Day 80: The How To's of The Dukan Diet

Happy Friday My Friends,

Here we are sitting at day 80, I am down 25 pounds and I feel great!  I have become very motivated now that I have been successful with the first 25lbs but I know what this means and recognize that I will cheat if I don’t keep going.  So I have become more determined to lose the last 25.  It’s not going to come off as easily as the first, but I am hoping with more effort and more exercise I can become successful!  My goal is to hit the gym 2-3 times per week to get back into a routine, mixing it up with cardio, abs, weights etc.

I cheated two weekends in a row, the first was my best friends Bachelorette and Bridal shower.  I didn’t over indulge, I just had some cake and some nachos and some candy, and let me tell you in very small quantities.  This past weekend I had Gatorade and the icing off four cupcakes.  And I am done now, the ramifications of this are: 1. I have a headache today 2. I have not lost any weight and 3. I don’t feel good about myself.  So back on the strict band wagon I go and off to the races! 

Tairalyn and I have been very successful with this diet and we are fielding questions and requests, left right and center on how we did it, how to do it, how much does it cost, the list is endless.  SO, I thought I would dedicate this post to the How To’s of the Dukan Diet. (Check out Little Miss Mama's blog today for her tips and tricks)

Like most diets, they are a lifestyle change, just like quitting smoking; if you are not ready you will not be successful.  Trust me.  But Tairalyn and I were definitely ready for this and we read up and found recipes to help us through.  We used resources like Google and Pinterest.  The Dukan Diet consists mainly of cutting out all carbs including sugars and limiting the fat intake into your body, low fat milk products, no fruit, no breads, pastas, grains and no veggies (for the attack phase).

What Tairalyn and I did to prepare ourselves for this diet was to go on a cleanse for the first week.  We cut out carbs and sugars, mainly breads, candy, chocolate and drank THIS each day for the first 7 days.  After that we then started on Phase 1: Attack Phase. 

Like I have stated before PLAN PLAN PLAN! Tairalyn and I spent one whole day, 12 hours planning out every single meal including snacks, making every single meal including snacks and organizing each day.  We were beat, tired, bitchy, but we knew come Monday we would be successfully embarking on a new lifestyle and we were ready to welcome it with open arms.  Check out our PINTEREST here, here, and here for recipes used.  We did the attack phase for the maximum of 10 days, reasoning is that our goal is to lose 50lbs.

What is the Attack Phase?

High protein, basically only protein with non-fat milk and dairy, at least 3 liters of water a day to avoid overworking your kidneys and 20 minutes of light exercise a day!

Only allowed 2 egg yolks a day, unlimited egg whites

2 Tbs of Oat Bran every day, I mixed mine into my yogurt

Any seasonings must be sugar free 

NO VEGGIES - NO FRUIT - NO CARBS

It’s definitely an adjustment and you have to push through the cravings and the bad days.  Making sure you have an amazing support system will help for the low days and the high days!

What is the Cruise Phase?

There are different versions of this phase as to which days you eat what.  I followed the PP (pure protein) and PV (Protein Veg) alternating days.  But check out mydukandiet.com for the variation you feel will work for you.  You are still limited in the vegetables that you can eat but boy will you appreciate them more!

Approved Veggies:

1. Artichokes (Globe not Jerusalem)
2. Asparagus
3. Egg Plant
4. Beetroot
5. Broccoli
6. Cabbage (Broccoli and Cabbage are both a member of the Cole family and this allows you to eat a very wide variety of vegetables such as cauliflower, purple sprouting broccoli, red cabbage, white cabbage, collard greens, kale and brussel sprouts)
7. Carrots
8. Celery and Celeriac
9. Chicory
10. Zucchini
11. Cucumber
12. Fennel
13. French Beans/String Beans/Runner Beans/Mangetout
14. Leeks
15. Mushrooms ( all varieties including White Button, Shiitake, Oyster and Portabella)
16. Onions (Red, White, Salad or Spring)
17. Palm Hearts
18. Peppers
19. Pumpkins, Squashes and Marrows
20. Radishes
21. Salad Leaves (Of any sort including all types of Lettuce, Rocket and Watercress)
22. Sorrel
23. Soya Beans
24. Spinach
25. Swede
26. Swiss Chard
27. Tomatoes
28. Turnips

Now the possibilities are endless, it’s like a whole new world has opened up.  You can eat anyone of these however you like it.  Just remember to always check the ingredients to make sure there is no sugar, use skim milk products and try to add a little exercise into your diet. 

