Hello ladies!!

I hope you've had a very merry Christmas :hohoho: and are ready to celebrate tomorrow, Woohooo!!! :carrot:

Congratulations 2bskinnyagain!!! You're so close to your goal!! :hug: I'm very, very proud of you :D :cheer3::cheer3::cheer3:

Lose2Win hang in there, you mentioned you're losing weight slowly, you're losing weight and inches? I have only once not lose anything, not even inches, and I have to admit I was feeling disappointed, but then I thought that it was probably because of my ToM and the following week I lost 5.2lbs and inches!! Have you talked to your coach? The clinic where I go, they've mentioned during an informational session that if you don't lose weight they "throw a curve ball" at you, and you'll lose weight, I don't know what is it that they change in your diet, but you lose weight, you should ask in your clinic if it concerns you. Congratulations on staying 100% OP during the holidays!! Keep up the good job :hug: I have as well, and the one thing that I craved the most was red wine!!! Ahhhhhhhh!!! I seriously can't wait to get a bottle, well a glass, of merlot!

Briael Grats on a great loss this week!! That's what I've noticed, if one week the loss is not much, or none, the following week will be a nice, big loss! Is Zevia soda allowed in P1? I stared drinking some of the mineral water, La Croix, and I like it :D I've been having that instead of wine or champagne.

Thanks Ariel13!!! I had a pretty small weight loss at my WI yesterday, but considering it is/was the holidays - I'll take it! A 0.6 lbs loss is better than gaining!

You are doing awesome too! Every week you are getting closer and closer to your goal. You will be there before you know it!

Something that has really been helping me is tea. When everyone is drinking wine and eating desserts, I make myself a nice cup of tea and it seems to help me not feel left out! Ha!

Happy New Years to everyone on here! This will be the year that we ALL make goal :).

2beskinnyagain Thank you! :hug: I am getting closer to "something" because I honestly don't know what my goal is anymore:?: In the clinic I said 175lbs which I'm 9lbs away, but the one I wanted is 165lbs and I recorded that here in 3FC , but I'm thinking that's still a big number, I do not want to be fat anymore, there are all sorts of people some are skinny, slim, toned, chubby, a bit fat, fat, super fat, super, super fat, and I do not want to be in any way thought of being a fat person...

I "feel" right now that I'm still a fat person, even though I'm not a plus size anymore, I think I'm fat...my family say that if someone sees me they won't think I'm fat (but then I think they say that because they love me, and because they've seen me at 258lbs before!) I am big boned and I'm 5'3 so I know my body frame has a lot to do with the number in the scale, and I shouldn't fixate on it!! I can't change my broad bones, I wish I could though ;) Over the weekend I saw a friend, he told me I looked very good, I told him I was thinking on losing another 30lbs, and he said that would be too much, I would look too skinny and he said about 10 would be ok...so I'm STILL fat, if I get to my 165lbs I won't be 'looked' as a fat person anymore....Ahhhh, that felt good, had to get it out! :D

So, what tea is it that you're drinking 2beskinnyagain?

I am not a tea person, I'm a coffeeholic person! :dizzy: and even more now with the diet, it feels like it wasn't the only yummy thing that wasn't taken away from me!! and I also drink LOTS of water when before I couldn't really drink a glass of it...Well, I still have sleeping issues, I can't get myself to sleep!!! I'm up like an owl, and when talking to coach, well a couple of them, they said that being unable to sleep, meant I have a lot of energy, and that's a sign of ketosis, and to cut down on coffee, not to drink it too late - now, before the diet, I could drink a cup of coffee before going to bed and I could still sleep like a baby- so it is odd to me to be having these sleeping problems due to coffee, its the ketosis mode, not my caffeine, but I really want, NEED to sleep, so I'll try my best to not drink it late. My coach suggested to drink a calming, relaxing tea, I bought it yesterday, but I didn't drink it, and yes, I was up very late, thankfully we're on break, but I do need to try that tea and hopefully it helps because even thought I'm glad I'm in ketosis, I really, really need and miss Morpheus ;)

:newyear: Augustians!!!

I am also having difficulty knowing what my goal is. I've adjusted from 150 to 154 based on something I saw on a website, but it could change again. Who knew I was also broad boned? I am learning so much.

