Ceburoo . . Welcome to re-feed land.

[ceburoo]

Its better to be late than never. So finally I am here to start phase 2 of the Cohens journey.
Actually I started re-feed on Tuesday, so today was day 3. I will do a run down on what has happened over the past 3 days.

Ceburoo re-feed is 18 days.

DAY 1. Weight 64.6

I had read my re-feed for more than a week before I started so pretty well understood what I had to do. My rationale to the re-feed is the same as it was with the programme. Keep it simple. I'm a culinary dummy so anything other than salad for meal 2 or 3 is pretty well out of the question It's good that I love salads and I have no problems eating the same all the time. Boring but easy for Cohens.

So day 1 was just nearly the programme with a small additional "old" protein and "old" vegetables and something different with a "good" fruit. Yoghurt and a fruit for meal 1 and salads for meals 2&3.
Day 1 done and dusted. No side effects.

DAY 2 Weight 64.6.

Day 2 was the same as day 1 except that a slice of bread was a new comer on the menu. Because of the bread I had to cut back on my saladas. That's OK it's just a substitute for some saladas. No problems there. Day 2 done and dusted. No side effects.

DAY 3 Weight 64.6.

Day 3 no change in my weight and the only change on the menu today is extra "old protein" (double quantity) whilst everything else remains the same.
I panicked late evening day 2 when I realised that we would have no electricity from 8.30 today. As I go to work at 4.30am and don't get home til 9am how was I going to cook my protein for meal 2. I got out of bed and thawed out the protein in a steamer saucepan and then cooked it up ready for meal 2 today.
So with the protein pre-cooked and no electricity everything just fell into place and the day went off without any problems
Day 3 done and dusted. No side effects.

Tomorrow could be my first test. "Old veges" will be doubled and that means a mountain on the plate. I will cut the additional "old veges" in half and combine them in meals 2 and 3.

So now I'm up to date with my re-feed. So far it is no easier or more difficult than the programme. Tomorrow is another day but I'm confident it will be OK.

[katiefrank70]

Well done Ceburoo for reaching Refeed.

That sounds like a huge quantity of food. Wherever will you fit it

Shall be reading your's and Francesca's RF journey avidly.

Good luck

Katie

[Mette]

Yay! Ceb is in the magical land of refeed!! So glad I have visiting rights! It all sounds very exciting and confusing. I probably shouldn't ask, because I'll get jealous, but what's a good fruit?
Sounds like you're breezing through - as I expected! Time to fly for you!

And Francesca will join you in two more sleeps!
Stay strong and keep smiling! I shall return!

[Justine]

Hey Ceb

I'm here in refeed land too. Looks like just the two of us until tomorrow when Francesca joins us.

I am on Day 3 today and no movement on my weight either.

Interesting.

J

[Annabelle Joy]

Welcome to refeed, Ceburoo. The second half needs a bit of thought, and stretches the tummy, but none of it's too challenging. I was so busy during refeed that I didn't have time to do anything sophisticated with my food, and kept the cooking simple, just made sure I got the quantities and combinations right. It's only for a short time, and what's important is to look for reactions to new foods. Personally, I don't think I had any, and I added in everything on my plan, and tried as many different meat and vegetable combinations as I could. You'll breeze though it and soon be out the door at the far end and in the wide world of maintenance.

AJ

[SuzieQ]

CONGRATULATIONS CEB!!!! Wow so cool!!

OMG it sounds like there is heaps of food...double the protein?? I bet you were stuffed after that. Keep us posted Ceb....Francesca will be with you on Monday I think....oohhh you'll have a refeed friend shucks....tehe.

Suzie

[ceburoo]

Ceburoo re-feed is 18 days.

DAY 4. Weight 64.2 OVERNIGHT WEIGHT LOSS OF 400G

I may have some sort of advantage with the amount of food I was allowed in the start up programme. I have always been able to space my meals out to have three meals and 1 snack between meals. And now on re-feed it has become three meals plus two snacks.

The day started out as it normally does with my usual dose of yoghurt combined with my allowance of "good fruit" rockmelon and salada.
A mid morning snack of salada
and then lunch. I thought this was going to be a real test. Steak with allowance of vegetables PLUS nearly half as much again. Followed by an extra allowance of protein (melted mozzarella) on a slice of toast and a piece of fruit.
A mid afternoon snack on an apple
and dinner of chicken with allowance of vegetable PLUS nearly half a much again with a salada and an orange.
I scaled the heights of a mountain of food but I must say that I was comfortable with it.
Tomorrow will be the test when I weigh in to see if there has been any damage with the amount of food today.

