Cohen's Lifestyle Cohens Lifestyle Support - New

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Lam u need to drink alot of water we here in australia for every 25kg drink 1 litre of water dont know how to convert that to lbs if u work it out u will know how much water. congratulations on ur 4 weeks and no deiations that is great.

KGB the soup receipe is great have had it a couple o times now with a few variations celery also tastes good in it.
 
ICL - Going ok, had a bad month. My weigh in is tomorrow and I think my weight loss for the month will only be about 1.5kg. I am really annoyed that I have wasted a month. I am really struggling to get to the end. Had a few family issues and while I havent gone out and eaten a chocolate cake or anything like that I have just been deviating enough to slow my weight loss down to a minimum. Everyone is telling me how great I look and its time to stop etc and I know I have put that out of my head. But it is really hard. I just want to LIVE. REALLY FRUSTRATED. :(
 
Tough last lap

Hello everyone. I'm but 5kg from ordering refeed and I'm finding this last lap very challenging.

My weight has been yo-yoing and it's very very difficult now to avoid temptations. It doesn't help that my husband is also feeling the same way and he's giving in to temptations more freely. He already can order refeed but wants to wait for me so in the meantime, he's deviating at the drop of a hat - sometimes he puts on weight, most times he loses weight instead! :eek2: He ate two slices of chocolate cake yesterday - Mother's Day at mine and then his mum's - and he lost 0.5kg from the day before! I didn't eat any cake and lost only 0.2kg. I know this daily weight is not an accurate gauge and no two persons loses the same way blah blah blah but it feels so unfair :)

Anyway, as I've put it to him, just because we've finished 90% of a marathon doesn't mean we've completed the run. We have to reach the finish line to get our medals/certificate and so we must stay focused. Then he reminds me that I also said before that if you reach for the stars, you won't get dirt :eek:

Anyway, it's been great overall and I've not been lighter in many years :rolleyes:
 
Goal weight

By the way, I've moved my ticket goal weight from 65kg to 66kg, which is the lower end of the recommended weight range from Dr Cohen. A few reasons but the key being that I want to start refeed as soon as possible to end the program before my long trip at the end of June.

By the way, has any program graduates any tips on further weight lost post-program?
 
Thanks for the motivationg everyone...I've been going strong until the other day..I finally deviated and feel sick as! I only have myself to blame....lil mis fatty boomba I am. I can't believe I gave in to the temptation..shame on me. *SIGH* Well I'll continue to read all ur posts and will NEVER EVER FALL OFF THE WAGON AGAIN. :S (sorry...had it get it off my chest)
 
Hi everyone,

This post is not intended to disuade, discourage or confuse anyone at all.

But for me personally, Cohens is not the program for me. I wont' go into detail as it's my journey and I would not want to cause issues for others.

I wish you all the VERY VERY best, I love the support here and will pop in from time to time but for me I've seen a nutritionist and psychologist and am going to tackle my weight issue via another avenue that's right for me personally.

Happy shrinking all xxxooo
 
ICL - So sorry to hear that. May you get the help that you need in your journey. Best of luck and look forward to you dropping in and saying hello.
 
Hi, finally dragged my butt to make a post. I am the one WindyBlue is killing :rotflmao: i have lost much of what i am suppose to do. Saw ICL's posting, just like to drop a few words too...on what i have amass over these couple of months

1. Deviate - when we first began, the word "deviate" as we learn from the forum and our consultant is a deadly word, it is like death should be avoided at all cost. However, I found out that it is not so, deviation is your best buddy in this program. You need a break from the Cohen routine food/meal. For me, I make sure my deviation is worth the while ie i deviate on the stuff i want most and just make sure i do not pig out. Just enough to get the taste and satisfy the chemicals in my body, period. Also be aware of the deviation, such should be once in a blue moon and not stay on then come saying "I SHALL RETURN TO THE WAGON" kind of situation. Trust me, you will need a beak. Do not be too harsh on yourself if you deviate. Remember to do it in moderation and in clear awareness.

2. Be kind to yourself - After you have lost the weight, when are complemented, just smile and thank your friends/family etc for noticing the change. You have done much to lose the weight so be proud of the effort. No need to be humble/embarrass about the change. It is positive and you certainly have put in the effort, so be proud of the change and effort :) It will be hell lot easier for you and people around you. Sharing your experience but do not be over enthusiastic about it. Remember, everyone think they are one way or another fat. It is a very soft spot for many.

