BellaOnline Forums Food and Wine Low Carb I was not an Atkins beleiver!

Hi all,

Well the weight slowly crept up over the last 4 years... was up to 142 the other day. An extra 10-15 lbs may not seem like a big deal to alot...but like Lisa did I want to bump this fat. NONE of my jeans fit, I wore stretch dress pants all winter making me feel like a frump!
So I read about low carb.... was shocked that one could actually eat all this fat and tried it out. Weighed in after 6 days...lost 4 lbs. WOW. Feel great. My goal is 125.
My husband doesn't know I'm doing this although we almost eat the same at meals... I just grill all meat and vegies and skip the starchy ones. I LOVE cheese and am thrilled that I can eat it. I've avoided it, or eaten it with guilt for many years. We are total salmon eaters so this is going to be easy. I still can't beleive I lost weight this week.
I'll keep you posted.
Lisa...a question...
must I eat all carbs (20) at one time during one hr of the day or can I spread it throughout day. Thought I read somewhere that it all had to be consumed within a time limit.
Thanks and wish me luck!

Hey there, welcome to the group! Isn't it amazing that you can serve low carb and people don't even realize it is "special" - because it is so delicious! Really low carb is all about eating healthy meats, fresh vegetables and avoiding the sugar. It's scary how much sugar is in our food, from peanut butter to ketchup and everything else.

You most definitely should NOT gorge all your carbs at once. I've read most of the major low carb diet books and none that I know of recommend that method. The ones I've read all recommend spacing your food out evenly throughout the day and never going more than 3-4 hours without food. The aim here is to stabilize your blood sugar. You want to remove those highs and lows that a high-sugar diet causes. Those highs and lows leed to extreme hunger, sleepiness in the troughs, mood swings and more. It's also REALLY bad for diabetics. You want a nice, low, even blood sugar level. So you want to eat regularly, eat things with little sugar (i.e. low carbs) and keep your body on a 'slow even burn'.

So make sure you eat ALL three meals each day, and have healthy snacks (broccoli, celery etc) in between. Also drink lots of water, water is SO critical for your health no matter what diet you are on.

I have a lot of advice on my website at http://lowcarb.bellaonline.com on getting started on low carb diets - read through those and ask away if you have more questions!

Thanks Lisa,

Sorry I didn't reply sooner but I lost my password.
Well I am now a steady 137..... and dropping. I told my husband that I was on a diet and he said I like you the way you are and I hope that you don't go too crazy on this. I said I just want to fit into all my old clothes....it'll feel like a whole new wardrobe and that I felt frumpy. He feels bad I felt that way and is very encouraging now.

No longer wake up STARVING...guess my stomach is used to not snacking at night anymore.

Glad I don't have to gorge the carbs all at once I feel I need them in the morning and at lunch more than anyother time so I have a piece of multi grain toast in the morning and a piece of bread with cheese and meat at lunch for my carbs.. that totals about 20 so at supper I usually only have 1/4 cup brown rice. It's working for me as no carbs was making me feel downright weak. Maybe is pyschological but as along as I don't overdo the bread thing and I'm losing thats my plan.

I have a bit of a problem when I look on Atkins site and they want like $10.00 plus shipping for a loaf or two of bread...give me a break!! I'll just eat half of a healthy piece instead. Guess I'm not a believer in that prepackaged specialty food outrageously priced. LOL I'll do it this way and keep you all posted. My goal is 129 lbs...just want to break that 130 mark so I guess I have 9 to go. BTW... clothes are looser already..

14- days
down to 136
induction is over and I lost approx. 6- 7 lbs
I'm very pleased with this

I ate more like 30-40 carbs a day and will maintain that...

one piece of 12 grain toast in am... sorry but I'm not a bacon/eggs kinda person... still have my coffee with creme

sandwich and or stir fry with rice at lunch.. maybe a salad

one carb at supper with lots of vegetables/meat etc

also adding a fruit now

this low carb has made me realize how easy it is to pack those carbs in on impulse without even thinking about it... few chips here, few crackers here... handfull of cereal (I'll admit I did that alot) now I don't and the lbs are melting away!!
I'm thrilled

cleaned out my closet... kept all the clothes that are too tight and except to get into them comfortably 5 lbs down the line here.
I'll be happy with one - two lbs/ week

