No question about it, some people are going to do much better with in person support. A good coach would make the IP diet well worth it in my opinion even at a higher cost.

As you probably know from reading here. Some people have great coaches and other have worthless ones. Some coaches are actually worse than worthless because they know so little they throw the dieters off track with their bad information.

In a way IP reminds me of cross fit. Both make big marketing claims and both have very little centralized control and therefore each outlet is going to be different. You might have a great experience or you might not.

Regardless, congrats on your success. If I may be so bold as to give you a suggestion, look ahead. Look at the phase 4 plan and see if the rules are something you would want to live with (or could live with). At the end of the day, believe it or not, losing weight is not that difficult. The real difficultly is keeping it off. Figuring out a way of eating that you can live with over the long haul that restricts calories should be your goal in maintinence and you can start thinking about it now.

I don't think I have a copy of the Phase 4 sheet. Can you post a link to that?

Any tips you have about maintaining would be welcome! What has been the most effective way that you have seen?

I can definitely relate to what you say as I have lost about 450 pounds (incrementally) of weight over my life as I have been the classic yo-yo dieter -- losing the same weight (covering the same ground) over and over. But this time I do feel much more determined to get my weight down and keep it down.

I was kind of amazed to see in my long term 30 year weight chart that I have actually gone through the 300 pound barrier (on the downside) 7 times. I am hoping this last time was lucky #7.

That sums up my opinion too (although I'm nowhere near a size 6 [yet!]. I've yo-yo dieted for years and years, and now I'm down 30 lbs and am fitting into clothes I fit into at about 20 lbs. lighter. I think the difference is the fat burn. And for me, seeing results quickly and steadily keeps the motivation going. I love that you are given an end date of when you should hit your goal. When you first start you think, "oh yeah, right . . ." but sure enough, I can see it! I'm actually ahead of the schedule so far.

So yes, I have completely "drank the Koolaid" as far as IP goes . . . and I am so glad I did!

What I've copied below is part of an article Glycogen: The Reason to Rejoice in Losing Water Weight by Heather Elaine Yates, taken from a blog post on the Yahoo contributor network... I think it describes the process quite well, and helped me to understand why my weight loss was so high (9lbs) during my first week on the IP diet.


(Quote): Most people do not realize how energy is stored in their body, and so do not understand the significant biological steps towards a healthy weight. The first step is using up your excess glycogen, which is where the "water weight" comes in.
When you eat, your body first breaks down the carbohydrates, fats, and proteins into the simplest form that it needs to be able to use them. The primary nutrients released into the bloodstream for our bodies to use are glucose, triglycerides, and amino acids. Glucose is the main energy fuel for most of your body's energy needs. When there is more glucose in your blood than your body can use right away (which is usually the case after any meal), it is modified and stored for later use. One of these stored components is glycogen. The process that turns glucose into glycogen for storage takes in over 2 grams of water for every 1 gram of glycogen (so for each gram of glycogen stored you have over 3 grams of total weight added).

Glycogen is stored in liver and muscles tissues in your body, though some is also stored in the kidneys and intestine. When your body is active (even sleeping your burn energy) and runs out of glucose in the blood, the body begins to break down the stored glycogen so that your cells have the fuel they need. As your body converts glycogen back into glucose, it releases those extra grams of water, which are then filter through your kidneys and out they go.

How much glycogen a person stores is directly correlated to how much the person weighs. Your body normal stores enough glycogen so that your body has easy access to energy for multiple days in a starvation situation. The maximum amount appears to be 5g/kg of your body weight (1 pound = 2.2 kg). So if you are around 150lbs (68.2 kg), you could be storing around 341g of glycogen. At 3-4 grams total (remember over 2 grams of water is stored with each gram of glycogen) that is over 1348 grams of excess weight that as you burn off your glycogen, you lose in water as well. Once the stores of glycogen are depleted, then the body can begin to break down fats. First it takes the triglycerides that are in your bloodstream and liver, and breaks those down for energy (either as fatty acids for direct energy of broken down further into glucose). Then the stored fats are released, broken down first into glycerol and fatty acids, and then if needed into glucose. (end of Quote)

Evepet, thanks for posting that. That was a really interesting read! I understand those big losses on week 1 so much better now.

evepet...ditto..thanx from me. It all is interesting and makes sense.

John-
As always your insights are helpful and on target for many too. I certainly do not think there is magic in the packets...but the convenience of a diet that is metabolically correct for me..is invaluable. It would be more so if I still had children at home and was still mid career. Being a retiree...and a traveling grandma....(the BEST job I've ever had) ....the convenience and simple structure this past year made it incredibly easy for me. At this point in my life, I deserve easy, and my husband of 44 years bends over backward to make each day exactly that! We all do IP for as many different reasons as there are metabolic issues ...(or not) in any one of us. Accountability is not everyone's issue. It is not mine. In fact with my personality; oldest child (of 6) syndrome...management style left over from 40 years of working and my level of OCD which is more pronounced as i get older...)....ME? Not even close to needing accountability, and I can tell there are others here who for whatever reason they do IP...accountability is not at the top of the list. The program structure which circumvented my metabolic problems of the last 20 years and convenience were/are the sole reason for me to use their products. Plus, I meet my old boss for coffee once a week and the coffee shop is .5 miles from the IP site. I wouldn't miss that date with her for anything!! She and I were like one monster with two heads and four hands and we still miss working together after 5 years!! She tried to hire me back to oversee a merger integration project recently...go figure...she's 20 years younger than me...what a flattering day that was!

