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Hello! New member, and new to Atkins
Hi everyone! It is nice to meet you.
This is the first time I've tried Atkins.
I just started a "clean" induction yesterday, after reading the sections of the message board on the advantages of the clean induction.
Before that, for three days I was doing something like induction, but eating a lot more cheese and cabbage than allowed, and green tea. Though this probably didn't help my diet, doing this helped me deal with really unpleasant withdrawl symptoms that kicked in on the first day (both from carbs and caffiene) without straying *too* far from basics of the diet. Those withdrawl symptoms started fading on the last of the three days. Information on your website about blood sugar and caffiene convinced me to give up even the tea.
So, I'm either on day 2 or day 5, depending. I'm planning on sticking through a "clean" induction on the assumption that today is day 2. (Unless anyone knows of a problem with doing so?)
More: I am a vegetarian, but I eat milk products, eggs, and I'm starting to eat more fish for this diet. Before, I would eat fish only rarely, if ever. I'm also eating a lot of "fake" meat products (made mainly from soy and wheat proteins), and counting the effective carbs on them carefully. Ditto for things like cheese, olives, (some) nuts, tofu, and avocado: I'm using this site to count the carbs when they aren't on the label: http://www.nutritiondata.com/
I'm not interested in stopping being a vegetarian, in part because at this point, I've been one for so long that most real meat seems really unappetizing for me. Fish being the main exception. I'm hoping I can still do Atkins, and from what I've read, it looks like I can.
About my history with dieting:
I'm doing the Atkins diet because being moderately careful about carbs (since Atkins began getting talked about in the mainstream) is the only think that has helped me maintain weight. I was overweight as a kid, and from the time I was 13 until my early 20s, I yo-yo-ed constantly.
This was at the peak of "low-fat" dogma, and I'd go on a very strict diet, which would work OK, and then upping the calories in an attempt to maintain a goal weight would trigger intense carb cravings.
When I was in my early 20s, Atkins' understanding of hunger and nutrition started getting popular air time (this would be about 2002ish), and I heard about it while I was on a weight upswing. I figured it was worth trying as the low-fat dogma didn't seem to work out in real life. I cut refined carbs and significantly upped fat and protein intake (still ate lots of carbs in whole grains, beans, and sugars from fruit). By doing this, I was able to maintain an 'overweight' but happily not 'obese' weight for over 4 years (I also continued an exercise routine that worked well for me).
Increasing the fat was hard at first, because after so many years I had had a fear of fat. However, Atkins' reasoning fit with what I had experienced, so I did it. It wasn't the Atkins diet, but it used some principles of his. I was so glad to not be yo-yo-ing anymore, I didn't worry about losing.
But. Last Holiday season through this February, I was very stressed, not thinking about weight, and started back on the refined carbs. I gained about 8-10 lbs. in those few months, more than I had in years.
Now, I want to lose weight, not just maintain. From my experience, and comparing my hunger reactions to my husband's (who is and has always been around normal weight, and doesn't seem to get as hungry as I do from carbs) I think I'm highly sensitive to carbs. This seems to be confirmed by the fact that the withdrawl symptoms I got in the first few days of the "dirty" induction last week were, at times, almost like my husband's from quitting cigs. So, I really think Atkins is the way for me to go.
I'm really motivated now. In fall, I'll start a graduate progam I was really hoping to get into. I'll move to a new city. Also, most of the clothes I've had for the past 4 years or so are tight, because of the recent weight gain.. and I don't like this! And I don't want to buy larger clothes.
Hope that wasn't too long! I look forward to talking to you all, sharing recipes and so on, on this site as time goes by. Best wishes!
This is the first time I've tried Atkins.
I just started a "clean" induction yesterday, after reading the sections of the message board on the advantages of the clean induction.
Before that, for three days I was doing something like induction, but eating a lot more cheese and cabbage than allowed, and green tea. Though this probably didn't help my diet, doing this helped me deal with really unpleasant withdrawl symptoms that kicked in on the first day (both from carbs and caffiene) without straying *too* far from basics of the diet. Those withdrawl symptoms started fading on the last of the three days. Information on your website about blood sugar and caffiene convinced me to give up even the tea.
So, I'm either on day 2 or day 5, depending. I'm planning on sticking through a "clean" induction on the assumption that today is day 2. (Unless anyone knows of a problem with doing so?)
More: I am a vegetarian, but I eat milk products, eggs, and I'm starting to eat more fish for this diet. Before, I would eat fish only rarely, if ever. I'm also eating a lot of "fake" meat products (made mainly from soy and wheat proteins), and counting the effective carbs on them carefully. Ditto for things like cheese, olives, (some) nuts, tofu, and avocado: I'm using this site to count the carbs when they aren't on the label: http://www.nutritiondata.com/
I'm not interested in stopping being a vegetarian, in part because at this point, I've been one for so long that most real meat seems really unappetizing for me. Fish being the main exception. I'm hoping I can still do Atkins, and from what I've read, it looks like I can.
About my history with dieting:
I'm doing the Atkins diet because being moderately careful about carbs (since Atkins began getting talked about in the mainstream) is the only think that has helped me maintain weight. I was overweight as a kid, and from the time I was 13 until my early 20s, I yo-yo-ed constantly.
This was at the peak of "low-fat" dogma, and I'd go on a very strict diet, which would work OK, and then upping the calories in an attempt to maintain a goal weight would trigger intense carb cravings.
When I was in my early 20s, Atkins' understanding of hunger and nutrition started getting popular air time (this would be about 2002ish), and I heard about it while I was on a weight upswing. I figured it was worth trying as the low-fat dogma didn't seem to work out in real life. I cut refined carbs and significantly upped fat and protein intake (still ate lots of carbs in whole grains, beans, and sugars from fruit). By doing this, I was able to maintain an 'overweight' but happily not 'obese' weight for over 4 years (I also continued an exercise routine that worked well for me).
Increasing the fat was hard at first, because after so many years I had had a fear of fat. However, Atkins' reasoning fit with what I had experienced, so I did it. It wasn't the Atkins diet, but it used some principles of his. I was so glad to not be yo-yo-ing anymore, I didn't worry about losing.
But. Last Holiday season through this February, I was very stressed, not thinking about weight, and started back on the refined carbs. I gained about 8-10 lbs. in those few months, more than I had in years.
Now, I want to lose weight, not just maintain. From my experience, and comparing my hunger reactions to my husband's (who is and has always been around normal weight, and doesn't seem to get as hungry as I do from carbs) I think I'm highly sensitive to carbs. This seems to be confirmed by the fact that the withdrawl symptoms I got in the first few days of the "dirty" induction last week were, at times, almost like my husband's from quitting cigs. So, I really think Atkins is the way for me to go.
I'm really motivated now. In fall, I'll start a graduate progam I was really hoping to get into. I'll move to a new city. Also, most of the clothes I've had for the past 4 years or so are tight, because of the recent weight gain.. and I don't like this! And I don't want to buy larger clothes.
Hope that wasn't too long! I look forward to talking to you all, sharing recipes and so on, on this site as time goes by. Best wishes!
I have never felt better than I do now, and it's thanks to Atkins. 
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