Hi everyone...

I am sorry in advance for this post, because a lot of my frustrations are my own fault, but I could sure stand to get this off my chest anyway.

I am so frustrated right now. I can't get in ketosis for some reason and I don't know what I am doing wrong. Here is some of the stuff I have stocked in my refridgerator to give you a clue as to what I have to eat:

Eggs
Hamburger
Chicken
Steak
Cheese
Morning Start bars (eat this in extreme moderation)
Keto crisp cereal (moderation)
1g carb chocolate shake powder
Soy Milk (the 1g carb, no sugar kind)
Water
Diet Pepsi
Peanut Butter (eat in moderation)
Celery
Lettuce
Onions
Frozen Veggies (cauliflower, broccoli)
Every once in awhile I have a carbolite cookie or LC sweet thing which gives me an upset tummy but it's a small price to pay for the sweet.
Full fat cottage cheese (again, extreme moderation).

Now, I know it is my own fault as far as not following induction to a "T." Also I have been so stressed with school and work and trying to spend time with my best friend and my boyfriend that I always feel too tired to go to the gym. With all this said, could someone maybe suggest a "sample" menu for a day's worth of food, a little nugget of advice, anything??? I am a student and work immediately after class and I need FAST stuff that is simple and takes minimal prep. I don't have time to get real creative, hence the basic grab and go food. And I am always up for some friendly criticism or pointers because at this point I am groping around in the dark trying to get back on track.

I am just frustrated as heck. And my frustration has reached a point where I am sabotaging myself. I only have about 5 more pounds I want to lose but at this rate I'll gain, if anything! I have not gained yet but I'm paranoid.

Also FYI, here is what I have eaten today. I know I could have made some better choices perhaps but just so I can honestly say what I've had, here it is:

1 serving of Keto Crisp cereal (3g carbs/serving) with small amount of heavy cream & light Splenda
1 small glass of Cappucino soy milk (1g carbs/serving) with 1 scoop chocolate powder (1g carbs/serving) & light Splenda
2 turkey burger patties with light Keto ketchup
Plate of onion rings (not a lot) battered in CarbSense (2g carbs/serving) & fried in veggie oil & 2 mozzarella sticks, also battered & fried (1.5g carbs)
2 carbolite peanut butter cookies (3g carbs) with light peanut butter (probably about 3 carbs worth)
1 Diet Pepsi
Water

OK be brutally honest... what in the heck do I need to do here?

Sorry! I appreciate any help... you guys are the greatest.
Tangie

Get your body fat checked. At your height you may be trying to push your body to alower then healthy weight. Your food choices look great. Instead of fucusing on just diet, focus on toning and maybe adding weight lifting to your rutine if you want to target trouble spots.

Where's the salad and veggies? Water?

I know I need to up my veggies and definitely drink more water... That could be a huge part of it. Also there is a chance I may not have any more pounds to lose but I do have some fat around my midsection that I can't seem to shake, and I was hoping a little longer on induction could fix that. Do I have the right idea here?

Be sure you eat enough fat, as weird as that sounds. I always lose more weight when I add fat to my diet.

Skibunny - thanks for your response! Would this include eating more things like the carbsense battered fried stuff? I know what you mean - I seemed to be doing better when I was eating things like bacon and all that good stuff.

ACtuly when you are closer to goal you should be on maintanance carbs. Cutting out refined sugars and flours can benifit anyone and greatly improve your health. Move your carbs up, maybe taking the advise of Atkins for life and going to 60, then either raising them or lowering them as needed.

For the midsection, females will almost always have a small round there. If you want to see ab muscles and tone the midsection so it's a small round instead of a "belly" you'll need to tone and lower body fat.

I really suggest you find out your body fat % first. You can do that through a local gym, or try an online site that uses your measurments. I like the one under resources at www.zoneperfect.com

Weight lifting will help lower body fat, tone muscles, and increase strength. At your weight you may find it causes you to gain a little, but that will be lean weight. More lean mass means a higher metabolism, and better circulation (less cellulite). For targetting the midsection specifically, look into Pilates. It really workes the core muscles including abs and back, not to mention hips.

You might also look at the body for life forum and exercise plan. I enjoy it because it only takes 20-50 mins a day and you start to see results fairly fast. I'm only on my third week. Unfortunetly the scale hasn't moved, which is discouraging, but I have lost 2 inches and my cardio is way better. I can actually jog without panting now

OK I did that zone thing and it said my estimated body fat was 26.31 percent. What does this mean? Also, thank you so much for your tips... My roommate told me the same thing, that I may want to move on to phase 2, but I still wonder if induction may help further. You are right though - bottom line is I need to overcome my lazy and tired attitude and get in the gym. Thank you guys so much for the support!

During my first 3 weeks, I was barely in Ketosis. I still lost weight so I've tried to ignore the little keto stick.

I got a suggestion a while back that helped me. I stopped all the sugar alcohol snacks and extra low carb treats and it kept me from stalling out last week.

Slim Cat

Make sure your fat is high enough I keep mine 65-80%

Thank you guys so much for the pointers! I do think I need to up my fat and cut out all the sugar alcohol stuff... I do have to admit I have been overdoing those. I sure appreciate the suggestions.

Normal healthy body fat for a female (I'll asume your 18-30 )is around 22-27%. So you are a healthy body fat. You could lower that to the lower end of the scale, but that would again take both exercise and diet. Athletes can get down to 18-10% body fat, that is probably where you would see some ab definition. Lower then that is usually the extream athletes or eating disorders and can cause health concerns.

The reason to move on to stage 2 is also so you can learn healthy eating habits to help you maintain your weight once you lose it. Can you really eat only induction allowed foods for the rest of your life without being tempted to cheat or bored? By trying new foods and upping your carbs you get a much wider variety of foods to choose from. Also by learning your carb tolerence level you can find out how much you could occasionaly splurge. Someone with a CCL of 150 could handle a small piece of b-day cake much easier then someone with a CCL of 20

That is extremely helpful... I think that I will set my lofty goal at 20 percent body fat for now... at least that will give me something to work towards! I'd like some ab definition for sure, but I think I'll have to be reasonable for now. THANK YOU!