The Virgin Diet

[believer]

I got the Virgin Diet Cookbook free to review from Netgalley. I had not heard of the diet before. I looked it up and found a simple review that explains that the author tells people to avoid the following 7 foods:
1.Soy
2.Corn
3.Gluten
4.Dairy
5.Sugar and artificial sweeteners
6.Eggs
7.Peanuts

And then she says to do this for 3 weeks and then add the food in one by one and see what you are sensitive to.
That is also what the cookbook says to do.
That review stated that the author is selling her own products, but I have not seen those mentioned in this book so far.
The diet seems to rely heavily on replacing meals with shakes made with protein powder - at least for the first 21 days.
I bought some vanilla pea protein powder and made the Mixed Berry and Avacaodo Protein Shake and followed the recipe - except I left out the ground flaxseeds - I don't like flaxseed - it tastes like fish oil to me. Anyway, the shake was gross. So, I went for my back up plan - a drink I bought at the grocery store - Mayesa Cacao Dark Chocolate Drink (no soy. no dairy. no gluten.) It does have 13 g sugar though. It is chalky tasting and I won't buy it again, but I am drinking it.

Have any of y'all heard of or tried this diet?
I understand cutting those foods out, but see no reason for drinking shakes rather than just eating food. :shrug3

[Katigre]

I understand cutting those foods out, but see no reason for drinking shakes rather than just eating food. :shrug3
Pretty much this - haven't heard of the diet, but I think real food is always preferable to processed shakes unless there is some underlying health issue requiring them.


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[RealLifeMama]

I love what JJ Virgin has to say, but I have not read her book. I know of her from somewhere else.
And, I love her protein powder. Well, I don't use her powder, but hers is the same as the one I use sold under a different name.
I always make my shakes with unsweetened coconut milk or almond milk, a frozen banana, chia seeds, and whatever other frozen fruit I want, and ice.

The reason for the shake for breakfast is because it is a quick and easy way to get a lot of protein, fiber, and other nutrients to get your body off to a good start for the day. And, with the other foods you are eliminating, there are not too many breakfast foods left. The shakes reduce cravings and will keep you full for a long time, too. I think they set you up for success.

[believer]

I love what JJ Virgin has to say, but I have not read her book. I know of her from somewhere else.
And, I love her protein powder. Well, I don't use her powder, but hers is the same as the one I use sold under a different name.
I always make my shakes with unsweetened coconut milk or almond milk, a frozen banana, chia seeds, and whatever other frozen fruit I want, and ice.

The reason for the shake for breakfast is because it is a quick and easy way to get a lot of protein, fiber, and other nutrients to get your body off to a good start for the day. And, with the other foods you are eliminating, there are not too many breakfast foods left. The shakes reduce cravings and will keep you full for a long time, too. I think they set you up for success.
What protein powder do you use? Does it actually not taste chalky and disgusting? I don't need a "breakfast" food in the morning - I often will eat a sandwich for breakfast and if I am home, I have sometimes had salad for breakfast.
I am really not into eating first thing in the morning - I usually take green tea and breakfast to work with me and eat it there. If I am substitute teaching, I often eat in the classroom - I have to be there a half hour before the kids and as long as I don't have to do a lot of prep work, I have that time to eat. When I am working at the dept store, I can eat breakfast two or three hours after I get to work - which if I get to work at 6 am, is fine. At home I usually eat more of a brunch type breakfast - I do eat a lot of eggs - which are eliminated in the first part of this diet, and sometimes I have a mix of steel cut oats and grits with cheese - all not on this diet as well. I could do quinoa for breakfast though I suppose. :shrug3

[RealLifeMama]

What protein powder do you use? Does it actually not taste chalky and disgusting?

http://savingdinner.com/store/smoothie-mix/
This is the powder I use. It does not have potato protein in it, so I am not sure why it says that in the description. It is pea and chlorella. For some reason, I can't find the ingredients list, but I remember when it first came out thinking it was the same as the Virgin stuff. It is also the same stuff that Thorne Research sells. (In fact, the powder comes from Thorne.)
It is not chalky and disgusting to me at all. It is the first powder I have found that is not a soy or whey that I enjoy. I have tried to use various rice and hemp or other soy/whey free powders in the past, and they were chalky, so I know what you mean. This one blends well and I think it tastes good. So do my children. When I make the vanilla with almond milk, banana, ice, and some almond extract, the kids think it tastes like cake batter.

