Good Evening Ladies

Apologies for being out of the loop. I suddenly had trouble with my log in on Friday but did not have a chance to fix it. Finally got to it today.

I am feeling a bit like Kat this past week or so.

We went away the weekend of 2/16 and I had some cheesecake a couple of the nights and ate quite a few nuts and strawberries - and I still have not recovered. Other than those few slip ups I stuck to the induction foods. We started right back into induction on Monday 2/18 but my body does not seem to recognize it. It is so frustrating because my husband keeps losing.

I am just stuck at this 169 number . So much so that I have started to become a bit fixated on the scale. I had been doing so well on the weighing thing just every other day.

Now I have to restrain myself for jumping on everytime I am in the bathroom...which is very tough based on all the water we drink!

I am wondering if anyone has used the low carb bars as a meal substitute? I am thinking they might be messing me up even though they are suppose to be low carb.
I have been unable to get back into ketosis - pretty much coming up negative.

I keep thinking my body is going to figure this out and get back in sync - my ketosis strips were showing up deep purple just before the trip. Is it just a matter of time before my metabolism figures this out again?

Well off to finish my water for the evening. Talk to you all soon I am sure!

Regards, Judy

Hey, Judy!! I had technical problems over the weekend too! We must be very in sync, you and I.

About those low-carb bars....there are many, many people here in this forum that swear they cause stalls. Nat won't go near them. Many believe that they have hidden carbs in them, and that is the problem - even the ones with Dr. Atkins' name on them. I can't tell you how many posts I have read about this, maybe you could do a search and read a few yourself. Or, go to Natrushka's journal and ask her, she is very well-informed on the subject. All the bad press on the bars kind of scared me away from them, so I can't really speak from personal experience.

Just a thought on what may be causing your stall....

Hugs, Tama

Thanks for the encouragement Tama! I just love all my supportive buddies

It is one thing to tell yourself something (funny how we don't listen) but a completely different story when someone else is stating the same idea .

I had been doing some poking around on the site last night after my whiny little thread and went to the Turtle Club. Karen had put up some guidelines to determining if you really are a turtle and of course when I read through them so many made sense.

This morning I got up and have budged down one pound - and am back into moderate ketosis. Even though I had a carb bar for breakfast and lunch yesterday. I did not have any of them today and will try to stay away from them for a while. I had been thinking of doing the blood glucose testing experiment to see if certain foods were causing spikes but when I read about all the finger pricks required I am not sure it is worth the bother right now. Guess I am just not that desparate to figure out what caused the stall.

As for the carb bars I will just cut them out for a bit. Unfortunately I find that they really do hit the spot when I am looking for something sweet. Today I made up a batch of the whipping cream, cocoa, Splenda. It was good but I will save it to eat for another day.

By the way how are you doing? You have been doing a lot of encouraging lately...I am guessing you won the war with the plate of cookies from the other day.

Talk to you soon!
Regards, Judy

Hey, Jen. Congrats on losing a pound!! Celebrate each one, cause we all know how hard they are to get to pack up and leave!

As for me, I am doing okay. I did win the battle against the plate of cookies, but then my mother sabotaged me with Krispy Kreem. She just went and left a box on my kitchen sink without telling me, so I wasn't prepared or anything. I just come home from town and HELLO TEMPTATION! It was not pretty there for about 24 hours at my house - cheat, beat yourself up, crave - cheat, beat yourself up, crave. You know the drill. Anyway, I beat the gremlins down and I am back on track.

I noticed that, when I eat carbs, food is all I think about. I literally live in the kitchen, foraging around for something to eat every 20 min. or so. I was miserable! But when I stick to the plan, I am freed up to think about so many other things - the kids, the house, my homework, myself. It is wonderful not to be controlled by food anymore!! It is also a relief to find out that I am normal, too. For a while there I was beginning to think I needed a shrink to deal with my food obsession!!

Anyway, take care and keep us posted!!
Hugs, Tama

Mothers! Gotta love'm

The most important part is that you got back on track so quickly.

I completely agree with the being consumed by thoughts of food. I still have those days even now but I can pretty much control it if I take the L-Glutamine supplement. Although even those I am not taking as often.

