Making the change to last forever!

[munchkin]

Morning!

Can you believe I just typed a great introduction post and when I clicked on 'submit' my internet connection died and I lost everything!!! ho hum!

I'm Jayne, starting Atkins for the first time to lose the remaining [stubborn] 18 lbs. Have been doing a liquid based VLCD which I found really difficult - not beacuse of hunger [ketogenic diet] but just missed food and chewing too much!! So I thought I would give atkins a go as it's food with benefit of ketosis (we love the ketosis fairy!).

So anyways, had some egg mayo for brekkie that was yum and planning tuna mayo salad for lunch (ooohh not long to wait now) and was thinking caesar salad for dinner tonight.

I have read the atkins book - love it! But I do still have very some newbie questions that I'm sure you'll be able to answer for me!

*Does the 20g carbs allowance on induction include everything on the accepted food list i.e. meat, fish, eggs, cream, butter and allowable quantities of veg? In other words, if I weigh my salad/veg, and stay within guidelines for cheese/cream, butter or dressings I will not exceed 20g carbs per day?

*On food labels here in the UK we have total carbs & an 'of which sugars' carb total or just a total carbs amount. The book and some posts on here refer to the net carb calculation including fibre and alcohol sugars. If we don't see this information on a food label - do we use the total carbs amount as net carbs?

*My caesar dressing for tonight contains sugar - the book says it's ok as long as there are less than 2 net carbs per tablespoon. If the dressing label shows per 100g, total carbs are 1.5 will I be ok with just a tablespoon of this dressing or should I not have it??

Sorry for the lenghty introduction & questions - just wanna make sure I stick to the rules like glue! Want a really good start to my atkins life so I don't start off with bad habits.

Thanks for reading, looking forward to hearing how everyone is getting on. Best of luck to anyone else just starting out! Let's do it and keep it off this time!!!

x

[*Emma*]

the 20 net gram allowance includes everything - use www.fitday.com to keep on top of this. your veggies will probably take up about 10 net carbs or so, then eggs are one each and theres some in cheese and cream...

I'm in the UK too - whereabouts are you? the sugar you see on our labels are sugars, as in, check the ingredients and it prolly says "sugar" or "dextrose" or something which are not allowed, the only other times i see them is like tinned tomatoes where its natural sugars,

That dressing sounds fine to me - though personally i dont ever have a dressing other than mayo!

Best of luck on your journey!

[munchkin]

Hi Emma,

Thanks for your quick reply - I'll give the dressing a miss and opt for mayo!! Better to be safe than sorry .... ooooohhhh I could make spicy mayo that would be a change!

Thanks for that website I'll take a look.

I'm down south in Reading but originally from Preston!! True northener at heart though, guess it's all my pudding chips peas & gravy that got me into this mess to start with!!! LOL!!

You are looking amazing BTW in your picture . How much you lost, how long you been doing it the atkins way x

[*Emma*]

mmmm pudding n chips! yep probably the same way i got here hehehe!

Ive lost just over 50 pounds this time around ive been on it since March, but i did lose about 20 of those pounds the first time around in 2004! Atkins is the only WOE that works for me and i LOVE it!

[munchkin]

You go girl!!! That's incredible!!

Well, all I can say is you are a true inspiration and I can't wait to start and see the flubber go!!! LOL

[*Emma*]

Thanks! I'll watch you shrink before my eyes!!

[GaynorA]

Hi there Munchkin. Welcome to you. GaynorA from Newquay, Cornwall. Just a suggestion - I found I got a bit saladed out (if you know what I mean), so I used some low carb veg to make stir fry and put loads of beef strips or chicken strips in. That's a great alternative if it's all miz and rainy out and you just feel like eating a plate of something hot.

[munchkin]

ooooohhhhh!! That sounds yummy!! When you say low carb veggies - presumably you mean off the allowable list? Is it also ok to use frozen veg? Or does that alter the carb content?

I'm loving the fitday site .... how easy is that to use!!! Am I right in thinking that I could eat more salad/veg if I left out say eggs and mayo?? As in it's total carbs not to exceed 20 grams per day. The book kinda suggests that you are restricted to the specified quantity but I guess that's because the book is allowing for the carbs you are consuming in eggs, mayo, cheese etc

I love salad & veg and just think that some days I would rather have more and forfeit my eggs, mayo, cheese etc!!

[GaynorA]

Yeah ... veggies off the allowable list. Try sticking some cucumber in your stirfry - sounds strange, but very nice. Frozen is fine - as long as they don't have any kind of batter or marinade or extra stuff included. My best friend with stirfries is cabbage!

[sillygirl]

Hey Munchkin! Welcome to the board. Not to worry about missing your veggies. It's only the fist 2 weeks you must stay at 20 g. After that you will move up the food ladder and guess what? The first rung is even more veggies! good luck to you and enjoy your stay on ADBB!