Tips for Guaranteed Success w/Atkins

[shawnee]

How To Succeed w/Atkins

Today I was down another lb, & recently, even more importantly, my blood glucose has really come 100% in line, it got better right out of the gate, I dropped the meds around 6 weeks in & it was more or less OK, but for the past ten days or so it’s dead on level, morning, two hours after meal, etc-Anytime.That is friggin unbelievable. I’m really closing in on 6 months now & the remission of diaabetes along w/the weight loss means for me Atkins has been totally successful up to now.

I thought I’d take a moment & list the most important tips for success as I see them, & I hope other more experienced Atkins losers can post their comments & any additional tips they have too.We can exchange viewpoints & let any those just starting this journey get a little insight into the road ahead.

Here are my Four Hardfast Rules/Tips for Guaranteed Success

1)Water & Water & More Water
2)Exercise(Make it part of your life)
3)Eat a lot of Nutrient/Antioxidant Rich, Fibre dense Veggies
4)Nutritional Supplements Work (The older you are the more you need)

I) Water, drink as much as possible, cold is better, everytime I start to ‘stall’ if I analyze what I’m doing, I’ve let the water consumption drop. Keep it next to you at all times & keep it flowing. Like another poster once said, if the liquid coming out looks darker than the water going in, you’re not drinking enough. More crudely put drink water till your pee looks like water.

2) Like Atkins says Exercise is non-negotiable. It is a key part of the WOL, the more you exercise the better you’ll feel & the more you’ll lose. Make it part of daily routine. Start slow & build up as time goes on. You won’t regret it, as a matter of fact you’ll love it & how you feel after getting into it. I promise!.

3) Everyone knows about the high fat high protein part of the diet but many try to skip the veggies, let me tell you it won’t work. I’ve lived all over the world, trust me if you eat something regularly, even if you don’t ‘like it’ eventually you will like it. Fibre Dense, Nutrient & AntiOxidant Rich Veggies I absolutely guarantee you are huge part of any successful Atkineer’s daily diet. The greener the better

4) Induction is a severe daily regiem designed to awaken & kickoff ketosis in your body, it is not however an optimal way to eat, Supplements are necessary during Induction & post Induction they help a lot. The older you are the more they help. I personally think that Atkins Vita-Nutrient Solution is as revolutionary a book as DANDR & I believe in it time will also be seen as just as great & an even more significant piece of work. Most of us come to this WOL severly overweight & let's be honest coupled w/that weight there are almost always some degenerative health issues associated w/that that have started or set in. In his VitaNutrient Book Atkins sets forth various recommended cocktails of Supplements for various conditions. What he recommends is beyond most people’s budgets & almost impossible to physically ingest but I find if you cross reference the lists & do some trial & error you can find a supplement menu that helps tremendously. The problem here is there is not so much information as with the dietary part of the plan so you really have to work it out yourself or count on experienced friends/net research to help guide you.


OK so that’s it, I’ve gone on way too long, but my job keeps me pretty busy nowadays so I find it easier to compose something like this during breaks & post it than have the time too browse the forum(s) as much as I would like too. I just want to say I’m in a pretty good groove healthwise & pleased as punch with the results these days & I owe it all to this WOL.

I really hope for comment/additions to these 4 tips from all of you

[msanjelpie]

MIND SET:

If I'm going to do this right, and I'm committed to giving this my ALL, then the phrase 'I can't' will not be in my vocabulary... This isn't something I'm 'going to try' I'm going to DO this, and do it right, I owe it to myself and my life as a future diabetic/heart attack victim to do what I can now to change my future or lack there-of.

Don’t make excuses... The phrase "I can't do without this" makes me seriously wonder if it is 'can't' or 'won't'... When I hear: “Atkins is too strict… I don’t have time to make all those meals!” or "Aaah, do I haaave to?" No you don't... you don't HAVE to do anything... but I would hope that if you seriously want to get healthy, that you would WANT to...

I think the important thing with doing Atkins isn't hopping on the scale each day to be rewarded or disappointed, I think the mission is to make a commitment to sticking with the program for a specified amount of time irregardless of what happens weight wise in the interim.