That's great news! You can easily make your own bread that is multi-grain and good for you that is cheap. If you really want to buy bread there are many low carb breads in your normal supermarket nowadays that are the same price as sugar-filled bread. I can't imagine that ANYBODY is buying pure white bread any more. Even the new USDA food pyramid says it's just bad for you. You need the fiber in multigrain bread, not the sugar and lack of fiber in white bread <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

That's great on your progress, keep at it! Those veggies are what are key. It's amazing how many people say the ONLY veggie they eat is potatoes - and it's in french fries and potato chips. There are many other veggies that are high in nutrients and critical to good health <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Well its been 9 days and I'm down to 135.5
Geez .5 lbs in 9 days.... oh well I don't think scales are always the best way to judge one's body...
Good thing is everything is fitting alot better than it used to. I really believe that one's last 10 lbs is a battle. This is a 3 week mark for me now and I'm 6.5-7 lbs down. I'm having fun trying on all my old things that I couldn't wear for the last 3 years. I try to walk every eve. I live on a mountain so it's either uphill or downhill... rarely a straight stretch! Our walk takes us approx 30 min.
I'm hardly ever hungry anymore. Mostly when I awake but I have a cup of tea and it passes.

Can't wait to break that 135 mark. It's all in my head but when I do I think I'll have my first glass of red wine.

That's great! Really while scales are nice they aren't everything. You go through periods of losing weight - then periods of staying at the same weight but losing inches. Your body has to 're-settle' at its new weight, redistributing it. So don't obsess too much about the weight. Just pay attention to how clothes fit, how you feel, and that you're already healthier than you were before.

You'll be there soon!

i am not a big eggs for breakfast person myself but i know i feel better if i get some protein at breakfast so i've been making custard - it is so good:)
Di's Low Carb Custard Pie
There are only 17.6 grams of carbohydrates in the entire recipe!
5 eggs
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup sugar free DaVinci Vanilla or French Vanilla syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
additional ground nutmeg for garnish
pinch salt
Take out your pie plate and find a larger baking dish, casserole, or roaster which the pie plate will fit into which touching the sides.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all the ingredients except the nutmeg for the garnish in a blender and process to blend the ingredients for 15 to 20 seconds.
Pour the blended ingredients into an ungreased pie plate. Sprinkle with additional nutmeg.
Place the pie plate in the baking dish, casserole, or roaster and add water to the larger container to a depth of 1/2 to 3/4 inch.
Place the pie on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the center is set and the top is lightly browned.
Take the pie out of the larger container and cool on a wire rack. When cooled, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving time.
This pie is good either hot or cold. (It can be warmed up in the microwave.)
i add a little cinnamon too:)

Thanks for the recipe! It's tough to believe that all that rich heavy cream etc can be eaten with a weight loss isn't it?

Well I've broken 135 finally. Down 1/2 lb yesterday and another 1/2 lb today. I'm 134.5!! YEE haa.

I'm walking more and also cutting out all that cheese I was snacking on. I feel good a little more energetic. Cheese causes its own problems lol

My regular diet: bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar in morning, salad at lunch with either cheese or chicken, few carrots and fruit, salmon or chicken at supper with fresh vegetables...usually with brown rice
Not much of a red meat eater as that was all we ate as a kid.

I don't know if you'd call it low carb... more like sensible eating. It has made me realize that snacking on carbs kept the weight on however.

snacks: celery, apples, small amounts cheese or chicken, sometimes a few cups of popcorn. I say away from all junk food. Drink one cup coffee, few cups regular tea, lots of herbal tea

Feeling good. 5 more lbs to go. I'm planning my wedding!!!!

Congrats on the wedding and the weight loss! I'd be cautious with apples, they are of course healthy but also full of sugar. A guy at my boyfriend's office used to eat apples and peanut butter all the time as a "healthy snack" and when he told his doctor, his doctor had a fit and told him to cut that out. Sure, when you hit your ideal weight, a few snacks like that won't hurt. But if you're trying to lose weight, those sugary apples might be the difference <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Exercise is key. You might go with splenda instead of brown sugar, at least for now. Also, add on some cinnamon! More and more reports indicate that a daily 1/4 tsp of cinnamon is HUGELY helpful for anyone wanting to lose weight and be healthy. Parade magazine (the Sunday paper insert) just talked about it again today.