Ideal Protein Diet

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ehmadore
ehmadore Posts: 72 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Thinking of looking into it. Any advice, success stories, etc. would be great!
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  • KateCon912
    KateCon912 Posts: 200 Member
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    my mom is doing it. Think of it as anorexia. You can eat nothing and get less than about 500 calories a day. Have fun! ^_^

    And by nothing.. i mean NOTHING.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
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    Principles Behind the Protocol

    Learn to live off of the body's own fat reserves. The body employs energy from three reserves: glycogen (carbohydrate), protein and fats. First from it's simple and complex carbohydrate reserves and when depleted, turns simultaneously to its protein and fat reserves for energy.

    Simple and complex carbohydrates can prevent weight loss. The body stores approximately three days worth of carbohydrates. Because of this, the Ideal Protein Weight Loss Method has a beginning and an end. Until 100% of the weight loss goal is achieved, we restrict sugars (simple and complex). Why? Because, as long as sugar is being consumed, the body is not burning fat.

    The main principle is to deplete the glycogen (carbohydrate) reserves completely in order to compel the body to turn to its fat reserve to burn calories. How do we get the body to burn its fat reserves and not its muscle mass reserves, if both are depleted simultaneously? By providing the body with foods that have a high protein value, complete with 8 essential amino acids, 97% absorbable, which make them biologically-complete proteins. A dieter will feel energized, look vibrant and feel strong.

    Sounds like a PSMF but you have to use their magic shakes?
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
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    yes, ideally protein is the cornerstone of any good diet.
  • ehmadore
    ehmadore Posts: 72 Member
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    What is PMSF?
  • ehmadore
    ehmadore Posts: 72 Member
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    i'll sell you some magic beans

    I'm all set with snarky comments. Thanks.
  • valerie521
    valerie521 Posts: 140 Member
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    I did it last year. I actually was really stoked and did well. It actually taught me (if anything) to eat more
    protein than carbs (like veggies) instead of bad carbs. I really had NO IDEA.

    It lost about 25 pounds in a short time - maybe 2-3 months. I kept it off until Christmas. I even did good
    at thanksgving. But the food got to be a lot of money and making food for me, then the family became a
    pain in the butt. (P.S. No exercise at all ). I never felt hungry. I replaced hunger with veggies and ate
    more than what they said for my veggie allowance to get used to it. Then I would eat like an entire bag
    of Butter lettuce to curb my appetitite as needed.

    I liked it, I still buy some of their products - the bars are good. But - unless you plan on staying on
    it forever, you will probably struggle with keeping the weight off like me. It returned, but not all of
    it. I totally get that MFP is the way for me. I do know that I need to get balanced nutrition and exercise
    for me to maintain my lifestyle. That was soooooo hard to do for a long long time on Ideal.
  • stronglikebull
    stronglikebull Posts: 402
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    ok, i looked into the information on the website. the "omlete" they have is a packet of powdered mix that you add water to. this in no way looks satisfying or real.

    if you're concerned about carbs and insulin regulation, look into one of several other things that actually teaches you how to eat real food:
    1) primal/paleo
    2) south beach
    3) 4 hour body/slow carb
    5) atkins

    this seems like a total waste of money with a healthy side of misery.
  • littlewitch1973
    littlewitch1973 Posts: 139
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    I do a high protein, low carb diet, and have for over a year now. I have lost 135lbs, and now, if I do eat bread or pasta, I want to sleep.

    Feel free to check out my diary - there are a few times a week I will allow carbs in (hamburger or hot dog rolls mostly) and usually only because I am out somewhere, and didnt plan ahead.

    Yes, it is hard to follow at first, but honestly, if you allow yourself to know that having a slice of pizza once in a while wont kill you, it will work fine. I really like my current way of eating, and have no intentions of changing anything, as its working for me.

    :smile:
  • chrisb75
    chrisb75 Posts: 395 Member
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    Ideal protien diet:

    Breakfast:
    Chicken, Sweet Potato, Broccoli

    Snack 1:
    Chicken, Sweet Potato, Broccoli

    Lunch:
    Chicken, Sweet Potato, Broccoli

    Snack 2:
    Chicken, Sweet Potato, Broccoli

    Dinner:
    Chicken, Sweet Potato, Broccoli

    There I just saved you $400 a month in food. Enjoy
  • KateCon912
    KateCon912 Posts: 200 Member
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    Oh and I was shocked by the TINY amount of food my mom got for $80 a week. She got two boxes which contained 7 small packets of powder you mix with water. I said "Where is the food?" ... she said "that's it!" .. for $80. It's freaking sad what companies do to people. Oh and the food tastes like **** but that's besides the point.
  • caiialily
    caiialily Posts: 28
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    I did it back in the day to lose a quick 15 pounds. After I pricey "introduction fee" to get you started, it's really expensive for their little protein packets and you still have to buy meat and veggies for your one daily meal. No dairy, no fruit and there's a whole list of veggies you're not allowed to eat because they're too "carby." I think I was only allowed to eat 1/2 a cup of onions a week or something else ridiculous. Oh, but you get unlimited iceberg lettuce. Thanks.

    You only get the shakes and soups in the first phase. So I hope you like chocolate shakes with your two cups of zucchini.....The bars and snacks come later. Oh, and your exercise is restricted.

    They claim that because their packets are so protein-packed, you will be sparing muscle mass. A nice idea, but I don't know why you couldn't do the same with a protein powder from the grocery store and those all say "not to be used as a meal replacement."

    To the poster that called it anorexia....kinda not too far off. You're really just on a severe calorically-restricted diet that also specifically restricts carbs. You'll lose weight, but it is really, really tough to stick to and at least for me, the carb craving never went away.

