I am new to this.

Induction seems fairly easy after the fog wears off... That took about a week. I lost 10 pounds in about 10 days so far.

I hear about others hitting plateaus after the first week, or not realizing they should not eat apples or peanuts during induction. Or thinking they could cheat on the carbs a little here and there (and then wondering whey it was not working and why the grogg fogg was not going away....) But I won't be having those issues. Still, I want to keep it simple. I want to do the plan, but I don't want to carry a journal or obsess about the counts.

So my questions are,

• What are the 5 most important part of doing Atkins?
• And what are the top 5 mistakes people make with this diet?

I mean, if you messed up the water and did not drink enough would that wreck your results?

Or if you did not get the fat percentage in your diet high enough would that do it?

I like the protien part. I eat as much meat as I want, and I keep cheese to 4 ounces and salad to 3 cups or so. Not really eating a lot of other fat.

I'll try to answer your question as best I can, even though I'm still relatively new here...

What are the 5 most important things in doing Atkins?

1) Follow the rules outlined by Atkins book! (commandments)
2) Do not fall unto temptation
3) Thou shall count carbs
4) Thou shall drink plenty of water
5) Thou shall exercise and not be a couch potato

What are the TOP 5 mistakes when doing Atkins?

1) People try Atkins using their friends "second hand" advice.. oops!
2) People don't know there's carbs in most everything you eat.
3) People don't measure food portions.
4) People don't like to drink water. They try tea, juice, etc. NO, NO, NO!
5) People get cravings and fall of "ye old wagon".. lol

The hardest part about Atkins is following the rules. Read his book and follow it to the letter.

Good luck!

DONT'S
1. No cheating, it can set you back days and days (by knocking you out of ketosis) - not even 1 M&M during induction
2. Don't weigh everyday (I don't follow this rule but it's a pretty popular one)
3. Don't panic when week 3's losses aren't as big as weeks 1 & 2. You should plan to lose 10% of your target loss in weeks 1 & 2 and then 5% per month afterward.
4. Don't forget about exercise. Lots of great stuff on the forums here.
5. No nuts till after induction.

DO's
1. Get enough calories, and fat. Fat should be 70% of your calories.
2. Eat your allowed veggies and supplement with psyllium husks to avoid the dreaded "undelivered mail"
3. Count hidden carbs such as those in sweetener packs and items with <1g of carb.
4. Measure yourself with a tape measure so that when you're not seeing scale progress you can still see shrinkage
5. Pursue new recipes and try something new several times per week to avoid boredom

Thanx Cool and lost.

The recipes in our Atkins Recipe book are awesome.

Cannot see how anybody could get bored or hungry on this diet!

.... is if you wait starts to stall a bit dont be discouraged its you body's way of getting used to eating the new way. I'm on week and stuck on a certain weight which goes up and down 2 lbs everyday . I am just remembering last time i did the diet I lost 30lbs in 3 months, drank diet pepsi all day long, no water, drank coffee still, and didnt workout one bit lol. and lost inches like mad. they had to take IN my bridesmaid dress!!!!! but this time around no suck luck, I dring like 90oz of water and workout!!! OMG but I'm giving up!!!!!

see ya
Devil

sorry guys,

I meant I'm on week 5! bad night!! lol

LOL LOL i just read what I typed I mean I'M NOT GIVING UP!!!! lol HOLY GOD

Devil:

With this WOE, unlike the low calorie way you did before, your body is likely rebuilding protein like mad, protein you LOST during all that previous lowcal, lowprotein dieting you did before. So while it seems slower, two things are happening: internal musculature is being rebuilt AND fat lost. This is MUCH more healthy for you than "starvation".

PS - you can edit your old posts to fix things that are wrong, so you don't have to re-post corrections. Look for the little "edit/delete" icon. It works great!

Hey Dev...

Sounds like the moral of the story is DON'T STOP once you start because it might be harder next time???

Sounds like the workout is adding muscle about as fast as you lose fat?

Do you measure inches? People say they don't lose inches and pounds at the same time. Maybe you are losing inches?

hello, ya I guess it gets harder and harder last time wasnt the only time i've tried it you dont even wanna know how many times I have dont it 2 months here, 3 months there its pathetic lol. I must have lost inches cause I took my jeans off without undoing them but since then(about 2-3 weeks ago) I havent noticed anything else, The tape measure is the same. I have no idea whats going on ??!

talk to u later

i can definately tell a difference in my clothes...i have a pair of jeans that i fit into tonight, and wouldn't you know it was too dang hot to wear them!!

oh well...i'm still waiting on those low riders to fit...that means my weight will be back to where i can show off that tattoo i have above my belly button! WooHoo!

Thanks Emily. This sounds like really good advice..... I VALUE the input!

I was also hoping to hear from the old timers, long timers, and big losers (LC WINNERS!!!)

Wondering if all the old timers and success stories agree with this set of 5 Do's and 5 Don'ts?