[itzroxy814]

To explain why I'm asking this, I am on week 3, day 4 of IP. My weigh-ins:

WI #1 - 9 days after starting = 10 pounds, 5 inches
WI #2 - 5 days later = 1.8 pounds, 2 inches
WI #3 - 7 days later = 1.8 pounds, 2 inches

I posted earlier this week that at my 3rd weigh-in, my coach seemed like my small 1.8 pound loss was not typical and said "it's too early to see losses like that" (I am 5'1" and started IP at 274 pounds). I agreed -- I did not expect that. She suggested to add either 1 or 2 hard boiled eggs a day OR an extra unrestricted pack due to the extreme hunger I felt everyday a few hours after lunch, assuming I was in starvation mode (whole different argument)

On the 4 days since then, I had 1 hard boiled egg 1 day, an extra pack the next, 1 hard boiled egg the next day, and 2 hard boiled eggs the next. (Eggs in addition to my 8 oz. protein)

I know I "shouldn't", but out of curiosity I've still been weighing myself daily and am the same weight as 4 days ago at the weigh-in. Could be a coincidence, I'm not sure. But I know that I have 3 days left till WI and I'm wondering "Is this working?". Also wondering if the extra packet and eggs is not what I need, or could be working against me? I figure if I didn't see a loss in 4 days of it, what can the next 3 days show?

So I have to ask... which of these things would you or HAVE you found most negatively affect your weight loss on IP?

1. Not eating enough veggies.
2. Not eating enough protein.
3. Skipping a packet.
4. Not enough water.

Or on the flip side, having too much of the above?

There are days, I admit (and have admitted to the coach, plus she's seen my journal) that I simply don't make 4 cups of veggies a day. And on days where I might eat 4 cups of veggies, I might only have 6 oz. of protein. Trust me, I know that doing this is not 100% OP but am just curious as to IF these things could be affecting my weight loss that bad and if so, which of them is worse? I have said since day 1: THERE IS TOO MUCH FOOD ON IP. I hate eating when I am not hungry. I hate feeling so full and seeing that I have so much chicken left on my plate that I have to force myself to eat. I KNOW I should have to eat it so this is a "just out of curiosity" post. Thank you.

[Avalon1957]

How old are you? I estimated your age to be 30 in this BMR calculator ...

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/tools/bmr-calculator

And it spit out that your resting BMR is 1832 calories a day. If you are not doing a lot of exercise on top of that. Lets assume you are burning about 1900 calories day. The strict IP P1 regimine is giving you about 950 calories a day. So you are in deficit (between what you are ingesting vs. what you are burning of 882 calories a day.

To burn 1 pound of fat, you need a deficit of 3500 calories. Also when you burn 1 pound of fat, your body will release 1/2 pound of "body stored water". So when your total calorie deficit gets to 3500, you should lose 1.5 pounds on your scale.

If you are on STRICT Phase 1 ... your deficit is 882 calories a day, so it should take you nearly 4 full days to burn 3500 calories and lose 1.5 pounds on your scale. So if you are not cheating at all, and getting 950 calories a day on IP P1, I estimate your weekly losses should be right around 2.6 pounds. (Or about 11-12 pounds a month.)

Now if you start eating more food, such as extra hard boiled eggs or extra IP packs, it should cause you to lose less weight (since you are now getting more calories and have a smaller deficit per day).

What the high protein levels do is keep your body from burning muscle instead of fat. So if you don't get enough protein (by skipping IP packs or not eating 8 oz of lean meat) you will probably lose weight off the scale FASTER ... however it will be more muscle loss and not as much fat loss ... which could sabotage you "down the line" since it's the muscle in your body that burns more calories and keeps your metabolism (your burn rate) high. The more fat you are and less muscular, the less calories your body will burn, which makes it much harder to lose weight and maintain losses down the line.

Eating more vegies is a good way to "fill up" with bulk with not so many calories or carbs, but the carbs do add up, so measure your vegies and eat 4 cups a day of select vege's only. Any less and you may feel too hungry, any more and you may be getting too many carbs.