By the way what are you going to school for?
Well back to work for me!
Stay strong...Judy

Hello!
I am also going for 140! Tama- I noticed we are just about the same, I am 5'9 and my starting weight is 180-185. Today is actually my first day of induction! But i was just wondering about how long it has taken you to get to your present weight, etc. Thanks!
- Molly

Hey, Judy! Where do you get your L-glutamine supplement? Just curious, I think I might like to try that. And I am currently taking classes over the internet from the university here, since there is no way I could go to regular classes with 3 kids in tow! I am getting my Masters in English lit.

Hello Movey, and welcome! You have chosen a great place to get support and motivation - this forum is the best. We are very similar in our stats, how interesting!! After my 3rd baby was born, I weighed 184, and he turns one this week. So, getting this far has taken me a year. However, I didn't lose the first 30lbs. on Atkins, which is why I do not post 184 as my starting weight, I feel it would be misleading. I lost the first 30 using my own starvation / deprivation thing that was miserable!! (We have all done it!) So, I knew I couldn't get the last bit off that way, and I didn't want it to come back, so I found Dr. Atkins and this forum, and I haven't looked back. I started Atkins in mid-October of last year, so these last few lbs. have been slow in leaving me. But the holidays really trashed me, you know? Anyway, now that this is turning into a life history, I guess I should give someone else a turn to speak! Thanks for your interest and I will be checking in on you soon!

Big hugs, Tama

Molly - welcome...yes you'll fit in nicely but all are welcome of course.

How has the first day gone? I was headachy for a few days and kept feeling like I had not finished a meal even though I had the sensation of being full.

The headaches are gone and I only get the not done sensation every once in a while now. This is day 25 with some falling off the wagon in the middle.

Again welcome and hope to hear from you again soon!

Tama - I picked up the L-Glutamine at a local GNC store. I took their brand which came in the 1K dose but Atkins suggests taking 1 to 2 500 tablets so I figured this size would be fine.

The first couple days of induction I was taking the L-Glutamine usually later afternoon (always a low point for me) and sometimes around 9PM. Which used to be when I had a cup of tea and something sweet. I now take one every couple of days or so and only when I am really feeling the sweet sensation creeping up on me. I do carry a couple in my purse just in case I get stuck somewhere.

Good Luck with school. Do you have many more credits to complete?

Talk to you all soon.
Regards, Judy

Judy-
Thanks for the nice welcome! It is so nice to be able to share experiences and stories. The first day went really well! the only thing is i was craving sweets all day! I made some sugar free jello and that helped a little. Can you fill me in on L-Glutamine? I have heard of it but i'm not too sure what it does. Thank you!
-Molly

Hey, Molly! Way to go on getting through day 1!! The first few are the worst, just keep telling yourself that whenever you hit a low spot.

Judy, thanks for the info. on the L-glutamine. I will go look for myself. That sounds like it could really be a boost for me. I have about 2 semesters left. The reason I say "about" is because I still have to write a big thesis at the end, and that will take a bit longer. Slowly but surely, I will get that degree. Just like I will see 140 on my scale again!!

Determination is indispensible.

Hugs, Tama

Good Morning Everyone! And a special good morning to Movey! Another loser! It's good to have you here!

I have a challenge for anyone who wants to participate. I can get fixated on the scale or a certain food sometimes, so I wanted something to take my mind off of food when I'm bored or have down time and feel like I just can't wait for the scale to move, even if it has already. I am a bit impatient, so this is what I started to do. I go around and find little things that are different from when I started losing.

Some of the things I've found are the usual energy boost, sleep at night, no need for a nap in the afternoon, etc., but I'm talking about those little things you take for granted when you weigh less that you all of a sudden notice you have back.

Here are some of the ones I've come up with in the last couple of days:

-my skin is smoother, not as bumpy in some places, or as grainy in others, I think the fat in the diet is producing a glow. People have commented, not on my weight loss (no one has noticed yet) but they want to know what I've done for my face!

-my stretch marks were dark purple and huge, now they're getting smaller and fainter. I always hated seeing those dark marks!

-My hind end doesn't hang over the toilet seat as much. I also hated looking at my toilet seat and knowing my behind was bigger than it!

-I have a line going up my spine, like definition or something. I didn't have this 3 months ago. I've been watching for a sighting of my collarbone and hip bones, but I didn't think to look at any other places!

Anyway, if you guys can notice something that is exciting that you didn't notice before, we could all appreciate the changes and it is a push for me to see these things because I want to see more. Keeps me more on track.

Hope you guys have a great day! Yay Friday! Amber

Heeeellllllloooooooooo? Amybody out there?


