This is what frustrates me.

[Becca4277]

This Atkins plan is described as "easy to follow" and the book really drives this point home. However, when you read these boards you realize that it is anything but easy. Some people have to count calories, some people need more fat, some people stall on shakes/bars,etc. This WOL is a lot more complicated then it seems.

I am not giving up. I know it works for me. I just get frustrated and confused when I read some of these posts. Can anyone relate?

[manders]

I think it's fairly easy to follow, but the actual losing part can be tricky There's no such thing as easy weightloss, because not everyone is the same. Counting calories and macronutrients is an important learning tool for when we've reached goal and need to maintain. I don't think it's neccesary for everyone to do it, but I know exactly what percentages and grams of everything make me lose, so I embrace it. I admit I don't remember much of what the book said in terms of how easy it is, but Atkins is also a company and they have to market their brand. If they said the truth, "weight loss is hard" then no one would buy it. I consider all this effort my punishment for letting myself get so disgustingly fat. I don't think of food as something to get pleasure out of anymore, it's purely fuel for my body. So I want to make sure my percentages are right. My iPhone app is such a blessing!

[Bethanyblondie]

Mandy is right - no one responds to any eating plan exactly the same way. Some people can be pretty loosey goosey with the program and lose a lot of weight, while some have to follow it so strictly and lose very slow. I lose pretty quickly on induction, but I am modifying a bit since I am currently breast feeding my six month old. I try to keep it around 40 grams of carbs a day and so far I'm losing very well.

I think you just have to learn what works specifically for you, and the great thing about this forum is you can troubleshoot through issues you might be having!

[Darkginger]

I think most people who commit to Atkins long term find it fairly easy - I know I do - it's just that we tend not to post about it all going well. People post when they have a problem, so we see a slightly warped reflection of the general experience of following this way of eating.

Personally, I just stick to eating low carb foods - I don't even count carbs any more. I just eat meat, fish, seafood, fowl, cheese, eggs in various combinations with low carb green veg, a few tomatoes, onion and garlic, avocados, mushrooms and aubergines, plus herbs and spices, cream, sour cream and a little plain full fat yogurt. I cook everything from scratch, so rarely have to read ingredient lists, and I use olive oil and butter to cook with.

I'm in pre-maintenance, but I haven't felt the need to add more foods - might have berries now and then, or a few nuts. Maybe not strictly Atkins (ie, I haven't climbed the carb ladder) - but I don't see the point in adding foods I'm not very excited about and probably won't eat much in the long term. I find it very easy, and simple to follow.

BTW, am a total foodie - cooking is a pleasure and a hobby for me, always will be, I suspect!

[kayellr]

I think Atkins/any LC is easier than conventional wisdom plans that focus only on calorie counting, simply because LC is not as uncomfortable. At least for me, the constant craving for food off and on throughout the day is gone. There's still effort required in planning, keeping on track with carb amounts, passing up offered "treats", figuring out what to eat at a restaurant and so on, but it's all still much easier.

For me, even if I never lost another pound, I'd stay LC just because of the mood benefits.

*I essentially follow Atkins, but at a slightly lower than typical protein % (20%) to ensure staying in ketosis.

[Leo41]

I agree with Darkginger, and I think it's a big mistake to worry about what 'others' are doing to lose or manage their weight. In my experience (losing and now maintaining for almost 2 years), the most important thing is to get to know yourself and your own body--and how you respond to low-carb eating.

When I first did Atkins, I learned that I'm extremely sensitive to carbs and have to maintain at 20-25g daily at most. That's not true for the majority of people, but it doesn't bother me at all because my body responds best at this level.

Many people 'overthink' Atkins and complicate it much more than it needs to be. Just follow the plan and get to know your own body.

[ravenrose]

overall this board's active members tend toward the difficult end of metabolisms. I think most people do Atkins just fine, lose 20 lb, never join a board, and that's that. for those with a lot of weight to lose, no one could honestly expect it to be that easy. if it were we would not be obese in the first place! we have significant hormonal issues to fight and it's good to share tips, though people often pay too much attention to what works or does not for someone else.

most "experts" consider a weight loss program successful if you lose, like, 5% of your total weight. that's a factor too! most of us have higher aspirations than that, though if we could just stop GAINING it would probably be a big enough blessing over a lifetime.

