V8 or Broth?

Hello, Im confused. When in the first phase do you drink both the broth and V8 or do you choose either or?? Thanks Also can you buy the vegetable broth in the box by Swanson and is it still effective?

Hello mrspett,
 
During the liquid diet phase it is important to drink vegetable broth to make sure you are getting antioxidants and enough liquid. Ideally, you should make the broth yourself. If you can't do this, the next best thing is 100% vegetable juice from the store, e.g. V8 low sodium veggie juice. So, you could basically drink both, vegetable broth and juice. You could also juice your own veggies if you have a juicer at home.
Instead of buying vegetable broth in boxes, I suggest 100% vegetable juice.
 
 
Silke

HI! I plan to start the first phase on Friday. If I am using V8 instead of broth, how much V8 am i allowed to have?

Hello oneillep,
 
I encourage you to make vegetable broth yourself at home. You can use a bunch of different veggies and spices and go lean on the salt. This would be the best method. One of our forum users, farmchick, gave the following recipe for the broth that sounds really delicious:
Vegetable Broth
2 onions, roughly chopped
3 carrots, scrubbed but not peeled, roughly chopped
2 parsnips, scrubbed but not peeled, roughly chopped
about 1 cup diced celery (add the leafy tops if you have them)
3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 large handful fresh baby spinach leaves, chopped
1 cup broccoli, fresh or frozen, chopped
1 tsp each celery seed (or  1/2 tsp celery salt and don't use any other salt), thyme, freshly ground black pepper
 
Put all vegetables in a large stockpot and cover with 10 cups of water. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for at least 45 minutes to an hour or longer, stirring occasionally. The longer you simmer it, the more the broth will reduce and become rich and flavorful as opposed to bland and watery. When it's done, the liquid will have reduced down to about 8 cups. Strain the liquid by pouring it through a colander set over a large saucepan or bowl. Add freshly chopped herbs (parsley, chives, dill, or to taste). Drink piping hot from your favorite mug and enjoy! 
 
If you can't make the broth yourself, you may purchase the 100% vegetable juice (ideally low-sodium) from the store. There is not really an upper limit for the vegetable broth but you can have up to 32 oz of vegetable broth per day. You may want to dilute the veggie juice with some water.
I also recommend reading the Fasting Figure Plan brochure for more detailed information on how to do the diet: http://www.almased.com/files/cm/Figure%20Plan_Fasting_book%20view.pdf
  
 
Silke

Thanks. I have another question.. I am looking at the menus for phase 2. I will need to modify some of them as I am a vegetarian and I am also allergic to salmon:(
How do i calculate carb units  ie if i replace the meatball w/tofu (in the beef stew), how do I know that I am not exceeding the recommended carb units.. Is it about 15 carbs to a unit?
 

Hello oneillep,
 
You can modify the recipes as you desire.
Yes, one carb unit equals 15 g of carbohydrates. We listed the carb units mainly for our diabetes customers since a lot of them calculate their carb intake by carb units, especially if they take insulin.
Meat does not have any carbs and tofu has such a small amount that you can ignore it. You can substitue tofu for the same amount of meat, if not even more to reach the required protein amount.
 
 
Silke

Hello, I noticed you mentioned juicing your own vegetables.  I have been vegan for years and am trying Almased to get a jump start on the additional protein and weight maintenance.  I juice ALOT so the liquid phase is easy for me.  I juice carrots, kale, spinach, cucumbers, celery, tomatoes, etc. I love the way at feel at 49 because of the juicing.   My question is since the calories are different when making juice than what is listed in the low sodium V8, during the liquid phase, do I just stick to at least 1,000 calories per day or are the calories supposed to be lower during this phase.  I have not purchased anything in a bottle in years, so if I can continue to incorporate my own juice, that would be awesome!  Thank you :)

Almased_nutritionist


Hello mrspett,
 
During the liquid diet phase it is important to drink vegetable broth to make sure you are getting antioxidants and enough liquid. Ideally, you should make the broth yourself. If you can't do this, the next best thing is 100% vegetable juice from the store, e.g. V8 low sodium veggie juice. So, you could basically drink both, vegetable broth and juice. You could also juice your own veggies if you have a juicer at home.
Instead of buying vegetable broth in boxes, I suggest 100% vegetable juice.
 
 
Silke

Hello HairStuff,
 
I would like to point out that Almased is not vegan. It contains yogurt and honey.
 
