Calling all Atkins people with those high-number clippies!!! (UPDATED!!!)

[Harambe]

Okay - I took the advice everyone gave me last week when I was depressed about not losing that much on Atkins (while DH is melting away!). And guess what? Weighed myself this morning and I GAINED a pound. I've got to be doing something wrong - so could I impose on all of you "big losers" to give me a typically Atkins day for you? Sample menus, including all your beverages?

I am just about ready to give up here - please help!

PS - I even excersied this week!

3-6-04: Yeah! Thanks to all this advice, I stopped eating the Atkins bars, and in two days I lost two pounds!!! I love you guys!!!

 

[tw1nsmom]

Atkins itself doesn't work the same for everybody (neither does any other WOE). Last year my husband and I did Atkins and he lost 40 pounds. After six months of absolutely no cheating I had only lost about 15 pounds (I had more than 100 to lose, so 15 pounds isn't very much). I gave up and gained all of it back plus some.

This year I'm doing low carb/South Beach. I focus on small portions of lean meat, very little saturated fat, moderate amounts of low/no fat cheese, plenty of vegetables, no sugar, no white flour/potatoes, and small amounts of whole grains. I haven't given up all caffeine, but have stopped drinking alcohol. I watch portion size as I have a problem with knowing when I'm full. I'm also exercising almost every day (mostly walking). This seems to be working well for me. I've lost 25 pounds since 1/1/04.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that if Atkins is not working for you, it is okay to modify it or combine it's principles with other plans. I really do think low carb/healthy carb is a healthy WOE. If you're not happy with Atkins then look into some of the other low carb. plans (South Beach is technically a "healthy carb" plan).

 

[gshoemate]

I first tried Atkins a little over a month ago. I lost 4 pounds right away and thats where I stayed. Then I went to the movies and ate popcorn and it went downward from there. During my first Atkins try I ate what I was supposed to but I also drank alot of Diet Dr. Pepper (and not enough water). Well I decided to hop back onto Atkins last week with no Diet Dr. Pepper and within a few days I dropped 3 pounds. So I truely believe the Atkins book when it says Aspartame can hold up the weight loss. So that is my first question, are you drinking anything other then water?

My day kinda goes like this.....it's altered every now and then depending on if I need to eat out.

Breakfast - 2 eggs, bacon and Atkins toast and 1 pint of water or if i'm in a hurry I just grab an Atkins shake.

1 pint of water during workout

Lunch - salad with ham and ken's Italian dressing (only 1 carb per 2 tabelspoons)

snack - celery with cream cheese and green olives (sounds terrible but taste good)

Dinner - usually pork or beef and salad with ken's dressing

snack - cheese or veggies

With all of my meals and snacks I drink water. And I work out 4-5 times a week. I take a multi vitamin (left over prenatal), calcium and l-glutine (to help with cravings). I think thats about it. Have you tried using the Ketone strips? I have found that mentally they help me out alot. I priced them at Wal-mart and they were 15.00 for 25, I got mine on ebay for a total of 5.49 for 100. Hope this helps!! And hang in there

 

[Harambe]

Thanks gshoemate - I'm eating about the same as you, but have veggies with dinner instead of salad. I drink only 2 decaf teas with splenda, water, and seltzer water. I do have an Atkins bar daily as one of my snacks or for breakfast. The only other thing I have done is have a gin and seltzer water on the weekends (I actually measure it out using a shot glass!).

Oh well - I have decided to not weigh or measure myself weekly, but rather monthly - hopefully I'll see some results. I fear my biggest problem is the Tamoxifen that I take. I know the Atkins book says you should stop taking meds if you can, but I can't!

And tw1nsmom - you may be right also. Atkins just may not work for me!

 

[R_Judy]

Thanks for the E-Bay tip Ginger. I never thought of looking there. I already have my bid in.

 

[nativetxn]

Harambe, another reminder about portion control. Make sure you have a food scale for weighing cheese, use measuring spoons for your salad dressing too( only 2 tablespoons is a servign), it easy to get too many calories with that and calories do count to a certain extent after induction.

Did you check to see if you are in ketosis?

Those Atkins bars have been known to stall weight loss because not everyone is sensitive to the sugar alcohols. If you <i>aren't</i> sensitive to sugar alcohols (meaning you have no flatulence and/or diarrhea after eating them) then your body is absorbing the total carb count of the bar, not the net carb count.

Something to consider

 

[sha_lyn]

sound likeit be one or more of several things.

