Diva...I had been doing Atkins until last week. I think that SBD is a healthier way to go about lowcarbing (thats just my personal opinion) There is a right way and a wrong way to do lowcarb that is for sure. As a fellow carb addict I can tell you the first couple of days are pretty hard, going through carb withdrawl, but once you get past that its a piece of cake. I stopped craving breads and pastas, my cravings turned into fruit cravings, thats really why I stopped doing the strict low carb and started doing a healthier approach. But, because I had several off plan days I'm got those carb cravings again so I gotta detox again!! GRR! LOL! Okay I'm rambling! Time to get the little one from school!

~melissa

Diva, I really enjoyed Atkins when I was on it. I can't do it right now because I'm nursing. Yes, the first few days are terrible, but it's worth it. The cravings really disappear, at least they did for me. Good on you for reading the book, so many people just jump into it thinking they can just eat a bunch of meat. I hope you enjoy it!

Thats a very good point Leeda, its not just eating meat, too many people think lowcarb means no carb and thats just not the case. Your body still needs carbs. I lost more when I stayed over 20 carbs (which is very strict) and could feel it when I didnt get that many. I need to detox off the bad carbs though. I'm really looking forward to getting that crap out of my system again.

Off to check weigh ins, I really hope everyone got their numbers posted!

~melissa

Good Morning Red team!! Well despite it all we pulled out a Red Team win!! Just think what we could do if we had a strong active team! There'd be no stopping us!! I think Red team needs to stop and regroup and remember why it was that we joined this challenge. I think its natural for us all to lose steam after a bit, this weightloss journey is a long hard one! So lets recommit, and we'll start with a little survey. I would like EVERY Red team member to please answer this survey!

1. Why do you want to lose weight?

2. What is one thing you plan to do for yourself once you reach your goal?

3. What is your short term goal?

4. Where have you found success so far?

5. What area are you struggling in and would like help?

6. If you could have a personal trainer or a personal chef which would you pick?

7. Name something about your body that you love?

8. What is something you can do now that you couldnt do before you started losing the weight?

9. What is your favorite part about your plan?

10. What is your Turkey day goal? (approx. 3 weeks from now)

Have a fantastic day Red team!!

1. Why do you want to lose weight? Because I'm tired of being embarrassed to be in my own skin, and I dont want to die yet!

2. What is one thing you plan to do for yourself once you reach your goal?
I plan to have a bonfire and burn all my fat clothes! And I'm throwing myself a HUGE party!

3. What is your short term goal?
to get below 200! and to start working out on a regular basis

4. Where have you found success so far? eating until recently I had that down pat!

5. What area are you struggling in and would like help? exercise!!!

6. If you could have a personal trainer or a personal chef which would you pick? BOB!!!! Actually I'll take either bob...the trainer or the chef (bobby flay)! LOL!

7. Name something about your body that you love?
My lower thighs are really muscular

8. What is something you can do now that you couldnt do before you started losing the weight? Go through the day without needing a nap.

9. What is your favorite part about your plan? well I'm floundering at the moment, but I really love that I can have my morning coffee guilt free

10. What is your Turkey day goal? (approx. 3 weeks from now) 6 lbs!

~melissa

1. Why do you want to lose weight? Several reasons:
a. to be a role model to my son and any other children I have
b. to feel confident in my health and sex appeal
c. to feel more attractive to my husband and know that he is proud of having a fit wife
d. to not feel like the odd man out around my skinny friends
e. to look in the mirror and see a body that I don't hate
f. to live a healthy and hopefully long life

2. What is one thing you plan to do for yourself once you reach your goal? Get some professional photos done

3. What is your short term goal? To run a half marathon and to be out of the 190s

4. Where have you found success so far? calorie counting and running

5. What area are you struggling in and would like help? water, quitting soda, decreasing the amount of junk I eat

6. If you could have a personal trainer or a personal chef which would you pick? Hmm, good question...I guess the chef

7. Name something about your body that you love? I love my skin (well except for the stretch marks), it's mostly pretty nice

8. What is something you can do now that you couldnt do before you started losing the weight? I can run 3 miles and I can wear SOME size 12s

9. What is your favorite part about your plan? Making this a lifestyle

10. What is your Turkey day goal? (approx. 3 weeks from now)
four pounds!

Diva, I would really give lowcarb a try, it really does what you want...gets you off the sugar and I was never hungry, in fact I had to remind myself to eat. The thing is though that on lowcarb you CANNOT cheat. Because if you do you throw yourself out of weightloss mode and it can take you days to recover. I kinda like that kind of rigidity but it can get frustrating if you arent strict.

~melissa

I'm not on the red team, so I hope its okay if I chime in. I have been on both Atkins and Southbeach and both plans do work well. In January, I began Southbeach and the two weeks on phase 1 really helped me to break my addiction to starchy sugary carbohydrates. Now, I'm still following a "looser" version of Southbeach....I do sometimes eat potatoes or something with added sugar...and I now sometimes count calories to help keep myself in control. I never realized how easy it was to eat too much of the healthy foods and still gain weight. I am insulin resistant, which is the pre-cursor to diabetes, so plans that limit processed foods, added sugars and refined grains work very well for me. But, I really believe that everyone can benefit from a plan that focuses on lean meats, healthy fats in moderation and fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains. I recommend you try Atkins or Southbeach and tweak the plan to meet your needs as you progress on yourweight loss journey. Afterall, you are learning how to eat for the rest of your life...to lose the weight and to maintain that loss forever.

Diva, I'm sure you've seen the diabetic chapter in the atkins book. I have known a few diabetics who went on atkins and a lot of them were able to go off their oral meds once they were well into the diet. I will tell you my favorite parts about atkins:

1. After the first couple of days of induction, I would sometimes have to make myself eat because the hunger that ALWAYS seemed to be there was gone.
2. I ate more veggies than I ever did before
3. If I had sweets, I would feel really sick. IT made me think twice before I binged on unhealthy foods.
4. I liked OWL (the second phase) because it helped me identify foods that caused cravings or slowed down my weight loss.
It's not for everyone, but if you like structure, and a little help with cravings, it's a killer plan. It can be done for life, if it's right for you.

Hey everyone,
A Red win! Isn't that fantastic? It has been a tough few weeks for our crew d/t people dropping out and not posting. So it's great we were still able to pull out a win.

DIVA--I have been on every diet out there and I continously come back to WW. Here's hoping you will find that one for you.

Leeda--I looked at your progress pictures. There is a huge difference just from 29 pounds. Keep up the good work.

Today's menu
BF--Steelcut oatmeal, yogurt, coffee with sf flavored creamer
S--yogurt
L--SO Florentine Lasagna, SF jello
S--granola bar
S--biscotti
D--7 pts

WW--26+7 flex points=33 pts

Whew this is getting long. I will do a different post for the survey.