Stalled Already?

[wendyg]

I'm pretty new here, and after a couple of weeks of looking through the boards, I can't find anything that addresses this question, so I'm going to ask it for myself.

I started the Atkins WOE in early June. I got off to a rocky start (after doing a lot of cheaters using "net carbs" during induction), but corrected my diet after doing some research. Things went great from there. In the first three weeks of July, I lost about 16 pounds and went into (light) Ketosis. At first I panicked that the strips were only light pink, but since I was losing weight, I decided to keep moving forward. I saw many comments about not putting too much weight into the results on the K-Strips, and since I was losing, I just kept going.

Now, I'm stalled, and have been for almost four weeks. It seems like a stall after only 16 pounds is very odd. I've been tracking everything I eat (right down to the sugar-free breath mints!) in Fit Day just to make sure I'm not deluding myself about my carbs/calories. I've been sticking to the 15 - 20 carb a day range, and keeping my calories in the 1,300 - 1,500 range.

Is it normal to stall so quickly into the diet? Is there something I can do to break the stall? Last week (started August 8), I increased my exercise from 20 mins three times a week to 30 minutes six times a week. I work out on a Gazelle (sort of an elliptical trainer). Since I added the exercise, I've gained a pound and a half. Since I have over 100 pounds to lose, I'm concerned that I'm doing something wrong, or that something is wrong with me.

Anyone else have a similar experience? How did you get past it? I'm not really anxious to do the fat fast due to work travel, etc. I'd like to explore every other option before I go there...

[Matt]

well first of all.. how many sugar free mints/candies are you eating? Those sugar alcohols that are in them stall a lot of people. You are gaining weight because of exercise because your muscles are retaining water. Just keep with it and dont eat any sugar alcohols.. you should start to lose again soon. Good luck.

[wendyg]

Actually, I don't eat that many mints. Not even one a day on average... just used that to emphasize that I'm serious about tracking every bite.

I'm pretty sure it's not my diet. My average day looks like this:

Breakfast (This is every day - yes, I'm boring)
(1) Fried Egg (from McDonalds)
(1) Sausage patty (from McDonalds)

Lunch (Again, lunch is pretty boring... I don't deviate)
(1) Salad with Lettuce (no tomato)
(1) Tblspoon of blue cheese (measured)
(1) packet of low calorie vinegrette (4 carbs, 40 calories)

Snack
(1) oz (10-12 pieces) of Macadamia Nut OR (0.25) of a Hershey 1 gram bar.
(1) Eclipse breath mint if I have a meeting at work.

Dinner
My hubby researches out low carb recipes and does all the cooking. Tonight it's low carb crab cakes. Another day might be chicken adobo.

Desert
(1.5 cups) Sugar Free Jello (I LOVE this stuff)
(2 Tablespoons) Whipped cream with splenda

I'm very much a creature of habit... my only variation comes in the dinner entree part of my day.

[LCRedhead]

wendy,

I have been stalled for MONTHS while eating induction levels. Just this past month the scale has started moving again slowly. Don't give up. If you keep eating on plan eventually it will work. I'm living proof!

[Matt]

the sugar free jello has aspartame, which stalls a lot of people. That could be your problem.

[Diana]

I agree with Matt, I can't eat the stuff I wont lose.

Also if your doing induction, back off the candy and nuts, that may help get you moving. Then slowly add it in maybe once, twice a week

[wendyg]

Thank you all for your help and encouragement. I didn't realize the aspertame could stall me also. For some reason I was thinking it was only the sugar alcohols. I'll try cuting those out for a few weeks and see how I do. (And I forgot that excercise would make my muscles retain water... duh. )

I love this place... so much information, so many knowledgable people willing to help!

to you all!

[Atkins_Nutritionist]

Everyone gave such great answers from their own experience! I’m glad they were able to help you! Now just a few added points.

You should be consuming 20 grams of Net carbs in Induction, not below. It may vary on days within a gram or two but aim for 20 and not below.

Nuts and sweets are not appropriate for Induction. Here’s the list of foods that are
http://atkins.com/Archive/2001/12/15-464579.html

Dr. Atkins noticed in his practice that aspartame did slow weight loss in some of his patients, although scientific research does not support his observations. It is an individual response that only you can determine for yourself.

Hope this helps! Keep it up!

[Peri]

Hey Wendy, don't be too dismayed. There is a lot of good advice in these responses but I noticed everyone is talking about weight but that isn't the whole story. Before you make a lot of changes in what you have been doing to lose the first 16 pounds I want to suggest:

Get your measurements.

