I completely understand this! In my personal opinion, people who want to lose weight with no effort get extremely jealous to see other people losing weight & can find nothing better to do than criticise the person who has whole-heartedly found a plan that works for them. I know that my best friend has huge issues with my carb dieting only because she wants to lose but has no will power and I have lost 12 pounds within 5 weeks of this diet. I've told her that I would coach her to help her through & just when I think she will start, she shows up with a milk shake from Arby's or cookies or a sandwich complete with bread.

I have learned to live with the idea that if I really want to lose weight & still actually be able to eat, I have to stick to this diet, even when others think it is ridiculous! It's a choice I have made for myself, nobody else.

As for kicking the cravings, I too was an EXTREME carbohydrate addict. Nobody I know even believed how much junk I ate until they saw it with their own eyes. The first week of the diet, I was pretty sure I was going to die! No caffiene.....how was I supposed to stay awake? No chocolate......how was I to make it through the menstrual cycle? No donuts.....need I say more! You just can't have breakfast w/o donuts, or so I thought. In the end, how badly do you want to lose weight - that's the only question you need to ask yourself. ATKINS WORKS! If you really, really, really want to lose, you can do it with this diet - I SWEAR! And you can do it rather quickly! I've lost 12 pounds in five weeks eating more than 20 carbs a day (induction is too strict for me) from the acceptable foods list and walking at least 2.5 miles five times a week. I am still tired though and don't know what to do about that but I know I am healthier now than before and the results end up being your motivation. If you sincerely want to lose weight, you will find a way to force yourself to rid your diet of those nasty carbs & commit to this diet. Again, it's all in how bad you want to lose weight. There's no "secret" or "pill" that will help you, it's all in your mind!

Good Luck,

Angie

It takes 3 days! I've been there and I know what you're going through. Eat meat, eggs and some cheese. Even if it doesn't taste good to you at least it will keep you full and hopefully you can make it through.You're not only changing your eating habits your changing your way of life, which is wonderful and you will have so much more confidence. You'll look and feel 100 times better. Just visulize yourself in some jeans and a new fall turtleneck sweater....come on girl I'm rootin for you!!

I took me a week to start Atkins. Decrease your carb intake over several days in order to get started.

Betsy,

Since the first few days are usually the hardest part for any of us, you just have to be stoked up with determination and stick to it, no matter how it makes you feel. After you have consumed the stored glycogen in your liver (usually 3-4 days) you will start feeling much better. Just keep thinking about the fact that the way you are feeling will improve in a few days, and that you'll probably have a measurable weight loss at the end of the first week.

Make sure you're eating exactly as stated in DANDR for induction. Straying from that may make the first few days not as effective in using up that glycogen.

(BTW, I've read somewhere that the mass/weight of the stored glycogen and its associated water can be 3-5 lbs itself! That's just what's in the liver, not including the other water stored elsewhere in the body.)

If you still get intense carb cravings, try 500 mg of L-glutamine about 1/2 hours before meals (for 1500 - 2000 mg a day dosage). That works wonders for me and I think others would attest to the effectiveness of L-glutamine for controlling cravings.

Good luck, and don't give up! It only gets better!

Joan

This is exactly how I overcame the first couple of days... You REALLY HAVE TO WANT IT!

PS: Where in NE are you from?

Since starting Atkins, my weight loss has been pretty steady up until the last month. The staff at work were inspired enough that several joined me and I ended up a bit of a guru. This way of life is so much easier when others join you-try to find a buddy who really wants to give it a try. The boards are great-but someone physically there makes a difference. A friend at work calls me Jiminey - after the cricket from Pinnochio- because she counts on me to keep her on track. This is a lot different from other plans, and therefore will take more determination in the beginning. I have been fat for 15 years. I'd decided that was long enough and now focus my energy on getting rid of it. How bad do you want it?

The beginning is SO HARD, isn't it?

I kept thinking ahead -- thinking about a whole life without the carby foods I love -- and got discouraged. I sternly told myself to stop thinking that way. I am thinking like an addict instead -- I won't eat any bad foods for the next hour or the next day. Getting through the moment is a triumph, and each moment is adding into weeks and months of success.

Posting here helps too!