There are more phases to this diet but we aren’t there yet!Cost: Just a grocery bill.  As with many diets, when you start buying fresh foods you have to spend a little more but that is about it.

I have put together a list of the must-haves I have learned and wish I had known during the attack phase.  My secret tips and tricks that will help YOU be successful:

1. Go to shopdukandiet.ca and order some products here that will help seize those cravings you will have.  Promocodes youcandukan15 or youcandukan5
2. PUDDING.  Jello makes a fat free, sugar free pudding that you just add skim milk to; honestly it is better than sliced bread and a lifesaver.
3. Sugar twin.  The white sugar twin has proven its value in this diet as the best sugar replacement on the market.  We tried many varieties and found this one to be the best for baking and eating.
4. Greek Yogurt Lifesaver.  0% Greek plain yogurt, with some cinnamon and sugar twin, this will help you anytime, anywhere if you are having a craving.  Very satisfying.
5. Spend the money for the low fat cheese, it is worth it.  I have found that the marble is the best one that doesn’t lose much of the taste.
6. Mustard, the no calorie flavor booster
7. Save-On-Foods.  They have bulk foods and this is where I have found the cheapest Goji berries and bulk oat bran.

The internet is your oyster and Google is your best friend, use it to your full advantage to look anything up and become successful.

I hope this will help you on your way to a new better version of you.  If you have any questions please feel free to email me ohsolindz@gmail.com or leave a comment.  I would love to help each of you!

NOW, head on over to Little Miss Mama and read her secrets to success!

Have a fabulous weekend my friends!

Xoxo Lindsay

JOIN US: Okay come’on, we’re on day 80, I know there are a few of you that are lingering on the idea of jumping onboard! What are you waiting for folks? Buy your books {here or here}, plan and pin your favorite recipes from our weight loss journey board {here}, menu plan your attack phase, ensure you visit shopdukandiet.com {promocodes 15% off $100+ youcandukan15, or 5% off $50 youcandukan5}, and reach out to us letting us know you’re making a movement into health and happiness with us.

HASHTAG HANGOUT: Don’t forget to tag your posts with #youcandukan so Tairalyn and I can see the success of all of you, cheering you on along the way with great tips and tricks we have learned as we go.FIND US PINTERESTING?
My Weightloss Journey Pinterest Board Dukan Diet Recipe Pinterest Board
INSTAGRAM: I am constantly posting pics of my success and healthy snacks and meals add ohsolindsay for inspiration

Day 66 UPDATE & PROMOCODES; Dukeing it Out With Little Miss Mama

Happy Friday My Friends,

After a disastrous Thursday, the last thing I wanted to do was weigh myself this morning.  But I did anyway, with my eyes closed; I looked down at the scale, did a double take and then counted all the little lines to make sure I was correct.  Yup! Down 25lbs in 66 days!  Holy (insert bad words here)!  I have lost a whole two year old, I cannot believe it. 
The first thing I did was pick up the phone and alert Tairalyn right away! And then run downstairs and let my mom know!  These two women have been the biggest support in my journey emotionally, physically, and mentally and I would not be where I am without them.



Naturally, being cut from the same cloth, Tairalyn and I are both down the same amount.  Does this surprise us? Not in the least, as our friendship grows we are finding out just how scarily similar we are and loving every minute of it!  

Is this diet easy?  Yes and no, there are days you want to breakdown and have a Big Mac meal with supersized fries and a Mcflurrie but instead you go to the fridge and have some sugar free low fat pudding and although you might be cursing your new lifestyle a few hours later you are proud of yourself for not giving in.  Let’s be honest some more, I didn’t think I had it in me to change, I didn’t think I or we would stick with it, but once the weight started to slide off I just wanted to keep going as I knew I would be a happier, healthier version of me!  And I most definitely am.  Tairalyn is my rock and when I have a bad day or ‘cheat’ she is the one telling me its okay look how far we come.  I don’t condone cheating on a lifestyle change like this and let me tell you what my cheating has been, veggies on a non-veggie day, or a few extra table spoons of goji berries for some added sweetness to my day. HA, It used to be a whole box of cookies!

This Dukan Diet has opened up so many new and exciting avenues for both Tairalyn and I.  The most exciting is working with ShopDukanDiet.ca, that’s right my friends and fellow #youcandukan ers, you can now order Dukan friendly cookies, noodles, granola and much more and have it delivered to your house!  Yep, success has just gotten a little closer!  When the package arrived Tairalyn and I screamed and laughed in excitement, the things we love the most; cookies, are finally here and made for us!  Now we can sit down and watch our favourite shows Big Brother and Bachelor In Paradise with a cup of skim milk and cookies to dip them in.  The possibilities are endless on the snacks and treats we can now have. 

