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  #16   ^
Old Mon, Mar-10-03, 10:04
Skamito's Avatar
Skamito Skamito is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,315
 
Plan: Atkins (Pre-Maintenance)
Stats: 160/135/130 Female 5'5"
BF:35%/28%/22%
Progress: 83%
Location: New York, NY
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Oooh, this really does remind me how much better this WOE is!

Here are some of my big ones:

No more MIGRAINES! I used to get headahces everyday and migraines once or twice a week. I still get them once in a while, but it's much more rare.

So much more energy. I used to dread the idea of working out, for instance, even though I thought that was the only way to lose weight. Now I have tons of energy for workouts and love them. Also don't get an afternoon or after dinner uncontrollable drowsiness.

Great health. I only got a cold once this winter (just last week actually) and combatted it amazingly. With vits and tons of water and low carb food and working out... I barely felt sick at all!

Nails... I have them! I am a huge nail biter and now (probably due to protein and vits) they grow faster and stronger.

I bet I could think of a ton more, but these are my huge ones. Oh yeah, and obviously I love the food.
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  #17   ^
Old Mon, Mar-10-03, 10:25
Paleoanth's Avatar
Paleoanth Paleoanth is offline
Slothy Superhero
Posts: 12,159
 
Plan: Vegetarian Atkins
Stats: 165/145/125 Female 60 inches
BF:29/25.2/24
Progress: 50%
Location: Tennessee/Iowa
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Quote:
Originally posted by Skamito
Oooh, this really does remind me how much better this WOE is!

Here are some of my big ones:


Great health. I only got a cold once this winter (just last week actually) and combatted it amazingly. With vits and tons of water and low carb food and working out... I barely felt sick at all!

Nails... I have them! I am a huge nail biter and now (probably due to protein and vits) they grow faster and stronger.

I bet I could think of a ton more, but these are my huge ones. Oh yeah, and obviously I love the food.


I haven't gotten sick at all!! I never even though of it being due to this woe. How cool is that?

nik-

I also don't get ummm gas anymore-unless I eat malitol.

john-you ROCK. Good going!
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  #18   ^
Old Mon, Mar-10-03, 10:36
bigguyjonc's Avatar
bigguyjonc bigguyjonc is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,338
 
Plan: atkins
Stats: 354/233/200 Male 5 ft 11 in
BF:YES
Progress: 79%
Location: slc, utah
Default sickness...

I totally didn't think of that. I haven't been seriously sick in over 2 yrs. Started LCing about 2 1/2 years ago! I do think i have to credit alot of that to exercising. I do cardio every single day.

THANK YOU Paleoanth, and KoKo for your kind words.


Jon

Last edited by bigguyjonc : Mon, Mar-10-03 at 10:37.
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  #19   ^
Old Mon, Mar-10-03, 11:18
Frederick's Avatar
Frederick Frederick is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,512
 
Plan: Atkins - Maintenance
Stats: 185/150/150 Male 5' 10"
BF:
Progress: 100%
Location: Northern California
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Reading this thread has me envious.

I have been low carbing since the beginning of February and have yet to experience much, if any, of these wonderful changes which all of you have. Aside from losing some weight—which is reward enough in of it’s own for me at this point—the only benefit, and I use the word loosely here, I’ve received is needing less sleep.

For now, that’s it.

Being the eternal optimist, reading this thread has added to my conviction that, contrary to everyone’s advice and views around me, that I have made the right choice in the long run. I am hoping that one day in the not too distant future, all of these benefits will happen to me as well.

By the way, that 108 Sugar thread was quite comprehensive. I was so looking forward to having chocolate ice cream again at some time in the future. Hopefully, by then, those searing 108 malevolent effects of sugar will have been completely purged from my memories—at least temporarily until I finish my ice cream.
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  #20   ^
Old Mon, Mar-10-03, 12:00
Skamito's Avatar
Skamito Skamito is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 2,315
 
Plan: Atkins (Pre-Maintenance)
Stats: 160/135/130 Female 5'5"
BF:35%/28%/22%
Progress: 83%
Location: New York, NY
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Frederick... you KNOW you can make good LC chocolate ice cream if you put your mind to it! I'm definitely purchasing an ice cream maker this summer. Lots of good LC ice cream recipes. Don't give in for something you can make work within the parameters!

