much to my mother's chargin, yes, it is.

for most lc plans, you can choose whatever protein you want. i can't agree "any lc diet is good if you eat veggies" because i've seen some diet plans promoted as LC that are, in fact, not healthy and balanced. however, the bulk of the LC plans are, indeed probably a big improvement over how most people eat.

one of the things i've read about in atkins is the tendency to crave food that you have allergies for. and most of us had trouble conceptualizing leaving certain foods that we had cravings for, like bread, wheat, etc. that was more challenging initially for me that skipping sugar! but after a little time, that goes away. i only get cravings now when i eat some of it!

i know people worry about this. but to put it in perspective: i would much rather spend my money on higher quaility food and vitiamins than on bigger clothes and doctor bills. if i hadn't began low carbing when i did, i'd be spending some of my cash on insulin right now. i look for sales and pop stuff in the freezer. and without the expenses of the junk food and fast food junk i used to inhale, overall it's less of a cost difference that you may think.

Nita mentioned this, but it bears repeating: Akins is only known to be an issue for people with preexisting, advanced kidney disease. And if you have those kinds of issues, ANY change in your dietary habits needs to be undertaken with medical advice. Refer to the book for specifics.

There are many myths out tere about LC, and it got a pretty bad rap during the reign of low fat. I tried Low fat, and it didn't work for me. I was hungry, tired and miserable. LC leaves me feeling strong, healthy, energetic and content. It's no contest for me.

Incidnetly, the Good Calories/Bad Calories book has gotten great reviews among LCErs. I haven't read it yet, but it's on my list.

Best wishes to you as you find your way. We'll be here to help you along if you decide LC is the path you want to take...

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Thanks for all the good information Goddess. I have Atkins New Diet Revolution book. I will read it. Also read some of the articles on Barry Groves website. That's heady stuff! Makes a lot of sense. His statements about low carb being a high fat diet rather then a high protein diet make sense, but how do you do that? How do you increase your fat intake without increasing your protein? I know....... read Atkins book. I agree with you Goddess, I feel much better on a low carb diet. Low fat/ high carb diets leave me hungry and tired and dried up. Literally. So I do intend to stick with this, and its true, if every time I spent $4 at a fast food restaurant I bought a whole chicken instead, then I could afford this diet just fine. Its really a matter of getting your priorities straight, isn't it? By the way... how long have you been doing this?

Erica,

I have friends who are vegetarians. They do not look healthy to my husband and me. My husband is so happy I started eating this way! We are throwing out our beans and rice that I used to make just because it was cheap. We only recently admitted to each other that we hated them!

Anyway, about the books. I belong to http://www.paperbackswap.com and you can get all the low carb books you want there. I just ordered another Dr. Atkins book and a low carb cookbook there today. I have a huge amount of books. You just list 10 books and you will immediately get 2 free credits to order 2 books. And for every book that someone requests and you send, you will get a credit for whatever book you want. I have replaced all my books and music cds (they are sister sites and interchangeable) that I did not want anymore and replaced them with books I want. The books are not just paperback, most of them are hardbacks in excellent condition. Just take a peek...... Put low carb in their advanced search engine and see what comes up. If you join tell them I sent you (Kathleen Lupole).

katlupe

good!

i'm not afraid of increasing my protein, because i don't think protein is bad for me.

since nov 15, 2003 until the rest of my life.

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thank for sharing such a terrific resource, kat! i'm going to let others know about it, too.

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You are very welcome........anything to help my fellow LCers.

katlupe

Welcome, Erika.

I've been at this for over ten years. I normalized my blood glucose levels, lipid profile and ability to have a nice even level of alertness throughout the day. Along the way, I lost a third of myself, bringing myself back to a nice weight for my height and build.

I loved the Gary Taubes book, but then again, I'm a science fan.

Hope you'll make yourself at home here.

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Thanks for the book website Katlupe. Its terrific! Had a bad day today. Felt kind of nauseated. Maybe its carb withdrawal. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

Hi there,
My name is John and I live in the UK and I am just about to start a low carb diet so perhaps we can help each other.

Regards
John

Hi John. I live in Minnesota and I, too, am new to low carb dieting. No, I'm not new to the diet, I have done it before with good success, but I am new to talking about it and seeking support from an online group like this. Everyone has been very encouraging, it helps a lot. I have read many books opposing the low carb lifestyle, so its hard to tune that out, carry on with my diet and not worry about the consequences. I must admit yesterday was a bad day for me, I am quite sure it was carb withdrawal because today I feel much better. So hang in there John. It may be rough going for a few days but then you'll feel better too. Good to hear from you. Take care
Erica

ericia-the worries will probably diminish after you've done things long enough to see the results for yourself.

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Hi Anniriki

I'm relatively new to lc'ing and have to tell you that like the others, noticed improvements in how I have felt since beginning. I was doing a more moderate low carb plan late last year and felt improvements very quickly, especially with the little aches and pains that come from just aging.

There's also a few days, give or take, of feeling yucky when you first begin getting the carbs out of your system. I had very low energy, was tired and had a dull headache for 2-3 days. Then I began feeling great .. lots of energy and I noticed my knee didn't creak when I got up after sitting on it for too long!

As for the good fats, they help keep you satisfied. It's wonderful to eat good food instead of the lowfat stuff. It feels downright decadent to put butter on my green beans instead of Molly McButter!

Katlupe, thanks for that website! As soon as I log out here I'm going to check it out.

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~~lavender~~

LC/JUDDDD
(Ticker total loss since 3/30/09)