To Katiefrank, Mette, Justine and AJ your words are all very welcome.
Katiefrank yes there was moe food than I have been used to but spacing it out over the whole day I think makes it easier to consume. It will be good to welcome Skinny here in re-feed when she finally shows up.

Mette you are welcome any time. So far it has been exciting but not confusing. As I said before I will keep it simple coz that will be the way I will be eating in the future so might as well get used to it now. What is "Good fruit"? In re-feed you are given two categories of fruit one is listed as "Good" and the other is "Bad" The terminology refers to the effect on your body. You will find out more when you get into re-feed land yourself Mette
Justine. Yep its a pretty lonely land at the moment. Skinny will liven the place up when she gets here. In the meantime its up to us. As you can see from my post I am at day 4 and had an overnight loss of 400g. This may happen to you also but dont be too hard on yourself if it doesn't happen. Time will tell and I will look forward to reading your report tomorrow. Justine the bread I am having is just a normal white from Baker's Delight. So far no reaction either way.
AJ I will research a little and forward read to see when the confusing bits will start for me. You already know I am not a great one for innovations in eating so I will just stay with what I know that works for me.

Thanks again for passing by . . . hope the weekend will be just right for you all

[Annabelle Joy]

Ceb, it's very comforting to keep losing weight once you reach refeed. Hopefully, you won't add any on from today. The idea of refeed is to add food back without adding weight as it means your body is able to cope with that quantity on a continuing basis. Even though the meals look huge near the end of refeed, total calories is unlikely to be above you needs.

I'm not too clear on how you've eaten your protein. However, it sounds like you have been mixing protein several days earlier than I would have expected, with cheese and steak in the same meal.

AJ

[Francesca]

Wow Ceb! A 400g loss on Refeed!?!? That's great! I planned my first eight refeed days yesterday and it looks like A LOT of food. I was doubtful anyone could actually lose weight during refeed, but my husband went down about 800g and it looks like you're still losing as well.

Which good fruits have you been adding? I'm mainly looking at blueberries and pineapple. Nothing else on that list really appeals to me much. I'm looking forward to the bad fruit days - when I can add pear to my diet. It's my favourite fruit!

Your Day 4 lunch sounds yummy! You're allowed to mix proteins so early! Cheese + steak! I don't think I'm allowed protein mixing until at least midway through mine

Have a good weekend.

[louise41]

HI ceburoo, it sounds like you have it well under control and are very organised, the way you work around no electricity etc. It is amazing that the weight continues to come off. Isnt it funny that those quantitis seem so big now yet perhaps before the diet they probably would not have seemed so. Lovely to hear its all going so well

[ceburoo]

Thanks for your wellwishes BUT it seems that AJ and now Skinny are so right. I rang my clinic this morning and got the news of my indiscretion. I hit the dumbkopfff buzzer on the second and fourth day. Mixing proteins is not allowed What the heck was I doing. Geez Im stupid. I read the rules and still got it wrong. The good thing is in the short term it hasnt done any damage and I am back on track before too long. Thanks AJ and Skinny for bringing it to my attention.

But anyway it was a premiere showing of what mixing proteins is going to be like and that is only 2 days away so . . . bring that on.
I have just checked out the re-feed a little further down the track and if I thought it was a mountain of food yesterday holy smoke Everest is coming up on the horizon in the near future. I am going to be on Everest for seveal days and that is really going to be a test.

Thanks Suzie AJ Skinny and Louise for dropping by. I will have to be more vigilant but it is a learning curve and I have learnt something today.

Happy days everyone

[Justine]

It is VERY complicated Ceb! But we have dropped about the same amount (300g me and 400g you). Interesting how we are tracking so similarly.

J

[ceburoo]

Ceburoo re-feed is 18 days.

Re-feed starting weight 64.6


DAY 5. Weight 64.2

Well the day finished in a whimper after the turmoil of the revelation that I had mis-read the rules of re-feed and had mixed proteins on days 2 & 4. I had mixed emotions as I had enjoyed the mixed proteins but that has now been put away until the correct time will come for me to have the mixed proteins.

The meals were plentiful especially 2 & 3 but there is more in the days to come that will test my resolve about eating so much. But that is the way Cohens works and as it has not let me down in the past then there is no reason to doubt it at this time.

Justine I think it is just a matter of getting our heads around the way it works. It is a little more work in having to add stuff each day not like the feeding programme which was so cut and dried. Read and re-read (in my case) and I am sure we will both breeze through to the end. Yes the losses are similar and it is amazing that we lose weight when we are eating more. Amazing but true . . believe it or not. I do.

