New to Atkins

[former_sport]

Hi Guys/Gals:

I'm new to Atkins. Right now I am 200 lbs and I'd like to be around 165 lbs. I'm about 5'10. I plan on eating a lot of chicken and eggs, two of my favorite foods anyhow.

I also plan on doing about twenty minutes of calisthenics a day to tone while I am losing weight.

I am only going to weight myself once every two weeks. I look forward to exchanging ideas with everyone on the forum.

[Georgiana]

Re: New to Atkins

Welcome to ADBB!

I plan on eating a lot of chicken and eggs

Are you planning to eat vegetables, too?

Are you reading the 2002 edition of Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution?

[miller98b]

Re: New to Atkins

former sport,

You are 165 pounds! You are just waiting for the scale to confirm that in a few months. Good Luck, this is a great resource and there are so many wonderful people here to help if you want to help yourself.

[former_sport]

Re: New to Atkins

Welcome to ADBB!

Are you planning to eat vegetables, too?

Are you reading the 2002 edition of Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution?

I do have the Atkins book, yes. I just cracked it open though. I plan on eating salad instead of veggies. Mainly because lettuce is safe...I'm not that far with understanding the diet yet, but I know a lot of veggies have starch/carbs.

[Georgiana]

Re: New to Atkins

I plan on eating salad instead of veggies. Mainly because lettuce is safe

Why do you think lettuce is "safe"... or "safer" than other vegetables?

And salad does not have to be (only) lettuce.

I know a lot of veggies have starch/carbs.

Atkins is not a zero carb diet.

Lettuce has carbs, too.

Plus, by eating only lettuce, you'll be depriving yourself of nutrients... which will slow down your metabolism... and it's not good for your overall health either.

[Georgiana]

Re: New to Atkins

Also... you will be counting net carbs. That's total carbs minus dietary fiber.

[former_sport]

Re: New to Atkins

Yea, I understand that. Like I said, above. Most of my diet will consist of eggs, chicken, and salad (usually only lettuce) because I enjoy these foods the most.

I'm not a real big fan of red meat, so I'm going to try and do it without eating a lot of that.

Also I understand its a low carb, not no carb. But I will probably do induction for about a month before moving on to the other steps. So for me, 20 net carbs is pretty close to being no carb.

And lettuce is safer/easier for me to work with because I usually eat it daily anyhow. I just gotta figure out how to live without dressing or get a good low carb dressing.

I'm sure there is a lot more to the diet, as I mentioned, I only started the book and I'm not that far into it.

Like any diet, I am sure doing what comes natural and easier for each individual is the surest way to be successful. For me, that means incorporating more low carb foods that I already enjoy. Hence, safer/easier for me to "stay on track."

[maxima]

Re: New to Atkins

I love the salad of 1 cup spinach and two cups mushrooms- I had it today. I love these two vegetables even when I wasn't on Adkins - but I used spam instead of butter then and used a "dressing" of a little bit of spicy brown mustard and just mixed it all up together. Odd, I know, but I always liked it.

Today I saute the mushrooms in some butter and then poured the whole thing over the spinach - it was incredibly flavorful and delicious to me.

[maxima]

Re: New to Atkins

Your plan is what I have been doing and I'm beginning to understand that this is not necessarily the wise way to approach the new way of eating - perhaps as we get the book read and understood we will be more willing to branch out more.

I do make sure to get my 20 in - but like you I wasn't a fan of red meat.

I have begun to really enjoy a well done hamburger which I made with some salt, pepper, a little soy sauce, a little spicy brown mustard, a bit of chopped green onion. It was incredibly flavorful, I did use a high fat hamburger because that always has more flvor but make the patty really big so that it would be enough when grilled down. I did it in a pan the first time and it stuck up the house for many ours so now I grill it outside. Just an idea for you of a red meat I found delicious.

[Shrew2u]

Re: New to Atkins

Three Basic Low-Carb Dressings:

1 part sour cream, 1 part mayo plus chopped or dried herbs to taste

3 parts olive oil, 1 part vinegar (white or red, not balsalmic), garlic and herbs to taste

3 parts olive oil, 1 part lemon juice, oregano & black pepper to taste

Food Network has tons of dressing recipes, you just need to find some that appeal to you and adopt or adapt them to be Induction-friendly.

It's a shame you're sticking to lettuce; there's such a delightful range of veg that could dress up your salad and provide vital nutrients: mushrooms, tomato, red onion, sweet peppers. You could make yourself a nice chicken salad with some apple-like sweetness and crunch, too, using chicken, mayo, green onion and jicama (and in OWL, you could add chopped pecans and chopped cranberries - really lovely).

[imagood1]

Re: New to Atkins

Good luck doing your version of Atkins. You need more than lettuce, chicken & eggs......what fats are you getting in daily? Are you using a program like Fitday to keep track of what your eating? How much water are you drinking daily - what vitamins are you taking - what exercise are you doing? These are all parts of the Atkins way of eating.

[blueberrylady]

Re: New to Atkins

Welcome to the board, former sport! I'm from PA too.

Don't forget about fish because the omega 3's and 6's are very good for you and there are tons of ways to prepare it. I even add tuna to my salad greens. Or you could make tuna salad with egg and mayo. Don't limit yourself too much or you will get bored with your choices.