If Protein drinks are a problem, you should try using candy flavoring oils. They're really good and if you don't have a candy supply store nearby, you can buy them online. They come in so many different flavors that there's something for everyone, like butter rum, marshmallow, cherry cordial, blackberry, and pretty much everything else you've ever seen in a candy cream filling flavor. You can also try the flavor section in the grocery store, but the selection will be more limited.

You can also try reducing the amount of liquid you use to get more of a loose pudding texture, and refrigerate it overnight to let it become creamier. Barring that, you can heat the ingredients because, when they're warm, the drinks have a completely different flavor. They're a godsend to me when I can't get anything else to go down, and I came up with a variety of tricks to change the taste before surgery so I wouldn't be stuck with few options. I hope this helps!

awesome! how much of the candy flavoring extracts do you use?

I use Torani syrups and well, a bit of frozen fruit. I know the fruit won't go over until puree stage, but seriously, a couple of berries is not going to hijack weight loss. Since I'm going to continue Protein shakes for life, I'm going to make them somewhat enjoyable. I'm not saying to make a smoothie, but 3 berries in 6-8 oz. isn't killing anything.

BTW, 1 tsp. of Torani syrup will do it. SF chocolate, vanilla and hazelnut can be found in stores, but others like lemon, raspberry, orange, strawberry, etc. can be ordered online.

I use a dropper to add a drop at a time until I get the flavor right. Each person's taste is unique, so start with the minimum amount and work up. Some flavors, like mints and wintergreen, are much more assertive than others, in extracts as well as oils. If I want to mix and match, say, caramel with marshmallow, I'll make double the Protein drink and save half for later so I can get the right flavor combination.

I agree with Catracks, Torani is great. Davinci is a good line, too, if you can find them in coffee shops; otherwise, their shipping charges are kind of expensive if you order online. I use fruit, too, but only baby food so it's a smooth puree. My nutritionist approved it for Phase II, and I love the mango puree with vanilla protein and coconut extract. Who says the mushy stage has to be boring?

World Market has toriani syrups - a HUGE selection of sugar free ones - I picked up some this weekend - cheaper than what I could get them at Sams or Walmart for. So if you have a World Market in your area - check there. They also have a GREAT selection of green teas which can really help to stave hunger - and so many soups from all over the world. http://www.worldmarket.com to see if you have one

Cost Plus? I have one down the street. I HAVE to check this out! I haven't been going into the food portion for a long time. I guess I really missed something.

Just curious as to if there are any calories in these oils. I know several years ago that Watkins used to offer these also but not sure if they do anymore.

The SF Torani have under 5 cals per serving. The label says 0, but under the guidelines, anything under 5 cals. = no calories. These pack a lot a flavor in those little servings.

Just curious as to if there are any calories in these oils. I know several years ago that Watkins used to offer these also but not sure if they do anymore.

Candy oils are literally used one or two drops at a time. A whole teaspoon of olive oil has 40 calories, so I doubt there's even one calorie in a drop. You could get a dropper and see how many drops of Water it would take to fill a teaspoon measure to get an absolute calorie count, but I'm positive that it's negligible.

Extracts should have nutrition information on the container, and you'll use more of these, perhaps a 1/4 teaspoon, for the same flavor intensity as the candy oils. I hope this helps!

has anyone tried Edys slow churned rich & creamy shake - froze shake mix? I tried one this morning & mixed w/a scoop of protein powder, 14 oz of skim milk, 1/2 banana and a tablespoon of peanut butter ... it was pretty good .. am wondering if this is ok? the shake alone has 210 calories and 6 g of protein, but with all the other stuff I add in the protein count goes way up (like up to almost 46 grams of protein) ... of course I can only have about 1/2 of the finished shake when it's done at a time since it's too filling . but am wondering if the calorie content is okay or is it too much? can anyone advise?

Rosiegirl

This is my newbie take on things. I would say the use of that Edy's addition to your shake depends on where you are in your weight loss. I personally wouldn't do that early on and probably wouldn't add that until way after when I have reached goal. I use GNC Wheybolic Extreme and the caloric intake with that alone is 260 calories. Without adding anything and I take it because its super high in Protein. I think the further you are away from goal the more textbook you should keep your stuff to maximize weight loss. Just my opinion.

thanks - I appreciate the advice -- I'm no where near my goal, so I guess I better lay off those eddies shakes things and try another route .. thanks!

I use DaVinci SF. They have like 50 SF flavors! My new favoriet is the cookie dough:

http://www.formerlyfluffy.com/product-review-davinci-gourmet-sugar-free-cookie-dough-syrup/

Rosie

I have promised myself to be very attentative to my diet. So many people become discourage easily, or hit stalls or say they can't seem to lose weight... it's these small things that we don't even think about that hinders us along the way. Happy shedding Rosiegirl!

I understand ... I am just trying to increase my protein intake and am having a hard time w/shakes, so I am trying new things to encourage my having my protein shakes ... tonight I tried something called yoplait smoothie -- have you heard of that? it's fruit & small frozen yogurt pieces and you add skim milk & I also added some protein powder and put all in blender .. I think this is better for me calorie-wise than the eddies one .. it's only 70 calories per serving (the mixture is for 2 servings) and only 10g of sugar, so maybe this is a better choice?

I understand ... I am just trying to increase my Protein intake and am having a hard time w/shakes, so I am trying new things to encourage my having my protein shakes ... tonight I tried something called yoplait smoothie -- have you heard of that? it's fruit & small frozen yogurt pieces and you add skim milk & I also added some protein powder and put all in blender .. I think this is better for me calorie-wise than the eddies one .. it's only 70 calories per serving (the mixture is for 2 servings) and only 10g of sugar, so maybe this is a better choice?

Fyi..........the RTD's are generally much easier to get down than a lot of the powders. You might try some of those like Premier, Oh Yeah! and Lean Body.

Good luck!