[hellenmoranov]

Eggs: SO, I am severely allergic to egg yolks and poultry. This aversion to poultry is very strong… I cannot even have pepperoni pizza with those tiny bits of sausage and pepperoni if the meat has been made even IN PART with chicken or turkey. My husband gags profusely whenever he smells fish, (likely owing to the fact that he is allergic to most things that swim.) SO, my plan is that, while on protocol, I will stick to beef while he is at home and shrimp (possibly a frozen white fish fillet when he is not home.) This sounds kind of pricy to me.

This whole thing has me checking out the section on eggs and cottage cheese in Pounds and Inches more closely. It reads:

“Many patients ask why eggs are not allowed. The contents of two good sized eggs are roughly equivalent to 100 grams of meat, but unfortunately the yolk contains a large amount of fat, which is undesirable. Very occasionally we allow egg - boiled, poached or raw -to patients who develop an aversion to meat, but in this case they must add the white of three eggs to the one they eat whole. In countries where cottage cheese made from skimmed milk is available 100 grams may occasionally be used instead of the meat, but no other cheeses are allowed.” (emphasis mine)

SO, if I am reading this right, eggs ARE allowed… just in moderation and the YOLK is the problem. They should be boiled, poached, or raw. I have successfully eaten boiled eggs without the yolk and cook frequently with just the egg whites.

First question: Since I seem to fit the exception to the rule with my aversion towards chicken, how often could I eat egg whites while on protocol, and if I don’t eat the yolk, should I eat them at all?

Cottage Cheese: Again, according to Pounds and Inches:

“In countries where cottage cheese made from skimmed milk is available 100 grams may occasionally be used instead of the meat, but no other cheeses are allowed.” (emphasis mine)

I’m not trying to split hairs here to see what I can get away with. I am happy to just have steak and shrimp everyday for forty days… its just the cost. I had thought that 500 calories of anything would be a very cost effective diet, but I still have to cook normal for my family in addition. Hopefully there are those of you out there who appreciate this complication with regards to $. They can have the beef, but DH is allergic to shellfish etc... Eggs and cottage cheese just seem a little more cost effective than steak and shrimp.

Question two: When he refers to cottage cheese does he mean the regular kind in the little tub (skim of course) OR the DRY curds you can get in a bag next to the little tubs? (I would have thought regular skim except if we are only supposed to have a tsp. of whole milk in 24 hours, then wouldn't the dry be better?)

Broccoli:Alright then… at my consultation with the Dr. she gave me a list of foods and BROCCOLI was on it ??? I don’t see this listed in Pounds and Inches. Is anyone else eating broccoli with no adverse results? I read in the book:

“The most tiresome patients are those who start counting Calories and then come up with all manner of ingenious variations which they compile from their little books. When one has spent years of weary research trying to make a diet as attractive as possible without jeopardizing the loss of weight, culinary geniuses who are out to improve their unhappy lot are hard to take.”

Then my Dr. gives me a warped list.

Question three:
Did anyone else get a list from Dr. that is different from the guidelines in Pounds & Inches? If so, did this just convolute the matter, or were the items listed helpful and mysteriously overlooked by the Dr. Simeons?

I apologize for this long post and multiple questions, but I did not want to gum up the board listing them separately when they are all in the same category more or less. Like I said, I’m not trying to be a “tiresome, culinary genius,” I just see steak and shrimp and think, maybe there is a way to dilute the cost by eating less expensive proteins occasionally and veggies that family and I can BOTH have. (There is a “cooking separate meals/extra work for me” issue here as well. )

Thanks in advance for anyone has taken the time to read and consider these issues and imparts their valuable 2 cents.

[13spebampiliece]

Please be advised, I'm a rogue user who consumes off=protocol foods in off-protocol calorie allowances.

Question 1:

I ate boiled egg whites and lost just fine. I have severe food aversions as well, so boiled egg whites was the smarter alternative to starving when I was getting sick of the food choices in P2. You can get very creative with boiled shrimp and egg whites on this protocol.

Question 2:

I eat regular, plain old 4% cottage cheese as my protein source. Because the fat content is above zero, you risk slower losses. Again, this has not been the case with me, however, I imagine cottage cheese shouldn't be an issue since I know a few vegetarian hcg-ers who rely on it for their protein and have great losses. Stick to 2% if possible, just make sure that the ingredients are the same (no added in chemicals for the lower fat variety), and that they're not packing it full of sugars or sugar alcohols to make up for the fat loss and make it more palatable. You might be able to cut out a few calories there.

Question 3:

From what I've read, the consensus appears to be that broccoli is relatively safe in terms of deviating from protocol, much like mixing veggies. There are purists who only follow Dr. S' protocol to a T who may disagree with my statement, but ultimately, the only way to know if something will affect you adversely is to try and see. I didn't know I'd lose 2-3 lbs on days after I ate potatoes, meanwhile I stalled from tomatoes and veal lol. Other rogue users eat chocolate in P2 and lose more than people who are adhering strictly to protocol. One thing I do know is that this protocol is mentally and emotionally challenging, so the less you stress it, the better. I say, don't be afraid to experiment to figure out what works best for you and your lifestyle. As long as you understand the way the protocol and hcg work, you can make your own informed decisions about it.

[verizon]

I did fine substituting a whey protein shake occasionally (Jay Robb shakes use stevia, and taste pretty good).

[Reafnartefs]

I lost more eating the eggs. With cottage cheese I never went fat free always 2% because the fat is the same but the carbs seem to be higher in fat free cottage cheese. I may have lost slower or stalled on those days.

[brraverishhh]

Hey thanks… I truly appreciate the input.

The plan is, of course to eat strictly according to the Pounds and Inches guidelines. That said, a little foresight tells me that given that there are the complications of allergies and aversions in my home, I’ll want to have a couple reliable back up proteins that won’t bump me off the path. I want to be as prepared as possible so that I can take any complications that surface in stride and not just say, “Oh that hCG died didn’t work for us because of allergies and we just didn’t have the means to cook for each member of the family separately.” NOT going to happen. Thanks again.

[Irrampbroow]

Dairy is such a common problem that we tend to see people stalling when eating cottage cheese. Plus it's high in natural sugars so that affects losses. The problem with subbing egg whites a lot is that they contain less protein than meat. So that's why I don't use them even on occasion. I eat a lot of fish on P2. Tilapia is pretty cheap at Walmart.