been on phase one for 5 weeks :(
 

i am in the morbid obese category so my goal was to make it to 8 weeks (the max that south beach allows) and this past weekend i had my first cheat day. by "cheat" that means i had 3 servings of tabbouleh over the course of the day and a little bit of sweet vinegar sauce on my pulled pork as well as some broccoli/cauliflower salad that was made with real sugar that a friend brought.

i did not eat any bread and made my tabbouleh with quinoa instead of bulgar since i am trying to stick to a gluten free diet as well. well i still gained 2 pounds by the next day. sigh. i didnt eat anymore carby stuff and am back to only eating protein, LG veggies and healthy fats. my typical calorie consumption is around 1,900 per day (which is spot on for my bmr) and i am eating around 50 grams of carbs a day and only ten of them are from things like a greek yogurt cup or a little salad dressing.

i have cut milk (not all dairy), grains, starches, sugar and fruit from my diet. in the first two weeks i lost 11 pounds. then it took me two weeks to lose 4 more pounds. then i had my cheat day and gained back two pounds. right now i have been eating clean since monday and i am up another pound. SIGH.

i dont know what i am doing wrong. i know i probably have issues with insulin resistance. i am also having issues with hypoglycemia since i started eating this way. my blood sugar is never above 75. but obviously eating large amounts of carbs is not something i should be doing right now.

at some point i know i need to move on to phase two, but since i am struggling with my loss even in phase one i am unsure of what will happen when i do try to introduce carbs back on a regular basis.

any advise?!?!?!:?::?::?:

seek medical advice
 

Hi There,
Sounds like you may need some professional advice. One thing I wonder is if it's just too long to be on phase 1? Maybe your body is in starvation mode and hung onto any extra calories from your cheat day. Or it could be water retention after ingesting things your body hasn't had in a while. Are you exercising? You may need to visit a doctor or a dietician for some sound advice given the health concerns you mention. Keep your head up and don't give up. You've done so great with the 11 lb loss and you can overcome this. Hang in there!

:hug:

First of all :welcome: We're glad you found us!

Phase I is designed to detox your body and get rid of cravings. I know the book says eight weeks but IMHO two to three is enough to get rid of cravings and get onto a more "normal" plan. SBD is a GOOD carb rather than a NO carb plan. I am Diabetic and have got my glucose levels under control with this plan.

How about posting a couple of days menus with amounts so the rest of the Beachers can take a look at it? Sometimes simple substitutions can make a difference.

Your low BGL worries me a tad. 85 is the morning fasting level for a normal person. Does it never go higher than that? Cutting all grains was perhaps not a great idea. Have you consulted a dietitian?

We need a bit more information to give you some help. Please stick around.

thats what i liked about sb compared to atkins....i WANT to be able to eat carbs! thats why i want to move onto phase two, but since i am having such issues with phase one idk what to do. because of my morbid obesity i thought that prolonging phase one would help with my insulin resistance. but after having a cheat day that honestly wasnt even THAT bad i wonder what the heck it up!

yesterday my menu was:
greek yogurt cup and an avocado with fresh lime juice for breakfast

for lunch i had a salad of mixed greens, cucumbers, a fresh garden tomato, a few slivers of red onion and a homemade low carb Parmesan peppercorn dressing

i had a cheese stick for a midafternoon snack

for dinner i sauteed 1/3 of a pound of grass fed ground chuck in olive oil with a very small red onion, a medium red bell pepper, a clove of garlic and a handful of spinach. i also had a side of steamed broccoli.

as an after dinner snack i had a cup of raw cauliflower with a tbs of ranch dressing to use as dip.

after counting my calories i ate 1,850 calories a day

a lot of times my evening snack or breakfast is non-denatured whey protein isolate protein shake (meal replacement) that i mix with water. they are 4 carbs per shake and 50 grams of protein.

my morning fasting is usually between 70 and 75. there are times throughout the day that it drops as low as 62. even after i eat something with carbs (like a yogurt and avacodo) it still is never over 75 regardless of if i take a one hour or two hour draw.

i am under the guidance of both a regular dr and a naturopath. my regular md says my sugar levels are fine (my a1c was 5.4) and that low seventies is still considered normal, even though i feel like crap when they are that low. my naturopath says to give it time and my pancreas will stop over producing insulin. idk according to south beach and my doctors i am doing all the "right" things but i would think not only would i be losing weight faster but i would feel better you know?

I can't speak to any of the medical stuff, but it seems to me from my own experience and that of others related on this forum... it is typical to have your loss slow significantly after the first two weeks of PH1. And, yes, some even see a slight increase in weight. My personal theory is that our bodies lose all that initial water and not really that many pounds and the scale is just catching up over the coming weeks.

I'd suggest you slowly start adding foods on your way to PH2. There is lots of great information about how to do this in the FAQ section.

Hi Tansy,

Welcome to the beach :). I'm having a similar struggle with gaining back some weight as well. My first two weeks I dropped 8lbs, then after my first week on phase 2, I gained back a pound.

I noticed that you're having protein shakes as meal replacements. Whey protein shakes are used to rebuild muscles after high intensity work-outs and that may be your problem. I drink protein shakes after I run and my husband uses them after his weight training workouts. You may want to investigate another kind of meal replacement.

Otherwise, I agree with the others and recommend you start Phase 2 slowly. add some fruit each day then build up from there! Best of luck :)