Don't become scales reliant. The scales will show only weight loss not size loss.

Don't panic about a failure to loss inches in measurements. Most measurements are limited to very specific areas and you may be losing fat elsewhere.

To look for that change, keep handy a garment that used to fit fairly closely all over. Try it on. If you can see spots where it appears looser, you are doing fine. ( I lost most substantially between the bust and the waist and between the waist and the hips, and it took trying on old clothes to show me this. It was the rolls that weren't measured that went first.)

Expect that your scales will tell you the facts but, if you are excerising -- and you mention that you recently upped your exercise -- it probably won't be all the facts you need to measure your success. As you probably know mucle weighs more than fat.

BTW, the first and most important milestone for me was neither weight nor size. It was another important measurement -- my wildly improved blood work! (Followed by a great energy surge)

Hang in there Wendy and look for success in every aspect of your struggle.

[Atkins_Nutritionist]

Peri, thanks for posting such great advice. Very motivational and inspirational!

Just wanted to clarify one point.

Muscle does not weigh more than fat, any more than lead weighs more than feathers. A pound is a pound is a pound. Where the misunderstanding often comes in is that muscle is much more dense than fat, so that, by volume, it seems to weigh more. That is, a pound of muscle occupies less space than a pound of fat. In addition, because a pound of muscle burns more fat than a pound of fat, even at rest, by increasing your lean muscle tissue mass, you’re helping your body burn more calories.

Hope that clears up any confusion!

[TRACY2]

wow, very helpful advice. Maybe you all can give me some insight. My mom is 49. She started LC'ing 1.5 years ago and lost 100 lbs She went from a size 26 to a size 16 and looks awesome, but has been stalled for about 3-4 months. She has increased her exercise and is probably consuming no more than 20-25 grams of carbs a day. She does have hypothyroidism and just last week found out she has diverticulotis. Now, anything dairy causes her lots and lots of pain so she's cut that out. How can she jump start her weight loss again? She's at witts end with it because it seems no matter how hard she tries, she isn't losing past 195. Her numbers are perfect and her doctor praises her constantly, but other than yeast, what could the problem be? She is not on any HRT for menopause nor antidepressants for anything. She is in excellent health otherwise.

Thanks!

[Nille]

Originally posted by wendyg
[b] I've been sticking to the 15 - 20 carb a day range, and keeping my calories in the 1,300 - 1,500 range.

I'm pretty new in here (been a member a long time but not posting much) but I've been lowcarbing for many years. Restarting Atkins last summer.

I just wonder why nobody, not even the Atkins Nutritionist, has mentioned that you might not be eating enough ? Where are your veggies ? You didn't mention them in your daily menu (except for salad with lettuce). Also, when I stalled for 2-3 months I contacted Atkins support and was told that IF I needed to count calories as well, the recommended would be 10-12 times my body weight in calories a day. I don't know how tall you are or how old you are, but you're noe even eating close to your basal needs of calories a day. (Basal is wahst your body needs just to "stay alive"). I know lots of people that have stalled due to this. When they start eating enough - their weight comes off again.

I have sluggish thyriod and I'm extremely metabolicly restistant. I'm a very very slow looser, therefore I go to a nutritionist once a month. With her help I've been tweaking my daily intake and found a way to be losing again. I was also keeping my carbs below 20 (15-20 average) and calories around 1200-1300. I was NOT losing. Now I'm doing OWL, I've followed the rung, and have reached 35 carbs and approx 1800 cals aday. I'm losing again !

I'm 5ft 3", weighs 147 lbs and I'm 47 years old....... My goal is 130 and now it seems I'm getting there...

I'm not saying this is the sollution for you, - but it's worth looking into.

[Atkins_Nutritionist]

Nellie, congrats on your success! It seems like you have found the way to individualize this approach to eating that has really worked for you.

You are absolutely correct that Wendy may not be eating enough, and I did point that out in my initial response when I stressed that the goal for Induction is 20 grams, not below. If a person is eating when they are hungry and stopping when they are full, then they should be consuming enough calories. If they are restricting calories or not listening to their body’s needs, this can definitely impede weight loss.

Thanks for your comments and sharing your story, and welcome back to the BB. Good luck!

