HI all,

just caught up on this thread, new to IP three days now. Appreciate finding a forum on this protocol and look forward to reading and joining in the discussions! Very motivated by all the great weight loss by IP users. My friend is my IP mentor, and now I have all of you to encourage me on this journey!

Mary Ann

So, I officially have my first day of IP under my belt... harder and easier than I thought at the same time. Lots of hunger and some headaches, but the food was much better than I expected it to be, especially based on the smell when I was preparing it. Plus, it didn't help that it was pizza day at school and some evil person left 3 dozen donuts and a Girl Scout Cookies order form in the teacher's lounge! Oh well, I know that this is the hardest part and soon avoiding those foods will be my new way of life. I'm glad I read through all of your old posts, though. It's nice to know that if I can get through the next few days, I will begin to feel better and see results soon, and I'll be well on my way to a healthier me!

p.s. Thanks to those who have posted recipes, it really helps with dinner ideas (I'm so terrible with food creativity).

Anyone drink Starbucks coffee with the sugar free flavors?

I looked at the bottle...no sugar, no carbs, just sucrolose (splenda). These are okay, right?

Plain coffe, sugar free flavor and 1 ounce skim milk....anyone partake?

I have started mixing my coffee with a chocolate or cappacino packet for my breakfast. I like the chocolate one best. I did look at the sugar free bottle too and think a splash of vanilla in the cap drink would be good.

Mixing Coffee with the Choc or Cap packet.....is it alot of coffee/thick drink? That is an excellent idea and since I am home today....I will try it!

Well, Friday night is my "date night" with my husband. This typically occurs every Friday and involves going out to a to a nice restaurant, enjoying a few drinks and a terrific supper! (apps and dessert included) So last night we had no idea what to do - if we could still even do this anymore. Finally decided to try Montana's Restaurant. Thought it was going to be tough to not order like normal, but instead found it to be a fun challenge! Ordered the mushroom chicken breast meal - plain, with no sauce, and with no potatoes/rice, just extra steamed brocolli and a large starter salad minus the croutons and dressing. I was so impressed! Made sure to state no oils or added sauces to be used and the restaurant was more then happy to oblige! In fact the waiter stated this was exactly how his girlfriend eats! Oh yeah, also ordered a pitcher of water with lime which I enjoyed rather then my usual glass of pop or caesar! No cravings and no problem watching hubby eat his appetizer or meal! Success!!!

Hi Commited! I tried the cappucino drink and it was very yummy! I found that if I just added it to my coffee it went all lumpy. So tried putting in the shaker and viola! Was very frothy and a real treat! Did add a bit extra cold water in the shaker so that it wouldn't explode, so I did not find it to be too thick - just right!! lol! Not sure how it is in the carb dept though.

Hi to all the new posters!
Has anyone else noticed a lot of water retention with the extra intake of fluids? I only mention it because I actually had bruising on my legs from the elastics of my socks.... only thing I can figure is it has to be water retention. Is the salt a hinder or a help in the water retention dept? I know it is important to have our daily intake of salt, but maybe the body needs time to adjust to the added intake? so confused!

I have added coffee or a shot of espresso & the SF flavorings to my PreMade Vanilla, PreMade Chocolate Drinks, the Cocoa mix & The Cappachino drink & it did not appear to set my weight loss back. I ALWAY double the water in all my drinks, including the Pre Made drinks & when ever I heat a drink up it is ALWAYS for 30 seconds at a time.

The GYMNEMA that my coach put me on is a 4g tablet with the suggested use of 1 to 2 times per day. I swallow my GYMNEMA but my coach has suggested chewing it if the "craved" food is directly in front of me before I give in. Also, I quote taking it for about 1 month because I felt like I was not craving as much carbs & sweets. During that time, my BM slowed to every other to some times every 3 days. Since starting on GYMNEMA again, I am back to having daily BM's.

