thanks emmaglow!

Uh-oh, now I am really rogue....I'm a law breaking NEWBIE.

I'm on round one vlcd 17 I've read Pounds and Inches 4+ times and I understand very well what is allowed and not allowed on the protocol. But..... I have combined two different veggies at a time (cabbage & tomato and celery & onions when making soup), with yes, chicken/beef broth. I've also had white albacore tuna with celery and pickles once - it wasn't terribly satisfying (missing my mayo) so I haven't done it again. I even tried a jay robb protein shake (didn't really care for the flavor/consistency though). I can't bear to have only 1/2 of a grapefruit - the grapefruits I use are very small (the size of an orange) and I eat a full one and maybe cut back on my veggie serving size by a tad.

For me, I had to change things up or risk falling off the wagon entirely. Was a can of tuna better than a Wendy's chicken sandwich? Yup. After the first 4 or 5 days on VLCD I was forcing myself to eat the vegetables. I knew they would keep me full and satisfied and I needed to eat them so I wouldn't be hungry later (and give into bad food choices) but I was struggling to get them down as I was becoming a bit averse. So, I made the illegal soups -wow, much better. I made spaghetti for my kids one night and desperately wanted some but I didn't - instead I heated up my beef/tomato/cabbage soup and I didn't feel nearly as deprived as I might have with the chicken and spinach I had for lunch.

I've lost close to 20 pounds in 16 days. My modifications were done with a lot of research on this and other forums to see how they had worked for others and I keep a very detailed log so I can make sure I'm not slowing down or stalling as a result of the modifications. Interestingly, the days I experimented I had better or at least the same losses as my strict protocol days. Would've I lost more if I would have been 100% strict? Maybe? But could've I went without any "cheats" if I hadn't have gotten creative/rogue with my meals? I don't know. I've got at least 3, maybe 4 rounds to do so I've got to find a way to make it through, something that works for me.

As for phase 3, I agree with a lot of the comments - it should not be messed with. I'll be true blue when I start on Phase 3 so I don't risk stabilizing.

Rocky, I think you are right on about keeping your body guessing.

Sorry, long post - oh, wait, you don't have to apologize in the Rogue Lounge :D!

Ang2- i agree that it's better to go a bit rogue than to do an all-out cheat. could you post your recipe for the cabbage/tomato/hamburger soup? that sounds good to me. don't tell anyone, but your queen as occasionally mixed a few veggies herself, here and there.... :)

mgsondance,

Except for the beef I really didn't measure anything but here's what I did to make my soup:

1 can fat free beef broth - I know, I know very rogue
I can of water (I might have added a bit more - I know there was enough to cover the cabbage after it had cooked down)
400 grams london broil cut up into pretty small pieces (visible fat trimmed away)
Full head of cabbage
1 can petite diced tomatoes (100% natural, no additives)
Salt, pepper and a bit of sage - and a bay leaf

I browned the London Broil a bit, then added the broth, seasonings and cabbage. After cooking I just measured and divided it into five small tupperware containers for individual servings. I decided to divide into five servings instead of four because I still wanted to keep my calories low since I didn't re-measure the beef after cooking.

Beestly, deal with your hunger first, the first few weeks of P2 we lose pretty well anyway, I think its when you get further in the round that shaking it up does the most good. At least that's how its been for me. I'm sorry you are hungry, thats hard. All I know is homeopathic and I know you are doing RX so I don't know when you should start changing your dose but I would think by now you should start to see the hunger get better by now.