im a newbie!

[mom2lexscot]

hi! my name is melissa. i first started atkins about 6 years ago and lost 43 lbs. i got off and gained it all plus some back. now im ready to do this for real. i started monday and have currently lost 4 lbs. i can't seem to stop stepping on the scales! i have a question about induction. is there a certain limit on how long you can do it? i have a lot of weight to lose, and im getting married in a year. i want to lose as much as possible before that. i keep seeing people with extended induction on their posts and i just wanted to know if we can do it longer than 2 weeks.

[cafe_et_creme]

Re: im a newbie!

Hi melissa

Welcome back to the AWOL, and congrats on your weight loss so far. Yes some people do stay on Induction for longer than the 2 weeks, i think its a personal choice, if you have alot of weight to lose and are comfortable on induction then there is no reason why you cant stay on it for a few weeks longer. It is good to move onto OWL though, as you get to add more foods and you are less likely to get bored. Its your choice in the end though.

Good luck on your journey

[liv]

Re: im a newbie!

Melissa.
Great that you came here. Welcome. Sounds like things have started to move for you again. That is a good feeling I bet.
Can you do induction longer? Yes you can as Cafe says. Sometimes people stay too long and they get fatigue and break their diet from boredom. So sooner or later adding the foods back in order and in small amounts makes it more exciting and you can keep going longer and losing more in the long run. Some people thinks that just because they stay in extended they will lose more. That is not true for everyone either. And for me OWL has been so important because I do not want to put it all back again (it is darn hard to build up motivation to start taking it off ) so I am absolutely set on learning how to eat so that I can maintain my weight. That is what I am using OWL for.

Good luck to you.

[imagood1]

Re: im a newbie!

Hi and welcome Melissa - When I joined this forum in January I did a clean 2 week induction then thought I'd continue on extended induction to loose more weight -- it didn't work for me, I stopped loosing weight somewhere between weeks 3 and 4. I was advised to move on to OWL Rung 1 (5 additional net carbs of veggies a day) and started loosing again.

Like Cafe said it's a personal choice, just be fair with yourself and move on when you have enough time to safely go through the Rungs to get to maintenance - that way you won't gain the weight back. Also during that time you'll learn how easy this way of eating is to stick with and you'll be more likely to stay with Atkins for life. It gets harder each time you try to loose the weight - it's harder and takes longer for it to happen. Good luck to you.

[chinadoll]

Re: im a newbie!

Hi Melissa, you already have the answer to your question and I do agree with Liv that learning about your triggers in OWL is very valuable.