[KaraNoCarbs]

Hi all. New to IP. Just starting week 5 with 13.4lbs down.

I've been skimming through past threads all day and have come up with a question in the process. Most posters who mention how many carbs they have in any given day claim they average at about 30g per day. Multiple people have said over the years that their goal was 25g per day and they always tried to stick under 30 because "any more can knock you out of ketosis".

My weight loss has dramatically slowed down the last 2 weeks so I thought to myself 'hmm.. why not check how many carbs I'm eating!' turns out that I'm having anywhere from 35g-48g/day of carbs. Does this mean I'm not in ketosis? Also I don't understand how I could ever eat just 25 grams of carbs a day given that my IP food alone usually reaches 20+. Here's an example:

Breakfast - IP remade vanilla drink = 5g carbs
Lunch - IP mushroom soup = 3g carbs
1 C mushroom = 4g
1 C broccoli = 2g
Dinner - Salmon 7oz = 0g carbs
1 C arugula = 0g
1 C red onion = 4g
Snack - Vanilla Crispy Square (NON-restricted) = 17g

Total = 35g of carbs... and that was one of my lower days (before I dropped carrots)! Is there any weight to this or am I just going down a dangerous road of obsession if I track my carbs? Carb experts please help!

One last thing. I have been eating carrots the past 3 weeks and just realized that we are not allowed to have them!!! I am fearful that because of this my body never went into ketosis (besides maybe a few days the first week since I had no carrots that week, had really bad breath and lost 8.8lbs). I have only lost 1.2lbs/1.4lbs in the past two weeks, respectively, and have had carrots pretty much every other day during that time. Could the carrots or the carbs I'm eating have effected my weight loss?

Thanks so much and I appreciate the advice!

[mandela66]

I'm not sure there is a magic number for carbs (I've heard under 30 and under 50) - but keep in mind you should be concerned with NET carbs, not TOTAL carbs. So you should be subtracting out the fiber from the carbs, and that should bring your number even lower. The first week is always the biggest - and after that think more about average losses. You are averaging 2.6/week, which is a GREAT number. Good that you realized carrots are out - live and learn on that one! Hopefully things will keep moving in the right direction!

[jennydoodle]

Kara- I haven't done IP with actual IP products in a long time, but I can tell you that I was in the same range as you for the entire time I was on P1. I ate my (1) restricted item every day. And mandela is right, it is the total carbs, so make sure you are subtracting fiber. I am rebooting now and I am eating about 38 g carbs, but 13 g fiber, so my net carb count is 25 g.

A few things to note:
1). As you mentioned, carrots are a no-no on P1. See if you notice a difference when you cut them out

2). Your body will go through "waves" with weight loss on this diet, at least mine did. I would have 2-3 nice big scale losses in a row, then have a 1-2 weeks with a lower loss. However, during that period of lower losses, I would lose inches. It is some weird cycle of your body playing "catch up". I think most people who have done this will agree that there are weeks that you see scale losses and weeks that you inches losses. As long as both weight and inches are trending down, do not get too concerned if you have small losses here and there. Also, just to note, that the closer you get to goal and the smaller you get, the smaller your losses will be. Once I got within 10# of goal, the pounds started coming off slower, but I was visibly getting smaller.

3). If you do find yourself in a plateau, one way to jump start things is to do "boot camp". You can do a search on here for the details, but basically it entails you cutting out your restricted item and dropping carbs just a little bit more. Throughout my time on P1, I would occasionally cycle in a week or 2 of boot camp and it always shook things up for me. And then when I went back to regular P1, it would be another shake up.

4). Beware of "fake" foods. I know many people who successfully use Walden Farms or Crystal Light, etc... But I found that they hindered my weight loss. Something about the fake sugar and fake flavorings caused me to stall. When I figured it out and cut them out, boom, losses again. I know I am extremely sensitive to additives and such, so for me, that was a game changer.

5). Finally, I also stayed away from the products that had a lot of soy in them. I am sensitive to soy and it would cause stalls for me. I know a lot of women on the boards who say the same thing about soy. Something to consider if you find yourself eating a lot of it and see your losses virtually stop.

You are doing a great job and are having great losses! A lot of IP is trial and error and being "body aware". Take note on how things make you feel, if certain foods make you feel bloated or if you start seeing stalls. And BTW, stalls are not the same thing as small losses. Stalls and plateaus are not losing anything for more than 2 weeks. Small losses are a natural part of the process. Not every week is going to yield big numbers. But if you are consistently seeing the scale go down, then you are on the right path and no need to change what you are doing!

[KaraNoCarbs]

Thank you both for your advice! I feel much better about where I am now and managed to lose 3.2lbs this week. I definitely think dropping carrots was a factor in this.