Now for comments from others telling you to stop: I got sidetracked the last time I was losing weight. When I hit the high 180s, I got so many compliments. I didn't finish what I had started. I didn't have the tools to maintain weight loss. This time I take compliments for what they are, a nice affirmation that I am on the right track. I am much more focused on the goal and recognizing that at 190 pounds and 5'8", I have just passed from obese to merely overweight. My very good friend told me the other day that I was "wasting away". This time, I can take it as a compliment, but it isn't changing my attitude toward my diet.

I am glad you are all still in this with me! Your successes keep me going!

Happy New Year! Isn't it wonderful not to be resolving to START a diet? Hoping you are all doing the New Year's challenge. It makes time pass so fast.

Ariel13 my absolute favorite tea is the Morrocan Mint by Stash! I've tried a bunch of others but I just love it. I tried some detox tea that my clinic gave me but I wasn't a big fan it was too spicey. The flavor is tough to explain. But I also like good old Lipton, Green Tea and Earl Grey. It definitely helps me when I get the munchies.

As for finding a goal weight, it really is tough. When I first started IP, my goal weight was 180lbs. When I got to the 180's, I still felt fat so I changed my goal to 170lbs. Then the 170's came and well you get the picture :). Now, I'm in the 160's and I'm actually contemplating the 150's. I NEVER thought I would weigh this little as an adult.

Lose2Win2014 my mom who was one of my biggest supporters was doing her best to derail me on Christmas! She said I'm way too skinny and I need to stop when the reality of it is that I'm STILL considered overweight with a BMI of 28.8. I tried being polite about it because everyone in my family is overweight, so it is a delicate situation. I completely understand where you are coming from with all of the compliments/comments... ie. wasting away.

At the end of the day, the diet is about you and how you want to look and feel. My biggest advice is to keep taking pictures of yourself along the journey and compare. That for me is all the motivation I need! I see my problem areas and know that I need to continue to get rid of them.

Lose2Win Thanks!! I'm also very happy we continue our journey together :hug: and this year starting a diet to finally lose weight was not in my list of resolutions ;) You're doing an awesome job as well, and I love that we come here and continue to inspire and encourage each other :hug: As always, keep up the good job, we've gone through the hardest seasons of the year-Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years- and we've SURVIVED!!! WE DID IT!!! :woohoo::woohoo: Now mostly everyone around us is going to be "on a diet" :D

2bskinnyagain- WOW!! That's an awesome accomplishment you've made :hug: and thanks for the advice, I shouldn't listen to the people telling me I shouldn't lose more weight, I should only stop when I "feel" comfortable with my appearance, like I said before, I'm trying not to fixate on the number the scale shows, I would like so much to be a size 4, the smallest I've ever been was a 7-8 and I want to be smaller than that. But yes, I've been having more people also telling me I'm "shrinking" I'm "flying away" and I try not to believe them because I "feel" I still have a long way to go, I'm a bit over half way, even thought my ticker says I want to lose 19 lbs. more, I don't know yet if that's where I want to be and maintain, that's how much I weighted when I was wearing size 8 before.

:newyear::newyear::newyear::newyear::newyear: :dust::dust:

Ariel & 2BSkinnyAgain I love Chai Tea Lattes, especially from Starbucks and Panera. To mimic them, I steep 2 Tazo Chai tea bags in 2-3 oz of water(very concentrated). Then I add my Vanilla Drink RTD and zap it in the microwave, stirring every 20 seconds. It is such a nice hot drink and a great evening snack.

I am down 1.8 in my first weigh-in in the New Year! The last 10 weeks have been slow, but I am hoping that I am seeing a trend in my body revving up. I would be happy with 1.8 every week. :carrot:

Happy New Year, Friends! This is the year we achieve our weight loss goal! :carrot::carrot:

GREAT way to begin the new year!! Grats on your weight loss :) My first WI will be next Wednesday!
YUM!! That really sounds delicious Lose2Win!!! I'm not a tea person, more of a coffee person, but I remember having iced chat teas before, anything iced is good :D I think it would also be good with the Frappuccino drink RTD!