[cjack]

Wendy... Are you sure your husband is a competent LC cook? I don't really trust anyone else to prepare my food on a regular basis. If he adds just a pinch here and there of high carb fillers, binders, sauces, etc. (such as in the crab cakes), it could be derailing your efforts. Sometimes people think just a little won't hurt anything and it sure will make it taste better. That is definitely not true with LC.

For example, crab meat must be the real stuff to be LC. The imitation is not. I think you should get more involved in the meal preparation, if possible.

[LindaSue]

I ran your daily menu through MasterCook to see if you're eating enough carbs. I had to guess on a couple items and didn't include your dinner since I don't know what you eat. To me it looks like you're not eating enough. Here's what I came up with:

1 Egg
1 teaspoon butter
2 ounces pork Sausage
1 Salad
1 ounce macadamia nuts
3/4 package sugar free jello
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon granular Splenda

Plus whatever you have for dinner

716 Calories; 65g Fat; 27g Protein; 13g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 9g Net Carbs (plus your dinner)

[wendyg]

I'm a terrible cook, and hubby is a great cook plus he's very dilligent. We do regularly discuss the ingredients, and he bought Master Cook Low Carb edition... he types every ingredient in before he makes the food, to get the "real" carb count (not the one given by the person providing the recipe." I'm not worried about him "cheating" as it were. I know he wants this to suceed as much as I do, because he sees how miserable being fat makes me.

I forgot to say there is a veggie side-dish almost every night. I think I may try increasing my calories but eating more of the veggies, cutting the nuts and killing the aspartame (aka jello and occassional diet coke). I'll let you guys know how that goes.

[cjack]

Well, then, in that case.... Would you like to trade? You are very fortunate. My husband can't boil water and has absolutely no concept of nutrition. I shudder to think what he might come up with that he thinks is low carb.... He has lost about 50 lbs on Atkins and you wouldn't believe the stuff he calls me at work to ask about regarding food. Fortunately for him, men do have very forgiving metabolisms.

[wendyg]

Before you say that, you should know that his favorite TV show (other than sports) is Emeril... every day I come home and the TVs are both on the Food Network.

Sometimes he goes through the house yelling BAM. That's the dog's cue that dinner is coming soon, and it's time for her to get hyper...

It's a good life, actually, but it's an odd one!!!

[wendyg]

Ok, so for the last couple of days, I've given up diet coke, jello and added more veggies with dinner. Because of my awful meeting schedule this week, I haven't had time to work out since Monday night (but I will get back on track with that tonight).

Plus I ate 1/2 an Advantage bar Tuesday and the other half yesterday (again, meetings didn't allow me to get out for a healthy veggie-type late afternoon snack, so I used these in a pinch).

So I thought with no excercise and adding in the Atkins bars I would have maintained at best... but I weighed in at 260 last night after work and again this morning when I got up (just to make sure it wasn't a fluke)....

Four pounds down since Monday!!! YAY!!!

[Lisa Rae]

wendyg..didn't read all your answers yet..but already see a few problems with your "induction" menu.

First..don't use low calorie dressings. they tend to be way higher in carbs..and full fat is perfect for induction.

second..no nuts. Nuts are hard to keep track of..can slow or stop loss in many..and shouldn't be added in untill several stages on the owl ladder

Bars..UGGG.. big big problem for many. I know Atkins says there fine..and so do the manufactuers of the bars..but read the bb..many many people stall with just 1/2 bar a day.

And last but not least..McDonalds. Their stuff is packed with sodium. You might be ok with it..but can cause major water retention on some of us.

[MAMZELLE]

Every time I see the word Jello on a board I get nuts. Yeah, having to cut out Jello really rocked me. It was my ice cream, my fruit, [melon that I miss so much, I don't miss other fruits, too sour for me I like real sweet so I used to love all melons and tried to stick to cantelope cause that's what Atkins told me but now I wouldn't have that either with my new sugar problems] so jello was the only 'refreshing' and 'dessert type' thing left that I alowed myself because there's nothing else. It all started with Bernsteins book when reading his chapter 10 online before I got the book, which is the part about the actual foods.

NO, actually, it started when I used splenda again after having some in the house and buying another case of 2000 packets cause it was a good deal, so I tried the ones in the house again after I ordered it to convince myself that I did the right thing lol.... because I used only saccharin tablets in my coffee so the splenda I got for other things,
cooking, etc., but tried splenda in my very strong coffee and it was hard to sweeten it enough with the splenda like I could with saccharin, so I called splenda and asked and THEY told me it was one teaspoon, being the exact equivelant of sugar but that seemed to be wrong when I came HERE but it tasted to me like it was because a splenda packet wasn't as strong as sweet n low which IS the equivelant of 2 tspns and much sweeter than splenda [and is the powdered form of saccharin].

