Starting Induction Monday - Need help
 

Hi All, I'm wondering if you can help me. I'm starting Induction on Monday and need some breakfast ideas so I can shop and get ready over the weekend--convenient things that don't require cooking or much assembly time. Are there bars or anything? The other big challenge is Starbucks, of course. Is there anything there I can get during this phase or the next? Thanks for your help! All suggestions welcome.

I'm not a huge Breakfast eater, mostly because I'm not hungry first thing and am NOT a morning person, so getting ready for work is about all I can handle :),.......so I usually just grab a hunk of cheese, or I always have cooked up chicken breast so I can grab that, also deviled eggs are filling.........I have found since I like Omlets and there pretty low in points, I make one the night before , wrap really tight in foil, in the morning Nuke it , and it isn't bad, I'm not to fond of this after more than a day has past because the egg gets kinda rubbery..........

Not to sure about Starbucks, never been in there except to grab there grounds for my Compost Pile, lol...........I know that International Delights has a 3pt Flavored creamer, I LOVE the Southern Butter Pecan :)

The very best of WL luck to you :)

Boil some eggs and keep in your fridge. Also some ham slices that you can roll up. I usually put cream cheese on mine, roll them up and you can take them with you. Also carry pork rinds in your car, in your bag, on your person, in your desk, at home, etc. lol I'm on day 5 of induction and that's all the ideas I have for take with you stuff. Oh, I have taken leftover chicken with me also. Not too bad with coffee. Nothing is really bad with coffee.

I save the bars for when I ABSOLUTELY cannot get a lunch on the go. I try not to rely on them. Learning to re-eat decent food is the interesting (and hard) part. Try bringing cauliflower, celery and broccoli for snacks. For breakfast I usually nuke a couple sausage links, fry some eggs and I'm usually eating within 5 minutes. DH puts a couple eggs and cut up sausage, peppers, onions and such into a microwave dish and heats that up. It's yummy also. I don't eat much variation so I can't help much. But good luck!!

I love turkey bacon YUMMY, but only the Louis Rich brand, others are GAK!!!

Also you can make and freeze those egg muffins. Use a 12 hole muffin pan. Get a bowl, mix 8 eggs, zucchini, cheese, sauage, any veggie you like, salt, garlic powder, put batter in muffin holes and cook for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. The possibilites are endless because you can add anything you like, any veggie any meat, ham cheese and viola, an egg muffin, you can eat them cold or nuke em at work. I gotta find the recipe some where on one of these sites.........brb.

Here's the version thats on south beach.. you get the point.......

I mixed together 8 eggs, a shredded zucchini, 4 fried and crumbled slices of bacon, a cup of mozz cheese and put it all in 6 of those huge muffins cups after I sprayed them with Pam. I baked them at 350 for 20 minutes until they were browned a bit.

Next time I'm making them with pepperoni, mozz and oregano. How about cheddar cheese with broccoli and maybe a touch of onion? The variety is endless.

Being a non-breakfast eater for my entire life, this was the biggest change for me. I still can't eat a meal in the morning, so I just have a few little things that I spread out over the course of 6 am till noon. Some ideas: pre-cooked frozen sausage, bacon, string cheese, any cheese for that matter, cucumber slices, bell pepper slices, celery sticks with cream cheese, leftovers from the night before....... No one said that breakfast has to consist of what we typically think of as breakfast food. Don't limit yourself!

As for Starbucks, since you're on induction, get an Americano. If you go to www.starbucks.com you can check out the nutritional info for any type of drink you're curious about so you know exactly what you're getting yourself into. Research is priceless.

One last hint. Stay away from specialty products (bars, shakes, candy, etc.) they will only set you up for failure at this point. Part of the purpose of induction is to re-structure your eating habits. So stick with the whole, natural foods and leave the frankenfoods for someone else. ;)

I thought we couldn't have milk on Induction? Also, on the Atkins site, it says we can have Atkins Advantage bars and shakes on Induction. I've seen some conflicts on what they say in the book and what it says on the site. The Atkins site also has a sample Induction menu that lists a strawberry shake for breakfast, but I thought we weren't supposed to have any fruit at all?

Nope. No milk on induction. The atkins site IS very confusing. I think people starting Atkins should go by the book. That's the STRICT induction. Makes you re-think how you eat (well, SOME of us :lol: ). I'm a firm believer that there is STRICT induction and then induction (where things like a few nuts are allowed). Nope, no fruit on induction either. The list for induction foods is very limited if you go by the book. In fact I need to re-read the book!!!!

There are 2 Atkins'. One is a doctor who developed a fantastic plan for health and weightloss. The other is a corporation that is out to make money. One you should listen to, the other you should not. I have yet to meet someone who has been successful losing weight and keeping it off by living on shakes and bars. Whole food is where it's at.

So you guys are saying "go by the book"? It seems like the Atkins site is mostly "buy our products" and stuff, and I know there's other, better, stuff out there. I even emailed the company and asked about the conflict of information, and they basically sent me a reprint of the food list from the book and added on the stuff about their products showing the little icon showing the phases. I don't intend to live by the convenience foods, but when you first start out it's hard knowing what to eat and being creative about it. Sometimes I think it would be easy to grab a bar/shake in the morning or if I'm on the run (very stressful job), but can you suggest which ones are good for occasional use and if I can use them on Induction (although if I go by the book, it's "no," right?)?

mbscalise, your right, when you first start out it is confusing and frustrating as all heck, but you really need to learn the ropes first before going to the bars/shakes. It is hard but you can do it, then in no time, it becomes 2nd nature. Honest!!