I have not started drinking the tea my coach suggested to help me get some sleep- Ever since Thanksgiving weekend, I have not been having troubles with my sleep, my coach said that insomnia was a sign of ketosis because I have all this energy and it keeps me up.
I wonder if any of you have had this issue?
I am not tired, I'm still very productive and with plenty of energy even with so little sleep, but my brain is getting a bit foggy. I was able to sleep by taking naps during the break, but I'll be back to work and school next week, and I will need to get good night sleeps in order for my brain to function correctly!
Good news is that right now my eyes feel heavy and I've been yawning so I guess I am sleepy? I should try to go to bed right now at midnight- I really wish I could go to sleep by 10pm the latest :( I guess that's going to be my New Year's resolution- NOT to drink coffee after 6pm, drink my sleepy tea by 8:30pm the latest AND make myself go to bed NO LATER than 10pm! :D

I am so proud of you all - dedication to staying OP and keeping it real, day after day. :)

I love how creative you all are, with the morning coffees and chais. Only thing I've ever done is put in some Torani SF salted caramel with a vanilla drink packet and called it good.

I'm finding water difficult to chug in this cold, cold weather. Been adding lemon slices (squeezed well) and a drop of the SF Nestea lemon tea additive, but I'm still barely making requirement. Debating making it hot in future as it seems so much more comforting on a cold day.

Ariel13With the sleeplessness ... have you tried turning your temperature down a degree or two? Apparently, the body has to drop temperature by 1.3 degrees in order to facilitate sleep. I love the warmth and have suffered insomnia all my life until I turned the thermostat down half an hour before bedtime. Now I sleep like a baby. Put extra blankets over your feet or wear some warm socks if you suffer cold extremities from ketosis. :)

Howdy and Happy New Year, August Starters -- you are all doing so well!! I just had to drop in and congratulate you all on your results!! A month behind my start, a number of you all are at a month ahead of my pace of loss. So, I am in here looking for your hidden secrets to great results ;)

Altho I am a July starter, my current weight (and in some cases starting weight) is similar to several of you and I too feel my losses have slowed during the holidays even though I avoided all holiday foods and drink. My transgressions were (1) to add in an extra IP packet here and there when I just could not resist the need to eat something more, and (2) taking in more coffee (with a little vanilla RTD as a coffee lightener) and NOT upping my water intake to match the volume of coffee. :(

I believe these practices, straying off the 100% OP path, are just enough to slow losses, so I have to blame myself for that. My plan going forward is to increase water intake and go for an extra green salad rather than a packet if the crave for more food gets unbearable.

The tea idea is a good one, too -- I have some Bigelow Constant Comment Decaf tea that is very good -- nice spice blend but not as heavy on the spice as most Chai teas. I love how a just a drop of Vanilla RTD lightens a cup of tea (coffee takes at least an ounce). I have a Stash brand Chai (black tea variety) that I find yummy, too, but it's as caffeinated as coffee, I suspect, so not a good alternative to my usual java.

Regarding goal weight - I have gone thru the same thinking and re-thinking about my goal. I began with 190 as a goal, never imagining I would hang with IP long enough to lose 50 lbs... when I was a month into IP and saw that the program was more doable than I expected, I dropped my goal to 160. Now that I have done the unthinkable, I have dropped my goal to 150. I would like to think that 5'4" at 150 lbs ought to be a maintainable weight (or a weight I should strive to maintain) and might mean a size 10 in most clothing (my 7.5 inch wrists make me a large frame too).

Another data point I am interested in regarding goal is waist size -- I do believe Dr Oz's claim that waist size is a big indicator of heart health. Right now my waist size is 33.75 (down 7.5 inches since IP start), but I ask my coach to measure the midriff area above the waist, too. It is 34.75 (down 5.25 inches). While I am under 35 inches now, I believe I'd like to get it down to 30 inches and make that an ongoing metric to monitor in maintenance. Achieving that may be more of an outcome tied to working out, toning up, strengthening core.... all of which ought to contribute to overall weight maintenance.

You guys are great participants on all areas of 3FC IP - I hope you don't mind me being an interloper to your group.... I think my July Starter group and you August Starters will be compatriots in maintenance before too long. I am looking forward to tackling those challenges with you guys!!

I agree with you on the waist issue being important. I was told that if you carry fat around the middle, then your organs are likely to be heavily surrounded, too. Nice inch loss there! and I think keeping the goal size will be equally as important to me as maintaining the weight. After all, who wants to run a wardrobe with multiple sizes any more????

