Lol! Again thanks! I have very similar reactions to certain foods. The last thing I want to do spin out of control and feel hungry all the time.

I was wondering how much excercise you all try to get while maintaining? Thanks!

I exercise about 3 hours per week - I take 2 classes at the gym that are an hour each, and I run about a half hour twice a week. When I set my goal weight, I wanted to make sure that I didn't go so low that it would require me to kill myself exercising to maintain it. So far so good!

This sounds exactly like me. Simple sugars definitely trigger me, making me want 'more'... and those cravings just aren't worth it. I believe now I'm slightly lactose intolerant too, at least with cow's milk...oddly enough not so much yogourt or ricotta cheese... I'm sticking with almond milk. I also feel better (at least much less bloaty) when I really reduce or even better- eliminate - gluten. I've allowed my Fun Days to get a little out of control... that and not adhering strictly enough to the P1 day have put me a couple of lbs higher than where I really want to be.

I had a major session at the dentist's this am. The X-rays showed a crack in another molar... so he refilled the tooth that I knew I'd lost part of a filling from, plus that one as well... it turned into a pretty extensive repair job. Mouth is definitely tender at present, as the freezing leaves. But my tooth problem is all fixed and that lingering flu/cold (or whatever the heck bug it was) is now gone.... so things are definitely looking up again! Now I've got to tackle those 2 lbs or so, and get back down to 150lbs or slightly under again. I've got a pudge around my middle again that has to go! Plus, I've got to get myself on a more structured exercise program.... which really shouldn't be hard, as I have an elliptical machine and vibracize machine right in my home... I just have to discipline myself to use them both!

Cheers everyone - hope you're all having a good day. :)

Edited @ 6:21pm:
Came back to report that I worked out on my elliptical for 1/2 hour today! It's a start.... :)

Add me to the carb/gluten/sugar sensitive list. I still only tend to have any type of grain in the morning, and load up on veggies and protein for lunch and dinner. I've also added more good fats to my diet, and have stuck with almond milk since I found that I like it better anyway. I really don't do fun days, but when I get to the low weight of my preferred range (around 130) I'm a lot more flexible with my food choices. I've also not had a P1 day, but when I get close to 134 I go back to stricter P3 meals and track everything. I tend to work out every other day, with 30 minutes on the bike or elliptical followed by weight machines and situps. I can finally tell that I'm getting some of the muscle back that I lost while on IP. :)

Does anyone still use IP products in mainenance and if so how? I'm a little nervous because I've been eating so many chocolate flavored foods in phase 1 I'm not sure how I will satisfy my cravings.

When I first transitioned I was still using Quest bars as snacks pretty much daily and also sometimes drank EAS shakes but that was pretty infrequent. I really thought I'd keep using the WF chocolate and caramel syrups as well but haven't touched them. I haven't opened a packet since, either. I'm finding I have even less of a sweet tooth than when I was on IP. I'm satisfying my appetite with more veggies (love that I don't have to limit to 2 cups!), healthy fats and protein. Today, for instance, I had my regular 3 meals (big breakfast has continued as part of my routine) and about 6 almonds, and I'm not really feeling like I need anything more. Like you, I had been concerned about cravings but they never materialized in my case.

I still keep a box of bars handy, and I use syntrax shakes post-exercise. I allow myself to have a square of Ghiardelli dark chocolate every day, and one of my go-to snacks is Cocoa Roast almonds (the 100 calorie packs are the perfect portion!) so I don't really get chocolate cravings anymore.

I don't use the IP packets anymore, but I did use them at first for the P1 days. Now I just eat low carb for P1. I am also simple sugar intolerant. I do the same as some of you, indulge a little in my low range days with higher fat low carb dishes. I exercise 6/7 days a week.

I am still traveling and heading home. I think the scale will be OK!

I am listening to the AMA declaring that obesity is a disease with 1/3 people in the US being affected. The guy said that right now obesity was not labeled as a disease like smoking for insurance companies. Now i am wondering if this has changed and people will be charged higher rates if they are obese.

Travel is so nice when you are thin and do not have to deal with fitting seats and narrow aisles.

