Hi everyone!

[ConfusedAndNeedHelp]

Been reading the boards for several days now. It's absolutely fantastic and thank you everyone Right now I am currently on a reg. diet and have lost a good bit in the first 2 weeks, now I'm coasting along with nothing going on except aggrivation.

I haven't started induction yet. I just want to make sure I understand, check and recheck that I understand.

I have a few issues besides being overweight. I don't eat any seafood and vegetables? What the heck are they?

My only outstanding questions I have - is it ok to eat the same thing for several days? Like a hamburger/cheeseburger - is it ok to always have this for lunch? Or do you have to change it up to something different? This is where diets crash and burn for me. I pick foods that I can deal with only to realize later on when I lose nothing that I wasn't supposed to keep eating/rotating the same stuff. How many oz. in a serving for meat? Eggs?

I bought a food scale with grams/oz/pounds that zero out that should help me greatly.

Oh! Another question for the induction phase. I know caffiene is a no-no, but (I know I know) in a really bad pinch, is it half way acceptable to use light cream in decaf coffee?

Also, is diet snapple ok? I know you have to drink water constantly - which is hard because me and water are not friends (hmmm maybe that is why I look the way I do).

But this is it. I'm dedicated and can't wait to get smaller so I can exercise like I used to.


Thank you again. I love this place!

[sillygirl]

Hi Confused, welcome to the board. First off, ditch the Snapples. They are sugar free and all, but also full of chemicals and things. It's much better to have water, or iced tea that you've made yourself. Sugar Free drinks/foods do cause many people to stall in their loss.

You can certainly eat hamburgers all you want, howver, you should try for a varied diet or you will be quickly bored and be tempted to go back to carbs.

You can try www.fitday.com as another wonderful tool for logging your food intake. It will calculate carbs/protein/fat/calories per day for you.

What veggies do you eat? Go over to the induction forum for a list of acceptable veggies. You should eat 2 cups of salad veggie per day, as well as 1 cup of other veggie daily. This is most definitely not a no carb diet, veggies are important. As you progress on the WOE, you will vbe adding even more veggies.

Have you read the 2002 edition of DANDR? This book is a great tool for understanding how this woy of eating (WOE) works.

[sallyseachange]

Hiya Confused and welcome to ADBB. Good to have you here with us.

Silly has given you great advice so I won't repeat that...except to urge you also to get a hold of the book "Dr Atkins New Diet Revolution" 2002 edition. This was the last edition that Dr A wrote entirely before he died... it's the one the board goes by.

Happy losing!

[Tiggerdagibit]

Welcome! You've already gotten some great advice so I'll answer the things that weren't answered previously.

I've always heard that a serving of meat is about the size and thickness of your palm, like for burgers and such. I think it's about 4 oz. but I'm not positive. As for cream.. the book says you are allowed 2-3 tablespoons of heavy or light cream a day; note carb content. You are allowed decaf coffee. Just keep an eye on it because some people have problems with coffee and cream. Many use coffee as a kind of treat instead of a daily drink.

Veggies are a must! Even if you only find a few you like, eat them! It's quite common for people to actually learn to love them. I've always liked them, but there were some that I had never tried. Because of this WOE, I have tried some that I never ate before and now I eat them regularly. Who'da thunk I liked asparagus?! lol

A couple of suggestions to keep you motivated:
~Visit here often. Read and post as much as you can. It's amazing how much that can keep you dedicated.
~Journal. Use fitday.com to track your foods. (Make sure to go to "goals" and tell it to track fiber so you can subtract it.) It also has a place to track exercise and a sort of notepad that you can type into. It's good to note weight/inches loss, feelings, challenges etc. Of course you can also do all this on a paper journal. I log my food and exercise and transfer my daily carbs/fat/protein/calories to paper and write exercise, beverages, and anything else I feel like writing. Journaling helps you if you stumble because you can look back and see what the problem might be. Also, if I know that I have to write that I cheated I'm less likely to do it! lol
~Take your measurements! Sometimes you will lose inches when you're not losing weight on the scale.
~Take a before picture. It's nice to look back on when you've lost some, plus if you don't like the way you look, it's very motivational.. especially if you put it somewhere where you'll see it every day.
~Write a list of reasons why you want to lose weight/be healthier. Think of as many as you can, large or small. It's good to carry it with you so anytime you're tempted to cheat or don't want to exercise, you can remind yourself to do the right thing!