What exercise are you planning in maintenance, Oneuh? I keep toying with running, but although I have a few run spurts on my walks, I am still holding on for the butt to shrink some more and to get into true maintenance so I can assess the energy levels, as I really hate the "bounce" against my forward momentum. :)

Hello oneuh :wave: Thanks, I appreciate your wonderful words :D You've done an awesome job yourself with getting rid of the weight and shrinking :D:carrot:

You're of course more than welcome to come here and post, we're all in the same boat just different row seats? ;) It seems you already know what are the things that you've done that have slowed down your weight loss- the extra IP pockets, too much coffee not enough water- If you just adjust those things that you know are not in the plan, then you know your losses will be more. I always think I have two options, to either enjoy "something that is not in the IP plan" and will give me satisfaction for about 3-5 minutes OR not having it, but instead having a big glass of water or some lettuce or occupy myself with 'doing' something AND that second option I KNOW it's the best for me because it will bring me CLOSER to my goal FASTER...I want to get to where I want to be soon, I don't want to stay on it longer than I have to, and ALSO I don't want to waste my money that's why I've always done 100% OP. It encourages me that I'm getting rid of weight and inches steadily- My next WI will be this Wednesday, last week my total lost had been 74lbs and 49 inches in 20 weeks. Coming here to the forum, and reading other's successes and learning from others' mistakes also helps a lot and expressing our concerns and questions and getting help and kind words is a blessing!

I do hope that we get to maintenance together and continue to encourage and help each other to stay grounded and be able to stay in our healthy weight :D Keep up the good work, you're doing great! :hug:

Briael- Right now I am not working out, I'm not doing any kind of activity- sometimes I do go dance and the next day I wake up as if I have a hang over- even though I don't drink, but I think that is because the extra calories I burn with the dancing. I don't go every weekend, I have just gone about 3 times since I started IP and that's how I feel. I don't want to eat an extra IP pocket, I can barely eat our daily food allowance.
I will start working out once I begin phase 2! :lifter: I will do boot camp training(weight training/cardio), and zumba. Also, during maintenance (which I think it should be starting around the month of June) I will hire a personal trainer, and concentrate on toning during the summer-I'm a teacher, so I have the summer off :exercise::strong::wl::ebike::belly::woops:

I hope to be able to get enough exercise with dancing in one form or another -- regular ballroom and latin classes and dance parties and a fitness oriented dance class -- I can find zumba classes easily, plus there is a weekly class called LaBlast -- created by Louis Van Amstel (from Dancing with the Starts fame). It is a fitness routine that uses all the ballroom and latin dance moves. Another version is DanceSportEndurance which has classes near me in northern Virginia.

I sprained my ankle and now have a tear in a tendon in my ankle so, aside from the guidance from IP to avoid exercise, I am pretty much out of any exercise right now. Walking seems to be ok, and if the weather cooperates, I will try to get some walks in each week even while recuperating.

I think that strength training and stretching are critical for me too - I'd like to try some yoga (gentle yoga at first), and some work with free weights and bands is something I can do at home.

Short answer - I have lots of ideas but no formal plan yet.... :)

Wow!!!! Ariel13 those are impressive numbers! WTG!!!

It is really inspiring to see and hear everyones progress. In terms of the sleepless nights, I find that if I get a hold of my second wind it is really hard for me to unwind and sleep. But, if I can catch it at the right moment... I sleep like a baby. But, I do have to make sure my feet are warm :). Stupid diet has me freezing these days!

Ariel - dancing is very intense in terms of the number of muscles you are working out. Might want to try something a little lower on the scale.

Some of the basic moves I use for warm up (started with no weights and now use hand held weights with them after building up tolerance) are rising onto toes - which stretches calf muscles.

Standing against a wall and sliding down into a seated position and holding it for 30 seconds - this is great for your legs, butt and stomach muscles.

Stand facing the wall about a feet away. Keep your feet rooted on the spot but do mini-push ups against the wall with your arms - exercises the arm and shoulder muscles.