3. Friends and family reaction - Human cannot react to sudden changes comfortably. There will be hostility, concerns, angers and all sort of emotions coming from them. Those who have been there will know what i am talking about. But i find that if they are really your chums, they will get by it. What you really need to give them some time to get used to a new you again. Like my chums put it, "it is tough going out with you again, we can no longer used you as a landmark to look for in a crowded area. And we are not used to it" Give them some breathing space, get used to new you again and you all will find the bond again. With those who never try again...you will then know how deep is your relationship with them or are they worth your friendship.

4. Coming to the end - well i am almost there but not totally. I do agree with Windy that committment is the key to end it all. But do remember, there your life is not all about the end goal for this short period of weight lost. Personnally, I want to be there with Windy all the way. In life or this program. I will refeed with her, whether i hit whatever range i was given. The experience and support is the key. i have lost 27kg and have lost 7" off the waist, lost 1.5 shirt size so what i do not meet the prescribed weight! I am enjoying my new body, my BP has normalised and no longer need the pre-weight loss hypertension dosage. My knee does not hurt that much any more. It is the best i have felt since dunno when :)

5. Life after Cohen - many perspectives have changed especially on the food. I will still enjoy and eat my local food but everything will have to schedule :) (of cos i am not going to waste my tough* 5-6 mths :rotflmao: ) Exercise is a must also, you will not maintain the weight if you are not doing anything about it. Action and reaction - Newton's third law.
*It is not that tough for me especially with Windy around :)

For ICL, Cohen may not be the one for you. I hope you will find one, wish you all the best.

For all who are doing it now, smooth sailing or struggling with Cohen or life issue. Do hang on, what ever little change is postive, no matter how small they are. You will be at least a tiny step closer to whatever objective. It is better than if you are not doing anything about it.

Cheer!
 
sunnycitrine said:
1. Deviate - when we first began, the word "deviate" as we learn from the forum and our consultant is a deadly word, it is like death should be avoided at all cost. However, I found out that it is not so, deviation is your best buddy in this program. You need a break from the Cohen routine food/meal. For me, I make sure my deviation is worth the while ie i deviate on the stuff i want most and just make sure i do not pig out. Just enough to get the taste and satisfy the chemicals in my body, period. Also be aware of the deviation, such should be once in a blue moon and not stay on then come saying "I SHALL RETURN TO THE WAGON" kind of situation. Trust me, you will need a beak. Do not be too harsh on yourself if you deviate. Remember to do it in moderation and in clear awareness.
Cheer!
Click to expand...

I sooooo disagree with that, it's never ok to deviate. If you have made a commitment to stick to this program and you are totally focussed and strong, then there is no need to deviate, its soooooooo not worth it. If you want to deviate then go join weight Watchers. eat what you want within your points and lose .25 -.5 a week. Why bother doing this program if you can't stick to it?
You are sending the wrong message here.

Annie Lusion
 
ICL: So sorry to hear your news, good luck with your weight loss journey. You will be missed so please do pop in and say hi.

Hang in there Jools, I feel your frustration, you are so nearly there. You can do it!


Hope everybody else is doing great!

Annie Lusion
 
Hello Everyone,
This is the first chance I have had to check in since Sunday. I'm glad to be back.
ICL, I wish you the best in all you do. I don't know your circumstances but I can tell you I have battled depression (among other things) and getting the help you need however you get it is of the utmost importance. I hope your journey for a healthy, happy life is fulfilled soon and I wish you much love.
Ezzy, Thanks for the tip on water, I converted by your standard and need to add a little bit more.
Jools and Windy Blue, You are both so close and you're doing great, hang in there.
Windy Blue, About your husbands weight loss, men just have to sneeze and they lose weight, it's so unfair.
Nx6, Don't be so hard on yourself, where you are is lower then most of our goals.
 
Annie, I agree with you that if you are on this plan you should not deviate. It undermines the whole concept, especially if you do it on a regular basis. However for anyone who occasionally deviates, pick up the pieces and start again with your next meal.
 
Yes, I am another who doesnt agree with the deviate thing. It really isnt worth it. While I am finding it hard to get to the end. It is my daily goal not to deviate and I am just taking one day at a time. I WILL get to my goal as I have never felt so passionate about something for such a long time. I have gained the utmost respect from my peers and I know they see me in a different light. Which is a little sad that I have to be skinny to be totally accepted. But that is the way life is. My friends and escpecially my family are totally behind me and I know they are sincere. My advice is that if you do deviate, dont beat yourself up about it just jump back on. Not the next day but the next meal. Good luck to all and stay strong :)
 
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Lam - thanks for the encouragement :)

Apologies for the long rambly note below...

