Why the fascination with Kimmer?

[2bdancing]

I keep lurking on this thread to see if anything really developes about Kimkins. I remember most of this hashing of the plan being said before. Maybe not in such long posts but by subject matter (laxatives, fat/no fat, low/high calories) but I really want to see Kimkins/Heidi exposed. I do believe she could hurt some Lcarbers mentally and physically. I wish we could flag the post that exposes the subject.

[canadiandina]

Originally Posted by stews

I also want to clarify what I think about it leading to anorexia or other ED's.


I believe it is a risk for doing that. I certainly don't think everyone that does kimkins will have an ED, but I do believe there are a lot that will (or allready do when they start it). again, NOT all.

I didn't want to share my story but I think I will. I never joined Kimmers site but I did try her way of eating when she was on LCF. As a result, I lost weight. I got down to my lowest point, to the point where my whole family was asking me to just stop. I followed her plan and lost all the weight but I was only eating once a day...and seriously it was so little, you can not even call that eating. In my mind I knew that what I was doing was wrong and unhealthy, but the positive weight loss made me disregard that.

Lost story short....I got married and started enjoying life again. I started eating all 3 meals and gained back all my weight, plus some. And so once again, here I am....eating only once a day because I know that I need to keep my calories low in order to lose weight. It has been embedded into my mind and as much as I hate thinking this way, I feel like I can't stop.

Did I do this to myself, or did Kimmer's plan? I think I am responsible but at the same time I wish I never read her posts. She made it seem so easy....she influenced me into thinking that I would be able to do this for life and that this was actually okay to eat so little. I'm still struggling with this and I really hope that no one else goes through it.

[lala]

Originally Posted by canadiandina

I didn't want to share my story but I think I will. I never joined Kimmers site but I did try her way of eating when she was on LCF. As a result, I lost weight. I got down to my lowest point, to the point where my whole family was asking me to just stop. I followed her plan and lost all the weight but I was only eating once a day...and seriously it was so little, you can not even call that eating. In my mind I knew that what I was doing was wrong and unhealthy, but the positive weight loss made me disregard that.

Lost story short....I got married and started enjoying life again. I started eating all 3 meals and gained back all my weight, plus some. And so once again, here I am....eating only once a day because I know that I need to keep my calories low in order to lose weight. It has been embedded into my mind and as much as I hate thinking this way, I feel like I can't stop.

Did I do this to myself, or did Kimmer's plan? I think I am responsible but at the same time I wish I never read her posts. She made it seem so easy....she influenced me into thinking that I would be able to do this for life and that this was actually okay to eat so little. I'm still struggling with this and I really hope that no one else goes through it.

thank you for sharing! there is a better and HEALTHY way! you can do this right and forever we can help you! i dont even know what to say

[LINC]

Question.......

Is there an age requirement for joining Kimkins? Could a teenager or young girl join that site? It seems to me to be a very dangerous place for a young girl to get "dieting" advice. It's a dangerous place for anyone, but especially someone who really doesn't have any clue what type of road they're headed on and is getting encouragement from adults to follow it.

Does anyone know?

Lou

[AllieCat0817]

I am not sure what to say either. But I know there are other people in your shoes who have fixed it and that the metabolism can be repaired through eating enough calories with the right nutrients and exercising. You can!

[Nady]

Originally Posted by LINC

Question.......

Is there an age requirement for joining Kimkins? Could a teenager or young girl join that site? It seems to me to be a very dangerous place for a young girl to get "dieting" advice. It's a dangerous place for anyone, but especially someone who really doesn't have any clue what type of road they're headed on and is getting encouragement from adults to follow it.

Does anyone know?