Exercise doesn't have to be high intensity if you aren't finding ketosis a real boost of energy, but every little helps. Start slow and build up as you feel less lightheaded or exhausted. :)

Oneuh - I remembered that you were injured and unable to dance, but I had forgotten that you walked in lieu of your first love. :)

Question for August starters...
I recently completed a home remodel - this took about 12 weeks to finish where I was very active during that time period as I helped take down and put up cabinets, carry stuff, etc. It seemed like I would go for 18 hours a day and get up and do it all over again the next day that people told me they were going to start IP just so they would get the same energy that I had. This went right into Christmas with all day shopping, etc so the point is I have been pretty active last 3 months. Now that is all over, and I wanted to get your input as to whether you think I should start working out to replace that activity. I don't feel I was getting much benefit from it beforehand as my weight loss seemed better when I wasn't working out. I have had such wonderful results these last 3 months and I am wondering if an important part was the activity level. I don't want to find a couple of weeks from now that my losses have slowed with the drop in activity - I would rather figure that out now and anticipate and not lose time. What do you think?
I have lost 60 pounds (as of 8 days ago) since starting Aug 29 and last 2 months I have seen 9.3 pound loss over 2 weeks followed by 4 pounds over next 2 followed by 8.2 loss over next 2 weeks - I would like to see this trend continue as I am getting close to my goal and don't want to slow down now! I wonder if I am overestimating the impact the activity had and if I should primarily attribute it strictly to the diet. I am so happy with my losses that I want to keep it going and not sure if that means replacing activity or not.

Ro22, I would replace the activity! Being active is really good for both losing weight and maintaining weight ... and just being healthy in general. Most of us aren't active enough. I personally take a 4 mile walk in my hilly neighborhood every morning.

Hello Wonderful August Starters!!:D

WOW!! It took me some time to find our thread, I hope everyone is doing well and losing weight/inches this year! Remember, THIS is OUR year! YAY!!:carrot::carrot:

I can't believe this is our FIFTH month doing IP diet, I don't know if you feel the same as me, but the time has passed so fast for me! :D I am very proud of what I have accomplished, and I'm very thankful for your unconditional support :hug: I have followed the diet to the t and I have not cheated at all, not once, ever, and it has paid off because after 5 months, I'm 80 lbs. lighter :D:carrot::D:carrot::D:carrot:

YAY!! This month so far I've lost 8 lbs.- 2lbs, 2bls and this week was 4lbs- I really thought I would continue losing 2lbs per week, but I was glad I lost 4lbs this week during my TOM.

Also, I don't know if you remember, but I was concerned about my "belly" and it just disappeared, just like that, like magic :) I'm don't have a flat stomach but I don't have a belly anymore, I was worried that it wouldn't go away, but it did! :carrot:

I'm losing all over, in proportion, I am keeping my curves, my shape- I read that when losing weight, you keep whatever shape you are but you just become smaller- so if your shape is an apple, you'll go from big apple to small apple, or like a big triangle becomes a small triangle.- And my arms are also getting smaller, obviously I'm going to have to work on those a lot, I never been happy with how they look, but I honestly tell you that I've never seen them this small! With this diet I'm losing from places I had not lost before!! I'm getting mold nicely YAY!!! :D:carrot:;)

Thank you again ladies, we can continue strong this year! :dust:

Congrats, Ariel! I am so glad that you are continuing to lose at an amazing rate. I am blown away by how quickly you and several others are losing weight. I'm hoping that this continues for all of you. Pave the way and pull us along.

I'm going to end up being the slow and steady one of the group; I will get there eventually. I don't know if it is because of my age?? Who knows, I am just shocked and happy to be losing anything.

Thanks for sharing about losing the tummy. Mine is starting to come off too although I can tell I am still holding lots of fat there.

My weigh-in is in the morning. I didn't weigh last week because my coach was out of town. I'm hoping for a good 2 week number.

Enjoy your 80 pound success! :carrot::carrot:

Thank you very much Lose2Win :D:):D Believe me I am so happy to have lost 80 lbs, I am considering going for the 100lbs :dizzy:
You're doing awesome as well, I am so proud of your losses and how you've stick with the program! :carrot: You're right, everyone losses differently but just as you always say, the important thing is to continue to lose and get healthier :carrot: I know that age has to do with how fast a person can lose weight, the metabolism slows down as we age, but I don't know if IP would do any difference, since we're burning our fat reserves. One thing I've always done is I drink a lot of water, I have this big 64 oz bottle, which is 8 glasses of 8 oz , when I first started the diet, I would drink 3 of those bottles every day, sometimes even more, specially during the summer, I read that we need half our weight in oz of water, so I started IP diet weighing 258, so I needed to drink about 130 oz of water. Nowadays I try to drink the 3 -64 oz. of water but because I drink a lot of coffee, so I have to make up for that.

