I am new here and just found this site yesterday...I have been reading ever since. I am on day 10 of induction and have lost about 6lbs ( I may stay on a few more than 14 days because I was eatting alot more broccoli than I was supposed to be therefore I was eating too many carbs. I did the Atkins "diet" with my husband about 5 years ago he lost 30lbs me nothing. It was because right away we were looking at substitutes and treating it like a diet and not a way of life, by changing the way we eat. I have now done alot of reading (missed the broccoli part thought LOL) and see the difference. ( I dont even crave carbs right now and I was sooooo bad at bed time).

Anyways my question is...I have a 14 year old daughter who is 5'4 and 165 lbs she is overweight and not very active. We joined curves together and have been going a minimum of once a week, but usually two to three times. because we do that together when I started the induction phase she wanted to start too but I said "No she should just watch what carbs she is eating and stop eatting junk (she is a big carbaholic).

I think because we are not doing it together she just gave up( I know she would stick to it if there was incentive (she was vegatarian for 4 months just because her sister said she couldnt do it)

Would induction be safe for her if we did it together (she really would benefit from getting the need out of her sysetem, is ther another carb # she could aim at?? I would ask my dr about this but we are new to our city and I dont really rely on our new dr too much ( I am trying to find a new one but not so easy, I dont really find I like his solutions much...My daughter is a bed wetter and his solution was to medicate her which to me isnt a solution....anyways way off topic)

I tried to search this but everywhere you search about teens says they need their carbs and shouldnt be low carb.

Anyone have any advice or experience with this? As of right now I am not letting her cut her carbs down so low but also think that she will not stick to eating different carbs if she doesnt get the need for the bad carbs out of her system.

My 13 year old son went on Atkins with me last year and lost 10 -15 lbs. He ate more vegetables and fiber, drank more water, had mozzarella cheese sticks, nuts and strawberries for snacks. I felt he was eating healthier than before, and he enjoyed it! I made him those peanut butter cookies (I got the recipe from here) when he had a sweet tooth. And when he wanted something crunchy he used to microwave shredded colby jack cheese until it was hard like a cracker. I used to make him the one minute muffin out of flax seed, and we used low carb tortillas too. He drank the sugar free V8 juices that are made from fruit and vegetables. So I didn't put him on the real strict induction with no fruit.

He still had carbs, only they were good carbs. He enjoyed it and learned a lot of good habits.

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I agree with Shelley, Toylady, this way of eating is healthy and cannot be detrimental to a teenager. This is a wonderful opportunity to help her learn good eating habits, learn to like veggies, and she'll get off the weight, which will help not only her health, but her self esteem.

I applaud you for your concern. But when you look at induction, it's strict for only 2 weeks. She can add in her favorite veggies, and with the exercise, she's sure to do nothing but get healthier.

Summer vacation is a great time to start, so she'll be in the lc habit, and by the time she goes back to school, she'll have a healthy body, more stamina, and just be more fit in general.

Keep us posted as to her progress. We'd love to see before and after pictures.

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Nita

Thanks I was thinking summer holidays would also be a great time to start (as long as she doesnt go away for the first two weeks lol)

I kinda felt that it would be ok for her because it is healthy...I am not eating bacon and eggs all day LOL.

I eat alot of salad, veggies, tuna, beef etc...what could be healthier than that. I think my main concern was about the first two weeks and if it was ok for a teenager but yes it is only two weeks, and I think that she really needs this first step to "detox" like I did. I now feel great and dont want to eat all those carbs (and I am also a carbaholic) I was even eating them just out of habit...I aslo have an infant and a toddler and would find that every time I gave them a cracker or toast or anything I would have one or a bite...and finishing what they dont eat.

I would love it if she could change her eating habits and get healthier, I also think that maybe this might help with her bedwetting...we did go see a natural path and she wanted her to eat more fruit, veggies and drink water on a water schedule (she just informed me last night that she isnt drinking as much water as needed because her teachers wont let her go to the bathroom every class...We told her to go anyway and get the teacher to call us...but next year when she goes to school I will go in and talk to them about it right away so there are no problem...I can even get a DR note if they want)

I will keep you posted as to how she is doing...Now to just get my husband on board he says he wants to but I dont see him really want to yet and I cant do it for all three of us

That bathroom issue at school is just stupid! They need to give the kids enough time between classes to spend some "quality" time if they need it. My workmate said that she got a raging bladder infection when she was in high school just because of that. The dr told her to go when she needed to, and even more often if she could. When you hold it in, all those toxins sit in your bladder and can cause some damage.

Bedwetting is an entirely different matter. It runs in our family, my older daughter was 13 before she finally quit. Actually, she quit when she hit puberty, but she still has problems. You can't take a road trip with her without having to stop frequently for potty breaks. Her husband said it was even worse when she was pregnant! Anyway, not drinking water will not help with bedwetting. And if she does low carb, and exercises, she NEEDS to drink plenty of water.

If she'd like to come here and post, herself, perhaps start a journal, all of us would be pleased to give her regular encouragement, under your direction, of course. Or let her post with you from time to time. Of course, none of us are quite that young, but we all know what it's like to battle the fight against fat, how difficult it can be to lose, and how much better it is to be encouraged by those who are going through the same thing.

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Nita

toylady,
Welcome to LCE. We are glad you are here.

On the subject of teen dieters, we here at LCE do NOT advise dieting for teens except under medical supervision along of course, with parental consent.

While we know you have your daughter's best interest in mind, I would urge you to seek medical clearance for her before she starts on any weigh loss plan, whether it's low carb, reduced carb, or any other food plan.

I wish you and your daughter much success on your weightloss journey.
Post often and let us know how you are doing, OK?

kindest regards,
Shelley

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Shelley
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Visit Kassie's Korner



Life deserves a treat now and again, but life also deserves being healthy[with required disipline] to make it worth living!

Hello Toylady. Nice to see you here!

Usually, I'm very cautious over suggesting a very restrictive diet for anybody young enough to still be developing, whether it's low-carb or not. i know low-carb is a TON healtiher than the standard teenager's diet, of course, but then again, what's not?

i had a similar situation myself when i began low-carbing, and my daughter was about the same age as yours is at the time. she was about the same weight, or maybe a little heavier, as well.

initially, i didn't suggest any particular restrictions on her eating, in part because she wasn't interested in low-carbing. she loved her carbs! what i found, however, was that with time and my altered shopping habits and altered eating behavior, which spilled over to what i cooked for the family, she began to lose weight as a result. (she's now maintaining at about 135 without putting forth any real effort to watch her weight.)

she still likes sugar, and i will (occassionally) buy her something with sugar in it, but now, instead of getting the box of snack cakes, i get the individual package. it's more of an occassional "treat," instead of a staple of her diet as it was at one time. this works well for us.

personally, if it were me, i'd start with a very conservative approach, provided she's interested in it to begin with. i'd suggest that she taper off of sugar and white flour, and increase veggies, with fruit available for snacks. sugar and white flour we don't exactly need, you know? but for a child who is still developing, i don't see any great benefit in restricting veggies or fruit, for that matter.

induction as such is NOT necessary for lc'ing to work; the benefits of watching carb intake are the same whether somone gradually tapers off a high carb intake or suddenly inducts into a lc lifestyle. the main difference, at least from my perspective, is the gradual approach can be more comfortable since you don't have the detox/withdrawl period while you're body is switching over from burning carbs to burning fat. i understand your question about the cravings going away, but again, i don't think that the carbs from fruit and veggies are really what stimulates the cravings nearly as much as the carbs from sugar. you could try to gravitate towards carbs that are lower on the glycemic index without restricting the actual number of carbs consumed, as food lower on the glycemic index have less impact on blood sugars, and therefore tend to be less problemmatic.

also, please be aware that activitiy levels will play a part in how many carbs someone needs. the more active you are, the more carbs you'll normally be consuming.

but really, there is a good chance that if you change how you eat, over time, how she eats will simply change, too, without any particular effort on anyone's part.

let us know how it goes.

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Fat Baggage- Is Yours Packed?

Hi there!

While I whole-heartedly agree that you need to talk to your personal physician about this (when you find one you like) I had to pop in to say "welcome" and also say that I wish my family had known about the benefits of the LC woe and whole grains when I was 14! How much of my life I would have spent not dieting!

Having said that, I also have to say that I agree that your daughter shouldn't be restricting carbs so much as choosing the right kinds. And you can help her do that through the meals you cook and the foods you choose to buy. My boys are little (1 1/2 & 4 1/2) and the carbs they eat come mostly from 100% whole wheat (breads and pastas), fruits & veges. I've eliminated all high fructose corn syrup from their diets, but I do allow treats with real sugar from time to time (like Goddess - if I buy a treat, it's a single-serving, not a whole box) or if I bake, it's made with whole wheat pastry flour, splenda for the white sugar, regular brown sugar, added flax meal and if it's got chocolate chips, they are the dark chocolate versions (get all the good stuff in there that I can! ). They drink milk, water or juice, but only if it comes out of our juicer or if it's 100% juice. They are not allowed pop - don't want to get them started on a habit that DH and I are still trying to break! The more you can teach your children about choosing the right kinds of foods, the less likely they will have weight issues later in life, IMHO.