Saying to yourself: Gain or lose, I'm going to do this no matter what. In 6 months I'll see where I am physically. That's the only way to know if it is working or not... Sweating the daily stuff just messes with your head and tries to trick you into thinking it isn't working because you can't 'see' any results... You must 'feel' the results... and trust your feelings...

If you have been 'good' and followed the rules* each and every day, kept your numbers where they are supposed to be (Fitday can help with that) then there is no reason for you to not feel proud of yourself and confident that you are on the right track... Your body is redesigning your entire metabolism. Give your body a chance to accomplish this.

You are not going to lose ten lbs in a week... so why even check to see what is going on more often than that?

Make a commitment to follow the diet and the induction rules NO MATTER WHAT - no matter what the scale says, no matter what birthday party comes up, no matter if you get the stomach flu, no matter if you have PMS, no matter what!

You must listen to your body. Banned foods give you an emotional high that you don't want to lose... You need to think of eating as nourishment, not as an emotional crutch... Eat only when hungry, and only from the induction list of foods… You will find another way to get that 'high' when the hi-carb food is gone... and you start to feel and be healthier...


*INDUCTION RULES:

Stay as close to 65% fat / 30% protein / 5% carbs per day as you can Use http://www.dietfacts.com and http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/Index.html - to help verify those percentages.

Do not exceed 20 grams of carbs in one day (I have found that those that don't play around with (net carbs) during induction usually have a good weight loss... Save the (net carb foods) for after induction...

Take a multi-vitamin with potassium, chromium and magnesium. (Senior or Silver multi vitamins often have less milligrams and are easier to digest)

No caffeine. (If you can't stay awake without caffeine, then your body is telling you that you need more sleep...)

HOW LONG IT TAKES:

The hard part is giving your body the time it needs to be able to accomplish this transition all on its own... without your mind getting in the way and botching everything up... It's hard to stand there and say to the mind that wants to cheat: - "I'm not going to LET YOU WIN!" when deep down, you want it to win...

To have a newborn baby takes 9 months... The most important time in an embryo's development - you don't even know what's going on inside of your body... It's only much later that you get to 'see' the results... however, long before then you can 'feel' that something wondrous is occurring...

Atkins is wondrous in the same exact way - if you can commit to it fully and stay with it for the long haul... make a promise to yourself that you can! Trust that it will work!

It is upsetting when you aren't losing as much as others have at the same rate... It's not a contest... see who loses the most the fastest... Everyone is different. Some are starting at a very high weight, others only have 15 lbs to lose... Everyone's metabolism is different, each person exercises (or not) at a different rate...

Atkins is about you getting healthy and trying not to push your body into doing something it doesn't want to do... If your body wants to lose the weight slowly... then let it... it's not like you are going anywhere... If it takes 3 months to lose it all, you'll still be here in 3 months... Nothing bad is going to happen because you didn't lose it all in 2...

Remember, your body has a different plan about how much weight it can lose and the speed at which it wants to lose it... Getting frustrated with your body is counter-productive. (i.e. I was losing too slowly, so I'm quitting so I can lose even more slowly...) and if you get off the Atkins, I can guarantee you aren't going to be 5 lbs down this time next week...

This month will come and go... think about the years to come - the commitment to your health. Do your best of course, but let your body determine the speed at which it needs to lose in order to stay healthy... You do your part - and your body will do its' part... at its' own pace...

Just throw away that calendar - it's meaningless and self defeating...

Plateaus are the hardest part of Atkins to understand - you have lost lbs - now you are stuck on a plateau... you have to let your body reset itself before you can start to lose again... don't let up, don't give up, you know this is the right way to do it... just keep on chugging... If you are eating exactly the same, and your body lost last week, then it will lose again when it feels like it...

For those at 20 carbs per day and not losing AT ALL for longer than a month - you may already be at or have exceeded your CCLL and need to lower your carbs 1 per day until you start losing again… Once you lose more weight and increase your activity level, your CCLL will rise again, and you can go back to 20+ carbs per day.

INDIVIDUALITY

Each person has to cater Atkins to work for them… If you don’t follow the rules you will not lose weight, however, within those rules are areas where each person can do their best to get as close to the ideal as possible. (i.e. 2 cups of vegs instead of 3 etc.)