Skipping an IP packet, will drop your calories a little (120 to 140 or so) but also drop your protein and could cause you to burn more muscle. This will result in faster losses now (but you could find yourself plateauing later).

Not enough water is VERY BAD. Make sure you are getting 80 to 100 oz of water a day. I know this can be hard to choke down as it's a lot of water. Try putting some herb tea bags in your water (i like Cinnamon Apple Spice teabags). Some nutritionists say you should drink 1/2 oz of water per 1 pound of body weight, but this might be a tad excessive (having you drink 130 oz of water per day sounds like too much). In any case, your body needs a lot of water in order to break down and expel fat in your urine (it's actually the mechanism where your body gets rid of the fat). If you aren't drinking enough water, then your body will have a hard time burning and expelling fat. One last note on water, 50 oz of water weight 3.5 pounds -- so 100 oz of water weighs 7 pounds. So your scale weight can be significantly higher after drinking a lot of water (and before you pee it all out). This is why it's best to weigh yourself at the same time every day ... first thing in the morning (after peeing and before drinking or eating anything) is best (IMHO) as you are most dehydrated then and will give you are more consistent baseline time for your daily weigh ins. However, even doing that you weight could still fluctuate more than you think, so focus in more on your weight in 4 to 7 day blocks and don't get too hung up on daily weight numbers. All kinds of things can throw monkey wrenches in daily weigh ins (like your period, bowel fullness, water weight, or other hormonal fluctuations). I have had days when I was perfect on IP P1 and my weight went up 1 pound from one day to the next. Try not to freak out if that happens! And it will, but in a few days your weight will come back down to lower than where you started.

One more thing to try, is try to eat more earlier in the day ... and less after about 6pm. Your body burns calories more efficiently earlier in the day (since you have more of the day left to be active). After 6pm many of us get more sedentary and eating a lot of food/calories late and then going to bed soon after could sabotage you a little bit.

Now let's look at your week 2 and week 3 losses ...

WI #2 - 5 days later = 1.8 pounds, 2 inches
WI #3 - 7 days later = 1.8 pounds, 2 inches

In 5 days you lost 1.8 pounds. If we extrapolate this out to 7 days, it would have been (7/5) x (1.8 pounds) = 2.52 pounds
This is SO CLOSE to my estimate of 2.6 pounds per week for you, it's not even funny!
So your week 2 losses are right on target.

Now in week 3, it took you 7 days to lose 1.8 pounds, however if you started eating extra hard boiled eggs and extra IP packs (which is giving you more calories) ... then it makes perfect sense that it's taking you longer to lose weight. That being said you are still not that far off from my strict IP P1 estimate of 2.6 pounds per week for you. You actually lost 1.8, which is only 0.8 pounds less. Not a big deal.

It's interesting that our current weights are identical right now at 259 pounds, but I am 14" taller than you, which boosts my BMR to 1924 calories per day (almost 100 calories more a day than you). It would have been more, but I am also probably 25 years older than you, so that reduced my BMR. In any case, my past five weekly losses have been -2.0, -1.0, -2.75, -3.75, -2.50 ... which is an average of -2.4 pounds per week. This is actually pretty similar to your numbers. Even small weekly weight loss numbers can add up significantly over time!

I think the big things for you to focus on are:

1. Get more realistic with your expectations, as what you are doing now is locking you in on a "sense of failure" when you are actually having success. You are doing FINE! Keep it up.

2. Notice your INCHES LOST numbers!! Losing 4" off your measurements in 2 weeks is fantastic. This is pure fat loss (especially your waistline measurement). I have been on IP P1 a bit less than 4 months and I have melted away 11" (nearly a foot!) off my waistline, from 54" to 43". This is incredible. So try to focus on the positive.

3. Think about how long it took you to get as heavy as you are now. It might have taken years. So give yourself some time. You are only 3 weeks in. Just keep the scale pointed down, keep melting off those inches, lose the unrealistic expectations, relax and breathe, and try to be positive and happy! This diet will work ... IF YOU STICK TO IT (and don't cheat) ... not always easy. But we are all rooting for you.

