hubby needs help ( and more food)...

[fastmouse1]

Hello all... I've been lurking. ;)
My husband just decided to try this WOE, and he is struggling. He has a major sweet tooth, and is used to having a little snickey-snack after meals ( ie. dark chocolate). He doesn't like any artificial sweeteners either. I made him try Stevia and he hated it. The question is: how does a snack immediately following a meal fit in? and can he "save up" for a higher carb snack? I know that it doesn't make much sense, but I promised him I would ask anyhow. He also asked me why Dr. S. doesn't make any distinction for carb. consumption based on gender and weight...My husband can't figure out why I would have , as an active person, a higher allowance of carbs than he would as a "Big Man". I would appreciate any input...THANKS! :roll:

-DDC

[DewTal]

Welcome!

I saw from your profile that you (or rather, your husband?) is on Atkins (or are you on Atkins and your husband's on Schwarzbein... ;) and since I have an Atkins grumbler in the house (i.e., my sister), hopefully I can try to answer some of your questions.

First of all, I can understand the sweet tooth thing. That was really hard for me to give up. The truth is, the longer you go without touching sweets, the easier it gets! I can now enjoy my decaf coffee without sugar (but with cream :thup: ), but it took some getting used to.

There are lots of differences between Atkins and Schwarzbein, one of them being that Schwarzbein is very down on the sweet stuff, period! Except fruit, though again in limited amounts. If your husband really craves the sweet stuff after meals, have him try some kind of fruit, preferably berries as they are lower in sugars (and you get more bang for the buck, so to speak). Alternatively, if he wants to try to get off the sweets, how about trying nuts as an after-meal snack? There's also popcorn, which I believe is 2 or 3 cups per 15 carbs (not sure about this, please check).

Now, all of the above is carby stuff. One of the differences between Atkins and Schwarzbein is that with Schwarzbein you get 15 grams of carby stuff per meal, regardless of your activity level. With Atkins, you must count carbs in everything. Balance is very important in Schwarzbein, so "saving up" carbs isn't really relevant. I suppose you could do that in Atkins, provided you've got enough carbs to save up!

You might try poking around the Internet and these boards for some recipes for some snacks. It'll be hard to find sweet snacks, but maybe playing around with proteins/fats and making them in a snacky way will help.

About the amount of carbs, it actually makes sense that a person who is more active gets more carbs, regardless of whether they are male or female, their weight, etc. The way Schwarzbein explains it, carbs are like fuel: the more active you are, the more fuel you need. In fact, she advocates eating more carbs on days when you know you'll be more active and less on days when you'll be less active. Make sense?

HTH, Tal

[fastmouse1]

Dew,
Thanks for the input. I tried to do Atkins for a couple weeks and I just couldn't do it. I stumbled upon SP, and picked up the book at the library, read it, and decided that this was much more doable than Atkins for me. I really love the freedom that I have with my meals, and that I can have a few more carbs. I feel like it's something that I can do forever. :p
My husband, however, is wondering if he will EVER be able to eat his favorite things. He's doing well, though, and I'm pretty proud of him for sticking to it. I suggested to him about eating nuts as a snack ( that's what i do), and he does eat fruit at breakfast and dinner. He eats about 30 carbs at ea. meal, usually without a snack between breakfast and lunch. I think the biggest prob. for him is while he is at work...he eats out every day. It's almost impossible to figure out what you're eating at a restaurant. I am going to start packing a cooler with lunch and some snacks like nuts and fruit or cheese or hummus...He just has some adapting to do. He hopes to get his cholesterol down with this WOE and also lose a few pounds. I hope it works.
As for me...I am very happy with it, but I do alot of substituting with the menu, as I'm still on the Healing Program. Some of the foods I just don't eat. I have dropped a couple pounds according to the scale ( I know, I know...), but I don't SEE a difference in my weight. I am not in this to lose weight primarily, but to "clean up" my diet. To get rid of the carb. and caffiene addiction ( caffiene-free for over 2 weeks!), and that part of the goal has already been met. It would be nice to lose just those extra pounds on my butt and thighs as a bonus. I feel good, except I think that I might need more sleep than I have been getting. Without that caffiene messing with my sleep at night, I realize that I am tired much earlier than I used to be.
I guess I got off track...thanks again :spin: