On the verge of giving up

[rayard singh]

if you are putting on muscle while loosing fat you could actuall gain weight. look at how your clothes are fitting. muscle takes up less space than fat pound for pound.- keep going

[Adena]

The sugar-free candy could be hurting you, Britt. A lot of people say it affects their weight loss. I would highly recommend avoiding it for just a few days as a test, and also up your cadio those days. I suspect you might see a difference.

It's also very true that with so little left to lose, it's going to go VERY slowly -- you have to be a lot more patient this time around.

Are you tracking what you eat? www.fitday.com is a great place to do that, with a great added benefit: it tracks the percentage of calories you're getting from carbs, fat, and protein, which helps you to be sure your ratio is right (60% fat; 35% protien; 5% carbs). For me, that seems to make a big difference.

I was ready to quit a week ago because I had gained and lost the same 3-4 lbs for weeks. I was very frustrated. But, I stuck with it -- thanks to encouragement from folks here -- and it has paid off.

So, I'll give you the advice others gave me. Just give it another few weeks, and take some of the advice folks have offered you here. What do you have to lose by sticking around a bit longer -- besides more weight?

[Bren]

You have been given EXCELLENT advise from all. Just wanted to add........

but I am addicted to sugar free candy

Bells and Whistles! Remove that from your diet for a week and see what happens!

[Adena]

Britt, you might also find this thread helpful about why losses don't always show up on the scale: WHY losses don't show up on the scale?.

[jcapulet]

Does sugar free candy have carbs? 1 pack of Splenda has carbs, for example, so that's why I'm wondering.

Maybe someone can better help you here if you post what you ate yesterday, or today. Are you eating enough fats?

[winthorp69]

Wow you have so little to lose. That must be nice! I hope I know how that feels one day!

[winthorp69]

I know I risk being lynched by typing this, but why Atkins? What made you chose Atkins with so little weight to lose? At this point you have to exercise (which many don't do at first because they're so obese), you have to practice portion control (which many don't do at first because the pounds just melt off), and it'll most likely be a very slow process. I'm interested to know what made you chose Atkins vs. something else. Thank you.

[Adena]

Winthorp, if I recall correctly, she had already lost a lot of weight and did it on Atkins, which I think is why she came back.

[G-Mom]

Atkins isn't just for super heavyweights, it's a really healthful way of eating, perhaps that's why she chose it over something else.

[Adena]

Gives "super heavyweight" a whole new meaning, G-mom.

At this point, I suspect Britt may have, indeed, given up...