OK...honestly, this is what's going on.

I have been following the Insulin Resistance Diet principles. Eat protein with carbs and I've been limiting my carbs to 15-20 per meal and my daily allowance is ~ 50-60 a day. My weight loss averages ~ 5 lbs a month.

A friend of mine started using Herbalife protein shakes so I signed up with her. I drink a shake for b-fast and lunch. Carbs = 10 and Protein = ~30 per shake. I mix it with soy milk and am honestly not hungry until ~ 3:00 pm. Then I have a protein snack and eat a balanced dinner (15-20c).

The first week on it, I lost 3 lbs and 8 3/4 inches. I feel good and the shakes seem to be keeping me full.....my biggest tempation is eating something I shouldn't and knowing that I only have this shake at 2 meals seems to be a good rule for me.

I don't want to be building any bad habits...I'm only in my second week. I thought I would give it a month and compare it to my LC/IR diet and see how my weight loss compares. I don't want to have to spend any extra $ if I don't need too. Know what I mean.

I'm not taking any pills w/ it so I think its perfectly safe. Sometimes I just wonder if I'm taking the right path here. *sigh* Thanks for letting me ramble. Any thoughts on my madness?

My philosophy is if it works for you and you can live with it - go for it

Mary

personally, i cant stand the shakes or bars or any of that... its just not a meal imo- it seems more like a "snack", kwim? i like to enjoy my food, not choke it down. im not too familiar with herbalife, but doesnt it include ephedra or caffeine or asprin or something? curious as to why u made the switch if you're only saving yourself 10 carbs a day?? anyways, i certainly hope you find something that really works for u- keep us updated & good luck!

My concern Devsi is that you aren't learning new habits by using meal substitutes such as the shakes. I have done stuff like that myself many times. And put the weight right back on, when I started eating regularly, plus more weight. I lost fairly quickly on those schemes so didn't worry about exercise or new habits.

That being said, its all about choices and what will work for YOU. Only you know this. You might be completely different from me and can handle it fine. I wish you luck in your weight loss journey and I just know you will find your way.

Orchid

The fact that you are concerned about it is probably a help. Before you worry too much I'd considered the reasons you are using shakes instead of food, and whether those are good or bad reasons.

I often eat an Atkins bar or shake in place of a meal, because my job is often hectic and there's not a lot of variety at the cafeteria. And frankly I'd rather sleep five extra minutes in the morning!

But it didn't interfere with my weight loss or my maintenance. That's the bottom line.

I knew a guy once who lost a lot of weight (probably over 200 lbs) by eating one big meal a day only. It worked for him.

If substituting 2 meals a day with shakes works for you, go for it, but I agree with the others that you need to be aware that you aren't really learning better eating habits (unless you plan to always eat meal substitutes 2x a day) and if you are concerned about it, maybe that indicates you really aren't sure you want to do it.

Good luck!

Valerie

I tried the Herbal Life shakes awhile back and they did was help with extra water weight and it didn't help me. Everyones body is different! What are you using to mix the shakes, ever thought of a protein shake so you can save yourself some extra money! Just an opinion, if it works for you, keep it up! Good luck to you!

I checked the shakes and they don't contain ephedra or mu haung....I think was with all the pills.

The main reason that I thought this would be good is because I started looking for a protein shake for breakfast. I've tried several and haven't liked them. I do like the herbalife shakes. I mix them with soy milk. I don't feel deprived of food but I got to thinking about the whole "what about eating real food again one day". I'm now thinking about drinking the shakes in the morning and doing LC during the rest of the day. My morning is so hectic with trying to get to work and getting my 15 month old twin daughters to the sitters, I don't have time to cook anything.

Thanks for the thoughts. This is only my second week drinking the shakes. I may just turn them into breakfast only for me.

Herbalife is good stuff. Will it work for you? Only you know. I figure that we should go with whatever works for us. As individuals. I have a friend who lost 140 pounds on Herbalife and has kept it off for 7 years (now does a shake for B'fast only).
Whatever works for you, I wish you luck! And success! AND JOY!
(Might as well put some of the real important stuff in there, too!)

The shake for breakfast idea sounds like a good one. If I could find a good shake I liked, I'd do that too. Breakfast is the bane of my existence (okay, a little melodramatic there), I am just not a morning person and barely can make time to shower each morning, let alone do things like make breakfast.