[believer]

Well, I bought some Pea Protein Powder at Sprouts and made the Mixed Berry and Avacado Protein Shake yesterday morning. I followed the recipe - which called for two scoops of protein powder (way too much apparently) although I did leave out the flax seed - I do not like flax seed - it tastes like fish oil to me.
The shake was disgusting.
I left it in the freezer and took a store bought vegan drink thing to work which was ok, but it had some sugar in it and was not wonderful.
This morning, I got the icky shake out of the freezer and thinned it with more coconut milk and added a half of a frozen banana. Still gross. I added more coconut milk and some cocoa powder and it is bearable.
I think I will return the Pea Protein Power (the guy at the store said I could if I did not like it) and try another one.

I also made three recipes from the cookbook last night and they were good although I did change them a bit.
Many of her recipes call for monk fruit extract as a sweetener - they did not have that at Sprouts.
I made the Coconut Red Curry Chicken - without any monk fruit extract or fish sauce and it was very good.
I also made the Avocado-Lime Black Bean Salsa - I added in some zucchini and bell pepper which were not called for in the recipe and it was good too.
Lastly, I made the Confetti Quinoa which was ok.
There are still leftovers of the Quinoa and the Black Bean Salsa - I will probably have that for dinner tonight.

[RealLifeMama]

Sorry you did not like your shake. I hate wasting ingredients like that (milk/fruit, etc.)
I hope you can return it and try something else. It can take a while to find one you like. I can send you a sample of what I use it would not creep you out to just have me put some scoops of it in a ziploc and ship it. :giggle

The salsa and quinoa sound yummy. I :heart leftovers like that.

[believer]

Thanks. I worked until 6:30 and by the time I got home tonight it was just too late to eat. I had snack at work at 4:15 - lots of veggies and hummus - I found a great hummus at Whole Foods the other day - I need to start making my own though - it is expensive and I had some pistachios and a rice cake then too. I will try to go to WF tomorrow after work and see what they have there. I also saw a nutrition store on my way home - I guess they sell protein powders at that place too so I may stop there sometime soon too.

[believer]

Ok, so the book says you will lose 7 pounds in 7 days if you drop those 7 foods and follow her plan. I have dropped those foods - mostly - there is artificial sweetener in gum and I still chew gum occasionally and I ate some sweet potato chips that had corn in them and a few small bits of things may have slipped in, but mostly I really have dropped those 7 foods. I have not done a shake twice a day - only once a day - for two reasons - one - I can't take a blender to work and have a shake for lunch and two - all of the vegan protein powders I have tried are gross.
Dh is returning the Nutrasumma today - I bought a container of it and tried it a couple of times and it is just horrid. It tastes chalky, fake and nasty. I also had picked up some of the packets that you use as a one time thing - enough to make one drink. I tried Plant Fusion and it had a bit better flavor, but was gritty even after being vitamixed tons and it still had an icky flavor. Today I had Biochem Sports 100% Vegan Protein Powder - chalky, gritty and icky flavor still although neither of the packets is as horrific as the Nutrasumma.
I saw an article online about the Garden of Life Raw Food mix saying it has Lead and Cadmium and some other metals or something in it - ewww - and I had a pack of that and had not used it yet :phew and dh is returning that one today too. I have a few more packs of protein powder and I will use them, but I don't see why the protein powder or shake is necessary.
And finding out about the lead in the one mix makes me wonder what is in the others. :blah
I don't think I have lost any weight at all and this is my 5th day.

Would it work to just put a spoonful of almond butter in a shake instead of using nasty protein powder? Isn't that protein too?

