Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

[saab]

Hello everyone,

I am new on this board and would like some help from all of you experts here.
I and my husband have heard so much about atkins that we had to give it a try. My husband needs to loose alot of weight to get back in shape and i need to loose moderately.
I and my husband have went on the atkins diet for the first time this Monday.

My husband’s weight is 236 pounds and his height is 5’10. he wants to come down to atleast 200 lb.

I on the other hand am 136 lb and my height is 5’1 and want to come down to 115lbs preferably.

We are strictly following the 20 gm carbohydrate intake per day and usually are eating less than that .

My husband has lost about 3 pounds and I have lost 1 pound. What I wanted to know was when would we see drastic results in weight loss. And for how many weeks should we continue this diet to reach our goals.
we both are anxious to see results and wondering whether we will be able to reach this goal or is it being too optimistic.
Thanks for your support.

Sanam

[dreamof145]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

Hi Sanam,

Welcome to you and your husband and congratulations on making the choice to get healthy together. It will definitely make it easier to have a partner 24/7 for support and motivation.

As for how fast or how long it takes to lose xx amount of pounds, each person's body is different. It depends on how much exercise you do, how closely you follow the plan, how much water you drink and your overall life-style.

My advice would be to instead of thinking of your weight loss and health in pounds, take your measurements every few weeks and see the difference. You should see an increase in energy and a boost in your self esteem as you feel and see the difference in your bodies.

Read Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution, edition 2002 < as it tells you exactly how to do the induction phase and then ease into the other stages so that you continue to lose and keep the weight off. Keep a positive attitude and utilize the ADBB for information and motivation.

This plan does work. I am very happy with my results. Please keep us posted. I wish you both best wishes!!!

[saab]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

thanks alot for the advice and i have the book that you are talking about and yes we are following it.
But as humans just anxious to see results which i am sure will take some time.

Thanks ,

Sanam

[choeve]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

Just my observation based on my experience I see Atkins as a steady weight loss not a quick weight loss. Some people lose really fast in the beginning but I am not one of those people. But I can be assured if I stick with it and don't cheat I will continue to lose about a pound per week sometimes 2 on average. Which means some weeks I may not lose any and other weeks I will lose a few. Two weeks ago when I went to the Dr. I weighed 311 this coming monday I will go back and I hope to weigh 309. That would be 1 pound per week. That's how it works for me anyway.

[RationalBeing]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

Just like any weight loss program - you will lose weight very quickly in the beginning and it will slow as your body requires less calories to maintain existing weight.

Your husband probably needs to get more to the 175lbs range at least, so if he has say, 51lbs to lose, he may lose at 5lbs per week in the beginning.

You, at 5'1" could probably lose 25lbs to get to 110lbs and would probably lose at about half the rate of your husband, if not 1/3, simply because you are female and require fewer calories to maintain weight. So if you lose 2lbs per week on average, to get to 110lbs you are looking at 25/2 = 3 months or so. YOu can do that piece of cake

In the end, it is about calories - however - Atkins has a built in appetite suppression mechanism that kicks in when you are in ketosis - this is why atkins is probably the world's best, and easiest (and not to mention tastiest!) weight loss program I've ever come across. The advantage here is you only really need to count net carbs instead of calories because the appetite suppression will naturally have you eating less anyway

Other advice: Drink 3 liters of water a day if you can; take L-glutamine & other vitamins, Eat heavy meals - which for me usually include eggs/red meat/chicken breast. These will naturally have you staying fuller, longer.

And of course: Exercise as much as you possibly can.

[saab]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

wow thats great advice and yes will let you all know about our progress. we are still in our first week and should wait for sometime to see some results and then take it on from there.

Thank you all !!!

[Elizellen]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

Hi Saab
Welcome to our ADBB family
It is generally accepted that we tend to lose between 5% and 10% of our total hoped-for loss during the first 14 days of induction.
So for you a result of 1-2 pounds lost over that time would be about average, and for your husband a loss of 2-4 pounds would be about average.

[Diva217.5]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

Welcome.If you look at my weight loss chart in my sig you'll see that I have quite a bit of weight to loose but coming off fast doesnt always happen.I loose an average of 5lbs a month, so about 1.5lbs per week, but most months I loose 2lbs and than stall for 2 weeks and than loose another 2lbs.Its sometimes very frustrating, but I have to say that I dont crave food, dont obsess about it anymore and my body doesnt feel like its on a diet or being starved.Its a way of life, so just follow the induction and the weight will come off.Good luck.

[saab]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

yes well i have lost 2 pounds in my first week and hubby lost 6 pounds... so we are trying . this is our second week and atkins is not tough to do at all. as long as we stick to 20 gms of carbs

[Carbaholic]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

Hi there - well done on your weight loss so far. Please don't get discouraged.

Perhaps you guys could get some more exercise? As you're in this together, how about some nice walks in the evening. Doing this after a meal helps you to not crave dessert!

Try recording all of your intake on a web site such as fitday.com, which records your weight, your goals, and indicates what ratios of foods you are eating.

I was surprised at how quickly I could over-eat on vegetables, thinking they were a kind of 'free' food. Maybe inadvertently this is what is happening?

I'm sure you will both continue to succeed with your new WOE.

[omnimomma]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

Welcome. Glad you are losing on Atkins. The mistake I have made in the past is to think that this is a diet. In fact, it is a way of life. I have a lot to lose, but I am losing, and as long as my weight is headed down, that's great by me. I'm looking forward to the day when I can be on Atkins maintenance, and never have to worry about dieting again.

My husband and I are on this together, too. He's been on it since November, 2002 and has lost a lot of weight. I was on it with him for a year, but had a health crisis and spent 6 months in a hospital and then nursing home, and they don't understand Atkins at all. One thing is for sure, it cured me of my desire for mashed potatoes! Anyway, it has been great having him to lean on. It makes cooking so much easier.

Good luck!

[Jack W.]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

Sanam,
I try to look at my weight loss in terms of "how long did it take me to put it on".
With that said... I have a total of 40 lbs to loose.
I probably gained it over the last 10 years. Thats a very gradual weight gain.
Can I expect to realistcally loose it in a few months? Probably not.
My weight loss, like most everyone here, seems to be a steady 1 to 1-1/2 lb. per week loss with some weeks of no loss at all.
If I stay the course and average about 1 lb. a week I am looking at a year to loose.
If you set up realistic goals and keep weight loss in persprective, it will help your psychy out alot along the way!

Start a regular excercise program, and when you plateau, ramp it up a bit to bust the plateau. That works for me in tough times.
Good luck,
Jack W.

[saab]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

thank you all so much for yr support. my husband refuses to excercise with me or go for walks. in simple words , he is LAZY. i have told him that atkins wont help him that much if he doesnt excercise ... please suggest what can i do to motivate him . today trying to take him for a brisk walk....

[Elizellen]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

Maybe once he sees you getting fitter and enjoying your walks he might decide to join you - if only to make sure no-one tries to 'chat you up' while you are out on your own exercising your slimmer, trimmer body!!

But seriously - there is probably nothing you can do to make him want to exercise, he has to want that himself. So continue to make sure YOU get some exercise in so you get the benefits from it whether he joins you or not. Maybe once he has lost some serious weight he might come around to it.

[saab]

Re: Need help and advice as i am a newbie on Atkins.

is it very imp to keep drinking water. i cant manage to have 8 glasses maybe 2 or 3. will that in any way harm or prevent weight loss..??