Lou

How would you enforce it if there was? Because kids never fib about their age~
~~~N

[canadiandina]

Thanks guys. I am working on it but it's such a hard mentality to change.

LINC -- I don't think that there is an age restriction to her site.

[stews]

Originally Posted by canadiandina

I didn't want to share my story but I think I will. I never joined Kimmers site but I did try her way of eating when she was on LCF. As a result, I lost weight. I got down to my lowest point, to the point where my whole family was asking me to just stop. I followed her plan and lost all the weight but I was only eating once a day...and seriously it was so little, you can not even call that eating. In my mind I knew that what I was doing was wrong and unhealthy, but the positive weight loss made me disregard that.

Lost story short....I got married and started enjoying life again. I started eating all 3 meals and gained back all my weight, plus some. And so once again, here I am....eating only once a day because I know that I need to keep my calories low in order to lose weight. It has been embedded into my mind and as much as I hate thinking this way, I feel like I can't stop.

Did I do this to myself, or did Kimmer's plan? I think I am responsible but at the same time I wish I never read her posts. She made it seem so easy....she influenced me into thinking that I would be able to do this for life and that this was actually okay to eat so little. I'm still struggling with this and I really hope that no one else goes through it.

I wasn't saying at all that it's all kimkins fault. we do have responsibility. but what she pushes IS dangerous and is NOT healthy and does promot those issues IMO.

[AllieCat0817]

Originally Posted by canadiandina

Thanks guys. I am working on it but it's such a hard mentality to change.

Oh believe me, we get it. This thread is an eye opener for me myself and my own mentality issues.

[CJane]

Originally Posted by canadiandina

Thanks guys. I am working on it but it's such a hard mentality to change.

LINC -- I don't think that there is an age restriction to her site.

It is hard to change back, but it can be done - I've done it. I encourage you to stick around here and really follow the good advice given and a healthier WOE/WOL. I know how scary this whole thing is for you hang in there!

Even if there is no age limit, it may be difficult for a minor to get a hold of a way to pay $60 online. However, her whole WOE and philosophy is online here for free if you think about it. Anyone can access that info if they have a computer and online access. Just a thought.

[Tippy Toes]

May I comment? I think it is possible to just not see yourself, as Cheri says. I can look in the mirror and see one thing but then I see a picture of myself and I see a much thinner girl. I have often wondered if this was a signal but in truth I think it takes the brain time to catch up with the body. My pics tell me I am in range with weight and so do the scales but some days that darned mirror... Well, you all know. I don't think it's fair to blame any particular diet. True I do Kimkins from time to time but I have done a whole lot more Atkins and felt the same way. But I do think about it. How many of you have ever been to goal and thought you were still fat? And then you regain the weight but find a pic of yourself at goal and wonder why you didn't notice then how good you really looked? Is it just human nature that makes us critical of ourselves? I dunno.

One dear, sweet girl on this thread once told me maintainance is no fun because there is no longer joy in seeing the scales go down. I can understand that. It IS fun and rewarding to lose weight.

Worse for me, I have had not one but TWO Doctors recently tell me to keep losing and get to 135. I am 5' 7" and what I weigh today is the same as when I was a teen. Am I still a little chunky? Family, husband and friends say no. I wouldn't know, lol. But I am putting the brakes on this thing now before it gets out of hand for me as well. Calling goal.

I thank you all for sharing the same experiences. I also thank you all for stopping the personal info posting. I was scared to post again. I would NEVER want you all mad at me since I would have to leave the country in the middle of the night with no forwarding address. Little joke but true enough.

Just one thing left that bothers me a little. Someone said that people helping other people is to stroke their own egos. That statement almost made me NOT want to help anyone else for fear of what would be thought about me. That is silly too. I enjoy seeing people succeed. Is there really any harm in that?

Back to lurk mode...

[CARLINI]

Originally Posted by AllieCat0817

This thread is an eye opener for me myself and my own mentality issues.

For me too. Honestly, I'm sitting her just bawling cause so many deeper issues have come to the surface

