Help me please!

[Muffin987]

Hi everyone, I need a bit of help urplequ:

I've been on atkins for about 6 months, and I've had a few snags along the way, but I always cheated when I was on stalls. The first two weeks of Atkins Induction I lost about 15 pounds. I was uber-excited, looking forward to more weight loss. But I've been stuck at 188 (down from 204) for about 5 months. At one point I went for a two hour bike ride every day, but I never payed attention to my constipation. I stopped exercising so much, but I just started taking metamucil about 5 days ago. I don't know how much to take for fiber supplement. I've been taking 5 every morning with 40 oz of water. It seems to be working, but it seems like it could definately work alot better. I'm worried not to up the dosage, as I don't know if thats safe. Anyways my usual menu is as follows:

Breakfast:
5 mm capsules + 5 glasses of water
2 scrambled eggs
1 peice of atkins toast

Lunch:
2 hamburger patties with atkins barbeque sauce
1 glass of water

Dinner:
2 turkey patties in 2 peices of Atkins toast
1 glass of water


My questions are about the metamucil, which you can read up there /\.
And my second q is why I have been on a stall for about 5 months. Its getting really really really annoying that I haven't seen ANY progress in almost half a year.

Thanks for the helps
Yours John

[LadyDanaDragon]

Where are you vegi?

You need to have 3 cups of vegetables a day. They have fiber in them also and will help keep you regular. Also cheese you can have 4 ounces a day. ensive Plus 3 pieces of Atkins toast a day seems like alot of bread to me.

[Muffin987]

What kind of vegetables are induction-friendly? I usually have 2 cups of broccoli a day, but I was fresh out. But what do you think the reason for the massive stall is?

[BikerGoddess]

Metamucil is just fiber. You can safely have as much as you have a tolerance for. For supplementation, though, you're at about the right amount.

To answer your question directly, you're in a stall because you're not following the Atkins plan.

Upping fiber isn't a magic bullet. Losing weight by emptying your bowels only works until you eat something. Trying to trick your body into losing weight by abusing your GI tract is asking for permanent health problems. Go back and read the rules again and you'll start seeing progress again. Follow all the rules, not just the ones you like.

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/viewtopic.php?t=19760

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/viewtopic.php?t=19485

Laura

[Carotan]

it sounds like u and i have had the same problems. my weekness was sugary stuff with sugar alchohal in it. if you cut all the foods that aren't induction friendly, i'm sure you'll have success. GOOD LUCK!!!

[Muffin987]

Thanks for the help everyone!

Ok, so I should eat more vegetables, and get some more exercise. Is that what you're saying BikerGoddess?

I don't have any stuff with sugar alcohols in them, the only thing I think I sometimes go a bit overboard with is the Atkins Toast. I sometimes have up to 3 peices a day. I never have any diet stuff, like diet coke, or diet jello or any of that, because I've noticed that aspartame slows down my progress.

So far for breakfast, I had 3 eggs, and I had my 45 oz of water.

Another question, does the water you drink to swallow the metamucil count towards your overall water intake? Because I think 40oz of water for 5 capsules is a a lot to not be counted for.

For lunch, I'm probably going to have a hamburger patty on a slice of toast.

For dinner I'm going to have a cup of broccoli with melted cheese and maybe a can of tuna.

So far so good?

[Christina]

don't forget your leafy veggies, like lettuce. Maybe cut the toast out for a week or so and see how that helps.

Christina

[BikerGoddess]

Oh absolutely count the water you take your pills with. The main reason you want to have water with fiber pills is that they will expand with any moisture and you don't want them caught in your throat. They do bind up with some water, but that doesn't subtract from what you drink - it's the reason you drink it!

Your body needs water to function (it's 80% water) and some processes are more critical than others. When there's not enough to go around, some bodily functions get less than they want so the critical processes can still function. By drinking eight 8oz glasses of water (or more!) a day, you ensure that there is plenty of water for all of your body functions and it makes them all happy. The body is designed to handle periodic 'droughts' but not a constant shortage.

I think you should eat 2 cups of veggies from the first list and 1 cup from either list. I think you should get in exercise every day - the amount and intensity will depend on your level. The exercise board is chock full of ideas and tips and hints. I think you should eat until satisfied, while limiting your net carb intake to less than 20g a day, comprised of the foods on the Acceptable Food list. I think you should drink eight 8 oz glasses of water. In short, all the stuff that's in the Induction rules

Finding out that aspartame causes you problems is great. Well, not great that it causes you problems, but great that you found out and can avoid those things for the time being.

