My journey to the new ME!
 

I have always struggled with my weight, my entire life. At my smallest I was a size 3-5, but TRUST ME, this was not done the healthy or right way.... I adveraged about a size 11-12 in my teens and early adult years, at my smallest. I was always known as the 'chunky' kid, and was always teased and felt horrible about the way I looked.

When I got pregnant with Savannah, I was at my lowest weight and size ever... getting to this size unhealthily, contributed to my gaining right at 100 lbs with her. That's right, 100 lbs! I was horrified by this, but so thankful that I left my bad habits in the past and was able to have a healthy little girl. I kept the 100 lbs on for the next 6 years and 2 more babies. I didn't gain much with my 2nd, only like 6 lbs bc I was so sick in the beginning and dropped some due to that. When I got pregnant with Michael, I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes, and this began my vow to myself to take my life back!

I was put on the Gestational Diabetes diet with Michael, and lost weight during my pregnancy due to this. I started researching low carb diets, and was turned on to Atkins by my sister that was attempting it herself. I did my research, ordered the book, and decided that after I had the baby I was taking back control of my body!

I was a size 20-22 at my highest weight, which was the same weight I was at when I had Michael. I actually looked into doing the HCG diet at first, tried it, and didn't last 1 day on it! I was starving! I immediately started Atkins, and am so thankful I did. HCG was just a temporary, quick fix, and would have caused nothing but yoyoing for me.

I started Atkins July 7, 2010 after dropping about 20 lbs post pregnancy, and noticing it starting to creep back... (which is what happened with all 3). I have since, maintained that 20 lb loss and lost another 70, and went from a size 20-22 to a 4-6 all thanks to the Atkins way of life! :) I am absolutely, 100% sure that this is the way I am meant to eat, and will never eat any other way. I feel better than I have ever felt, and at least 10 years younger. I am very thankful to Atkins and everyone that has supported me throughout this journey. I coudln't have done it without either of them.

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This is what I send to everyone who asks me about what I did and how I did it :)

The main thing to remember is whole foods! Fresh meats and veggies.. that is it! Here is the acceptable veggie list for the first phase of Atkins:
http://www.atkins.com/Program/Phase...nthisPhase.aspx
Simplicity is what works for me, so I just do the simplest menu possible and stick with it week after week. I will broil/grill/sautee (in olive oil) my meat of choice (pork chops, chicken, steak, hamburger) and make veggies to go along with it. (Remember, no sauces like bbq, ketchup etc.. mustard is ok, no carbs, but most sauces are loaded with sugar) One of my favs is a lettuce wrapped burger, I put mayo, cheese, mustard, lettuce, tomato, onion in a huge leaf of lettuce with my burger and wrap it up and eat it... so good!

When I eat a salad I like to use Ken's Ceasar... it has 0 carbs per 2tbs serving! The main thing to remember is to only use 2 tablespoons with any dressing. Ranch, blue cheese, italian, they are all acceptable as long as they are not more than 2 carbs per serving.

If you start this and go all in with it, you will lose 10 to 15 lbs in the first 2 weeks! I lost 18 :) It is honestly the easiest thing I have ever done in my life, I am just mad I didn't try it sooner!

The way it works: You are switching your body from burning sugar and carbs, to burning fat. The first few days you may feel bad, and if you do, drink some broth with salt in it, works every time. Once your body adjusts, you will feel better than you have in 10 years! I do. I have so much energy and stamina, some days I can't believe it.

I recommend reading the book. It has loads of information in it (Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution) and it really helps once you understand the science of how it all works.

I say I adopted this for life, bc Atkins is a 4 phase program, and eventually you add back in foods, slowly one at a time to see how they affect you. During this process, you will learn what foods are triggers for you (either craving sweets, gaining weight, or just false hunger pains {wanting to eat everything in sight when you know you shouldn't be hungry!}) This is the most important thing to learn about your body so that you can maintain your weight loss. There are a lot of misconceptions about Atkins, and so many people will try to bash it. Most of the time, I do not even tell people what I am doing bc of that. They are not educated on the topic, bc if they were, they would be doing it themselves! That is why it is important to learn learn learn as much as you can about it. Knowledge is power, right?

I am still on phase 1, Induction. I will stay here until I am about 10 to 15 lbs from my goal. As he says in the book, the longer you stay in this phase, the faster your weight loss is. (Which is where I am now.. wow lol, I am still in shock daily at how Atkins has changed my life in such a short time!)

The main reason this has worked for me vs any other "diet" I have ever tried, is bc I am NEVER hungry. You tell me I can't eat when I am hungry, and we have problems, lol. Tell me what I CAN eat when I am hungry, I am good! Eventually, you will find that your appetite will decrease significantly! All of the fat and protein you are consuming is to thank for that. So there is no need to count calories on this diet, as they will naturally taper off within the process.

Snacks that got me through the first month until my appetite decreased was:
Pickles, black or green olives, cheese, home made beef jerky (store bought is loaded with sugar!), celery with cream cheese, cucumbers, boiled eggs, deviled eggs, etc

Please don't hesitate to ask any questions! I am so very happy to help. I am very passionate about this (as you couldn't tell) :)

ps.. remember to use full fat everything. real butter, mayo, salad dressings... fat is your friend. 99% of low fat products have sugar added! Just NEVER buy anything that has "low fat" on the label. No processed foods like lunch meat.. bad news. If you drink coffee, use heavy whipping cream for creamer and splenda for sugar. Diet drinks are ok, but you should drink more water than anything. And take a good multivitamin. I take a multivitamin, fish oil, magnesium/zinc, and vitamin D every day.

