TwoTots, Yes, I typically do notice a whoosh of water weight a few days into TOM. I went back and added my beginning TOM days to the weight log I posted earlier, so you can see how it's had an effect on my daily weight fluctuations. I wish I could say it does the exact same thing every time, but it doesn't. I'm not sure if that's because of my age (52) and things are starting to go a little wacky, or not. Hang in there! It's unfortunate that your cheat day lbs and TOM lined up back to back and kept your weight up, but eventually it will drop back off. It's water weight after all! Just make sure you're drinking enough water, because your body will hoard water if it thinks it's not getting enough daily.

Today, I am holding steady at 176.5.

Week 16-
11/16: 177 Cheat Day TOM
11/17: 177.5
11/18: 178
11/19: 178
11/20: 176.5
11/21: 176.5
11/22:

So, I think I'm going to try to wean myself off Diet Dr. Pepper. Honestly, I don't know if I'll ever be able to give it up completely, I definitely have an addiction, but I've just read horrid things about diet soda lately, and most recently that the sodium benzoate in Diet Dr. Pepper causes cell damage by damaging the DNA in the mitochondria. Scary!!! Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi have even replaced sodium benzoate with potassium benzoate, but of course, I just looked at the ingredients of Diet Dr. Pepper, and it's still in there! During the winter, I tend to drink more hot green tea and less cold diet soda. If I can just get into the habit of brewing green tea in the warmer months and making iced green tea, maybe I can get away from Diet Dr. Pepper altogether. My body--cells, kidneys, metabolism, teeth--would thank me I'm sure!

http://www.prevention.com/food/healt...t-soda-bad-you

Up a half-lb this morning. Will be focusing on drinking enough water today. I had salted pumpkin seeds last night, and it's probably my imagination, but I swear I can still taste the salt, lol!

Week 16: High-178, Low-176.5
11/16: 177 Cheat Day TOM
11/17: 177.5
11/18: 178
11/19: 178
11/20: 176.5
11/21: 176.5
11/22: 177

Yesterday was cheat day. I weighed 177. This morning I weigh 179. It could have been worse! I questioned if I should take a full-on cheat day yesterday since I knew I'd be substituting the next Saturday cheat day for Thanksgiving Thursday instead, but from cheat day to cheat day, it's still five days apart so I went ahead with it. But oh my, did I ever overdo it on junk food yesterday, ick! That was my one regret. I wish I had gone for healthier cheat foods, like a pasta dish, fruit, yogurt, etc, but no, I ate candy and chips, a fast food sandwich, a piece of pecan pie, which was sickeningly sweet. I was just being lazy eating whatever was quick instead of having to prepare something or fight the grocery lines to go get better food options, and what I ended up eating was pretty gross. I feel like I wasted cheat day, if that makes any sense, and I have no one to blame but myself. And the thing is, the more I ate super sweet and junky foods, the more sluggish and lazy I felt. Today, I'm actually looking forward to my hard-boiled eggs and salads, lol! To think that I used to eat like I did yesterday quite often...wow. Maybe the 3rd purpose of cheat day is to gross you out so you won't want to eat like that anymore, lol!

Week 16: High-178, Low-176.5
11/16: 177 Cheat Day TOM
11/17: 177.5
11/18: 178
11/19: 178
11/20: 176.5
11/21: 176.5
11/22: 177

Week 17:
11/23: 177 Cheat Day
11/24: 179

Back down a lb to 178!

Week 16: High-178, Low-176.5
11/16: 177 Cheat Day TOM
11/17: 177.5
11/18: 178
11/19: 178
11/20: 176.5
11/21: 176.5
11/22: 177

Week 17:
11/23: 177 Cheat Day
11/24: 179
11/25: 178
11/26:
11/27:
11/28: Thanksgiving!
11/29:

Lol, I didn't intend for this thread to become a journal for me, so if anyone else wants to join in, please do! Meanwhile, I guess I'll just keep writing about my progress!

