OWL fat/protein/carb percentages

[not2late]

OWL Fat/Protein/Carb percentages

During Induction, we kept our percentages around 65% fat:30% protein:5% carbs. During OWL, we begin to increase our carbs. By the time you reach Maintenance, your fat percentages are around 50%.

So how do we naturally lower our fats during OWL?

First off, protein remains the same, at 30%, throughout the diet. Therefore, we can alter our fat and carb amounts. But, Dr. Atkins says that fat remains the "mainstay" of our diet and as we increase our carbs, our fat percentages decrease naturally. Confused? You aren't alone.

Our fat percentages will decrease naturally provided that they remain the same or slightly lower than the Induction levels.

Here's an example meal of chicken breast, lettuce, mayonnaise.

Using your fitday.com account plug in 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise, 4 ounces chicken, breast, with or without bone, broiled,skin eaten and 1 cup of lettuce, shredded or chopped. The fat % is 69% and the carb is 1%.

Now add 4 net carbs of broccoli (2 cups broccoli NFS) to that. The fat % is 64% and the carb is 5%. The fat percentage decreased and the only thing you changed was the carb grams.

The problem with some OWLers is that they as they increase the carbs, they increase the fat. This is probably the result of the "make sure you eat fat with carbs" rule from Induction. So more fat the better, right? Wrong.

While they might be eating below their CCLL and will have the signs of ketosis, the number of calories will be increased too. Remember fat is a calorie dense food. 1 gram of fat has 9 calories as opposed to 1 gram of carbs, which has 4 calories. So the weight loss stumble might not be carb level related, it might be calorie-related.

Let's look at this with our chicken, lettuce, mayonnaise and broccoli meal.

2 tablespoons of mayo, 4 oz chicken breast, 1 cup of lettuce and 4 net carbs of broccoli have a 433 calories.

What happens if we increase the mayo to 4 tablespoons?
Our fat % is 75%, Our carbs are 4%. But the calories are 631! 2 additional tablespoons added 200 calories to the meal.

What happens if we decrease the mayo to 1 ½ tablespoons? The fat% is now 59% and carb% is 5%. The calories are 384. For this meal, you've 'saved' 49 calories by eating just ½ tablespoon less of the mayo. Depending on your CCLL and your OWL rung, those 49 calories can be spent on another 5 net carbs of OWL food.

So do I count calories too?
Dr. Atkins really depended on the appetite suppression of ketosis to train us to eat only enough food for our bodies to function. If we do that, then the weight loss will proceed (along with the other stuff we have to do like count the carbs, exercise, etc.) But for many of us, we still need to make a conscious effort to eat only enough. So, unless you have your eating under control, you might need to count calories during OWL daily. For the people under control, you might need to spot check yourself once or twice a week to make sure you aren't going overboard.

Okay so I'm looking at my calories, I'm looking at my carbs, and I'm too scared to eat anything.

During Induction, you ate off the list, followed the rules, and life was simple and pleasant. OWL is really the first phase of Atkins where you get practice eating in the real world. Real world eating requires that you balance your meals.

For example, you eat 5 net carbs of cottage cheese this morning, you might want to eat an ounce or two less of the aged cheeses for the rest of the day. Why? Because cheese is a calorie-dense food. If you eat your 5 nets of cottage cheese plus your 4 ounces of cheddar, you're eating about 500 calories worth of cheese alone! Again, you'll be in ketosis, but you might not lose weight because you are eating more calories than what your smaller OWL body can use.

Remember one of the Rules of Induction was to adjust the amount of food you ate as your appetite decreased. When you began your Atkins at 275 pounds, you might have been able to eat 2200 calories and lose weight, but your 180 pound OWL body might not need all those calories. So you will be decreasing your overall calorie intake as you get smaller.

Summary
1. Protein percentages remain the same as Induction level
2. Keep your fats the same or slightly lower than your Induction level.
3. Calories do matter. So begin adjusting your daily calorie intake to suit your energy needs, as you become a smaller person.
4. Balance your meals.

[Mindykins]

based on your guide I am keeping my calories at or slightly above my basal metabolic rate (which decreases as my weight goes down), but is there any guide along the way as to how many fat grams we should aim for in a day?

In induction my average grams were about 100-120 per day. I am aiming for 90 now, but wonder if I'm just pulling a number out of thin air.
At 90 grams my fat % is around 60%, and I am only up to rung 5.

This is a very helpful sticky! Thanks.

[not2late]

Originally Posted by Mindykins

based on your guide I am keeping my calories at or slightly above my basal metabolic rate (which decreases as my weight goes down), but is there any guide along the way as to how many fat grams we should aim for in a day?

