I do measure food and count calories too, is it not the best to reduce your amount of food ?

*Okay this is the third time i have tried to post this... arghhh i didnt copy.....*


Hello and Welcome marinette,

Counting calories, food portions and exercise are a great way to go.. Your weight will move....

Cohens offers a healthy but rapid weightloss alternative... Dont be mistaken Cohens is not easy or a fad. This is a change forever not just for the moment.. Most people have to address some bad habbits while on the proram wether its emotional or edible and incoperate some new techniques to address these.. lets face it if we didnt have a few bad habbits we probably wouldnt be over weight..

I attempted Cohens about 5 years ago (yes, 5) unfortunatley my world fell apart finacially and i couldnt cope and packed it in... I have regretted it ever since.. I should have pushed myself harder, even after everything started to improve i didnt return to my program or clinic.. I had a 2 year contract and plenty of time, instead i stuck my head in the sand and got bigger...

When I started at the end of August (old program) i was a size 24-26 ( 110.8kg) if i was very lucky i squezzed my fat behind into a size 22 (Autograph)...I lost 10.8 kg on my old program before i went back to my clinic and recieved a new program my weight was 102.3kg at weigh in that was Nov 11th I am now back down too 100 kgs. My hips are only just holding up my size 20 (Kmart) Shorts and they are now also an inch below my knees instead of an inch above them, and very soon to become Knicker Bockers...

Okay sorry i do prattle...

okay bit more info about Cohen's..

Dr Cohens creates an eating plan for you...and only you....Even my programs are not the same.. .. you follow this to the letter. The program consists of fresh fruit and vegetables, protiens and carbs. No special food to buy just regular healthy produce.. Yes it is very strict but once clothes start falling off, and you see your measurements get smaller and lets not to forget the endless comments and compliments you get as you progress, youhave all the incentive you need to stay committed... Cohens is healthy rapid weightloss program, it uses Human growth hormone in your own body to reduce your fat and tone and firm skin and muscle..It not only is good for the body its great for the mind.. Once you have reached your goal weight you have refeed which introduces the foods you were unable to eat during your program slowly back and it also stabilises the sugars and hormones.. Then you have maintenance guidelines to help you keep your new slim and trim figure and never return to your old plump self...

Australia:
Weight Loss and Wellness Through Nutrition - Cohen's Lifestyle Clinic

Interbnational:
Dr. Cohen's 1st Personal Diet

Hope this was of some help...

Good luck and TTFN

Chelle

Just a question about Cohen's, I saw a list of requirements on another forum. Basically, the no starch, no sugars, no alcohol, soft drinks, chocolate, etc etc type of thing.

Now, everything I read on that list is exactly what I had to do for Tony Ferguson and a couple of other meal replacement/low carb programmes. I'm a bit confused.

If Cohen's is supposed to be individual and supposed to be based on my personal blood tests results, then why is there a stardard list? Basically, it looks like the same list of foods given to 'O' blood types in the blood type diet.

It also says on the Cohen's website that its not calorie based - yet, you are being told to eat only lo cal foods and stay away from the high carb starches. How is that not lo cal?

Sorry, I'm just really wary of diets that offer 'everything'.

welcome to the forum...

I hope i can answer your question....

Cohens is not a meal replacement program...

Cohen is a balanced and portion relative eating plan.. amounts are individualised..... we eat only fresh fruit veg and protien.. only a handful of products on the program are processed. I have never tried or ventured near the programs you have mentioned, so im unable to compare... Have a look around our little corner of the forum, it may help you get a better understanding... I have posted some links below... these may explain things a bit better then i can..

Australia:
Weight Loss and Wellness Through Nutrition - Cohen's Lifestyle Clinic

International:
Dr. Cohen's 1st Personal Diet

Hope this was of some help...

Good luck and TTFN

Chelle

MJA - Cohen's does significantly reduce a lot of carbohydrates, however the amount you eat is at least twice as much as a diet which is officially classed as "low carb" so they don't call it that. You count the veges you do eat as carbs, plus the cracker allowance.

The diet is just made up of everyday food you find in the shop and already have in your fridge. No meal replacements or anything like that.

Although I believe the diet doesn't vary a huge amount from individual to individual, they do monitor your blood. In the first instance, they screen out anyone for whom they believe the diet is unsuitable - significant medical issues for instance. Secondly, they do take note of various variables. The things that tend to vary are the egg allowance, fruit and cracker allowance and quantity of meat and vegetables, depending on (a) your build and (b) your blood results.

Most of us doing Cohen's joined up not because it's "magic" or anything like that - we wanted to (a) lose weight fast, and (b) have the discipline of being monitored and encouraged along the way. The knowledge that your blood is being tested from time to time is an added incentive to keep on track, though this is not the primary reason they do it.

