I Laurie! Thank you for responding. Okay, let's see...here is pretty much the jist of what I eat (not all at once but these are usually the different meal items:

b-fast items: eggs (sometimes w/low fat cheese) with sauteed mushrooms & onions, turkey bacon, lean ham (not honey baked kind), coffee w/Splenda and fat free vanilla cream, cottage cheese, 1/2 an avocado, the veggie quiche cups.

lunch and snack items: salad w/chicken, sometimes I'll add veggies such as cilantro, green onions, mushrooms, tomato (light on the tomatos) and I'll use either the Carb Options Olive oil and vinegar dressing, cesar dressing or ranch. Sandwhich meat, low fat cheese, skim string cheese, nuts (I count them...usually 15 pistachios and then another 15 later on), celery sticks, chicken salad (w/celery, cilantro, green onions, mustard and regular mayo), red bell peppers.

Dinner items: boneless/skinless chicken breasts, or fish (white roughy), lean hamburger patty, salad (sometimes just lettuce w/dressing...one of the ones mentioned above) and a veggie. Usually zuchini sauteed with mushrooms and onions in olive oil spray or I can't believe it's not butter or artichoke w/the butter spray or broccoli.

That, for the most part, is what I eat almost every day. Now, I'm not saying I've never cheated but not a ridiculous amount. I don't think it would have been to the point where it would have stopped weight loss. Oh yea...one other thing...I try to drink alot of water but I do drink between 2 - 4 diet sodas a day. But this Wednesday will be two weeks that I've been on this. HELP!!! Thank you so much for any help!!!!

Your meal plan sounds fine. The diet sodas may be causing you to retain water. Coke is particularly high in salt. Also your portions could be too large or too small. Try using www.fitday.com to track your calories. I aim to consume 1000-1500 per day but ideally no more than 1200.

Are you exercising? This will help you burn more calories and although the scales may not appear to shift your measurements will go down. Try to increase your water consumption while you reduce your diet soda consumption. I was allowing myself one glass of diet soda at the start and now I only feel like a glass about once a week. I save it for when I go out now. Everything else looks fine though, it is the only thing I can think of.

Thank you. I thought the whole thing about SBD was that you don't have to count carbs or fat or calories? And you eat until you are satisfied? It's like I'm stuck between 160 and 165 (I'm 5' 2.5" with my goal weight about 125/130). What would you eat the first two weeks on SBD?

It is but I haven't found this to work. It is really easy to overeat on this plan by having portions that are too large. I have had to reduce my portions lately because I need less calories now than I did several months ago because I am lighter and I wasn't losing weight. I recommend tracking your calories for a few days just to check that you aren't consuming too many or too few calories. Both will stall your weight loss.

You don't have to count fat/carbs/calories, so to speak, but if you're eating huge portions, then you're still over-eating..... even if it's "approved" foods. 3 chicken breasts on a salad with lots of low-carb dressing is probably just as bad as having a home-made hamburger on a bun, as far as calories go. (Doing different things to your blood chemistry, obviously, but that's another topic.)

Here's the thing about the first two weeks that I have learned: Cheating on Ph1 really means that you're undoing ALL of the work you've done. As it was explained to me, the first two weeks are all about changing your blood chemistry. And, about changing the way your body gets fuel. What you're doing, is teaching it to burn fat for fuel as opposed to sugar/carbs. SO. If you cheat on Ph1, you're saying to your body, "Don't worry -- here's some sugar and carbs, so don't worry about burning that fat anymore." And you'll stop losing fat. It's pretty simple.

Once you get onto Ph2, it's MUCH more liberal and, while cheating isn't advocated, it doesn't do the same "damage" to your diet as it does on Ph1. You just have to TRY to be really good on Ph1, and you will see the weight come off. But if you're cheating? You're not going to see much loss.

(This is just what I've found -- being someone who has very little to lose. It sounds like we may be in the same boat. Other girls on the forum may have a different point of view on this.)

Thank you ladies! I don't think my portion size is really the problem. I eat until I'm satisfied but not overly full. If anything, I'll pile up the lettuce w/my one chicken breast. But Mitten, I think you are right about the cheating in Phase I. I was looking at some other boards here and they were saying the same thing. Okay, I'm starting over TODAY and NO CHEATING and I'm going to pay attention to my portions to make sure I'm not over doing it. Thank you...I appreciate all the help I can get!

EB
CW: 165 GW: 125