Exercise: I have done everything from walking, to bike riding, to the gym everyday for hours... during this year. But I have found that Jillian Michael's 30 day shred produced the most results for me. It transformed my body, and I can't wait to do another round to see what it does!

There are tons of recipe sites out there for low carb, here are some of my favs:

http://lowcarbmadeeasy.com/about/ (Check out Krys' journey here too, it has been amazing! She is kinda my mentor on this support forum. She lost 100 lbs in less than a year, and is now one of the featured success stories on the Atkins website!!)

http://buttoni.wordpress.com/

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/recipes.html (My favorite!)

http://candiceslowcarbrecipes.typepad.com/


I, however, find it much easier to just stick with whole foods and veggies the majority of the time. I just buy fresh cuts of meats and broil, grill, or sautee them and make my veggies or salad as a side. I will do a recipe maybe once a week, or so, but stick to pretty much the same things week in and week out. Like I said, I like simplicity :)

This is a quote from Krys's website (someone I relied on heavily throughout my journey for support and knowledge :) (http://lowcarbmadeeasy.com/low-carb-myths/)

There are many misconceptions about people who follow a low carb way of eating. I’ve found that Atkins is a VERY dirty word because people simply don’t understand the foundation of the plan or how the body functions while eating low carb. Here are some of the most common low carb “myths”.
Low carb means no carbs.While it may feel like it at first, following a low carb way of eating does not mean you do not eat any carbs. While some plans have greater allowances than others, it all comes down to the individual. As with anything in life, you learn where you feel and function best. The average American consumes 300 grams of carbs per day, if not more. Usually, way way more. Most low carb plans will put you at a level under 100 grams of carbs per day. For me, I feel my best when I eat under 40 grams a day.
You can’t eat fruit or vegetables. Quite the opposite! While on a low carb way of eating, this is where the majority of your carbs come from. Starchy vegetables (like white potato, peas, carrots) and high sugar fruits (like pineapple, bananas, grapes) are not encouraged, but non starchy and low sugar ones are.
You’re increasing your risk for heart disease and high cholesterol. Again, the opposite. Study after study has shown that people on a low carbohydrate diet LOWER their risk for heart disease and their cholesterol actually improves. You’ll be seeing me add a section where news articles, medical studies, and other low carb scientific data are complied. I’m sure you’ll find this information very interesting!
Low carb diets will ruin your kidneys!!! Nope. Not true. High protein diets are what can hae a negative impact on kidney function, especially if you have already compromised kidneys. Low carb plans generally focus on an moderate protein amount, and are high in fat.
It’s inevitable that you’ll come across SOMEONE that tries to tell you that the way you’re eating is unhealthy. It’s up to you to educate yourself on this.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You are so hot! Look at you :) You go girl!

I am thankful that you posted this. I just started 5 weeks ago and am doing quite well (At least I think so lol). I have told no one Im on Atkins, other than my hubby, who is doing this with me. I just dont want to hear how bad it is for me. Atkins IS the best thing FOR ME. I am a major major sweets eater and bread person. I feel horrible when I eat that crap. I have felt like a million bucks since getting that out of my system.

Im going to get that shred by JM. Heard a few people on here talk about it. Did your cholesterol, etc go down?

Thanks for sharing!!!!!!! CONGRATS! :)

WOW!!!! You are my inspiration........Im starting out at the same weight as you and hope to look as amazing as you. Another considence is I just started in July this year. Im bookmarking this and gonna refer to it. Thanks for sharing your great tips and story.

really amazing
i felt ur writing as soul talking... deeply and warm. some words touched my heart and i felt ur happiness. really u encouraged me to go through it again. i recently came back from duty mission so during the last 3 weeks i could not stick 2 atkins. i need ur help really i need it

Looking good, girl!

OMG what an amazing journey! The pictures say it all. Congratulations to you! :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer:

I LOVE IT! I especially love how your stance gets sassier and sassier as you lose more and more!

Congrats!

Why thank you for including my recipe site in your list of favs. I makes maintaining that site ever so much more worthwhile to hear this from folks.

And you've just done an amazing job with your weight loss. It truly IS a brand new you! My heartfelt congratulations!

You look fantastic. Congratulations!!

Thank you so much everyone :) I am adding what I just wrote in my journal, here as well. Bc I don't want to lose site of what I have committed myself to, and want to hold myself accountable!!

You don't even look like the same woman - what a transformation! Thank you for sharing all this information. I haven't read the book and I probably should, but your comments have filled in some of the gaps of why things aren't working for me.

Great job, and great post. It was a pleasure to read

What you learned about maintenance is classic material that I think we all need to learn at some point -- especially the part of carbs in moderation not being a good, long-term plan for many of us. Thank you for adding that.

Wow! You are one impressive lady!!! You are really an inspiration! I started Atkins yesterday. I have done it a few times in the past....always lost about 20lbs and then 'did it on my own' and inevitably gained it all (and then some) back!! I am in a 20-22 and weigh 213.6. I am committed to doing it right this time. I have always loved the way Atkins has made me feel so I am really hoping to follow through this time and stick with it! You are really such an inspiration to me!!! I will be looking at your photos daily!

Love you girl! I've been reading through your journal, it's just so encouraging and motivational. I love seeing how you have past through each test and come out on top. Seeing how confident, strong and resilient Atkins has made you is definitely lighting a fire for me. Thank you and best of luck!!!!

you look amazing!