[princessmommy]

When I started May 21st I found it kinda easy, what to eat, how much etc.. But what i've found to be hard for Me is finding just how many carbs I can eat and keep losing. No i'm not really Techincally IN induction anymore But I try to stay in induction levels of 20 or less carbs because for some silly reason my body Loves carbs and wants to make them into Weight immediatly. Every single person is differant so some can clinb that carb ladder and do fantastic but i'm not one of them. I don't count calories, thought makes me irritated! Lol! I'm about 5-10 away from goal and it's been hard But I know that even on the times i'm Not losing weight on the scale i'm still putting Good foods into my body and I feel better then before LC and maybe i'm losing inches!

[dlk35]

once you get into the click of doing this WOE it comes easy

[Becca4277]

I think I tend to second guess myself a lot with this WOL. If I go more than 5 days without the scale moving I comb over these threads to see what I am doing wrong. I realize it is a delicate balance. I do not mind the counting carbs so much but when I have to think if I am eating enough fat or the % of my diet is fat, my eyes gloss over.

Thanks for your replies! Like I said, I know this works for me. I just need to be patient and stop looking at the scale every two minutes.

[cfine]

The scale will drive you crazy if you let it. Since starting my exercise program, the scale doesn't move quite as fast, but I am losing inches and feeling great. This is true success in my opinion. While I do still weigh daily I don't let it define me.

I do agree with you though about making it sound so easy. If I went by the book I wouldn't be losing anything. I have to not only count my carbs, but my grams of protein as well. It's the only way to lose for me. I wish I was one of those people who could just worry about carbs.

[manders]

Originally Posted by Becca4277

I think I tend to second guess myself a lot with this WOL. If I go more than 5 days without the scale moving I comb over these threads to see what I am doing wrong. I realize it is a delicate balance. I do not mind the counting carbs so much but when I have to think if I am eating enough fat or the % of my diet is fat, my eyes gloss over.

Thanks for your replies! Like I said, I know this works for me. I just need to be patient and stop looking at the scale every two minutes.

Doesn't being in greater control make you want to do it? It's not that hard. Two simple calculations. Track your grams of fat, multiply that by 9 and you get your calories from fat. Then divide that by your total calories for the day and you have your %.

If a little math is all I have to do to make sure my fat is higher, I'm willing to because I know I lose better. Don't be a slave to the scale. I know it's easier said than done. Are you doing measurements? Seeing inches lost even on days the scale doesn't go down means more to me.

[Big Stevie]

Originally Posted by Becca4277

I think I tend to second guess myself a lot with this WOL. If I go more than 5 days without the scale moving I comb over these threads to see what I am doing wrong. I realize it is a delicate balance. I do not mind the counting carbs so much but when I have to think if I am eating enough fat or the % of my diet is fat, my eyes gloss over.

Thanks for your replies! Like I said, I know this works for me. I just need to be patient and stop looking at the scale every two minutes.

Yes, you need to stop weighing yourself. I weight every two weeks. Others only do it once a month. Weighing daily would drive me completly nuts. I have had several weeks of no loss followed by double digit losses. Everyone is a little different.

If you only count your carbs and stay below 20 grams you will be fine. When I started, I went on the online trackers and put my menu in for two weeks. It gave me confidence to know that I was eating right for the plan. I was looking at percentages of fat, protein and carbs. By staying under 20 grams of carbs I was consistently eating 65% percent fat, 30 percent protein and 5% carbs and around 1,800 calories (I am a man). Once I saw that, I haven't tracked my menus since just worried about carbs. And to tell you the truth, I don't even count them any more. I know from doing this about how much 20 is. I might be over or under on any given day, but not by much.

So you can make it very difficult, you can track everything every day if that works for you and gives you peace of mine. It is your own journey, find what works for you.

The one part that is somewhat difficult is really keeping track of the foods that you eat that negatively effect you. For example, when I drink Atkins shakes they really drop my blood sugar so I avoid them. If I drink alcohol, I am always really hungry the next day and tend to overeat so I don't drink. I have learned so much on how food effects my body over the last 6 months.

Just relax and stop obsessing over the scale and trust the plan, it will work for you.

