Hi everybody! My name is Elissa (pronounced like Melissa but no M). I live in Los Angeles, California and I'm a single mom to three kids (ages 15-girl, 9-boy & 4-boy). After getting married and having two more kids, naturally, I gained weight. I lost 35 lbs. on weight watchers BUT have gained 20 lbs. back. I've kinda sorta tried low carbing in the past (with no success) but this is the first time I am going to REALLY do Atkins the way I'm supposed to. I have the book and have been doing ALOT of reading online. Anyway, I wanted to say hello and introduce myself and join the low carb chatting with ya'll Today is day one of induction for me and right now I'm focusing on getting into ketosis. Any suggestions and/or input is GREATLY appreciated!! Especially because I want to be ready for summer!

So far today I've had coffee w/sugar free cream (3 carbs), a hamburger patty w/a little bit of cheddar cheese and 2 fried eggs (1.2 carbs)

for lunch I plan on having 1 cup of romaine lettuce (.3 carbs) w/ranch dressing (2 carbs) and some polska kielbaska sausage (4 carbs according to the label).

Not sure about dinner yet but how does that look so far?

Thank you!!!!

Sounds good. Welcome. One thing I have done when I wanted to get into ketosis really fast? Fast for one day. It helps the ketosis come on quicker and helps the cravings go away faster. It is extreme and not for everyone. The alternative is to just wait three days. Ketosis is usually there for me by day three. By the second day when I fast the first day though.

Hi Sherry! Thanks for the tip. I've already eaten breakfast today so far (not lunch yet though). When you say fast you mean as in don't eat ANYTHING AT ALL??? Hmmm....I don't know if I can do that! lol I can try though. What if I fasted tomorrow (day 2) instead? Once you get into ketosis is when the weight starts falling off right???

I wouldn't fast at this point because just sticking to induction is hard enough to stick to, and the weight will fall quickly enough this first two weeks w/o doing anything drastic.

As for your menu...
You've only had one cup of salad today, are you planning to eat the other two (or one cup salad + one cup legal veggies) for dinner? You won't loose any faster by not eating, you'll just make yourself hungry and miserable, so be sure to get your legal veggies in.

Also, it's advisable to skip processed food during the first two weeks. Keep it clean and you'll have better results. Skip the kilbasa, lunch meat, hot dogs, etc. for now, and go for baked\grilled\broiled\boiled chicken, steak, fish, shrimp, pork, eggs, cheese, etc.

Also, I can't stress enough that you need to drink your water. I'm sure you saw the difference between drinking and not drinking when you were on WW, and it's at least as important (if not moreso) here.

Finally, a delicate matter...
Fiber! If you don't have some sort of sugar free fiber suppliment around the house now, you need to go get some and start taking it today. Need I say more?

WELCOME!!!!

Tenn

Hi Tenn,

I forgot to mention...I DO drink my water. I'm drinking at least 64 oz a day. And yes, I was going to have some meat or fish and some veggies for dinner. I think I had TOO MUCH veggies in the past and that's why the LC'ing didn't really work for me so I'm being careful when it comes to that. I haven't had my lunch yet and I have a whole bag of lettuce here (at work) so I can do more than one cup if you think that's better? Also, can you suggest a good (brand) of a sugar free fiber supplement? Thanks!!! Oh...and I meant to ask you...even if you count the carbs in the processed stuff (opposed to meat being zero carbs) you should still stay away from it? Thanks!

Yeah!!!!
Just trying to go strictly by the book, which I think says 2 cups of salad\salad veggies for lunch. Double check me though
I wouldn't be able to do this if I had to drink Metamucil, although it's really a a good one, so I get generic psyllium capsuls at Target.
Processed meats have a lot of salt, and that can effect your bodys abiliy to flush during induction. It may also make it appear that you aren't loosing when you really are, so it's best to avoid them when on induction.

Great to have you on board!!!

Okaaaay...I thought it was 2 cups of salad per DAY but I will double check the book. Well, just to be on the safe side, I'll have 2 cups of lettuce at lunch today (in an hour ) I'll see if I can buy some grilled chicken around here instead of eating the polska sausage. I forgot to mention, I have string cheese for a snack later this afternoon but how about the sugar free jello while on induction....is that okay?

Psyllium capsuls...those work well because I don't really want to drink Metamucil either!

Thank you very much!

This is an EXCELLENT point, Tenn! Fiber isn't stressed enough, and sometimes if you get hemorrhoids, they don't go away. I mix 2 packages of SF metamucil in water and take at least 5 psyllium husks a day....gotta get that fiber in!!

is that normal...to take THAT MANY psyllium capsules a day?

The brand I take are metamucil brand and they come pre-packaged. There are 5 in a package and the directions state:

"Take this product (Adults and children 12 yrs. & older, 5 capsules swallowed 1 at a time) with at least 8 ounces of water or other fluid for use as a dietary supplement.
Can be taken up to 4 times daily"

I'm not recommending how much a person take, that is what is stated on the package and that is what I take.

wanted to add that psyllium husk also comes in a crushed up powder-like form in a little canister....tons of info on it all over the internet if ya google it

wanted to add that psyllium husk also comes in a crushed up powder-like form in a little canister....tons of info on it all over the internet if ya google it

thank you! I'll check it out online.

Atkins' web site says 3 cups of veggies per day for induction and it has a list that's acceptable. There is also a list of veggies you can have 1 cup of that are higher in carbs if you only eat 2 cups from the first list.

It doesn't mention sugar free Jell-O, but I eat it with spray whipped cream while on Induction - it has less than a gram of carbs with both.

that's what my understanding was as well. There is a list of veggies you can have 2 or 3 cups of a day and there's a list of veggies that you can only have 1 cup of per day (and if you eat a cup of those then you only have 2 cups of the other veggies). But it's good to know you can have the SF jello and whipped cream (the canned kind?). Thank you!!