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  #21   ^
Old Mon, Mar-10-03, 13:41
Paleoanth's Avatar
Paleoanth Paleoanth is offline
Slothy Superhero
Posts: 12,159
 
Plan: Vegetarian Atkins
Stats: 165/145/125 Female 60 inches
BF:29/25.2/24
Progress: 50%
Location: Tennessee/Iowa
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Frederick-

There is low carb ice cream called Le Carb. I haven't had any yet, but my mom did enjoy small amounts of it every once in a while. I think she got it at WalMart of all places.

I did not get some of my benefits until I had been low carbing for a few months. I am still only six months into this and it took a while for my body to heal itself and I started seeing the benefits. Unlike you, I still sleep a lot-but I think that is just because I am used to naps and I like em.

The weight loss was the first thing I noticed-the others came along LATER.

BTW, love the way you write!
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  #22   ^
Old Mon, Mar-10-03, 17:32
SarahO's Avatar
SarahO SarahO is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 926
 
Plan: Atkins
Stats: 167.5/122/115 Female 61 inches
BF:
Progress: 87%
Location: NC
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Here's my unexpected benefits of low carbing:

-cooking every day instead of eating out, which I have wanted to do for years but never managed before

-being able to delay a meal if necessary without feeling shaky or headachy

-reading a horror story about trans fat, high fructose corn syrup, or whatever synthesized junk fills our food, and realizing that I haven't eaten the tiniest bit of it in six months

-learning to enjoy breakfast

-not having to wash the starchy residue out of a pot that was used to cook pasta or rice. Sounds trivial, but has actually been a big improvement in my life. I don't usually wash up until the next day, and that dried starch can be a royal pain to clean.
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  #23   ^
Old Mon, Mar-10-03, 17:47
gtarent gtarent is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 71
 
Plan: Eades
Stats: 278/236/181
BF:44%/33%/14%
Progress: 43%
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My two biggest benefits I've found (other than weight loss of course) are requiring less sleep, and the general feeling of being satiated.
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  #24   ^
Old Tue, Mar-11-03, 09:47
Paleoanth's Avatar
Paleoanth Paleoanth is offline
Slothy Superhero
Posts: 12,159
 
Plan: Vegetarian Atkins
Stats: 165/145/125 Female 60 inches
BF:29/25.2/24
Progress: 50%
Location: Tennessee/Iowa
Default List posted

Hey all!


Thanks so much for all the wonderful input! I copied and edited everyone's ideas. I tried to get rid of some duplications and messed around with the order. SO, if some of your suggestions didn't make it, it is only because they were also given by someone else. I do believe I have something from everyone though. Just so you know-I did cut some of my own suggestions too. There are no names attached-I just wanted a list of things I can turn to on the down days.

I tried to make it all nice and pretty with graphics-but the file would be too large to post-SO you will have to settle for a plain .txt file.

Enjoy!
Attached Files
File Type: txt low carb benefits.txt (1.4 KB, 33 views)
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  #25   ^
Old Tue, Mar-11-03, 10:25
Frederick's Avatar
Frederick Frederick is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,512
 
Plan: Atkins - Maintenance
Stats: 185/150/150 Male 5' 10"
BF:
Progress: 100%
Location: Northern California
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Many thanks, Paleonanth.

