This is day five on atkins and here is how I'm feeling.

I am so tired, I feel icky (can't explain it...just icky) I wake up everynight crying from leg cramps from H@**, and my cravings still haven't gone away. I know it's only been five days, but I can't last feeling this way for two weeks!

I've read the book about the leg cramps. I drink 80 or more ounce of water everyday so I'm not too dehydrated. I take my vitamins twice a day. I would rather eat foods that contain the nutrients I'm needing rather than taking more pills.

I wake up feeling blah. No energy. Sluggish. I miss fruit, milk and cereal!

I don't ever feel energetic enough to want to do my excercises, but I do them anyway because I know I need too, but I feel even more worn out afterwards. (And I'm not doing a whole lot!)

And I'm shakey a lot too.

So.... what is my problem? I don't know if this program is for me. I am trying my darndest to stick with it through the induction period to see if things start to change....and here five days later--

I feel like I've made more progress from my previous ways of getting in shape. And the only reason I've gained the 10lbs, is because I stopped completely. So if I were to just get back to doing what I used to do... I think I would feel better and I never deprived myself of anything. (I managed to lose 40lbs that way)

You all have been such great support and I feel like I would be letting you all down if I chose to stop doing this. I plan to at least get through the induction period... Hoping it all gets better. I just had to come here and explain how I'm feeling.

Any advice would be greatly welcomed.

Marti

Marti - I've posted this before to someone else...(I forget who or when)... but I know for a fact that this plan is not for my dh because he loves his fruit and rice just way too much. I think everyone needs to find what is best for their body. I truly believe Atkins is a great plan for larger sizes - like me L - but that's because I have a real problem with blood sugars going too high. If you are feeling that shakey - maybe yours are too low?

The leg cramps I believe mean a shortage of potassium in your body. And the cravings (for me at least) didn't disappear until I was about 5 weeks into induction....BUT I was addicted to sugar and ate a tremendous amount of it. In that respect I think the Chromium Picolinate has really helped me to cut down on the cravings also.

I'm not sure what effect it would have - but what about adding one banana a day - it's your fruit and high in potassium, right? See I never felt deprived at all on this plan only because the only thing I wished for was candy - which is not allowed on ANY plan. I very easily walked away from milk, cereals, fruit, bread, pasta and rice. Again - that is a personal taste thing - but that is what made Atkins easier than any other plan for me.

I have also been very successful in the past on a low fat diet - but that diet left me hungry ALL THE TIME. Hopefully you will get others to answer with more information - mine is strictly an opinion. But any plan is tough to get used to so I understand how you are feeling right now. :hugs:

Marti - I was extremely tired for the first month that I did this woe. I had cravings so often that it became a joke among those who know me.

As for cramps, check what's in your vitamins. Everyone usually attributes cramps with potassium deficiencies but that's probably not the case since there is lots and lots of potassium in meat. There are 3 other deficiencies that can cause leg cramps. Calcium, magnesium, and sodium. Make sure you're getting enough of each.

I agree with Kim that this woe is not for everyone. No single woe is. But I think that if you really want to do it, then keep going. It gets easier as your body switches gears and you start exploring the huge amount of food options you really have. If you haven't, start checking out the food log that some of us keep. It's great for ideas.

Marti: I, too, have been extremely tired on this WOE. I started on Oct. 6, and I just started to regain my energy after a month. The first week is definitely the worst. I had a terrible headache and virtually no energy. But, after the first week, the headache was gone. The energy has taken awhile longer, but I'm finally starting to feel great. I'm getting in more exercise than I ever have before now.

I still have cravings... I was really hoping they would go away. But, my cravings, like Kim's, are for candy, which is not allowed on any plan. I do not miss bread or pasta. So, this plan works for me. Low-fat plans do not -- I was always starving and didn't have much successs. But, like everyone has said, different plans work for everyone. You have to just decide which is best for you and stick with it!

Take care,
Jina

I don't mean to sound as though I am in some way a superhero *hehehe* but this is just to reitterate that this woe isn't for everyone, and you have to find your niche to discover if it would work for you. I have had the opposite result of most people. I was BOUNCING off the walls the first few weeks after I started this woe. Literally too much energy to sit still. I had a serious caffeine addiction to overcome, and for whatever reason, my body just decided that no withdrawl was needed. I just bounced right into processing fats instead of carbs without the yucky side effects that most people experience when first starting. Lucky me!

