I am so discouraged!

**sallyseachange** · May 14, 2007, 10:40 AM

Re: I am so discouraged!

Hello and welcome Muckraker! Glad you found us here at ADBB, which is a wonderful place to come to for good advice about low carbing the Atkins way.

Sorry to hear of your difficulties. I can well imagine your dismay. But don't lose heart... let's see if we can help.

For starters... there are some people who lose nothing at all during induction, yet do go on to reach goal. It just seems to take their body time to wake up to the fact that they're serious!

Are you losing inches? Again, many many people lose inches before lbs... and it takes time for the body to catch up. The tape measure is a far better guage of your real losses than the scales. Do you notice your clothes feeling looser?

I'd suggest you try posting a couple of typical menus in the "Review my Menu" forum so people can make some suggestions. Putting down quantities of foods is helpful. Often it's only a little thing that needs tweaking to jump start weight loss.

Are you eating bars and/or shakes? These are horrendously dangerous. I can't tell you how many people stall when useing these. Don't go by the fact that they say they're fine for induction... they aren't. The companies that produce the bars and shakes (Atkins Nutritionals included) are far more interested in their profits than your good health and weight loss. Many of the ingredients in the bars are not on the induction list.

Are you drinking your water (masses of it) and taking supplements?

Are you drinking coffee or other beverages with caffeine? Caffeine is known to stall many people too.

Are you eating too little? If you are, you run the very real risk of going into "starvation mode" where your body does everything it can to conserve fat.

Are you taking medications that might interfere with weight loss?

Hang in there... we'll get to the bottom of this!

**muckraker43** · May 14, 2007, 11:25 AM

Re: I am so discouraged!

Sally,
Thanks for your response.
Yes, I have had the occasional Atkins bar, but when I have I still kept within my 20 carb limit. My husband has at least 1 bar a day and he has lost weight without a problem.
I have about four ounces of cheese a day, but it is all no carb cheese as per the package (swiss and certain brands of mascarpone.)
This begs the question and maybe you can clear this up for me: A carb is a carb, isn't it? For instance, why is 2 carbs coming from an Atkins bar any different then 2 carbs coming from 2 ounces cheddar cheese or high carb vegetables?
Yes, I drink the required amount of water.
And unfortunately my clothes are not fitting looser.
This is the second time I've tried Atkins. The first time was 4 years ago and it didn't work then either. My husband thinks it's just not the right diet for me, as we've had several friends male and female who have had success with Atkins. I am the only one not losing!
You are very kind to try to help me. I hope I'm not coming off bitter, I'm just so disappointed since I feel nearly a month has been wasted. I want this to work, so I'm trying very hard to make it happen.
Thanks again for your response.

**colirina** · May 14, 2007, 06:00 PM

Re: I am so discouraged!

I can relate to you. I only have about 20 pounds to lose and I haven't lost much. I just think it's much slower for people who have less to lose. How about this, give it 3 months and see what happen. Think about it, what's the alternative? At least we're not staving ourselves. We get to eat cheese.

**muckraker43** · May 14, 2007, 06:15 PM

Re: I am so discouraged!

You make a good point, but I want to at least lose 5 pounds within the next month so I can fit into my summer clothes! Even just 1 pound a week would make me happy, but this diet isn't working for me, at least not so far. On Thursday it will be a month and I haven't lost a thing!

**colirina** · May 14, 2007, 06:26 PM

Re: I am so discouraged!

You havent gained any weight, so that's good news. Also, when is it going to be the time of the month for you? Normally I gain water weight during this time. So wait till after that comes and goes and weigh yourself.

**CDRAKE1234** · May 14, 2007, 06:35 PM

Re: I am so discouraged!

Post your menu, maybe we can help see where maybe a problem lies. Stick with it!! You'll get there! Gotta have faith and great will power at times! Keep up the hard work!

**sallyseachange** · May 15, 2007, 02:33 AM

Re: I am so discouraged!

Originally posted by muckraker43

Sally,
Thanks for your response.
Yes, I have had the occasional Atkins bar, but when I have I still kept within my 20 carb limit. My husband has at least 1 bar a day and he has lost weight without a problem.
I have about four ounces of cheese a day, but it is all no carb cheese as per the package (swiss and certain brands of mascarpone.)
This begs the question and maybe you can clear this up for me: A carb is a carb, isn't it? For instance, why is 2 carbs coming from an Atkins bar any different then 2 carbs coming from 2 ounces cheddar cheese or high carb vegetables?.....

Re the 2 carbs for an Atkins bar: Take an Atkins Caramel Endulge bar. It says on the front in big letters 2g net. If you look at the ingredients list, you'll see it says that a bar contains 14g carbs which are made up of 5g fibre, 1g sugars and 8g sugar alcohols.
You can take off the fibre for sure, it doesn't get metabolised at all. As for the sugar... no. And the sugar alcohols? Well... that's for you to decide, but my feeling (and the feeling of many others on ADBB) is that they should be counted. They're there and you metabolise them whether or not they impact on your blood sugar.

Here are a couple of links where things are explained far better than I can and hopefully will allow you to make your own decision:

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6780 What are sugar alcohols?

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6731 What about sugar alcohols – count them or not?

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6730 Can I eat Atkins Advantage bars?

Hope these help.

Re the cheese: Cheese, according to Dr Atkins, should be counted at 1g carb per oz... whatever the carb count otherwise stated.

Do post a menu or two in the Review my Menu Forum. You might find the solution to your problem is a simple one and easy to correct.

**SandyL2002** · May 15, 2007, 03:54 AM

Re: I am so discouraged!

I think the other thing you need to look at is How are you feeling? Are you feeling tons better not eating all the sugar and junk you were eating? Maybe adding more carbs moving on to Owl would help you to jump start your weightloss.. Give up the Atkins bars..what may work for one may not work for others.. Try not to have the cheese..see if that is the issue..you could have yeast issues...

**muckraker43** · May 15, 2007, 05:45 AM

Re: I am so discouraged!

Thanks everybody. I will try your suggestions!

**sillygirl** · May 16, 2007, 08:12 AM

Re: I am so discouraged!

Hi Muck! Welcome to the board. With only 15 pounds to lose, I sure hope you're still not on induction after 3 weeks? You should be bumping yourself up the food rungs. Most people see a drop in weight when they up the carbs after induction. When you stay at 20 carbs, you will tend to stall. Additionally, if you're not eating enough calories you will go to starvation mode and won't lose anymore either. Posting your menu is a great idea!

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.c...splay.php?f=38

Please read around this link. You will find out about CCL and the food rung ladder.

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I am so discouraged!

I am so discouraged!

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