stalled!!

[soxfan]

ok, i lost 11 pounds in induction. i started owl on wednesday, now for 5 days i have been fluctuating between 181.5 and 183. i have stepped up my workout to include the elliptical instead of the treadmill, but i have been following the owl, i have done the atkins before, and i know whether i am making mistakes or not, so it's not anything i am eating. but, i have eaten corned beef and cabbage for the last two days, i know it has a lot of salt? help??? i also weigh myself every day. is that bad??? also, am i drinking enough water? my pee is clear all day!

ugh, this is frustrating after losing over a pound a day on induction...

[kate58]

Re: stalled!!

To give a really good answer, peopel wll need to know how miuch you want to lose, what you are eating (eg a sample menu) and how much you are drinking. I know having done it before you are pretty sure about your foods, but it's amazing how helpful it is to have someone else look over your menu, I know it has helped me a lot on occasions.

But the reality is you're not stalled. Dr A defines a stall as 4 weeks without a weight loss or reduction in inches, and you're way off that!

I'd say what you are experiencing is PISS (Post Induction Stall Syndrome) which is quite common after you've completed induction. It's sort of your body pausing to take account of what just happened. Hang in, eat right, and the scales will start to move again.

Corned beef is a processed meat though, and Dr A did advise against too much of those, so it would be an idea to give it a miss for a couple of days anyway to see what happens.

[Brook]

Re: stalled!!

Kate is right on the mark 5 days isn't even a blip on the radar. You're not going to be rewarded daily/weekly/and sometimes even monthly for being a very good Atkineer.

You've thrown your body some major curve balls in the last couple of weeks- it's going to take time to adjust. Do a search on PISS (post induction stall syndrome) - you're not stalled, but doing a search on PISS will help show you that this is VERY common.

Don't sweat it. It's not even a hiccup in your big picture

~Brook

[soxfan]

Re: stalled!!

thanks for putting my mind at ease! my husband said the same thing. i am just so impatient. i want to be a size 12 again and am stuck at a 14...

[ipedregon]

Re: stalled!!

I lost 70 lbs on Atkins before and I had similar problems

This time around I think I'm doing it better,. I think the key thing is when you hit OWL those carbs you add should be stuff like spinache lettuce, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cooked spinache, cheeses,

I don't know if cabbage has alot of nutrition but I've never heard people say .. hey eat cabbage it's good for you. I might be completely wrong I'm just not a cabbage expert

I think lots of salts can also cause water retention, and well lets face it we are putting our systems through something crazy compared to what it is used to

I'd aim for red meats, poultry, fish, and a good mix of very green vitamin packed veggies rather than processed meat and cabbage and that might do the trick

Something new I started doing .. Cooking Brisket in the Oven .. OMG .. it's delicious, not really expensive, and gives me days of protein/vitamin packed delicious red meat left overs for days!! And has a bit of fat in it too ! Quite a bit LOL

I really noticed beef just has more ooomph than poultry, fish does as well but it's harder to keep large quantities around

Keep up the good work hope some of the tips help

[soxfan]

Re: stalled!!

well, i am now down to 180- the scale is steadily moving in the downward direction!!!!

[ValidRouge]

Re: stalled!!

Congrats! As the others said, you aren't going to get a "reward" on the scale every day. I lose in big chunks. Then stay the same, then lose another big chunk. Sometimes I'll lose a big chunk then gain some back and then it goes back down again. Yes, it's frustrating, but just stay the course...if you follow the plan, the weight WILL come off. Your body just doesn't want to give it up on YOUR schedule.

[Mirya]

Re: stalled!!

I don't think coloring of urine has much to do with it honestly. I drink a gallon a day and still have color. As long as you r in ketosis your fine. I too am in a stall. my 2nd week of it. I am told it lasts for 3-5 weeks for some people. I know I am not eating anythign not allowed as I am very strict now and will not use somethign someone else has made. If it isn't made by me then it doesn't go in. but I am hanging between 135.4-138lbs. 3lbs differnce as well although I am noticing the waistband on my pants and slacks aren't as stressed anymore. Measuring does no good for me as I KNOW I am not doing it right. Its really hard to take all of your OWN measurements when your supposed to do it with your hands at your sides.

[ipedregon]

Re: stalled!!

Yeah I'm at a "pause" too but I've been through it before.

I am not going down anymore but not going up. I feel kind of poofy ? I feel kind of full as well but I know if I stay on the plan it will go down.

