The book says to do a fat fast at this point. I'd like to hear from some of the senior members and/or those who didn't lose at first (on induction).

Today is the last day of the two week induction; they were NO CHEAT weeks. I did cut back on veggies and cheese and dropped all SF gum after reviewing other posts and re-reading the book where problem foods may have been in my diet. Taking Atkins #3 and CQ10 and L-Caratine and fish oils to stop the fatigue (that works!!).

I am a herbal tea drinker except for Sat/Sun this week where we went fishing and had coffee (8 oz or less per day). I generally drink between 64 and 80 oz per day of water.

I have become a yo-yo dieter since I gained this weight (started gaining heavily in late 1998 after quiting smoking).

Was 160 in 1998 - 3 child was five, quit smoking, went to 190, LC'd to 179, gained back plus to 228, LCd to 211, gained back to 226, Weight Watcher to 203, gained back to 216, starved to 213 and started LCing again.

Your words of advice are needed! I'm sorry if my posts are repetetive, but I need answers to the same problem.

~Mary

Could you post some typical daily menus? Maybe, we can see if there is a troublespot. Also, you mentioned,



That immediately stood out to me. I don't think you should have cut back on veggies. Atkins wants to make sure you get all your veggies (and fiber) in, not at the expense of other carbs.

EDIT: I wouldn't resort to the Fat Fast yet. Wait for others to weigh in (no pun intended) with their opinions.

So...in the past 5 years, you've gained and lost quite a bit. This can really confuse your metabolism and your body. This time you may need a great deal of patience to see the pounds come off. You know that you can lose on low carb because you've done it before. Metabolic resistance may have changed because of all the yo-yoing.
If you've only recently come off a starvation type diet, your body may be trying to heal itself before letting go of the pounds. Starving it again through the fat fast might not be a good idea.
How about posting some daily menus so others can take a look and make some suggestions?
You may also be one of those who need to count calories as well as carbs. I did very well with losing at about 1,800 calories (didn't count...that's just the calorie level I naturally gravitate towards) until I had surgery and then my weight went up 12 pounds and refused to come back down again at that level. In the past 2 weeks, I've managed to drop 8 pounds by cutting my calories to 1,400-1,500 a day as well as keeping my carbs under 30 grams.

I agree, if you didn't lose anything on induction, then calories need to be watched. I didn't lose a thing during induction, except, perhaps, my mind! Go for somewhere between 10-12x your IDEAL weight in calories, depending on your level of activity. (Meaning, if your ideal weight is 140, then 1400 is 10x, and 1680 is 12x). I find it SO EASY to eat too many low-carb calories to lose weight. Maybe some people regulate to 10-12x naturally, but not me. I'd eat 2000-2500 if left to my own 'guesstimations'!

Breakfast
1-2 egg omlet w/ american cheese slice cooked in butter

Snack
2-5 oz leftover meat from properly prepared dinner (or deli slices)

Lunch
2 c salad (sometimes more)
4 T dressing - blue cheese, ranch, or olive oil/vinegar
8 oz meat (again from previous dinner or deli slices)

Snack
1-2 oz cheese
hard boiled egg

Dinner
8-12 oz meat dipped in mayo
veggies 1 c salad and 1 c other veggie w/ butter

64-80 oz water

Fit day ranges
1700 - 2900 cals
15-20 carbs
63% avg fat

THANKS!!!!!
~Mary

I'm eating less than the fit day basal rate.
I've cut back on the veggies cause I was eating too much 3+ cups salad, plus 1.5 cups veggies.

If I were you I would try to eliminate the cheese from the diet and the deli meats. Not only do deli meats contain carbs, they also contain salt which helps to retain water and nitrates.

I would add more broiled protein (steak, chops, fish, chicken)
have no more than 2 cups of salad or one cup of cooked green vegetables per day and use olive oil in preparing my food. Also, make sure you are not using low fat or low calorie dressing or mayo. That contains more carbs. You might want to go to FitDay.com and try to see if the food you are actually eating has hidden carbs.

And last of all, stick with induction at least 2 more weeks. Keep pushing the water and you are going to have a breakthrough.

I'm with you.

I think I would eliminate the cheese from your breakfast and perhaps the deli meats. Processed deli meats tend to have added carbs in them, nitrates and sodium. Good luck on your LC journey!

Do the fat fast. Don't be afraid of it. If you continue to on induction w/o success, you will stop Atkins. I did both the fat fast 1000 calories and fat fast 1200 calories. It worked.

One thing you might look at is how many calories you are eating.

This is where I have trouble. I tend to be hungry a lot, and dont feel satisfied at just not being actively hungry. I want to be full. <sigh>

This is a real battle for me.

But I believe that atkins book said that he saw people loose weight atup to 2000 calories a day. So it seems to me that we shouldnt be eating more than 2000 calories a day.

While this is not a "count your calories" diet and carbs are more important than calories, weight loss still hinges on the quantity of food one eats.

Dawn

I might suggest that you cut the protein back a bit (maybe 5-6 oz. per meal) and increase the calorie percentage from fat...to about 70%. The veggies are fine, especially if you start cutting out the cheese (which I would also suggest).
If that doesn't work, then perhaps take a closer look at the calories as well.

Re-read the book about the reasons people do not lose. For example, you could be very insulin resistent, or have Candida or high yeast levels. There are reasons that people don't lose weight at first on this program.

I think for the next two weeks you should
>cut out cheese
>eliminate all bottled salad dressings (they usually have some sugar)
>eliminate deli meats
>eat only freshly cooked/baked/grilled meats
>have only 2 cups fresh salad
>cut back the calories to no more than 2500 or so.

Stick with it. I was on induction for 4 weeks before I posted a loss.

It has got to be water, but it finally moved down two pounds!

I could sing, I could dance, I could do both!

My carbs were under 15 and calories under 1500. 15 minutes of walking. NO CHEESE. One stick of Celery in my chicken salad at dinner. The balance of carbs were from the eggs for breakfast and green beans for lunch. 60% fat. 38% protien. (per fitday.com)

Forgot to take my supplements this morning. I get ruthless tired and hungry without them. :-(

~Mary

Even I did not lose a pound on induction...and I read Dr. Atkins book again. There is a diet called Fat Fast which asks you to take only 1000 to 1200 calories per day and 90% of which should come from fat. This is the online link for it.

http://atkinscenter.com/Archive/2001/12/21-237659.html

Its not that easy to do, because you are hungry all the time but for a person like me who did not lose a single pound on induction, lost 4 pounds in a week with this diet. I do workout for 40 minutes , almost 4 times a week.

good Luck

I am on induction. I have stalled and I am convinced it is because of the bars. Here's my problem and I'd like some advice. I leave the house at 4:30 am to workout and stop first for my favorite coffee. Yes, I use 1 T of heavy cream and Splenda. I love having the bar on the way to the gym with my coffee (yup, I drive and eat.) But I can't do that. I know about the hard-boiled eggs, but it just doesn't work for me! Please provide some suggestions? I tried the Zucchine Muffins and may make them again. Did any of you metabolistic resisters out there find that they slowed you down? Any other "sweet" suggestions for my ride to the gym would be very appreciated. Remember, I want to stay on induction. Thanks.