The first week is ****.....well for me it was LOL...thought...no wonder people lose weight on this diet...There's NO FOOD ...but it does get better. Now I am very satisfied with my meals. It is better that you ate an extra IP snack rather than something full of carbs and sugar. My coach had told me to eat an extrat snack for my first week. When I get hungry I drink MORE water (seems that's all I do lol..or make some green tea) and do something to keep busy. I too was a night owl . I used to eat to keep myself awake. Now I hardly watch tv. I find that helps alot. Keep up the good work.

This is just a suggestion but if you are adding an extra packet I would make it an unrestricted unless you had not eaten a restricted yet.


Maybe you are right Port, try your bacon again but couldn't you add something extra of the food you are eating, like another shake or pudding instead?

Where is Wayward....its been 2 days since we have heard from him...Hope everyone is ok.

Well i think he said that he was going to be busy with the little one..something to do with his wife not feeling good? or something??

Where is Coliep????? I havent heard from her in awhile..starting to worry about these ones who have gone M.I.A..hopefully they will be back since its monday.. i find they all come back mondays..

Well i went out and bought some bacon to try and help myself get through this week..oh Wuv..dont even mention pudding...im having to choke it down..i went overboard and bought too much chocolate pudding and not enough variety..and now i can barely stand it!

So..i will try again tommorow..told my hunny..no more cheats till we go on vacation..

Thanks so much for the encouragement! I am feeling good and glad I made the decision to give this a shot. Tomorrow is WI #1!!!

Today, for lunch my DH asked me if I was going to be whipping some fresh veggies - seems he is lurking now waiting for my next creation. That definetly helps me stay on track knowing that he is so supportive. Now, if I could just get my 3 yr old to try some of these veggies too...

I have to ask... why are you eating BACON? It is not allowed ?

So please tell me if there is a place to find the recipes for the Kale Chips & Big Mac. I have been reading about them in several places, but have not run across the actual recipe anywhere. Probably not reading the right thread, but if someone would kindly direct me, it would be much appreciated!

Here but the internet has been down almost all day. They gor rained out with a lot of thunder and lightning so couldn't go walking today.
Rode the bike a little but was out of practice.
Still going strong and hoping to have a good week at this weeks WI.

Everyone keep positive.
Be back at work tomorrow so should be around more.

Firesides-i think you might have missed the part in the post where i said "EVEN though its NOT on protocol"...if your like me..you are probably skimming through posts..and missing a thing here or there.

I find it really hard to tough it out for the first few days on IP-alternatives... i found myself getting extremely hungry especially at night..like way late at night..and one thing i found besides drinking 4 to 5 litres of water...was to eat like 3 pieces of bacon a day..i found that the combination of salt and fat content helped keep my hunger and cravings at bay more.. i found i didnt crave nearly as much and it helped me stay full longer...im not sure why?? i know people on atkins-which is ketogenic..are told to eat bacon..i also recognize that there diet is higher in fat..and while i dont want a high fat high calorie diet personally.. i found that i can still keep my calorie count over the first 4 days to about 1000 or just under..so i just make sure calorically it doesnt go higher than 1200..and really..im more concerned about getting myself into ketosis in the first four days as opposed to just caring about caloric intake and weight loss..cause i know that once im into ketosis..im good..i can do 3 packets only and i can sleep well..eat well and not crave and never feel hungry..its just the 4 days..so..i was simply telling Wuv that i thought i might try doing that again..because really.. i care more about getting to my long term goal of being healthy as opposed to just following protocol 100%..what works for some..doesnt always work for others..i know for a few on here ive seen similar issues with hunger and ive seen people tweak and add things here and take things there to make it work for them..and thats all im doing..trying to make it work for me.. make sense?

IMO- NO diet was taylor made for every single person..i often compare a diet protocol to the canadian education system..there may be many teachers and many students, but each student learns differently..not every single student will learn the exact way..not every student will fit within the learning paramaters that are outlined in the education format because we all have different learning styles, intellects..Likewise with diets..Just because IP was made with a specific protocol, does not mean that every single person will necessarily fit within the paramaters of it..because we are all different, with different needs, different goals, different health issues..

