Simone's Atkin's Journal...I can't believe I'm doing this!

[married2grumpy]

Today is day 1 for me on the Atkin's diet. I have tried it before many, many years ago. I was on it for 4 days, gained 3 pounds and became constipated. I swore I would never do it again. My sister on the otherhand always has great success with this diet. I figured it was worth another shot.

This morning I weighed in at 150! This is the heaviest I've been in over a year. I think the 2 trips to Disney this spring and summer really did me in! At my heaviest, not including pregnancies, I weighed about 194. Over the past 2 years I had gradually lost weight on my own, but mostly by skipping meals and using Metabolife. Last summer I had a mini stroke which woke me up and I stopped taking the Metabolife. Since then I have found it harder to control my appetite. I used to be able to skip meals, which is bad I know, but now I get headaches if I don't eat. I can't afford those WW meetings and don't have the desire to count points and track calories. That brings me back to the Atkin's plan.

Wish me luck! I'll be asking lots of questions of you all and will be needing support I'm sure. So far I had bacon and eggs for breakfast and feel a little sick. I can't believe I ate such a fatty meal. I will weigh in again near the end of the week and let you all know my success. Yes, I said success. I have to keep a positive outlook don't I?

 

[DoeWDW]

You've found a great place here at the WISH board and starting a WISH journal will help you more than you know! We all support each other through the good, the bad, and the ugly so be sure you're honest here.

I'm also doing low-carb. I'm not quite as strict as Atkins induction but I still try to keep my carbs low.

You said you got constipated the last time you tried Atkins. Could it be that you were eating lots of protein but not very much fat. I know we've all heard the horrors of eating too much fat, but fat is a big component of the Atkins way of eating. You WILL get constipated if you don't eat enough fat. Fat is not absorbed when you are not eating the carbs, so eating fat with Atkins WILL NOT make you fat or mess up your cholesterol / triglycerides. Actually most peoples' cholesterol levels go down on Atkins, in spite of eating all the fat.

Sorry - I'll get off my soap box now. I just want to see you succeed!

Keep us posted on how you're doing, what you're eating, how you're feeling and if you have questions, ask away!

 

[Castillo Mom]

You can do this! There are several of us on this board that have journals and are doing Atkins. My journal is under Lisa's Atkins Journal. I started about 4 weeks ago and have lost 11 pounds.

What Doe said is absolutely correct. Remember, on Atkins you're eating natural fats not trans fats (the bad kind) and you need to eat enough combined with vegetables. Go to Atkins.com. There you'll find information about the Atkins plan and how to follow it. Keeping a journal is a great tool to be able to give and get support from others who have the same goal, weight loss.

You'll do fine but make sure you take vitamin supplements. At the end of the induction phase you can decide whether you want to add more carbs to your diet off of a new list of allowable foods. This may help if you've felt overly restricted on induction.

I wish you success and welcome to WISH!

 

[nancyj_pa]

Welcome to WISH. I'm doing low carb as well..Protein Power. A littlel less restrictive than Atkins. From what I've been reading, you'll probably feel bad for a few days when starting Atkins...headaches, some people feel like they have the flu, etc. This passes and you'll start to feel great soon.

Make sure you get some exercise. Walk, bike ride, whatever you enjoy so you'll keep it up.

Keep posting and reading the journals. Lots of good info here and lots of good low carb recipes on the WISH boards.

 

[married2grumpy]

Thanks Everyone!

Today starts day 3 for me. So far so good. I have had a slight headache the 1st 2 days but otherwise I have felt fine. I said I wouldn't weigh myself until the week was over but i couldn't resist. As of this morning I have lost 1.5 lbs. I have been sticking to induction and have found it hard to eat the 20 carbs I'm supposed to. It almost feels like cheating to eat any carbs. I guess I've been getting almost enough carbs through the 3 cups of lettuce and cheeses I've eaten daily.

I did have some sugar cravings big time last night. I haven't had any diet soda and no coffee. That's been difficult. To me, those are treats. I'm trying to stay away from the aspartame and caffeine for the 1st 2 weeks but I don't think I'll last.

I tried the Mock Danish and hated it (I love Danish!). Breakfast is getting boring...Scrambled eggs and bacon day 1 & 2, fried eggs and bacon day3. Tomorrow I will have a cheese omlette with, you guessed it, bacon. I have to find some breakfast recipes. I did have a great salad today that I made with a chicken cutlet I sauted(sp?) in butter and tossed into Romaine lettuce and a fattening no carb creamy dressing. I topped with a little parmesan cheese. Just like a chicken ceasar salad but better!