The amazing people at Dukan Diet have graciously offered us 2 special codes for our readers, giving discounts up to $15 off your orders with them. Awesome right?! Ready to use on either the Canadian or US site, pop on over to now and have a look-see at all they have to offer. Use promocode youcandukan15 to get 15% off $100+ spent online or else youcandukan5 for 5% off orders under $100. Either way it’s a savings in your pocket and you can’t complain about savings!

JOIN US: Okay come’on, we’re on day 66, I know there are a few of you that are lingering on the idea of jumping onboard! What are you waiting for folks? Buy your books {here or here}, plan and pin your favorite recipes from our weight loss journey board {here}, menu plan your attack phase, ensure you visit shopdukandiet.com {promocodes 15% off $100+ youcandukan15, or 5% off $50 youcandukan5}, and reach out to us letting us know you’re making a movement into health and happiness with us.

HASHTAG HANGOUT: Don’t forget to tag your posts with #youcandukan so Tairalyn and I can see the success of all of you, cheering you on along the way with great tips and tricks we have learned as we go.FIND US PINTERESTING?  Dukan Diet Recipe Pinterest Board My Weightloss Journey Pinterest Board

Have a safe and happy weekend my friends!

#YouCanDukan One Month Update: Dukeing It Out With Little Miss Mama

Good Day My Friends,

I write to you today on day 30 and in my books that's a whole month. How am I doing? How am I feeling?

Well friends this week was better, although I am only down a pound I am beyond happy with where I am and I am down TWO sizes in pants and they fit, I am not squeezing myself in either, I am comfortable and can breathe, to be honest they end up being a little too big :)

 

(This has got to be the worst of the worst pictures for me)

Tairalyn and I have come so far from day one and the images speak for themselves, her and I are constantly telling each other how proud we are of one another and cheering each other on! Not to mention our families and friends who cheer us on from the sidelines!  On day one, the weight loss goals seemed so far away and unrealistic but it’s true and it works and #youcandukan too, it’s easy and not as daunting as it may seem. The first step is committing.

Tairalyn and I have been fielding questions left, right and center on the how to’s of this diet, so this week we would like to share our successes and recipes of this diet.  First things first, you first need to go to the original Dukan Diet website to calculate your weight and how much you need to lose. Don’t sign up as Tairalyn and I have been doing the whole diet on our own, with the guidance of her naturopath.

Phase 1: Attack Phase

What does the attack phase consist of you ask? High protein, basically only protein with non-fat milk and dairy, at least 3 liters of water a day to avoid overworking your kidneys and 20 minutes of light exercise a day! Hard yes, can it be done? Yes. Tairalyn and I’s goal weight is to lose 50 pounds and therefore we were on the attack phase for 10 days.

PLAN.PLAN.PLAN. That’s all I can say and my number one advice tip for the attack phase. Tairalyn and I spent one whole day, literally 12 hours, buying, making and prepping every single meal, even snacks, for our 10 day attack phase. Thanks to Pinterest we were able to come up with some delicious and creative ideas for each meal. (check it out on Pinterest here and here). Out of all the choices available to us we made meatballs for days, burgers to feed a herd, stuffed chicken to feed a family of 20, Thai beef skewers to feed a whole ball team, Mongolian chicken and sesame chicken. We also found some great ‘dessert’ recipes that have helped our sugar cravings; cheesecake cupcakes, yogurt drops and meringues. I honestly believe this is the only thing that is helping me stay successful, because the first thing I do when I am starving is grab something quick and easy and for me it turns into one cheat, then another and then another. So prep all your meals, each and every one!


Phase 2: Cruise Phase

This is the phase that will last the longest, you will be in this phase until you hit your goal weight! It is also estimated that you will lose at least 2 pounds a week, that’s okay by me!

Enter in veggies; you will never be so happy to see vegetables in your whole entire life, I promise, make sure you check out our Pinterest page to see what veggies you can and cannot have. Trust me it’s a glorious day when you can pop a cherry tomato in your mouth and hear the sound of carrots crunching in your mouth! Heaven! And you think to yourself, I am going to have salad every day I can, but that gets boring and old quickly so what do you do? What is my number one must do? PLAN.PLAN.PLAN

Yet again, Tairalyn and I got together, planned out our meals for the week and shopped ‘til we dropped.  We found and made some life changing, delicious recipes and realized we can have fat free, sugar free pudding!  PUDDING, really?  Sign me up!  If I could get all my nutrients out of pudding I would eat it all day, but that’s unrealistic, so I limit myself.  Control is key, although you can have unlimited amounts of protein and other items, you still need to limit yourself and be sure you are not overstuffing your stomach, which feels virtually impossible on this diet.