For me – it’s that I absolutely can not stand water... I've tried tap, bottled, poured over ice, in an ice cup, nothing works, it just tastes horrid. Absolutely loathe the taste of water, especially while eating... I want this WOE to remain as close to normal eating as possible so the final transition will be less of a shock. I also want this WOE to be as easy on my body and mind as possible so I can be able to remain on the diet without playing an emotional tug-of-war with my brain over every little drink or morsel of food.

SO, since starting this WOE, I have been drinking caffeine free diet soda. I average about 7 per day. (2 carbs according to fitday) More if I'm gardening... have not noticed any difference as far as not getting enough water… Each person has to come to terms with those things they can do to make Atkins workable for their life.

This doesn't apply to making chocolate candy bars OK... You still have to follow the rules and only eat induction allowed foods...

I hear a lot of complaints about all the cooking and menus etc... There is no need to become a gourmet chef if that is not the way you normally live... you can find the 'easy' foods that work within the plan if that is what it takes to keep you on the diet...


BLOOD SUGAR:

All hypoglycemics know to eat often and not to go too long after getting the signals that you need to eat NOW.

As a hypoglycemic - I was very worried before I started about what would happen. What I wasn't prepared for was that after a week, the stomach cramps and dizzy spells that were a normal part of my life before Atkins would completely go away.

It was a really big thing for me to get up out of bed, and NOT eat breakfast for a whole 3 hours... unheard of in the past 5 years... Now, when I feel a hunger pang, (rather than a cramp and nausea) and I ignore it... I can eat dinner 2 hours later with no adverse effects at all!

To me, a person who has been chained to food to stop the hypoglycemic merry go round for years, I am just leaping for joy...!!!

I've been taking my blood sugar daily and it has been steady between 75 and 90, very stable. No more jumps from 70 to 130 and back again...

As long as I stick with this WOE, I won't have that diabetes threat hanging over my head...

CHEATING:

The way most people succeed on Atkins is to not cheat... it's the day in and day out of low carbs that finally breaks down those fat barriers and results in weight loss... During times of temptation, in each of those situations, there is usually the 'right' kind of food to eat, and it's just a matter of stuffing yourself with the good stuff so you don't look at the bad stuff...

There are those who ask 'can't you just go off of it for 1 day and then get back on?' There are lots of people who do that... unfortunately I'm not one of them... I can't cheat... I'm more like an alcoholic, give me some normal food, and that's it... I'm off the diet... Also, completely off for just one day, knocks you right out of ketosis, and it can take 3 to 4 days just to get back to where you w e r e, let alone losing again... Most people who are die-hard 'Atkins fanatics' have learned that going off or 'cheating' as they call it is just totally not worth it in the long haul... When I hear, ‘it’s only 1 little bite’ I think… ok… it’s going to be a couple of days before you get back to where you were, - what a waste of all that past dieting effort.

Never be in a position where you have to put "Cheat Free 1 day" in your signature... THOU SHALT NOT CHEAT...

[Cherie_25]

WOW!!! You guys are so great for posting such long helpful tips!
Basically I cant think of anymore to add at this point. It's been all said :laughing
I do however have a question for you: msanjelpie

You say:

No caffeine. (If you can't stay awake without caffeine, then your body is telling you that you need more sleep...)

That is a good analysis but the truth is many people dont have the time to sleep enough..Ex; I am getting about 4 hours, maybe 5 with school, work and momhood weekdays. It is still a good point although I happen to disagree that caffeine is "bad" but that is another can of worms

What is confusing to me is that you put the importance of no caffeine above drinking lots of water and drink 7 diet soda's per day instead! WOW, my eyes popped open when you said that :laughing
I wonder if you havent given your tastebuds enough time to adjust to drinking water instead of diet soda. I can certainly see how it would be difficult to change from such a sweet flavored drink( I think diet soda is very sweet) . But maybe you could "try harder". I have heard people on this board say they absolutely hate the taste of water in the beginning of their WOE and move on to prefer it over other "refreshments"
-Cherie

[msanjelpie]

Cherie,

Hi.

