Only 1 Pound After 8 Days on Induction

[Loretta Luongo]

In 8 days I have had 5 diet tonic and vodka (0 carbs) cocktails, could that be why? I am 5'2", weigh 141, want to loose 14 total.

[daisyHair]

It could be..

It could also be too many calories, not enough calories, you could have been dieting before you started LC? and not had that much glycogen stored (to show a water loss).. You could be a slow loser like many of us are.. and you really don't have that much to lose so a huge woosh might not be yours right away.

Sorry but really unless you have kept track of your food it's very hard to say. Many will suggest ****** (me too) so you REALLY know what's going on food wise.

As for booze.. I stall when I drink.. mainly because it dehydrates me and my body holds onto water the next few days.

Welcome to LCF!
Post more.. I am sure we can help!

[Macc0021]

Unfortunately, it is probably the booze! We have very similar stats. If I have a vodka/club soda (0 carbs), I am almost always up a pound the next day. Then it takes 2 days to get back down... Frustrating cycle! I try to limit cocktails to once a week to minimize the damage.

[muncheechee]

To add to what the others have said, when you drink alcohol your body will stop burning fat so that it can burn the alcohol off first so you're probably getting knocked out of ketosis for a while with every drink. Try not drinking for a week and see what happens.

[Divinexheirocity]

Well and 5 drinks in relatively a week (to me) is a lot. Like Macc said i'd limit your alcohol intake if you insist on having it. I personally insist on my wine haha, but I've limited it as much as I can because I know what it does to my loss. Also, the less you have to lose, the longer it will take to lose it. Without knowing what your food intake has been it's hard to go much further into potential improvements. HTH!

[Passion68]

Loretta, without seeing your meal plans, I agree with the others: It is probably the alcohol. I've learned first hand how much it derails the program. Despite the fact it's low carb, and I mix it with club or diet soda, it still stalls/reverses my weight loss. If you look at my signature line, those (weight loss) numbers could be much higher. But, unfortunately, I love my vodka.

[A&F]

Originally Posted by daisyHair

It could be..

It could also be too many calories, not enough calories, you could have been dieting before you started LC? and not had that much glycogen stored (to show a water loss).. You could be a slow loser like many of us are.. and you really don't have that much to lose so a huge woosh might not be yours right away.

Sorry but really unless you have kept track of your food it's very hard to say. Many will suggest ****** (me too) so you REALLY know what's going on food wise.

As for booze.. I stall when I drink.. mainly because it dehydrates me and my body holds onto water the next few days.

Welcome to LCF!
Post more.. I am sure we can help!

[Loretta Luongo]

Thanx for the quick responses. I will give the alcohol a toss for the rest of the induction and see what happens. I may stay on induction another 2 weeks.

[LiterateGriffin]

Originally Posted by muncheechee

To add to what the others have said, when you drink alcohol your body will stop burning fat so that it can burn the alcohol off first so you're probably getting knocked out of ketosis for a while with every drink.

This is exactly right. While your liver is processing alcohol, it's not doing anything else... including burning fat.

[nfowife]

Also, if you want to lose only 14 lbs, atkins says that a good induction loss is 10% of goal. For you that would only be 1.4 lbs. When you don't have much to lose it takes a long time to lose it.
And, for sure, the alcohol isn't helping. Not true induction for sure.
But, you do have a loss. Maybe scale back and understand it will be slower with the alcohol. Or take a week off, stick to induction and see if it makes a difference. Maybe it won't! Who knows?

[SamiKing]

I agree with nfowife - drinking alcohol is not allowed during induction. It may look like it has no carbs, but your body burns alcohol before it does fat. You also have a small amount of weight to lose and therefore are not going to see the rapid weight loss that some do. Are you getting enough fat? Enough calories? Again, I will second what nfowife says - you are supposed to lose 10% of your body weight on induction, and you are half way through induction with a loss of 1lb... so you are on the right track. Although this way of eating is well known for speedy weight loss, that isn't necessarily true for everybody, and regardless, you really don't have that much to lose. If you lose a lb a week steadily you will have lost all the weight you need to lose in 14 weeks - that's just over 2 months - not a long time at all, really, when you think about it!

As long as the scale is moving downwards you are going in the right direction. Are you measuring? You can sometimes see a loss in inches when you are not seeing a loss in weight.

Good luck!

[mamabear6]

I only drink vodka or whiskey with a diet mixer, and not very often these days. But on the nights that I do, I always have a loss. I don't drink with my dinner, I drink after I eat dinner and I eat no more the rest of the evening. I'm no longer on my first two weeks of induction, but I am eating @ induction levels.
I don't know why I lose after an evening of a drink or three. And the weight loss stays, too. Oh well. Everybody is different!

[Macc0021]

Originally Posted by mamabear6

I only drink vodka or whiskey with a diet mixer, and not very often these days. But on the nights that I do, I always have a loss. I don't drink with my dinner, I drink after I eat dinner and I eat no more the rest of the evening. I'm no longer on my first two weeks of induction, but I am eating @ induction levels.
I don't know why I lose after an evening of a drink or three. And the weight loss stays, too. Oh well. Everybody is different!