Holding steady at 178. I wonder if it's time for me to have a bit of a stall. Weeks 3-6 in my weight loss log, I was stuck for a while around 197. I believe 197 is a set point for my body, and I anticipated that I'd have a tough time moving beyond its reach. I can't remember 100% what my set point was below that (because it's been so long), but it seems to me it was 178/179-ish, so I won't be surprised if I rattle around in the upper 170's/low 180's for a few weeks. I know some people don't believe in set points, but I definitely do. I think there are certain weights at which your body naturally maintains, where it settles in, and whether you are on your way up or down, it will tend to go back to that weight. The thought that my body is making adjustments to abandon this set point for a lower one is a great thought, and I can be as patient as I need to be for that to happen! Set point or not though, I know I'll be going back into the 180's because of Thanksgiving, which I am definitely making my cheat day! Woohoo!

Week 16: High-178, Low-176.5
11/16: 177 Cheat Day TOM
11/17: 177.5
11/18: 178
11/19: 178
11/20: 176.5
11/21: 176.5
11/22: 177

Week 17:
11/23: 177 Cheat Day
11/24: 179
11/25: 178
11/26: 178
11/27:
11/28: Thanksgiving!
11/29:

Hi Jacqui_D,
I have a question. I am doing Ideal Protein, except, not really because I went off on my own and buy my own "spaceman" food now for much cheaper than it cost me at the doctor's office. But then again, I am not really doing Ideal Protein, it recently occurred to me, because I use fat liberally and never count it at all.
Reading your posts got me to thinking about this way of dieting again. I have read Gary Taubes and that's probably why I use fat in my diet while most IPers do not. But my question is this: What is the purpose of the cheat day? And doesn't it throw your body out of ketosis? I read it takes several days to get back into ketosis, but maybe ketosis isn't the underlying thing that's working for you?

I have to admit, I like the idea of a cheat day where I could have good, old fashioned pizza and a glass of wine again. But at the same time, I do not want to jeopardize what I've already lost. (nearly 40 lbs!)
Thanks!

Hi llorence! The purpose of the cheat day according to Tim Ferriss, the creator of the Slow Carb Diet, is 1) to keep you from feeling deprived so that you will stick to the diet long-term, and 2) to shake up your metabolism each week to keep it burning efficiently. What you suspect about ketosis being affected may be right, but I don't know for sure, because ketosis is not what I'm going for. It's not something I consider. What I'm going for is not having my blood sugar spike and drop sharply every few hours, since that roller coaster ride leads to insulin resistance and basically causes non-stop hunger. I can certainly understand if you have lost nearly 40 lbs (congrats!!!) that you would be reluctant to try something different because what you are doing is working for you! However, if you reach a point when it stops working for you, like if you experience a true plateau or if you reach a point when you just don't think you can stick to your diet anymore, you might consider giving this diet a try. (Btw, although I don't drink wine, I know that one glass of wine a day is allowed on the Slow Carb Diet.) The one warning I have for people about this diet is if you are the type of person who may be triggered to keep eating bad carbs because of a cheat day, this diet is not a good fit for you. Having said that, I want to point out that I would have thought I was that type of person. I was such a strict calorie-counter that if I slipped up, ate an unauthorized cookie or whatever, that was it! I was off the diet! I was completely all or nothing. But there was something about a cheat day being incorporated into this diet, being an actual part of the plan, that somehow made it okay in my all-or-nothing brain to participate in it. If I was staying on plan by taking a cheat day, then well, I was staying on plan! I wasn't breaking the diet. I was adhering to it! I did modify the diet from the start since I knew there were things I wasn't going to do (like give up ranch dressing), but that was okay to me too, as long as I stuck to the modified diet. And I do. I do not eat breads/grains, pasta, potatoes, fruit, dairy, or sweets on any day but cheat day, not one teeny-tiny bite, but it really does feel easy to me, because "I can have it on cheat day." The temptation has been removed, along with the hunger from blood sugar spikes and drops! This diet is a good fit for me. But for anyone who would be triggered by a cheat day, I do not recommend it. Another low carb diet like Atkins or IP probably would be better for them. Since you are already doing a modified version of the IP diet, you might consider modifying it a little more and adding a cheat day (if a cheat day won't trigger you), but again, I understand how scary that thought can be, especially since what you are doing is working so well for you! Whatever you decide, good luck!

Back down a half-lb!

Week 16: High-178, Low-176.5
11/16: 177 Cheat Day TOM
11/17: 177.5
11/18: 178
11/19: 178
11/20: 176.5
11/21: 176.5
11/22: 177

Week 17:
11/23: 177 Cheat Day
11/24: 179
11/25: 178
11/26: 178
11/27: 177.5
11/28: Thanksgiving!
11/29:

Thanks Jacqui_D!
You have given me a lot to think about. I so appreciate the quick response. I was thinking exactly what you suggested: why not try incorporating a cheat day and see how it goes. Giving up dairy during the week wouldn't be easy, and incorporating legumes would actually be hard on me too, but really, otherwise, I am nearly doing the same thing as your slow carb now, so perhaps it is what I need to try next. (I do think I've hit a slow patch--maybe not a real plateau, but nearly, so I feel I need to shake things up a bit.) The idea that this doesn't let your metabolism get used to any one thing is intriguing!
Thanks again, so much, for helping me understand this idea.
LLorence

LLorence, you are certainly welcome! I'm glad I could help! As for the legumes and dairy, I personally don't eat a lot of legumes, no more than once a week, and my daughter who is also doing a modified Slow Carb Diet has added some dairy, since it's low in carbs, in limited amounts to her menu. The reason dairy isn't allowed on the Slow Carb Diet is not because of high carbs but because dairy protein amino acids spike insulin, although I did read an article that said dairy has a positive effect on insulin resistance! http://breakingmuscle.com/nutrition/...od-for-insulin. So for me the jury is still out on dairy. I did mention before that I add a little sprinkle of shredded cheese to my salads and also that cottage cheese is allowed. I forgot to mention that I also use butter for cooking if I need to. The real Slow Carb Diet prefers ghee, but I just use butter. It's not like I ever use a lot of it. Anyway, feel free to post your continued progress here if you like, since you are basically doing a modified slow carb diet now (with the fats, it does seem to be closer to Slow Carb than IP) and especially if you add a cheat day!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I am happy to report that I am back down to 177! (It's always nice when I match my ticker, lol!) I fully anticipate being back up in the 180's tomorrow though!

Week 16: High-178, Low-176.5
11/16: 177 Cheat Day TOM
11/17: 177.5
11/18: 178
11/19: 178
11/20: 176.5
11/21: 176.5
11/22: 177

Week 17:
11/23: 177 Cheat Day
11/24: 179
11/25: 178
11/26: 178
11/27: 177.5
11/28: 177 Thanksgiving!
11/29:

I weigh 178.5 today!!! I am so excited about that! I was convinced and had resigned myself to the fact that I would be back up in the 180's, and it was okay because I knew I would lose it again, but to go up only 1.5 pounds is so surprising! I mean, I had 4 pumpkin-spiced cream cheese-iced mini muffins for breakfast. For Thanksgiving dinner, I had turkey (there was no stuffing ), mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, noodles, green beans, deviled eggs, jello marshmallow salad, and a roll with butter. I drank 2 glasses of sweet iced tea. For dessert I had lemon meringue pie. I snacked on pumpkin kisses and chocolate covered nuts before and after dinner. In the evening I had a turkey sandwich on white cream bread, jello marshmallow salad, carrot cake with cream cheese icing for dessert, and 2 cups of hot tea with sugar and cream. There was nothing "diet" about what I ate yesterday! I will say in Thanksgivings past, I ate much bigger helpings and many more helpings. Yesterday, I was stuffed but I wasn't overstuffed. Even so, with all those carbs, I am just so surprised and delighted that I only weigh 178.5!

Week 16: High-178, Low-176.5
11/16: 177 Cheat Day TOM
11/17: 177.5
11/18: 178
11/19: 178
11/20: 176.5
11/21: 176.5
11/22: 177

Week 17: High-179, Low 177
11/23: 177 Cheat Day
11/24: 179
11/25: 178
11/26: 178
11/27: 177.5
11/28: 177 Thanksgiving Cheat Day
11/29: 178.5

Wow!!! Congrats girl!! I went through this whole post and I'm VERY proud of you! I'm new here, but I look up to you c: You really are doing just fantastic! <3

Kizzy, thank you so much for telling me that! That is just so sweet and has brightened my day!