Can I have jello yet?????

I'll write more in a couple days. Thanks for the support!!!

 

[cinmell]

Welcome to WISH and good luck with your weight loss! I'm sure will find all of the support you need here, the people are great.

 

[DoeWDW]

You're doing great! 1.5 lbs gone that you don't have to carry around anymore - WOO-HOO!! The first couple days are hard but I know you can make it. Pretty soon, you'll feel more comfortable with the foods you are allowed to have.

Breakfast is tough for me - I'm not a big egg fan! If you check on the last or next to last page of the low-carb recipe thread, I posted a yummy egg custard recipe - only 3 carbs per serving. When I'm pressed for time, I'll roll up a couple slices of deli meat (like turkey) with a slice or two of cheese - easy to eat on the way to wherever. I'll have to look up some other breakfast choices to see if they're OK on induction.

You might want to post this breakfast question on the main WISH board so all the Atkins people around here can contribute ideas - I'm sure there are more that I'm forgetting.

I'm glad to hear things are going well!!

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

This is a great place to find inspiration.

I'm doing lo-carb also. About the breakfasts thing..... I have protein bars and shakes. They are both Herbalife but I like
Atkins Choc/peanut butter bars, too. Just give yourself options. Have a few things to choose from and then see what you are in the mood for when you wake up. Sometimes I want eggs, other times I want a chocolate shake, or banana shake, or a choc/coconut bar and coffee...........and then there are times I say, Hey, that leftover chicken leg looks good to me now. Whatever works, I say.

I am a BIG EGG PERSON. It takes a lot for me to get tired of eggs. But eventually I did get tired of them. And this has to be the biggest complaint I hear about Atkins. But no one ever said, only eggs for breakfast. Do whatever it takes to help you stay on program.

You are doing great and should be proud of yourself. You seem really committed and isn't that half the battle?? Keep going........talk to you later.

 

[DoeWDW]

Hello?? We're missing you! I hope all is going well!!

 

[married2grumpy]

I don't get on the computer often enough anymore. My first week of induction went well. I lost 5 lbs total the first week. The first 5 days went great. The weekend was hard but I got through it. My DH made chocolate chip cookies for the kids and I was going crazy!!! The craving subsided though. I have started doing some sit ups, leg lifts and using my 3 lb weights (starting slow, I know). I did have jello a couple of times and that did help with some of the sugar cravings. Also, I just bought decaf coffee to drink. I have that with some half and half and splenda and that satisfies my cravings...so far. Last week was a busy week for me with DD's 1st full week of 1st grade, DS started Pre-K, gymnastics, Brownies, 2 PTA meetings, open school night and DD 2 keeping me busy. This week will not be as hectic. I don't know if that is a good thing or a bad thing.

I am going to see if I can get Dr. Atkin's book today. I think I stalled the last 2 days because I was having a lot of cream and I don't think it's allowed during induction. I have read up some on the Atkin's site but don't fully know the "rules" of Atkin's. I'll post more when I can.

Good luck all!

 

[DoeWDW]

My goodness - what a schedule you have!!! WOW!! It's a wonder you have time to post at all - I'm sure your little ones keep you quite busy!

Five pounds gone - YAY!!! Think of carrying around a 5 lb sack of flour all the time - now you don't have it to lug with you anymore!! I'm excited for you!

Keep up the great work. Make sure you have some low-carb snacks handy, like sunflower seeds or a protein bar like Atkins Advantage. With your hectic schedule, you're bound to run into an emergency situation where low-carb food isn't accessible.

By the way, your husband isn't REALLY that grumpy, is he??

 

[married2grumpy]

Doe,

I do have to stock up on some LC snacks. Can you believe the supermarket was sold out of macadamia nuts. I couldn't think of any other LC snacks at the time.

I thought married2grumpy was a fitting name because I was always calling my husband grumpy. We signed up at the same time so after he chose his name, I chose this name as a joke on him. He thought it was funny.
Actually, he is wonderful but can be grumpy at times!

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

Simone,

Great Job!!!!5 lbs, that's awesome!

Yeah, keep those lo-carb snacks handy. I am hooked on roasted soy nuts. There seems to be a lot of lo-carb sweet snacks, but not a lot of salty, crunchy snacks. Soy nuts fill the bill. 1 oz has 5 carbs but they are so tiny, I eat them one at a time and make them last a looooooooooonng time. I usually don't even get to have a whole ounce by eating them that way.

You are doing great. Keep up the good work!