This is great, I could print it, stick it to my fridge, and title it "Lots of stuff which hasn't happened to me yet." LOL

Seriously, I like this concept. Sort of like how Cliff Notes really got me through college.
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  #26   ^
Old Tue, Mar-11-03, 10:42
Alina's Avatar
Alina Alina is offline
SPOILED
Posts: 4,898
 
Plan: Atkins Life Maintenance!
Stats: 184/152/154 Female 173 cm/5,8
BF:In right places...
Progress: 107%
Location: Germany
Default

Frederick,

I just try to understand....how did you feel before starting this WOE? Lots of us felt miserable as you can see...
Anyway, I hope you'll feel that great energy soon!
Alina
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  #27   ^
Old Tue, Mar-11-03, 12:46
iBelieve's Avatar
iBelieve iBelieve is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 91
 
Plan: Atkins
Stats: 300/257/150
BF:
Progress: 29%
Location: Connecticut, USA
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Thank you so much Paleoanth, that ended up being a great list! I copied and printed it to hang up and read often.

Frederick, forgive me for asking, but is it possible that you are not a carb addict? Or maybe I should say carb sensitive? The only reason I ask is because you haven't felt many of the side benefits to lowcarbing that are common to so many, and it reminds me of one of my friends. She lost 80 pounds on weight watchers, and then decided to try to lose the last 30 lbs. on Atkins with me. She did great from the start, and had no withdrawal symptoms. That alone made me quirk an eyebrow, because someone who is addicted to a substance WILL have withdrawal symptoms when they stop ingesting it. Anyway, after the first week, she saw that she'd gained 4 pounds, so she went back to weight watchers. She looked back through her food journals for the past year and realized that she hardly ever ate alot of carbs anyway. She could take them or leave them, unlike me, who would devour anything with sugar and starch in no time flat! She was mostly eating veggies, lean meats and small amounts of fruit on WW. So, I hope I don't offend you by asking, but maybe you were eating more carbs than you needed, but weren't really addicted to them and that's why you haven't seen too much improvement in your overall well-being? What was a typical daily menu like for you before lowcarb? (P.S. I'm not trying to talk you out of a lowcarb way of life! I think eating this way is ALOT healthier for ANYONE, whether they are addicted or not! I just want to understand and maybe offer some helpful advice.)
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  #28   ^
Old Tue, Mar-11-03, 15:48
Frederick's Avatar
Frederick Frederick is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,512
 
Plan: Atkins - Maintenance
Stats: 185/150/150 Male 5' 10"
BF:
Progress: 100%
Location: Northern California
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Hi Wendy,

First of all, let me assure you in no uncertain terms that I didn’t find anything you were asking me or observing as even remotely offensive. So, let’s just get that out of the way.

I’m not really sure, but I don’t think I’m a carb addict—if you mean addict to mean as unable to stop, like some with cigarettes, some with alcohol, and some with other chemical substances. I’ve never had a problem or issue with eating carb based foods, or high sugar foods for that matter. Until now, I’ve never had any kind of diet ideology or any kind of eating philosophy whatsoever. Basically, all of my life, it’s been, “well, I’m hungry. Let’s eat.” And, I’ll just eat whatever fancies my whim at the moment. Up until about 2 years ago, I’ve never been overweight. All my childhood and after college, I had always been slender eating whatever I wished and whenever I wished and felt it a waste of both time and effort to give diet and nutrition a second thought.

Then suddenly about two years ago I started to steadily gain weight. It wasn’t something that happened overnight, but a very consistent and slow gain—the steady but sure kind of weight gain. And, after two years, I had ballooned up to about 185 – 190, much to my horror especially since my weight had been stable at around 155 – 160 lbs after college all the way up until about two years ago. Initially, I had no idea what the hell was going and couldn’t understand why suddenly I was becoming obese. I hadn’t changed anything in my life and still eat the way I had always eaten. In retrospect, the time passed has allowed me to more critically and honestly assess what might have happened to me, I’m pretty sure several things happened to me as I had grown older. One, undeniably, my natural metabolism must have slowed. Secondly, I must have been eating more since the last several years I’ve had more leisure time than ever before. And, finally, I was living a much more sedentary life than I ever have before. I think the combination of those 3 had caused my weight to balloon upwards uncontrollably.

