I wanted to put my vote in for the parents dance, before I talk about food.
I think it puts a nice spin on embracing family looking toward the future, without dishonoring the memories of those who have passed.

Thanks for the nice words. Mostly I'm just full of it. ; )

On the black soy beans -- they only have one net carb so I use them as a protein. Might go two servings or use them with some other protein. I haven't done anything special with them--eat from can (OK, not literally, but at room temperature), warm them up with some hot green chiles. Maybe I put them on salad & taco night vegetables.

Beans in general -- I consider them a carb. I find if I don't add some other protein (like a soy burger or quorn crumbles or whatever) I'm still hungry and will look for more carbs.

Carbs serving size: I'm going to call this 30 to 40g total carbs from stuff like potatoes, pasta or rice at dinner. That is about 6 mini-potatoes or 1/2 cup rice. Sometimes I'll skip the dinner carb then have popcorn right after dinner. I think 1/4 cup raw (then air-popped) is probably the generous serving size (which means I can eat 1/2 cup raw, easily, and it often shows on the scale, especially when I stop.)

Carbs per day: When I am doing things right, this will net (carbs minus fiber) to 150g or less. That includes vegetables, veggie meats, fruit, yogurt, any protein bars, Arctic Zero "ice cream" and the dinner carb.

Stuff to put on dinner carbs that isn't a ton of fat (limit to 5g of fat, sometimes a little higher depending on the "meat"): pasta sauce, curry sauce, olive oil, butter, avocado, parmesan cheese, cheddar cheese, fruit salsa. Also, you can use carbs for condiments: ketchup, teriyaki sauce, etc. Just watch serving size, as these are really carb costly and often just sugar that can "set you off" to overeat. Usually I just want more real food. My husband likes Grey Poupon on baked potato.

The beauty of the separate carbs & fats rule is that it eliminates a lot of stuff I would just overeat.

I took a look at The Simply Bar. I think I will try those. I really miss those IP Chocolate Drinks Mixes (sigh) as they were whey which helped me not have "all soy all the time" but I am finding I need something to grab. I swear I can taste the vitamins in all those bars that add them.

Which brings me to vitamins. I think I should be taking them again. I pretty much stopped at maintenance, then used up what I had left a few weeks ago. I honestly thought they made a big difference in how I felt, so I'm not sure why I am being such a slacker in getting replacements. I think I'm trying to figure out if I want to find an IP coach for the last 6 months of maintenance or if I will go to my old coach until they catch on that I am not buying Healthwise/Protithin products from them or if I will just order the vitamins on line or <insert inaction excuse here>.

I've been checking out the Precision Nutrition site that Mom2cs noted. They have a free 5 day thing where they lay out the program. Quite similar to IP from the veggie/protein at each meal; varies from there. Of note, carb serving size for women is less than half a fist. I think you earn your carbs by having them only after exercise. Lots of information to glean for free.

I certainly made this long enough ; )
Hope I covered the stuff floating around.

infoplease - that was super helpful!!! Copied and added to my "phase 4 bathroom reading" :)

Wow! A place of honor in your bathroom!
To heck with that Nobel Prize...

; )

hehehe :) You, me, and a cup of Smooth Move tea, baby :)

Thanks so much, Infoplease. It's saved to my Phase 4 - Vegetarian info. :)

You are welcome, starshine.
Do let us know if you figure out how to do IP vegetarian without the fake meats.
I wonder how long time, ideal weight vegetarians do it.

I use stevia, Splenda or SF syrup would work too. I use an EAS Carb Control Vanilla but don't see why a scoop of protein powder wouldn't work.

LizRR - I was going to ask in your P3 breakfast thread, but what size pans do you use for your recipes? I bake a LOT so "baking pan" for me can mean 6X6, 9X9, 9X13, 5X8, bread pan, brownie pan....you get the idea. My kitchen looks like calphalon threw up in it :)

Will do, Infoplease. :) I may still do a bit of fake meats. I like the Quorn Turkey Burger with Waldens Hot and Spicy Barbecue Sauce. Wish it had more fiber though.

I do wish more Vegetarian IP maintenance people would be on this forum. It certainly would be helpful. I see a lot of people not doing the P4 maintenance, but Paleo, etc., so maybe Vegetarians just go back to eating a healthy Vegetarian diet (that's my hope for them at least)?

