Sure, no problem on the support/Q&A's. I need help, often, too.
I've done this before (went from 230-180), so I know it can be done. I'm confident the issues that caused me to go from 180-240 won't come back, so this really is a new WOE for me.
I don't have the book handy either, but I don't recall the "one diet soda a day" rule. I'd be surprised if the book says that because all I remember is the caveat against aspartame/nutrasweet.
I'm a cold turkey kind of person, so I just made a decision to drop the diet coke and see what happens. I bought 20 one-liter bottles of flavored seltzer water in my supermarket and have been using them to spice up regard water from the fridge, or drink directly. The carbonation is really what I found myself craving, and the seltzer does that trick. I don't miss the diet coke at all.
Typical day for me is:
1. breakfast: 2 eggs, scrambled, with either blue cheese or ground beef. I sometimes use 2 tbsp of creamy caesar dressing to help stomach the eggs down if I'm not in the mood.
2. snack: Babybel cheese, string cheese, or celery and cream cheese
3. lunch: 2 cups salad with high fat, no carb dressing of choice
4. snack: the other cup of vegetables allowed, usually cucumbers and peppers marinated in a vinegar and pepper dressing (as I type this, I think I'll add some olive oil to this to up my fat count)
5. dinner: buffalo wings/chicken/steak made in the highest fat way possible (trimmings on, etc.)
6. post-dinner snack (not always): 5-10 pork rinds
I'll also add bacon, veal, and chicken drumsticks into the rotation as well.
And LOTS of water