During this phase there are many choices on how you want to alternate days, Tairalyn and I are doing the PP(Pure Protein), PV(Protein & Veg) rotations, alternating each day.  Which makes veggie day’s even more worth it!   Now I must admit I am not much of a cook, being a single gal this is a strike against me, but that is not to say I haven’t picked up a few things while watching my mom for all these years. This diet has taught me how to be creative, improvise and trust my cooking taste and abilities and I have even become creative and made up my own versions of some recipes. 

As promised I’m sharing two of my favorite recipes that Tairalyn and I have searched out, further perfected, and are now sharing with you today. Our Breakfast Treat, designed by none other than Me (I know shocker) a quick and simple morning breakfast that you can make and take on the run. Oh! And did I mention is tastes sinful. The second recipe is our Cauliflower Pizza Crust that is beyond your wildest dreams {assuming you dream of cauliflower like we do}. INSERT MIND BLOWN, you will not believe your taste buds when you taste this delicious, sinful pizza, and flower crusts will be a thing of the past!

HASHTAG HANGOUT :: Tairalyn and I have felt that our health movement calls for a hashtag, so from this day forward you can find us, show up, and keep us afloat with your Dukan Diet journey using the tag #youcandukan; check it out on Instagram now!

 

 

FOLLOW MY JOURNEY, can you see the difference?

Day 1 & 8: Duking It Out With Little Miss Mama
Day 15 & 22: Update: Dukeing It Out With Little Miss Mama
Our Weightloss Journey: Pinterest

A special thank you to my mom who tells me every morning how nice and small my butt is looking and who is cooking to cater to my eating needs!

Have a fabulous day!

UPDATE: Dukeing It Out With Little Miss Mama

Happy Wednesday My Friends,

Well this past week and a half hasn't been an easy one but Little Miss Mama and I made it through.  A little more of a struggle than I anticipated even though we were able to add veggies into our diet.

Day 15: Cruise Phase, Introducing Veggies

I was pretty shocked at the results of the weigh in, I didn't feel like I had lost any weight at all but my scale doesn't like, well at least I hope it doesn't! I didn't lose many inches which is to be expected when you don't exercise, I know if I put a little more effort into the exercise part I would see higher results which has now become my goal over the next few weeks as I know this will only benefit me.  Today I received the good news that we get to introduce protein & vegetable days!  Yaaay, oh happy day!  I was definitely starting to get sick of only protein day in and day out.  So how does this work?  During the cruise phase you alternate between pure protein days and protein and veggie days.  This breaks up the full protein days which is fantastic and opens up the meal possibilities exponentially.  We will stay in this phase until we have reached our goal weights, which looks to be about another 4-5 months, this is a lifestyle change after all and I am ready for it.

I must admit I fell off the wagon, on day 18 I was cranky, hungry and exhausted after a full day of training at my new job.  I came home and decided to nap, hoping that would help, nope.  It made it worse, so for the sake of my family and my sanity I ate a plain burger patty and a salad in hopes that would satisfy my hunger but it didn't so I had a cookie.  I had 6.  Homemade chocolate chip cookies that had been taunting me for a week but one of the key factors in a diet is being accountable.  Feeling defeated I messaged my bestie Little Miss Mama, without her I wouldn't make it through this.  Trust me when I say this, doing this with someone is the best way to do it!  The best way!  She talked me down from the binge ledge I was hanging on and gave me the support and encouragement I needed!  So what do I do from here?  Of course she offered to get together this weekend find some new recipes and prepare some meals so that we can be successful in this.

Day 22: Cruise, Cruise, Cruise

Well my friends I must say another successful week has come and gone and I am happy with the results.  I lost 2.5 lbs and 1.5 inches on my bust and 3 inches on my hips, I can't believe it!  I didn't expect to lose that much weight or lose any inches as I have not been super active, but I am pleasantly surprised!  I have to give credit to my bestie Tairalyn, without her and her support I don't think I would be this successful, when I am down she picks me up and this is exactly what I and someone needs when making such a change in life.  I am beginning to see some major differences in my upper body, fitting into shirts that were too tight to close and finding my bra's and shirts a little looser!  I don't see the changes day to day but when I look back on the photos I can see the differences, 22 days in and I am down 11 lbs!  I would never have imagined it to be possible but it is!  I must admit that I was a little unsure when Little Miss Mama told me we would be losing at least 10 lbs a month, I didn't believe her at all.  But the Dukan Diet has a rhyme and reason for everything and is turning out to be successful.