I think that the author promotes the shakes and protein powder just because she sells the stuff. I do not think it is better than eating whole, fresh foods. :shrug3

[ArmsOfLove]

http://savingdinner.com/store/smoothie-mix/
This is the powder I use. It does not have potato protein in it, so I am not sure why it says that in the description. It is pea and chlorella. For some reason, I can't find the ingredients list, but I remember when it first came out thinking it was the same as the Virgin stuff. It is also the same stuff that Thorne Research sells. (In fact, the powder comes from Thorne.)
It is not chalky and disgusting to me at all. It is the first powder I have found that is not a soy or whey that I enjoy. I have tried to use various rice and hemp or other soy/whey free powders in the past, and they were chalky, so I know what you mean. This one blends well and I think it tastes good. So do my children. When I make the vanilla with almond milk, banana, ice, and some almond extract, the kids think it tastes like cake batter.

:think is there a way to get the actual ingredients? I find that many protein shakes say they are free of X, Y and Z and then include ingredients that really ARE X, Y, or Z :doh

---------- Post added at 11:39 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:37 AM ----------

Ok, so the book says you will lose 7 pounds in 7 days if you drop those 7 foods and follow her plan. I have dropped those foods - mostly - there is artificial sweetener in gum and I still chew gum occasionally and I ate some sweet potato chips that had corn in them and a few small bits of things may have slipped in, but mostly I really have dropped those 7 foods. I have not done a shake twice a day - only once a day - for two reasons - one - I can't take a blender to work and have a shake for lunch and two - all of the vegan protein powders I have tried are gross.
Dh is returning the Nutrasumma today - I bought a container of it and tried it a couple of times and it is just horrid. It tastes chalky, fake and nasty. I also had picked up some of the packets that you use as a one time thing - enough to make one drink. I tried Plant Fusion and it had a bit better flavor, but was gritty even after being vitamixed tons and it still had an icky flavor. Today I had Biochem Sports 100% Vegan Protein Powder - chalky, gritty and icky flavor still although neither of the packets is as horrific as the Nutrasumma.
I saw an article online about the Garden of Life Raw Food mix saying it has Lead and Cadmium and some other metals or something in it - ewww - and I had a pack of that and had not used it yet :phew and dh is returning that one today too. I have a few more packs of protein powder and I will use them, but I don't see why the protein powder or shake is necessary.
And finding out about the lead in the one mix makes me wonder what is in the others. :blah
I don't think I have lost any weight at all and this is my 5th day.

Would it work to just put a spoonful of almond butter in a shake instead of using nasty protein powder? Isn't that protein too?

I think that the author promotes the shakes and protein powder just because she sells the stuff. I do not think it is better than eating whole, fresh foods. :shrug3

If you are sensitive to those things and you haven't gone off of them completely then you won't likely see the results :hug I think her claim is a bold one and not everyone will see that much (I know I tend to have a 5 pound allergy gain and the weight doesn't usually come off until however long that allergen has to be out of the body - for instance, gluten is 30-35 days so I don't understand her only having you off of it for 7 days :think)

[believer]

If you are sensitive to those things and you haven't gone off of them completely then you won't likely see the results :hug I think her claim is a bold one and not everyone will see that much (I know I tend to have a 5 pound allergy gain and the weight doesn't usually come off until however long that allergen has to be out of the body - for instance, gluten is 30-35 days so I don't understand her only having you off of it for 7 days :think)
Her intro diet is for 21 days to be off of all 7 items, but her claim is that you will lose 7 pounds in 7 days. Like I said, I have done fairly well. I did have some salad on Fri. and Sun. that had a little goat cheese in it - so a bit of dairy, and the corn in the chips and the artificial sweetner in the gum and I suppose there is artificial or real sweetner in cough drops - the luden's vitamin c and others and I have some green tea infused mints from Trader Joes and they have cane sugar and it says may contain traces of wheat, milk, soy.

[RealLifeMama]

I think the "7 pounds in 7 days dropping 7 foods is a gimmick because it sounds catchy and it is memorable with all the "7's"
I have not read her book, but I have seen some of her videos on the Peer Trainer website. I think the basic idea is to eliminate foods that are the top inflammation causing foods to help you body rid itself of the inflammation so you can lose weight.