My typical eating pattern before I started dieting and embracing an actual nutrition philosophy was quite sporadic. I’ll give you a few examples. For instance, one day I’d wake and, say, eat cereal (Kellogg’s SmartStart is my favorite since it’s so sweet) with full fat milk, and a glass of orange juice. Lunch, I’d have sometimes fast food, pizza, or some kind of sandwich. For dinner, usually I’d opt for pasta, steak, or other cuisines, which I was in the mood for. In between, I’d have coffees, milkshakes, occasional fruit juices and smoothes, and lots of chocolates, especially chocolate ice cream. However, if I had pasta one day, the next I’d have to have something else. Rarely can I have two things in consecutive days without getting tired of it, except for ice cream of course, which I had everyday. That was typically how I had eaten before adopting low carbing. Ever since college, I’ve never had veggies or fruits, unless it were in a salad, burger, or crushed in a Jamba Juice. That was how I had eaten for the last decade.

Before I started low carbing, I felt very good. Actually, I felt better before I started than I do now. My only concern was my clothing getting tighter and my ever-expanding girth. It has gotten to the point where the thought of my getting larger was intolerable. So, that is why, more so than any other reason, which I have turned to this diet.

Regards,

Frederick
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  #29   ^
Old Tue, Mar-11-03, 16:22
iBelieve's Avatar
iBelieve iBelieve is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 91
 
Plan: Atkins
Stats: 300/257/150
BF:
Progress: 29%
Location: Connecticut, USA
Default

Hi Frederick, thanks for not taking offense!

Your explanation makes alot of sense to me, and it seems you are not a "carb addict" in the traditional sense of the term. But you definitely were eating alot of carbs if someone were to add them up! One thing that struck me while reading your post is that you tended toward "convenience foods" alot of the time. Ditto here before my LC days! One major thing that helped me before I started Atkins was to eat mostly whole foods. (In other words - minimally processed foods.) I stuck to meats, veggies, fruits and only tiny amounts of whole grains. I felt fantastic while eating that way. But my weight loss was too slow, so I ended up going lowcarb. Once I reach my goal weight, I intend to go back to eating that way for the most part. My body really seemed to hum when I stuck to that! Maybe you could do a combination of whole foods/lowcarb? I don't know what kinds of lowcarb foods you eat now, but if you are eating alot of processed stuff, it might slow you down and make you feel sluggish. On the other hand, you mentioned being bored with eating the same stuff everyday, and if you stick to whole foods, there are only so many of them! So that will have to be your call.

Also exercise! I don't know if you are exercising much, but I can identify with what you said about a sedentary lifestyle. I used to be so active, but over the past several years I have turned into a slug. LOL So I'm trying to improve that little by little and increase my daily activity level. If you aren't already, you might consider doing some weight training and/or cardio activity, to up your metabolism a bit!

I don't know if this has helped any, but I hope you can keep "tweaking" the lowcarb lifestyle until it makes you feel healthy and strong! I do believe this WOL works, but everyone is different and may need some extra adjustment to get where they want to be. Good luck!
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  #30   ^
Old Tue, Mar-11-03, 17:28
Paleoanth's Avatar
Paleoanth Paleoanth is offline
Slothy Superhero
Posts: 12,159
 
Plan: Vegetarian Atkins
Stats: 165/145/125 Female 60 inches
BF:29/25.2/24
Progress: 50%
Location: Tennessee/Iowa
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Frederick-

My story coincides yours in a lot of ways. I always tiny-in High School and College my TOP weight was 113. Once I graduated college, though, I put on 20 pounds fairly quickly. I didn't have a job for several months, I didn't have the amount of activity I did in school and I certainly didn't burn off the calories I was consuming. Once I started working, my weight became stable, but I didn't lose the 20 pounds I had packed on. I just kind of accepted them. After I hit 30 years old-the weight started to rise again, but that has more to do with some hormone inbalance.

I am glad you found something you can live with-but I wish you felt as good now as you did before. Perhaps since you aren't particularly addicted to carbs, you can raise yours a bit without a lot of consequences. I know you started lifting weights and that will help burn fat even when sitting on the sofa. How many carbs a day are you up to?
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