The OWL Carbohydrate Ladder

[Elleth Faewen]

The OWL Carbohydrate Ladder

As you move from one rung to the next, add carbohydrate foods back into your diet in the order that follows. Adhering to this order tends to minimize blood-sugar surges that could reactivate cravings. You will find that while fat and protein will continue to be the mainstays of your diet, you will eat less of them as you add carbohydrates.

As you choose foods from each rung on the ladder, you should choose most often from foods with a low Atkins Glycemic Ranking, or AGR. Foods with a low AGR will have the least impact on your blood sugar for each rung. The foods listed in each rung of the ladder below are examples of low AGR foods for their rung.

As you hit each rung, you can add up to 5 net carbohydrates from that rung. For each food group you add, you should eat from it no more than three times the first week and monitor your body for changes. You need to give it the entire week as a couple of days may not be enough to know how a food is affecting you. You can eat from daily same food group the second week, and continue to monitor your progress.

You should only skip a rung if you do not plan on eating from it. For example, someone may have dairy allergies, so they may skip the dairy rung #2.

If you do skip a rung, at Atkins Diet Bulletin Board we have found that it is best if you spend the time you normally would have spent for that rung before moving to the next one. This helps to give your body enough time to adjust before giving it the higher AGR foods. For example, if you normally spend three weeks on each rung, and you want to skip alcohol rung#5, then you should spend six weeks at berries rung #4 before proceeding to legumes rung #6. In the same example, if you normally spend two weeks on each rung, then you would only spend four weeks at the berries rung #4 before proceeding to the legumes rung #6.

Your ability to add all the food groups back depends upon your Atkins Carbohydrate Equilibrium, or ACE. For example, someone that does not exercise and has a low ACE would probably not be able to add legumes back during OWL, while someone who is young, works out regularly, and has a high ACE might have no problems climbing to the top.

Once you begin consuming alcohol on rung #5, be sure to count the carbohydrates and monitor your weight loss. Spirits have no carbohydrates, while white wine and red wine have 0.9 and 2.0 carbohydrates respectively. Alcohol will suspend weight loss as you do not burn fat while your body has alcohol to burn. If you find that you are stalled, discontinue your alcohol consumption.

When you get to the last three rungs of the ladder, you are eating foods with the highest AGR. Make sure you do not eat those foods alone. Eat them with foods high in fat and fiber to help minimize their impact on your blood sugar.

With fruits and vegetables, the more color they have, the more nutrition they have. If you have a choice between red grapes and white grapes, choose red. Also, be careful of dried fruit as it concentrates the natural sugar and could potentially make a small piece have as many carbohydrates as the entire fruit.


The OWL Carbohydrate Ladder

1. Vegetables
   More salad and other vegetables on the acceptable foods list
2. Dairy
   Fresh cheeses:
   Cottage cheese
   Farmer’s cheese
   Ricotta cheese
   Pot cheese
   
   Keep portions small for:
   Hard aged cheese
   Cream, heavy and light
   Half and half
   Sour cream
   Low-carb ice cream, yogurt, and milk
   
   
3. Seeds and Nuts
   Macadamias
   Almonds
   Peanuts/Natural Peanut Butter
   Coconut
   Sunflower seeds
   Sesame seeds
   Walnuts
   Pistachios
   
   
4. Berries
   Eat frequently from:
   Strawberries
   Blueberries
   Blackberries
   Raspberries
   
   Eat moderately from higher AGR melons:
   Watermelon
   Honeydew
   Cantaloupe
   
   
5. Wine and other spirits low in carbs
   Spirits
   White Wine
   Red Wine
   Low-carbohydrate Beer
   
   
6. Legumes
   Lentils
   Kidney Beans
   Pinto Beans
   Black Beans
   Hummus
   Chickpeas
   Tofu
   Soybeans
   Soy milk, unsweetened
   
   
7. Fruits other than Berries and Melons
   Plums
   Kiwis
   Peaches
   Apples
   Grapefruit
   Tangerines
   
   
8. Starchy Vegetables
   Keep all portions small
   Carrots
   Green Peas
   Acorn squash
   Butternut squash
   
   Eat rarely:
   Corn
   Potatoes
   Sweet potatoes
   
   
9. Whole Grains
   Keep all portions small and focus on whole, unprocessed grains:
   Old fashioned Oatmeal
   Oat Bran
   Wheat Bran
   Low carb (soy) bread and muffins
   All-bran
   Barley, cooked

I am going to try some tofu this week!!! I have missed it ...seriously....it has been so long!!!! split peas and tofu are the two I have been looking forward to the most...and of course dahl!!! to go with my curry!!!....anyone else on the legume rung???