Also, I have tracked my carbs the past 4 days prior to eatting them & have been able to keep it under 25 the past 3 days & I have lost 2 lbs according to my scale. I am not familier with FITDAY & I use Sparkpeople to track my food every evening for the next day. If what I WANT puts me over 25 carbs, I will adjust so that I can have that higher carb item. For example, I will be going to lunch today at Salad Creations & will have a Romaine/Spinach mix of greens with cucumbers, RED ONION, mushrooms & GREEN PEPPER. The in CAP words are higher carb & so I had to replace my normal TOMATOES with mushrooms to stay under the 25 carb limit I have set for myself. Give in Take. What did I want more...TOMATOES or RED ONION. Wednesday I was in the 38 carb range, but got back on the horse on Thursday & things are going better this week for my weight loss.

I also JUST started exercising. On Sparkpeople or even YouTube you can find short exercise videos, things you can do in your home with out much need for space or equipment. THis week I am liking the 15 min Stability Ball exercises. And last night I ran my own stairs. I have 15 stairs & I ran them 20 times...I thought I was going to DIE!!! But it felt good! YA ME!

Good luck fellow IPers this weekend! Stay on plan, you CAN do it!
Meghan

Well, I'm officially back on track. Restarted IP Monday the 4th. I have steadily lost 1 lb/day but it took four full days to hit ketosis becuase I was drinking Nyquil to sleep at nite due to a head cold.

So glad someone brought up the turnip fries. I remember them from Atkins so I bought a turnip a couple months ago but when I mentioned it to my coach she said "no turnips 'cause they are a root vegies and root vegies are not allowed on phase 1" So I threw it away! today I pulled out my approved foods list and YES they are listed as allowed! Fries tonight!

I make my cap or choco drink first as directed, then pour it into my travel mug and top it off with coffee. Very yummy.

Hi Mystical Mamma. I go out to restaurants with my boyfriend at least once a week. My favorite is Applebee's. We order the "2 for 20" special. It includes one appetizer (which he eats) and two entrees. They have a great 7 ounce sirloin steak. I cut off 2 ounces and give it to my boyfriend. I ask them to substitute a steamed vegetable in place of the rice or potatoes so that gives me a double order of steamed veggies from which I pick out the steamed carrots and give to the willing boyfriend.
I also order the salad with no croutons and vinagrette on the side.
I always ask for lemon in my water.

My "dessert" is an IP pudding (butterscotch is my favorite) when I get home.

At other restaurants it's like a game to me also. I find my entree first and then I look for a vegetable. Sometimes the vegetables are part of some other entree offering so you have to look through the whole menu to find them. If there are no vegetables that I can have then I order a big green salad. So this is a very "do-able" plan if you are motivated to make it work and fit in to your lifestyle.

Now here comes the part that makes it all work for me. If my boyfriend is having something I can't have (like lasagna) I will start eating my meal first until my hunger is under control and then I will have a "taste" of his food.
One bite is so satisfying to me and does not cause me to go crazy with longing for the whole thing.

Warning: this works for me but I would not recommend it if you are just starting out on this program. It is a very slippery slope if your are a "carboholic." One bite can send you on an eating spree. Similar to an alcoholic having "just one drink."

I just changed my goal weight from 153 to 164 which is at the top of my BMI range (I know Elisha....it's better to go by fat percentage, more on that below)

So now I only have 18 pounds to go! And I can go onto Phase II for my trip to Texas (leaving Jan. 18 and no computer at my Dad's house.)

Re: fat percentage. I am going to find a university or college that has the facilities to do the underwater method for determining fat percentage which is the gold standard. I am willing to travel and pay money to have this done. Then I will know once and for all what my true healthy weight goal is.

Have a great weekend everyone and Go Dallas Cowboys!

HI everyone! I am new to this site and newish to Ideal Protein. I have been on the program for the past 7 weeks. I have lost 32 pounds total and 39.25 total inches. I am still in phase I and will be for the next 50 pounds, at least. My initial target is 150 pounds. I would like to ultimately get to 130.

I am noticing there are some difference of advice from the different clinics/coaches/doctors. In my case, my coach is really strict. It works but I have no latitude when it comes to optional vegetables or restricted foods.

Looking forward to getting to know everyone!
Carla in Arizona