Something that puzzles me is that most people on Atkins would have normally eaten 100s of grams of carbs a day prior to going on this WOE. Even if they slip up and eat the odd extra 30 or 40 carbs here or there shouldn't they still lose weight. I have been exercising daily and in general following a LC diet yet I have not lost a pound in 30 days. If the odd cheat knocks you that far off track then I wonder why one wouldn't stay on the induction phase for a longer period. It seems most people lose the majority of their weight in the first several months while in induction. After that it seems we tend to almost come to a standstill. This is hard to work through when you have 70 lb to lose. I would have expected to have lost more than I have even with the occasional slip ups. I calculated on a normal pre-Atkins day I would have probably consumed 600 + grams of carbs, now I eat 30 grams. Shouldn't the large reduction in carbs each day result in some ongoing weight loss.

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262/238/170
Started Adkins 01/05/04

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Shouldn't the large reduction in carbs each day result in some ongoing weight loss. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yes, I would certainly think so.

May I proffer this, however? I lost 163 pounds initially in 23 months. During that entire time, I was at 20 grams of carbs per day, give or take 2. I was fastidious about counting carbs. Whatever I ingested, I counted the carbs (even the sugar-free gum I had), I ate nothing unless it was something from its natural state, cooked by me, nothing pre-packaged or processed, and that's what I attribute to the success I had, along with the 3+ miles of walking I did 7 days per week, rain, snow, or sun.

With that said, I also need to say this: I never, ever should have stayed at 20 carbs per day for that length of time.

I should have gradually increased my carb intake until my body could tolerate the 60 - 70 range per day of carbs. After that length of time, I found that even if I went up to 30, I would not lose weight.

It took a lot of renegotiating with my body to get it into the losing mode again, and this time with an increased amount of carbs. It has taken nearly 2 years to get me to this point, and I am once again losing and my typical carb range is 50 - 60 per day (for now).

Would you please post a typical days' menu so that we can see what you're eating and offer some suggestions? I'm curious as to where your carbs are coming from.

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April

The face of a child can say a lot -- especially the mouth part of the face.

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Having been doing this for almost 5 years, the one constant in this WOE is that no two people are the same - especially when it comes to Critical Carb Level.
There are some people that can consume 100 carbs a day with no gain. Others start gaining at 25. I'm between 50-60 a day - any more and I start gaining. During my initail loss, like April, I stayed under 30 a day and lost 105 lbs in 18 months. Then I stalled big time within 15 lbs of goal. I tried every trick to get out of the stall but it wasn't until I increased my carbs that I lost those last 15 lbs. So the answer is there is no easy answer.

A typical day would be probably

I don't generally eat breakfast and lunch I usually alternate

Omelet with mushrooms, bacon and tomatoes for breakfast

Salad with chicken breast for lunch

Snack on Pork Rinds

Meat of some form with cauliflower/cabbage for dinner

Sugar Free Jello with Heavy cream for desert

I generally drink between 64-120 ounces of water

I work out at least 5 days a week 2 miles jogging and 30 mins circuit/weight training

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262/238/170
Started Adkins 01/05/04

you need to eat more. and whats more than that, you need to eat Breakfast AND lunch. Skipping meals kills your metabolism. Thats probably whats hurting you more than anything. On top of that, add in some veggies. As i have heard so many times, "i never heard of someone eating their veggies and gaining weight"

Mal,

One thing I would note is that you are not drinking enough water unless you consistantly drink AT LEAST 120 oz. of water per day. I say this because you are working out, AND you need to drink at least half of your weight in ounces EVERY day. This will help in weight loss also.

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Remember I Cor. 13 - charity never faileth.

In all fairness, I'm not a breakfast eater, either. Not eating breakfast has never hindered my weight loss.

Not eating enough vegetables has, however.

That is where I get my carbohydrates. In the past year, I have upped my vegetable intake substantially, and I have lost more weight more consistently.

The types of vegetables I eat are spinach and green beans, from the can, lettuce, cucumbers, radishes, green peppers, mushrooms, cauliflower, celery, and broccoli. And, yanno what? I eat all of those things in one day.

That's a lot of vegetables in one day.

I have changed my way of eating to reflect more vegetables and less protein per meal, whereas in the beginning, I had the greater amount of protein and just a little bit of vegetables per day.

This type of eating has helped my consistent weight loss considerably, and has truly made this a way of life. I know that I will not lose the weight rapidly, as in the beginning, because I am not far from goal. I will lose, instead, an average of 1 pound per week, and that is fine for a way of life.

Also, it may help to read this.

I hope this information helps.

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April

The face of a child can say a lot -- especially the mouth part of the face.

My Blog