Planning; It is a huge HUGE part of this diet, without the planning of weekly meals I would not be successful.  It takes a lot of time but it is worth it in the end, even the cooking til all hours of the night, saves my bacon when I am starving.

A few hidden gems we discovered during the cruise phase, carrot cake muffins, fat free instant pudding and sugar twin.  I should actually be calling these lifesavers because without these I don't think I could keep myself sane without any treats.

Check out these delicious recipes we found and trust me I would eat everything on this list even if I wasn't on this diet!

Mongolian Beef

Sesame Chicken

Meatballs & Sauce

Thai Beef Skewers

Thai Chicken

Butternut Squash Fries

Zucchini Lasagna

Carrot Cake Recipes

Whoopie Pies

Have a fabulous day!

Dukeing It Out With Little Miss Mama

Don't worry my friends,

We are not fighting, we are starting a new lifestyle called the Dukan Diet, please, don't let the word diet freak you out or come with any misconceptions, this is what we need to do to kick start our healthy lifestyle, it may not work for everyone but we know and feel it will for us. 
For those of you who follow Little Miss Mama you have seen the new lifestyle she has begun, all starting with the Dukan diet.  You may not know this little fact: Little Miss Mama and I have known each other since grade 3, so when my bestie text me to tell me her naturopath said she needed to lose 50lbs I said, with no hesitations: so will I!  (Actually the first thing I said was, 'Are you serious? I don't believe it' and then I said I'd do it with her)  That's right my friends, Little Miss Mama and I are going to lose FIFTY pounds, come hell or high water, we will get there. 
Doing something this big with a friend always makes it easier and in my opinion successful, especially with this girl.  She lets me be me and I let her be her, which brings comfort in knowing that we can both be hangry, irritable, cranky, bitchy, testy, sad and happy with each other and still have the support we need from each other at the end of the day! 

Be kind

Week 1:  Cleanse

We eased our bodies into this new diet/lifestyle by cutting out all out carbs meaning all breads, flours, and sugars and drinking 64 ounces a day of a cleansing drink for 7 days. 

This week started off easy peasy for me, I knew I could do this and then day 5 came and I could've killed for a chocolate bar or any sugar of any type, even just one little granule, but I stayed strong and was successful not cheating and with that hurdle I lost 5lbs!  FIVE POUNDS in one week, who would've thought, it was a very happy moment for me and gave me the drive to continue on with this new lifestyle.

Cleanse recipe :
64oz Water
1 Lemon | thinly sliced
1 Cucumber | peeled, sliced
1 to 2 tsp Gingers | grated
10 to 15 Mint Leaves

To optimize taste, steep the night before.

Be kind

Week 2: Attack

PLAN.PLAN.PLAN.  That's all I can say and my number one advice tip for the attack phase. Tairalyn and I spent one whole day, literally 12 hours, buying, making and prepping every single meal even snacks for our 10 day attack phase.  Thanks to Pinterest we were able to come up with some delicious and creative ideas for each meal. (check it out on interest here and here).  Out of all the choices available to us we made meatballs for days, burgers to feed a herd, stuffed chicken to feed a family of 20, Thai beef skewers to feed a whole ball team, Mongolian chicken and sesame chicken.  We also found some great 'dessert' recipes that have helped our sugar cravings; cheesecake cupcakes, yogurt drops and meringues.  I honestly believe this is the only thing that is helping me stay successful, because the first thing I do when I am starving is grab something quick and easy and for me it turns into one cheat, then another and then another and then here I am at 230 lbs.  So prep all your meals, each and every one and make some extra just in case you have an extra hungry day.

What does the attack phase consist of you ask?  High protein, basically only protein with non-fat milk and dairy, at least 3 liters of water a day to avoid overworking your kidneys and 20 minutes of light exercise a day!  Hard yes, can it be done? Yes.  It's been 5 days since we began the attack phase and I am doing okay, I am not craving sugar like the first week but definitely missing veggies and fruit.  I have noticed a definite decline in my hunger and I am not eating nearly as much as I did a week and a half ago.  Its been hard when the people around me are eating cookies, cakes and nachos, omg nachos would be delicious, but I will never make the 50 lb goal if I cheat now! 

I have also found a great blog to follow when I need to refresh my mind on the phases and what I can and can not have www.mydukandiet.com

Stay tuned for continued success from both myself and Little Miss Mama

Have a happy and healthy day my friends!