Alternatives to Ideal Protein include:
GNC – Amp Extreme Wheybolic 60 Protein (I use this protein powder in 1/3 serving sizes for a 20g protein 1g carb shake in the morning and one at lunch)
Bariwise (via dietdirect.com)
Lindora
Matol
New Lifestyle Diet
Netrition (online health food store)
Protidiet (via dietdirect.com)
Wonderslim (via dietdirect.com)
I’m using Wonderslim products for my loss, and so far they are proving to be very effective.
Thank you so much for doing the research. Like you, I’m overwhelmed at the cost of the Ideal Protein supplements. I’ve just started but have found that Portobella mushrooms are terrific as a filler — they taste like meat!!
Mushrooms are a great filler you are absolutely correct! I’m sorry my research isn’t coming up as fast as I’d like, unfortunately life tends to get in the way of brilliance on occasion!
Amazing Site, I am so grateful
Glad you enjoy my blog! If you have any questions, feel free to ask, I’m away this week but will get what I can out next week.
Hi, I am curious to know how much weight you have lost by using the alternative ideal protein approach; using the GNC product vs. ideal protein meal replacements
I went from 198 pounds on April 24th to 160.2 pounds on August 2nd of this year. So, 38 pounds in 3 months and 8 days.
I’ve been on the Ideal Protein diet for two weeks. But must discontinue due to the sucralose in most of their products. Are you familiar with any protein shakes that don’t contain artificial sweetners?
Kelli:
That’s kind of a trick question. Artificial Sweeteners (Stevia/Sucralose (Splenda)/Aspartame (Nutrisweet) ) or actual sugar are some of the main reasons that those powders are actually palatable. Are you allergic to artificial sweeteners or just have the stance of “they are bad”? If you are allergic to sucralose specifically, try using powders that have Stevia in them instead. Aspartame is kind of the big bad of artificial sweeteners, as it is in diet sodas etc. I’ll admit I drink diet soda like it’s no big deal and haven’t had any huge adverse side effects, my weight loss has been fairly consistent and I don’t feel super deprived.
As far as truly without sweetener, the only luck I’ve found is Caprotein, which is a goat protein compound mix that you can use, and it doesn’t have anything other than the basics and vanilla flavoring in it. I’ve never tried it so can’t vouch for flavor. The GNC that I use has Sucralose, and most others have Stevia in them.
I hope this helps, and great job sticking with the plan for 2 weeks so far, you are well on your way!
By-the-way, I love your website! So glad I found it. Anyway, I don’t know if I’m allergic to artificial sweeteners, but I do know they give me stabbing abdominal and kidney pains. So I choose not to consume them. Thanks for your help.
Ahh, that completely makes sense why you would want to avoid them! You could always go “all natural” and use eggs, lean poultry and fish primarily as your source of protein, or tofu, all of which would be able to help you in your quest of epicness
That’d be the easiest way probably to avoid both sugar (carbs) and artificial sweeteners (ouchie tummy). It’d be considered more of a Phase 2 lifestyle rather than Phase 1, so might have slightly slower loss, but you’d be “keeping it real” for your body.
here is an other alternative for you. i even got my coach to approve it! Syntrax Essance and Syntrax Nectar (natural & sweats too!) You can find them at all star health . com for around $0.86 a serving. 100 cal 0 fat 0 carb and 24g protein.
Just a question about the scoops on the GNC Whey Protein.. I see that you’ve made a serving just one scoop, but how much water? 8 oz? 12? Thanks for putting together all this information…you are a lifesaver!!
I do it based on the consistency I like, usually about 10-12 ounces if I’m just using it in a shaker, if I’m making frappacino with it I use 8 ounces of hot coffee (comes out of the machine that way and I’m too impatient to wait for it to cool) and like 4 ice cubes in my little magic bullet blender. Hope that helps!
That definitely helps..thank you!
Honestly, I don’t need an alternative for the Ideal Protein diet program, because it’s very useful for me. Until now I’ve lost like 10 pounds and it wasn’t that bad. I love this program and little by little I’m closer to achieve my goal. You won’t regret trying it!
Thanks do much for the info, and I know Ideal Protein works great. My reason for finding alternatives is because I could not afford the Ideal Protein products.
i’m with you, it is soooooooooo expensive i was all so looking for an alternative, really liked the peach and mango, it really had a nice kick to it, like orange juice, and it had 20 gms. of protein! 56.00 dollars a week is expensive, and i don’t buy the snacks.
the smell first then the taste of most protein shakes just make me gaggy! Any thoughts on a protein supplement.?I was reading about amino acid supplements but not sure that it would have the same effects to acheive the same goal as the ideal protein
thanks for your thoughts
Actually the shakes are a way for your body to have nutrients as well as beat the hungry feeling. If you hate the hakes, try the bars or oatmeal instead. Wonderslim pudding is good too.
Isopure Protein is a great alternative…50g of protein, 0 carbs. Have my first consultation on 11/19 for the IP program. It IS expensive, but so is poor health. In reality, it cuts back on grocery expenses.
Thanks for your feedback, I’ll check in on Isopure, never heard of it. The AMP Wheybolic 60 that I use is 60g protein with 1-2g of carbs/serving, I cut that into 3 servings of 20g of protein each. IP is a great program, unfortunately we can’t all afford it, I know for me at least, my groceries have never been $600/month. I’m currently off plan and my average weekly spending on food is about $90.