This has been in process for a few years now. The insurance companies started with smoking - people who were smokers and not willing to go through a quitting program paid a slightly higher insurance rate. Then it moved to basic health - the requirements to avoid a surcharge included things like making sure you have had a routine physical within the last 2 years, going through a biometric screening to get a picture of your overall health, completing a health questionnaire about your lifestyle that offered suggestions for healthy lifestyle changes based on your answers. Is obesity next? Probably in the near future. The movement in how health insurance is charged is towards a model more like car insurance - where there is a base rate charge, and discounts are applied for things that you do to reduce liability on the insurance company - healthy lifestyle, nonsmoker, getting routine checkups for preventive care, participating in programs that address risk factors (quit smoking programs, weight loss programs, etc).

What it's doing on the positive side is creating greater access to free programs for improving health. When smoking was the target, more companies and healthcare providers offered free access to not only classes on quitting, but the medications for assisting people to quit - if they completed the quitting program they were not charged for the medications. The same will likely happen for obesity - greater access to free help from a dietary professional, incentives for joining a fitness center, free access to weight loss aids if a program is followed to completion.

Hey Hey Everyone,

I still use IP packets but probably because they are easy and I'm lazy (just being honest)...when I'm ready I'll probably canvass you guys for your fav alternatives. :)

Chugging along here, trying not to stress out too much. I 'think' I'm almost ready for my big day...not much else I can do but wait for my mom to show up now.

I started running on Sunday again and I could totally tell the difference in my stress level. I hadn't run in 8 months and started to walk about two weeks before my first planned run. 7.2 km in my first try (58 min with a 10 min walk, slow but still completed)...probably not the smartest move I've ever made but it felt so good that I just kept going...I think I still compare how I feel working out now to how I felt running a 10 km at 250lbs that it's just so easy I keep going. My quads were SCREAMING in pain Monday and yesterday. So I went for a little 30 minute run yesterday to get some oxygen into them and I spend a lot of time doing quad and hips stretches and hamstring stretches now.

Gosh I missed it...glad it's back. I get such a runner's high out of it, there is a marked difference in my mood even the VIP laughs at me :)

Joco - I haven't been doing any sort of planned exercise for about 8 months, maintained just on food alone. Even with two runs under my belt I can feel that I need to add about 100 calories back into my diet. Yay for a fruit (how many years did I eat a chocolate bar because I worked out LOL)

maile I agree, travel is easier now! I like crossing my legs WHILE in the airplane...just so I can smile and say "look what I can do now!"

bubbleblower I too love that I don't have to limit anything to 2 cups...that if I'm hungry before supper I can eat some carrots to tide me over! :)

Hi All! I'm also traveling home from a weeK on the road. I'm at a rest stop with about 3-4 hours left on the drive from Austin to my home. It's been a fun trip and We'll see what the scale says tomorrow morning. I will probably do 2 days of P2 or P3. Don't think I'll need a P1 day, but I'll do it happily if needed.

I'm with you, Maile on the traveling, although my airplane travel will begin in a few weeks.

So....do you all think that eventually IP will come under insurance plans? Now, that would be great, even though we missed it. Glad to have that part of the journey behind me.

Regards to you all!

Thanks everyone. How many calories do you shoot for a day and not have to excersize?

I exercise 6 days a week. Mainly weight training and spin or bootcamp. high intensity. I stay pretty low carb. I don't count calories. My goal is to eat slowly and stop at 80% full.
I used ip packets for a long time. I am not just eating regular food, lots of protein and veggies.

1300-1400 Cals a day for me with no workouts, my phase 1 day has packets and 'sometimes' a Monday breakfast. When I'm running and doing strength it's 1400-1700.

When I injured myself I was eating 1400-1700 and just cut back until my weight stabilized. My doctor gave me crap thou! 'Fitness is good for you!' lol and I'm back at it but I had a few hip and foot problems so it was difficult and then well, with the wedding it became a lower priority once I figured out how to maintain without consistent workouts. Big difference in my mood thou so given that my wedding is almost here I should have been working out all along.

You really have to figure it out yourself for your own body, I'm bigger than a lot of maintainers at an 8-10 (sometimes 6) and I'm ok with that. I know where I came from and I'll never forget how that felt. :)