It really made me stop and think.

I'm not sure I have one answer for you though. I've been doing this for 2 and a half years, and I feel like I've learned so many things over the years about dieting and low carb, that I don't think I could narrow it down to just one tip or hint.

When I started I knew next to nothing about trying to lose weight. I did know that excercise worked, because I had lifted weights about 10 years earlier and lost about 50 pounds then (without dieting).

I didn't have a clue how the body works to gain or lose pounds. If I was starting out new now (knowing what I know now) there are a lot of things that I would have done differently.

1) I would be much more strict with myself at the beginning. I've heard so many people tell me that when they first tried Atkins, the weight came off so easily, but that the second time they tried it, it wasn't as effective. I think that "newbys" have a golden opportunity to drop the weight rapidly because their bodies haven't yet figured out what they are doing. And as a result the advice I would give you is to be very strict with yourself at the beginning. Don't cheat, ride that wave of rapid weight loss as LONG as you can.

I know a girl who has only been doing Atkins for 3 months. She works out 3 times a week (or so) and hasn't left off doing induction level carbs yet. She has lost over 50 pounds. In three months. She told us how much body fat percentage, how many inches etc she has lost and it was phenomenal. But about a month into it she was complaining of a "stall" at 18 pounds off.

If she only knew what a real "stall" looks like.

2) I understand metabolism so much better now. I was reading someone's post the other day about "to lose a pound of weight you must create a deficit of 3500 calories". I remember reading that and thinking "that is so simplistic, that it really isn't even true."

Basically it would be easy to simply remove 3500 calories from your diet, but that is NEVER all there is to it. Don't eat for two days and you have removed 3500 calories. But what does that do to your body? Several things. It slows down your metabolism, it metabolizes your muscles, making your fat to muscle ratio worse. It makes your body think it is starving and when you eat again you gain back all the water you lost, and probably a few pounds on top of it.

I've learned how important it is to keep your metabolism reved up. You have to get rid of a lot of old ideas about how to eat. To keep your metabolism reved up you MUST eat breakfast, and you must eat many times throughout the day. Don't allow yourself to get hungry. Also make sure you do some HARD excercise at least 3 times a week. More often if you really want to create a body that will burn calories and won't immediately gain everything back if you have a few bad days.

Don't skip meals, and don't eat late at night just before going to bed. Workout in the morning on an empty stomach. Do weight training to build muscle, because a pound of muscle is more dense, and more metabolically active than a pound of fat. This means it burns more calories even while at rest.

3) I've learned the importance of human growth hormone, what it does and how it works, and how to get more of it. (the working out on an empty stomach and not eating before going to bed are two ways of getting more).

4) I've learned the difference between aerobic and resistance training. And how important adequate protein is to the body. Aerobics burns fat, and if done on an empty stomach and you don't eat for an hour afterwards, they burn MORE fat. Resistance training however creates muscle mass that is compact, lean and burns calories all the time, just by existing.

5) I've learned that the people who are most successful on this diet are those who are determined and consistent with themselves and the people around them.

I remember Shelly P, who lost like 80 pounds in about 8 months. She decided that if she was going to eat this way, her family was going to eat this way. Her kids didn't need sugary snacks anymore than she did and she stopped buying them. She put Splenda in the sugar bowls. (She did give the kids bread, but whole grain breads). She was consistent, and she didn't cheat, but she said that when she wanted something sweet she allowed herself a miniature size of "real" chocolate as a treat, because she intended to be eating this way for the rest of her life, so she needed to train herself how to have control of her life.

For me a bag of miniatures would lead one candy to the next, so I wouldn't want that temptation, but she was determined and she is very near goal now. She started about where I was at my 50 pound off mark (232) and she went straight to her target.

6) I've learned that female hormones work against us, and that we should never enter a diet competition with a man. BC pills or Hormone replacement therapy (or even certain parts of a woman's natural cycle) can cause the diet not to work at certain times or at all.

7) I've learned that certain other hormones (testosterone and human growth hormone) work in our favor and things (like weight training) that enhance those hormones should be practiced for best results.

8) The most imporant tip, is that we are all different. What works for one person may not work for someone else or in the same way. We must be patient and persistent, we must strive for "progress not perfection", and we must shake things up from time to time. If one thing isn't working try something new, but DON'T give up. Like the turtle, "slow and steady wins the race". The rabbit may outdistance us, but if he or she lays down on the job, we may reach our goal sooner. This isn't a race, it isn't a quick fix, it is a way of life and if it takes a year or ten years, we will get there if we preservere.

Sorry this post is so long, but you asked.