If you can get the protein you need without a protein powder, then by all means, just do it. I make a shake with powder because I know I will not be able to get the protein and greens that I need in the morning without it. I can't eat 4-5 eggs with 2 cups of kale or spinach for breakfast every morning, I'd puke! (I put greens in my shake, then I have a salad or cooked greens with dinner so I get my greens in for the day.)

You sound really discouraged. :hugheart Working a plan can be hard. Just do the best you can.

[believer]

I think the "7 pounds in 7 days dropping 7 foods is a gimmick because it sounds catchy and it is memorable with all the "7's"
I have not read her book, but I have seen some of her videos on the Peer Trainer website. I think the basic idea is to eliminate foods that are the top inflammation causing foods to help you body rid itself of the inflammation so you can lose weight.

If you can get the protein you need without a protein powder, then by all means, just do it. I make a shake with powder because I know I will not be able to get the protein and greens that I need in the morning without it. I can't eat 4-5 eggs with 2 cups of kale or spinach for breakfast every morning, I'd puke! (I put greens in my shake, then I have a salad or cooked greens with dinner so I get my greens in for the day.)

You sound really discouraged. :hugheart Working a plan can be hard. Just do the best you can.

Thank you. Eggs are one of the eliminated foods for the first 21 days. I am discouraged. I want to lose weight and more than that, I want to bring my cholesterol down and my blood pressure if possible. I know that I have a dreadful heredity and I don't know if it can be overcome, but the medications have side effects that are not pleasant and I would totally love to be able to quit taking them. Today so far, I had a shake for breakfast - it was rather icky - and then I had my green tea, and for lunch I had pistachio nuts, leftover cooked asparagus, broccoli and rice noodles, a mandarin orange, a rice cake and some raw carrots, sugar snap peas and cherry tomatoes. I have had water to drink today and some iced tea (black tea from the school cafeteria). It sounds like I should be losing weight, but so far, no go. :sigh

[Soliloquy]

Eh, I'm pretty leery.

If you're sensitive to those foods, eliminating them will make you feel better and you'll lose inflammation (water) weight. It's not the same as losing body fat and gaining muscle. If you're not sensitive to those foods, you won't notice much. (Well, everyone should stay away from artificial sweeteners.)

[believer]

Eh, I'm pretty leery.

(Well, everyone should stay away from artificial sweeteners.)

I do stay away from them for the most part - except for gum. I kind of like gum. Especially when I am working I like to chew a piece of gum after I eat lunch - it makes me feel like my teeth are cleaner. :shrug3 And it all seems to have artificial sweeteners in it along with other nasty sounding chemicals. I actually don't like the gum with sugar in it because it is harder and the sugar dissolves very quickly and then you are just chewing hard tasteless ick. I think the flavor stays longer in the sugar free gum. :shifty

---------- Post added at 01:05 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:03 AM ----------

So for dinner tonight - I had brown rice, spinach salad - just spinach, avocado, blueberries, a couple of marinated artichoke heart pieces and oil and vinegar; and chicken breast with mushrooms and onions and garlic and bell pepper. I am full, but I really want to eat something with sugar. Even if it is just a bite. I am refraining from it - but I am totally craving sugar right now.

[DancingWithElves]

that reaction is typically present when the body's carb and salt requirements are not met :hugheart

if you eat a good meal like that, and in the end feel like you'd kill for a desert, that's what it is. but you have to look at 24 hrs or so prior, not just that one meal.

[believer]

that reaction is typically present when the body's carb and salt requirements are not met :hugheart

if you eat a good meal like that, and in the end feel like you'd kill for a desert, that's what it is. but you have to look at 24 hrs or so prior, not just that one meal.

Hmm, I am trying to cut way back on salt - but am probably still not doing well enough with that - (high blood pressure) - but the carb thing - I guess might make sense if it is over 24 hours rather than the last meal.
Today I had yet another gross protein shake for breakfast - Phood brand this time - still with coconut milk, frozen mixed berries and avocado; then for lunch - leftover rice noodles, broccoli, asparagus and chicken, one and a half rice cakes (organic brown rice) dipped into some almond butter and water and some raw carrots, sugar snap peas and cherry tomatoes. For dinner, I had brown rice, green beans and mushrooms, spinach salad w/ blueberries and avocado, and part of a ground turkey burger. Isn't that enough carbs?
Still craved sweets afterward.
Maybe I am just a sugar
addict? :shrug3
I am using my last packet of protein powder in a shake tomorrow. I am not going to buy any more. I will try a shake the next day with the same ingredients, but instead of protein powder, I will add some almond butter and see how that tastes. I am not sure if it will have as much protein - probably not - but at least it will be less processed and more real food and I hope it will taste better.

