What was the verdict for Induction stalls?

[JohnSantos]

Stalled for 2 weeks with zero inches and lbs.

Stix is purple all day every day, 1 hour exercise x 6 per week. Food is not tight since I have the occasional cole slaw at a BBQ restaurant, Wingstop 10 cajun with blue cheese on Mondays and Fridays. Supplements galore (9 total).

Other than those 2 items, food is VERY by the book.

So ...

1) Tighten up the food to scientific standards
2) Pop into OWL 1 and try my luck for a few weeks
3) Vary food, start varying exercise

Suggestions? Any particular order I should dive into these three until I'm back on track?

thanks!

[moniegail]

here's my thoughts...... first of all congrats on your success so far.

as far as a stall goes, Dr, Atkins states in the book (pg. 182 DANDR 2002) that the criteria for a stall is no weight loss or loss of inches for 4 weeks. also he states that increased muscle mass can deceive the scales as muscle weighs more than fat. a few bullets points down from that he also states that you should examine your menu to see if you've stuck to the plan and adhered to the rules. (these are not exact quotes from the book, somewhat abbreviated)

seeing as you mention you are exercising regularly, and also have had foods from restaurants that most likely have sugars or other things not allowed in induction, those are definately things you should examine more closely. i would suggest you keep at the exercising, sounds like you are doing awesome. however i'd ditch eating the coleslaw and any other items at restaurants you aren't 100% sure what's in it.

onto the ketostixs, as far as the color, i've heard people say that the darker color means dehydration.(make sure your drinking plenty of water everyday) the true object of those stixs are not to get the darkest color possible, if you get any color at all, (even the faintest color) you are in ketosis. (IE-they are kinda like the results of a pregnancy test either you are or you aren't) personally, i don't use them as there are other ways to tell if you are in ketosis. here's a great link to help understand- http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.c...tix-color.html (Questions about ketostix color)

well hope this helps, and here's hoping the woooshie fairy visits soon.

[msanjelpie]

Dieters often assume that because the scale isn't moving that they need to 'do something'... You are already doing all the right things. You are eating what you are supposed to eat, you are in ketosis, and you are exercising... there isn't anything more to be done. Except the hardest of all things... have patience. Allow your body to catch up to what you are doing...

Most people do great on induction, and then hit the usual post induction stall and wait 1 week, 2 weeks, and by the third week either quit or start swearing and kicking the scale and wondering what the h*** is going on. At this point they might move onto OWL rung 1 and lo and behold the scale starts moving again, (which it would have at this point anyway...)

So the verdict is... after you have done all that you can do and you have put your heart and soul into it each and every day, just relax... take a deep breath and enjoy the process... you are changing your life forever... embrace it!

[chinadoll]

Hang in there. Sometimes stalls don't mean you are doing anything wrong. It just means your body is readjusting again. The trick is to have the patience and stubbornness to wait it out. Tighten up on the stuff you know may be tripping you up. Drink lots of water. If you are doing a steady work out on the elliptical, then throw in some intervals-even 30 seconds at a time will help. Then dig in and be patient. Put the scale away for 2 weeks at least. I usually go wrong when I get frustrated and end up giving in because I think nothing is happening. When I stick it out, the stall eventually breaks on its own if i have behaved myself.

[EverLosing]

JohnSantos, would you please stand for the reading of the verdict?? The verdict is....you, my friend, have been found guilty of living in induction!! It's time! Swing on over to OWL Rung 1!! What is the absolute worst that's going to happen??

I'm going to copy and paste an answer I gave someone else because I'm not sharp enough today to remember it all!!

I would've jumped off a building if I had stayed on Induction until I lost half my weight. Moving to OWL was awesome and the way it should be. Everyone seems to get into this time crunch for weight loss instead of health gained. You have more options in OWL. It's so much easier to snack on the run when you move up. More options for delicious food and you're never bored with your choices. Not to mention, I'm certain my body appreciated the increased selection of foods and thus, different nutrients being poured into my body. Your veggie consumption will increase. Something to remember about veggies--they're filling and low in calories. Most people miss the point and think they should stick as close as possible to no carb, instead of a healthy choice, low carb. I say move on up. I've lost more weight adding carbs and exercising than I ever would have had I stayed on Induction. Don't be scared. What's the absolute worst that could happen? You maintain or lose only a few pounds per week. I find it's not so much about the higher carb level when I don't lose quickly as it is about the decreased activity level.

The right carbs in the right amount are your friend and too often we tend to treat them as the enemy. OWL is not just about increasing your carbs. It's about you learning about your body along the journey to ensure you can maintain what you've lost. The rungs are the most important part of Atkins. It teaches you what you can eat and what you can't. All of those lessons will get you through pre-maintenance and mainenance. Also, people on induction don't love hearing this but most of that loss you've seen so far isn't even fat. It's your glycogen stores. It's basically water weight. The true fat loss occurs near the end of induction and then the losses slow. That's just the way it works. Don't rob yourself of the lessons and have to run through the rungs quickly later on. You'll love the plan when you have more options!! Do remember, if a few weeks of OWL don't make you happy, you can always move back down to Induction. It's always up to you!

Okay, so there it is. That was my answer to someone who was debating whether or not to move to OWL or stay on extended induction. I felt really HEALTHY when I gave my body a chance with carbs again. You can too! If you're exercising that much, your body does need some carbs and because you're exercising, your body can readily handle them! So, c'mon, join us!!

[phil h]

Just me but I would take it easy on exercise until I had lost a substantial amount of wt.Might want to check those supplements.Most have corn starch in them.If you eat a nutricious diet why do you need supplements? Very little if any are absorbed anyway.If you continue a low carb, high fat diet, your insulin levels will drop and wt reduction will occur.That is a given.Just be sure your carbs are in fact low.

[JohnSantos]

Originally Posted by phil h

Just me but I would take it easy on exercise until I had lost a substantial amount of wt.

You mean stop exercising, lower the intensity or lower the duration?

Or are you concerned about injury?

[ajcav062197]

Originally Posted by JohnSantos

Stalled for 2 weeks with zero inches and lbs.

Stix is purple all day every day, 1 hour exercise x 6 per week. Food is not tight since I have the occasional cole slaw at a BBQ restaurant, Wingstop 10 cajun with blue cheese on Mondays and Fridays. Supplements galore (9 total).

Other than those 2 items, food is VERY by the book.

So ...

1) Tighten up the food to scientific standards
2) Pop into OWL 1 and try my luck for a few weeks
3) Vary food, start varying exercise

Suggestions? Any particular order I should dive into these three until I'm back on track?

thanks!

I just looked and called all my local bbq restraunts for nutional information. Some bbq's had zero carb or low carb meat... Some I was completely blown away that a chicken breast would have 24 carbs in it per serving. I am making lists of foods I can eat at each restraunt. I was sad, sad, sad to find out that my favorite bbq brisket was rubbed with brown sugar and my second favorite had more than 4 carbs per 1/2 lb. Oh well... I can do better than that. Actually I found Dickey's bbq has a zero carb brisket, ham and turkey but there 1/2 chicken has 2 carbs.

HTH
AJ

[JohnSantos]

I'm back on the move again, thanks everyone for all their help!

[chinadoll]

John, my advice is the opposite if Phil's. If you are up to it, rather than lighten up on exercise, I find changing up my exercise or increasing my interval work often shifts a stall. I will switch from straight sets of weights to pyramid sets, or alternate long sets with less weight with short sets with failure weights. For cardio, I find the interval training is the best weight dropper I know. The morning after a hard Interval workout I almost always show a drop.