I think if you offer "right carb" foods for your daughter, in the right portions, and encourage exercise and activity, she'll start seeing results. 100% whole wheat breads and pastas fill you up and stick with you longer than the highly processed junk, so she'll be less likely to be hungry or over-eat those types of things. And if you're serving meals that consist mainly of meat & veges (unrestricted in amounts in her case), and low-glycemic fruits she has no choice but to eat healthy. (And if she's a potato lover, make the mashed fauxtatoes recipe that Maggie posted. It's fantastic! (My youngest LOVES it).)

I truly believe that if I had known about these types of things when I was younger, I wouldn't be in the situation I am now. I went on my first real diet when I was 14, so I can understand where your daughter is right now. The more you can teach her about good nutrition and exercise now, the more she'll thank you later. And I think you have made a great start! Keep us posted on how things are going.

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Mada
221.6/193.8 <--- ONEderland! /sz 8

Nita- Thanks for suggesting this, but here at LCE, we don't accept members under 16. While I'm delighted to see younger people taking an interest in low carb, the parental notification requirements, natural tendency of youth to overdo, and the added responsiblity of making sure younger folks are safe in a community this size is more than I'm prepared to sign on for.

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Fat Baggage- Is Yours Packed?

Toylady-

To give you some idea of what merely changing my shopping and cooking habits did, here are a few photos of my daughter, before and after I started low carb. Please bear in mind that for a good part of the time in question, she called low carb "the cult." (Originally, she was in size 16; she wears a size 7 now.)

This happened gradually over the course of about a year or so, with no real effort on her part. In fact, she frequently complained that she didn't have as much of an appetite since we did "that low carb thing" and missed eating as much!

Attached Thumbnails

     

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Fat Baggage- Is Yours Packed?

She looks great Yesterday my daughter started at dinner time. She is going to stick to the veggies and protien for a while (maybe a week) before adding fruit but she isnt limiting her carbs to 20. The only problem I might have is the fact that I cant completely change what I cook and all the food in the house because I also have a 2 year old and an 11 month old so while I have them eating alot of fruit and veggies they also have things like granola bars, arrowroot cookies, rice cakes etc. and my DH takes "lunch" things to work (although I am working on that LOL) so this stuff is in the house and so my daughter must really want to make the change (so far she is so on board and I think that because summer is so close she will stick to this way of eating.

As for her joining this site I completely understand what you are saying. Although I really didnt want her to anyways because then I couldnt freely ask questions about her and I would have to remove this whole topic (which maybe an answer to questions another mom might have as well)

I will keep posting about how she (us LOL) is doing.

that sounds like a good plan! eating protien and veggies without worrying much about the carbs should provide a good start for her. and then, when she adds fruit shortly, it will taste like a real treat after not eating sugar for a week.

and for me, when i had stuff in the house i didn't want myself eating because of other family members, i tried to get flavors that i didn't care as much for, whenever possible. i don't know how workable that is for you, but on some things it could help.

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Fat Baggage- Is Yours Packed?

So far this hasnt been a problem for me at all (and I am very surprised by that) its her I worry might have the problem. But hopefully because we are doing this together that will make it so much easier on her.


I even made a bag of microwave popcorn for my son and my daycare kids last week and never even wanted any...and I was eating a bag almost every day before

if she eats "clean" for a while, it likely will become less of a problem for her as well. your tastes change, and i found the stuff i used to live on tasted yucky after lc'ing a while, myself.

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Fat Baggage- Is Yours Packed?

My oops, Dixie. Of course there would be age constraints on a forum. It would be nice for a young person to have a support group of some sort, though. Parents are the best, of course, but sometimes it would be nice to have others to get ideas from. Perhaps if enough young people see that eating right can do so much for them, they could start their own local support groups. (Yeah, right!)

My only problem with consulting a dr with diet changes is that most doctors have little real nutritional training. It would be a challenge to find one that wouldn't balk at low carb, but if you can find one that will work with you, so much better. At least he or she can track your progress and look out for any problems.

Dixie, you daughter sure looks good. Has her self-esteem improved as well? She looks a lot more confident in the after pictures.

Toylady, does your daughter ever get involved in planning or preparing meals? That might help her to appreciate fresh foods and proper eating habits, which will go a long way in her adult life, when she doesn't have Mom to guide her every day in making food choices.

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Nita