In regards to the caffeine issue which has many proponents on both sides... Irregardless of how one chooses to live one's life, (i.e. 12 hours of sleep and lazing around all day OR 5 hours of sleep and a life jam packed with activities...) the fact remains that caffeine is masking the body's messages to tell you to sleep... I was only using that scenario in reference to those who absolutely need a cup of coffee in the morning to stay awake at work... AND use that as their excuse for not quitting the caffeine..

Obviously, people use caffeine for many purposes, not just staying awake; increased mental alertness being another...

There are many who do well on this diet and who maintain drinking caffeinated drinks through-out. That's where the individuality of the diet comes in. Because the fact is, that caffeine does not cause weight gain, and it has no carbs. Those who wish to do without it, may feel that there are physical or emotional side effects that go along with the caffeine high.

For me, one of those is increased appetite and the urge to binge. That's why I have chosen to stay away from caffeine. That's the only reason.. Having been a caffeine addict for over half of my life, I would never say it is 'bad' only that I need to be away from it while doing this Atkins thing... because being off of it makes Atkins 'easier' for me. That's why it is one of MY rules... Others will have their own rules for varied reasons...

One of the problems with giving advice as you can tell, is living up to your own advice.

I do put the importance of no caffeine above the water issue. Caffeine as I said causes blood sugar variations, as well as hunger and heart rate fluctuations, blah blah... For a lot of people, it does effect their success with the diet...

Now, there isn't a single person on here who doesn't sing the praises of drinking tons of water... I agree, that water is very important. However, I don't agree that tea, coffee, milk and or soda are not sources of water. Once the liquid gets into the body, it is separated from the other components and used, just like any other water would be. That includes liquid in soup, watermelon etc... The body uses any and all forms of liquid to help extricate the poisons from our system. It could care less where the source of the liquid is coming from...

My point with that being, I've read of several people who have actually QUIT Atkins because they just couldn't stand not having their favorite (no carb) drinks and having to deal with all that water... It's just silly to me to not give the WOE a chance over such an unimportant issue... I just wanted those who have that type of dilemma going on in their heads, to know - that there are many ways to do Atkins, by the book is only one of them... There are probably more people who do their 'own version' of Atkins than there are those who follow it strictly...

Now the whole point of staying away from diet soda is the Aspartame issue. Like caffeine, there are those who claim it is poison and should be avoided. There are those who claim that it causes stalls during the dieting process. I have not found that to be true, as I lose a pretty steady ½lb. a day with the usual 1 week plateau every 10 lbs or so... If like caffeine, Aspartame had a negative impact on me or the success of the diet, (such as blood sugar fluctuations) then I would recommend an alternative, although I have no idea what that would be...

There are those who say that Aspartame should count as 1 gram of carbs per serving... well that's all fine and all, but the truth is that 7 sodas is just 2 carbs... not 7. And the physical fact is that 12 oz of tea or soda is still 12 oz of water + brown stuff and Aspartame. It doesn't become a 'non-water' because it's a different color... that's ridiculous...

I'm hoping that the type of advice that is given on this thread will be honest and useful to many... We can all read the book, let's find out how this WOL works for the average guy who has to squeeze all of these rules into a normal life... I think that would be more helpful to the majority...

I could try harder. Absolutely. I could walk 5 miles a day and I could drink bottled ice water all day long. But if I can't see any difference or change for the time being, then I shrug and do it 'my' way... I can't see losing any faster than I am now, I'm in no great rush, I feel great, I'm rested, moving around easier, so I'll just keep on going, and I hope you will too

[Cherie_25]

Goodpoints!
-Cherie

[Queen_Sheba]

I know what you mean about the water, I was bored very quickly, but I actually like the taste of Evian more so than the other brands (sounds silly i know - but you CAN taste the difference)

Have you ever tried flavoured sparkling water.?

In the UK, Marks and Spencers and boots do a lovely range of flavoured waters - peach, raspberry and cranberry, kiwi and apple...LOADSA flavours and they taste more like soda than water.

Don't know if you can get that sort of thing in America, I'm sure I remember seeing it in a superstore in Florida.?

Go buy some, TRY IT and let me know what you think...

You never know, you might surprise yourself.!!

love
QS

[msanjelpie]

Evian is my favorite water too... I drank it almost exclusively during my second pregnancy as soda gave me major stomach pains...

But now when I try to drink it, the ketosis taste in my mouth, which is constant no matter what I do, makes the water taste horrid...