Basically there are three hormone levels Cohen's seeks to adjust by its dietary guidelines - serotonin, insulin and human growth hormone. Most obese people have imbalances of these - not only does this feed the cycle of what used to be called Syndrome X, but affects fertility, mood and general health.

When I first joined I was constantly checking out medical studies to find evidence that supported what the diet was promoting, and found to my surprise there are indeed many out there which do study particularly the role of insulin and human growth hormone.

The diet was formulated not as an aid to the weight loss industry in the first place, but as a way of quickly shedding weight from obese women who had fertility problems, particularly PCOS. I believe the success of the diet led many people to ask the doctor concerned if they could use the diet just for weight loss itself, which is how he came to be running these clinics.

It's no magic bullet - there are many weight loss systems out there, and whatever you choose, you need to be determined to stick with it and take responsibility for the choices you make from then on. Many women stuck in the obesity cycle, however, have been demoralised by years of trying different systems, many of which stress exercise and other things which they find difficult because of their bulk and generally poor fitness levels.

For me the diet has definitely been a life-changing experience, but at the end of the day, the diet does not "cure" you - you have to recognise that if you put on weight easily, you will need to take charge of your lifestyle choices long term. The problem doesn't end when the diet "finishes", which is why they stress re-feed and maintenance guidelines must be followed, and a return to physical exercise etc.

Good luck with whatever you choose - there are many ways to skin a cat, but I can certainly say I've found this particular method successful, and the elevation of mood is an added bonus for me, having suffered depression over many years.

Thank you, Fifty2drop & Niyah for the replies. I'm not wanting to put the programme down at all, just trying to clear up why its different. Sounds to me like the weight loss phase is very similar to others out there, but its the refeeding part that is different. That, that is the part that is individually tailored, would that be right?

I am looking more into it.

Both the diet and the refeed instructions come to you in an individual folder for you.

That said, I wouldn't be able to say whether they're hugely different to anyone else's, but do take account of the individual health factors which apply to you.

The first while it's a matter of making careful note of the list of allowed foods and forbidden foods when you shop - it doesn't take long to get it in the head pretty well, but the first few shops it's worth taking that sheet of the folder with you.

I always took my husband with me the first few shops so that I wouldn't be tempted to look at stuff I found pretty irresistable. It only took about 2 weeks to get past that stage, but definitely helped.

As for the Canada question, this sounds very very similar to Dr. Bernstein. Although their method is to trigger the ketosis process. You lose on average 5lbs a week, you feel great and you have tons of energy.

I did this diet a few years ago and know plenty of people who have and I have the following opinion on it based on both my personal experience and those of countless others I have seen go through the process.

A large percentage of people who go on this diet gain it all back + more... maybe twice as much. The reason being that it does not teach you how to eat properly in my opinion.
Sure you can lose +60lbs in 3 months, but I'd be willing to be you will pack on 80lbs back in a year.

I can see this being great for people that have weight in excess of 150lbs to lose where the effort ahead is so discouraging that you may need the fast results. But I would say that once you get within 80lbs of your goal, switch to a lifestyle diet that you can maintain.

I used to swear by these programs until I saw myself and many others lose the weight fast and gain it even faster.

anyway, just my thoughts on the subject... but it does work in the end.

This thread has not had any new questions in it for over 6 months.
Spoonsie- I'll give you the benefit of the doubt & hope that you mean well.
You have done a diet that you thought was similar to Cohen's & failed it.
Now for some reason you think that you have the knowledge to advise people to give up Cohen's before they get to their goal weight & follow some vague "lifestyle diet" which you don't describe. I assume you have done so successfully or surely you would not presume to give advice.
Cohen's is a lifestyle program & it works. There are many other diets & programs which also work. Cohen's is what we chose to do. Anyone will put all of their weight back on if they go back to eating as they once did as soon as they get to goal no matter what program or diet that they follow. Doing Cohen's successfully has taught me more about food & nutrition than I knew in my lifetime. The program does not have shakes & pre-prepared food. It's all healthy, nutritious food that you cook yourself. I learned to love cooking!
When you get to goal there is a re-feed program which gradually reintroduces the foods that were left out during the weight-loss part of the program & then there is maintenance advice that works if you follow it.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion but please don't waste our time & energy unless you have something helpful to impart .
All helpful advice is welcome. Cheers, cate

No worries Cate, I was reading the thread today and therefore I assume others like me are also reading it and someone mentioned looking for a Canadian alternative, I stated which one was extremely similar but added my opinion on Bernstein, not cohen...

I see you take the subject to heart and I am happy the cohen one seems to work, my only warning is that even with the maintenance (re-feed equivalent) is that for the majority of people, they don't seem to keep it off in the long run.

My post was an opinion on Dr Bernstein diet which Canadians will recognize as an equivalent.