I wonder if IP is for me...
 

I was once a calorie counter, back in the days when I was a stay at home mom. It worked well for me, but my life has changed so drastically in the past year (well less than), and I have many more time constraints.
Now I work full time, still do the "mom" thing, and recently bought a horse, who is boarded outside my town. While he is apparently broke to ride, since I got him at an auction, we are treating him as though he's green, and starting from scratch, which means I am putting in a lot of time out at the stable.
My life just DOES NOT have time for weighing, counting and planning right now. Don't get me wrong, I could do small amounts of it, but to try and do it with every single thing I put in my mouth is just utterly impossible, and I find I keep failing (I have tried to get back on track a few times, and only last a day or 2 before I end up going back to convenience...meaning fast food).

I am wondering if Ideal Protein is something I should investigate more thoroughly. The idea of pre-packaged meals would simplify my life a TON. I worry because I do have a minor case of gout, and am not sure how IP may impact that, but I HAVE to get this weight off.

I would LOVE any HONEST input you all could give me!

Thanks!

I absolutely LOVE IP. There really was no counting needed, There was a little bit of planning if I was going out somewhere but nothing too drastic that I stressed over it. As long as I had my veggies cut up or at least thought out for the day, it was easy peasy. I have finished my IP journey and have been in maintenance mode for almost a month now and continue to do great. I really REALLY recommend it to everyone who asks how I did it because I truly believe that this is my last diet and by far the easiest one I have ever done.
For sure do some research on it, maybe see if there is a clinic where you can go and get some info on it r see if there is an open house info session. I gurantee you won't be disappointed in the results you can and will achieve!

I'm with frazzelmom; best diet I've ever been on, and believe me when I tell you I have tried most of them. As you can tell from both of our starting weights that we started just about where you are now. Frazzelmom lost incredibly fast, and I lost my 88 pounds in 7 months. Actually my 7th month anniversary of starting IP will be tomorrow.

This is the strictest diet I have ever been on, but also the easiest. There really isn't much to figure out as most of the work is done for you. The first week is difficult, no bones about it, but once you enter into ketosis (generally about the 3rd or 4th day) it can be smooth sailing from there as the hunger generally goes away.

I had a hard time getting past the 3rd day on most diets, but yet here I am 100% on plan (absolutely no cheating) for 7 months now. Thank goodness for IP because before I had even heard of IP (my oncologist recommended this diet to me) I was just about ready to give up because either I couldn't stay on anything, or if I did I couldn't get the scale to move after the first 10 pounds.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

IP is pretty simple. It's regimented, but simple. When I first began it, I made it a little complex by getting all fancy with the veggies, constantly trying new and complicated veggie recipes and such. Now that I've done it for a while, I am content to prepare veggies in a low maintenance manner, saving the demanding recipes (like cauliflower "bread sticks") for special occasions. If I'm in a real hurry, I don't balk at something as simple as grabbing a few celery sticks and lettuce leaves!

I am not a super regimented person by nature. Okay, that was an understatement. So, maybe it has taken me longer than others to get my routine down: remembering my vitamins, finding the right time for my snack, learning to shift some of my protein to my lunch salad, etc, but now I've got it down. I am absolutely loooooooooooooooving this program.

You have to measure out your 2 cups of vegees and weigh your meat, but other than that, the program just tells you what to do. Once you get your favorite foods ingrained as a habit, and do things like freeze portions of the meat or make home made soups to freeze, it really becomes automatic, and you can throw together meals in 20 minutes or less. I needed a program to just tell me what to do, and this really did it for me. I will always be grateful to IP.

Good luck on your decision!

I will agree with the ladies who chimed in already :) The reason I love IP is that it is SO easy ... I work 40 plus hours a week and have 3 kids who feel it necessary to involve themselves in every single activity that presents itself (LOL) so I am running around crazy all day every day. The biggest problem I had sticking to a diet plan is it became too much work ... required too much planning and eventually I would "have to" cheat a little because I didn't have the time to actually count the calories or calculate the points or whatever it may be. IP eliminates all this completely. I grab my packets in the morning and go ... and the best part is that because I am not hungry like I was on every other diet I can wait for dinner until I have time and I don't feel as if I "have" to cheat to combat the hunger. AND -- it works!! So really a win/win :)

The only real chore is weighing your meat, veggies and oil, but that's about it, everything is figured out for you, no counting of protein/carbs/fats.

