IDEAL PROTEIN DIET

Good job GasGas. I'm on day #17 and feeling great. I do not feel deprived and I am probably saving money on food (compared on what I spent on groceries before). Also, my husband and I now cook almost every night for dinner and then sometimes eat leftovers. We probably used to eat out at least 2-3 times per week.

I agree that there is a lot of misconception on this site about Ideal Protein.... understandably so. I heard of IP about 2 years ago from a family member who is a nutrtionist. She and the rest of her family were telling me about it and I was sooooo quick to tell them that I thought it was ridiculous and would never do (or be able to do) a high protein diet. I told them, "I like my carbs, I like my bread, I like my fruit and diets like that just don't work" - boy was I ever WRONG.

Now, it's 2 years later and when calorie counting and exercise came to a serious hault for me, I have ironically turned to Ideal Protein and I am so happy I made the decision.

So many people think that ideal protein is simply a hyper-protein diet but it's not just that, there is more to it. It's obviously working for many individuals so I am unsure why people are so quick to jump down another person's throat and knock the concept and protocol.

My IP coach has stated herself that she 100% completely recognizes that this "diet" is not something that you have to do for the rest of your life. She, actually, loves the idea of MFP and calorie counting. I see food differently and realize that certain foods are just not good for me and I should eat them only on very rare occasions... and I am okay with that. My husband and I are "professional eater-outers" as we like to say but I am still able to enjoy our date nights and nights out with friends at restaurants. I am able to follow protocol, feel satisfied and truly enjoy the experience of dinner with friends. I feel just as satisfied and happy on my diet as I would before my diet except I am now eating foods that are so much better for me. I've never eaten so many veggies in all my life and it doesn't bother me at all, I'm enjoying it!

I have joined ideal protein and I begin this Friday, wish ,luck

I was on Ideal Protein about 3 years ago, and do not recommend it. My Brother, Sister-in-Law, and Husband were also on the program. All of us successfully lost weight. All of us put that weight back on, and more.

I was on the program in 2009, for roughly 3 months. In that time I lost roughly 25 pounds. One year later, I weighed 50 pounds more (25 pounds more than my original weight).

In my opinion, the program is not sustainable.
In my opinion, the program is putting you on a starvation diet, and in coming off the program, weight will come back on.
In my opinion, this program messed up my metabolism.

I am very happy for those that have had success. My experience, and that of my immediate family, is that the program is not a long term weight loss solution.

Regarding the products themselves, some of them tolerable, and others are unpleasant. I wouldn't say any of them taste good. None of them are tasty enough that you would consider eating the item if you weren't on the program.

And you were ALWAYS HUNGRY.

I disagree with dawnpag concerning ketosis. I don't believe ketosis is the issue (I'm currently following Keto, which is heavy into ketosis). I believe the issue is that this is a starvation diet. Your metabolism will slow down as a result, and you will have issues coming off the program. I should have known there were problems when even the person representing the product admitted that he had put weight back on.

Best of luck to you.

I just started the Ideal Protein diet with my parents. It's only been a week but I can honestly say that so far I am loving it! I know many people say they are "always hungry", but I'm actually finding it to be the complete opposite. I wasn't a real breakfast eater before and now I enjoy their wild berry yogurt drink every day! I also work odd shift hours and it is very helpful to have the pre-made meals that you just add water too. Where before I would go to work without a lunch and just buy take out. Which cost me money and also was unhealthy. I agree that some of the meals aren't pleasant. But there are many options to choose from! I have found quite a few that I enjoy! Especially the chocolate drink which I enjoy heating up in this cold winter weather. Plus with the money I am saving by not eating out this diet pays for itself!

It's also teaching me how to portion control. I was horrible at this before! Now I'm learning to cook with healthy spices and also using creativity to come up with healthy recipes with vegetables and reasonable amounts of meat. For example turnip chips! I would never have thought to try this before!

