Started OWL this weekend

[enlightened23]

Hi Everyone,

After a very rough 3 week induction, I've started OWL, and am feeling a lot better. I'd like to take you through my process, and mention what I've recently added since on OWL, to gain your insights.

When I was on induction, My body started rejecting savory foods after 1 week. I couldn't stomach another egg, anymore broccoli, or spinach, all of which are my favorites, for about a week. I had a few salads, but after a while, the chicken in them didn't taste good anymore. I was feeling nauseous at the sheer thought of food. I was eating, but wasn't getting the 20 carbs for about 5 or 6 days. On one occasion, I woke up in the middle of the night and really felt like I was about to faint, so I got an all fruit pop that was 10 carbs and only consumed 10 more that day. I know that wouldn't be Atkins recommended, but is it the same as falling off the wagon?

Thereafter I forced myself to eat things that wouldn't cause me to be nauseous like tuna salad and egg salad, and celery, which faired pretty well for me during the last week of induction. I also had some hot wings that were not fried in any batter (not that I know any that are).

I have been suffering from severe chapped lip for over 2 weeks now, and I read somewhere that this is related to Ketosis, so any tips you may have on how I might resolve this, is certainly welcome and appreciated. I need to find a good multivitamin. Any suggestions?

So now that I've started OWL, I've made a simple lettuce, onion, and boiled egg salad with some olive oil, a little apple cider, and a packet of splenda. It was delicious. So delicious that I fear that maybe I shouldn't have been eating it, but I counted all the carbs and didn't see anything unusual in the ingredients. Do any others just starting OWL eat these kinds of salads?

Also, I had some cabbage (green) stirfry this weekend. I think that cabbage has its own natural sugars in it, so I feel like maybe its higher in carbs, though I've never had more than 1 cup in a single day.

I also made some cheesy broccoli/cauliflower with parmesan and cheddar, and it was quite yummy. Again, didn't eat more than 1 cup in a single day, but it definitely hits the spot.

I also had a few strawberries (4 or 5) with some whipped cream.

I essentially skipped over the nut and dairy rungs, because I eat foods from these groups sparingly and in very small amounts (ex. my cheesy broccoli/cauliflower doesn't have more cheese in it than induction amounts) and I have some (5 or 10 individual) sunflower seeds in case I need something crunchy, maybe once a week.

Is this all over the place?

Thanks

[not2late]

You should be taking a multivitamin according to Dr. Atkins.

I wish you had posted your Induction problems earlier because it seems like you weren't eating enough carbs and/or not drinking enough water. The lack of wter could explain your chapped lips. Ketosis is a natural diuretic, which is why Dr. Atkins recommended we drink a minimum of 64 fluid ounces of water daily.

Based on what you've written about your OWL, you're not doing it correctly. During OWL, you add food in stages. So rung 1 is 5 net carbs of any Induction veggie. That is added in addition to what your usual Induction menu. You stay on Rung 1 for a minimum of 1 week. Then you move to Rung 2, adding 5 net carbs of Rung 2 foods to your Rung 1 menu and staying on it for a minimum of 1 week.

From what you've written you have added a salad (Rung 1) and strawberries (Rung 4) during your first week of OWL.

Don't worry. Just ditch the strawberries for the rest of this week. And next week, start Rung 1.

[enlightened23]

Thank you for this information.

The thing about my induction issues, is that I drank plenty of water. Not only was I thirsty but I was trying to keep my lips moist, so I was constantly drinking.

I'll ditch the strawberries for the rest of the week. Thanks for the heads up. Can I substitute sugar free jello?


Also, in general, I've having trouble with the adding carbs part. Since I've kicked the carbo loading in the weeks of induction, my body doesn't get hungry enough to consume more than 20-25 carbs. So since Friday, I'm still consuming 20 carbs. Is this a problem? Can I expect to get hungrier?

[not2late]

Originally Posted by enlightened23

Thank you for this information.

The thing about my induction issues, is that I drank plenty of water. Not only was I thirsty but I was trying to keep my lips moist, so I was constantly drinking.

I'll ditch the strawberries for the rest of the week. Thanks for the heads up. Can I substitute sugar free jello?


Also, in general, I've having trouble with the adding carbs part. Since I've kicked the carbo loading in the weeks of induction, my body doesn't get hungry enough to consume more than 20-25 carbs. So since Friday, I'm still consuming 20 carbs. Is this a problem? Can I expect to get hungrier?

Post your menu, including the amounts of the foods you are eating, please.

[enlightened23]

No problem.

Today, I had a cup of salad (romaine) , with one boiled egg white, with olive oil and apple cider vinegar (maybe just over a tablespoon of the mixture--equal parts)

a little under 4 ounces of boneless pork rib, that was topped with about a teaspoon of onions and peppers.

1/2 cup of cauliflower/broccoli mixture with about 1 or 2 ounces of cheese (cheddar and parmesan split equally).

And I'm done for the rest of the day.

---

Tomorrow, I'm planning to have some vodka sauce with chicken over zucchini (green and yellow). The vodka sauce is 6 net carbs per 1/2 cup (and no hidden carbs). I'll have about 1/2 cup of grilled chicken and about a cup of the zucchini (i'm slicing them up by length to give the shape of spaghetti)

And if I can stomach it, I'll have a cheddar omelette with a couple of slices of bacon for breakfast.

[Elizellen]

Looking at your menus posted it seems you are still eating at induction level and barely getting your 3 cups of veg in. You had one cup plus 1/2 teaspoon of salad veg and 1/2 cup plus 1/2 teaspoon of the 'other' veg.

You need to add 5 net carbs of veg to this - take a look at the OWL thread 'power of 5' to see which veg would mean the least volume if you are having problems eating enough.
I would think adding cooked veg would be the easiest way. Here is the list of what amount of some cooked veggies make 5 net carbs

COOKED:
2 3/4 cups Spinach (from canned)
3 1/2 cups Turnip Greens
1 cup Turnip
1 1/2 cups or 12 medium Asparagus Spears
1 cup Yellow Summer Squash
1 3/4 cups Broccoli (chopped)
2/3 cup Spaghetti Squash
2 3/4 cups Cauliflower (chopped)
3/4 cup Green or Red Peppers
1/2 cup Tomato
1/2 cup Brussels Sprouts
1/4 cup Onions
1 1/2 cups Cabbage

Maybe you could cook up some onions and peppers and have about 1/2 cup of these instead of your teaspoon? I often sautéé sliced peppers in butter to make a sauce or garnish for meats and it doesn't seem that I am eating much 'extra' in bulk as eating them raw.

[Elizellen]

It doesnt look as if you are eating much food at all Are you eating to your appetite or deciding how much you 'ought' to be eating and restricting yourself to that?

[redfoxglove]

I'm with Elizellen, I feel you may not be eating enough food in total. Chapped lips, hmmm, maybe you need to add a good dose of olive oil to your menu. Saute veggies in olive oil, lots of it. Or use olive oil as a vegetable dressing on any veg, not just "cold salad". Be sure to add butter to your food, too. Fats help you maintain your skin and hair. Liberally use olive oil, like 3-6 Tablespoons in your veggie saute. Or like 2-3 tablespoons to dress your veg.