I checked out the flavored waters last night at the store. 1 of them had 23 grams of carbs, so not all flavored waters are created equal... One I found had 1 gram and was sweetened with artificial sweetner... I realized that it was the same as my soda just without the caramel color... oh well...

I will state something here though... I just hit the 30lb down mark, and I have noticed a change in urination habits. They are now almost non-existant. This is worrisome... I said that 'when it effects me' I would make a change, and it looks like I'm going to have to (gulp) add some water... arty - I don't want to burn out my kidneys...

Come-on everybody... there has to be more advice out there than from just 2 people... Where are all the oldtimers? Let's hear what you've learned, especially if it was the 'hard' way...

Jeannie

[Cherie_25]

I said that 'when it effects me' I would make a change, and it looks like I'm going to have to (gulp) add some water... - I don't want to burn out my kidneys...

<looking around> Does anybody smell Burning kidneys? hehe..
Hey that is soooo great! It's great to increase your water!, that is great!, but as far as not urinating very much...It's average for that to happen when your weight loss slows down. Most people around here will just increase water intake when they slip into a stall to lure the whoosh fairy in.. The lack of pee is just a side effect. 30 pounds was about around the same mark as when I slowed wayyyyyy down and urinated less as well. As long as you are not feeling dehyrdation symptoms, I am sure your kidneys and health are fine. But to be sure, let's drink to that! lol
Goodluck with your flavored waters...I like walgreens brand..It's not carbonated, and they use sucralose(splenda)to sweeten..Do they have a walgreens pharmacy over there?
-Cherie

[thinwithin]

Hey - I am VERY new to Atkins (just started today) -- but I was previously trying to loose weight and did loose 30 lbs. In doing that I had to drink the water ---well, I too hate just plain water....so I either drink flavored "Fruit 2 0" from Sam's (no calories and no carbs) or I fix a HUGE glass of ice water and add a lil lemon juice and splenda (tastes like lemonade). These are just some things that help me and by doing this I only drink water now....which is a BIG change.

[Christie]

You may say that drinking a can of soda is the same as drinking my water. but I do totally have to disagree with you. Water adds nothing to our body except to hydrate it and also to cleanse it . What does soda add to it. oh yes it may hydrate it and cleanse it but what else does it do??? read on and you just may find out. ::::

I found this whild searching the net long ago and can not remember where I got it . rest assured i did not make it up though. :::::


WATER:

1. 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. (Likely applies to half world pop.)

2. In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak that it is often mistaken for hunger.

3. Even MILD dehydration will slow down one's metabolism as much as 3%.

4. One glass of water shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a U-Washington study.

5. Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.

6. Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.

7. A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.

8. Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.

Are you drinking the amount of water you should every day?

COKE:

1. In many states, the highway patrol carries two gallons of Coke in the truck to remove blood from the highway after a car accident.

2. You can put a T-bone steak in a bowl of coke and it will be gone in two days.

3. To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Coca-Cola into the toilet bowl and let the "real thing" sit for one hour, then flush clean. The citric acid in Coke removes stains from vitreous china.

4. To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers: Rub the bumper with a crumpled-up piece of Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil dipped in Coca-Cola.

5. To clean corrosion from car battery terminals: Pour a can of Coca-Cola over the terminals to bubble away the corrosion.

6. To loosen a rusted bolt: Applying a cloth soaked in Coca-Cola to the rusted bolt for several minutes.

7. To bake a moist ham: Empty a can of Coca-Cola into the baking pan, wrap the ham in aluminum foil, and bake. Thirty minutes before the ham is finished, Remove the foil, allowing the drippings to mix with the Coke for a sumptuous brown gravy.

8. To remove grease from clothes: Empty a can of coke into a load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run through a regular cycle. The Coca-Cola will help loosen grease stains. It will also clean road haze from your windshield.

FYI:

1. The active ingredient in Coke is phosphoric acid. Its Ph is 2.8. It will dissolve a nail in about 4 days.

2. To carry Coca-Cola syrup (the concentrate) the commercial truck must use the Hazardous Material place cards reserved for highly corrosive materials.

3. I'm told that the distributors of Coke have been using it to clean the engines of their trucks for about 20 years!