It's time to move on....

[iamran]

Time for me to move on to OWL rung 1.

I have to admit it's a little scary moving out of my extended induction comfort zone. But it's time. I still have a ton of weight to lose but if I don't move up now I feel that I may never move up.

I normally eat 2 cups of lettuce with a either a cup of broccoli or 1/2 cup broccoli, or 1/2 cup onion, or 1/2 cup green peppers. That has basically been my 2 cups and 1 cup of other veggies. Now that I have moved to bigger better things I will probably eat more lettuce or just add an extra cup of broccoli and experiment with other veggies for a while.

Any suggestions or comments is more than welcome. I can use all the help I can get.

Thanks!

[not2late]

Re: It's time to move on....

Time for me to move on to OWL rung 1.

I have to admit it's a little scary moving out of my extended induction comfort zone. But it's time. I still have a ton of weight to lose but if I don't move up now I feel that I may never move up.

I normally eat 2 cups of lettuce with a either a cup of broccoli or 1/2 cup broccoli, or 1/2 cup onion, or 1/2 cup green peppers. That has basically been my 2 cups and 1 cup of other veggies. Now that I have moved to bigger better things I will probably eat more lettuce or just add an extra cup of broccoli and experiment with other veggies for a while.

Any suggestions or comments is more than welcome. I can use all the help I can get.

Thanks!

Just remember you add 5 net carbs of any Induction veg during Rung 1. 15 cups of lettuce is about 5 net carbs!! So you might want to rethink adding more lettuce.

If you like gravies and sauces, Rung 1 is perfect because pureeing the veggies into sauces and/or using them to thicken broths and cooking liquid is an excellent way of adding those 5 additional net carbs to your menu. For example, toss a jar of roasted red peppers into the blender, give it a whirl and you have a roasted red pepper sauce that you can use for meats. Or add olive oil and lemon juice and you have a dressing to toss veggies in.

If you like soups especially creamy vegetable soups, Rung 1 will allow you to have that extra serving of veg in your menu.

[iamran]

Re: It's time to move on....

Thanks, Megs!

I tried pureeing a tomato, 1/4 green pepper, 1/4 onion to make a salsa like to go on my taco salad tonight. I put some seasonings in with it. It was pretty tasty! I also had a cup of lettuce tonight and 2 cups at lunch. Do you think that is enough veggies for one day of OWL? I understand about finding other veggies than lettuce. If I ate 15 cups of lettuce in one day I don't think that I'd want to eat it ever again!

[EverLosing]

Re: It's time to move on....

I found this post REALLY helpful when I moved onto OWL. If you like pumpkin, it really is a great easy way to test the waters of increasing your carbs and fiber and you get the added fat from the butter and cream. Love this recipe. Last time I went shopping, I bought 4 huge cans of pumpkin. Just make sure you grab the right can. At wallyworld, it's right next to the pumpkin pie filling and that's not the can you want!! It's a sweet treat too.

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/forums/desserts/900-pumpkin-treat-induction-friendly.html

[iamran]

Re: It's time to move on....

Thanks EverLosing!

I will have to buy some pumpkin this weekend. That recipe sounds really heavenly.

When I think of veggies I don't think of pumpkin but I will have to start. That should be an easy way to up those carbs. Heck, it will be a yummy way to up those carbs!

[EverLosing]

Re: It's time to move on....

It is YUMMY!! Do not get carried away with it!! When I stalled, I cut it out for a little while but I don't think pumpkin was holding me back, I think I was eating too much trying to eat every couple of hours. My calories weren't too high but I was eating when I wasn't feeling actual hunger. That recipe is the closest you'll probably get to pumpkin pie. It really is good. I've never tried it in the oven but I wonder if it would thicken up in the oven baked for a long time vs. nuked in the microwave. By the way, I nuke it for a minute, stir it up and nuke it for another minute. Cinnamon sprinkled on top is great too!! Forgot the splenda in it the other day and immediately realized I left it out...upon first bite!! I think you'll enjoy it! Good luck and keep us informed!

[iamran]

Re: It's time to move on....

I will deffinately keep you posted. Thanks for being so kind and sharing!

Today since I ate more for lunch I split my lunch into half. Two cups of lettuce at one time is alot of lettuce. Especially since I have gotten use to smaller veggie portions. Before this WOL I could eat a ton of lettuce but now not quite so much.