[Tooter]

Originally Posted by LaurieRobo

I'm glad that is worked for you and it does work and sometimes work too well.

Gonna share a little here - I had been heavy all my life at 10 I remember being in the 160's... teens - 170 to 190 til my late 20's - I did WW to 146 for a day and back up to the 170's where I stayed through pregnancies 2 & 3 - I stopped looking at 237 @ 7.5 months preg - I know it was higher.

Started lcing in the early 2003 or so and went back to WW (plan works, but hated being hungry) I was even a WW leader for a year... got to what I thought was my goal 153-155 and stayed there til last june (lc-carb). I did kimkins cause I really wanted to be in my 140's - well I was a success right down to 134. Mentally - it messes with ya... duh - I was actually happy I could shop in the girls dept - I couldn't go in to a dept store everything was too big! That is wrong for an adult woman of 42 and at 5'7"... I have settled back between 140 and 145 and am very happily maintaing... I had my body fat done at the gym 3 weeks ago and I am 15.9% body fat - 124 lbs of lean body mass.... I will never be much lower than I am now and that is just fine by me... I wear most size 6's and many 4's and even 0's - curves are back a little and can't wear GIRL sizes anymore. I'm happy - so was I bordering on an ED - absolutely!!!! Did I wake up - yes I did. I have a varied weight past, and am over most of my binge issues (never purged, but did Binge eat and I honestly can't remember the last one)... do I over eat sometimes, yes, but finally in a happy medium with my food choices, weight, and exercise and maintaining easily finally.

So yes I do believe this can lead to an ED... level headed me was headed there!

[AllieCat0817]

I love you Tippy!! You rawk. Totally!!!

[The Bunnell Farm]

In case anybody else missed it the Slamboard IV posted.
http://www.slamboard.com/category/diet-industry/

[cleochatra]

{{{{canadiandina}}}}

That is so scary! It's a feeling of power, but you feel out of control at the same time. I wish you well. It took me a long time to stop that.

See, for me, I'm a closet binger. Whgile I was following Atkins I was able to successfully eat 500 calories a day. The problem? when I felt deprived (which was only really occasionally) I ate until I became so sick, I had to lay down. When weight loss is punctuated with binging, that's not right. There's something fundamentally not being addressed.

I realized (eventually and way too late) that I had stayed on induction and 500 calories for over 7 months and I was just finished. After losing 115 pounds, over the next year I gained back 120.

Now I'm having to re-learn how to eat. While I felt powerful and haughty eating my 500 calories a day and looked down my nose at others because they were eating healthier levels and losing more slowly, I spent at least a weekend a month feeding emotions of feeling desperate and deprived.

ED's exist on every eating plan and in many forms.

The problem is advertising it as THE way of eating.

I don't care that people are responsible for themselves. I told people to eat 500 calories a day to lose more weight and they listened, because it worked.

I am so thankful I finally got over myself and started doing things the right way. The losses are not as fast, but I am NOT going off plan because I never feel deprived. And I'm finally eating more, even if I feel guilty doing it.

I'm a huge advocate of 'do what works for you', partially because I will never again tell people that what works for me is the way they ought to do things.

Because there's always the chance I could be wrong. I'm not a doctor. I'm someone on the same journey as everyone else.

As for the numbers issue and membership, that is also a reason she won't cancel membership accounts. If she deletes your membership, it causes numbers to dwindle. If she deletes posts, there are less internet hits to bring people from ranked google positions. There is a lot of finagling that goes on behind the scenes. The Boy Scouts do it with their membership numbers. Kimmer does it. Other people do it. It's business. What you see is more factual than what you think you see. A board only appears busy, but often really has a core group, followed by the intermittant posters, and those tend to still only make up an infinitessimal amount when compared to spiderbots. Even removed posts are probably moved to an administrative archive where they exist, helping add to the amount of hit words at the site. It's done all the time. People rarely remove posts fully, especially when wanting to build site traffic.

[/soapy box]

The site will rely on constant new traffic to keep people coming in, because many, many people aren't going to stay around for long. Many find the plan doesn't work for them and leave quietly, filing their spent $60 in the 'lessons learned' file.