First I would cut out all artifical sweetener and sugar alcohols for 4 days. You can sweeten with Stevia (seewtleaf's Stevia Plus seems to be the fav for those that think Stevia has an after taste).

For those four days I would also eliminate high allergen foods.

Nightshades... Peppers, potatoes, tomatoes and eggplant
Wheat
Corn
Nuts


After 4 days if you have lost weight it is likely one of the above is part of the problem. Add things back in 1 at a time for 3 days


I was able to determine what sugar alcohols I can and can not use, and I found I have a nightshade allergy.

 

[Harambe]

Wow - sorry it took so long for me to reply! But I'm so confused! What are these sugar alcohol things?? How do you find out about them? I read thru the Atkins book, but nothing was mentioned so far (I mostly read the Atkins Journal for quick info).

Nativetxn - I didn't understand what you said about the Atkins Bars. As a matter of fact, I have had some terrible bouts of diarrhea since I started eating them. So are you saying I'm absorbing all 20+ carbs! Yikes! I think I'll stop those immediately - I didn't eat them for the first few weeks, and I did lose! Boy - am I dumb, or what!

sha-lyn - the only foods I eat that you listed are peppers and tomatoes. If stopping the bars doesn't work, I'll try your four day test!

THANKS

 

[sha_lyn]

How "hard" do you want to work to find the problem? My Naturopath reccomended that I follow a very strick plan to see if allergies are causign my joint and weight problems. I haven't had the courage to try it yet. I won't go itno the detail right now because I don't have the sheet with me. It starts off with raw veggetables for I think 3 weeks, and then slowly adds in foods.

However a friend has given me a different detoxification diet that I am going to try. For 9 days you eat only low allergen fruits and veggies (no citrus, strawberries or nighshades). You need to consume at least 1/2 of the food raw.


Also you might want to try the Atkins 7 days cleans and renew. It might be that you have toxins built up. As you burn fat the toxins stored in the fat can build up in your colon, kidneys and liver. I hit a plateau for a month. I tried the 7 day kit but kept the rest of my diet as it had been. I dropped 2 1/2 lbs

 

[LAinSEA]

I'm on Atkins also. Several years ago, my DH and I first tried Atkins and lost 30 lbs each with 2 months. This time around, I haven't lost 10 in a little over the same amount of time. Why? Well after our Dr. accused me of trying to kill my DH on Atkins - we went on low-fat, low-sodium, low-calorie diet. Since I put the weight I lost plus many "friends" on this plan - and the only advice the doctor would give is "eat less and exercise more" - I was down to about 500-800 calories a day. My body was deep in starvation mode and it took about a month of eating and actually gaining weight on Atkins before I lost any weight at all.

You have to eat to lose weight. That doesn't mean eat all you want - but I do find that if I eat a little every 2-3 hours I do much better. I still stay within 20-25 carbs/day. I'm not exercising as much as I should - but try to walk 35-45 minutes 5x/week and do my pilates DVD 3x/week. I'm very careful with how much nuts, cheese and meat I eat. I weigh and measure my amounts to stay with my carb counts. I also try to eat a variety of things - when I get bored, I want to cheat.

I have also tested on the low, but still normal side for thyroid hormone. Not low enough for medication - but definitely low enough to make weight loss difficult. You may want to get your blood work done to see if there are any underlying health problems that keep you from losing weight.

Keep a food journal, write down everything you eat (a bite here and a bite there really add up). The same with exercise - write it down. It also helps to take measurements - I have lost more inches than pounds. When I lose pounds, it comes in spurts not a steady 1-2 lbs per week.

Keep your chin up and keep going. You can do it.

-Laurie

 

[Harambe]

Laurie and everyone! Thanks for the support! I am psyched up again, now that I know I may have to modify the Atkins a little. I really am happy eating this way, so I want to continue!

Goals for this week - stop the Atkins Bars, do my walking tapes, and measure out my dressing on my salad (2tbs).

 

[Rhonda]

I find I lose the steadiest when I follow a typical diet like this:

Breakfast: ham & cheese omelette (or turkey instead of ham)

Lunch: Big salad (lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers, green peppers, tomatoes, shredded cheese, diced turkey or ham) with Caesar dressing

Dinner: Some kind of meat (baked or grilled chicken, pork chops, steak, roast beef, venison, salmon) and a little serving of cooked veggies.

For snacks I like: beef sticks, jerkey, cheese cubes, celery w/cream cheese, BB sugar free yogurt, Atkins Endulge ice cream (just a little bit though), sugar-free jello.

Good luck!