That is AWESOME...love it! Congrats on getting skinny, hormone slayer. I'm actually on week 2 of the Cellulite Protocol (NOT for the faint of heart, by the way) and paying close attention to not getting too skinny...very funny paradigm shift.

Survived Halloween night without eating candy!!! First time ever. Now we'll see if I survive a business trip to our nation's capital with conference food and expense account eating. I am packing shakes and bars so at least 2 meals per day will be reasonable.

Good morning all, here is the start of my last phase 2 week, starting next Tuesday for phase 3 for sure this time. I seem to be continuing my roller coaster ride of losing, gaining, losing, gaining... this week was a gain week... so it is on to better things, have my dvds ready to go and my ball pumped up and am ready for tonight after walking will do some pilates at home and see how that goes. Ran a little last week, felt good but legs are a little sore... getting excited just to have poached eggs and toast... my weekend fave... during the week will probably stick to peanut butter and toast and yogurt and fruit..
Have a great day.

OK PXLKITTY---Hormone slayer...I'm dealing with mine and not very well. What's working for you?

Lily and the cellulite conqueror...do tell????? Besides the dry brushing what else is involved.
Thanks ladies, flabby and flashing sunnymae

Thanks...that does help and I agree. I think losing the fat/weight is a benefit of all the resetting and cleansing we have done, therefore offsetting (to a degree) the bodies ancient urge to store fat. Still 1000's of years of survival dna would have us stockpiling for famine (they didn't know America runs on Dunkin :0)
So...the real challenge is finding a flow that can be more relaxed and less military, so we can have fun in maintenance and not feel like we're in constant vigil. That produces stress and only compounds hormone levels and the chain reaction that follows. I think that explains the reason for the Dr's "free" "cheat" day. It mimics ancient pre-winter/scarcity hoarding, so the body is tricked into feeling satisfied that it's gathering and stockpiling needs are being met.
Always amazed by this group and this thread in particular. Wow...we humans are amazing creatures!

Well all the talk of 2 years at maintenance = body stabilizing as this weight, had me googling it to find out more. http://www.ajcn.org/content/82/1/222S.full
This was the site that while it didn't give any hormonal reasoning just stated data and interpretation of said data.
That individuals who maintain within five pounds of their baseline weight after two years are more likely to be successful in the long term for a variety of reasons- please see link.
I found it interesting that so many of the things that we were taught to do through the IP program, having the cheat/ recovery day, eating est. 1800cal/day, fit in so nicely with what this article had to say. And hey good for us for getting the challenges going to keep us on board with the physical activity because that also seems to be a major predictor. That and not forgetting where you came from. To participate on this thread keeps the memory alive. Cheers to everyone for being here and to maintenance! It is worth the vigil. It is worth the exercise. It is worth the penance day. Because self esteem is priceless. (Cheesy I know but true nonetheless)

I have been lurking around here on your thread as I am getting ready to move to P2 tomorrow.

I wanted to mention to anyone who wants to start running you can google "couch to 5k" and find a great start up running program that will have you running 30 minutes or 3 miles non-stop in 8 weeks. If you don't want to do that running class that 2ride was talking about.

I am so stoked to start phasing off. Reading about your P3 breakfasts and P4 cheat days have got me drooling

Oh- I wanted to mention to whomever said they were doing the greek yogurt and kashi cereal for breakfast but not adding fat. If you DO want to add the fat but keep bfast simple, you could look for a greek yogurt with more fat in it or you can just eat a tablespoon or 2 of peanut or almond butter. For me, I would eat it right out of the jar on a spoon

I will definitely be back around as I get closer to maintaining. A quick question, does anyone follow more a P3 style of eating in maintenance or do you strictly follow P4 as written?

Good Morning!!
I really need HELP here...I had my first cheat day on Halloween,needless to say I had all JUNK that day I was up all night sick as a dog,felt like I was drunk,couldn't get enough water into me!!WI the next morning up 3 lbs,I went on phase 1 yesterday,WI this morning only down .6 I am so upset with myself..I will NEVER do this again!! What can I do to reset my mind? Is this O K?All that sugar...OMG...PLZ tell me it's going to be fine....Thank-You

I am frustrated... This last weekend was my third free day, and I indulged. The other weeks, my weight was back down to goal by the Tuesday. This week, it is not... I'm at 149.0 this morning. Something is terribly, terribly wrong.

I know that I am gaining muscle, fighting a cold, and haven't had enough sleep... But I'm up, and it stinks. I'm going to be extra careful the next few days and see what happens. If it doesn't budge, I'm going back on Phase 1.

