Hello All,

I'm not new to 3FC but I'm new to Atkins. Over the past three or four years I've lost about 60 pounds mostly sticking to veggies, fruits, lean protein, cheese, yogurt and cutting starches and sugars (though not completely). I'm a cook and never buy packaged or prepared foods so I ate well. But, I was pretty obsessed with food. And I have issues with very dark chocolate - I know it's good for me, but as we all know you can get too much of a good thing.

I've sort of yo-yoed (sp?) between 150 and 160, but today I gathered up my courage and weighed myself and I was 165. I'm 5'7" and that's not super-terrible, but I'm certainly not happy about it. I'm a size 12 again - I can get some of the 10s on but I would say those are my "generous" 10s.

I read Gary Taubes a while back & that changed my thinking about fat & protein. I like the idea of losing & not being hungry! For the past couple of months I've been sort of low-carbing - eating between 30-40 a day. But I would guess my calorie count was pretty high. I haven't been hungry but I do struggle with the urge to just be ingesting something, anything!

When I lost the weight I did a lot of vigorous exercise (which I enjoy) and religiously tracked my intake. I KNOW that I need to do the tracking to keep myself honest. My husband is away for the next two weeks so I've decided to bite the bullet & try Atkins induction. Yesterday except for one thing (chia, which only added one carb but isn't on "the list") I ate things from the induction list. But I was at 2200 calories which made me very nervous.

I am doing yoga nearly every day - hard yoga at a really great studio two blocks away - and was back on the treadmill this morning & lifting weights, so I'm getting that back on track too. My husband & I travel a lot (business & pleasure) which presents challenges - as does my "summer job", which is cook at the fishing lodge we own - naturally I do a lot of baking. That's not really a problem for me though and there are lots of great veggie dishes & of course lots of meat on the menu, so that should be fine since I have nearly two months to get my WOL embedded, so to speak.

Jerseygyrl, you're my hero, (I've been reading the boards here for quite a while) - you tell it like it is and don't sugarcoat , but you're not harsh either. I figure if I hang out here a while I'll have to be honest or I'll hear it from you!

Man, I wish at nearly 45 I wasn't still struggling with this! Thirty years of it! Sheesh.

All the best to all of you,
Sue

Sue!

Thanks for your kind words I enjoy being able to share my experience on Atkins with others. I'm pretty much an Atkins "purist"....meaning I believe if you aren't going to go by the book, especially concerning Induction...you aren't going to be successful. Its a minimum of 2 weeks...if you aren't willing to give yourself 2 weeks to change your life...perhaps Atkins isn't the right plan for you. Some people feel Atkins is "too restrictive" but, lets face it, plans that allow sugar & low fat treats....really aren't going to teach you different eating habits & a total lifestyle change. For anyone seriously interested in losing weight & maintaining the loss...you MUST change your eating habits & your lifestyle!

My best advice to you regarding Atkins....read the book, if you still don't understand it, re-read it. Make 2 copies of the acceptable foods list...http://www.atkins.com/articles/atkin...eptable-foods/ Tape one to the front of your fridge, keep the other with you at all times. Simple rule of thumb..if its not on that list, its NOT allowed! Get your kitchen Atkins ready. Get rid of ALL non-legal foods. Keep legal foods prepared so you won't tend to grab things you shouldn't be eating. Drink plenty of water, at least eight 8 oz. glasses a day. Take a good multivitamin. Get some exercise (walking is great!). Before you know it, the pounds will start coming off & that will keep you motivated to continue!

You CAN do this!!!

All the best to you!!
Kim

Thank you. I'm not going to get rid of what's around, since everything we have is fine for OWL and I'm committed to these two weeks (if it turns out there's a problem I'll be honest with myself & start chucking stuff, but I'm 99% sure it'll be okay, I've been thinking about this for a while). It's been a long time since I ate any kind of junk food. Apart from dark chocolate, which is in fact an essential food group (but not for these two weeks).

I have printed out the acceptable foods from the Atkins website.

I drink a LOT of water, as well as some black coffee in the morning, herbal teas, and yerba mate (look it up, interesting stuff, and very high in potassium, which can be helpful for this WOE). I take a multi, plus vitamin D, salmon oil on days I don't eat salmon, and cal-mag.

I use stevia as a sweetener but I've decided not to bother with even that during induction, and I do have a weakness for cheese but have decided to try to do without at all even though you can have a little in induction. When I do have it now, I weigh it. An ounce of sharp cheddar with 5 olives is a happy snack for me. I'm not big on "substitute" foods - trying to make something LC taste like something else.

cheerio,
Sue

Not much to report, yesterday went fine, stayed OP and was not hungry. I do have a question about coffee, the list I printed off from the website says it's okay but I've noticed others saying it's a no-no.

But mostly I'm posting this to see if I correctly added a ticker or not!

Have a great day everyone.

Thanks, Jerseygyrl.

My confusion stems from the fact that I printed the induction food list off the Atkins website and coffee (both kinds) is on it. I'm going to have some but if my results aren't as expected I'll drop it. I've dropped the cream, which I love, because I have portion control issues and if I can't have quite a bit in my coffee I'd rather drink it black & unsweetened.

I have been a splenda user in the past, especially up at the fishing lodge where I cook - last summer I'd make wild (freshly picked) blueberry and saskatoon pies with it & just eat the filling (the guests can't tell the difference). But I haven't used it for a while - a few drops of stevia in coffee if I feel like something sweet. I've ditched anything with aspartame for now (on & off the diet coke wagon from time to time). I love herbal teas and find most of them quite sweet enough without anything added.

cheers,
Sue

I think the idea Dr. Atkins had behind suggesting that you "avoid" caffeine is that it can cause people to have cravings, it's a diuretic, and people tend to be addicted to it. The purpose of induction is to break all you food (and drink) based addictions.

Last summer I quit caffeine during Atkins Induction, but I've since been back on it. It's a sort of crutch for me right now at college, and I don't have three days to spare to get off of it. That's really all it takes--three days. BUT those three days last time, at least for me, involved REALLY bad headaches, being exhausted and sleeping a lot. With 3 weeks left to my final semester at college, I can't afford to go through withdrawals so I'm waiting until classes are over to cut the caffeine.

Once you're off the caffeine, it really does feel better and it's so NICE not to NEED it anymore.

Some days I don't have any, some days I have a fair bit. Going without doesn't seem to affect me the way it affects some (headaches, etc.). I also don't get "buzzed" if I drink a lot, and I can sleep after drinking several cups (sometimes if I get up too early I'll do some work, drink some coffee, and am able to go back to bed just fine).

I am drinking a LOT of water, which probably helps with the diuretic aspect. As I said, if my results don't seem as expected then I'll drop it. It definitely doesn't give me cravings - actually, it suppresses my appetite. Which I suppose may be a subconsciou reason I'm not eager to give it up...

cheers, Sue