However, the toast has to go. During Induction, it's better to stick with whole, 'real' foods. Actually, it's always better, but it seems to be a bit more critical in the beginning.

With regard to low-carb substitutes, many of us have had the best success incorporating them at the level they'd normally appear in OWL. Grains are the last rung, at 9. As per the book, very few people are able to climb all of the rungs and still lose weight.

Personally, I can't lose weight if I have any substitutions. I'm not thrilled with it, as it does get old eating at the Induction level for a long time, but that's the way it works out. It's nobody's fault; that's just the way my body is.

Eggs are good for breakfast - make sure you cook them with some sort of fat.
Hamburger is good, but no toast. Might help to put cheese and mayo and maybe some slices of avocado on top.
Saving all your veggies for one meal is bad. Spread them throughout the day so you don't have spikes in your blood sugar.
Make your tuna into tuna salad by adding mayo, mustard, salt and pepper.

You want to aim for 65% of your calories from fat, 30% from protein, and 5% from carbs. I know it goes everything you've ever heard, but add fat to everything. Bacon, butter, less lean cuts of meat, olive oil, avocado, olives, cheese, there are tons of options. Fat also helps slow the absorption of sugar into the bloodstream, so always pair your carbs with fat.

You're on the right track - just need to think Atkins and not low-fat. Deprivation does *not* speed things up, it makes it worse. Don't ever drop below 1200 calories a day or you'll be working against yourself.

We'll get you there, don't worry.

Laura

[Muffin987]

Yay, I have some new things to try that might help my stall!:joy

You guys are the best, I can't say how glad I am thanks to your very informative replies. I'll try to cut the toast for a week, and if it works, yay!

Can you guys think of any other salad-like 'servings' that aren't actually salad? When I first started I went crazy on salads, even though I was never a fan. I finally just got sick of them, now I can't really stand too much salad at all.

I might be able to squeeze in some celery into my tuna sandwich, and maybe have some spinach with my eggs, so my veggie intake will be a bit more spread out.

Broccoli with cheese is induction friendly right? I found a REALLY good site that lists the nutritional information of almost ANYTHING you can find. It has the info in many formats too : cup,tbsp,tsp,ounce,etc.

If you haven't tried it, you can find it at:

http://www.thecolumn.org/nutrition-facts.asp

Thanks again!
John

[BikerGoddess]

Check out the allowed food list. He calls it 'salad veggies' but you don't have to have salads. And your ideas of incorporating veggies into other things is perfect.

Vegetables
You can have two to three cups per day of:

alfalfa sprouts
daikon
mushrooms
arugula
endive
parsley
bok choy
escarole
peppers
celery
fennel
radicchio
chicory
jicama
radishes
chives
lettuce
romaine lettuce
cucumber
mâche
sorrel

Other Vegetables
You can have one cup per day of these veggies if salad does not exceed two cups. The following vegetables are slightly higher in carbohydrate content than the salad vegetables:

artichoke
celery root
pumpkin
artichoke hearts
rhubarb
asparagus
chard
sauerkraut
bamboo shoots
collard greens
scallions
dandelion
snow peas
bean sprouts
dandelion greens
spaghetti squash
beet greens
eggplant
spinach
broccoli
hearts of palm
string or wax beans
broccoli rabe
kale
summer squash
brussels
kohlrabi
tomato
bean sprouts
leeks
turnips
cabbage
okra
water chestnuts
cauliflower
onion
zucchini
If a vegetable, such as spinach or tomato, cooks down significantly, it must be measured raw so as not to underestimate its carb count.

Put your tuna salad on a lettuce leaf and top with a tomato. Put cream cheese on slice cucumbers or in celery sticks. Snack on jicama sticks. Pretty soon you'll find 3 cups of veggies too restrictive

Broccoli with cheese is totally Induction acceptable. I make a cheese sauce with heavy cream, but you can melt shredded or sliced cheese directly on top. (Maximum is 4oz, which isn't much. Measure at first).

If you lose any next week, will you give up the toast until Maintenance?

