Hey Rosemary,  I did the same thing during the first few weeks.  I saw very little change and no movement on the scale.  I searched and searched to read something about the changes I would be seeing and WHEN!!!  I'm at 9 weeks and clothes are looser.  I do eat the starchy carbs, brown/wild rice, and now I am having oatmeal in the morning with whey protein powder.  You need them to keep on keepin on!  I read where you need carb with protein to build muscle.  The carbs allow the protein to enter your muscle and I have really come to believe that the better shape your muscles are in, the better your entire body will operate.  I have been teaching a weight lifting class for 5 years, and with this diet and exercise program, I'm finally getting the results I want.  I started at 140 and I'm now at 137.  I think I was just not feeding my muscles what they needed.  I'm not going to be afraid of starchy carbs (the good ones) They really lgive me what my body needs.  I've pretty much been following this by the book...ie- Oatmeal with whey in the morning, protein bar for snack, turkey sand. with mustard on ww bread and a veggy.  protein shake for 2nd snack and for dinner meat, brown rice or sweet potato  with veggies.  Last snack I do cottage cheese and  half an apple.  I can see more changes in the mirror and have had some good compliments.  I let you know when I see it on the scales...

Caroline

I'm in Week 6 and have lost about 14 lbs and a little more than 8% body fat. (currently down to 15.1%...yeah!!) My wife has lost around 10 lbs and about 6% body fat.  We're just sticking as close to the book as we can. Eating small meals/snacks every 2-3 hrs, weight training 3 days a week and short, HIIT cardio 3 days a week. We don't go crazy on our free day but aren't as strict as we are thru the week.  Just stick with the plan and keep going! Everybody's body is different and reacts differently, but if you'll keep following the plan, awesome results will come!! Don't quit!

Mike

I'm just afraid my "changes will come" after week 12, when I'm on AR.  

Thanks everyone for posting!  I just like to see where everyone is and how week 10 is going.  

I just had a thought that honestly never really crossed my mind.  And if it did, I never really let it sink in and think about it.  I'm on day 67.  My results are minimal, yet my motivation is high, my dedication is great as ever and I'm not cheating nor have I missed ONE WORKOUT.

But I'm on Day 67.  What if it really doesn't work for me? 

I'm lifting much heavier weights so I can't say I've slacked on the training.  I'm running faster and harder than ever before in my life so I'm not slacking there.  To the best of my knowledge my eating has been 97% perfect (yes I indulge on free day).  Can 3% (at the most 3%) really have effected my progress given the amount of training I've done?  HIGHLY UNLIKELY.

But what if at Day 84 my results are the same? 

Anyone experience this?  Anyone have an opinion?

I sorta had the same thoughts here recently.  But we'll just have to wait and see.  I believe we will be the ones, when 12 weeks are up, saying " wow the  weight just dropped off there at the end!!! I also indulged on my free days.  Nothing horrible though.  I'm a licker and a picker...It keeps me going to just have one day of being a bit mindless.  By the way, when I started this, I didn't realize the amount of fat i was adding.  I called the 800 # and the lady went over my daily intake and pointed that out.  It really helped assure me I was on the right tract...It couldn't hurt to call and talk to someone in person....

I could.  I might if 12 weeks go by and I'm where I am today.  What I don't get is, I've done diets and really if you are working out as intensely as we are for TEN WEEKS STRAIGHT, and even if we were eating incorrectly, but we THOUGHT we were eating right, it couldn't possibly hinder our results to this degree.  

I have pigged out but was able to maintain a certain weight by doing cardio and other activities.  I'm just concerned a little that's all.  I'm on top of the world now, just waiting.  

But just like a little kid, what if it doesn't come?

Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother. ~Kahlil Gibran

It's not doubt Michelle, I promise.  I wouldn't still be on this forum posting like crazy driving everyone crazy like I do, its a thought.  I believe its going to work, but what if it doesn't?

I was hoping to reach out to someone who maybe struggled like this in C1.

Here's my question to you Rosemary...  What if it doesn't work for you, what will you do next?

You know, hadn't really thought about it.  When I first started I said, yeah, I can probably do this in one challenge.  Around week 8 I realized, no miracle for me, I'll start C2 after the cruise - since I'll need to do two.
But if this doesn't work?  I'm not sure if I want to start a C2 or try something different.  There was one other program someone had told me about that I was thinking of trying, but I really wanted to try this.
And honestly, it just hit me that it might not work.  If you recall, I always ask, WHEN, WHEN, WHEN, will I see results, or WHEN will I have my big drop....
I never really thought that I might not succeed.  But at week 10 with minimal changes, it just hit me.. and I just don't know. 

You've mentioned on several occassions that you thoroughly enjoy your free days and I don't fault you for that.  But you must create a caloric deficit of 3500 calories via food intake and exercise output per week to lose just 1 pound of fat.  

I would challenge you for the remainder of this challenge to calculate the calories that you take in on free day just for your last two.  That might give you a little more insight as to why your successes have been slower to appear.  

You are willing to try another program, why not be willing to try the free day analysis?

I could do that, the caloric intake.  And I'm sure cutting out a free day would obviously improve my results.  It just doesn't make sense that 4 days of going all out eating (which by the way isn't nearly as bad as what it was before I started eating 6 meals a day since my appetite has suppressed so much) would hinder it this much.

Plus, the idea is to follow the program.  Free days are encouraged by Bill and he says so in the book.  I won't change the program just to improve my results.  I think I would try a different program that targets training differently.  Like I said, I haven't really thought about it.

All I know is, at the end DOING IT BY THE BOOK, if it doesn't work, I have some thinking to do.

Michelle, I'll tell you what.  I am going to count my caloric intake.  Just to see where I'm at.  I'm helping my parents on Sunday at their business so my morning starts at 5:00 am which means I'll have a lot of waking hours.  We'll see how much I gorge!  

Maybe just embarrassing myself to have to write it down will encourage me to NOT take a free day anymore!

You don't have to share it in the forum, just check yourself and let me know in a private message.

I'm also NOT suggesting that you don't take free day.  I'm holding you accountable, just as I would any other person on this forum.

What makes perfectly good sense though is that 3500 calories does create a pound of fat and I myself know that I HAVE eaten that much on a free day, early on before I realized what I was doing and let me just say, it adds up really fast.