Finale I cant message you You must not have been on her for the 20 days/20 posts yet - Thanks for the offer though

Hey everyone, hope you all had a great weekend. I'm pretty proud of myself. I have a lot of friends in town for Thanksgiving. On Saturday, we all went to our favorite sports bar to watch some college football. For over 3 hours I sat and drank water and had a salad while everyone around me was eating delicious looking deep fried foods and burgers/sandwiches. I'm proud of the level of discipline I have already started to develop. It was less than a year ago that I had accepted that I was going to be overweight all my life. This diet has given me new hope. In other good news, I just got a raise at work!

-Hang in there Kawaii. You've done awesome so far! Keep it up!

Hope everyone else is doing well. I probably won't be posting as much this week. Trying to get everything done in the office so I can enjoy the extended holiday weekend! Good luck!

I am brand new to IP This is day 6. I thought I was going to faint yesterday while shopping. Feeling better today. I had gone for a 40 minute walk just before shopping. I think I must have used up my last drop of glycogen on the walk. A weird feeling! Had a very low-key evening. Has anyone experienced this kind of thing before? I stuck with the program and do feel better today.

claustin -

I am glad you are back on track. I know my PMS was a million times worse than I was used too while I was on Phase 1. I was also very irregular. I would find myself with insane cravings and be in a really edgy, crabby, snappy mood out of the blue. Then TOM would start and I'd realize it was PMS. I think the low carb part of the diet is what makes the symptoms worse. There is something about serotonin and carbs I remember reading once. I know the release of estrogen from the fat cells breaking down is what contributes to the irregular part - it may also exacerbate cravings, moodiness etc.

I don't know if you ever do quest bars but I did find them very satisfying for the crazy PMS cravings. I would roll one thin with a rolling pin between 2 pieces of wax paper and then cut into 8 - 10 small pieces. Bake at 350 until crisp and I'd have 10 tiny little on plan cookies as my snack.

Also there is brownie recipe from the chocolate drink mix that was not bad for those chocolate cravings either.

I'm glad you figured out what was causing you to struggle. Unfortunately on IP for me TOM could strike at almost any time Hang in there.

Thank you! Its crazy how our hormones can control almost every aspect of our day to day life! Food cravings, Mood swings, irritability, ect... crazy! I'll be good for 3 more weeks then I'll crash again haha So if you see me repeating the past weeks comments send me a cyber slap would ya? lol

I am having a good day so far. Went to town and did some Christmas shopping and managed to wait till I got home to eat I have been interested in some alternatives for my lunches. I am pretty bored with the same 3 packets. I think I'll look at the post on it and see if anything sticks out. I'd love to have something else to eat for lunch!! Some days I have my supper for lunch just to mix it up lol its getting pretty bad. Is there any of the products you like in particular?

I was going to say, Go for it!

See doesn't that feel better! Gotta get those worries and stressors out so your cortisol levels even out. I am glad that you are dealing with your food issues with your counselor. If we do not learn how to deal with them now, the weight will come back. I really believe that the food is just a symptom of an underlying issues. I think organizing is a great way to redirect your hands and mind!

Wow Jig, great willpower and a raise.Impressive!

For the first two weeks, I felt like this. I decided to split my protein into lunch and dinner. I also space out my packets so that I do not go very long without eating and I drink more water than expected. I still feel dizzy sometimes when doing something physical. I just sit down and rest. Crazy because I am really active outside and this weak feeling is just something which I have had to adjust to.

On my way, where are you from in CT?

Had my WI today, down 2 lbs. Of course like every week, I always hope for more but am so ecstatic to be in the 150's! It has been a longgggg time and it is motivating to keep going. Bought extra packets and a few alternatives to try for the next couple weeks so today was a bit expensive. I still bought all my IP stuff just in case. I am nervous about going on alternatives.

Kawaii: Glad you are on the upswing and discovering what works for you with the organizing and such. You never know, you could become a professional organizer! I could use one!!

Jig: WAY TO GO!! That is so awesome, I had something similar the other night with my birthday, watched everyone indulge in my birthday cake while I sipped on my hot tea. Guess what? It didn't kill me!!!

Nowslim: I absolutely cannot get my heart rate up to high..I do almost pass out. Soon, I will add some exercise along with an extra packet!

Onmyway: Awesome idea with the Quest bars! I'm definitely going to have try that for "those days".

Airportchick, what alternatives did you decide on?

Oops, congrats my friend- on the 2 pounds and 150s!!!!!!!

I am going to try the EAS carb control shakes, 1 a day at first, then to 2 depending on how it goes. And I stopped at GNC and got some Quest bars so I could try them. I still don't like how much sodium is in them and I only chose the ones recommended that were close to IP. I haven't tried one yet. Do you use alternatives?

I did discover something that is so simple and yet I am so in love! Roasted broccoli. Why have I never prepared it this way?!?!?!

Thank You!!

nowslim: in the beginning I felt dizzy a lot. Standing up to fast would really get me dizzy. I kept my real salt in my purse and would sprinkle a little on the back of my hand to lick and then drink some water. The salt helped while my body got adjusted to IP. Keep your eye on the dizzyness - sometimes IP can make your blood pressure a little wacky and low. With all the water we are drinking it is also easy to throw our electrolytes out of balance.

Slipfree: I am in Simsbury, North Central CT. Where are you in CT?

I'm really glad I looked in this thread: It's great to see the newer I Peeps supporting one another.

The quest bars are high in sodium: I try to stick to the ones in the Natural line mostly. I count them as a restricted. I used them sparingly while on phase 1, not every day, but others say they do, and I didn't try one until about 8 months of IP. There is a thread that has lots of info on Quest bars as an alternative.

I did get the 'natural' line bars, the others were INSANE. I just know that what I have been doing is working and I'm nervous to mess with it. I think I will try using the alternative bars about 3x's a week to start. I just finished my 7th week on IP. I got their new wafers and I have to say...they are a bit sweet for me. Now mind you...I basically lived off of sugar before starting IP. I have NEVER tasted anything "too" sweet...EVER. I couldn't believe that after one bite, being too sweet was my first thought. Who the heck am I turning in to?! lol

Lol,Airportchick, I love those orange wafers!

OnMyway, I live in Niantic on the coast.

People in my life are supportive but they do not want to hear about the daily process of this program. And it is on my mind a lot. I am grateful for all the IP posters, especially the Oct. Newbies for helping me stay on track and focused.

airportchick: I agree: the wafers are too sweet. I do feel that way about some quest bars too: the double chocolate chunk is one that is too sweet in a weird way. people were raving about how good it was so I ordered some to try and was disapponted by how sweet they tasted.