Laura

[Muffin987]

Well of course, its either my health or some sub-par toast! :yes

It's not as if I thought the toast was delicious or anything, it was more of a placebo for me, just knowing I could still have SOME grain in my diet.

Jicama sticks?ensive What are those?

Well, anywho heres my planned meals for tomorow:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pre-breakfast- 5 MM capsules + 45 oz of water

Breakfast- 3 scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese OR Garbage Eggs

Lunch- Tuna salad with celery, mayo, salt + pepper + cumin, served on a bed of lettuce, topped with a cucumber slice

Dinner- 1 cup of Broccoli with cheddar cheese OR cheddar cheese sauce, 1 hamburger patty topped with cheddar cheese and a bit of mayo

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few quick q's:

How do you measure cheese in oz? It's a bit tough, and I don't want to have to use displacement to see how much it is :nono

And, exactly how would you make that cheddar cheese sauce you were mentioning? I've never really been the greatest 'vague' chef, I'm usually a measurer.

One last one, is the Atkins Barbeque sauce fine to have? It says that it has 0 g net carbs per tbsp, but I usually round up to .5. How about the ketch-a-tomato and the teriyaki? They're both 1 net carb for 1 tbsp. Are they OK as long as I just use them in moderation? I probably won't for at least a week, I'm trying to do a 'pure' induction.

Thanks alot! John

[BikerGoddess]

Jicama is the 'Mexican potato' and I can find it at the grocery store here in Dallas. You might have to look for specialty or health stores in some areas. It has the texture of potatoes and a taste similar to apples. Search the recipe archives for ideas on what to do with it.

If having variety is important to you, then move into OWL after two weeks of Induction. You can still lose weight (well, the vast majority can), but you gotta do it the way the book says and it will be at a slightly slower rate.

Not sure what garbage eggs are, but everything else looks great :icondance

Easiest way to find out what an oz of cheese is to buy a 16oz block and cut it in halves until you have 16 pieces. String cheese usually comes in 1oz pieces, too.

I don't have exact measurements on the cheese sauce - just watched my boyfriend until I could make a close approximation. Heat heavy cream over medium and add shredded or cubed cheese, salt, and pepper. Stir until melted. If it's stringy, add more cream. If you use sharp chedder, the flavor goes further and you can use less.

My personal stance on the sauces is to avoid them. The label can say 0 for anything under 1. And if the serving sizes are small enough, you could wrack up 5 grams in no time. Check your ingredients list and see what you're willing to eat. I buy better quality ingredients in the first place so that I don't need to cover them up with sauces (except cheese. Everything's better with cheese...)

Let us know how it's going.

Laura

[Muffin987]

Hey, is sweet'n low alright for induction? I noticed it has about half the carbs of Splenda, and its mighty cheaper too.

Its ingredients are as follows:

Dextrose
Sodium Cyclamate (34%)
Silicon Dioxide

I was just curious if theres anything wrong with it, because I found a box lying around in my cupboard, and don't know what to do with it.

Also, has there been any proof that Splenda has slowed down weight loss?
I'm wondering if I should cut it.

[BikerGoddess]

Splenda's better. Neither is best.

There is a limit of three 'servings' per day, and we take that to mean 3 packets added or one serving of a drink that has it (things like bottles usually have 2, 3, or more servings per container.)

If you use Induction to get over your psychological need to have sweets, it makes the rest of it go much easier. Also, in some people, the mere thought of sweets can affect glucose and insulin levels in their bloodstream. Although artificial sweeteners may not contribute anything chemically, their use can wreak havoc on the very things you're trying to control.

Laura

[Muffin987]

Ok, well I'll try not to have so much splenda anymore.

Here we go:

Breakfast - 2 scrambled eggs with a bit of mayo (sounds a bit weird, but
good!!!)
1 cup of decaf coffee, with 2 tbsp whipping cream, 2 packets
of splenda

Post-breakfast - 5 mm capsules with 45 oz of water

Lunch - 1 can tuna with mayo and I'll try finding some kind of veggies
to put it in :yes
24 oz water

Dinner- 2 turkey patties with cheese+mayo, 1 cup of broccoli with
cheddar cheese sauce
32 oz of water

That running total should come under 20 grams of carbs.
Breakfast - 7/8 carbs

Lunch- near zero with no veggies, with veggies, maybe 2,3, or 4

Dinner- around 4/5 depending on how much broccoli I have.

Does that sound allright?