But then I read Bernstein's book and that ended it all for me, when he talked about the 96% dextrose and maltodextrin in splenda that spikes sugar and stalls, but worse ....in JELLO and ALL powders! I have a house stocked to the ROOF with cherry jello and even had a container filled with it as I always did and that was my savior for my sweet tooth, because I even ADDED more sweetner to the cherry jello and it tasted like CANDY and when out of cream [it goes bad too fast here] I sweetened up sour cream and added a little water to make it a LITTLE thinner, more like whipped cream and i was in heaven and my fridge was NEVER without a batch of that made.

But after reading what Bernstein said the Splenda was then OUT the window for me with the 96% dextrose and maltodextrin and only 4% actual sucralose {!!!} But I love saccharin so that didn't bother me me about the spenda [except for the wasted case of 2000 sitting here! and another bout 1000 more sweet n low and splenda that I had before the case... but the jello destroyed me.

I called the company and they said they were getting a lot of calls about the maltodestrin [I didn't realize about the aspertame too at that time, so didn't mention it!] and she said that elsewhere they don't have it in there... Canada etc.! And bernstein says that the already prepared jello in CUPS don't have it but all powders do.... sweetner packets, jello, boullion, powdered broth, the soft sugar free powder drinks, [lemonade, crystal light, wylers type things in all brands, which I didn't really use anyway and are all stored away in my cubbards cause my BF use to send all that crap lol] but the jello really killed me. I didn't even finish the container in my fridge and threw it out.

My whole life when on this diet I depended on my jello and SOME form of cream, then when on maintenance, it was always cool whip mixed/whipped with plain unsweetened cocoa and sweetner, which of course I wouldn't eat now and cringe when thinking what's on THAT label lol but it did me fine all other times and never stalled me even when having it on the diet, and so did Jello [!] but now with my hi sugar the way it is I can't take a chance on all those things and it also creates stalls. A simple thing like jello and not even being able to have it is unbelievable to me.

They of course put in a request in at 'jello' after my call [think it's Kraft, I called months ago] but you know what good THAT'S gonna do. They need those preservatives in the powders though they don't have them in there in canada, so go figure. Now we have to have JELLO IMPORTED!!!!! lol I have the knox in the house, and don't even
use it, it nausiates me and can't be bothered with DaVinci syrup....im sure it just doesn't taste the same and I probably won't be allowed whats on their label either and it's a pain to make. Jello I just filled up half a plastic [chinese soup] container with hot tap water, poured the envelope in, and sweetner, filled the rest with cold water and in an hour or so my jello was done, any more work i'm not interested in. It really disgusts me. All i have left is making my decaf coffee real sweet [always did] and that's my only sweetness like dessert..... COFFEE! Ridiculous. But I wouldn't touch jello anymore and i have between 30 to 50 boxes left of it here that i can't even use. It's a crime.

[By the way, are we allowed to have Smart Balance? I had been using 'i can't believe it's not butter' since THAT came out years ago then switched to Smart balance a couple of years ago when THAT came out with no trans fats, and never really considered it as 'margarine' so kept using it and now I'm wondering about that. Don't use much and try to use more olive oil instead but sometimes butter flavor IS needed and I have 10 little cups in the freezer [I always buy in volume cuz hate shopping lol] and don't want to have to throw those out too! I never hear that mentioned on here and started wondering. As little as I use of it, I'm going to finish them anyway then I'll start to use butter if I have to. But does anyone know?]

I'm sorry I even know about all this now with the Jello and all powders! I did fine NOT knowing for so many years! I was better off, but now that I think of it, that's why maybe I DID have whatever stalls I had. Now I know why...all the crap they put in these things. But all those substitutes was what made the diet so easy for me. Jello, My homemade chocolate cool whip...[now they MAKE the chocolate and strawberry flavored cool whip, but I love the cocoa better because you can put in as much as you like and make it REAL chocolatey and it's like ice cream when always kept in the freezer and it IS great for maintenance] but god only knows what's in THAT and even the unsweetened cocoa isn't allowed in induction, but who knew [I didn't eat that on induction anyway, but later I did]. There I go with my jello ranting again, every time I see the word. lol But it meant a lot, it was the only BREAK from protein & fat that I had!! "Man can't live on bread alone". .....Oooooops, we can't have THAT either! :-(