Yes, it means you need to consume more calories -- closer to the recommended amount.  It's rare to hit the exact amount of fat and calories each day but it should be close. 

Take a look at the other post "Why you need to reach your calories" when you get a chance.  It's great info and you'll see the reasons for staying closer to the amounts recommended by the Personal Calculator.

I hope this helps.

Pat

P.S. If you want a quicker reply start a new thread with your question on the Dietitians message board.  We don't check this post on a daily basis.  Originally we mean this for information only...but we weren't clear about that. :-)

 Hello Betty,

I knew at this ALLI and for the first two days, I guess I'm not having much luck coming up with the right calorie amount, but I it am. When it comes to the fact contents. I am not much of an eater in fact, it is hard for me to sit down and eat the old course meal at any time. I am more of a vegetarian and meat eater, but most of the menus have needed them. Also, I am having trouble emotionally with this kid anyone help me with this? Or is this normal in the beginning? Supposed to start the pills in the morning. I am also a little afraid of how it's going to do. I write my stationary bicycle almost every day for almost an hour. I enter I to work it out to more than that as much as I can IM also doing other exercises like walking but not a fast walker. And I don't go to gyms, because they cost too much and I have a hard time going to them. Plus, I have a full gym equipment. Right here in my home because my husband and I tried to work out a lot more than we do.

Country -team

country-team:

 Hello Betty,

I knew at this ALLI and for the first two days, I guess I'm not having much luck coming up with the right calorie amount, but I it am. When it comes to the fact contents. I am not much of an eater in fact, it is hard for me to sit down and eat the old course meal at any time. I am more of a vegetarian and meat eater, but most of the menus have needed them. Also, I am having trouble emotionally with this kid anyone help me with this? Or is this normal in the beginning? Supposed to start the pills in the morning. I am also a little afraid of how it's going to do. I write my stationary bicycle almost every day for almost an hour. I enter I to work it out to more than that as much as I can IM also doing other exercises like walking but not a fast walker. And I don't go to gyms, because they cost too much and I have a hard time going to them. Plus, I have a full gym equipment. Right here in my home because my husband and I tried to work out a lot more than we do.

Country -team

Welcome to alli!  Sometimes it takes a few days to get into the swing of the Program, and then it becomes second nature.  When it comes time to choose your menus at check-in, just "de-select" the meat items and you should get basically vegetarian menus.

It's also fine to plan your own menus and use the vegetarian items you usually eat.  Just stay within your recommended calorie and fat guidelines.  To get more fat you can sprinkle nuts over your oatmeal or cereal and add them to salads.  Also try avocado or olives to add more fat.  And some peanut butter on whole-grain crackers will also help.

It's great that you're riding the bike and getting some physical activity.  You're lucky to have a gym in your home!

Also, you'll get a quicker reply if you start a new post on the Dietitian's message board.  Put "Pat please read" if you'd like me to answer it.

Let me know if you need anything else.

Pat

 HI-

Just want to make sure I am understanding correctly-  you are saying it is just as important to get enough calories/fat as it is to not exceed it, correct?  And, is that because in the future when weight is lost fat/calories will be gradually reduced?  And is it ok to add in some real butter, mayo, etc. to make sure fat intake is met without over doing the calories?

Also, if I want to reserve some of my calorie intake so I can drink some wine at night, is that ok?  And, why is wine counted as a fat?  Should I be decreasing my fat intake so that I can have some wine?  I just started yesterday, and I will start Alli on Thursday and want to follow the plan correctly.  Thanks for your help!

1gunner:

 HI-

 

Just want to make sure I am understanding correctly-  you are saying it is just as important to get enough calories/fat as it is to not exceed it, correct?  And, is that because in the future when weight is lost fat/calories will be gradually reduced?  And is it ok to add in some real butter, mayo, etc. to make sure fat intake is met without over doing the calories?

Also, if I want to reserve some of my calorie intake so I can drink some wine at night, is that ok?  And, why is wine counted as a fat?  Should I be decreasing my fat intake so that I can have some wine?  I just started yesterday, and I will start Alli on Thursday and want to follow the plan correctly.  Thanks for your help!