[believer]

I made a shake this morning and it was so disgusting that I did not even bring it. I left it home for dh if he wants to add stuff to it.
I brought some fresh blueberries, blackberries and strawberries, rice cakes and almonds and had those for breakfast instead.
I still have not lost any weight.
I don't usually eat a big breakfast and I think those shakes were more calories than I usually eat for breakfast. So, even though I cut out eating cheese and chips as a snack, the shakes may have upped my caloric intake so that made no difference. :shrug3
I have a dr apt on Monday to follow up on the bloodwork from this Mon. to see how my choloesterol med is doing.
I will see how my weight is then as well as my cholesterol.

[RealLifeMama]

Did you try the almond butter instead of powder this morning, and it was still gross? Maybe you could try it without the avocado. Have you tried putting frozen bananas in your shake? I always put at least half a banana in mine. I think it makes a huge difference.

[believer]

Did you try the almond butter instead of powder this morning, and it was still gross? Maybe you could try it without the avocado. Have you tried putting frozen bananas in your shake? I always put at least half a banana in mine. I think it makes a huge difference.
I did not try the almond butter this morning - I will try that tomorrow. The Virgin diet cuts out bananas at the beginning due to high sugar, but I may toss one in tomorrow too. I like avacado so I don't think that is the problem - it is just the protein powder that is so gross.

[Soliloquy]

:soapbox I'll be brutally honest, after all I've put my body through over the years, I'd run far far away from a diet that tells you to stay away from certain fruits because they're high in sugar. Trying to figure our allergens, great. Staying away from bananas, playing with fire. :twocents BTDT.

[believer]

:soapbox I'll be brutally honest, after all I've put my body through over the years, I'd run far far away from a diet that tells you to stay away from certain fruits because they're high in sugar. Trying to figure our allergens, great. Staying away from bananas, playing with fire. :twocents BTDT.
Thank you. I would like to see if I have any food sensitivites from the allergy causing foods, but the whole vegan protein powder smoothie thing is just gross and I am giving up on that and I agree that cutting out bananas seems silly.

[Soliloquy]

I was going to suggest a nice ambrosia for when you crave dessert. Cut up a big juicy orange, banana, & unsweetened coconut flakes. Or a glass of oj.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk

[believer]

Thank you. I did not crave sugar nearly as much yesterday and I did have some slices of orange with dinner.
On another note - yesterday is the first day that I did not drink a protein shake - I just ate berries and almonds and rice cake instead for breakfast - and I weighed myself this morning - have been doing so every morning - and I finally lost about a half a pound to a pound. I think those protein shakes not only tasted nasty, but were keeping me from losing weight. Because I have been eating a bit better than I was before - with the biggest difference for me being no cheese - I love cheese - and no snacking after dinner at all - and I was rather discouraged that with all I was doing there was no weight loss at all. Anyway, I will see how the rest of the weekend goes and how my dr. apt goes on Mon.

[Johns_Gal]

Protein shakes are crazy high in calories. :yes DH used them when he was building muscle and they worked for him... very active man who was otherwise eating a raw diet at the time, can't imagine why those helped. :lol

I do like Source of Life's green shake powder, but it is a treat. Lots of protein, so I used it more often while I was pg. I add a scoop to a green smoothie to kind of mellow it out, sometimes.

BTW, if you are looking for a gum option without artificial sweet, I'd go for Spry.

[RealLifeMama]

It looks like you are not interested in doing shakes, which is fine, but I had said I'd try to find the ingredients in mine and I finally did.
http://savingdinner.com/smoothie-information/
Although my recent jar did not have potato.

The only things questionable to me are the "flavors" and the sunflower oil, but it is supposed to be non GMO.