Shoshana, Mr. Skeptic and just started Atkins this week as well (last Monday, actually). I have lost, oh, at least nine pounds (yay!), but he’s only lost a few because of some prescription medication he’s taking. Also, we haven’t gotten any of the supplements yet.
Don’t give up! Try the supplements (chromium, L-carnitine, and CoQ10, I believe). Also, check out chapter 20 (in the newest book). It will help you figure out why you might be metabolically resistant.
Also, as Quasimodem mentioned, if it’s close to your TOM, you could be retaining more water than usual. Hang in there, girl.
Oh, and I’m probably preaching to the choir here, but don’t go months without weighing yourself on an accurate scale. My husband’s little sister broke ours several months ago, and I finally decided to get a digital one when we started this diet. First weighing? 196. That’s right, 1. 9. 6. So, rather than having 45 pounds to lose, I had 55 pounds to lose.
I’m trying the Ramadan diet–nothing between dawn and dusk except liquids (I’m a wuss). Had a Muslim friend who thought I’d benefit from fasting for a month but who buried whom?
Dropzone, my religion does fasting, too. For 19 days in March, we don’t eat, drink or smoke from sunup to sundown. An exception is made for health reasons, so I drink because of my propensity for developing kidney stones; but I only drink water and coffee (the two beverages my urologist says are most advantageous). My point is this: I’ve been doing this yearly fast for about 4 years now (this March will be my 5th), and contrary to what you would expect, I don’t lose more weight during the fast than I do at any other point in my diet. YMM, of course, V
skeptic_ev, congratulations! Thanks for the encouragement. I’ll stick with Induction at least two weeks, and will evaluate my diet at that point. Mostly I just need to say “Booo” here, because my partner replies, “If it’s not working, stop doing it,” and really what I want is license to kvetch a little.
I am taking chromium and don’t want to add other stuff at the moment, as I already take many of the components of the Atkins vitamin/nutrient combinations. I don’t think TOM is what’s going on, but I do note that I went OFF BCPs in June for a several-month trial to determine whether they’re necessary to keep my endocrine/hormone system in balance. The answer might be “yes,” but it’s another two weeks until I can have my lab work done. Until then, it’s turkey and mayo; mayo and turkey.
I hope you’re exaggerating, Shoshana, 'cause I think I’d be bored with that by now. Are you using the book? There are a few little tricks in there.
BTW, don’t forget your two cups of salad and one cup of veggies per day. It helps with the carb cravings and energy level, plus it’s healthy for you.
FYI: Per the book, here are the things (besides consuming too many carbs) that can derail your weight loss.
Excessive insulin and insuline resistance.
The use of prescription drugs or hormones which impede weight loss.
Underactive thyroid function, which can be present even when blood tets indicate no abnormality.
Overgrowth of the yeast organism Candida albicans.
Oh, and I know you said you weren’t skimping on the fat, but is it possible that you’re eating too much protein? It can convert to glucose, and then you won’t burn fat.
Ooh, hey everybody, I forgot: for those of you who like pop and don’t have access to a store that carries Hansen’s or Jones (or just don’t want to pay the higher prices), I noticed three new flavors of Diet Rite at the store today: kiwi-strawberry, white grape, and raspberry. I’m still looking for a non-aspartame diet root beer, though.
** skeptic_ev,** thanks for the questions and ideas. I am following the book quite scrupulously, and am eating my veggies. I do have insulin resistance but the Atkins folks online assure me that Induction should still be beneficial. I’m not bored with turkey yet (I did get bored with eggs so I’m taking a break). I’m not eating excessive protein as I understand it–today, for example, I had about a cup of shredded turkey and a hamburger, one ounce each of Colby, Swiss, and Gouda, a tablespoon of cream and a tablespoon of half and half. I also had a cup of cucumber, half a cup of raw broccoli, and a cup and a half of lettuce. An Atkins breakfast bar and a Splenda-sweetened soda as snacks. And water, of course.
Hmm … that sounds about right. Well, if you’ve got the same book I do (Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution), check out pages 260 and 261. And hey, remember, you have lost some weight. I’m rooting for you. (And me.)
Actually, it’s just a half-assed way to get me to eat less. The key is to not make up for lost time in the evening, but I’ve always preferred a big lunch guy over a big dinner.
Shoshana! Stop weighing yourself every day! Your weight is going to fluctuate daily, and sometimes that scale won’t move for days. It’ll only frustrate you all the more. Once a week. No more, or it’ll drive you crazy.
If the weight-loss stall continues, cut out the Atkins bars and stick with whole foods for snacks. It’s quite possible the sugar alcohols are stalling you out (quite common, actually).
Hey, everyone, here’s a recipe source: tool over to www.allrecipes.com (an excellent site anyway) and check out the Lauri’s Low-Carb Cookbook. It’s premium content and costs $6.95 for a year’s subscription, but the awesome thing is that, just like every other recipe on the site, users have the ability to rate and review. I’ve used allrecipes forever, and I just got my subscription to the low carb cookbook today. Definitely worth the money.
Also, I bought the kiwi-strawberry Diet Rite I mentioned above. It’s very good; it doesn’t taste at all like a kid’s pop. Not too sweet, and no noticeable aftertaste. I will be picking up the other flavors.
Oh, and I’m down to 183.5 from about 194.5. (I first weighed myself with my clothes on, so I’m not positive about what my first day weight was.) Only 43.5 pounds to go!
Yeah, I know, but sometimes humor is supposed to be tempered by how the person being humorous wants himself to be perceived.
If one were to meet me in a professional setting, I would never say what I posted. If one were to know me as a friend, I might say that, but it would be eased with a smile or a soft punch on the shoulder.
The fact that neither were true embarrasses me very much.
I know **Johnny L A ** only here and through e-mails, and the words that I used, though meant to be taken as satire, are not Quasi material. I can be satirical in other ways.
The phrases “screwed the pooch” and (jesus, did I write that?) “mommy frigger” were uncalled for , and I offer my apologies. Not because I used profanity, but because I used satire in place of it.
John has sent me an e-mail indicating his understanding of the “joke”, and I hope he will respond in kind, but I still feel like I stepped over the line in using the words I did, and I hope y’all and he will forgive me.
Pffft, Quasi - don’t beat yourself up. Just remember the limits of the medium and find substitutes for tone-of-voice and facial expressions. I didn’t take anything you wrote as being malicious, for whatever that’s worth.
Incidentally, I hesitate to jinx myself by posting this, but I think I may be slipping off my plateau. Down 34 as of yesterday. Here’s to being a loser once more!
I will gladly offer all of my hormones and/or female parts to anyone who will not freak out at a three-pound gain overnight. This while following the program to the letter.
Hey Quasi, don’t worry about it. I totally “got” the joke!
I’m back in L.A. now, although I’m still sleep-deprived. (I drove all day and all night.) I’d post something funny, but not all of my sysnapses are firing at the moment.
Hey, JavaMaven1, thanks for the ideas. My deal with my doctor is that I track weight + blood sugar + other factors daily so that we get a better sense of what my body thinks it’s doing. But I’ll stop posting dailies here. I’m wondering about the sugar alcohols as well, though my blood sugar shows no rise when I eat them. Still, they may be a culprit. I’ll see what I can do to decrease them, though as I posted earlier, it’s very hard to find a snack I can eat on Induction that neither crunches nor drips grease, neither of which is good in a professional context. I may just go back to eating a few almonds and call it a necessary evil.
