SusieCJ - your motivation is so encouraging! I need to stop making excuses and finally give myself a swift kick in the butt and just get on with this. I'm miserable at my current weight so time to do something about it!

SusieCJ - keep it up, girl! I feel ya. Thanks for being open and honest about your struggles with IP - I too have a hard time w/the food. Except the bars (but they're restricted, dang it!)

I just wanted to take a moment and thank everyone here for all the great support I got here in my attempt on the IP protocol.... But unfortunately I've realized that this isn't the right time for this particular plan for me... While I think I could have adjusted to it physically... Mentally I just could not "Get My Head In The Game" so to speak... So I've decided to just really focus on maintaining the 50lbs I have lost in the past year... Still keep tracking of what I eat, since it's gotten me this far... And eat near maintaince level calories since I feel so much better.... I finally feel like I can begin to even think about running again, which is something I really want to do now that the weather is getting nice again... So we'll see, if in a few months if I still have these final 15lbs to still lose... The IP protocol will still be an option...

I know my IP coach said not to exercise. But now that summer is here, I like to walk for an hour, just a moderate speed. This should not affect the weight loss right?

asmuir, how do you do with raw veggies? I ate pretty much this every single day when I was on P1:
Both meals: 2 cups raw cucumber, mix of red/yellow/orange bell peppers, celery, pickle. 2 cup romaine lettuce. I bought organic as the taste, for me, is significantly better - I can taste the chemicals when they are there. I just put them in plastic baggies on the weekend and had them ready for the week. Super easy and I am on the road a lot so if needed could eat them in the car. I even put the lettuce in the baggies.
For lunch I had BBQ crisps with it, every day.

It was the easiest time of my life - now on P4 it is slightly more complicated, but sometimes I just eat that exact thing as I like it. I take a baggie of 4 oz grilled chicken instead of the crisps.

It's what I liked, it worked for me. From time to time I would cook up some veg that I like in a soup like thing with broth, and eat that with grilled chicken or ground beef for dinner.

Find what you like, it doesn't matter. I'm sure a lot of people would say it is better to vary everything, but I just wanted to stay on the P1 protocol however I could. I think as long as you're OP you're fine, and my doctor echoed this.

We are all so different, I think it's important to find what works for you. Maybe experiment with new ways of cooking things, etc.

Sounds like you need to reeducate your palate. Veggies aren't the enemy. I think most of us would agree that they are an acquired taste and that you often have to experiment with different ways of cooking them until you find one that works for you.

I used to hate asparagus - but lightly sauteed in a tsp of butter with some sea salt .. yum yum. I had nasty associations of canned, steamed and boiled asparagus which made me steer clear of it for lots of years.

Cauli florets baked in the oven with a sprinkling of olive oil and some curry powder? Yep, can do that, too.

Take a read through the awesome Rainbowsmiles' recipes (Lisa links to it in the first post of the daily chat thread) for inspiration and fresh ideas.

Honestly, I think most of us had to rethink vegetables when we started IP as it's one of the few "real" foods we are allowed and who wants to be deprived of more food groups than we really have to?

Keep trying new things - for your sanity as much as your health.

Thanks for the tips! I have been looking through Rainbow's recipes. I'm working on reeducating the palate, one veggie at a time. I have been cooking rhubarb and blending it with an EAS Strawberry shake, and then mostly eating cucumbers, spinach in salads, green beans when I can. I'll keep trying new things. My husband can eat just about ANY veggie and be fine with it. I just think I have the worst taste buds in history! I tried asparagus the other day and it wasn't awful, so I will just keep trying!!!

I have the same question. Before I started on IP I was walking 3 to 4 miles a day with 10,000 steps as a goal each day. I have a treadmill, so it was easy to do on bad weather days. My pace was over 3 mph for at least 30 minutes of those miles. I would like to get back to that same level again, but don't want to halt my weight loss.
BTW, I lost no weight at all over the last year while I was doing that walking.

Hi Woodlily, I too walked all summer last year without loosing a pound. But since last week I have been walking at a stready pace for an hour, and I am still loosing weight at the same pace at before. I found some old threads, where others have done moderate exercise and still lost weight steadily. I have also read that walking will not affect weight loss, as long as you walk at a steady pace, as it does not increase the heart rate too much. Hope this helps. But I guess the best thing would be to try if for a couple of weeks and see. Ohters have also suggested increasing one IP on days of workouts.Hope this helps

WooHoo! down 2.8 pounds at weigh-in this week! Down to my smallest pair of jeans that I could not even fasten a month ago! I went out for dinner at Sweet Tomatoes and made a salad of all allowed veggies and then went for the chicken noodle soup and just fished out the chicken for my protein!

Good job! I love sweet tomatoes!

Hi everyone. A lot of people on here have shared some great tips on going out to restaurants and getting their 4 cups of veggies in. I would like to share some of my tips (and missteps) with you, to help make this plan a little easier.

