Wow!!! How beautiful!!! Congrats on a job well done!!!

I hope I'm not too far of topic for this thread but this is fascinating for me. I am really thinking ahead to phase 3 & 4. I have lost weight before on plans such as SB but as soon as I add the carbs back the weight is back instantly.
My daughter is a nurse and tells me it is humanly impossible to gain over night what I gain when I have wheat. so I tell her my scale must be a sadistic liar. I like that term obscene overnight weight gains because that is what it is.
I can't remember the last time I had pasta. I do like the sprouted grain breads and will look for the breads you mentioned in the health food stores.
I know you will do really well and this time when you reach maintenance you will know exactly what to eat.

Oh my!! Skinny Chick!!!!
You look fantastic, well done!

I think this thread is about all of it that effects us. The now of what ever phase we are in and the concerns about what many come. We already know we share are present experiences.


Sadistic liar!! I think our scales must be related!!

I say obscene because I can gain 3 pounds overnight simply by adding 3 silver dollar pancakes without syrup to a phase 1 type day. That can only be fluid retention and, it does go away in 2 days or so. It is a complete signal of an allergy. I don't react that way to eggs or milk so, I presume it is the wheat flour or another ingredient. I lean toward the flour because I have a similar reaction to any wheat based product. The more refined the worse my response.


Thank you! I believe you are right. I am definitely looking forward to seeing long term maintenance.

I, too, find that wheat and gluten are a problem for me. I get VERY bloated and feel lethargic after I eat them. I found a great bread called Ezekiel bread, that is one of the frozen breads in the whole foods stores, that I can tolerate. I have also found that I can eat brown rice or quinoa, but need to really limit myself on pasta or other grains. I also can't do peas or corn, which is very upsetting, but they just make me feel like garbage.

So once maintenance comes around, I know that I will still need to stay away from those ingredients that cause me problems. Luckily there are tons of alternative options at Whole Foods.

IP has taught me so much about my body and what I can and cannot eat. Before IP I had done a lot of trial and error which is how I know that wheat and gluten are VERY OCCASIONAL items for me. But more than that, I have really learned that my maintenance and "for life" eating plan is going to be lower carb. My body just cannot tolerate a lot of carbs and I feel so much better without them.

You know what got me into researching about wheat and gluten intolerance was whenever we would go out for a nice pasta dinner, I would always feel so lethargic afterwards. Like we would literally come home from dinner and I would need to go to bed. I could not keep my eyes open. On top of that, my stomach felt so big! I felt so bloated and it stuck out like I was pregnant. It got me thinking, why does it do that after pasta, but not if we went out for wings or steak? So I started looking into it and doing research and that is what I found. Now I have never been actually tested for it, but I just know that I feel better without it.

I really like ezekial bread! They also make the tortillas and flat bread too. I ate a lot of quinoa. It is great as a substitute for couscous or bulgar wheat in recipes.

I was like you with the wheat. I hadn't eaten pancakes in years before IP. I always felt like the world had to stop for a few hours after I ate them. I was so tired and out of it! After I got to the point I was maintaining I wanted to try them and see if anything had changed. NO!

I noticed I have a very similar reaction if I eat much pasta. It isn't quite as bad, maybe the grade of the flour used in the pasta but, I still feel bad if I eat more than 1/2 cup.

Have you had the cinnamon raisin Ezekiel bread? It is a-ma-zing! Once you get back to P3 you have to try it if you haven't already. I will have to look for the tortillas and flat bread in P3 too.

I can't remember the last time I had pancakes as I am more of an eggs girl, but I am quite sure I would react the same. But for me, pasta is the absolute worst. It is like I am drugged. Fortunately I never really ate too much pasta to begin with so I didn't have to deal with it a lot.

Quinoa is delish! So many ways to prepare it. I used to mix it with black beans and coconut oil- YUMMY!

I have! It is so yummy!!

We have Chompie's (Jewish Deli) and they make a carbs not bread. It is high in protein. They make one that is cinnamon raisin and the texture is very bread like.

I think I prefer the Chompie's for something very normal in texture but, I think the Ezekial is healthier and I don't react as much to it.

Funny you mention drugged. I have had friends ask me when I eat pasta or pancakes "are you ok". I just start to glaze over and zone out.!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE quinoa. When I was being strict phase one it and beans were the only two things I craved that I couldn't wait to get back to eating. I really wasn't worried about anything else but I sure missed those two things.

I have a really yummy tabouleh recipe that uses quinoa.

There's the SMILE!

PxlKitty, I just have to say, every time I see your avatar I think "I hope one day I am comfortable enough for a review photo as an avatar."

My family jokes of having all my photos from behind or not at all. I would love to reach the point that I am happy with my figure from every angle!

ah what a difference and love the smile. Skinny minnie, you are going to have so much fun at your new job, the guys will all hit on you.

Question for those who have gone past phase 2.... this is the phase 2 info I found on our links... is it true? about the dairy? Never heard that before.

Phase 2 = 1st Intermediate Phase

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The second phase lasts between one and two weeks.

a) Morning:
- Coffee or tea.
- 1 packet or 1 measure of protein.

b) Noon:
- Raw or cooked green vegetables.
- 5 oz. lean meat or poultry.
- OR 5 to 6 oz. lean fish. You may have fattier meat or fish 3 to 4 times a week.
- 2 tablespoons oil for flavor.

c) Late-afternoon snack:
- 1 packet or 1 measure of protein.

d) Evening:
Dinner is exactly the same as lunch: 5 oz. lean meat or poultry with green vegetables.

You may have 1 to 2 dairy products per day, such as plain yogurt or 2% cottage cheese.

Comments: The second phase closely resembles the first phase, as your diet still excludes carbohydrates and ketosis continues.

I now tend to shorten this phase to less than one week so that the first phase can be extended as long as possible and protein packets are used for a late-afternoon or evening snack.

I believe this is a post made by ogdog in 2009. I believe it is one that was tailored for her and an alternate protocol.

This is not the proper phase 2 and has not been a proper phase 2 at any point since at least Aug 2009.

Aw, thanks... Ha! I really don't know how my hubby took such a great photo. That was back in June on the top verandah of the Kennedy Center. It's SO good that I haven't managed to find another photo that I've liked more since. And it's almost the end of August! I think there was a magical combination of lighting, angle, and my stepping up on the step to take the photo.

Nope, doesn't look right to me. I've done Phase 2 days while on vacation and my coach said "exactly like phase 1, but add a protein and drop a packet at lunch."

TBH...I smiled for you But the fact that I could find one that was even half way genuine says a lot right now...LOL!

I'm on day 9 of my 21 day challenge to myself and I must say I'm rocking it ! The first week seemed to be a struggle with cravings and such, but this week..I'm feeling really good, and I'm excited about starting phase 2!
I'm only going to do one week of phase 2, and then I'll start phase 3.

I can't believe I'm nearing the end.
I've learned a lot about myself, and what some of my triggers are.

Have a good day today!