[Tooter]

Originally Posted by Cutie

well, clearly you haven't heard what we all were told over there...that the latest research shows that laxatives are not addictive any longer & we shouldn't be concerned at all to use them...they're totally safe to use daily...

(for real, that's been "coached" repeatedly )

OMG. The hair on my arms is standing up.

[cqueen]

Originally Posted by LINC

Question.......

Is there an age requirement for joining Kimkins? Could a teenager or young girl join that site? It seems to me to be a very dangerous place for a young girl to get "dieting" advice. It's a dangerous place for anyone, but especially someone who really doesn't have any clue what type of road they're headed on and is getting encouragement from adults to follow it.

Does anyone know?

Lou

I don't remember them asking for an age when I signed up. I guess as long as the kid can pay they could join.........

[stews]

Originally Posted by cqueen

I don't remember them asking for an age when I signed up. I guess as long as the kid can pay they could join.........

it wouldn't matter if it did require a certain age. look at myspace...they lie about their age OFTEN. (or course sometimes so do adults ).

[Tooter]

Originally Posted by stews

I also want to clarify what I think about it leading to anorexia or other ED's.


I believe it is a risk for doing that. I certainly don't think everyone that does kimkins will have an ED, but I do believe there are a lot that will (or allready do when they start it). again, NOT all.

I totally agree.

[AllieCat0817]

Cleo, you ate 500 cals per day? I do remember you saying something like 900 before, and that alone DID worry me because I just thought that was WAY TOO LOW. But 500?

See how this thread is just bringing it all out for EVERYONE. Glad you found Low GL. !

[cqueen]

Originally Posted by stews

it wouldn't matter if it did require a certain age. look at myspace...they lie about their age OFTEN. (or course sometimes so do adults ).

That is so true......As long as the kids can get ahold of a credit card or paypal I would assume they can get in....Sad....

[RockyMtnAngelEyes]

Originally Posted by CARLINI

For me too. Honestly, I'm sitting her just bawling cause so many deeper issues have come to the surface

I had to back off and stop reading, I've been crying so hard.. The past day or so, all the old demons have resurfaced for me...

I thought I was strong enough to handle it, but I guess I'm not.. All the memories that I thought I had all nicely wrapped up, and tied with a knot and tucked away, came undone...

I've been flooded with memories of what I did, what I could have ended up doing, what happened to me {the stories I could share, if I was able to} and yes, what I still want to do.. Even tho I said it was a rare occasion, that may have been an exageration.. It's just been easier for me to push the thoughts out of my mind, to a point...

Add to that the fear I have for so many following what I believe to be the worst advise possible, and not being able to do a thing about it... Like storm the site and get them out, like in a movie, I guess is what I mean.. All I can do is share my experience, like the rest of you, and pray..

Was mine due to the 'Kimkins' plans.. No...

I'm not knocking the plan AS WRITTEN... But, it's the 'advise' being given, in private, {on the private board or in PM's}, that isn't in the original plan..

These people just don't see what's being done TO them.. I did it to myself, like most of the others...

[Tooter]

Originally Posted by canadiandina

I didn't want to share my story but I think I will. I never joined Kimmers site but I did try her way of eating when she was on LCF. As a result, I lost weight. I got down to my lowest point, to the point where my whole family was asking me to just stop. I followed her plan and lost all the weight but I was only eating once a day...and seriously it was so little, you can not even call that eating. In my mind I knew that what I was doing was wrong and unhealthy, but the positive weight loss made me disregard that.

Lost story short....I got married and started enjoying life again. I started eating all 3 meals and gained back all my weight, plus some. And so once again, here I am....eating only once a day because I know that I need to keep my calories low in order to lose weight. It has been embedded into my mind and as much as I hate thinking this way, I feel like I can't stop.

Did I do this to myself, or did Kimmer's plan? I think I am responsible but at the same time I wish I never read her posts. She made it seem so easy....she influenced me into thinking that I would be able to do this for life and that this was actually okay to eat so little. I'm still struggling with this and I really hope that no one else goes through it.

I know that was so very hard to do. Thank you so much for sharing your story.