When going out to eat, I find that the biggest thing is planning ahead. When I know that a group of us were going to meet up to do some activities, and then go eat afterwards, I would do a few things. First, I would pack a lunch kit with a pre-made drink, my meds, a snack, and a mini squirt bottle of white vinegar. That way, if the group selected a restaurant where my options were limited to none, I still have my drink. The second thing I would do is to check out the restaurants in the area that we were going to be in, and use MyFitnessPal to look at the menu items, and come up with 3 suggested restaurants to the group. I find that most restaurants whose main focus is seafood (fish in particular), are going to have a lot of healthy options. For example, Bonefish Grill has a Rainbow Trout dish that is great (0 sugar, 0 carbs). I got a side salad, and used my white vinegar, as well as shared the enamame appetizer. My third suggestion would be to discuss healthy dining options with the more healthy-conscious folks in your party, to help sway the consensus .

I've also learned of restaurant items I can have with no problems. For Mexican food, Fajitas. There are some caveats though. Make sure the meats/seafood are not marinated in sugar (i.e. honey, sauces). You will also have to request to substitute the onions for bell peppers. Since I'm a guy from New Orleans, and it's crawfish and shrimp season, I can fully indulge at crawfish and shrimp boils, and still be in line with the Ideal Protein program. I eat crawfish/shrimp, onions, garlic, and mushrooms. Since the onion are not caramelized, they are okay to eat. If Vietnamese food is your thing, Pho is a great option. Just request no noodles, and add extra veggies. However, do not get the Lemongrass chicken Vermicelli. I ordered it without the noodles, carrots, and nuts, and it still knocked me out of ketosis. I guess it was the marinade (I forgot to ask). As I have previously stated, seafood restaurants with grilled/blackened fish options are usually pretty Ideal Protein friendly. Steak restaurants are pretty good as well. Order an 8 oz. filet, and a side salad. Bring your white vinegar with you.

Regarding getting those four cups of veggies in per day, I have two main go-to veggies; fresh spinach and bok choy. I take the fresh spinach and place them in a hot skillet, after spraying the skillet with Pam cooking spray. Once it is almost cooked down, I'll sprinkle onion powder, garlic powder, and Ideal salt on it. I'll usually cook several servings at a time, and put them in containers for the week. I do a similar thing with the bok choy, except I add in light soy sauce and mushrooms. Both veggies cook down to almost nothing, but the 2 cups measured before cooking is what really counts. So, 3 bites of spinach or bok choy, and your finished with downing your veggies!

As far as cooking at home, here are a few options. Using the taco seasoning mix, brown some 90% lean ground sirloin, and the mix, and eat it in a romaine lettuce leaf; so good! Also, the same area where you find the taco seasoning mix in the store, there should be some powdered marinate mixes. Check the back of the packaging for 0 carbs, 0 sugars (also, 1 or 2 of each are okay). When making the marinate, the directions usually call for "oil." I use olive oil. I usually marinate chicken tenders or breast in a ziplock bag for 24 hours, and then grill. A veggie you can grill with it are large mushroom caps. Spray both sides with Pam cooking spray, and add garlic salt. It tastes just like steak!

Anyways, I hope this helps. I'm I little more than a month in, and are 32 pounds lost. I'm hoping to hit my 100 pound goal by the end of June. Keep on going everyone! You are worth it!!!

TripSwitch truly best wishes to you and come back and talk to us whenever you like - I like hearing from everyone, you don't have to feel like you are strictly OP to chat. We are learning about maintenance together, and it sounds like you are basically headed into maintenance.
I am slowly losing a few pounds on P4 through SLIGHT calorie reduction and exercise/toning. Hopefully you will do the same. It will just take a little longer maybe, but my body was the same as you where it was done with P1 and ready for the next thing.

Update: I had a great day yesterday with Veggies. Made some cauliflower pizza bites, basically just cauliflower, spices/herbs and an egg. I have some other ideas on cauliflower and today already I have gotten down 2 cups of Spinach, so I am trying...I promise!!!

IP head office does suggest 'light' exercise (ie: not sweating) on P1 once you have eased into ketosis. You can do weights as well but not at previous intensity. Walking is perfect, cycling, swimming, etc. If you get into heavier exercise, you may need to add an extra packet or eggs & possibly a bit of carb (Jenny38 on the maintainer threads has done half marathons, 10 k runs etc this way). There is a C25K on IP thread and a Movers & Groovers thread for IP & exercise that are good to follow for encouragement & advice. If you were exercising before, keep it up. If you are new to exercise, start slowly with walking, see how you feel and go from there.
As you've already learned, exercise alone doesn't keep the weight off or lower the fat. 'Fat loss is in the kitchen, fitness is in the gym' is a truism.
Exercise is also good for our mental & emotional health, which is a big thing when changing our food habits.

Keep on movin'!
Liana