Well, I goofed on Thursday. My husband came home all excited because he knew I hadn't had a KFC Twister in a long time and got one for me. Ahhhh! Oh well, back in the saddle again. At least my ketostick is still pink. It's darker pink now, so I just need to keep it up. This is day 14 for me and I'm winding down on my TOM. I had no chocolate, which is a miracle for me! I still don't know how much I weigh lately, but I'll try to get an idea in the next couple of days.

So, whats everybody up to? Probably life. We got 10 inches of snow dumped on us yesterday, so we aren't going anywhere today. Very boring. It's 10 degrees out with a wind chill of -10. Yipes!

Hope we have signs of life soon! See you later! Amber

Amber, to hear you talk about snow makes me so grateful I live in AZ!! I am a true desert rat.

Well, I fell out of the saddle this weekend. Ah well, we live and learn I guess. I don't really want to go into it because then I will just get mad at myself again. I don't want to focus on my mistakes, just keeping my eyes straight ahead. So, here we go again. It is really hard for me for about 2 days after a cheat, so I know what's in store for me today and tomorrow. Oh well. You think I would figure this out by now and quit torturing myself. But I just sabotage myself again. Go figure.

Take care ladies!
Tama

Hello ladies !

It is just me struggling to stay with this LC thing.

I continue to sit at this 169 number. It has been exactly 23 days at 169 lbs. I can't make this scale move and no my clothes are not fitting differently either.

My husband is experiencing the exact same stall. His seems to be an inability to get to ketosis. I on the other hand can be purple and not budge.

Unfortunately all this stalling just makes me second guess doing this for the rest of my life. I am not looking for the bread/pasta type foods but I find it hard to believe that I won't have a real cookie again.

I am certainly not ready to go out and buy Cheez-Its again but this stall pulls me in the direction of adding berries and nuts back in for some variety.

We have been on Atkins for 31 days. I have lost 7 pounds. ...well I guess when I state it that way it looks much better

So much for my little rant this evening.

Molly - on the L-Glutamine. Atkins mentions it in the latest book as a way to help ward off some of the cravings. I find it certainly helps me. I also found that as the weeks have gone on I don't use it as much. The first few weeks I would take the two a day suggested. Maybe 3PM and then again at 9PM. Always my snack times. Now I go several days without it (sounds like an addict to me ). I carry a few in my bag just in case but hardly ever need it.

Amber - you are a very perceptive lady. You had me running to the mirror to check my skin. I obviously need to stop focusing on what is under my feet and start looking at what is around me. I will work on focusing on those items around me.

Tama - don't look back...day one is already over!

Talk to you all soon. You all are helping me stay on track!
Regards, Judy

Good Morning All! Hope everyone's Monday was O.K.

Tama - I wouldn't worry about the oops, sometimes ya just gotta break. Well, maybe I'm trying to excuse my spaghetti and garlic bread last night I well, we'll get back on track. I just remember, it only takes a couple of days to get back on track. I'm a nut for pasta and Italian food. But last night's spaghetti tasted strange. I made it the way I always do, but I think it might have put me off of it for a while. Probably a good thing. Amyway, the good thing is I sort of CADed the dinner (dinner and dessert in one hour). I was on that diet a few years ago and actually lost some weight, but stopped doing it for some reason. I feel fine today, no craving the chips or anything, but I'm starting back to being careful. We'll get back and lose more!

Judy - Thanks, I appreciate the compliment. I feel like I have more time to look at other things since I'm not constantly thinking of food because I'm not hungry. I'm really shocked at how much time I spent thinking about my next snack or meal/s! I was possessed!

Back to my old standby food this morning. Eggs and sausage. I tried subtly talking to my husband about different bodies needing different food (he doesn't know I'm LCing) because he calls meat and cheese and stuff heart attack food. My kids hear this, and unfortunately, my daughter has my body type and will probably have to eat this heart attack food to keep her healthy! I tried to explain that heart disease was unheard of 100 years ago, but he did what he always does, laughed it off like I didn't know any better (hence my reson for keeping the LC secret). Sometimes he drives me up the wall! Oh well, I just hope I can show him it works soon. I've got my blood work from a couple of years ago, but sure it's worse now, but all of my levels are in the normal range. I'll get it done when I'm done so he can see that I'm not setting myself up for an early death!

Anyway, gotta go and sort some tests. It's getting pretty noisy in here! See you! Amber