This diet comes in phases. Obviously these pre-made foods aren't a long term option. The doctor even says that when you start out. The first phases are a "short term fix" for a serious long term problem. I am 5'4 and somehow got myself to 210 pounds. My weight has put my health in serious harm. I am seeing dramatic results! As a health major this diet makes complete sense to me. It's like your simple and complex carbs are the chequing account and your fat is the savings. I ate alot of carbs and thats what my body would burn it's energy from, making my fat savings continue to increase. This diet allows your body the chance to get into that "savings account" and burn away that fat storage fast!!

Once you have gone through the phases you introduce more variety and food options and learn to be in maintenance. This diet gives you a huge running start in the weight loss race and then teaches you how to pace yourself. It has been 1 week and I already have learnt so much!

Have been on IP for 3 months now, have lost a lot and feel great. Also the program has taught me what a sustainable goal for eating should look like, and that this diet (like all others) would fail if I just assumed I could go back to eating like I did which is how I got to where I was at.

The lifestyle change - not this or any other diet - is what makes any crash or reduction in weight successful. Having been skinny my whole life prior to this time it was hard to figure that out on my own when it was always 'automatic' before. Now I get it, and using IP is helping me get back down to where I need to be to start the new me.

Not sure I'm keen on the unfortunate posts of some people here. Maturity should not be lacking, this is not 4chan.

My mom has done it and had luck with weight loss but can't seem to stick with it and she re-gains the weight quickly

I'm a personal trainer and health coach and for years have dug my heals in against any program that limited carbohydrate intake. Over the last year, I've worked with such a diverse group of individuals. Some have been able to reach their goals through a healthy diet and consistent moderate exercise while others struggle to lose and maintain even five pounds. Much of this is due to the lack of what most would consider to be "willpower" when in reality it is a chemical addiction to processed foods, sugar and refined carbohydrates. It's easy to say "eat healthy, eat clean and move more" but the reality is that some (not all) people need to basically go through "rehab" for the food addictions. While I struggle with the processed food portion of the IP program and I definitely have an issue with the "free day" in phase four - I have to weigh out the pros and the cons. For my clients with or near to Diabetes, those with heart disease and those with arthritis, fibromyalgia or chronic pain amongst many other issues - I have to say that if they can get the weight off, break the cycle of cravings for foods that are toxic and learn how to make good choices and move safely and effectively once they have reached their goal - then how is it a bad thing? In a perfect world, we would all lose weight from eating better and moving more - but this is far from a perfect world. When I went gluten free - I noticed a significant difference in joint pain, energy levels, bloating and my digestive system quieted down and became "normal". Sugar is a HUGE problem for people and it is in just about every average diet. This program eliminates all the problem foods, takes you back to a much cleaner form of eating and greens are a very large part of the program. Greens are what most people don't get enough of on a regular basis and so getting them in is going to do the body good. I love that people are learning to drink adequate amounts of water on the program as well. This is a hard thing for people to make into a habit. The reason that exercise is not recommended is that the body will tap into muscle as fuel in the absence of carbohydrates. This program is set up to help you maintain muscle mass while burning fat as fuel. The recommendation for those adamant about exercise is that they maintain a light walking program. Most of these people that have done the program were couch potatoes prior to this - so exercise wasn't even part of their daily life anyway. Most of them are carrying around 50-100 extra lbs which 150-300 lbs on their joints...moving is painful. Once the weight comes off they are able to move better and can begin to learn how to exercise safely and effectively. This program isn't for everyone. It isn't intended to be for everyone. I see a greater danger in people hopping off the couch and executing an Insanity Program or P90X program without any training on proper form and execution and without having built themselves up to such an aggressive workout. A diet of processed foods, soda, excess caffeine, sugar, fast foods, alcohol, and unhealthy fats is going to cause a lot more damage than the IP program restriction could ever cause. We spend a lot more on health care including allergy meds, cholesterol meds, Diabetes meds, BP meds, acid reflux meds, fake fiber supplements, etc than this program will ever require. If you have struggled with weight loss and are doing "everything right"...then this may be the right thing for you. I've watched several people go through the program with great success. They look amazing, have more energy, don't look sick, their numbers are all down, they can exercise better, they sleep better, they feel better, etc.... This was right for them..may be right for you. May not. Find what is and be the healthiest you that you can be. Good luck to everyone on their journey.

