HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

[missrowlands]

Hi guys,

I am newbie to this website and to the atkins diet in general so any advice would be greatly welcomed!

I lost 13lbs in first three weeks of Atkins in which I stayed in induction.
I upped my carb intake to 25g (just veg) half way through the third week and still lost a couple of pounds.
In my 4th week I inroduced nuts but kept to 25g still, but had lost no weight by the end of the week. So I cut nuts (and flaxseed MIMS) out at beginning of week 5 and stuck at 25g.
I am now at the end of week 5 with still no weight loss. I know I need to be patient but I don't know when to reintroduce foods or up my carbs if I am not losing weight? Should I just stay at 25g til it moves again? I'm pretty strict so can't see where I have been going wrong. Do you think if I introduce the occasional MIM again this will cause trouble? I'm beginning to get bored with my diet.

Please HELP!

Much appreciated,

Miss R x

[not2late]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

Hi guys,

I am newbie to this website and to the atkins diet in general so any advice would be greatly welcomed!

I lost 13lbs in first three weeks of Atkins in which I stayed in induction.
I upped my carb intake to 25g (just veg) half way through the third week and still lost a couple of pounds.
In my 4th week I inroduced nuts but kept to 25g still, but had lost no weight by the end of the week. So I cut nuts (and flaxseed MIMS) out at beginning of week 5 and stuck at 25g.
I am now at the end of week 5 with still no weight loss. I know I need to be patient but I don't know when to reintroduce foods or up my carbs if I am not losing weight? Should I just stay at 25g til it moves again? I'm pretty strict so can't see where I have been going wrong. Do you think if I introduce the occasional MIM again this will cause trouble? I'm beginning to get bored with my diet.

Please HELP!

Much appreciated,

Miss R x

What are your stats?

For females, TOM (Time of Month) has the ability to due wacky things, like water retention. So, you might not lose pounds during your TOM because you are simply retaining water.

Have you been measuring yourself as Dr. Atkins recommended in the book? If you are losing inches, then you don't have to worry too much about the scale not moving because Dr. Atkins wrote that the loss of inches was a better indicator of the loss of fat, than the scale.

Also post your OWL Menues. Be sure to include amounts of the foods/condiments/beverages you are eating. And be sure to indicate what is your OWL Rung 1 vegetable.

As for the nut addition....how often and in what amount did you add the nuts? Dr. Atkins wrote in the book that nuts and seeds are limited to 1 ounce, with the exception of cashews which are limited to 1/2 ounce. And that any "new" food---meaning a food that you have not eaten previously on your Atkins---is to be added 3 times a week.

So post these things and then we can help you better.

[missrowlands]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

I am a 5'3 female and am aiming to lose 20lbs in total - 13lb of which I have already lost.

Stupidly I didn't measure myself at the beginning so can't even check whether I'm losing inches. My clothes are feeling looser but my stomach seems to be more bloated/chubby recently.

When I introduced nuts I had just 1oz of pecan or walnuts per day. I was very strict on my intake - but didn't know I should only have it for three days.

My basic OWL menu is:

Breakfast
2 egg omelette + 1oz cheese + 25g pepper or 50g courgette

Snack
2 stalk celery / or 50 g cucumber

Lunch
Tuna or Chicken
Salad - 100g leaves / 50g cucumber / 25g red pepper

Dinner
Chicken or fish with veg (usually 100g broc, 75g cauliflower, 110g courgette)

Snack
1oz cheese

If I am ever hungry I have another 1oz cheese or some more salad veg. My veg intake varies - for example, sometimes I have tomatoes and spring onions. I always try to count and record my carbs as accurately as possible, although I have had some issue with discrepancies between books and websites. I am currently using a US gov database as recommended to me by someone on the Atkins community website.

I did eat MIMS in week 3 and 4 but have stopped in week 5 to see if it would help weight loss. Also, I have been eating some sugarfree jelly which I know contains aspartame and I wonder whether this and other sweetners in the jelly are affecting me?

