Time to break-up with my beloved carbs!

[runinlove]

Hi!

I am really excited to start the Atkins Diet! I only want to lose 20 pounds but I've been struggling to do so for over two years. In high school I was active and at a very healthy weight (115). Unfortunately I went through some tough times and lost too much weight. In college things brightened up! I was eating more and gained some much needed weight. However, I now I have very bad eating habit. I will stick to my diet all day but at nighttime I will eat lots and lots of carby foods. I'm thinking that cutting way back on my carbs will help especially at nighttime. I have never overeaten on protein. Honestly I'm afraid that I will not be able to stick with it when nighttime comes around. If anyone has any advice/suggestions I would love to hear them. I'm hoping that being active in the forums will help too. I look forward to chatting with fellow dieters! Who knows maybe someday I will be able to give someone else advice.

[liv]

Re: Time to break-up with my beloved carbs!

Welcome!!
Cool that you have a blog too.
Nighttime eating - is it a habit? a craving? hunger?
One suggestion from me would be to eat a lot of the foods you are allowed to eat. That usually keep you satisfied. On Atkins it is more fat than protein though.

115 sounds nice but sometimes when we get older we may not get down to our teen weight. That is just a thought. Some people can be that thin though. I think it takes a fair bit of exercise to maintain.
Good luck. Hope you read more about your journey.

[imagood1]

Re: Time to break-up with my beloved carbs!

until you can get your nighttime eating under control make sure you have plenty of legal veggies and other foods around - when I first started I saved an ounce of my cheese allowance for night in case i needed it -- after the first couple days I wasn't hungry and still rarely eat anything after dinner.

Keep plenty of legal foods around - get rid of anything that isn't on the acceptable food list. Drink plenty of water -- 64 ounces minimum a day -- that's plain water, nothing added but ice! If you get hungry drink a glass of water and wait 15 minutes - most of the time when we THINK we're hungry we are actually dehydrated so drink plenty of water.

Start exercising as soon as possible -- it's not an option, it's mandatory according to the 2002 DANDR book. Get a copy as soon as possible and read it so you know how the plan works so it can be successful for you.

Good luck on your journey!

[sham]

Re: Time to break-up with my beloved carbs!

Hey once you start the diet give it a few days your carb cravings should go and you won't miss the forbidden foods.All the best.

[blueberrylady]

Re: Time to break-up with my beloved carbs!

Welcome to the board!

Are you watching TV when you eat the carbs? That, or whatever you're doing, could be a trigger to the habit of mindless eating. Try doing something else at that time, like exercising then. (Just don't exercise within an hour of going to bed because it might keep you awake)! But sometimes just a change in your routine will help break the habit.

Good luck to you!

[beth1124]

Re: Time to break-up with my beloved carbs!

The evening is hard for me as well. I found it easier to manage by posting a note on the fridge and the pantry door showing my favorite acceptable foods for induction.. everytime I see it, it reminds me of what I can have as an acceptable snack! Lots of water helps too... I have a big glass of water when I want to snack mindlessly... Good luck and the cravings will go away, just tough it out.. it will be worth it in the end!