Avalon
Since attachments still aren't working in 3fc, I posted a link to Google Docs for all of the phase sheets, a week or so ago. They are in the stickies. A link to that post is in first post of the daily

perfect! thanks lisa

Kathy - agreed; this is an incredible thread; lots of meat to chew on here. Thanks to all who educated and for Super Avalon for sharing so much detail and thought in the matter.

Lisa - I concur; the simplicity, support and b&w rules make it valuable and easy for me to follow. Right now, P1 is learning and shrinking but every ounce of the way, I learn new ways of how I am going to make these changes last a lifetime and will never return to bad habits.

AVALON - well said, my friend, well said! I am so happy that you have found such success on this plan. You are DYNAMITE and I hope you feel that way too. Congrats on your NSV's and SV's and I am thrilled to hear that you have kicked the early signs of congestive heart failure *scary* to the curb; HOORAY 4 YOU!!!

Yes, agreed, ultimately we do need to find what works for the individual. I've been on so many programs throughout my life, WW's, Jenny, Atkins, Scarsdale, WW (5 more x) and thankfully I found IP. It's amazing where our lives take us. The hardest part of all is being honest with oneself, acknowledging a weight issue and finding that self motivation to commit to a healthier future. As it did for many others, IP changed my life and made me realize I CAN DO THIS! My coach is amazing and so are all of the 3FC Folks like you. I'm just so happy that you're on the boards and I thank you to great depths for all of your shares.

THANKS 4 INSPIRING EVERYONE!!!

Well, I think I am great! (That's 1 vote at least! A fan club of one. HA)

Yes, congestive heart failure is no fun. That's what killed my father at age 80. It's amazing that the two early signs that I had of that back in July: 1.) water weight swelling in my feet and ankles and 2.) fluid in my lungs, (esp. after eating) ... are completely gone now. I actually feel fit and healthy! All these improvements and I am still 85 pounds overweight. (Still 85 pounds over is so much better than being 136 pounds over!). To be honest with you, I can't even imagine right now how much better I could possibly feel when I am down to 190 lbs (because right now I feel amazingly great).

It's pretty interesting how many different diets some/many of us have tried.

I think for me it finally sunk in that losing the weight is not the key step (for me), it's keeping it off. And I can no longer look at a diet as something I can eventually go off of and "graduate" and go back to my old eating habits. But instead it's a first step of changing my eating habits and patterns for a lifetime.

One thing that I like about IP is it's definitely changing my "tastes" and breaking some old patterns.

And I am glad that you are here too. You and others inspire me as well! It's definitely a two way street.

What a fantastically helpful thread this is! Thanks to everyone for your insight. It's invaluable to a newbie like me.

While nearly everyone's experince, shared here, which led some of us to "drink the kool-aid" has been different...all are heartening.The reasons have the elements of desperation be it because of our health, emotional state and well being or family history with our own self heading down same road that scared the !!@#=&*7^ out of us ...we recognize the chemistry of this protocol is why we are doing it. The lucky ones who will lose on any low cal diet possibly find this faster...and that's a great reason as well. The other compelling factor mentioned over and over is the ability to make an educated choice in the future about what we will eat. The carbs and sugar for a large number of us... (no pun or insult intended...that's me I'm talkin' about...from six months ago..), it is a blessing and a privilege to really have the information about what some kinds of foods will do to us as individuals if we are not careful...even if we are calorie compliant and attack life in moderation going forward.

Haven't read of any other protocol that sensitizes, informs or proves to a follower what low glycemic vigilance applied to a BMR/caloric appropriate diet for life does for insulin resistant, syndrome X, carb sensitive, hypothyroid (...etc.) individuals.

It's not really that hard to do what works after you've hit the wall in desperation!

KC...thanks for asking this initial question and getting so much good stuff on one thread!

Great thread and information!!! Thanks all!

Avalon - You've got my vote and I can start the ballot cuz I know you'd get a heck of a lot more!

I'm happy to hear you have taken the bull by the horn and taken matters in your own hands - you're beating this heart congestive failure, you feel amazing (excellent to hear) and you will reach your goal. And, I can't wait to read your threads once that happens (which will be soon from the rate you are moving). I never knew those were symptoms and it's amazing you did away with it minus medication(s) and solely by losing lbs'. I'm sorry that you lost your father but, the gift here is that he is with you every step of the way and has been a reminder for you to get healthy and to cherish life. I could only imagine he would be one proud Papa.

I'm in your camp; I think it's finally clicked and I know that I will never allow myself to go back to old eating habits, that did not work for me and I do not want to end up like that ever again, never! I know maintenance will be hard but what's great is that we've got the tools and know how to beat this and understand how to keep success in our court.

I liked your grocery list from the other thread. I like how IP has changed my taste buds too. The temptations aren't there b/c things are so satisfying on this plan.

Many Cheers!

MelissaKate - Right? Such a helpful thread; glad you enjoyed it too.

Absolutely. This is the great part of any PSMF diet and a big part of what appealed to me when I first read about the PSMF diet I did.

The primary point I was attempting to make is that the IP diet is a very standard PSMF diet.

I post on this web site because of what kaplods quote in my signature says.