After being on Atkins, and off...and on...I fashioned an eating plan I feel I could live with. I'm not sure though if it would be one that I could lose weight on. I tried to be healthy, and ofcourse I wouldn't be eating every single thing on the below every single day. Just allowed and not allowed foods.. Could someone help me out here and give me an idea of how nutritious, and if its possible to lose weight with this plan? Much thanks in advance!

EM

Unlimited Foods: Salad Vegetables, Carrots, Celery, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Tomatoes - All raw only. Plain Tea, water.

Limited Foods: Squash, Peas, beans, 2 X weekly, Fruit 1x daily, Cheese 3 ounces daily, Butter/Mayo/Ranch/CreamCheese/Plain Yogurt/Sugar free Peanut Butter up to 2 tblsp. daily, 3 cups Soy milk or 1 8 ounce of milk daily, Chicken/Fish 3x a day, OR 1 serving beef, Eggs 3 per day, 1 handful of nuts allowed daily. Sugar Free Candy 2x a week, Diet soda, Crystal light up to 2x daily. Healthy oils like Sunflower etc. up to 1/4 cup a day.

No No Foods: Bread, Sugar, Pasta, Rice, Potatoes, Corn, Candy, Chips, etc.

Thanks so much ladies

Oh, I would be excercising 30 minutes daily too 4x a week.

Oh, I'd need to know if I should count calories, carbs, fat grams or what... I'm so naive about these kinds of things.

I'm partial to counting calories I think you have a good starting point here. I have lists of foods that I carry to the grocery. Lean proteins and things that grow As you go along, your list will expand. Just keep reading labels.
If you use a programme like fitday.com you can keep track of calories and nutrients.
And you can always come back here and ask more questions. We're happy to help.

Well...if the calories are low enough, then you'll probably lose weight.

It seems terribly restrictive to me...and not really that healthy - very similar to Atkins IMO. And not all that low in calories...if you consider the following:

1/4 cup of sunflower oil: 482 calories
1/4 cup almonds (my idea of a 'handful') - 204 calories
2 TBS peanut butter: 200 calories

That's 886 calories - and I hadn't even counted the fruit, protein, milk, eggs, etc.

I'm with MrsJim on this one...

Thanks to you gals. I still think it might work for me.. But yeah, I understand the not terribly low calorie thing either. I lose weight with low carbs & the Atkins science I do believe in really. I guess it cant hurt to try and see if it works maybe. Healthier then what I've been doing lately anyways. (Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate)

Aren't diets supposed to be restrictive of SOMETHING?

I count calories, and I allow myself almost anything I want as long as I include it in my log for the day. I could eat a slice of cheesecake every day if I wanted to, as long as I counted the calories and worked it into my allowance. You don't have to restrict yourself from the things you love to lose weight, you simply have to have control over them.

Like you'll hear a million times, it all comes down to calories eaten vs. calories burned. As long as you take in less than you expel, you will lose weight. I think the reason Atkins works so well for a lot of poeple is that they actually eat less calories without realizing it. For example, whereas someone might have had a chicken breast (possibly with some sort of heavy sauce), a cup of mashed potatoes, 1/2 cup of corn, and a glass of milk for dinner pre-diet, the Atkins dieter might have a fresh veggie salad, a chicken breast (plain or with a low-sugar condiment), a cup of mashed cauliflower, and water (or some other low- or no-calorie drink). The Atkins meal would have fewer calories in addition to fewer carbs, therefore further promoting weight loss.

What you're proposing seems very similar to South Beach--have you checked that diet out at all? It includes fruits and things that you can't have on Atkins and, IMHO (for what it's worth ), is therefore much healthier than Atkins. If you feel the ned to restrict carbs, I highly suggest it, for it also includes a third phase for maintenance once you've reached your goal, so it's a smart plan for life.

Hi EM...saw your post over here, so hope you don't mind me jumping in

One problem is...if diets are restrictive of "something", lots of times it's the things you crave most, and not getting it at all makes you crave it more and more, setting yourself up for that proverbial fall off the wagon. The other problem is that if you look at a diet as a way to get your weight down by restricting yourself...then once you have lost weight, if you go back to your old eating habits, history will repeat itself and you will gain back what you lost. If you are like me, you will gain back what you lost and then some.

I like WW because there are no gimmicks. I can truly eat whatever I want -- it's all about portion control, and making better food choices. Increase my activity, and I can have a little more of the foods that are "treats". I know that I will be a WW for life, and this is a plan that my husband and I can live with from now on.

I agree with jillybean and MrsJim, it boils down to calorie intake vs calories burned. I don't think carbs are the enemy, but refined sugars and flours are not good for you, that's for sure. And everyone has their "trigger" foods that they need to be careful of -- for me, I will never drink regular Coke again, because once I start, it becomes like coffee for me and I can drink 6 cans a day without batting an eye. Diet Dr Pepper is my friend.

Happy new year everyone. I'm a newbie and raring to get started. My problem is that I really don't know which diet plan to go with. I'm not good at calorie counting. I thought if I posted this question, I hopefully can get an idea of the most popular or sucessful.

hi katie! i whole-heartedly agree w everything you said...im a lfm ww'er...

Hey, I was on the Carb diet about 4 years ago...and lost 100 lbs, however, I blew the diet and have gained my weight back... Fat grams seem like the way to go, Is it possible to be succesfull twice on the Carb diet???? I really need some guidance I want to get this weight off.!

I honestly have never met anyone who lost weight by counting fat grams alone. Sure, it's important not to eat too much fat, but you do need some fat in your diet. Just try to limit your trans and saturated fats. Whether you count fat grams or not, what really matters is calories. After all, you could eat fat-free candy and drink soda all day long but still end up having thousands of extra calories from sugar, so you wouldn't lose weight!

If you can stick to a low-carb diet, then I don't see why it wouldn't work a second time. However, you have gained back the weight after the first time--perhaps it was not the best plan, then, since you didn't learn to eat for LIFE? This needs to be a permanent change for your health, not just a quick fix for weight loss

Most people I talk to find the most success with calorie counting (or WW points, which is basically calorie counting also).

I lost weight with counting calories. I am going to get back into my exercise plan which is 30 min on treadmill, 3 times a week, and strength training 3 times a week. Hope this makes a difference!

Jillybean, Thank you for your thoughts. Yes the Atkins diet was very well suited for me, I think that is what I may do again FOR LIFE! I wish I had found this site four yrs ago..... I feel that the support that is offered here may have been the missing element I needed when I hit the plataue, I have failed and gained the weight back ,, and let me tell ya ,, This time I need to be succesfull and get kicked in the rear when I am struggling.