As far as the leg cramps go, Star is totally correct. I was always told that potassium is the culprit behind leg cramps, which not entirely true. Just as Star mentioned, Calcium, Magnesium, and Sodium levels that dip low can also be to blame for terrible leg cramps. I found that most of the daily vitamins give you plenty of the first two, but many lack sodium (because of it's negative reputation). I wasn't aware of this at first, partially because I was so sprung about starting this woe, but my lack of sodium dropped drastically when I began Atkins. The reason? Most of the food I salted was carby!!! Potatoes, pasta, popcorn. Go figure. I was suffering from nightly cramps that would keep me up for hours, and make me limp for days. I mentioned this to Star, she popped online and found me the answer. My new goal is to make sure I salt just one meal a day. And it doesn't take a whole lot, just a tad. Bam, no leg cramps since.

As with any kind of change that takes place, your body needs a little time to adjust. It's going to rebel against differences. It's going to crave things you know you don't need. And that's the tough part, sticking it out until you get past that first little hurdle. Once you get there, if you realize this woe of eating is not for you, then it's ok to move on and find something that works for you. Don't worry, we'll still love you anyway!

I wish you the best of luck!

Aww!! You guys are all so nice!!

Today has been the worst day for me. I feel as though I'm coming out of a deep deep sleep and just can't wake up.

Before starting this... I didn't eat much sweets, like cake or cookies or candy. Just on some occasions. My salt intake has always been limited since I used to have HBP and I don't want to have that go up.

The pasta and breads, I don't find that I'm craving them, although I wouldn't mind having some! Didn't eat much bread, it always went to waste.... I didn't eat much potatoes... I started cutting down on those before summer.

The things I'm craving right now are fruits. And milk. And let me tell you I have never been a huge milk drinker so that one puzzles me.

I rarely ate red meat. Not because I don't like it, just because of how I felt after eating it. Sluggish and non-energetic. And that's pretty much how I'm feeling now. And I haven't ate any red meats. I've been eating chicken. And lots of leafy green salads and other vegetables.. So I don't think I'm eating poorly.

You are all so right about certain diets fitting certain people... I just thought I could do this. My body right now is saying that I can't... but my mind is going to stick with it until I just can't stand it anymore.

This is such a great support group that for some reason I just felt terrible for even voicing how I felt, thinking that I would look like some kind of failure and be letting you all down. I am just sooo glad that it's working for you all. And if I can stand it,, I will keep trying. But I'm not going to promise that I will be an atkins for life type of person. Maybe I just don't have patience...but feeling this bad almost has me wondering if this is even worth it. But girls.. I'll try to get through this induction period!! Thank you for your support...I hope you don't think I'm someone who is just not serious enough or wants it bad enough to do this..... or maybe I am I don't know?

Thank you for listening to me.....

Marti

Marti,
Recently I felt the same way, like I wasn't sure whether or not I should express what was going on with me but these ladies are great and by definition a support group supports in good times and bad. If you need anything I'm sure all of us here would be happy to help. Hang in there sweetie.

Jamie

BE CAREFUL taking extra potassium. I read that taking unnecessary potassium could be bad.

For leg cramps take magnesium and they will go away in a day or so. It definitly worked for me.


MNJ your not a failure.........do you think we all knew this stuff when we first started NO WAY!!! we've all learned it along the way and we've all felt the frustrations that come along with it. Heck ! I'm still frustrated lol.

Hugs !!

I was the complete opposite. I'm still in the early phase (not even a week on Atkins). I started out bouncing off the walls. But after5 days of little sleep i'm starting to run out of energy. Any clues what happened??

lady_adnerb - I had the same reaction. I was hyper, had severe insomnia and just got so much done around the house.

Then, after several days I just crashed and could NOT stay awake!

Then, everything evened out and I was fine.... but it sure was strange. I even emailed Atkins.com about the insomnia and they suggested it was maybe a vitamin deficiency of some sort which I suppose is entirely possible.

It's interesting to see peoples reactions to the initial effects of this diet. There is a LOT to take into account (vitamins, caffeine/sugar addictions, etc.). I bounced off the walls and dreamed of eating mangoes and grapes. My sister felt like she had been hit by a truck for about a month.

Here's my two cents on the cravings ---------

1 cent: Your body does generally crave what it needs.

2 cent: Your MIND generally tends to convince you that you need whatever it is you know you can't have.

That being said, give it T-I-M-E!!!

you might be tired, too, if you are not eating enough fats and protein. if you're eating mostly veggies, they will process quickly and could leave you shaky with no energy (that's what happens to me).

on induction, i have found that i must eat a whole lot more than i normally would and focus on getting enough fats and protein. atkins talks about this in his book, especially for people who are use to dieting or watching their calories. they tend to under-eat on this diet, and at least at first that shouldn't be done.

he said you can worry about limiting calories later, but at first eat as much of the allowed foods as you can.

just a thought.