    Oooh.....And they require you take take a really huge number of vitamin supplements each day. They say it's for metabolism, but really it's because you're not eating anything.

    The ONLY thing I liked about it was that I had to go into the office each week to buy my products and weigh in. Well, and you have to keep a manual food diary. So the accountability aspect was nice. Otherwise....if you want to do a weight loss system, please, please, I urge you to look into other options.
  • amoffatt
    amoffatt Posts: 674 Member
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    I haven't personally tried it but those I know who have struggled to stay on it and for some it was spendy. Another person said she wanted to be able to exercise again so she went off it since you are not "allowd" to and another friend said she gained weight back, and fast, after she got off it and incorporating the diet into everyday living as she was taught. I then decided to stay away from it.
  • ehmadore
    ehmadore Posts: 72 Member
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    Thanks for the honest and informative posts! I need not spend any more money on another program...
  • surfteam1689
    surfteam1689 Posts: 73 Member
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    A buddy of mine with whom I played High School football started the Ideal Protein diet on May 1st. As of June 15th, last week, his weigh in shows he dropped 35 pounds - in about 45 days!!!
    It works, but appears to be a little costly. I don't think you are allowed to exercise a whole lot, which means your skin will turn to flab. If *I* did that diet, I would probably at least do my Nordic Trak workouts to tighten up the skin and build a little bit of muscle. The flab seems to be the biggest problem for very large people who lose weight really fast.
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
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    I tried this program after it was recommended to it by my aunt. It is indeed very restrictive and I would not recommend doing it for a long period of time.

    I did it for about 1.5 months from phase 1 and ended up losing 15 lb. I went off it because I wanted to exercise.

    You have to join it for the right reasons and not a quick fix. My reason was to get over carb cravings, learn portion control, and understand how to make healthier choices with more veggies.

    Takeaways (personal experiences):
    - the packets do get expensive at about $5 per packet but you spend so it ended up costing me about extra $50 a week on food.
    - I significantly reduced my carb intake and now eat a lot more vegetables than in the past
    - I only felt hungry on the diet for the first 3 days and after that the protein packets were sufficient, although I did not have energy do to any heavy exercising other than walking
    - you will be eating about 900~ on p1 plus vitamin supplements since you will not be eating cheese or dairy (this is why I would not recommend doing it for extended periods of time)
    - the introduction fee was $150 which includes $100 for next week's meals + vitamins so it was affordable
    - my aunt who was morbidly obese has lost 78 lb since March 1st (I think she has been on this diet too long though)

    Here is the meal plan:

    P1 meal plan
    Breakfast - 1 protein snack (~150 cal)
    Lunch - 1 protein packet (soup) + 2 cups of non starchy veggies (~200 cal)
    Snack - 1 protein snack (~150 cal)
    Dinner - 8 oz lean meat + 2 cups of non-starchy veggies + olive oil (~350-500 cal)

    P2 meal plan
    Breakfast - 1 protein snack (~150 cal)
    Lunch - 8 oz lean meat + 2 cups of non-starchy veggies +olive oil (~350-500 cal)
    Snack - 1 protein snack (~150 cal)
    Dinner - 8 oz lean meat + 2 cups of non-starchy veggies +olive oil (~350-500 cal)

    Hope this helps you.
  • curlymess624
    curlymess624 Posts: 7
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    I am on Ideal Protein right now and I am actually doing it with my mom. The diet is definitely tough because we cut so much out of our diet and the restrictions make it impossible to cheat and get away with it. I have only been on it for a week but I have already lost 9lbs. I can exercise on it, but after I exercise I am absolutely starving and because the meals are so structured there is no way I could really eat after exercising. It is definitely a bit of a crash diet but it also works! I think my plan is to lose a decent amount of weight and then go on weight watchers to help me phase out of it.
  • winerygirl
    winerygirl Posts: 1
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    I have been on the IP diet for 6 weeks and have lost almost 30 lbs. I am afraid however that I have hit a dreaded plateau! I weigh and measure on Thursday so even if the pounds aren't down the inches will be. Anyone else experience a plateau on this diet?
  • Asharee011
    Asharee011 Posts: 129 Member
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    It's hard but my sister used it and it worked great for her! It's just expensive to keep up with.
  • mrse462005
    mrse462005 Posts: 2 Member
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    I started on IP June 1st and my weigh in today shows I have lost 16lbs. I have found many of the protein foods that I either actually like or don't mind, and a few I tried and will never try again. I also have had no problem with eating the number of veggies that are required and have found main meal recipes that satisfy the diet restrictions and can feed my family for dinner. For example I can make an "american chop suey" with lots of veggies and I eat it wrapped in lettuce leaves and my family has it on rice. We do a similar meal with turkey tacos, they have them in normal taco shells I use lettuce. I won't say that this has been easy but it has been convenient and simple which I really like. We have also made a number of changes to utilize Walden Farms foods where we can to eliminate useless calories. I also am utilising MFP to help make sure that I understand what I am consuming and how it breaks out between protein, carbs, and fat which is really key to how this diet works. Now, while it isn't recomended in phase 1 to do weight training, the Chiropractor who coaches me for this has said that he sees no reason I can't do light to moderate cardio as long as I am comfortable with it. I know this diet isn't for everyone, but I just wanted to let those of you out there thinking about it know that it has its pluses. One last but important item I want to mention is that this diet has actually provided very dramatic health benefits to me. I lost a large segment of my intestines 4 years ago to colon cancer. Since then I have experienced continuous intestinal issues related to IBD. Since being on this diet my symptoms have all but disappeared. This was huge for me since over the past few years I have tried every diet change out there trying to get this resolved and have had no relief until now.
  • gregpack
    gregpack Posts: 426 Member
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    What is PMSF?

    Protein Sparing Modified Fast

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