Well being totally uninformed on individual diet needs and physical conditions places you in kind of a know it all position. Walking in someone else's shoes might be a cure for your minimal knowledge on weight loss, diet and exercise. Then there could be a thread of tightwad in your personality as well. Who knows?

How stupid WOULD you be?

Bro, do you even zombie?? 2012 thread??? Sheesh.

Oops sorry JayB0ne, didn't mean you man.

How much does it cost?

Nooooooo!

Good luck with your weight loss goals, but the HCG diet is not a safe way to jump start the process.

The only reason people lose weight on that plan is you are only allowed to eat 500 calories a day. HCG has been scientifically proven to do NOTHING to help with weight loss or to make it safe to eat only 500 calories a day. It will not protect muscle, reset your metabolism or do anything else the snake oil salesmen that sell it claim. Dr. Simeons was a quack doctor. His "HCG protocol" has absolutely NO scientific backing and is not worth risking your health on.

The HCG diet has been studied by many scientific organizations, and they all concluded that HCG, even the "real" injectable version, is no more effective than a placebo, and eating only 500 calories a day for weeks, as recommended by that plan, can cause more health problems than it solves.

The MFP moderators have been cautioning members against attempting that diet because it is so dangerous.

Please read the articles on these websites before you try HCG. I know some people that put their faith in the HCG diet, and became very ill from malnutrition as a result. Then they regained more weight than they lost. Now they wish they never heard of HCG.

The Government is now in the process of getting all that fraudulent stuff off the market, and it's about time!

http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm281333.htm

http://www.myhealthnewsdaily.com/hcg-diet-dangerous-1428

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hcg-diet/AN02091

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/truth-about-hcg-for-weight-loss

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/weight-loss-cure-dont-want-you-to-know

http://www.dietscam.org/reports/hcg.shtml

http://www.tucsonmedical.com/pages/hcg.php

never heard of the diet. What is the diet and what would you eat . Thks It really sounds interesting. Congrats that you did so well.

I absolutely HATED the Ideal Protein diet. About 6 months before the IP diet, I had started eating whole, organic natural food. I had cut out *almost* all processed foods and refined sugars (I still occasionally ate yogurt, dairy, etc.). Once I started IP, I was constantly hungry, moody, feeling nauseous, had headaches, and generally miserable. I hated having to eat my food from a foil packet 3 times per day, be it chocolate pudding, crisps, soup mix, or a bar. My body started kicking it back almost immediately. After 2 weeks on the diet (they promised I'd feel amazing after about 3 days), I said, "to hell with this" and went back to eating real, whole, organic natural foods. I immediately felt better, and was still losing weight.

This was my experience. My husband, however, was so used to eating processed food that the IP diet worked for him, and he lost 20 pounds in 2 weeks. He got tired with the foil packets, so he quit, switched to my lifestyle, and is still losing weight. Not as fast, granted, but still losing.

It is just like any other diet or lifestyle change - listen to your body. Give it a good try. If it works for you, rock it. If it doesn't, don't force it. Try something else until you find what does.

You can choose packets that don't contain soy or as much soy. It is short term so you should be fine. I avoid soy as well. My two main choices are the Herbs and Cheese omelet mix and the the Chocolate drink (no soy). This is my second time on IP. I did not gain it back after 2 years off but want to get to an even lower goal weight. I went paleo and kept it off no problem. The problem with people who put it back on is they go back to eating higher carbs and grains. No grains no gains.