Hi everyone I have been doing ideal protein using isopure zerocarb and low carb shakes, I lost 22 pounds quick but the last three weeks I have been stuck either losing a pound and gaining two back to losing one again no cheating and I'm not close to my goal it's still 50lbs away so I was wondering if anyone has any tips should I just buy different alternatives? Or just stick it out and I will start experiencing the loss again?

Hi John!

I used mostly Isopure as well (powders and RTD). It's hard to say what might be going on without meal examples etc. I can tell you from my experience that when I experienced a stall, my losses would usually make up for it in the following weeks. One thing worth noting, if you're using Isopure products for everything (i.e. two meals and a snack) depending on your dinner choices you will fall very low in carbs...even for IP standards! There would be some days I wouldn't even hit 20g TOTAL carbs (not net!) and my calories would be too low as well. That definitely can contribute, as most people can comfortably stay in ketosis between 20-50g NET carbs. Not saying that's what is happening with you right now, just keep in mind it's something to watch using those products. I enjoyed them very much though, especially the RTD since it's similar to juice, and I had good success with them.

Feel free to share more specifics and I'm sure others can provide some good insight.

Could you share what your daily diet looks like? And are you exercising? Taking all the supplements? Drinking all the water?

I eat the plan accordingly meaning the 4 cups of Vegetables on the approved list and the approved amount of meat or fish from the list. I use the isopure in place of the ideal protein allowances so for the shake 3 times a day I have one scoop of the low carb chocolate which is about 4.5 grams of carbs which might be low. I drink at least 3 liters of water a day plus a black coffee in the am and sometimes a tea at night. The supplements I use are ones I found on Amazon or gnc but are the same dosage as the ideal protein ones. I do hit the 10,000 steps daily and on the weekends I do a 8 to 10 mile walk and on those days I'll have 3 eggs in the am with my shake. I did all this before when I lost the 22lbs and still lost at a good rate it just has been as of today I'm stuck on 201lbs so not sure what is happening. Any help would be greatly appreciated I love this forum it had been great for recipes, the help everyone offers, the support and more importantly the goals and encouragement from everyone.

May I ask what your meal plan consited of when you were using isopure also do you think I should add a restricted daily to get my carb count up?
I have researched lower carb intake (less than 20) and have not really found anything negative that says one will stall I read a lot about how it increases the weight loss.

Hi John,

My losses were very quick indeed, but also coupled with a lot of days feeling pretty miserable. I use the chocolate powder as well and looking at the label right now, one scoop of powder will yield 0.5g net carbs. This puts you at 1.5g net carbs for your 3 shakes a day. At least for me, I think this contributed to my bad days. I think I did strict isopure shakes + dinner (no snack) for about two months then started adding in some more variety in place of the shakes plus a snack/restricted. This included old formula quest bars and products from nashua nutrition. After incorporating these it upped my carb/calorie count and I felt better, losses still the same.

There were still bad days which I think just go with the territory of being so low calorie and carb depleted. These were mostly days I did extensive field work which, since I'm a field biologist, were a lot of days! In retrospect I wish I wasn't so stubborn and would have just added more stuff sooner. Anyway, I guess what I'm trying to get at is through your journey, make sure that you pay attention to how you are feeling...especially using the Isopure products. I frequently felt fatigued, nauseous, and had noticeably decreased cognitive function being so low in calories/carbs. This wasn't completely, but mostly alleviated by the introduction of other things. But again, not everyone is running around in the woods, with loads of equipment, heavy PPE, in 90° F + temperature for days at a time.

My menu was pretty boring and didn't stray too far from recommended choices. In the beginning, a normal day for me was 2 isopure shakes (1 scoop each, then upped to 1 1/2 and then 1 scoop). A salad or random approved raw veggies throughout the day. Dinner was a lot of eggs with veggies, or sirloin with asparagus. That was mostly it with a few 'experiments' thrown in lol. Did I mention I'm not that great in the kitchen? Another reason I enjoy meal replacement drinks/bars!

If you're not doing a restricted, I would try one a day and see where it takes you. Could help shake things up, plus it sounds like you've got some activity to warrant it. Also, if you don't mind sharing, it would probably help everyone else provide insight if they knew your height and goals.

Sure I'm 5'8" my goal weight is 150 but I will be very happy in the 160-170 range. I started my journey at 256 started following the ray cronise the same guy that helped penn from penn and teller lose 100lbs in 3 or 4 months but the plan was so strict and very very low cal but very interesting and he does back it up ( he is a former nasa scientist) who left to debunk all diet claims. I started the ideal protein at 223 and was doing real good up until 3 weeks ago. I will take your advice and mix it up. I'm also very plain in my selections as I meal prep on Sunday's for the week and buy what is on sale at whole foods so I pretty much have the same vegi for the week but alternate between meats and seafood. Thank you for your help

i started at on IP diet at 251 and i am now 233 - my goal weight is 170 but last 2 weeks i am stuck at 233 - i am a vegetarian and i do 4 cups vege and mix egg and tofu for protein - no cheating - any input greatly appreciated- i do walk 4 days a week 3 miles medium pace

Hi Ana Nathan: Are you getting enough fat in your diet? As a vegetarian on IP you will not be getting any extra fat from meat or fish proteins and may need to up your EVOO a tiny bit to compensate. Two weeks sounds like a long time, but it isn't really, hang in there. Have you had any changes in inches? Often a non-scale-loss time is an inch loss time as your body catches up. As you have just started your losses, the first bit is usually water loss, then there is often a bit of a pause before you start really losing stored fat. Keep with the plan and you will be seeing more results soon.
Weight loss is NEVER linear but your average will be a downtrend anyhow.

Liana