So Leenie... when you are making these egg muffins.. how many carbs are you counting them as? do you vary them based on what you put in them?

mbscalise - Just check'n to see you're going in your first week...

mbscalise - You have received wonderful advice here. The biggest thing it that no matter what you do, you will succeed. Don't worry about doing everything perfect...just doing something is going to make a difference in you! You will do great!!!

You guys have been great! Thanks for all the advice. I've been following the plan (from the book) to the "T," no bars or shakes at all. It's my 5th day and I'm not sure how far I'm down (I weighed myself a couple of days ago and was down a few pounds!). Star's suggestion of cream cheese on celery and precooked sausages solved my breakfast dilemmas this week, but I still have to work on figuring out breakfast ideas (I'm fine with non-breakfast foods for breakfast).

Another question: how many of you really stay away from the sugar alcohols and aspartame? I've been religious this week about not having it. Aspartame is hard to avoid!

And does anyone know of any good gum with Splenda?

Thanks again! I'll check-in in a few days to report the progress. Thanks for the support!

I'm glad my suggestions helped! I also like ricotta on celery, but I'm weird :dizzy:

I very rarely have anything with sugar alcohols in it and when I do, it's the least amount possible. As for aspartame, I love diet cherry coke, so I have some once in a while, but too much gives me a stomach ache.

Gum with splenda I can't help you with. Chewing gum doesn't agree with my tongue ring so I stick with mints. But here's an interesting tidbit about breath fresheners: studies have shown that the most effective mints/gum contain real cinnamon oils.

Check into the Daily Food Log here. It'll give you an idea as to what our eating habits are like. Also come into daily chat. There is always information being exchanged in there not only about food but about exercise and it will help keep you motivated.

I used to indulge in sugar-free candy w/sugar alcohols, until I found out through this website that really, the sugar alcohols count toward total carbs. It was part of a major stall for me. So, I threw all my SF snacks of that sort in the garbage. It's made a world of difference.

As for aspertamine. Just can't give that up. I'm a diet coke addict. I NEED one a day.

Hey, by the way, I lost 6 pounds this week! Thanks for all your help! And I'll check the food log; I think that will help too. I'm really finding that I need to find some kind of gum/mints (my breath is awful!). I'm wondering if the aspartame in maybe one piece of gum/day will affect me? And when you guys have the Diet Coke and Diet Cherry Coke, what do you do about the caffeine? My husband and I usually had the Diet Decaf Coke which was fine, but it has aspartame, so I switched to Waist Watcher which has Splenda (and is cheaper). I am finding that there are a lot of sugar free products I'd love to try, but they have aspartame, so I shy away.

I'm a long ways away from induction, so I drink caffeine. Not much, though. I have 1 cup of coffee on work mornings and a diet cherry coke maybe 2 or 3 times a week.

Try not to get too hung up on the little stuff. It's good to be vigilant so the old habits don't creep back up on you, but it's counter-productive to get obsessive over it. I'm not saying that you personally are obsessing, but I've seen it happen so I'm giving you fair warning.

1 or 2 grams of sugar alcohols from a piece of gum won't kill you. But a sugar-free candy bar that's loaded with the crap every day most likely will. To be successful, you must change how and what you eat. Contrary to what the food industry would like you to believe, this does not mean just switching to the low/lower carb versions of the same crap we've always eaten.

Sorry - off the soapbox ;)

Actually, right now I guess I am obsessing. I want to get it right from the start so I don't continue a pattern of guessing and altering, you know? And doing the program 100% is important to me and keeps me motivated. When I start tweaking a little here and a little there, I personally get lazy about it and say "oh, this won't hurt me." I think when I'm well on my way, I'll learn how to adapt. I know it varies for everyone, but what's an average weight loss after Induction? And, thanks, all. You've really helped me a lot with this!

I can honestly say I obsess about it. I want to do it right and usually it's when I start adding more to my list of "edibles" that I start to get in trouble. I stick (usually) with low carb stuff---but just eat too MUCH of it.
I lost about 10 pounds during induction. My DH has lost 15. Some people only lose a couple. Some have lost tons more than this. I stick to pretty much induction type foods yet (except the foray into strawberries I took) so that I know my carb count is low. Not to mention I'm afraid to add more :lol: I know I have to venture eventually...but right now I need to get back into the weight loss mode.

Forgot to mention...make sure you don't obsess SO much that you give up. Or get bored with your choices.

I guess my point is that it's good to relax about things. If you have a piece of gum and suddenly the scale is up a pound, don't freak. A piece of gum cannot make you gain a pound.

Some things to keep in mind.

* Most people's weight fluctuates as much as 5 pounds over the course of the day. Instead of watching a specific number, watch your 'range'. It's a much better indicator of how much you're losing.

* Measure yourself. Just because pounds don't move doesn't mean that inches aren't.

* It is impossible to gain 3 pounds in 1 day. If you eat something you shouldn't have and the scale is suddenly up. DO NOT FREAK! It's not real weight.

* It's important to stick to the rules of induction while you're on it. The point is to establish healthy eating habits. As long as that's your focus, you'll be fine. You want to develop a healthy relationship with food. Living if fear of what you eat is not a healthy relationship.

As for your other question: there is not average weight loss. We're all different - different amounts of weight to lose, different metabolic rates, different exercise levels, and different genetic pre-dispositions. You'll learn what normal for you. :D

I never WAS normal ;)

You guys are a bevvy of information!

Brenda, I understand what you mean about being afraid to venture into new territory, but what Star says is true: if we stick to the plan and develop good relationships with food, then we shouldn't be afraid to add new things. But, I'm with you: I have to watch portions!

So tonight I'm having turkey sausage with the Atkins eggplant parm from the book. Maybe I'll just make it into a lasagna layering eggplant and turkey sausage and cheese. That sounds pretty good.

Star, thanks for bringing me off the paranoia!

Anytime! ;)