freckles~

When I asked the question, I was talking about varying the carb levels. I tend to stay around 20, and that is ok with me if that is what it takes to lose. However, I am not losing. My thought was more along the lines of bumping up my carb intake for a few days every now and then to...well...change it up a little and keep the old metabolism from getting too comfortable.

The "blowout" part was not my words.

Whatever carb level you choose--be sure to watch the calories as well. 10x my body weight (or less) seems to work well for me. Anything higher than that and I stop losing weight.

I do agree with shoer that you will have better results when you carb load if you watch your total caloric intake. Also, it is better to load early in the day rather than later. If you can load right before exercise, even better, although it makes some people a little sick.

I know that my way of eating will perhaps offend some of the strict Atkins eaters, but this is what works for me. And quite frankly, I view Atkins as a WOLW (way of losing weight) and that's it. When I get the weight off, I intend to switch to a SouthBeach sort of plan or quite frankly, to the restricted diet my dad is on. Diabetes runs in our family (although no one really gets it until their 50's). Since I am only 36, I figure losing the extra weight now and getting used to controlling carbs on a regular basis would be to my benefit.

However, I can not stay on a diet forever. And for me, anything that restricts me from pizza, cheeseburgers, chips, queso, etc. IS a diet. I try to structure my eating in a way I know I can live with forever. If I thought for one moment that I had to eat the Atkins way 24/7 for the rest of my life, I would quit immediately and would be far less healthy than I am now.

Everything we eat is a choice, but I know my own limitations in eating and I try to work with what I've got. As my control over my eating rises, perhaps I'll be able to change, but for now, I am doing what I can live with. And that's good enough for me.

Jana