[PaleoRainy]

Originally Posted by Becca4277

This Atkins plan is described as "easy to follow" and the book really drives this point home.

Even primary school is fairly easy to follow, yet there are kids who cannot sit down, kids that fall asleep during lessons, kids that struggle with math, kids that struggle with spelling, kids whose attention span is no more than 7 minutes, kids that will pull your ponytail, kids peeing on themselves and kis going home in tears saying they won't go back the next day!

Lol sorry for the joke above but I think the easy part was getting fat. We have had that part already so the rest can be 'easier than difficult' but will anyways be harder than getting fat was.

[JMacB]

What I like about low carb is that is an easy way to live. I know that I can't go back to carbs and sugar, so I'm keeping it slow and steady, but I'm so adjusted to eating this way it is reflexive. Now to lose weight, I have to pay a little more attention. But to maintain, I can not think.

I do weigh daily... several times daily... But that is the OCD in me. It keeps me honest and aware.

[manuela_w]

This definitely isn't making me lose as much weight as I thought I would by now, but it's easy for me so far. I haven't really lost much weight in the past six weeks, but I am steady at a 20-22 lb loss since late November, and I don't seem to gain any. I find it a very easy way of eating! I never feel very hungry, and I get yummy food.

[NoSunNoFun]

Originally Posted by PaleoRainy

Even primary school is fairly easy to follow, yet there are kids who cannot sit down, kids that fall asleep during lessons, kids that struggle with math, kids that struggle with spelling, kids whose attention span is no more than 7 minutes, kids that will pull your ponytail, kids peeing on themselves and kis going home in tears saying they won't go back the next day!

Lol sorry for the joke above but I think the easy part was getting fat. We have had that part already so the rest can be 'easier than difficult' but will anyways be harder than getting fat was.

kids peeing on themselves lol, I do not recall this in grade school? lol. Still made me laugh..

[Sharss]

Ok, I'll be sinful on this Thread and state...I DO weight myself everyday. It clues me into what works and what isn't. So it's not bad for everyone. It's just bad when people get upset when they have a bounce up when the cause could be too much salt in a particular food and it's salt weight or overeat on calories. It's not a true weight gain, but this throws many. For me, this is giving me info.

I track my food intake (calories) plus have a graph paper showing my Daily Weights plus list of exercises I may or may not do. When I get to Goal weight, I'll then weigh once a week to make sure I'm staying on track.

Just a different perspective here. BTW, I find the Atkins Induction easy probably because I love meat and cheese. Only eat vegies because I'm suppose to.

____________________________
Keep your eye on YOUR goal and you'll way more easily navigate around the discouraging obstacles.
___________________________

KEEP MOVING FORWARD
Sharon

[160orbust]

Originally Posted by Sharss

Ok, I'll be sinful on this Thread and state...I DO weight myself everyday. It clues me into what works and what isn't. So it's not bad for everyone. It's just bad when people get upset when they have a bounce up when the cause could be too much salt in a particular food and it's salt weight or overeat on calories. It's not a true weight gain, but this throws many. For me, this is giving me info.

I track my food intake (calories) plus have a graph paper showing my Daily Weights plus list of exercises I may or may not do. When I get to Goal weight, I'll then weigh once a week to make sure I'm staying on track.

Just a different perspective here. BTW, I find the Atkins Induction easy probably because I love meat and cheese. Only eat vegies because I'm suppose to.

____________________________
Keep your eye on YOUR goal and you'll way more easily navigate around the discouraging obstacles.
___________________________

KEEP MOVING FORWARD
Sharon

I agree with Sharss....I also weigh daily to gauge my sucess on the WOE but I also take into consideration my menu from the previous day (sodium, higher carbs, water intake, etc) and knowing that I retain water after any toning routines and during ovulation and just before menstruation. I have learned tons by doing this and I only record/graph my weight on wednesdays.

[Ntombi]

I weigh daily as well, but that's because it helps me to stay on track. I also know my weight loss pattern, which is that I will lose to a new low, and then jump back up several pounds, then take several days to get back down, and then to another new low, then jump back up, and on and on. So I do not get upset when I don't lose every day or every week: I know that the ultimate trajectory is DOWN.