I know some may look at me and go "your not following it to the T" and "your not going to lose as fast"...well i got news for ya :P ... I dont care if it takes me a year.. i rather lose it slowly than not lose at all..and if that means that i have to tweak this program to make it work (which by the way has been succesfull the most out of all programs to date) then i will...because i am determined not to let a piece of bacon or anything else..stop me or tell me that i cant lose weight and that i cant do this..

I can do this! I will do this!!! im going to do this! now watch me!!

-(Gets off soap box)

Port-I have to say I agree with you. Do what ya gotta do to stay consistent. For me it was allowing myself a small glass of wine last night. I realize it could throw me off for a few days, but willing to accept that. The good company I was with and fine glass of wine was worth it to me. A cookie, cake, brownie, or high carb food are not worth it at this point. I guess because i'm so close, at my original goal I feel as if I can do this at times. I dont recommend it for everyone but gotta do what works for me and not going to beat myself up.

Big Mac in a bowl:
* 1/2 pound raw ground beef, about 5 1/2 ounces cooked weight or 153 grams cooked *
* Salt and pepper, to taste
* 1 teaspoon minced dry onions
* 46 grams dill pickle slices or 2 dill spears, chopped, about 1 5/8 ounces
* 2 tablespoons WF Thousand Island Dressing
* 1 1/2 ounces iceberg lettuce, shredded

Brown the ground beef, drain off any fat, season with salt and pepper.. Meanwhile, soak the dry onions in a little water to rehydrate them. Put the meat in a large salad bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Toss and eat at once.

This was posted by showgirlaz:

Kale Chips
adapted from Stacie Billis at ChowMama.com

1 bunch organic kale, torn into 1/2″ pieces
3 tablespoons organic olive oil
1 tablespoon organic apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons sea salt

Preheat oven to 400° F. Whisk oil and vinegar and toss kale in the dressing until thoroughly coated.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Place kale on sheet in a single layer and sprinkle with salt.

Bake for 15 minutes or so, until crispy.



Tip to keep them crisp from CheekyWit:
I can keep kale chips in a ziploc bag for at least 4-5 days still crisp -- the secret is to make sure they are very dry - remove them immediately from the pan you used to cook them in - lay them on a cooling rack until they are no longer warm - put them in the ziploc -- close the bag leaving it open about an inch -- normally they stay crisp - on day 2 I usually close the bag.

Port,

Diet Diversity!

I know I worked for a Fortune 500 company for 25 yrs. and they were big into diversity, but my last boss was her way or no way. I brought up to her and the big boss, this company "preaches diversity" but has no "work-style" diversity. For Heavens sakes, this is research and my approach may different than *(&), but she thinks her way is the only way. If you want people to be creative and successful, try letting them approach their work in a manner that works well for them. of course "Deer in the headlight" look form my boss.. I feel the same about education, I was more of a 'hands-on" type ( no wonder I became a chemist), but everyone learns "what" works best for them. Now, off my soapbox and on to cleaning the hourse! Have a great monday, beautiful here in upstate NY.

Port, I put different kinds of flavoring in my chocolate pudding to give it different tastes (caramel, coconut, peppermint) changes it up a bit.

I saw coliep on another thread, I think it was the less than 20lbs, so she is around just busy.

Justamom - the fact that you are here, trying and persisting in the face of so many distractions is quite a testament to your tenacity here. I know it myst seem discouraging, but 20% is A LOT and A LOT closer to your goal than not. You will likely find the diet just becomes your way of life and the time will pass more quickly. IN the meantime, be gentle with yourself!!

Stellar - I don't think 1 gram will kill ya, but I know how you feel. I contemplated buying those in lieu of the IP kind but opted not to. I need to research a good alternative.

As for me, I was easing out of the low carb thing all week my own way (increasing calories and carbs and real food) but then this weekend had an all out off a diet 2 days. Today, I am doing a Phase I day and hope to continue for a few. I am very curious to see if there will be any movement on the scale after this. (surprisingly it doesn't seem like I gained over the weekend though I fully deserve too -- calories and carbs were too high). Anyway, here I am =)

Port - sorry you are having a hard time getting back into the groove. I am sure you can get back on track again in time for your trip. It is strange that I don't really have too hard a time getting back OP (if i actually commit, which is where my problem is) - I am not starving, don't have pre-ketosis symptoms, etc. Funny how each person is so different!