On Sunny's post - if you haven't figured it out, he's the man in my postings - he's my husband.

I'm 200% with him on the other insights he's gained but don't agree with his approach to deviation - I believe we should keep deviation out of the program. But I respect that he has a different view and different way of coping with the monotony and discipline the program requires and I do my best to keep him strictly on the program. Honestly, he has done well and hardly deviates. In fact, because of work, I deviate more :p So yes, he's sending the wrong message!

I've recently heard from a friend who introduced the Cohen's program to me. Back then, she had lost 6kg in a month and impressed with the results, together with what I read from this forum, my husband and I signed up.

However, this friend of mine dropped off the wagon soon after and regained every gram she lost...and more! She claims frequent business trips threw her off course and she also did not go back to the program between trips. Then I realized her trips are less frequent than mine...

I tried to share the tips I learned from being on the program and from this forum to help her get back on but after a few email exchanges, she stopped responding to my emails. I guess I might have come across as pushy :p I was actually a bit disappointed that the person who encouraged me to join the program did not continue on the program.

So she is actually the only Cohen "drop-out" I know in person and shows me that:
1. Without commitment, you won't succeed
2. There might be deep-seated issues behind the ease with which her excuses justified her deviations for her
3. This program is a very personal choice

The conclusion for me therefore is:
We've all done very well and the only way to have done well and to keep doing well is to stay strictly on the program. What is a few months of our lives if these few months of discipline is going to help us enjoy the rest of our lives?
 
Once again I am so appreciative of the support & sound advice that is to be found in here. Thank you. I was so upset at sunnycitrine's post that I almost gave up on the forum. I had typed up such a long post & then decided against it. Thank you for saying what I wanted to say. What is the point in doing this & not doing it right? It sends a bad message.
My clinic just emailed me to say that Dr Cohen has suggested I reduce my water intake. Has any-one else been told that? I have no idea how much I drink but it's a lot! I wonder what it means.
Am starting to feel more like my old self, albeit much slimmer, xo Cate.
 
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I may have not make my point on deviation clear or you may have missed the point! it is not about deviating always. If you have that in mind, please do not even of thinking starting the program. Let me make myself clear; Cohen is a tough journey to embark on, even for a eat to live guy like me. You will get bored with the food/the routines/you need to entertain clients/friends and families at meals, so you what u gonna do? It is all about accepting deviation as part of the package, from there gain the ability to come back onto the program. The last thing you will want is to have a bunch of "you should be strong", "that is so wrong", "why can't you stay firm" comments from this support group. such are the addition pressure that can put already guilt laden soul into a spiral depression. This will not make the journey easier.

Having said that, for those who have no choice but to deviate, pls deviate to something you have been craving for long. You will ease your body of the craving. Then you can concentrate again on the program. (this is my view, how u want to do it is entirely up to you :))

What i want to let all know that, deviation is not life and death. It can be deal with and most of all remember to return to the program. No one or two meals can destroy what you have been doing for the past days, weeks or months. Your journey might get stretched, but you are still moving towards it. Just think of yourself as the tortise in the tortise-hare story, you will reach the goal surely.

Just another point to put forth, what is the end? The end weight prescribed? It will be great to hit the target and ideally you should and need to stive towards it. But we are not in an ideal world. there will be time you need to make a choice to go on or stop, in order to focus on other things dearer to you, just make it with your heart and not your head. Remember Cohen is not centre of your life.

Cohen to me is like a jump-start cable for a new chapter of my life. I ain't gonna fred just be cause i am 1-2 kg short of the target weight. Like i have mentioned, many of the Cohenites have come a long way to reach 1-2 kg within the prescribed weight. For these they will have already lost at least 20-25 kg of their weight. Personally, I salute their achievement, Cohen is not an easy road to travel on. The prescribed weight is just a median which Dr Cohen pulled from his huge data base of patients. It should serves as a guide to you as it did for him.
 
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Hi everyone,
I just want to add that after coming off a deviation frezy "Mothers Day" I am suffering. Today is day 1 of 100% Cohens I only have 8 kilos left but when your hormone balance is out you get extremley hungry and then depressed about what you have done. After a flutter with the other side I will be stayng on the easy side of the fence..and athough I put no weight on, I was starving but not a good hungry a gorging way.
Stay true and dont deviate it is horrible and hard work to remain commited to the program.
Bee
 
long post re:deviations

As far as the whole deviate vs perfect self control issue goes, I think that it is a personal choice. I believe that many women have a lot of self-esteem tied up in their weight, including the ability to lose weight after a succession of weight-loss "failures". We often make our weight loss a public affair by telling friends and family who then monitor our success or failure. This is something that most men would find difficult to understand - as a man you can be overweight without being judged, in fact a beer belly somehow demonstrates masculinity. Men also lose weight more easily, making deviations less of a problem.