Here is what I think went wrong... I treated penance day a little more like carb-free day than Phase 1 day. Also, I had Chinese for dinner that night (sodium). I've been eating out more. I think I got comfortable with the idea of maintenance and have been pushing the envelope a little, maybe even thinking I know what's in things that I order when I don't really. I haven't been eating as many eggs, because I got sick of cooking them and I was loving the toast/yogurt.

So, back to home cooking. No more Chinese on penance day. I NEED TO SLEEP MORE! Back to eating eggs with breakfast.

WOW, this is hard. I feel like a failure today.

Hey. See above. I'm not doing too well, apparently. Something is up. Maybe it's the stuff I'm taking for my cold?

Thanks for sending this... Interesting stuff.

It really depends on the day. I've had a few P3 days here and there, but really like the cheese at lunchtime and the grain at dinner, so have been doing more P4. I'm going to backtrack on that this week since my weight is up. I'm not happy with what's going on right now.

PixlKitty..I am sorry you are having a slow recovery from the cheat day. It very well could be your cold and the stress on your body..That is frustrating. At least you have the Phase 1 tool ready to go back to if things do not start moving. Hope you feel better. I am up with you in the dark exercising before work. It is very dark and cold heading to the gym.

Sheena.. You did what you were supposed to do and had a cheat day. Maybe your body has changed and you just can't handle as much sugar. It has taken others more than one day to go back down..sometimes 3-5. Keep telling yourself you are learning about what you can do to maintain. There is always Phase 1 to get back on for a kick start. Good luck today..

Jennydoodle..I am totally enjoying my peanut butter on Phase 3. I forgot how much I loved it! You are very close to goal!!!!

Capricious: Self esteem is priceless. I am very much happier with myself at this weight. I really am starting to believe in myself that I can do this and that I deserve to live a healthy happy life. I like your site.

2Riderollercoaster. Hang in there.Maybe your body loses for awhile and then goes through the up and down cycle. Hope you like your Pilates tape. At least you will be able to eat your favorite breakfast and PB on Phase 3.

Pauley: I said the same thing yesterday. This is the first Halloween that I have not had candy in years. Hope the snow storm has finished when you are in DC. Dress warm..It is cold over there. I am heading to San Francisco next Sat and figure I must take packets also..maybe do a Phase 1.

Sunnymae: I like the term Hormone slayers! Hormone conquerors?

Beth..Thanks for such an informative comment. I was wondering how the hormones worked in with the whole glucagon/insulin operation. Our bodies are complicated. I like the idea that we already may have altered these hormones by being on Ideal Protein.
You are right..we have to live with these hormones for life..not just two years.

What is this cellulite program you are doing?

You will be fine... Just don't throw everything away and start cheating left and right. Having slip ups is normal. How you react to them will determine your success at maintenance. Just go back to maintenance and watch the scale for the next few days. If it's not coming down, try Phase 3 and/or cutting out more of the sugar/starch.

I too am worried, but my cheat day was Saturday and now it's Wednesday and I'm still up 4 lbs. I obviously have some other stuff going on. Cold, stress, lack of sleep, etc. My rule is that I don't get a cheat day if I'm closer to 150 than 145. Looks like that might be the case this weekend... for the first time, since hitting maintenace almost a month ago. So, for me it's a few days of being extra careful now and making sure that I get enough sleep and fluids to help me kick this cold. Then, I will cross whatever bridge on Saturday morning depending on my weight.

Thank-You Pxlkitty4
I will keep an eye on the scales. I too have stress,vertigo,etc.going on here.No more cheat days for a while!!

I hope that you are feeling much better soon and you will see results on your scale as will.Sending a ''virtual hug'' and ''positive energy''your way!!

What an exciting moment when you don't even recognize yourself. And what a great husband!

I did the Cto5K before running my first 5K last year. Loved it. I will do a modified version once I'm back into running. I don't feel I'll need to start at square 1 but I may since it's been awhile.

I had a "free" night on Friday and I'm still up .6 today and I only gained 2.4 total. (I had a few beers for my husband's bday.) I have been in a funk all week because of this gain. I know not the same circumstances but just wanted to let you know I get how you feel.

Love the no cheat day rule. I will keep this in mind for when I'm in maintenace. Thanks!

Awww Pxlkitty, this is the first time I read you having a real little little hissy fit. It made me laugh, I could just see you there with your lower lip out as you were typing. Now you know you and I know you, you will be back to your weight real soon, I am sure it was just the combination of eating out, chinese food, your cold and TOM ganging up on you. Don't be so hard on yourself, it just shows us all we still have a lot to learn and we still have to be careful. Have a great day.