Don't forget we're more than half way to get to our goal :carrot: and when we get to our goal, we'll still need all the support we can get to stick to our maintenance and keep the weight off! :hug:

Good luck to you on tomorrow's WI!!! Please let us know how it went ;) :hug:

The WI was great! It was for two weeks, but I lost 4.2 pounds! Thrilled to have lost 6 pounds in my last 3 weeks. I am happy with 2 pounds a week.

Wow, I can't believe you drink so much water. Maybe I need to up mine and see what happens. I struggle to get it all in, but I do. I try to finish my liquids by dinner, so that I am not up all night long going to the restroom. I seem to be able to drink water more quickly out of a Tervis cup with a wide straw, but I still can't imagine drinking the volume you are. But if that could be what is working for you, I might need to give it a try.

One change I have made in the past month which seems to be helping with weight loss is walking. I love the idea of the c25k program, but I am just enjoying a one hour/3 mile walk most days. I know that I can do that and not need additional packets (I feel fine after the walk), and I am trying to avoid doing anything that will cause an injury. Maybe running will come later as I come closer to phasing off.

Although walking may or may not be the exercise that I choose to continue later, I feel like I am creating a structure in my life that includes exercise. I know that exercise is extremely importance for weight maintenance. So the walking is a "placeholder" for whatever I might do later.

Alright August friends and others, have a great IP day!

Woohoo!!! :carrot: Grats on your loss!! those are very good news! :hug: What about inches? Have you been losing inches? I keep on losing inches from my waist ;):carrot:
The walking is good, I would like to start walking a mile every other day, I have the Leslie Sansone, but I think I will start doing those once I lose about 8 or 10 more pounds.
The water seems like a lot, but that's how big I was and how much my body needed, before the diet, I think I would only drink one glass of water a day, and that was sometimes, I would only drink coke or sugary drinks or black coffee. Now, since we're supposed to only have one cup of coffee, and anything extra we have to make it up with water, I continue to try to drink all that water daily, but it isn't hard at all anymore. When I started the diet, my mouth started getting very, very dry, and that helped with consuming all that water, I would drink water and I would still have that dry mouth feeling! Now, I just crave it, my body wants the water, I continue to get that dry mouth feeling, but it is not as often, it begins when I haven't had my water, so I guess, since I'm always drinking water or coffee, my mouth doesn't have the time to dry up, but if its been a couple of hours without any liquid, that's when I feel the dry mouth.
I bought one of those bottles for a coworker, and she started drinking water, and now she can't leave home without it, and she began to lose some weight just by drinking water daily, and she just joined IP diet last Monday-after seeing with her own eyes how much weight I had lost- I also gave one of those bottles to another coworker, and now she's also drinking water, and always carrying the bottle with her. I found mine at Aldi's during the summer, but then I saw them at a dollar store on sale for $5- They are big, have a handle and a big straw that flips up when you want to drink it and you push it down when you're not using it. You can always add some flavor to your water, one of my coworkers would add frozen fruit-but we can't have that, but I sometimes add lemons or limes or even cucumber. I know there are some flavored pockets that IP sells that can also be added to your water.
You're doing a great job Lose2Win! Keep it up!! :carrot::hug:

Happy to find others that started in August! My husband and I gave ourselves IP for our anniversary. He is now in maintenance! I am looking forward to joining him!

I enjoyed reading about your progress and exercise plans/thoughts. I have started walking and using hand weights as my main problem areas are "saddle bags" and upper arms. My proportions are so odd between hips and waist that I have worn skirts for years because pants just don't fit me - waist is waaaay to big! I am trying to find jeans that will fit a figure like mine, if any of you have advice on brands I would love to hear it!

Hi Feelinggreat,
I'm glad you found us! It is awesome you did this with your husband. Please tell him congratulations on getting to goal. I am historically a pear shape, but right now my tummy is a little larger than normal making my hips and stomach proportional...at least right now. Sorry that I don't have good recommendations.