Not fair!!

[pocahontas]

Originally Posted by nfowife

Also, if you want to lose only 14 lbs, atkins says that a good induction loss is 10% of goal. For you that would only be 1.4 lbs. When you don't have much to lose it takes a long time to lose it.
And, for sure, the alcohol isn't helping. Not true induction for sure.But, you do have a loss. Maybe scale back and understand it will be slower with the alcohol. Or take a week off, stick to induction and see if it makes a difference. Maybe it won't! Who knows?

The bolded parts above! Good luck!

[xamier]

If you lose 1 pound every 8 days for a year, you will lose 45.62 pounds. ( you could lose 14 pounds in 16 weeks or 4 months )

It is likely to be the alcohol, carb creep, or too many calories or all 3.

Good Luck

[Loretta Luongo]

12 Days into induction and I lost another pound, total of two. Its slow, I thought it was going to be faster, oh well...life is difficult!

[mamabear6]

How much have you been working out?
I'm sure you will have more actual fat loss than the scale will tell you. Are you taking measurements?
This week I jumped into a hardcore routine of exercise, alternating strength training with intense cardio. I am noticing results already and have lost some inches and about a pound.
Be patient and try not to let the scale get you down, it isn't always the best indicator of "progress"

[GratefulParrot]

Everybody is different. A ton of knowledgeable people here, but everybody is different.

I drank Gin and Tonic all through induction and I saw no effects. However, my carb counts are really low and I stayed away from sauces. I also started lifting heavy again and walk two miles a day. Of course, I'm fairly big, so maybe it's easier for me to loose as a man. My humble advice is to keep tweeking until you find what works for you to lose weight.

[AllieCat0817]

Hi Loretta,
I did Induction for three weeks, and didn't lose a whole lot. Right now I can't remember. I lost the most when I moved up to Ongoing Weight Loss for some reason.

Try to have only one lc drink a week and see how that goes.

I charted my losses.. here it is. I started 5/23/03 and only did Induction for 3 weeks out of this whole time. Unfortunately I didn't record which phase I was in each month... but I think I did OWL most of the time. It seems to agree with me the best.

Start 5/23/03, 213.5 lb
May 2003: 2 lb lost, end weight 211.5 Total 2
Jun 2003: 10 lb lost, end weight 201.5 Total 12
Jul 2003: 5 lb lost, end weight 196.5 Total 17
Aug 2003: 7 lb lost, end weight 189.5 Total 24
Sep 2003: 8 lb lost, end weight 181.5 Total 32
Oct 2003: 6.5 lb lost, end weight 175 Total 38.5
Nov 2003: 6 lb lost, end weight 169 Total 44.5
Dec 2003: 6.5 lb lost, end weight 162.5 Total 51
Jan 2004: 6.5 lb lost, end weight 156 Total 57.5
Feb 2004: 3 lb lost, end weight 153 Total 60.5
Mar 2004: 4.5 lb lost, end weight 148.5 Total 65
Apr 2004: 2 lb lost, end weight 146.5 Total 67
May 2004: 3 lb lost, end weight 143.5 Total 70
Jun 2004: 1.5 lb lost, end weight 142 Total 71.5
Jul 2004: 0 lb lost
Aug 2004: 2.5lb lost, end weight 139.5 Total 74
Feb 2005: 1.5lb lost, end weight 138 Total 75.5
Mar 2005: 6lb lost, weight 132 Total 81.5

Another thing you can consider is the time of day you have your last meal, and how heavy that last meal is. I had great success with having my last meal BEFORE 5... 5:30 at the latest. And making lunch be the heaviest. And stopping when satisfied, not full.

'Fitness experts' and 'studies' have shown that the time of day for the last meal doesn't matter and in the end the calories is what matters... but for ME, the time of day for the last meal is a huge factor.

Also along those same lines of stopping eating before 5, I've been googling sleep. Google 'lose weight in your sleep'. People who sleep 7+ hours a night (preferrably 8-9) weigh less than those who sleep less hours. The hormones that are at work while you are sleeping regulates appetite and fat burning. I think that is linked to the time of day I stop eating. I've gone back to stopping eating before 5 this week, and I have had the HARDEST sleep, almost like a coma, but when time to wake up in the morning I'm bouncing out of the bed. Going to sleep on an empty stomach seems to help the quality of sleep for me.

Just some thoughts.

[flatferenghi]

which is more important? quick(er) weight loss or alcohol? Dr. Atkins is very firm on no alcohol or caffeine during induction. As i have broken the caffeine rule, I ought not to advise you in this. However, I am not after QUICK weight loss. i am after PERMANENT and PLEASANT weight loss, and especially a diminuation of binge eating. We must all pick our own battles. Good luck with yours. Love & Profits: FLATFERENGHI