4. You are down 14 pounds and 9" off your total measurements in 24 days, so give yourself a pat on the back!!! If you think about how much you've lost in the past 3+ weeks, it's pretty miraculous.

5. One last thought, deviating from the plan is a slippery slope (IMHO). At least for the first 3 months, try to follow IP Phase 1 100%. Don't eat less than what is laid out, and don't eat more. Don't try to "wing it" on your own. Just follow it, it will work. It's your time, it's your money, and it's your body. But why not try to maximize your losses while you are focused on losing!

[IdealProteinNewbie]

I'm not going to get as detailed as Avalon, but I think you are analyzing things way too much.

Yes, we need to tailor the plan for our individual bodies (lifestyles, hormones, previous eating habits, etc.) but doing something for 4 days when you have too many factors going on is not going to form a trend.

If you were following 100% for quite a while then started tweaking things ONE at a time you could probably figure something out, but not the way you're doing it.

Honestly, 3 packets, 4 cups of veggies and 8 oz of protein per day is not that much. Split it up however works best for you and "graze" throughout the day if you have to but make sure you're not skipping anything.

ETA: I don't think it's wise to ask what's most "detrimental" to your losses. Stick to it, not only for high numbers on your once-weekly weigh in but for overall health benefits and positive change to your life.

[Ruth Ann]

I don't have much to add to the excellent posts by Avalon & IPN except to stress that you need to make sure you get all your water in - turns you into a fat flushing machine!

If you're hungry, try eating lettuce. It fills you up and is unlimited.

[Maile]

I agree with the other posts. Try to stick to P1 100 percent. It is important to get 4 cups of vegetables in. Drinking the water is also necessary. Maybe you could spread your protein out if you have trouble eating it at one time.

The main thing is that IP does work. Also I have read of other people who had a big loss the first week, then slowed down, then picked up again. I definitely had slow weeks in my 10 months on IP. I started at 242.

Hang in there. IP is great!

[tiggermd]

I agree with following phase one as is. Also the body has some slow weeks. I had an amazing loss for 10 weeks and then had 2 static weeks and now I have started losing again.
I just remind myself to be patient and trust the process.

[itzroxy814]

Thank you everyone for your responses. This is the first diet I've been on where I've had to be accountable to someone other than myself (my coach). I really don't want to let her down and am truly embarrassed if I weigh in again and the loss is little to nothing. I don't want her to think I'm cheating or lying (my journal does not lie).

The reason I ask what is most detrimental is because like I said, I am never hungry on this diet. I am actually sometimes dreading dinner because I know I'm not going to be able to finish it all and feel guilty about it. I was just wondering what was the worst thing I could do - skimp on veggies, skip on protein, or eat all of that but then don't have my last packet at night? I drink the required 64 oz. of water every day, but wondered if that still wasn't enough (compared to other diets I've been on, 64 oz. of water is not a lot).

As I woke up today, weighing myself naked, after I peed (like every morning), I was once again the exact same weight as week 3 weigh-in: 259.4.

[itzroxy814]

Originally Posted by Avalon1957

How old are you? I estimated your age to be 30 in this BMR calculator ...

Awesome response, you are always so full of helpful information. And I am 28!

[Slipfree]

Hi,

You have lost 14 pounds in 3 weeks. Congratulations. You are not doing this for your coach, (you are paying them for help) this is for you. Settle into a routine, come up with some meals that you like, split up your protein, measure everything and eat all of what is on the plan. Before IP, I definitely ate when I was not hungry, try to think of it as providing fuel for fat burning. Beyond that get ready for changes, weeks 5-6, I was very hungry. Now in week 7, not so much. So far, IP has been quite a ride with a few bumps, but I have lost 27 pounds in 7 weeks(some 2 pound weeks) it all adds up. The plan works, if you work the plan. You are working it, just give it time.

[lisa32989]

Originally Posted by itzroxy814

Thank you everyone for your responses. This is the first diet I've been on where I've had to be accountable to someone other than myself (my coach). I really don't want to let her down and am truly embarrassed if I weigh in again and the loss is little to nothing. I don't want her to think I'm cheating or lying (my journal does not lie).