In induction my average grams were about 100-120 per day. I am aiming for 90 now, but wonder if I'm just pulling a number out of thin air.
At 90 grams my fat % is around 60%, and I am only up to rung 5.

This is a very helpful sticky! Thanks.

I don't think there is a fat gram guide because everyone has their individual BMR and the fat percentages are based on the percent of fat that contributes to your daily calories.

[Mindykins]

Makes sense. What an eye opener though! I went back through a lot of my old Fitday entries and I have been above even 65% on many occasions. I must have gotten sloppy and now I know how to reign it in.

Thanks SO much Megs!Q!! :hug

[2big4mysize]

Just remember as we add back carbs we don't keep increasing our total foods intake either. those added carbs will allow us to satisfy our hunger sooner during the meal so that meal Megs wrote about have have 1/4th left over and that can become your snack later replacing your higher fat induction snack.

Since we should be feeding only our hunger and not a number our daily cals will fluctuate and we might have 1000 today and 2200 tomorrow. Ideally you would like every meal to be in Atkins balance so you don't get too much protein for breakfast and need to make up on fats later cause that would be like filling your car tank with super octane and running it a while and then adding regular gas, not a efficient way to run the car.

Happy low carbing.

[Mindykins]

Thanks too big! I was over on calories one day and under the next. But I know I was in line with what I was eating. Now I'm not worried!!

[not2late]

And that's totally normal, Mindy. Some days I eat more than others because on some days I'm hungrier than others. Listen to your body....

[Mindykins]

I'm even going to go back to foods I thought triggered weight gain (like cream) and give them another try --with keeping my calories and fat % in line. I may not have a problem with cream, only that it is so calorie dense that it makes me go over my fat intake easily! So if I plan the day properly, I just might be able to eat that food with no weight gain.

This also makes me relax about trying new foods going up the ladder. So many of us fret when trying a new food, thinking, uh-oh, this one caused my weight to jump, when it might just be that we didn't allow for keeping the proper percentages. Now when I add a new food, I will plan the day on Fit Day BEFORE trying the food, to give it an honest trial!

[used2b]

Hi, I have decided to move on to owl as I feel I want to add things to my meals - cauliflower (mashed) to substitute potatoes - and start taking a very small amount of almonds , and as I make my own humus - I can have that with my celery sticks as a 5-6pm treat........ most of my weight fell off my legs and that's just a month plus since I started all this!! So my legs and backside (sorry!!) are looking GREAT....BUT I STILL HAVEN'T LOST WHAT I'D LIKE OFF OF MY MIDDLE PART - WAIST AND BREASTS , UPPER ARMS A BIT BETTER......BUT I KNOW I'VE HAD A LOT OF KETOSIS AS I HAVE THIS WEIRD TASTE IN MY MOUTH, AND LAST NIGHT WAS RATHER NAUSEOUS - HAD ´PLENTY WALKING EXERCISE IN MORNING AND WASN'T EVEN HUNGRY FOR LUNCH , BUT THIS WAS WORRYING ME A BIT AS HUSBAND THINKS IT COULD BE DANGEROUS (ALL THIS FAT-INTAKE - HE SAYS NO ONE KNOWS OF THE LONG-TERM EFFECT) HE PREFERS THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET (IS SPANISH YOU SEE) AND THE FOOD IS GREAT , BUT I GOT UPSET AS HE SEEMED TO BE AGAINST MY DIETING - SAYING IT WAS EXTREME AND LAST NIGHT I HAD AN ATTACK OF"AM I GOING TO DIE?" ANY1 BEEN THRU THAT????? YOU SEE I'VE REALLY HAD A DECREASE IN APPETITE LATELY.........
SO THIS MORNING DECIDED TO ADD PORRAGE WITH CREAM FOR MY BREAKFAST , AND SO OATS HAVE BEEN INTRODUCED AND AS I AM A GREAT FRUIT EATER, NORMALLY, HAD HALF AN APPLE TOO..........NO SUGAR WITH PORRAGE (THAT'S FOR THE ENGLISH, HA HA!!) .........ANY COMMENTS FROM ANY OF YOU, AND DOES ANY1 ELSE GET THAT SUDDEN SWEATING ON FACE FEELING, AND NAUSEA - I JUST GOT CARRIED AWAY AND A BIT FRIGHTENED, ..........

SO AM GOING TO INTRODUCE MY 5GM OF EXTRA CARBS. AND SEE HOW IT GOES.......

BYE FOR NOW - WISH ME LUCK

[Elizellen]

Used2be - I have copied your post into its own thread here http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.c...ad.php?t=28481 (Used2be's post reposted as new thread)
to make it more obvious and hopefully mean more people notice it and give you some input.