Induction forever ???

[mark38]

I started on Atkins in Feb 2007 and I'm happy with my results.

I feel great, but I don't think I've ever "left" Induction. I must admit that I don't count my carbs very closely anymore. I usually have a salad or veggie once a day and I need two bad things (diet soda daily and an Atkins shake/low-carb sweet occassionally). But I'm thinking my daily avg is 20 carbs.

I guess my fear is my belief that I have a low CCL. In reality, my problem is I'm terrible at practicing patience and I want to hit my goal weight tomorrow (ha!).
I would like to move into OWL. But when I add a new food I find myself gorging on it, and ultimately moving back to the same 6 or 7 meals that I seemingly always eat.

I really want to keep going. I joined a new gym this month (June 2007) that opens July 6th, so I'll be starting to exercise soon.

If anyone has thoughts on moving to OWL they'd like to share, I'm all ears.

[*Emma*]

Re: Induction forever ???

Okay, well... for a start those shakes make about 99% of us stall, so if your think your weightloss is sloe, THERE YA GO! get rid of them for a start!

OWL isnt scary, its just about adding something back to your WOE to see if your body accepts it without gaining weight, its an ongoing loss phase so you are still losing weight, its doesnt slow down for most people and for me it got faster.

Start off with that extra 5net carbs of veggies, something different that you havent already tried get used to that then move up a bit... give yourself a couple of weeks on each rung and work thru it slowly.

Read all the stickies in the OWL forum, you need to do this!! it can get confusing but if you read them all and get your mind straight you'll be good! any questions you may have on OWL can go into that forum, where some of the experts can help you out!

[mitzimarie]

Re: Induction forever ???

I started on Atkins in Feb 2007 and I'm happy with my results.

I feel great, but I don't think I've ever "left" Induction. I must admit that I don't count my carbs very closely anymore. I usually have a salad or veggie once a day and I need two bad things (diet soda daily and an Atkins shake/low-carb sweet occassionally). But I'm thinking my daily avg is 20 carbs.

I guess my fear is my belief that I have a low CCL. In reality, my problem is I'm terrible at practicing patience and I want to hit my goal weight tomorrow (ha!).
I would like to move into OWL. But when I add a new food I find myself gorging on it, and ultimately moving back to the same 6 or 7 meals that I seemingly always eat.

I really want to keep going. I joined a new gym this month (June 2007) that opens July 6th, so I'll be starting to exercise soon.

If anyone has thoughts on moving to OWL they'd like to share, I'm all ears.

OK, Mark - a few things. Staying on Induction longer does not make you lose weight faster. OWL stands for ongoing weight loss, and that's what happens. You learn which foods you can add in and what level of carbs you can eat at. And, yes, this takes a lot patience. It's true that you don't really need to count carbs when on Induction as long as you stick to the Acceptable Foods list, get the required amount of veggies, and don't go over the limit for cheese. On OWL, you do need to count carbs. I resisted moving to OWL and using something like Fitday to count everything because I didn't want to be bothered. But it occurred to me that I am doing Atkins right this time, so I bit the bullet and dove in. Moving to OWL was the best thing I could have done. I enjoy my food more and my weight loss increased.

You only eat a salad or veggie once a day? That's the first thing you need to change. At least half of you daily net carbs should come from veggies. And the first rung of OWL is more veggies! If I were you, I would continue for a week with how you have been eating and start tracking everything on Fitday. This will show you exactly how many carbs you have been eating so you will have a benchmark to start from so you can start adding carbs in 5 gram increments. And, Fitday takes practice before it becomes easy and quick. Track your fiber on Fitday, too. You do that by setting a fiber goal on the left side of the screen under Goals. It doesn't matter what number you set it at - mine is set at 1 just so it will count the fiber for me. Subtract the fiber from the total carbs to get your net carbs and this is the number you go by. Try to pick veggies that are high in nutrition and fiber. Honestly, by only eating a salad or veggie once a day, I don't see how you don't have major *potty* problems.