I work full time so I cook batches of meat so most of the time I weigh my meat after being cooked, 5 oz cooked = 8 oz uncooked.

Frazzlemom, I see we have similar stats. How long did it take you to reach your goal (or at least reach your 90% mark).

Thanks and job well done!

Thank you all so much for the input.

How hard would this program be to follow if you were using IP foods, but not using a coach.

I understand the costs involved with going IP, but I am morally opposed to paying a "consultation fee". Where I live it's $75, and in my opinion, if the products work as well as they claim (and I am not doubting this), why are they charging people to get prepared to make an informed decision?

I have recently found that I can buy the IP foods online, which would negate the consultation fee, but also the coach. I don't want to screw myself up, but again, I don't believe they should be charging people a consultation fee, especially considering the high cost of the product (again, a cost well worth it for self confidence, and better health).

I have perused the forum a bit and seen the protocols listed. Would this be something I could start and do on my own, with the information provided here on 3FC, or is a coach really that important?

I think this is really only something you can answer. I don't know if I could have done this without my coach. She is worth every penny of the 75.00 (actually I think I paid 50.00) I spent. She takes time to talk to me each week, and she also takes my measurements and checks my lean muscle mass and body fat. I also really needed the accountability that she provided me, especially in the early days when this diet is more challenging. Now IP is just second nature to me, but I still look forward to my weigh in days and our conversations. It also really comes down to how good the coach is. You get a lot of good information here on 3fc, but at least for me it can't compare to my relationship to my coach.

Same here but I paid the fee. I like that we don't have to pay a consultant fee any time I go in for my weekly WIs. I personally like that I have to see someone every week for my WI. Keeps me honest. But that is just me.

Do what right is for you. IF you were successful with counting calories (which is so hard) then you might be okay without the consultant. You can always give it a try doing it on your own and if you feel you need that extra in person support you can always sign up.

Best of luck on your new healthy lifestyle!

For sure you can do it on your own/ without a coach. It only comes down to how much you really want to commit. If you are going to go off plan here and there because it's your birthday, family gathering etc, you're just wasting your money buying the IP products. You really need to commit to being OP Phase 1 till you get to goal and thereafter follow all the phases to a T, otherwise you will gain it back.

Pick a day for your weigh in day, get your dh/ close friend or yourself and measure too, keep track of this faithfully each week. You can also make a ticker here too. Write in a food journal everyday, keep track of everything you eat and drink, even if its gum or a packet of Splenda, keeps you accountable IMO..... and come here everyday for support or vent ;)

See, for me, it's like this:

I wouldn't pay an entry fee to go to a PartyLite party, or a Tupperware Party...people take the time to teach me about their products for free, and hope that I see the value in them. If they "con" you into paying the consultation fee, then you're already invested to some extent. I find it to be dishonest. Above and beyond that, the first week, cost wise, ends up being almost 3x as much every other week, including the consultation fee. $75 fee, $199 first week's food...and about $90 for each additional week's food. I would LOVE to try this program/protocol, but I just don't know if I can justify $274 for the first week. Beyond that, I don't know if I can even afford it (justification aside).

I am sorry to ramble, I am just tired of being fat, tired of fighting, and looking for a simple (please note, I said SIMPLE, not easy) way for me to find success, that isn't going to absolutely break the bank.

By your tracker you would like to drop 108lbs, if we say that you will average 3lbs a week that means 36 wks of PH1, 1 week of PH2, 2 weeks of PH3, and unlimited visits on PH4. Let's round to 40 weeks on IP, that is $1.87 per week for the clinic fee. That does included a weekly body comp which costs the clinic $2 for every client. For the cost of the food you need to subtract all the fast food you eat, any junk food you buy, 2 meals from the grocery store, for most people they end up even or less than the cost of the food.