Hi Everyone,

After having great success on induction and losing about ten pounds, a few weeks ago I decided to go off of Atkins and try calorie counting. Since then I have lost another few pounds and have been having great success and still feel great.

I love Atkins and my hubby is still on it and loves it as well! He has lost about 20 pounds so far in a month and a half (and only has about 30 more to go)! The problem that I have is that I've never liked meat that much. Occasionally is fine, but every day is a bit much. So I might not be posting on the low carb forum as much, but I will still be checking up on all of you from time to time!

Thanks for the support, encouragement, and inspiration!

I'm also not into meat as much as my hubby, but carbs are a super-major problem for me. I use an exchange plan (since the exchanges within each category have pretty similar calorie counts, I consider it a "short-hand" calorie counting).

The flexibility is great, because I can stay on plan (at least in theory) no matter what I choose to eat. However, if I choose foods that are high in carbs (even sometimes the medium GI "good" carbs) the crazy hunger and carb cravings comes back, and I tend to go off plan. So, I try to select foods, most often along low carb and "good carb" principles. This works pretty well as a compromise for me.

If you do great on calorie counting without having to pay attention to carb content, that will be great. If you have trouble with carbs though, there are tons of online resources for vegetarian low carber's (even a vegetarian Atkins) and vegetarian South Beachers.

I use these websites alot for ideas, because while I'm not a vegetarian, I'm not fond of an "all meat diet." Besides, hubby and I are on a tight budget, so I incorporate a lot of low cost vegetarian proteins into our diets. TVP (textured vegetable protein) is cheap, so I use it alot, often combined with ground beef (hubby doesn't mind as if it's combined with even just a bit of ground beef, he can't tell the difference). I also use a lot of beans and lentils. I make a great lower carb chili, that contains a little beef or chicken, but not much.

Good luck to you Sunrose and know you are always welcome to stop by and post even if you're on a different plan.

Remember, the best diet for you is the one that works for you and you can live with for the rest of your life.

Hi Kaplods!

Thanks for those ideas! The great thing about my time spent doing Atkins is that it made me realize that I am not doomed forever to have insane cravings! I just thought that was how I was.

So now, I am trying to eat lower carb while incorporating some whole grains, beans, and focusing on veggies and even some fruits. So far it's working great! I feel so good, and I know that if I never tried Atkins in the first place I wouldn't know so much about myself!

So even though I am "calorie counting" I am definitely paying attention to what types of calories I am eating!

Oh, hi Snapless!

I was replying to Kaplods when you posted I think. Thanks for your support! I will definitely check in with you. You have been so helpful and supportive to me and I want to thank you for that. It's weird because for the last few weeks I have been afraid to tell everyone here that I'm not on Atkins anymore. I was afraid people would be disappointed in me. I wanted to wait until I hit 229 to tell everyone, so you would all know that I'm not giving up, I'm just trying something different. I just worry about everything! Keep up the great work! You are inspiring!

Sunrose, I could have said exactly what you said to me, about me (I'm not sure that makes sense). But anyway, I feel the same way. I never knew what not being hungry 24/7 (or at least every waking moment) was like. Since finding low(er) carb and GI eating I've actually on occasion, had to be reminded by hubby to eat, I cannot begin to explain what a miracle that has been for me.

One thing you can relax about is that, I've met almost no one here who felt that this journey needs to be the same for everybody. That's the mistake I think the weight loss "experts" and researchers are making, trying to find "the diet," that works the best (for everyone). Finding one foodplan that works best for everyone, I think, is a lot less likely than BigFoot going on Oprah.

Hi Sunrose,

Wow, didn't know I affected anyone that way. I don't feel all that special and definitely haven't lost the incredible amounts of weight people like Kim (Jerseygirl) and Lori (Fiberlover) have. Those two are some of my inspirations.

Don't be afraid to tell us you've found something better for you. And speaking for myself, I'm definitely not disappointed in you. Keep checking in though and let us know how it is going? I try to read the forums but there are just so many so I wind up - most of the time - trying to stick in the areas specifically pertaining to my situation.

You've lost a lot of weight. Keep up the great work!

Sunrose it really is true that different eating programs will work for different folks and even I find that at times in my own life different programs will work while others won't.

With your DH still on Atkins it will keep you moving toward low carbing and keep those cravings in check so that will be helpful to you. (We can use all the help we can get!)

I wish my daughter could hear what your saying about losing the cravings on Atkins. I'd really like to have her start low carbing but I don't want to yak at her about her weight.......being heavy is hard enough without the folks you love nattering about it. She knows we're doing Atkins and she can check it out if she's interested but I wish she could read this thread.......

Good luck with your program. If your needing some encouragement drop by to see us!