Have you tried adding a new food, only to gorge on it? What food was it? One of the reasons I resisted moving on to OWL was because I feared not being able to control myself on new foods. I am on Rung 4 now and thankfully, that hasn't happeded yet. I am sure in the higher rungs I will find food that I cannot tolerate, but I have confidence that I will know how to handle that when it happens. I also didn't think I "needed" to move onto OWL because I was quite happy with the food I was eating in Induction. But, I have opened my mind to new foods that I wouldn't touch before, and I am enjoying these new foods. (for example, cottage cheese) I figured that this is a lifestyle change, and I am being patient, scientific, and cheat free during this time. I am adding new foods, measuring my portions, using Fitday, and feeling quite confident and successful. Once I stopped fighting my impatience and resistance to the effort, I became much more in control of my eating and my life.

And, oh yeah! Diet drinks and shakes may not stall some people, but for the most part they do. I tried to get away with them at first, but through my scientific approach to things, I found out they definitely did slow my losses. Too bad, because I enjoyed them. But not near enough to sabotage my weight loss. They're history!

Good luck, Mark. Stick close to the board and ask questions. See ya' around.

[LooseShoes]

Re: Induction forever ???

You're doing really great, Mark, you're halfway to your goal! Mitzi and Emma give great advice.

I'm in the same situation you are, thinking about moving to OWL but a little scared about how to do it and how to handle it. I plan on this being a permanent lifestyle, though, so I'm reading all the stickies and the book again to get ready. I have to learn how to handle other foods to stay at goal for the rest of my life.

I've only had a computer at work, so I haven't had much time to do Fitday. I ordered a home computer and it will be here in about a week, so I'm going to start logging in my menu then.

My plan is to just take things 1 step at a time. I started my exercise program 7 weeks ago. That's going well and I think it's pretty much a habit now. I'm going to start using Fitday next week when 'puter arrives. I'm going to make a plan on how to add foods within the next week after that. Within the next week or 2 after that I'm going to start doing my plan and going up the rungs. I'll probably stay on each rung for 3 to 4 weeks.

If you have a plan and are just doing one new thing every few weeks, it's not so overwhelming. Good luck and keep asking questions, it helps all of us!

[mark38]

Re: Induction forever ???

Wow, I appreciate all the great info!

I will begin the veggies tip this week weekend when I start my workouts (I always need a good launch date).

See you soon!

[cnbweb]

Re: Induction forever ???

I know when I eat Chefs Salads and veggies more for meals than burgers and steak, I tend to lose more. I also started in February and am still in Induction too. I think for guys Atkins comes easy as we are eating steaks, bacon, eggs, cheese - food that most guys like. I am planning on moving to OWL but share your uneasieness.


Good luck!!

[D14965]

Re: Induction forever ???

Hi Mark -- i would try moving into OWL -- not only will you continue to lose weight - but it will prepare to for the time after you have lost your weight and want to KEEP IT OFF. you need to progress through OWL ,premaintenance and into maintenace to keep that weight off that you have worked so hard to lose. Staying in induction will only make you afraid to move ahead and then one day you may just fall off the wagon - go back to your old habits and gain all that weight back!!!! Once you move through all the phases of this WOE it will become less and less like a diet and more and more like "normal eating" for you and your old habits will be a thing of the past forever! GOODLUCK!

[ValidRouge]

Re: Induction forever ???

You've gotten great advice here! The Ongoing Weight Loss phase is the best! This is where we DO get to 'customize' Atkins. In induction, the rules are the rules. In OWL, it's a whole different ball game. You get to test foods to find out which ones work for YOU. Some will, some won't. Already you know (from your other post) that peanuts are a trigger food for you. OWL is where you figure out which ones are your safe foods and which are your trigger foods. PLUS you get to eat more variety of foods, and STILL LOSE WEIGHT! Yay!