Hey girlies.......I am attempting to make the switch from purple with lites to red w/o lites. I am wondering if any of you out there are on red w/o lites, and if so, how do you break down your meals and snacks. Mostly, I wonder what exchanges you use for snacks. When I was eating lites, I did not really get hungry between meals, and according to my COD, lites replace starch and protein. However, you do not get two more starches and two more proteins when you eliminate lites, you get 1 more starch and 1/2 protein. If I break that down into two snacks, well, it simply isn't a very satisfying snack. I am sure I can manage, I am just wondering if that is the best way to go to continue success. I will ask at my COD this afternoon, and I am hoping for good advice, since I cannot tolerate lites................however, I do know that you ladies are often much more helpful, and most of the time, a lot more knowlegable. Don't know what I'd do without ya'll. XOXO

I was on the red without lites for a couple weeks, but I found that it was too much food for me and that I stopped losing after going to that. They switched me to that plan because I work out 4-5 hours a week and didn't want to do lites. But after having a week and a half with no real weight loss (kept dancing around the 150 mark, up and down), they put me on the blue plan w/out lites. I think I am really supposed to have the lites, but I don't want to spend the additional money on them. What I have been doing is eating a half one with a fruit as my snack, if I am feeling particularly hungry, while I use up the variety box they gave me. after that, I will get the Luna bars.

Now, on to your question, what I did ( and my COD suggested) was have a fruit as each of my snacks...if I was going to work out I would add in the 1/2 protein or the dairy to my afternoons snack to give me a litle more energy.

Also, sometimes I would use one of the 4 veggie servings as a snack, like celery w/PB. But really....how can 1 rib of celery be a veggie?!?!?

Hope this helps!

Christy

i think the updated serving for celery is 3 ribs.......

yep, just checked, it's 3 ribs and 3 cups of lettuce too

thanks for your suggestions chrisy

REALLY?? When was that updated? I just joined 10/24?!?! Where do you look to find the updates?

Thanks!

I received my plan updates sometime in July. There was a 2-sided flyer that went out to the CODs and then the new books arrived after that. The red book arrived at my COD by August, but it took until late September/early October to get the purple book (which is my plan).

I am on purple without the lites and No Lites have been working GREAT for me. Sugar makes me crave sugar so I try to pair something with my fruit like cheese or yogurt or a fat.

For my snacks, I usually have a piece of fruit with a low fat cheese stick. Check the menu thread for snack ideas. This is how I break down my food for the day.

B: (1S;1C)
S: (1Fr;1/2D)
L: (1P;2V)
S: (1Fr;1/2D)
D: (1P;2V)
S1S;1Fa:1Fr)

What are your exchanges on Red?

i don't think the franchises have those veggie updates yet. Though they finally put rf cheese on the veg protein list. I got yelled at for doing that last summer after I found out corporate added it . . . .They had no idea what I was talking about. You guys get me in trouble It'll probably be another year before our veggie lists get changed . . .

Nicole-I run out of lites tomorrow and will also move from purple to red w/o lites. . . .I've only been on purple a couple of weeks and I hate it. I like protein at breakfast and I can't wait to have my 1/2P back so I don't have to steal from dinner . . . . I'll probably snack on fruit and/or yogurt for snacks. Maybe packs of baby carrots . . .

I am on Red w/o lites and I usually have fruit for my snacks. I guess I tend to concentrate more on the meals and less on the snacks as I normally don't need a morning or evening snack, just and afternoon one. Sometimes will have a dairy serving with my fruit as well. I really like the red w/o the lites. That being said I still have some from my variety pack and I will eat one now and then. They don't agree with me but only if I eat a few a week. if it is just one now and then I am ok. The other thing I will have once in awhile is a cereal bar (not necessarily theirs) and that though counts as a fruit and a starch. I will usually only have that if I know I need to get a starch in for the day - but normally there is no problem with that.

sweet JM, between the two of us, we ought to get it right. I am thinking of trying the Dr. Oz idea of having the same thing for breakfast everyday, or for lunch, or something the same everyday. I think that is where the lites really come in handy.........it's like a no brainer, which makes two eating times no stress. I think I need that kind of simplicity somewhere in my life.....LOL!!!

I thought losing the lites would really be hard for me, but it has been ok. I found that a lot of the time, I was simply eating them because I could. I would wait every afternoon until 2:00 so I could eat one. That's kind of bad. I didn't really even care if I was hungry. I still don't think the lites are the devil or anything.......I think they are brilliant. By giving yourself permission to have them, and actually enjoy them.....I think the mindset stays positive for weight loss. I just cannot eat them without getting a sick stomach, and so I have had to find the benefits of not consuming them

Holly.....the exchanges are the same, except you get one more starch, and 1/2 more protein. I recall Joni mentioning that it seemed odd that you give up two lites in exchange for 1 starch and 1/2 protein. Cuz, if you eat a piece of lite bread, that is only 40 cals.....and a half of a protein is probably under 200 cals........total=240 at max, and two lites are 360 cals. Isn't that interesting????

The protein sizes are Bigger on Purple than they are on Gold. I think Joni is on Gold with Lites and if she dropped the lites she would be on Purple without Lites. When I signed up for LAWL, they tried to put me on Gold with Lites and gave me my free variety box. At that meeting I asked to see the all food plan as well and the counselor hesitated but reluctantaly gave me a copy of the Purple Plan and crossed off the lites. I was thinking the same thing. "you mean I only get one extra veggie for the two Lites I am giving up?" It didn't make much sense to me. I thought they were trying to starve me into doing the Lites but when I did the math, the larger protien portion and veggies could ALMOST add up to 340 calories that I was giving up by not using the Lites. I still think Gold with Lites would be more calories than Purple without Lites but it depends on what you eat for your exchanges. A 40 Calorie piece of bread = 1 Starch but a 3/4 cup of cereal that is 108 calories is also 1 Starch.

I SOMETIMES work out 5 days a week but I do not want to move up a food plan because if I am feeling lazy and want to hit snooze and don't get my workout in, I don't want to eat extra calories. What I do instead of moving up a food plan is drink a low carb protein shake on the days that I work out. I am not suggesting that anyone alter the LAWL plan as I have because their plan does work, this is just something that I do because I know on the days that I work out, my body needs more calories and on the days that I don't work out, my body does not need the extra calories that a more generous food plan would give me.


I think the Red and Purple are the same size protein portions.

thanks holly..........i forgot about the larger portion sizes of the proteins......makes perfect sense now. I think it is totally acceptable to tweak the program to make it work for you......and obviously, it is working well for you. I have tweaked it myself a bit. I am not using low sodium products in my cooking. I can totally deal with not eating frozen prepared meals ( i never really got into them, since I have a big family to cook for) and I rarely eat out, and I don't mind the morton lite salt.......but I just hate low sodium canned tomatoes. That is just my personal preference. I asked the COD today what the benefit of low sodium was in their food plan, and she just said it was about water retention. I have never had any problems with overuse of salt.............I rarely touch a salt shaker.......and people generally have to salt the foods I make homemade.........so I have decided not to get obsessed with sodium. Now............if I stall really bad or something....I may reconsider this decision. We'll just have to wait and see

ok here is my two cents worth...I have always pretty much been on red with no lite...I do not like sweets and did not want to get used to those bars at all...I usually eat an LA twist..or an LA cheeto as a snack and also consider it a starch......I almost alws get all my vegies in....I should work out more but dont...I am active and am a potter.....lots of upper body work..

It seems to be working for me...good luck..Bajachick (BC)