Today is day 1 of the alternative IP method. So far I had my first protein drink which was ok… to bland… and I’m already thinking of what I’m going to do for a snack. I’m not sure I could drink 3 protein drinks a day. Any suggestions? oh yeah, is anyone taking the magnesium calcium and potassium calcium? If so, how much mg?? and what is the purpose…I.m already taking centrum???
pink-
Thanks for writing in, and welcome to the Alternative Method to IP. Regarding the shake situation. Sure, change it up, use Wonderslim, Bariwise, or ProtiDiet and get soups, puddings, cereals, and most impressively in my book, Meal Replacement Bars. The only reason I did 3 shakes/day was that it didn’t drive me totally bonkers. I tend to be a “mindless” eater for breakfast and lunch, so the shakes didn’t bother me.
For your vitamins, yes you need to take more than Centrum. While on Ideal Protein (Alternative even) you end up taking basically 2 daily vitamins, I use One-a-Day (Natura multi-vita if you’re on traditional IP), 2 calcium/magnesium (AKA “CalMag” if you’re on traditional IP), 2-3 potassium gluconate (2 potassium/calcium if you’re on traditional IP). Here’s a breakdown of what all is included in the vitamin count for Ideal Protein/Alternative as well. If you’re wondering “Why am I taking so many flipping vitamins?!?” That’s totally natural. The reason is this: We lose out on tons of vitamins and minerals by not eating any kind of bread product, fruit product, or milk. Think about the recommended daily intake of calcium is 1,000 mg / day for women 19-40 years old (or so), a glass of milk has 300mg on average. Now that you can’t drink milk, it’s a whole different story of how you’re going to get all that calcium you need. The same goes with the other minerals/vitamins in the daily diet, the deficit is huge so the vitamin supplements really needed to be stepped up.
Hi-I’ve a question re: the Ideal Protein shakes—I’m not planning on using them now because of the cost but still following the premise of the plan—I always had the chocolate powder drink at night and warmed it up for hot chocolate. Are there other protein powders that would be comparable to Ideal Protein taste wise that I could eat—I miss my hot cholocate!
OhMyGosh yes! Wonderslim makes an AWESOME hot chocolate that’s actually made to be heated up, yay no more “oh god don’t get chunky!” feelings while it gets warm
Only 6g carbs, 12g protein, 1g fiber, 70 calories and 1g fat. Not too bad in my book.
Hi I’m 19 years old and I did the IP diet last year. I lost 30 pounds in 3 months but I had to get off of the diet because It was too expensive. I have gained some weight back. My mom is no longer willing to buy my food for the diet or buy food online. What products that are sold at the market are good for me to use as a replacement?
EAS is a brand that Walmart sells for ready-drink-shakes, the Atkins shakes also work in a pinch. I ordered from Diet Direct because the cost was so much less and the items were comparable to Ideal Protein and tasted great. If you can’t order online it’s harder to do, but GNC Makes the AMP Wheybolic 60 protein drink which you can use and is pretty competitively priced, it’s a dry shake mix, one “scoop” will net you 20g of protein and you get like, 50ish scoops in a container, if you don’t mind the powdered drink route.
thank you so much for this information. I am going to start on Monday…1 question can tofu be used as the protein instead of lean meat?
and if so how much should be eaten?
You can substitute Tofu for regular meat products, the numbers you want to keep within are 7g of carbohydrates (or less) and 20g of protein, so whatever size of portion of tofu would give you that balance, would be sufficient. Sorry, I’m not a tofu person:(
thank you!!! I’m borderline vegan. so I don’t eat meat of any kind including eggs. so I was hoping I could use the tofu being beans are a no-no
I have learned that all proteins are not created equal, especially those bought over the counter as opposed to IP. Ideal Protein is a complete protein that is more absorbable (around 90%) as opposed to over the counter brands (about 40%). I am not sure of all brands that you mentioned but it would interest me to know.
Lisa:
Thanks for your question! The “over the counter” protein powder I use is called GNC Amp Wheybolic 60, and has protein in the form of Whey Protein Isolate, the same as Ideal Protein products. Wonderslim has protein in the form of calcium caseinate, which is similar to whey protein but has a slightly lower percentage of “gross” protein (92% vs. 95%). Thanks again and that was a great question!
Carbthin Zero carb protein powder has 0carbs 0 fat 27g of protein and 100calories per scoop. Check that thing out!
Thanks I’ll give it a shot
What are good salad dressing recommendations and alternative IP snacks? Also, how many eggs is one allowed to have for their protein (phase 1)? I’ve seen two differences in this – one flyer reads four and the other two.
Christine:
Thanks for your question! Walden Farms makes 0/0/0 salad dressings. I know the Chipotle Ranch is pretty good, and a friend of mine liked their Honey Mustard. It’s 0 fat 0 cal 0 sugar so it’s “allowed”. Regarding how many eggs to eat in relation to substituting them for a packet, you get 6 grams of protein per egg, and many of the Ideal Protein packets have somewhere between 15-25g of protein, so 3-4 eggs would match a packet for protein content. The downside is the amount of fat in an egg. For those 6g of protein, you’re getting 5g of fat, 5! Now, if you’re using Egg WHITES (such as egg beaters) it’s 0g of fat per 3 TBSP and 5G of protein, so 4 servings of Egg Beaters would equate to a packet. I hope that helped!
Today is my first day on your site and I do like it already. Is it okay to take the raspberry ketones while doing Ideal protein?
Dawn:
I’d recommend start by focusing on the regular program first. Feel free to add the ketones after a month or so, once your body gets used to the new diet etc. Trust me, there’s a lot that will be changing, don’t overdo it right away.