the tea sounds great. tell me about the cup please. I can't PM you until you have been here 20 days and 20 posts maybe? How did you learn of these? are they only found online? Thanks

I have been putting SweetLeaf Liquid Stevia in my tea and it makes it as sweet as Splenda. I buy this from my Ideal Protein center. It has 0/0/0 and comes in many different flavors. I had been using Truvia and Splenda but then found out there is carbs in both.

I discovered them in a little shop in Walla Walla, Wa.

IF I use sweetener it is always Sweetleaf liquid Stevia. I have the chocolate, toffee, and my fav is vanilla cream all 0/0/0 :-). Bought mine through Super Supplements on sale for about $8 ea.

Ok, so the cup is awesome. It's dishwasher and microwave safe ;-) for starters. It has a nice deep steeping basket to hold your tsp of tea and holds heat with the lid on for a long time. I love to make it and take it downstairs so when I'm ready to drink it 30 min to an hr later it's still warm and yummy. I ordered a second cup for my house and gave one away as a bday gift. My girlfriend had three cups the first day and is as hooked as I am and she's not on a diet

Licorice Spice by Stash tea is naturally sweet and wonderful, as is Bengal Spice by Celestial Seasonings! The don't need stevia or agave or anything!

I also love tea!

Remember if your tea is not decaf you will have to add more water to your day. 8 oz of water for 8 oz of tea. As long as it is decaf though it counts toward your water. I am presently hooked on Good Earth Sweet & Spicy. It does not need sweetening and has a wonderful cinnamon flavor to it.

Oh, my goodness I had a the Belgian Chocolate Mint tonight with a few drops of chocolate stevia and it was candy in a cup! Simply amazing A new favorite and herbal so no extra water needed

Tell me more!!!! What brand of tea is the Belgian Chocolate Mint? I have to give that a try.

I just started IP, phase 1 a week ago!!! Can someone tell me if I can drink flavored tea? Any kind? does it count as my water? Can I use cinnamon in it?
With coffee I can use trivia and it won't hurt right? I don't use creamer or milk.

Yes any tea, and you can use cinnamon...i also sometimes put like vanilla stuff in mine....
and just an FYI

"Some of the confusion has stemmed from the fact that many commonly consumed beverages contain caffeine, which is considered to be a diuretic. The thinking goes like this: if caffeine makes you urinate, then a caffeinated drink will surely cause you to lose more water than you take in, so a caffeinated drink can’t really be a fluid – maybe it’s more like a ‘negative fluid’.

Well, here’s the good news for coffee and tea lovers – it turns out that, for the most part, this simply isn’t true. A review¹on the topic, which summarized numerous studies on the subject conducted over nearly 40 years, reported that taking in a large amount of caffeine at one time (around 300 mg, or what you’d get in 2-3 cups of strong coffee – and not an amount you’d drink all at once) can promote urination, but only in people who haven’t had any caffeine for weeks. And those who are habitual caffeine consumers develop a tolerance to the diuretic effects – much like they develop a tolerance to the stimulating effects. The report also stated that “doses of caffeine equivalent to the amount normally found in standard servings of tea, coffee and carbonated soft drinks appear to have no diuretic action”. So there you go; caffeinated beverages definitely “count” when it comes to meeting fluid needs.

Actually, all beverages can contribute to your fluid requirement – like coffee, tea, fruit juice, broth, vegetable juice, sports drinks and low fat milk – since they’re primarily water. So if, like my client, you just can’t face drinking water, these “water alternatives” still count."

so while i wouldn't say you should get all your fld intake from coffee or tea with caffeine, you do not really need to add a glass of water for each cup of coffee or tea you have if you drink a cup daily and/or are used to the caffeine

I love the Ideal Tisane. I make a huge thermos (2 liter?) of it every morning and drink it through the day. I sweeten with Stevia. For a different flavour sensation, sometimes I'll add frozen ginger ice cubes (which I make by simmering chopped/sliced up ginger for awhile. Once it cools I freeze the liquid in ice cube bags and they're ready to go whenever I need one for tea.)

I had a question about the teas. My coach said herbal was great but to stay away from the ones that had fruit in them because of the carb impact. Is this true for flavoured ones as well ie white tea and pear?

I have a lot of loose teas and not using them because of the fruit content.

There are so many variations out there, let's start with the current protocol sheet. It does say sweetener is allowed at breakfast and then goes on to say: "IMPORTANT – Anything that is not included on this sheet is not allowed." So that would be one sweetener per day if you use the sheet dated Feb. 2013.

If you go by what has been done before there seems to be two limits to the amount allowed. I have seen some say 3 servings of 0/0/0 and others have said 6. The reason behind putting a limit on these extras that in the past were allowed should be obvious. Even though these are labeled as zero carbs, the government will allow the companies to label these things as no carbs even if they contain 0.9 carb. So it's still adding carbs and at some point if you do not limit them you could be pushing yourself right out of the low carb zone we are trying to maintain.

Now everyone's tolerance for carbs will be different and so other than pointing out the why there is any mention of limiting 0/0/0 sweeteners and extras like Walden Farms is because it's easier to place a limit. (I know this diet works for me because it's so simple in that all the hard work has already been done for me already and is on the sheet.) Yet part of this diet, while taking the journey is to figure out your own head and body so if you know you can tolerate more then fine, but if there comes a time when things slow down this should be the first thing you cut back on, specially if nothing else has changed.

For those asking if flavored teas and fruit teas are allowed, check the nutrition label and the ingredient list. Is it zero carbs, fat and calories?

My understanding is that even if it is zero/zero/zero, one still has to be cautious on account of the fact that a product still can have some carb in it but if it is below a certain level, the carb (or sugar as it may be) need not be mentioned.

This would be a concern if one were having multiple servings of a zero/zero/zero product in one day.

Also, I find I have to be pretty cautious with the Walden Farm Products because of their sucralose content. Stevia on the other hand does not bother me at all.

Annik