I've finally finished Phase 1 and am on day 1 of Phase 2. Hurray!

I now am planning to add one serving of carbs and one serving of fruits to for this week.

I usually go to gym during lunch time and I don't know at what meal should I have my carbs. Is it breakfast? Or lunch time (after gym)? Or a mid-morning snack an hour before going to the gym?

Will it be a bad idea if I use my one serving of carbs during dinner? That's when I eat with my family and we would like to celebrate our carb intake at dinnertime.

Thanks!

I like to refer to this site - http://www.*************************...inglist_p2.htm


Which says ....

Breakfast

Protein: Quantity is not limited. See choices
Vegetables: Minimum 1/2 cup. See choices
Fruit: 1 fruit serving allowed daily (with this meal or other). Gradually increase to 3 total servings for the day. See choices
Starch: 1 starch serving allowed daily (with this meal or other). Gradually increase to 2 or 3 total servings for the day. See choices
Milk: 1 - 1 1/2 cups allowed daily (including yogurt) See choices
Fat: 1 tsp mayonnaise or oil (optional) See choices





Lunch

Protein: Quantity is not limited. See choices
Vegetables: Minimum 2 cups. See choices
Fruit: 1 fruit serving allowed daily (with this meal or other). Gradually increase to 3 total servings for the day. See choices
Starch: 1 starch serving allowed daily (with this meal or other). Gradually increase to 2 or 3 total servings for the day. See choices
Milk: 1 - 1 1/2 cups allowed daily (including yogurt) See choices
Fat: 1 Tbsp mayonnaise or oil See choices






Dinner

Protein: Quantity is not limited. See choices
Vegetables: Minimum 2 cups. See choices
Fruit: 1 fruit serving allowed daily (with this meal or other). Gradually increase to 3 total servings for the day. See choices
Starch: 1 starch serving allowed daily (with this meal or other). Gradually increase to 2 or 3 total servings for the day. See choices
Milk: 1 - 1 1/2 cups allowed daily (including yogurt) See choices
Fat: 1 Tbsp mayonnaise or oil See choices






Snack

Snacks are optional: Choose from the Protein, Vegetable, or Fruits list, or eat nuts from the Fats list. Plain, low-fat or fat-free yogurt is also allowed.

So basically you can have it when ever you like, but only once per day to start, and gradually get it up to 2-3 servings daily. I like to have my cabs for dinner as well, gives me something to look forward to and I try and be really good all day, thinking about my yummy carby dinner

Good luck

There is really a lot of freedom on this plan and a lot that you will have to figure out for yourself by trial and error.

Seems to me that some people, myself included, are sensitive to some carbs, like grains and/or fruit.

I actually do best at staying on plan when I eat less grains on a regular basis. I have pretty much given up bread (except when I eat out), crackers, cold cereal, because I tend to crave more when I eat them. When I have things like brown rice, or quinoa, or steel cut oats, I prefer to eat them in the evening.

I also find that it works best for me personally to have fruit later in the day; the earlier I eat it the more I want.

But everyone is different. Play around. If you add things and you find yourself craving more or other foods, that's a sign. If adding things makes you gain weight, that's another sign. Add slowly.

I'll be ending my first week on Phase 2 on Friday. I'm already finding that some carbs absolutely do not work for me. Cereal. I made sure the cereal has 5g of fiber and it also has 5g protein. Together with the milk, I just did not have enough protein to keep me satisfied until lunch time. (Most of the time I do not need a mid-morning snack.) I also found (again this is for me) that eating a slice of bread (again, following guidelines) ONLY works for me at breakfast. I found eating bread at lunch time set me up for craving more carbs. Perhaps its just my body making the transition from eating on Phase 1 to Phase 2. I don't know. After each day of trying to incorporate a carb into my daily diet I found I had to go back to Phase 1.

I think, for each of us, its trial and error.

Good luck!

I like to call it "grains" since we're allowed carbs on this diet!

I tend to eat my fruit and/or grain after lunch, as it doesn't seem to spark cravings all day as it does when I eat it for breakfast. Sometimes I can't help it and sometimes I don't crave. It's all about listening to your body and like the others said, do what works for you. Test the waters!

Funny, dinner is the time I almost never eat grains...after I add the protein and a vegetable it just ends up being too much food! I usually eat grains in the late morning--oats or VERY rarely a slice of whole grain bread or a little whole wheat pasta stirred into soup. I learned doing SB that wheat didn't really agree with me, so I don't eat much wheat anymore. I love quinoa and brown rice--I eat brown rice occasionally but have been too lazy to play with quinoa lately. I need to put that on my to-cook list.

Sometimes late at night if I'm hungry before bed I have....my favorite comfort food...omg...baked sweet potato wedges!! I love them!

I have not found that whole grains or starches like sweet potatoes spark cravings with me at all. Neither does fruit. A cupcake, I'm pretty sure, would be a problem.

Anyway like Karen said, you will find what works for you! I wouldn't worry about when you have your grains based on what time you go to the gym, unless you're doing some serious endurance training, I bet you will be fine. Remember you'll be getting carbs from beans, dairy, etc as well as any new carbs you add in P2.