Good morning! Just curious as to what supplements those of you who are doing an alternative plan are on. I still have left over vitamins from IP so I’m using those at the moment, but once I am done I’m not sure if I should buy more IP or cheaper versions. Sometimes cheaper isn’t always better when it comes to vitamins.I have introduced a new supplement into my diet called Chromium Picolinate. Have any of you ever taken this? It is supposed to be great for your metabolism and people on ketosis diets.

My DH took chromium picolinate for low blood sugar issues. It worked for him.

When my IP stash ran out, I switched to the supersize Costco vitamins. I take some above and beyond IP requirements though. My supplement regimen is:

• 2 caps Omega-3 fish oil
• Women's One-A-Day multi
• 1000 mg Calcium
• 2000 IU Vit D
• 1000 mg Vit C
• 500 mg Magnesium
• Floralax 1 cap every other day (ish)

I used to also take a Potassium supplement but honestly the dosages are so low as to be pointless. I think the strongest you can get is 99 mg. However, especially because ketosis flushes so much water, (and assuming you have normal kidney function) it is recommended to get 4000 mg of potassium per day. I get about 1500 mg from my IP diet and I use a No-Salt substitute to sprinkle extra potassium on my food. I also drink broth to maintain adequate sodium intake around 2 grams per day. The magnesium supplement is very important to avoid muscle cramps. I think the electrolytes are the non-negotiable parts of my regimen, I probably wouldn't keel over if I missed the fish oil or vitamin D for a few days.

I haven't heard about Chromium Picolinate, and France is really different from Canada when it comes to natural health products. Basically everything I listed above requires a prescription! Luckily I have about a year left in my giant bottles lol Please let us know how it works for you, if you decide to try it.

Hi everyone

I'm feeling yucky this week. I think I may be fighting off some bug. On Sunday I had a bad headache and digestive problems, coupled with overall joint pain. It isn't ketosis flu. I'm past that.

And all week, I've been bloated and headachey.

I can't wait until it passes.

THEN I'll get on the scale! I'm not weighing when I feel this bloated.

It has been harder to choose foods that "agree" with me this week. My standard chocolate spinach AM smoothie has been fine. Thank goodness for veggies in chicken broth (lunch soup!). I've tried various packets at lunch and the savory agrees with me the best right now, rather than sweet. Today I'll pick up a Quest Chips pack to go with my lunch soup (kind've an IP version of "saltines").

I missed some veggies one day and a packet another day but all-in all I'm moving thru it. I'm hoping whatever it is runs its course in another day or so...then I'll be truly back on track (and hopefully my pants will fit better since I'm currently so bloated!).

Hope you feel better..so much junk going around this winter.

Feel better Lisa. A couple of weeks ago, I was just sluggish and tired. I actually went to bed at 7:30 one night. My husband was asking if I was sick.. a couple of days later TOM came and I'm fighting allergies. My numbers were not good, but this week I was down 3. I think since we are so low cal that when our bodies are fighting something, we have to give it that extra help in rest and TLC.

TGIF everyone.

Good Morning IP I have been on the road the last 3 days stopping at friends. I managed to stay 100% OP. Very proud of myself. We will be at the beach for the month of March. We have a lot of relatives coming all month. I plan on staying 100% OP. I need to just get this reboot done so I can get back into my cute clothes hanging in my closet. I am so motivated this time. I hope my motivation continues until I lose the weight.

For awhile I was taking 2000 IU vitamin D daily, and I reached toxic levels even with little sun exposure. So I backed off.

I've dabbled in and out of this forum for years without really participating. Now I'm back to loose my last 15 lbs. (I've kept off 20 lbs. for several years). I will use alternative products and I do have a few strawberries or non-plan items, so I'm not totally strict. I use MyFitnessPal to log my calories, and FitBit to log my activity. At 62, I'm going long term and steady success. I'm an emotional eater and I just finished reading this book. To boil it down - I've been an overeater all my life and from the book I understand three strategies will help: Rules - "I don't eat bread". "I don't eat between meals"; Thought stopping - "I walk away from temptation immediately and focus on something else"; and reframing foods as undesirable - "That's just sugar, fat, and salt and it doesn't look good." The sad thing is that the amydala will always retain the habit of overeating once established, hence people lapse back into old habits without a great deal of resolve. So wish me luck - I have to get it straight this time! http://www.amazon.com/The-End-Overea.../dp/1605294578

I started several years ago at 173 - isn't it fun to see the number go down! Such great success on IP. We will get there!!

Great to see you back ratfanny. I like the way you are looking at the food. I need to do that as well. I like my sugar and started getting low carb chocolate and other snack low in carb but I think the sugar alcohols are killing me. I just am not losing and haven't for almost 2 weeks. I started back today 100% OP with IP and will see how that goes this week. I am trying to stick to only 3 IP products a day. I use the apple oatmeal to make zucchini loaves and love it as my snack during the day. I WI tomorrow and will start it off again.

Thank you Blondi for the kind words. It really helps to get feedback and participate. I'm so glad to be back!

Hi all,

I really had an interesting day yesterday. I was walking at a strip mall and noticed a weight loss doctor's storefront. I stopped by. They give drugs, but I'm too old! No patients over 60. Anyway, the physician administering the program was in the lobby and I struck up a conversation. I explained that I have a degree in clinical nutrition, however I still struggle with my weight. I always seem to be hungry. However, I have lost 20 lbs. and kept it over for a number of years. After reading the book "The End of Overeating," I said to him, "You must have written that book!" The bottom line is that the food industry as he said, has the goal of, "Putting 40 lbs. on every person on the planet." They want people hooked on salt, fat, and sugar at an early age, and hooked on prepared, processed foods. Since I grew up on a farm with real food, I had to reflect upon when my bad habits started. I would say chocolate chip cookies. I ate them with abandon because my thin mother made them regularly. She made a cake every Sunday and they were extraordinary. My dad and I devoured the cakes, and my mother would take one or two bites and be done. She remained thin until her death last year at 96 of Alzeimers.
Back to my visit with the doctor: He said food is an addiction and needs to be treated that way. He said only 5% of dieters keep the weight off because they are chronically hungry and have not made sufficient lifestyle changes to maintain their new weight. Since he lost weight himself, a few things worked for him: Choose to be around thin friends and copy their habits; get rid of your cable TV and MOVE!; don't eat out and avoid processed foods. He even said that overweight women who can't get pregnant can usually achieve their goal of having a child if they just lose weight. Apparently too much estrogen can tinker with conception ability. I could go on - but most of what he said touched home with me.
As a side note, I walked last night with a walking group and met a woman who ten years ago (then age 57) lost 35 lbs. on South Beach and has kept it off. Guess who I'm going to hang with! I have other thin friends and I notice they think popcorn at the movies is odd, and they don't eat between meals. All those European habits that are keeping the French so thin!

Week one of my reboot and I lost 6 pounds! The scale has been stuck for four days though. The fifth day I must have gone into ketosis I sure felt strange. I was hungry most of the week but I'm good now! Just NO cheating for me.

I know a lot of our northerners are dealing with extreme cold and nasty weather, but my allergies have hit hard in FL. My sides hurt from coughing.

My poor little girl is using nebulizer to be able to cope.

Was going to say happy hump day, but it's only Tuesday

Still OP though.