[Francesca]

Hey Ceb

Don't worry about the protein mixing mix-up. It's good that you discovered the issue early on and you can proceed correctly henceforth! I have drafted a meal plan for the first eight days and so far, so good. The first eight days are definitely not so complicated for me...it starts to get tricky thereafter!

Oh yes, I wanted to ask you what your strategy is with the bread. The maintenance guidelines say to avoid carbs like bread at breakfast. In view of this, are you trying to have your bread at lunch time? Or are you allowing dinner bread as well? I will hit a point this week where I'm allowed two slices of bread, so I am wondering whether to have the second slice at breakfast or at dinner - which do you reckon is the lesser of the two evils?

[ceburoo]

Ceburoo re-feed is 18 days.

Re-feed starting weight 64.6

DAY 6. Weight 63.6 Overnight weight loss 600g
Overall weight loss on re-feed 1 kilo!

What the heck is going on . . . or more to the point coming off. Even given the fact of the earlier innocent protein mixing there was a 600g loss overnight making one kilo for the five days. Given that the volume of the food is getting larger, yet the body frame is getting smaller, the results are just unreal.
These past two days have been the same quatity of food with now two good fruits to go with my three old fruits. I am not a great lover of pineapple (usually not so sweet and with an after taste) but I bought a half BETHONGA GOLD pineapple to taste test. No problems with that variety and I will be buying more of them and less of the rock melon which at the moment is tasteless. Wil have some more at dinner. Gotta love this re-feed.
Looking forward to welcoming Skinny to re-feed land today.
Skinny with regards to bread and carbs for breakfast. My understanding is that if you have the bread with protein then it is OK but without protein then that is when the probs could start. I always have a salada with my yoghurt and fruit allowance for breakfast. At the moment I am having a slice of toast for lunch. When I get to two slices then I will have them lunch and dinner.
I hope AJ will clarify this question coz on Tuesday I am supposed to have three slices for the rest of re-feed. It says you can substitute crackers for bread if you are struggling with it so if I dont have a definitive answer regarding that I will just have the two slices of toast meals 2&3 and a salada for breakfast.
See you soon Skinny over here.

[Kohinoor]

Hi Ceburoo,

Hehe - you gotta love it, don't you?

What the heck is going on . . . or more to the point coming off. Even given the fact of the earlier innocent protein mixing there was a 600g loss overnight making one kilo for the five days. Given that the volume of the food is getting larger, yet the body frame is getting smaller, the results are just unreal.

It's just Cohens doing what it does.... Maybe it means you will settle at slightly smaller than you had imagined... Or maybe it allows you a buffer... Really, what would I know - but you are living it, and it will turn out the way it turns out. (Que sera sera, really) It's all sounding pretty damn good though.

Going well, Ceb - as you well know, although the food amounts are getting larger, that is relative to "what you were on" during the weightloss phase (and, initially, you may have been shocked by how LITTLE was available to eat back then).

But now, you are re-learning what should be. Seems a little strange that the INCREASE in food leads to an increase in weight lost - just live it, and love it. In the end, it will all settle down (as I'm sure you know).

Rock on, champ,

Koh

[lucylou]

Hi Ceb

Mix ups on refeed are pretty common, it is very complicated. Weight loss on refeed is pretty common too, so far you're pretty common!

I dropped some of my bread in refeed and used my saladas in my fruit muffins, the recipe is in the refeed recipe section. Three pieces of bread a day were just too much for me.

In maintenance if I'm having bread I always have it with protein. Bread is not counted as a carb by Dr Cohen for some reason but I'd rather balance any insulin rush with a whack of protein, so I have an egg with toast for breakfast or a slice of fruit toast with ricotta... and I'm back to having a home grown wheat grass juice shot with breakfast so I'm still having veggies at breakfast!

Have fun.

Loulou

[louise41]

ceburoo, considering how good you have been on cohens I suggest a small mix up will not make a big difference for you

[Francesca]

Heya Ceb

Bravo! It really is amazing and wonderful that you've been able to have such awesome losses while increasing the amounts you're eating. Such good news!

And very encouraging for me as I jump in with both feet into refeed territory today.

I think you are right about the protein-carb combi. I think my consultant may have meant that we shouldn't just have cereal for breakfast like so many people do. That's just plain carb, and not much protein, which will cause insulin issues, I guess.

I really need to find these refeed recipes which Loulou mentioned. I'd seen them somewhere before but now that I need them, I can't find them!

[Justine]

I do feel the need as my great-grandmother would say 'Bloody men!' They get more food than us, lose faster than us, then lose a bloody kilo on refeed!!!!!

I am happy for you Ceb (really) but when are you guys gonna give us gals a break??!?!?