Hello, I am new to IP, 2 weeks in and 12 lbs down but have a ton to go. I am already burned out on salads for lunch as I'm not a huge WF fan. Any suggestions?

Plain salad can get boring. I add a few ounces of protien at lunch and have less at dinner. I also crunch up the garlic and herb chips and add them like croutons. Delicious

You can make your own dressing from olive oil, vinegar, and spices. It'll be healthier than most dressings that you can find in a store. You should have some type of fat in your salad, so if not dressing you could add nuts or avocado.

Like Mpaie said you can also add protein (e.g. eggs or chicken) to your salad. Are the "garlic and herb chips" pita chips? If they're not whole grain then I wouldn't recommend them.

Another vegetable that I like is sauteed spinach, with olive oil and garlic.

If you want a vegetable that doesn't require any preparation, you could eat baby carrots, and you can either eat them plain or dip them in hummus or nut butter.

^^^^^ The above is "diet" advice but does not follow IP Phase 1 protocol...if that matters to you. Since you're on the IP site, I figured it did. Carrots are not allowed. Nuts, nut butters, hummus and avocado are not allowed. The only "chips" allowed meet IP guidelines. If it's not on the Phase 1 sheet, consider it off limits for now.

I slice up red peppers, cukes, jicama for lunches. Sometimes I have zucchini noodles or shredded into an IP soup. Cauliflower and broccoli are standards. Zucchini in muffins is a great way to get them in. Spinach in smoothies is another.

I hope that helps a bit. Oh, the suggestion of homemade dressings is great! Do a search for dressing and recipes here...you'll find a ton of suggestions.

Oops, I forgot I was on the IP forum when I posted that.

I have to say that I don't agree with their list of banned foods. I think it's too restrictive and too low in healthy fats.

I just looked at the products on Ideal Protein's website, and they don't list the ingredients, so it's hard to trust them. Do they want me to believe that their creamy pudding is healthier than carrots, or am I missing something?

That's a hard argument to win when put that way; it'd be best to say they're just different. Fat burning ketosis is the key factor in it, which is why so many root veggies are removed (do to their carbs). I guess it just comes down to being a choice.

Grate it to a rice consistency and heat up in a pan till a little golden, and put in in your soup with a dash of hot sauce! woop wooop. you can do all sorts of fun stuff with veggies!

You can grate zucchini and squeeze the excess water out of it. You can add a little egg white, spices and crushed up IP or alternative chips. Fry them up and they are yummy! You can also do cauliflower "tater" tots and "mocamole" The mocamole is great with the sweet chili dorados. You can search the recipe on this forum but basically I buy asparagus and steam in the bag in the microwave. I put it in my magic bullet and add cumin, chili powder, lime juice, cilantro, olive oil garlic and grind it up. I eat it cold with the chips and also can use any extra as salad dressing.

Don't forget zoodles and cauli rice. I'm 15 lbs from goal but I will continue to use those instead of pasta or rice for maintenance.

YES! Forgot those! I eat those often also