Can anyone help?? Don't know whats happened!!

[sarahxjane]

Hi there all. I am currently on my 10th day of the Atkins diet. I have not that much to lose but am desperate to lose a certain amount by mid March for a holiday. The first week was brilliant, i lost 8lb, mostly which was water i think. I got into ketosis after about 3 days and stayed there.
Now however on days 9 and 10, i have not changed what i am eating, my carbs are very low indeed, probably much under the 20 a day i am allowed. But my test sticks keep showing that i am not in Ketosis and my weight has stayed the same in the last 2-3 days. Any ideas anyone??

[Kattaway]

Sarah,

Hi! Welcome to the forums. I am still new myself but first, congrats!!!! You lost 8lbs!! I lost 6 myself in induction and have been stalled there. I had lost some weight PRIOR to LC'ing but only 6lbs since starting this WOE.

One thing I noticed is that my sticks are the same way. This may or not may be your problem but I learned that I was leaving the strip in the urine stream for too long always giving me a negative result. Then, I redid one and left it there for 2 seconds and voila...a positive test!! I guess I was washing away everything before??? I dont know!

Katt

[pad]

Hi Sarah,
Make sure you are getting AT LEAST 20g of carbs as if you dont your bosy can go into starvation mode. Also congrats on the weight you have lost it took me 3-4 weeks to loose that much initially :)

Take to weighing yourself ONLY ONCE PER WEEK , as your weight fluctuates day to day due to excess water etc. Also cut out any added salt you are having.

Also do you have a typical days menu , u can post ?

[sam59]

I agree...there is NO good reason to go lower than 20 gr. Your body needs fuel in order to burn fat, carbs lower than 20 will not make you lose faster, the opposite in fact. Make sure you are hitting the target ratios, usually 65% fat, 30% protein and 5% carbs. You can track this easily with Fitday.com. You need to be drinking lots of water....and if you use the stix make sure it's the first morning urine.

With not much to lose, your body will plateau and rest more often than those with lots to lose. Be patient, it will go.


Sam

[pad]

spot on sam :)

[sarahxjane]

Pad,

My usual daily menu consists of:

Breakfast: 2 egg omlate with small amount of cheese and 1 slice of salmon and small dash of double cream.
OR: large peice of smoked haddock. ( not that great first thing!)

Lunch: 9oz of salmon fillet with 3 large asparagus tips and nob of butter. 1 sugar free pot of jelly. ( 0 carb content)

Dinner: 8 oz steak with small portion of brocoli and 2 large asparagus tips.

Snacking through day is a couple of olives with garlic, tiny knob of cheese,.

I drink one 2ltr bottle of water a day.

What do you think?

Thanks!! :thup:

[LUVTRISH]

I dont understand eating below 20 grms of carbohydrates will put you to starvation mode. It wouldn't be starvation mode if you're eating enough proteins and fats right?

Sometimes i eat less than 10 or 20 grms of carbs, but my calories are still the average .

[Karen]

I dont understand eating below 20 grms of carbohydrates will put you to starvation mode. It wouldn't be starvation mode if you're eating enough proteins and fats right? Right. It's the lack of calories not carbohydrates that put you into starvation mode.

Karen

[smhbraces]

have no clue either

[smhbraces]

this website is confusing

[shellslyn]

Right. It's the lack of calories not carbohydrates that put you into starvation mode.

Karen

Absolutely right.

The only problems with keeping your carbs too low is some people feel fatigue(most don't) but the biggest problem is getting your body use to staying under 20 carbs and then causing weightgain problems when you raise your carbs higher. This only happens when you've went extended periods(months and months) with VERY low carbs. Dr Atkins says you can stay on induction until within 15-20 lbs of your goal weight. For many, that's a VERY long time on induction.

As far as you not losing the last couple days and the ketosticks.......toss the ketosticks. They're a waste of money. They've been known to change color when sitting on the cabinet of a very humid bathroom. They will also register an over abundance of dietary fat. Not to mention, not registering ketosis at all for many others.

If you're losing weight, it's not important to even know if you're ever in ketosis. I never did, I never had any of the signs of ketosis except apetite suppression...that can happen from a diet high in protein and fat. All I know is that I lost weight and the weight I lost, I lost on a steady schedule.

So, on to why you haven't lost the last couple days. You have very little to lose and you lost 8 lbs the first week! That's fantastic! Now your body is playing catch-up. You need patience ;) . I NEVER lost poundage everyday or even every other day. I went a week to two weeks with no loss and then would lose 1-4 lbs over a couple days...I averaged 2 lbs a week. You can't force your body to lose any differently then how it's going to lose the weight.

Patience is your best friend.

Make sure you're taking measurements of yourself. There will be many weeks where you will not lose pounds but lose inches. Dr. Atkins defines a stall as 4 weeks with no loss of inches or pounds.

Good Luck to you!