Come back and let us know how you are doing!

Anybody hit goal?
 

Just wondering who among our August friends has hit goal...I know the husband :carrot:of Feelinggreat has & RefreshingMe:carrot: made goal in November.

Anyone else?? This is our year!:carrot::carrot::carrot:

Not even close, but I'm chugging on. :)

I am planning to get back to working out when I hit P4 which is about 2 months away. I have done the body sculpting bible for women - you can get the book on amazon. I highly recommend it. I have been doing that for years - you get a great workout without feeling like a gym rat or feeling exhausted - pretty simple approach and can be done without a gym membership - the book provides exercises for both home and gym. I have been recommending this to friends for about 15 years. I have maintained my muscle tone through P1 so far; my coach was shocked at how much muscle definition I have when I made a muscle with my arm at the completion of month 5 WI a week ago. I haven't worked out during P1. I am looking forward to it but only plan to do it 3 days per week vs my old 6 days a week.

I started August 30th and made goal December 20th. Just started maintenance yesterday. Feels great. This is the first diet where I'm not waiting to rush and have a fun day!

Congrats Saharag. Hopefully maintenance will see you maintain and capitalise on that loss! :)

Congrats, Sahara! You make a wonderful point of reminding me that this really doesn't feel like a diet. You can have lots of fun days on IP. :carrot:

Please come back to this thread and let us know how maintenance is going. Let us know what adjustments you are having to make. While I still have a way to go before phasing off, I am trying to start putting things in place to be successful - exercising, not snacking....

Congrats Saharag! That's awesome :carrot:

I started August 27th & still have quite a few pounds to go. However, I am THRILLED to be 45lbs down. There are not words to describe how much I love IP!

Thanks everyone! The support I've received from this site and all of you has been invaluable even though I'm mostly in lurk mode. Just two maintenance days so far and I'm doing the fat carb separation thing but nervous to up my calories too much!

Wow Stacynak, 45 lbs that's awesome! I love IP too! I've done weight watchers successfully before but this is the first time I'm not waiting to have a free day or binge on something. I hope the feeling lasts!

Thanks! Quite honestly, I could be farther along but I chose to take a bit of a "break" for most of December (holidays, plus trip to Hawaii). I followed the plan about 85% by eating veggies, lean protein, & packets but did allow myself a few cheats in regard to tastes of desserts & an occasional Bloody Mary. With that in mind, I had zero loss for most of December but I didn't gain either. Now, I'm 100% back on plan & plan to make significant progress in the next two months. We have a big h trip planned with a group of friends to Vegas for my hubby's 50th in mid-March.

Ariel13 congrats on 80lbs!!!!!!!!!!!! That is amazing work. These five months have flown by. My only regret is that I didn't try IP earlier in life!

Lose2Win2014 6lbs in three weeks is amazing! My weight loss has slowed down tremendously. I'm still losing but no where near the rate I was losing in the months prior!

Feelinggreat jeans are tricky! I'm still searching for a good pair!

My weigh in is tomorrow and I really am hoping for a whoosh!

Try Not Your Daughter's Jeans - great fit and very flattering!

I agree! I LOVE Not Your Daughter's Jeans. They are amazing :)

saharag congrats on hitting goal!!!!!! It must feel like such an accomplishment :). Keep us posted on maintenance....... I'm actually terrified. I'd much rather continue on the diet than phase off. Sad I know.

stacynak you are doing a great job! It's amazing to think how quickly you've (we've) lost the weight... especially when you think about how long it took to gain it!

I've tried the NYDJ but I'm so short waisted (sp?) that I feel like the top of the jeans almost hit my bra! Maybe I'll give them a try again after I've lost some of the weight.

Keep at it everyone! This is definitely going to be the year we all hit goal :).

Thanks 2bskinny again. It does feel great but I feel that P1 was the easy part since it was short term and had specific rules. The challenge is going to be maintenance and keeping it off but for the first time I feel up to it! We can do this. And congrats to you - you are almost there! I know what you mean about not wanting to stop P1 - I felt sad too, emotional almost!

Just bought my first pair of size 6 Express jeans! When I saw them they looked so small to me. It felt great when they fit!