It's just amazing how you can eat such good food and actually lose weight and boost your moods and energy. Now not only do I like to walk for exercise I actually look forward to it. Some days I can't believe that I am actually doing this. I love this WOL. I can't imagine why someone would go pay Jenny or LA to lose weight when this way is so easy and simple and good for you. I guess to each his own.

[Peej]

Re: It's time to move on....

It's just amazing how you can eat such good food and actually lose weight and boost your moods and energy. Now not only do I like to walk for exercise I actually look forward to it. Some days I can't believe that I am actually doing this. I love this WOL. I can't imagine why someone would go pay Jenny or LA to lose weight when this way is so easy and simple and good for you. I guess to each his own.

That's the way it should be though, right? I mean you're doing something good for your body. If your body is rebelling (hunger pangs, headaches, cravings, depression, etc. that all came from low cal diets for me) then you're fighting it every step of the way. At least this way you're working with your metabolism! I've always found it peculiar that losing weight through more traditional diets is so miserable. Why would your body react so horribly when you're doing something healthy?

I think my body appreciates it this way much more!

[not2late]

Re: It's time to move on....

Today since I ate more for lunch I split my lunch into half. Two cups of lettuce at one time is alot of lettuce. Especially since I have gotten use to smaller veggie portions. Before this WOL I could eat a ton of lettuce but now not quite so much.

Start breaking up that lettuce with other veggies. Lettuce is alot of volume and alot of water, and very little of anything else. So start adding new veggies.

It's just amazing how you can eat such good food and actually lose weight and boost your moods and energy. Now not only do I like to walk for exercise I actually look forward to it. Some days I can't believe that I am actually doing this. I love this WOL. I can't imagine why someone would go pay Jenny or LA to lose weight when this way is so easy and simple and good for you. I guess to each his own.

I've found that when I eat minimally processed and refined foods, my appetite is satisfied longer than when I eat something processed like a hotdog or cold cuts. Even if those foods have no added sugars or starches, I'm filled initially, then an hour later, I'm hungry again. But if I eat a chicken leg or a couple of real crab legs and a veggie on the side, I feel satisfied longer.

[iamran]

Re: It's time to move on....

I agree Peej you should be able to eat good, feel good and lose weight alll at the same time. It just amazes me how this works since all of my life I have heard low fat, low fat, low fat to lose weight and be healthy. After reading the book and doing Atkins I feel that this is a healthier way to go and a more comfortable way for myself. I don't like feeling hungry. I love the fact that you can eat real food not that low fat tasteless stuff. I love the fact that I can work all day, cook dinner, wash laundry, and still have enough energy to walk! I love the fact that I am not obsessing about what I am going to have for the next snack or meal. I feel so much more in control of my life. It's amazing that I feel this way all because I changed my eating and exercising lifestyle. Now that I am a firm believer in this WOL I just can't imagine why anyone would want to low fat or high startch their way thru life.

Anyway, I'm sorry for rambling on there. The changes that take place from within is truly amazing.

[iamran]

Re: It's time to move on....

Megs, todayfor lunch, I brought a salad with lettuce, green peppers, and onions. So instead of just a lettuce salad I am getting a few more veggies in. Tonight I plan on having a burger with onions and green peppers all fried together. I know that onion is pretty carby and I love onions.

Also, Ever pointed me to a post with pumpkin. I plan on getting some this weekend to try.

Since starting this WOL I haven't had a hot dog. I don't think that I have had any cold cuts either. They scare me because of the sugar. I tend to enjoy burgers, pork chops, chicken breast, and shrimp. I use more ground beef than anything. I like to season it up and make taco salads. I also love shrimp with butter, garlic, onions, green peppers with some cayenne pepper thrown into a skillet.

I'm getting excited! I love this WOL! I feel so good and have soooooo much energy. I eat wonderful tasting food. This is the good life!

[iamran]

Re: It's time to move on....

I punched in everything on my fitday acct. Here are my #:
fat: 65%
protien: 31%
carbs: 4%
calories: 1283
net carbs: 9.74

I can see where you could eat fewer calories in this rung. Not meaning that to go way low. Just meaning that somedays I eat over 2000. I can up the veggies and lower the protien (not to get out of my ratio) to fill myself up and eat fewer calories.

I will have to work on getting more carbs. I am trying so hard to do this and do this right. I want to succeed!

I should still be using the 65/30/5 ratio, correct?