Juicing is great and I'd suggest doing that instead of purchasing vegetable juice from the store. The calories during the liquid diet phase can vary and that's ok. The caloric intake during the fast can range anywhere from 1000 calories or less. Especially if you are adding healthy oils to the shake or broth/juice, you can up the calories so you may even be slightly above 1000 kcal.
I also suggest reading the Fasting Figure Plan (http://www.almased.com/files/cm/Figure%20Plan%20Fasting_low%20res.pdf) for more information on this diet phase and yummy Almased recipe suggestions.
  
 
Silke
 

Hello!  Thank you for your response. Yes, I carefully read the ingredients and realize that it is not vegan, so thank you :)  I was saying the reason I was going outside the box and trying this is only because i need the additional protein and its super easy.  Im not sure how long I will use it, but I did get 3 cans.  I have lost weight from the juicing but since I started the Almased on Monday, I am down another 5 lbs.  I made my own juice and vegetable broth, so I am feeling encouraged .


Thank you.

Almased_nutritionist


Hello HairStuff,
 
I would like to point out that Almased is not vegan. It contains yogurt and honey.
 
Juicing is great and I'd suggest doing that instead of purchasing vegetable juice from the store. The calories during the liquid diet phase can vary and that's ok. The caloric intake during the fast can range anywhere from 1000 calories or less. Especially if you are adding healthy oils to the shake or broth/juice, you can up the calories so you may even be slightly above 1000 kcal.
I also suggest reading the Fasting Figure Plan (http://www.almased.com/files/cm/Figure%20Plan%20Fasting_low%20res.pdf) for more information on this diet phase and yummy Almased recipe suggestions.
  
 
Silke
 

Hello, I am down another 2 pounds, but as you have mentioned the inches are definitely moving along!  My clothes already fit differently after just starting on Monday.  I did juice my own veggies, but will also get some Low Sodium V8 as a back up for the weekend, and they are on sale!!  For the broth, I also used the Braggs Nutritional Yeast which has "0" sodium and 20 calories per tbsp.

Thanks so much for all the tips! 

HairStuff


Hello!  Thank you for your response. Yes, I carefully read the ingredients and realize that it is not vegan, so thank you :)  I was saying the reason I was going outside the box and trying this is only because i need the additional protein and its super easy.  Im not sure how long I will use it, but I did get 3 cans.  I have lost weight from the juicing but since I started the Almased on Monday, I am down another 5 lbs.  I made my own juice and vegetable broth, so I am feeling encouraged .


Thank you.

Almased_nutritionist


Hello HairStuff,

I would like to point out that Almased is not vegan. It contains yogurt and honey.

Juicing is great and I'd suggest doing that instead of purchasing vegetable juice from the store. The calories during the liquid diet phase can vary and that's ok. The caloric intake during the fast can range anywhere from 1000 calories or less. Especially if you are adding healthy oils to the shake or broth/juice, you can up the calories so you may even be slightly above 1000 kcal.
I also suggest reading the Fasting Figure Plan (http://www.almased.com/files/cm/Figure%20Plan%20Fasting_low%20res.pdf) for more information on this diet phase and yummy Almased recipe suggestions.
 

Silke

Hello HairStuff,
 
Glad to hear you are doing well!
 
Keep up the good work
 
 
Silke

Hi
I'm new in the Almased diet, just started today.
I see people asked a lot of juice vs. broth.
My question is about raw veggies.  You're saying freshly made home juice would be as good as broth (correct?).
Whether eating some raw vegetables is  also an option?  I ask because of I like eating carrots, tomatoes, cabbage, onions, radish etc. But I don't like juices made of them. 
 
Thanks

Hi dedres60,
 
It is recommended that you consume the vegetables in a liquid form rather than eating them during Phase 1. You can choose either to make a juice with a juicer, making home-made vegetable broth, or 100% vegetable juice. 
 
Hope you are doing well with Almased
 
Regards,
 
Kim
Almased Nutrition Assistant

Thanks, Kim
So far I'm fine with Almased. No side effects but also not much of weight lost (2kg out of 74kg after a week).
I'm going to phase 2 shortly, so hope the progress will be better then.
 
 

Dedres60,
 
How are you preparing the Almased?  Also when you move on to Phase 2 ensure the meal is approximately 300-500 of quality calories. 
 
Kim
Nutrition Assistant