I wish you much success!

[Scooterjam]

Good Morning Confused.....

Great advice these wonderful folks have. Myself, I concur totally with a couple points to focus on...

Water. It is mandatory. You must drink 100oz or more every day. I drink anywhere from 150 to 220 oz a day, faithfully.

Coffee. Be careful. I drank coffee on induction, and I still do. But it is a treat. Not an everyday thing. Never ever use light cream, full heavy cream only, it is less carbs.

Regular Diet. This is not a 'diet' (very foul word here ) this is a way of life. You pretty much have to re-learn things, I'm sure you've done the lo-fat, no-fat, mo-nonense diets as we all have....you must read DANDR to get the full understanding of how the wonderful blueprint Dr Atkins set up for us works.

Diet Drinks. Treat. Once again be careful. I drink no more than 1 Diet Coke with Splenda 2 -3 times a week. It is not recommended, it causes stalls in most people. I am one of the lucky ones. We still recommend the only drink out there ......WATER!!

Variety. The key to success. Look here: http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/index.html you can eat like a Queen and still succeed!

It is so nice to meet you, I hope after reading the forums, you still want to stay with us and go through Induction, I'm sure you'll be happy with your results. Like I said, most importantly, break that 'Diet' mentality and join this wonderful wonderful way of living. I love how that sounds, way of LIVING!!!

Please check out the before and after pics, they are very inspiring. I love going there myself for inspiration if I'm having a rough day!

Thanks for your post, I look forward to hearing more of your success!!

[Oh.2.B.Fit]

Hi Confused
The link Scooter gave you is AWSOME!!! I go there all the time for ideas The other night I made a taco salad with the Taco Seasoning recipe from that site, and it was DELISH!!! I made a bunch of the seasoning so I would have it on hand whenever I need it. I myself still havn't given up my coffee and heavy cream (I tried) with Sugar Free Davinci Vanilla syrup, but I did limit myself to 3-4 a week instead of 2 a day. That helped me because I still let myself have it and don't feel deprived, but you need to do what works for you. I'm still losing, but I would probably lose faster without it. The book has helped me a lot too. Each time I read I find something new. I wish you much luck sweetie. I'm glad you're here
^_^V

[ConfusedAndNeedHelp]

You guys are absolutely fantastic.

I hope I can help newbies when I get experienced enough like you guys/gals.

I tried to use the tracker and couldn't find a plain hamburger without bun would be. Am I searching wrong?


Today is the first day of the rest of my life. So far I had 3 eggs w/butter for breakfast and water.

Is lemon ok or is that considered a fruit?

[julirama723]

You can enter it in as ground beef, and choose the serving size. Most times I enter in individual ingredients so I know I'm not missing or adding something.

Yum, you can't go wrong with eggs! They are a perfect food. And water is something that you will begin to crave.

Lemon is a "special category" food, along with olives, avocado, cream, sour cream, etc. You may have a small amount of lemon juice each day, I believe it's 1 tbsp. You'd have to double-check DANDR for the exact amount. In fact, I always put a lemon slice in my water--I love the taste, and it helps me drink all of my water! Others have also suggested putting cucumber slices in their water to make it taste great.

[ConfusedAndNeedHelp]

Ground beef! ::Smacks head:: Doh! Homer moment of the day.

Thanks!

Gotta try the cucumber. Never thought of that. I think lemon would help me drink my water too.

EDIT

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