive mentality so I don't do so grudgingly!

As for my favorite IP products, they are:
1) Fine herb & cheese omelet for breakfast. I cook it in my olive oil and add a lettuce stir fry. I eat them seperate with the omelet cooked as an omelet or mix in the lettuce for a scramble. I use my sea salt, mrs dash spicy and add hot sauce.
2) Chicken soup made with extra water, white pepper for spice and 1 cup of broccoli and/or asparagus chopped up in there (pan toast first, then add soup, then season to taste)
3) Chocolate drink mix. I like it best made with extra water (more volume, less thick and sweet). I like to freeze it, or heat it up and have it as hot chocolate, or add my coffee to it. Splash of cinammon is nice too.
4) Vanilla pudding made with extra water but still thick, shaken up with my coffee and a splash of cinnamon. Kinda like those fru fru drinks I don't normally drink.
5) Vanilla Peanut Bar. Could be addicting and I wish they were like 3x the size!

For me, I think it is imprtant to choose foods that help set good habits. When done, none of us are going to be slamming protein drinks fro breakfast and lunch. We are going to eat real food. We are going to need to have a good habit of chopping and preparing food. For those reasons, I make sure i need to prepare each meal (cook omelet for breakfast with chopped veggies, cook soup for lunch with chopped veggies and salad, cook the regular IP dinner). I also preplan the snacks to the extent possible, by preparing and freezing in advance. Meal planning is a good tool for permanent weight control, so I am working on taht as well!

Omg...this happened to me the other night and when I woke up, I felt as if I actually cheated and ate restricted foods! Glad to know I'm not the only one!!!:dizzy:

Dee

THB- Great job on resisting! I, too, have felt like a champ the last week and a half especially! I have resisted, barbecue, fruit salads and tons of fruit, cupcakes, cookies, sweet breads, strawberry shortcake, ice cream, wine, sushi, sorbet, frozen yogurt, pizza (4x!!), and Wednesday will be my son's 1st birthday. Phew!

I think all this is contributing to my sense that I should be thinner considering all that lol!

Good morning all! Congrats to all of you on your weekend successes. I was so nervous about a Saturday morning birthday party. Resisting the cake was tough but I never once considered caving. The extra filling Herb and Cheese Egg IP meal helped a ton. I couldn't believe how full I was after having that. I actually didn't finish it....I had the last 4th after coming home from the party. I added asparagus and mushrooms and it was pretty good. My biggest victory was Saturday night. I met friends to watch a band at a bar and drank only water. Sadly I've never been to a bar and not had a drink but I did it and survived and now know that I can handle this. Getting back to a body that I am proud of is worth it.

Today is my first weigh in. Please wish me luck.

Coliep, great suggestions on adding lettuce and spice to some of the items. All the ones that you mentioned are my favorites too so far. Its Day 5 for me, still feel hungry and still trying to eat more lettuce. will try the stir fry.

Does any one use splenda? and if so, how much per day?

Good morning everyone, ok I missed a lot this weekend.. but I never got a notification that any posts had happened, weird. But I was pretty busy.
Still totally OP, my only problem is eating my veggies, I need to get more strict on it.
I am sorry for all you that are struggling with cravings etc. I know I have them too but not the extent of some.
Had to go to Costco this weekend and it was Saturday so it was free sample day, man some of them looked good, but no worries.
Friend of mine went with me, and he is trying to eat much better as well so he had no problems hanging out while I drank my lunch in the parking lot between picking up my car from service and hitting the store, which was helpful.
I am lucky in that several of my friends are right around my size so I have motivation in that hopefully I will be able to look at them and remember I don't want to be like that anymore.
I too am having a slow week on weight loss, again... and I am frustrated but if I keep losing the inches faster than my weight I can deal with it. I know it's working because my wife is doing great, I think she is going to pass me on weight loss this week. I guess we will find out on Wednesday.

I really don't find myself being hungry much, tomorrow will be a good test though. My father is flying into the northwest today, they sold their lake house and he is coming up to do some things before closing.
So he will be coming to see us tomorrow night, and will stay for dinner so we picked up some things to cook for him... but he gets to see his new grandson which he hasn't seen yet, so we are excited for the visit.

I have physical therapy for my headaches tonight, they have been getting much better.
Btw for headaches, try going to a chiropractor, it might help, my wife goes for migraines she has had for 12 years, and she has seen a dramatic drop in her migraines since she started going a year and a half ago.
I used to go, but the doctor has determined mine is probably a muscular problem hence the PT.

Stay positive everyone, Heather... welcome back.. don't worry about the slip just get back on it, I don't want to leave you in the dust, not that I am screaming away from you by leaps and bounds :)
Have a great day everyone!!!!