Yep those just about cover it!

I'm a planner by nature. My kids say I'm OCD but I just like to call myself prepared! You never know what will happen between now and then so I've had most things booked for a few months now. And yeah; getting back into some smaller sizes is really nice. I had several articles of clothing still new that I can now wear. I have taken 3 large bags of "too big" clothes to my local consignment shop. That's where I'll be buying many of my "new" clothes as I continue to lose weight.

Thanks for the "model IP dieter" compliment. I look at this new way of eating/living as my job now that I'm retired. If I don't, it just won't work for me.

Welcome! and yes it was intentional1 It is my new favorite word! Not that I like feeling that way but it just acurately describes my condition some days!

Oh gosh - with TOM lurking, this was / is absolutely me today:

http://www.quickmeme.com/img/bb/bb61...e2940b49a6.jpg

No worries about getting my snack today lol

Instead of sugarplums, its been a 20oz porterhouse "dancing in my head"!!! (always crave red meat and chocolate!)

Not caving though - Drinking some decaf chai tea and took my iron supplement

Kinda glad I checked in. "Hangry" is just the right term for me, today, too. In general, IP works for me because it is so strict and no-nonsense, leaving me no room for cheats; but now and then I do this thing where I get SUPER mad and super "you aren't the boss of me" and I want to rebel against the rules.

Which is not productive, obviously.

Today, I think I had just waited too long to go grocery shopping, and I didn't want broccoli (the last veggie in the house), and my chicken wasn't going to thaw in time, and ... So... [trigger warning for various non-IP foods coming up]

I went to the grocery store late this afternoon/early this evening, after three protein packs and no real food, and the whole outing was a struggle. I desperately wanted Chipotle, and then I desperately wanted Panera, and then I almost gave in to stopping at Wendys, thinking "well, a Baconator with no bun, no mayo, and no ketchup isn't ON plan, but it also won't throw me out of ketosis." (Accurate; if I were going to cheat with any of those options, that was the best one, but still definitely not good.)

[back to IP-legal foods now]

I made it home, and I made myself a lean burger with pickles and mustard, and I cut up some jicama, and I guess I feel better now? But I'm still a little under the rebellion cloud.

Hoping it'll pass by morning, and I'll be back to myself. If this lasts more than a few days, I'll accept that the smart thing to do is to phase off correctly, for the time being, work on maintenance/calorie-counting, and come back when I'm under less stress. (I have no work stress. In fact, you could say I have no-work stress. I'm moving soon, but I don't know when, and I'm applying to jobs, and, ugh. Plus some family stuff. Basically, things are just a big mess, right now, and I think my bad attitude about IP is all wrapped up in that.)

Sorry to be a downer; stuff is bad, right now, but I do know it'll get better.

Hang in there, Magpie. Well done on resisting the drive thru temptation and avoiding the pitfalls of shopping without being prepared. Those are major achievements - could you say that you were this strong before you started IP?

Sounds like a plan to phase out and monitor progress before coming back when life is less of a struggle.

Chipotle is actually pretty IP friendly. A salad with meat, fajita veggies, and salsa is completely P1 compliant. I find a little salt perks it up, leaving no need for the dressing. If you wanted more flavor you could add a squeeze of lemon from the beverage station or ask for some of the limes they keep in the back.

I'd caution against phasing off plan because of life stress. I think for many of us, part of the reason this diet is so successful is that we know if we eat something we shouldn't, we will mess up ketosis. If you are in maintenance, you won't have that same motivation to stick with your eating plan and small cheats may have a tendency to become full blown stress eating. That's what got many of us here in the first place.

Someone on here used to point out that the time will pass weather you are on plan or not. You can come out this stressful period a few months from now having lost some weight by sticking to plan, or having possibly gained an unknown amount due to stress eating. Wouldn't you rather keep something that is currently positive in your live instead letting the stress affect an area of your life you currently have under control?

Come, vent, let it out! I hope you don't phase out, but you need to do what is best for you - and the fact you've given this some very constructive thought is a huge step in the right direction. I believe in you magpie

So happy this morning! I have a love/hate relationship with my scale, so I weigh in as infrequently as possible. I promised myself I would only reboot for 6 weeks, regardless of whether I made goal (which was losing about 13 pounds that I didn't lose my first time around). I started Phase 2 this week without having reached my goal -- but feeling good. Reluctantly got on the scale today and I'm down another 2 pounds. Yay!!!!! I forgot that during my first round on IP, my weight loss rate picked up on phase 2. While I didn't put on weight in maintenance, I'm happy to have done this reboot. It's a great way to remind yourself of how hard you worked to take off the weight and how good it feels to eat clean. I may ultimately decide to do this once a year as a reminder to my commitment to stay healthy.

Hysteria -- eat the red meat -- have a big ol' juicy (IP approved) filet. Those eight ounces will fill you up now. On my round 1 IP journey, I noticed that the weeks I worked in a steak were the weeks I managed to lose the most weight.

winewanderer - congrats on the loss! You're pretty close to goal you might be able to hit it by the end of P3.

I'm in P3 right now, had to do my weigh in for dietbet...I was a little scared that there would be a gain from last week due to glycogen...well..I'm happy to report I'm down another 2 lbs!

Yay Kira! I'm sure that getting back to exercising at the level you wanted has really helped with the losses -- and the mental outlook. Congrats!

Congrats! I've been following yours (and others) journeys into P2, P3, and beyond, in anticipation for my own transition. I still have a ways to go, but I'm so glad you guys are posting your struggles, tips, etc. It's so helpful to learn this stuff early on, it already feels a little less challenging for when I get there!

You're so smart to do this! I made a point of following people's transitions early on as well and it made P2 and P3 much less scary...and gives you an idea of what to expect. I love this forum!

Ditto on the following others' transitions -- has been so helpful and inspiring.

Kira -- yippee!! You're going to love P3…and nail it!

winewanderer -- thank you for posting that update and congrats to you! I think I might be one of those who also does sort of an annual post-holiday reboot as well. Glad to hear it has worked so well for you.

NSV of having to use the next set of hooks smaller on my bras. Of course that's not where I'd like to see the weight loss...

Nicely done on the losses, Winewanderer and Kira. Fingers crossed for those last stubborn pounds in P3.

Down 2.2 pounds this week and a few inches lost!! Feeling wonderful this week compared to my last two weeks of dieters fatigue and wanting to binge. I so enjoy reading everyone's post and all the helpful tips and wonderful success stories. I am interested in reading over the Phase 2 and phase 3 blogs too.