Hey there, I have browsed the forum a bit and am thinking this is a great little community.

I kind of bought 7 weeks of Ideal Protein food on a whim on eBay. My friend has lost 65 pounds on this plan that she started in August I think. I went on eBay to see how inexpensively I could find it and made a "best offer" thinking it would be declined. I was surprised when it was not. So I bought 7 weeks for 446.20 (including shipping.)

I need to lose about 30 pounds and am hoping to take as much of that off by my wedding date of February 19. But I didn't know enough about the plan to make an informed decision and now as I look through everything I am kind of regretting my rashness. I am not a fan of low carb diets, and don't want to be in "kitosis" stage. I have lost 5 pounds by eating the way I normally eat (I did get off it for a few months due to wedding planning stress and the holidays.) I normally eat 3 meals and 2 snacks a day and avoid all ADDED sugar (naturally occurring sugars are fine) and I avoid white flour (whole wheat in moderation and ground grains of any kind including cornmeal are okay.) I also tend to eat unlimited vegetables (including starchy veggies and potatoes) and up to 2 servings of fruit a day.

So...wondering if I should try to resell my food from this diet? It is going to take a lot of work to eat on this plan, right? And I do think that it will be faster weight loss, but I am not sure if I can be 100% committed to such a strict plan.

My fiance makes steak and potatoes every Sunday (it is tradition) and I don't think it will be a good thing if I can't eat it.

OK, there you go. Please let me know what you think. I did do a VERY strict plan years ago with some of my coworkers and it had a forum and support that seems very similar to this. And I was successful but at that time I was single and could eat however I wanted without it affecting anybody else. I lost over 50 pounds back then but once I went off it the weight came back.

Here are things I am not willing to give up permanently (but would consider giving up short term):

brown rice, white rice, potatoes, peas, milk products, cheese, sugar-free candy (I really don't eat it often...but sometimes I need something.), tomatoes, V8 juice, whole wheat bread, treats sweetened with either Agave syrup or honey, fruit

So tell me if any of them are allowed on phase 1 or on any of the phases.

Thanks so much! I am way impressed at the dedication I see and believe this is a GREAT eating plan. I am just not sure if it is the one for me.

What plan are you referring to? If it's the one you bought online, I don't know anything about it, so I'm afraid I'm no help. As for this forum, none of us are on the same "plan". we all approach it differently, but are always here to support one another!

I think you will be quite happy and successful here. The only thing I see in your list of can't give ups that I have is the white rice. I swapped strictly to Brown, but that is a choice. I just think white rice is like eating air with calories... there isn't much real nutrition.

As far as your traditional steak dinner, that seems very doable. you may want to adjust your portion sizes to keep in line with your goals, but no one says you can never have steak and potatoes. sometimes all you need to adjust is the amount. Maybe have him make steak, potatoes, and a non-starchy veg. Then you can have a little potato, and a lot of veg. With the variety of people on the forum, I am sure someone is finding success with a very similar meal plan, and can help you be successful!

Good luck! You can do this!

Thanks for the reply. I was supposed to get an email notification on responses but it must have gone to spam.

If I can have steak and potatoes maybe I will reconsider. I am really sad that I can no longer drink V8 and count it as my veggies as I get it free at work and it is such an easy way to get my veggies in without a lot of prep on my part.

During phase 1 no sugar free candy, right? My fiancee bought me a whole bunch of fancy stuff for Christmas. I am not even a huge candy lover but he went out of his way since I don't eat sugar.

Can I still eat nuts for a snack? What about cheese? Well I guess I will wait for the stuff to come with the DVD and instructions.

Thanks again for responding.

Hmmm... I'm not sure you understood me, LOL. 3 fat chicks is a forum of all sorts of people, each trying to lose weight or get healthier, but none of us are using the same plan. For example, I am attempting to eat more whole foods, and calorie count. It is working well for me so far. Others are on specific plans, like south beach, or weight watchers. So as for "rules" it all depends on which plan you choose. If you really want your steak and potatoes, then choose a plan that allows you to eat that. Calorie counting is pretty inclusive, as long as you control your portions and count the calories you consume, you can eat pretty much anything (just keep in mind that 100 calories of veg will keep you MUCH fuller than 100 calories of chocolate, and if you are allowing yourself 1600 calories, and you stop at Mcdonalds for a burger, you will either go over your allotment, or be REALLY hungry by the end of the day, LOL)

I know there are forums for all the different types of plans people use on 3fatchicks, so browse through them, see what each one is about, decide on one you think fits your lifestyle, then ask them for the specific "rules" (my rules are simple... eat foods that have a mommy and a daddy instead of processed foods, and count how many calories I eat). I hope you find a great plan that works well for you!

Unless you mean the kit you bought, yeah, like I said in my first reply, I don't know anything about that one. The way I feel about it, calorie counting is free, so I'm saving my money, BUT if the prepackaged program helps you keep tabs on yourself, and motivates you, then go for it!

We have a part of this forum foe Ideal Protein folks.
Here's the link. http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/ideal-protein-diet-236/

No wonder I am so confused! I thought this was a forum for Ideal Protein and so I have been confused seeing references to Weight Watchers, South Beach and all other multitude of stuff. I will check out the link above. Thanks so much!!