I need some serious help

[calichick]

Hey guys, I have been on Atkins for 2 full months now and I have a question for you. I know you aren't supposed to "over-eat your Atkins" because it could cause you to gain weight. However, since being in Ketosis my appetite has totally diminished. I eat 3 meals a day, and when I enter them on Fitday my ratio's are good, but I only end up being around 1000 -1200 calories a day, not including exercise calories i've burned for that day. I used some web sites to calculate my BMR and it is around 1600 -1700 calories per day. I'm SO not meeting that.

I've been in ketosis (according to breath and strips) since I started this WOE & I've been losing VERY slowly ... maybe a 1/2 a lb per week (maybe). This is extremely frustrating. Total, I've lost 6 lbs over the course of the 2 months (with one cheat factored in there). This is including induction, mind you, where you are supposed to lose quite easily. I've cut out all sweetners, all frankenfoods, and really cut back on cheese but still nothing is happening on the scale. I've even upped my exercise and water.

This week something weird happend ... around tues/wed the scale went down to 201 lbs (a 4 lb drop) and just when I was about to celebrate, it went back up to 204 today! With no change in eating or anything :raving
So I'm a little discouraged. Last time I tried Atkins I lost about 30 lbs in 3 months with little effort (no Fitday, no counting calories, no large amts of water, no cutting out sweetners, cheese etc.) It just seems that for all my hard work, I'm not reaping the rewards.

So I guess my ultimate question would be - in an effort to "not overeat" and only eat when I'm hungry, am I inadvertantly putting my body into starvation mode? Should I eat even when I'm not hungry to get my calories up to where they should be??? :help

Thanks so much guys,
Amanda

[Heather150]

Hi Amanda

Have you measured your self lately...or at all??? You may be losing inches although the scale may be jumping to a fro. Atkins has a tendency to shrink you, while you stay at a higher weight.

Are you doing any exercise??

Are you really watching what you're eating and being totally honest with yourself about portions and carb counts?

I too am a slow loser (I contribute that to all the dieting I've done all my life) so I do know how frustrating it is. But....I'm in a totally smaller size at this weight than I imagined I could be. Last time in my youth I was this weight-I was 4 sizes higher!!!

Give it another week or two, keeping all the things I mentioned in mind and see how you do.

Perhaps post a typical menu so we can see what you're eating. Perhaps there is something that's holding you back that you didn't think of.

[calichick]

Hi Heather,

Unfortunately the inches aren't moving either.

I do excercise (30 - 45 min cardio) 3 - 4 days a week. My workout schedule varies more than I'd like it to because I'm a student - some weeks I really can't afford to be excercising - i need to be studying! Hopefully I'll get into a routein this summer when things settle down a bit.

As far as the portions and carb creep, I use Fitday, so I can't reall "fudge" things. It tells you exactly what the carb count is for each of the foods you ate, like it or not. I usually average around 14-17 carbs per day. I am totally honest with my portions b/c I'm trying to get MORE calories in, not less :nod

Thanks for the reply, I'm definitely not giving up. I'm gonna give it another month or so.

[Isabeau]

You may want to try to eat a few high calorie snacks and see if upping your calories helps to get you moving. For example, half an avocado or the olive allotment. Big bang for your buck with those special category foods if your body handles them well. Cream cheese is another, again, watch the limits. I'm assuming you're in induction. Another thing you may wish to consider is moving to OWL. All in all though, if you're following your Atkins, drinking water and exercising good things are going to happen. Just be patient.

[soliwit]

I started losing weight as well after a 5 week stall when I started to take more butter and oil and protein-snacks, it could well be that you indeed are eating too little fat or proteins.
You can always just try to add some snacks like Isabeau says and see what happens.

[Elizellen]

As far as the portions and carb creep, I use Fitday, so I can't reall "fudge" things

How do your fat/protein/carb percentages work out ?
Are you hitting the 65/30/5 marks?

[calichick]

Yep, I'm ususally dead on my 65/30/5 mark .... its just usually around 1000-1200 calories.

Thanks for the snack suggestions ladies, although I already have about 1/4 of an avacado in my salads about 3x's per week. I may just try eating more frequently, smaller portions and see if that'll up my calories and if I start losing.

[spazzyhilo]

You could also try posting a couple of menu plans so we can see what your meals are like. That will help us see what foods your eating and see where the calories you are eating are coming from.

[Miss Seaneen]

I have exactly the same problem and I still find it hard to keep under control, most days I eat 800-1000 calories, no matter what I try, I find it hard to eat more.

The advice I got here was using unsalted butter on food, like your veggies, as it bumps up the calories without you having to try. Good luck!