I'm thinking I may not add back in cheese, as I have really come to enjoy eating sauce free and more simpler foods and veggies. I may end up going back to Vegan even. I'm definitely going to be trying maintenance the way IP has it set up, as I really want to control the sugar addiction that is a lifelong issue with me. Phase 1 (once I figured it out :)) has worked so well with me, that I'm going to trust Phase 4 too.

I'm still in Phase 1, just to let you know, as I still have fat to lose, and since I have no way to judge how much actual weight that is, I just decided to stop lowering my goal weight for a bit.

And thanks again for all your advice, Infoplease! :hug:

I can do 2 pumpkin pies or cheesecakes in a regular pie pan ("leftovers" in little ramekins), 1qt pyrex ramekin for single custards, 3qt casserole for 3 bread pudding servings.

That's perfect! I am gearing up, and your recipes are by far my favorites :) Can't wait to stock my fridge with yummy breakfasts! Thank you!

Everybody here ROCKS!!!!! Thanks so much! My first week weigh-in went amazingly well. Peace of mind is on the horizon...

IshbellHave you tried tofu mousse with stevia? I linked a chocolate recipe, but there is a lemon one I have had that is delish!
http://www.grouprecipes.com/60392/to...te-mousse.html
or frozen fruit with some sort of Fat free dairy blended into ice-cream (my kids call it breakfast ice-cream because I let them put it on their cereal)!

Malie As usual, your experience, insight, information and kind words bring peace.

ddpadler It may be the addition of soluble fiber from oats, beans, and other veggies too. You could try Beno to see if it's that. Also, I am "not-so-tolerant" of skim milk, but can handle fattier dairy and yogurts. I hope it gets better!

infopleaseYou are AMAZING! I've never seen these numbers… thanks! Plus a big thanks for all the vegetarian goodies! As I get more comfortable with the fact that I can eat regular food, I'll try experimenting with more non-meat options. As I find non-fake-meat options I'll let you know.

glomor I sub fat free plain greek yogurt as sour cream for sauces (just add it as the sauce cools…it can't get too hot). Frequently I'll just saute a load of veggies together with a spice blend and top my carb (or packet food) with that (ex. zucchini, tomato, fennel and green onion with an italian spice blend with a little whole wheat pasta mixed in). LizRR has some fab veggie purees posted somewhere on this forum that are great toppers.

and, last but not least

Scorbett I feel your pain...maybe TMI, but you are not alone!

Hi, all! Happy Saturday!

Been lurking a bit this week, but very busy, so haven't posted in a while...

Ishbel - Love the family dance idea! Do whatever makes you and VIP happy - don't worry about tradition or what makes others happy.

Greeniris, Maile - you have both asked about my job interview. I got called back for a second interview. Looks like they are down to 2 candidates, so well see what happens. I am fortunate to have a great job now, so no matter what I will be happy.

Had a great valentines day dinner with DH last night at a nice Cuban restaurant. Lobster, flourless chocolate cake... Can't do that often, but it sure was good!! Back to my routine today!

Wow...there's so much amazing information floating around this thread! The Paleo bread from Julians bakery, the clarifications on fat/carb limits for lunch and dinner and the Precision plan which I had not heard about. Helps me to figure out how I can keep trying to get the last 10 lbs of my re-boot off, as P1 may actually be slowing me down...I'm not sure, but somethings telling me I need to change something up and trick my body a little. I've cut back on protein bars and artificial sweeteners in general, upping my water, salad, eating almost exclusively fish for dinner, etc....you know the drill, but I don't want to go lower in calories and then throw my body into survival mode. I'll just gain everything back the second I go back to a normal balanced diet.
Has anyone had luck with adding more healthy fats? Or anything? Appreciate it Ladies. :)

Lizzy63: Good luck on the next round. That is great that you made it to the second round.

Sunnymae: I make a satay sauce with 1 tablespoon of almond butter, 1 Tbl of soy and 1 Tablespoon of sambal..You use it as a dip for satay chicken. I also make a yogurt sauce with tahini ( a fat)..Avocados are a healthy fat and can be added to salads. I also use real salad dressing with olive oil..

Scorbette: Can you post the cauliflower humuus? I am a humuus lover. Thanks for the info on baking.

Ishbel: the cauliflower cake sounds intriguing..It is not sweet and uses parmesean cheese. However, I will not use wheat flour.

Infoplease: Your information is so valuable. I live near a community where their religion is vegetarian. Most people seem to use the meat substitiutes.

I am traveling to visit my sons.