The reason I ask what is most detrimental is because like I said, I am never hungry on this diet. I am actually sometimes dreading dinner because I know I'm not going to be able to finish it all and feel guilty about it. I was just wondering what was the worst thing I could do - skimp on veggies, skip on protein, or eat all of that but then don't have my last packet at night? I drink the required 64 oz. of water every day, but wondered if that still wasn't enough (compared to other diets I've been on, 64 oz. of water is not a lot).

As I woke up today, weighing myself naked, after I peed (like every morning), I was once again the exact same weight as week 3 weigh-in: 259.4.

Instead of looking for the "least bad" thing to do off-plan, how about finding ways to stay OP?

As others have said, perhaps breaking up the 8 oz meat & having some for breakfast or lunch so you don't feel like you have to shovel it in at dinner. Many veggies cook down into very small amounts (spinach & zucchini for example - also Kale chips). Are you eating your veggies cooked? Go to the fun with veggie puree thread (link is in first post of the daily) to find MANY ways to "sneak" veggies into every meal.

I totally agree with others about how you are viewing your coach. You won't "let her down". She is your employee. You are paying her.

[onmyway1014]

One thing I would add is make sure you are weighing and measuring raw. 8 oz of chicken or sirloin shrinks down to a reasonable sized portion when cooked.

Kale, spinach, collards and other greens 2 cups raw shrinks to a much smaller size when cooked as well.

Try the spinach in your shakes: it's one less cup of veggies to eat.

If you are eggs as extras its only the whites that are allowed. IP is also VERY low fat - egg yolks have higher concentrations of fat.

If you are always hungry: why not make your 8 oz of protein in the morning and eat a little of it each time you are starving during the day: by dinner you'll have hardly any left to eat.

Also no one has mentioned all the stressing you are doing: getting all worked up and constantly thinking about why you are not losing will raise you bodies level of cortisol. Research has shown that higher levels of stress hormones like cortisol make it harder to lose weight ad actually cause the body to store fat around the abdomen.

Also are you getting enough sleep?

Drink your water. It is critical to flush your body of toxins being released by the breakdown of fat and the process of ketosis.

Are you adding any sweeteners or syrups? if so - stop - recent research has shown that artificial sweeteners cause insulin release and blood sugar spikes just like real sugar.

last - sometimes at 4 -6 weeks or so your body has to readjust and most people report low or no losses on these re- adjustment weeks.

Hang in there. Make a plan and stick with it without changing it up everyday. stay off the scale between weigh ins. try to relax.

When you are in that much of a calorie deficit the weight HAS to come off.

One more thing: are you looking for an excuse to give up and let self sabotage win. The mind is the most important part of the weight loss equation. I lost my 140+ lbs in 10 months. At times it seemed slow - but I just stuck to that IP sheet and kept on going...... I had that doubt telling me it wouldn't work for me, I had health issues and required medications derail me more than once on my IP journey; I had a non supportive overweight husband feeding into my doubt; my coach accused me of eating foods I did not because she couldn't read my journal and she belittled me on a week when I had lost almost 7 lbs; my coworkers questioned my eating/not eating all the time: I had life try to get in the way everyday: but I did not let it. The old me would have given up. It would have been easier. If I had just kept on with my old ways I'd be just where I was a year ago - 292 lbs! but I stuck to it and now 1 year and 1 month after starting I am literally half the size I was and have been maintaining my loss for 3 months.

Sorry to get preachy but my point is: IP WORKS! If it worked for me - believe me it will certainly work for you: You can do this!!! Just stick to the sheet -

[Slipfree]

Wow OnMyway, you are inspiring! Do you mind if I paste your response onto Oct. Newbies? I think your journey and success would be helpful.

[Jenny38]

Itzroxy814, hang in there and stay off the scale. Surrender yourself to IP and know that it works and just way in with your coach. If she isn't being supportive or encouraging find a new one.

Avalon - you could be a coach, I found your post very informative and appreciated the science behind it.

There are some great suggestions like cooking down your veggies. I'm wondering how you aren't hungry, I can't wait to eat my 8oz at night.