I'm also a person who likes numbers and data, and the more, the better. In fact, I went for a hydrostatic (underwater) body fat test on Monday, because I wanted more data about my body, and whether my goal weight was reasonable.

The first time I did Atkins, it WAS easy for me. I read the book, followed the rules, and lost a lot of weight. What wasn't easy was sticking to it when my life collapsed. That's not the fault of the diet, that was my fault (not that I blame myself for falling off the wagon, my life, health, and finances literally went off the rails, and I was lost for years. I DO blame myself for not getting back on track until now, but that's another story.).

Now that I'm doing Atkins again, I'm losing weight again. That's despite the fact that I'm more than ten years older, hypothyroid, and unable to exercise due to illness. Am I losing as quickly as I'd like? Nope. But I'm losing. How? I'm following the rules, following the guidelines Dr. Atkins set forth, and not doing too many "tweaks" or eating much frankenfood.

Guess how many threads I've started talking about the fact that I'm losing because I'm following the plan as written? Zero. That's the nature of humanity.

I co-moderate several groups about raw feeding (dogs, cats, and ferrets), and we have tens of thousands of members. 90% of the posts are questions, problems, or newbie concerns. Is that because most people have trouble? No, it's because most people only post when they have trouble, and don't bother with an "everything is hunky dory" post. In fact, it's so prevalent that we have "good news" threads every month or two, just to encourage members who AREN'T having troubles to remind newbies that most of us are going about our raw feeding lives with no complications.

Same thing here at LCF.

[NoSunNoFun]

Originally Posted by Ntombi

I weigh daily as well, but that's because it helps me to stay on track. I also know my weight loss pattern, which is that I will lose to a new low, and then jump back up several pounds, then take several days to get back down, and then to another new low, then jump back up, and on and on. So I do not get upset when I don't lose every day or every week: I know that the ultimate trajectory is DOWN.

I'm also a person who likes numbers and data, and the more, the better. In fact, I went for a hydrostatic (underwater) body fat test on Monday, because I wanted more data about my body, and whether my goal weight was reasonable.

The first time I did Atkins, it WAS easy for me. I read the book, followed the rules, and lost a lot of weight. What wasn't easy was sticking to it when my life collapsed. That's not the fault of the diet, that was my fault (not that I blame myself for falling off the wagon, my life, health, and finances literally went off the rails, and I was lost for years. I DO blame myself for not getting back on track until now, but that's another story.).

Now that I'm doing Atkins again, I'm losing weight again. That's despite the fact that I'm more than ten years older, hypothyroid, and unable to exercise due to illness. Am I losing as quickly as I'd like? Nope. But I'm losing. How? I'm following the rules, following the guidelines Dr. Atkins set forth, and not doing too many "tweaks" or eating much frankenfood.

Guess how many threads I've started talking about the fact that I'm losing because I'm following the plan as written? Zero. That's the nature of humanity.

I co-moderate several groups about raw feeding (dogs, cats, and ferrets), and we have tens of thousands of members. 90% of the posts are questions, problems, or newbie concerns. Is that because most people have trouble? No, it's because most people only post when they have trouble, and don't bother with an "everything is hunky dory" post. In fact, it's so prevalent that we have "good news" threads every month or two, just to encourage members who AREN'T having troubles to remind newbies that most of us are going about our raw feeding lives with no complications.

Same thing here at LCF.

Beautifully written I wish you clean eatting my friend and all of us for that matter too

[Rebecca1979]

I tend to agree with you there becca(nice name btw!=P) BUT I also see newbies coming on here and being upsept because they aren't losing on induction. They show us their food journal and it's full of franken foods, shakes, and a lot of "iffy" foods like onions, and tomatoes. I'm of the old school of thought (like DANDR). NOW on the other hand I'm so metabolic/insulin resistant that CHEESE knocks me out of Ketosis... True story. =D <3

[Ntombi]

Rebecca! How are you?

[Rebecca1979]

Hi!!! I'm doing pretty awesome how are you???

[Ntombi]

Doing pretty well overall, and finally back on plan. Finally!

Good to see you.

[Rebecca1979]

Awesome!!! I just started back yesterday! Good luck!

[Ntombi]

You too! We can do this!