I'm upping my water today and killing all caffiene (owch) I know part of it has been lack of bowel movements so even with the veggies I am eating stuff is not coming out the other side quite enough

I'm going to stay on track, drink more water and just wait

Now is not the time to give up for sure

My brother started same day as me and he is going through the same post induction sticky point so it is normal

[Mirya]

Re: stalled!!

here is something helpful i found a whle back that might be of interest to us all

I got this from another low carb site. PISS (post induction stall syndrome) is NO REASON TO QUIT

(1) When you start Atkins induction, your body dumps a lot of water
along with the stored glycogen, and there are other hormonal things going on
that promote water loss. So you lose several pounds of water, sometimes
more. You may even get slightly dehydrated at first. (2) As you continue on
induction, your body begins to adapt to the reduced carb intake. Water
retention is gradually normalized, so that you are no longer dehydrated. A
pound to several pounds of water weight may gradually return. (3) As the
small amount of water weight gradually returns, you're also gradually
burning fat. The water weight increase is offset by the fat loss, showing a
net slowdown or even "stall" on the scale, sometimes even a small increase
on the scale. (4) As you continue low-carbing, the gradual loss of weight in
the form of body fat will finally start showing up, and you'll start seeing
the scale moving down again. This whole process may encompass a period of a
month or more. Seeing the scale stop changing, or even a small increase in
weight is therefore pretty normal for many Atkins dieters, and is not a
reason to drastically change the diet or start doing a radically hypocaloric
thing. It is always a good idea, at any stage, to be careful about your carb
intake, to make sure you're correctly charting your carb intake.

If, after four weeks past induction, you are not seeing the scale start to
move, then you probably want to look at ways to get past the stall. A true
stall is not diagnosed, by the way, unless you've gone 6 weeks without loss
on the scale or in inches. Methods such as counting calories, stepping up
exercise, increasing or decreasing carb intake, cutting out certain types of
foods can be tried, preferably not all at one time (so you know what is
working and what isn't). Also be aware that on low-carb diets, many people
(not just women) seem to lose weight intermittently, rather than gradually.
They will go along sometimes for several weeks with nothing showing up on
the scale, and then all of a sudden, in one day or over a couple days, lose
several pounds. Nobody seems to know why, but this seems particularly common
to low-carb dieting. Patience is a good trait for low-carb dieters to work
on.

I hope this helps everyone!!!! I know MANY of us are in this situation like me right now!! Lets hang on and prove this theory PISS to be right on the nose! GOOD LUCK ALL MY FORUM FRIENDS!

[ipedregon]

Re: stalled!!

Ahh nice Mirya

Yup it's normal, It goes down in chunks .. it's soo bizarre I find that keeping the water going helps the chunks come

Yipes I have a headache ... it's gonna be one of those days

[JenDett]

Re: stalled!!

I'm glad you posted this. I've stalled, too, and was wondering why. I'll stay the course for a while longer!

[ipedregon]

Re: stalled!!

So my stall turned into a gain then weight went back down slowly and is continuing

I stopped at 260 went up to 265 and then trickled back down slowly to 260 it took a little over a week. I did not change anything in my diet kept on drinking water, having lots of veggies up to my carb daily and of course eating the allowed foods

I noticed during the "stall" which I don't really think it was a stall my clothes continued to loosen up and also my dehydrated feeling went away, I am not requiring as much water to stay hydrated as where before I was drinking soo much water just to keep from getting muscle cramps

So I totally agree with what Miyra posted that this is the body getting water levels back to norm but fat continuing to burn away

[soxfan]

Re: stalled!!

i have also noticed that i lose in chunks. i am down to 178 now! and i have been here for 3 days so i am expecting to see a chunk in the next few days. it seems like i was at 181.5-183 forever and one day i am in the 170's!!!!!!! ugh, i just wish the weight was gone and i could start pre-maintenance. i am frustrated with the lack of food choices, i am starting the nuts and seeds rung soon, but i am sick of dairy, i am sick of eggs, and i am sick of just not wanting to eat because i am not hungry. i need to sit down, go through the recipes, and plan better.

[PinkWoman]

Re: stalled!!

Hi Everyone-
Just wanted you all to know that I am right in there with you. The scale has not moved for three weeks. I lost 17 pounds on induction and then stopped. I hadn't really changed anything, except I started exercising every day. That didn't seem fair! On top of all the snow shovelling I have done! We had 18 inches on Wednesday....blegh!
My point is, I know I am eating properly (whole foods, no dining out, and reading every lable), exercising and drinking 70 to 80 oz of water each day. Reading up on PISS confirmed that I am probably just suffering through weeks 4, 5 and 6. I am not giving up!!! We can get past this!!!