Hi,
I tried Atkins and lost some weight, but did not like all the fat and protein, didn't help with elimination at all. My question is how much is low carb? I would like to eat all the vegetables I want, which are carbs, but eliminate, white flour products, sugars etc etc. I do NOT want to live without some pasta once in a while or ten grain bread, two slices or so a day. Is there a middle ground without following a true diet with someone's name on it, which I find hard to do. I eat chicken , fish, some red meat, no processed foods,or junk.
thank you
Frank

You probably won't lose very fast, but investigate the newest protein power book, they have a plan that is higher in carbs than Atkins. The fats are important for you no matter what plan you follow, including animal fats. Nyah Levi

Hi Frank,

How about looking at "Which low carb plan is right for me?" at the right of the screen. You may find another plan there that suits you better than Atkins.

Having said that, I'd like to mention that I eat 7 or 8 cups of vegies daily on Atkins. The only ones I don't eat are the very high carb ones like peas. Don't forget that once you move into OWL with Atkins, you can add a lot more carbs, and things like whole grain bread can eventually be included.

Whether or not you change plans or just do some "tweaking," it's a good idea to do some more reading. How about checking which low carb books are available at your local library? The more knowledge you have the easier it will be for you to decide how you want to eat for the rest of your life.

Cheers, mate.

Rosebud

It's all about finding balance.

You do need a minimum of protein and fat. You also need to find out what your critical carb level is for losing and maintaining.

If you've been eating pounds of bacon and great globs of fat to the exclusion of everything else, it is low carb, it's not unhealthy, but it's tedious!

I suggest finding the right balance of protein, fat and vegetables, living with it for a while and then deciding if you want bread on a daily basis. Starches behave about the same as sugar when your body starts breaking them down.

Like Rosebud, I've never eaten so many vegetables in my life! And the way I eat is fine tuned for me. You can do it to.

Karen

Firstly, I think that the highest-carb plan out there is Schwarzbein Principle. I have the book, but haven't read it yet... it's just what I heard say. Maybe try that one?

Rosebud, you spiked my curiosity...



7 or 8 CUPS ?! Oh I would LOVE that!!! I just feel that with the ratio of the things I eat, namely the fact that I haven't got any meats to balance all the veggies, I might get a higher carb ratio if I did that. Yet I'd love to! Would you mind telling me a little more about how you do that, though? Which veggies, and how do you prepare them?

Thanks!!
vienna

Hi Vienna,

When I redid Induction some time ago, I decided to get my 20g carbs mostly in the form of vegies. After you subtract fibre carbs, most of the vegies on Dr Atkins' Induction list are pretty low in carbs.

Here's an example of the carbs you can have for 20g:
2 cups lettuce - remember iceberg lettuce has fewer nutrients than lettuces such as romaine - the ones with darker leaves are generally better.
½ cup peppers
½ cup cucumber
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1 cup broccoli
1 cup asparagus
1 cup cauliflower
2 fluid ounces heavy cream

According to Fitday, this gives you a total of 31g carbs, 12g fibre - making a total of only 19 useable carbs

If you actually measure vegetables in a cup measure, you might find, as I did, that 1 cup cauliflower for example is not a huge amount.

How to prepare? I often just microwave or steam my dinner vegies, then add lots of butter. Or I stir fry in lots of oil. Sometimes I add cheese sauce - simmer heavy cream until it's thick and "gloppy" then add grated cheese.

I don't know what you are choosing as your protein sources, but as long as you have some protein with the serves of veg, you shouldn't have any insulin rise.

HTH

Rosebud

PS: Here is the link to the allowed foods on the Atkins plan. I'm not suggesting you do Atkins, just showing you the lists of foods allowed. Just scroll down to see "vegetables" and "other vegetables."

Rosebud,

thanks for the info! I'll be checking it out, and it sounds WONDERFUL to have some of these vegetables again!! I do love my cheeses and eggs, after all I haven't had any of those for a long time, but I missed eating lots of veggies. Will definitely include more of them in my diet!

vienna