Thank you SO much! I really appreciate your support.

Miss R x

[atkinsgal08]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

With only 7 pounds to go, your rate of loss will most likely be painfully slow.

Is it possible your body doesn't want to lose any more?

[missrowlands]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

I realise the final 7lbs will be very slow but I don't know whether I should start introducing other foods / more veg carbs or not? I know you're not supposed to whilst you're not losing weight - but is it slightly different in my case?

[missrowlands]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

Because if I don't start to introduce new foods/more veg carbs at some point, I won't ever discover my ACE will I?

[atkinsgal08]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

>>don't know whether I should start introducing other foods / more veg carbs or not? I know you're not supposed to whilst you're not losing weight - but is it slightly different in my case?>>

Why don't you think you can introduce new foods and more carbs while losing? That's what OWL is about.

It's possible your body is just taking a break from losing ... you might just need to be patient.

[missrowlands]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

Can you introduce new foods when NOT losing? Provided you're not gaining? Won't this stop weight loss?

I'm a novice!

[sandislim]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

Hello! Welcome to the forum and to Atkins!

You might want to read this thread here http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.c...your-ccll.html

It has a little about how to find your Critical Carb Level for Losing if you are a slow loser. It also has a lot about OWL in general so it may be a good read.

[atkinsgal08]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

>>Can you introduce new foods when NOT losing?>>

Yes, you "can".

There's more to Atkins than just losing weight.

You can certainly stay at the net carb level you're at for a while, too.

Keep in mind that if you're changing things (eating/not eating the MiMs and adding the s/f jelly [which is a useless thing imho]), you should only change one thing at a time and only introduce one new thing at a time and only 3 times a week.

If you're not using Fitday or Fatsecret, now would be a good time to start. They're very helpful for troubleshooting.

Also ... have you considered that you don't really have 7 pounds to lose?

[missrowlands]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

AtkinsGal, I started using fitday but it did seem to have carb discrepancies - perhaps I will just stick to it anyway! Is this the one you use? I didn't realise that cutting things in and out would make such a difference. So I will do as you suggest, and cut out all sf jelly/diet soda this week, and just try 3 MIMS over the week. I do definitely have 7lbs to go, as this is weight I have gained over the past year or so. Thank you for your advice, I really appreciate it.

Sandislim, I will be sure to check that link out now. Thanks!

[2big4mysize]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

don't forget when you eat flax and other soluble fibers they will hold fluids in your intestines and add scale weight as they travel from your mouth out the other end. You have to accept you will always have X pounds of fiber/fluids in your gut if you consume then regularly and use your size to determine when you are at goal weight.

Since you are not losing measure today and use that as your starting point for moving up rungs in OWL. then add a new rung and see how you do for a week or two. Since you are putting your MIM back wait a week for that to stablize on the scale and then add a new rung or food from the rung you are already on. Also reread chapter 12 of your DANDR cause you are going to be looking for any blood sugar symptoms as a reaction to a food when inches and scales don't move

[atkinsgal08]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

>>I started using fitday but it did seem to have carb discrepancies>>

Such as?

Don't forget that Fitday shows you total carbs, you have to subtract the fiber to get net carbs?

Fitday uses the USDA database, so it's accurate (except for coffee!).

>>I do definitely have 7lbs to go, as this is weight I have gained over the past year or so.>>

That doesn't mean that you have 7 pounds to lose. Many find that on Atkins, the number on the scale they were aiming for turns out to be too low a number.

Just something to think about.

[JaxMama]

Re: HELP! No weight loss in OWL.

Be patient your body just lost A LOT in a short amount of time. And some people stall for a while after moving to OWL. Your last 7 lbs will be VERY VERY VERY slow but it will give you a chance to find your CCLL and get lasting healthy eating habits.

I am still losing from starting Jan 26th. Can you see how slow it can be? 15 lbs in 3.5 months. That is less than 1 lb a week. But I am in control and that is most important to me.