If you are the kind of person that finds it hard to get back to the task of sticking on Cohen's after a deviation, or if you have never deviated but feel that you will have failed if so much as 1g of incorrect food passes your lips - DON'T deliberately deviate. That failure feeling is what perpetuates the deviation, they cause the "well I've stuffed it up now, so I might as well keep pigging out; no diet ever works, because I have no self control" thoughts. I don't think that Sunnycitrine was suggesting deviation as an every meal occurance, just that we should cut ourselves some slack when it happens but get back to the plan. Or, if you feel that you should just throw in the towel completely, have a nice dinner off the plan and get back to it tomorrow with renewed vigor. For most people who are on this plan for a long time, a deviation will happen eventually whether intentional or not. How we handle the deviation emotionally sets up how well we get on with the rest of the day, week and month.

I had no choice but to stop following the Cohen's plan after only one week, because I needed surgery; it's a Cohen's rule to have 4-6 weeks recovery. Four weeks to the day, I was back on the plan 100%. That four week delay stopped me from getting to (or at least close to) my goal weight before a wedding I attended on Saturday. I can tell you that starting again was harder than starting the first time! It was frustrating knowing from the start that I wouldn't be as slim as I could be at the wedding, but the delay demonstrated to me that I can deviate and come back with full force. I know this eating plan will work, which is what gives me the motivation to stick to it.

I also deviated last week when it was my 10 year wedding aniversary. We went out to dinner and I enjoyed every mouthful. However, as Sunnycitrine says, I don't pretend that it's not a deviation. This was a planned deviation, not simply giving in to cravings for chocolate, a biscuit or a splash of milk in coffee- all of which I would love. Consequently, I didn't experience feelings of failure or guilt. It might slow down or even stop my weight loss for a bit, but for me it was worth it to have a fantastic night with my hubby (minus the kids!). I am sure that others will feel differently, but for me although the food will be there when I have finished, the anniversary wont. I have not and hopefully will not deviate otherwise. If I do deviate though, I am not going to beat myself up over it, because that starts a downward spiral of emotional eating. Been there, done that, don't want to go back there again.

Cate, I find your self control incredible, it will see you through the troubles you are experiencing. Without taking away from how incredible I think you are, perhaps keeping strict control of your diet allows you to have one aspect of life that is in complete order, when emotionally you are feeling like a wreck. I realise that you were upset by SunnyCitrine's suggestions about deviating, but please don't leave the forum. Your story motivates a lot of people to keep going, even when things aren't fantastic; but not only would we lose your contributions, you would lose the feedback and support. Remember that this is an open forum and that there is no requirement for everyone to have the same opinion, even if we are all on the same program. If we start asking people to express a standard point of view, this will become a very small forum!

I have waffled on too long already. Good luck to all.
Kristi
 
KristiB, thanks for seeing my point. Congratz on your 10 year wedding anniversary, glad that you have a wonderful evening :) with your hubby.

The plan is effective, it will work for you as it did for me. The road maybe long but we will get there eventually.

BeeG,

It is tough after a deviation. Your body does feel funny right :p Seems like everything is out of place yeah. I get them when i have deviated. The feeling will go of after a day or two when back on the program. Just bear with it meanwhile. The best cure for this is to be back on the program :)

Cheers!
 
Kristi- I don't think anyone suggested that sunnycitrine recommended constant deviations. I have really benefited from the varied posts in this thread but try to be careful not to make out I am any sort of expert as I'm not. I'm actually my own biggest critic.
I very much appreciate the support I find in here & haven't encountered negative comments like those quoted. It's mostly all been saying "don't worry, it's not the end of the world" etc. Never lecturing.
I hadn't planned on leaving the forum, just this thread. I won't stop writing in my diary because it has opened the gates to understanding myself a lot more.
I am getting better & better every day emotionally & I am taking more control of my life. I have realised that I have always put everyone else first & have very rarely given myself much thought or care. Cohen's is one aspect of my life at the moment, not my entire focus. The forum is an integral part of my becoming more self-aware so will not leave it.
It's probably best if we just let this minor glitch go. It's very easy for misunderstandings to arise. We are all very different but have similar aims. I want to be happy and healthy & am well on the way. Kind thoughts to all, Cate.
 
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