Having a hard time

[bearycute76]

Hello everyone. I have attempted atkins dozens of times. The longest i've lasted has been 4 days. I cant stick to any weight loss plan though. My whole life is consumed with thoughts of how I need to lose weight but I cant seem to pass of food. I am 32 years old. I have 4 children. They are 13, 10, 2 and 1. I am 5ft8. Before getting pregnant with baby number 3, I was about 170. I was pretty comfortable with that weight. At most, I would have like to been about 15 pounds lighter. I had babies 3 and 4 12 months apart. I had to stop working and since have my last baby I have actually gained 15 pounds in the last year. My current weight is 200. I am so uncomfortable and unhappy. I read alot about atkins and its success. I am going to give it another try. Do you think I am destined to fail since I live with a husband and 4 sons who eat pretty much total opposite of atkins??? someone please help. I am so desperate.. And Unhappy.

[chinadoll]

I don't think you are destined to fail just because they eat differently. It does make it more difficult because you are obviously tempted by many things. Success here is pinned to really knowing the program, planning ahead, and keeping your head in this lifestyle.

If you haven't borrowed or bought the book you need to. It is inspiring and it will help keep your head in this WOE. I can't stress enough the importance of planning ahead. You need to always have tuna, eggs, cheese, etc. in the house. And you need to have stuff prepared just in case you come in ravenous and need something NOW! I don't advocate the Atkins shakes, but I keep a couple in the fridge just for such an emergency. They have been there a month and I haven't needed them yet, but the day will come. I know this because the days have come when I wasn't prepared and I end up falling off the wagon for several days thereafter (if not longer).

Finally, you really, really have to be ready to do this for yourself no matter what the hubby says, no matter how bad your mother-in-law will feel if you don't have a bite of the dessert she made, no matter what your friends are ordering when you go out.

And I know with kids it is extra hard, but don't lick the spoon when making things they like. It's not worth it.

Give yourself six months without going astray and I guarantee you will be your old self but better.

[Chicklady]

Hi bearycute Jill gave some great advice.
Have you told your family how you feel? Are they ready to help you?
Ask them to keep their snacks outside the house for a while, until you are comfortable with this WOE. Meals together should be simple....you all eat meat, veggies and salad, and they get a side of starch that you don't.

[Sunny_0ne]

Bearycute, do remember that Dr. Atkins said we are not to let ourselves get hungry. If you get hungry, EAT.... something with protein and fat. That may make it a little easier for you to pass on things the others are eating.

Also, please DO check the recipe section and Linda's Low Carb Recipes so you can make yourself some really good tasting foods.

There are legal recipes for cheesecakes and all kinds of sweet things that can help you pass up the illegal versions that everyone else is eating.

Although it's better to try to get away from sweets so you can get over the addiction to them, it is still a lot better to eat a legal version than succumb to an illegal one.

So make sure you have your refrigerator stocked with deviled eggs, celery with cream cheese, and other things you really like, so when the urge to cheat hits, you have your special alternatives available.

Good luck to you! You CAN do it this time!

[EverLosing]

I know the place you're finding yourself in right now. All of us here have been there...some still are there. I have lived the Atkins lifestyle on more than one occasion. I have found truly this is the bottom line....when not doing what's right for YOU and your body hurts you so bad inside, you'll do whatever it takes to correct that. It's about how bad the burn inside you is. When you realize the ramifications of your inaction and it hurts like h*ll, then you'll be ready....and certainly less tempted to stray.

I am divorced and have a 13 year old son. My house is full of temptations!! Though I will admit, during induction he didn't have a lot of his normal foods in the house until I was sure I could not look at them, not be tempted. He was ok with that and very supportive.

Our carb addiction seems to be much like any other hard core addiction. You have to hit rock bottom. You can't bounce back until you crash. It sounds like you've got the burn inside...now you have to make the choice about what you're going to do with that. Everyone here is awesome and we'll help you in any way we can. Come join us when you're ready!!!

[tfek70]

Bearycute, I have a wife and two kids. My wife is a nursing student who is certain that this WOE is unhealthy and will kill me. I do all of the shopping and cooking at my house. I have no problems cooking "normal" foods for them and "special" foods for me. A lot of the time though, I will cook something from Linda's site and they will all want my food. The cauliflower lasagna is sooo good that I can't tell the difference between hers and "real" lasagna. There are also nights like taco night when we can all eat the same food. There are wonderful low carb high fiber tortillas available. Probably 5 out of 7 nights we are able to eat the same foods for dinner. I love breakfast for dinner night. Cream cheese pancakes and omlettes and bacon.

As far as you not being able to make it past 4 days of induction, that's just tragic. Let's just say that the average life span is 77 years. That's 4004 weeks. Two weeks of your life is 0.00049% of your life. Love yourself enough to devote that much of your life to getting healthy. If you don't love yourself that much, I'm certain your family does. Do it for them. After those two weeks, you will feel better than you ever have, and it all gets easier from there.

T. J.

[SunnySmile501]

The real Atkins "diet" is healthy for the whole family. It's filled with quality protein and fats and oodles of healthy veggies. Very shortly after induction, you start adding back in fruits, nuts and higher carb veggies. In the end you add back in every food group except white flour and sugar, and pure junk food.

Now is the time to start your boys on healthy foods and quit serving them empty calories and sugar filled non-nutrition foods like breakfast cereals. They need whole grain cereals and breads and very little sugar. Kids need a lot of fat for their growing bodies and lots of protein. They need a lot of whole foods like fresh and frozen veggies, fresh and frozen fruits (not fruit juice) and way less junk foods. This is what Atkins is.

Our bodies were not meant to eat the highly processed foods that we have been bombarded with for over a century. Why feed them to our children and then have them spend the rest of their adult life trying to overcome the health problems they cause, like obesity, high blood pressure, heart problems and allergies?

You can start to introduce healthy foods to your whole family as you cook for yourself. You will see behavior problems decrease as you remove the processed, chemical-filled junk foods from their diet.

[theitalianbella]

Hi bearycute, I was reading your post this morning and I thought i had written it. That is completely me. Today I am starting over AGAIN. ON my 4th day I decided to eat again anything and everything. I was going to just keep going to day 5 but I want to finish this the right way. I sometimes ask why can't i just do it. Hey lets start today together. If you need support or want to eat write me vise versa. My direct e-mail is theitalianbella@yahoo.com

[FLdoodette]

Hey, bearycute! The first week of Atkins is the toughest, while your body is adjusting. And I live with a total carbhead. But it can be done!

What really helps is moral support and you'll find lots of that - plus great tips - at ADBB. So check in here often ... whenever you feel you're in for a slip, run to your computer and log on. Help is just a keyboard away!

Hang in there, hon.

[bearycute76]

Thanks everyone! I woke up this morning and was ready to eat whatever but read all the replys and it gave me a whole new attitude. Im ready to lose and get my life back. i will keep you updated.