I'm glad you posted this on the Dietitians Board to my attention.  I just replied to you.  We don't check this thread on a daily basis -- so you'll always get a quicker reply there.  Originally we mean this particular thread for information only...but we weren't clear about that when we set it up. :-)

Pat

  I just started Alli on tues.  I have been trying to stay at what i thought was 17g/day but i was still hungry, then I figured out it is 17g/meal duh. My main question is  should i change the fat or calorie intake because I have polycysticovaries which causes weight gain, and I have IBS and cant eat alot of fatty foods, and alot of other food I cant seem do digest well. So I cant follow the recommended menu. I am open for suggestions.

Thanks

tbatrhea:

  I just started Alli on tues.  I have been trying to stay at what i thought was 17g/day but i was still hungry, then I figured out it is 17g/meal duh. My main question is  should i change the fat or calorie intake because I have polycysticovaries which causes weight gain, and I have IBS and cant eat alot of fatty foods, and alot of other food I cant seem do digest well. So I cant follow the recommended menu. I am open for suggestions.

Thanks

 

One thing you can do is have 5 grams of fat or less for breakfast and then skip the capsule.  The other two meals should be as close to the 17 grams of fat as possible.  The alli diet is based on 30% total calories from fat; and that's the same as the diet of the American Heart Association and many other health organizations.  It shouldn't be a problem with either PCOS or IBS.  Refined carbohydrates (sugary foods and candy) are especially discouraged for PCOS and a high-fiber diet is often recommended for IBS. 

The alli diet is well-balanced and shouldn't present a problem for either one of these problems.  Obviously if you have trouble with certain foods you'll avoid them or have them in moderation.

You might want to post a new thread for a faster response.  Originally, the first post here was meant to be for information only -- but we weren't clear on that.  If you'd like me to answer just put "Pat, please read" in the subject line.

I hope this helps.

Pat

Hi. I just started Alli and I wanted to know where I can find the Alli recipes?  Are they on the web site?

Hi am brand spankin' new and I start taking my pills on the 15th.  I went to the premade meal plans and I have to be honest, when I clicked on the shopping list my jaw dropped........how do you expect anyone to afford that lengthy list every week? I am already discouraged, I cant afford that big grocery bill, so now I feel lost.  I am very scared for the fact that I have to eat 1800 cal. and 19 grams of fat with each meal, I have no idea how to get this done because every piece of food that is great to eat on a diest os pretty much low or no fat grams.....with exceptions to avacados, flax seed oil, nuts, peanut butter.  I have no idea how I am going to live up to those numbers. NOW I am stressed over being fat and then trying to meat those intake amounts of calories and fat grams. HELP.........Then it dawned on me that I could do weight watchers, but what your plan says and WW plan says dont really match up well. WW insist I eat 1500 cal. and 15 or less per meal.......I am so lost and upset and I havent even taken the first pill yet.  Please dont right back and tell me I didint read everything because I did.......HELP

Desprately seeking help!

Shannon

mprather0009:

Hi. I just started Alli and I wanted to know where I can find the Alli recipes?  Are they on the web site?

Just so you know...it might be better to start a new thread on the dietitians message board when you have a new question.  We usually answer those first.

After you register for the myalliplan you'll get sample menus and can serch for recipes too.  There is an alli Cookbook that's available in bookstores -- and many libraries have it too if you don't care to buy it.

I hope this helps.

Pat

shannon09:

Hi am brand spankin' new and I start taking my pills on the 15th.  I went to the premade meal plans and I have to be honest, when I clicked on the shopping list my jaw dropped........how do you expect anyone to afford that lengthy list every week? I am already discouraged, I cant afford that big grocery bill, so now I feel lost.  I am very scared for the fact that I have to eat 1800 cal. and 19 grams of fat with each meal, I have no idea how to get this done because every piece of food that is great to eat on a diest os pretty much low or no fat grams.....with exceptions to avacados, flax seed oil, nuts, peanut butter.  I have no idea how I am going to live up to those numbers. NOW I am stressed over being fat and then trying to meat those intake amounts of calories and fat grams. HELP.........Then it dawned on me that I could do weight watchers, but what your plan says and WW plan says dont really match up well. WW insist I eat 1500 cal. and 15 or less per meal.......I am so lost and upset and I havent even taken the first pill yet.  Please dont right back and tell me I didint read everything because I did.......HELP

 

Desprately seeking help!