[2big4mysize]

please know the foods listed in those lists are not the only foods you can. have those are the lowest ranked ones on the AGR scale Dr Atkins created and listed the results of in his Atkins For Life book. the eat sopareingly ones are the ones that should give you the largest blood sugar spike for the foods eatten in a normal portion size.

[Below 30]

on rung 10~~does that include whole wheat bread and/or tortilla wraps?

I am no where near there yet, but on my way!

[not2late]

Originally Posted by Below 30

on rung 10~~does that include whole wheat bread and/or tortilla wraps?

I am no where near there yet, but on my way!

Yes, this includes 5 net carbs of whole grain products. Therefore as long as your tortillas or bread are made with whole wheat, it's okay. Be sure to read the ingredients. They recently changed the whole grain labelling in the US. But the first ingredients should be "whole wheat" or "whole grain rye" or something of that nature. If the first ingredients are "enriched flour" put it back on the shelf.

[2big4mysize]

if yiu look there is a typo the ladder only has 9 steps. grains are rung 9 not 10.

[Laker75]

I have a question about the dairy rung. When it says "low-carb yoghurt", am I correct to assume the high-fat, sugar free varieties would be acceptable? I live in good ol' Canada, and our laws have changed to prevent labeling of products as "low carb", so if I'm looking for something specifically low-carb in a yoghurt, I'm likely to be reading labels and/or SOL on the task.

The only reason I ask is that I'm considering a jump in the rungs, but if I'm not going to be able to include yoghurt (mostly for smoothie, breakfast purposes) in the quantities I need, then I'm not going to bother with it at all. I already know from induction how I handle the cheeses, the creams, etc. And low-carb milk just doesn't sound right to me. Maybe I'm wrong, but I would assume even a whole or homogonized milk would contain a whole heap of carbs from the natural sugars alone? Surely not enough for a serving at this phase of the game?

Anyway, any assistance in this matter would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance. I honestly don't know what I'd do without this place!!!

S.

[not2late]

Read the labels of the product. Whenever I buy yogurt, I buy the plain, whole milk variety. It's cheaper than those "low carb" yogurts and it allows me to flavor it how I like and use it in recipes like cucumber raita (cucumber slices, chopped mint and yogurt) or marinades.

[elsy]

Hi Elleth! I have to go back to this thread a time and again until I get it. The other day Julie and I had a long conversation about cheese. Yes seriously! It had Julies head spinning. Poor thing! Anyway, in Rung 2, you said to keep the hard cheese portions small. How small? In the book it says you can add 5 oz of hard cheese and Julie says she stays with just 1 oz. So let's say I eat a 1/2 cup of cottage cheese everyday for breakfast. How much hard cheese can I add to that for the day?

[not2late]

Originally Posted by elsy

Hi Elleth! I have to go back to this thread a time and again until I get it. The other day Julie and I had a long conversation about cheese. Yes seriously! It had Julies head spinning. Poor thing! Anyway, in Rung 2, you said to keep the hard cheese portions small. How small? In the book it says you can add 5 oz of hard cheese and Julie says she stays with just 1 oz. So let's say I eat a 1/2 cup of cottage cheese everyday for breakfast. How much hard cheese can I add to that for the day?

DAiry and nuts are the high fat foods of the OWL Carb Ladder. Remember, your fat intake stays the same or slightly decreases as you progress through OWL and Pre-Maintenance.

1 ounce of Induction cheese and 1 ounce of nuts is roughly 100 calories. So if you are eating 4 ounces Induction cheese that's already about 400 calories. 5 net carbs of cottage cheese is about 100 calories too. If you eat your 4 ounces of Induction cheese, plus your usual added fat (mayo, salad dressing, butter, etc.) PLUS the 5 net carbs of cottage cheese, your fat percentage will increase---not decrease slightly or stay the same.

So when you add those OWL high fat foods, you need to cut out a serving or a serving and a half of the Induction fats. Therefore, instead of eating 4 ounces of Induction cheese, cut it down to 2 1/2 or 3 1/2 ounces, when you eat your OWL high fat foods.

You might want to read the sticky thread about the fat/protein/carb percentages on OWL too.