Shannon

Just so you know, it's best to start your own thread when you have a question so you'll get a faster reply. 

The Sample Meal plan, shopping list and recipes are for those who like a lot of structure.  There is a lot of flexibility with alli.  Many people plan their own meals and menus (some use the Sample Menus as a guide of how to distribute their calories and fat throughout the day).  Others use WW, NS or JC along with alli.

What's important is to have the recommended amount of calories and fat for your level.  The Personal Calculator uses all of the information people provide to give very individualized recommendations.  You also have to consider that the alli capsules block about 25% of the fat (and those calories) in the meal in which it's taken.

It's also important to include a variety of foods.  So lunch can be a tuna sandwich with lettuce tomato and mayo, with fruit and LF or FF yogurt (depending on the calories and fat you have to play with).  Those items like avocado, nuts and peanut butter (you mentioned) are great - and healthy - ways to reach your alli meal goals.

Like learning any new skill alli takes a little practice.  Once you get it down it becomes second nature.  (Remember what it was like learning to drive?!?)

We're all here to help you!  The moderators and other alli users can answer questions and give you support. 

Please start a new thread if you need more on this -- and you'll get more alli folks to chime in.  If you'd like me to answer you can put something like "Pat please read: Need help with..."  Otherwise you'll hear from my colleague Sylvia - or me - depending on who happens to see your post first.

I hope this helps.

Pat

Hi Shannon!

Don't stress, I don't follow the menu AT ALL.  I sat down and input the kinds of meals I would normally eat into the nutrition log and started looking at how to make changes to fit the meal goals.  What I found,  is that I needed to ADD fat back into my diet.  Use a low fat salad dressing instead of fat free, use light butter instead of that fake butter spray, even use some real cheese occasionally!  And it works!  Alli can only help you if you eat some fat, because that is all it blocks.  Furthermore, fatty foods tend to have higher calories, so eating more of them, can actually help keep your calories down.  If you don't eat enough fat, but eat your 1800 calories per day, then you are probably filling some of those calories with some "junk" food that has no nutritional value.  What I also found is that by having some fat, I was actually more full and more satisfied with less food.  Dipping my carrots in low fat sour cream dip instead of fat free, I found I wasn't putting as much dip on the carrot.  Less of it actually satisfied me because the flavor and texture was so much nicer.  We've all tried to cut fat out of our diet, and obviously it doesn't work because we are here anyway.   And unlike WW, since the Alli log tracks so many more things, I had no idea I was eating way more sodium than I should until I started tracking here.  I was using a Fat Free Red Wine Vinaigrette that had almost half my dailly allowance of sodium - yikes. 

Please join us over on this thread:  "GIVING UP, WILL STOP ALLI".  What started as a frustrated user, has turned into one of the longes running and most supportive groups on the board!

Good luck,

Toni

Shannon,

I feel for you. I truely do. I start Alli last spring, and I felt the same way. To date, I've lost 73 pounds. I did do a lot of the WW and Lean Cuisine meals, but that gets rather expensive. So, I have been coming up with my own recipes. I will be more than happy to share them with you. Right now, I only have 34 "meal" recipes. They are big enough to feed the entire family. If you are interested, please let me know. Hang in there. It will work out!

Kristy

PS. I do have the nutrition facts for each one. I found a great site where you list all of you ingredients, and the way that you plan on cooking it, and include the serving size, and they let you know what the nutrition facts for that meal is.

Hello. So am I to assume that as long as all my number are in the GREEN zone, that I am on track? or do I need to eat the total number set as my goal? I guess I was thinking that as long as I didn't go over I was on track. Please let me know, thanks!

 I am struggling with getting the recommended dietary fiber and carbs without going over calories...any suggestions for good sources of those two?