5 lbs till goal...My worst cheat week ever
 

I really don't know where to start. I've done so well on Atkins since March. I've lost the weight quickly - about 7 lbs per month. I am now five pounds till goal.

This last week, we found ourselves buying two cakes for an impromptu celebration for some friends. One cake was for a friend who is going away, the other was an anniversary cake for a couple other friends. I didn't think anything of buying the cakes...I didn't even contemplate cheating although cake (with buttercream frosting) was my absolute favorite treat pre-Atkins. I can count on one hand the number of times I've cheated since March and I really didn't think this would be a problem for me.

We had a ton of cake leftover and the next day, for some stupid reason, I had a piece with some low carb icecream. The next day, I had another piece with lc icecream. Two days later, another piece with icecream. When I vowed to myself that I wouldn't have another piece, I scarfed down my lc icecream like there was no tomorrow. I finished the icecream this afternoon, but this evening, I had my fourth piece of cake this week!

This is SO not like me and I don't know why this has happened. I've felt guilty after eating each piece, but somehow the guilt later just disappears momentarily as I'm contemplating another slice. I've never cheated like this and I'm worried that I've done some serious damage to will power and motivation. The scales haven't moved up, but they haven't moved down either. Can I just go on eating the way I did before this big cheat or do I *have* to do induction again?

Disappointed in myself big time...I ate cake and icecream all week!

It is your choice what you do next. You can redo induction or you can return to the number of carbs you were eating (and losing on) before the cheat.

GET RID OF THE CAKE. Something you should have done after you ate the first piece. Take it to work, send it to someone else's work, give it to a neighbor, whatever--just don't keep it in your house talking to you. The big problem with having an addiction to carbs is that they "talk to you."

If the cravings for sweets continues, you will need a clean induction to get rid of them.

You can do this. Don't let this be the beginning of a HC food fest. Whatever happens to your weight, you will get back on track and continue on to goal.

Hey, we've all done it.

My binge turned into a month. The 8 pounds I put on took a lot of hard work to get off. It was a relief to get back to where I was. I remember saying to myself when I got back to my pre-binge weight, 'See, that's what it cost you'.

You may find no change in the scale in a week. Changes are frequently delayed, both ways. You might work your butt off over the next week being good and find the scales still creeping up a bit. You might be lucky and have no change.

The hardest thing is not to continue to fall into the trap that you have laid yourself. Once that cake is gone, there will be the temptation to run down to the store and compulsively buy the best, sweetest thing you can lay your eyes on, go home and eat the lot.

That's what I did. Loved every sugar coated minute of it. And paid for it.

I'll be honest, low-carb still bores me. But it does feels great being able to look at isles of sweet stuff and just pass by without giving it a second. When you get that sugar buzz the cravings can drive you to do wicked things.

Time to get back on the wagon my friend. You will thank yourself.

I've done this to myself time and again... I self-sabotage. I think that, for me, it has been a fear of getting to goal.

Don't kick yoursef over your cheat... just jump right back into your old eating habits and be positive. We're not perfect and we'll all have our cheats - it's simply not worth your time and energy to continue to berate yourself for you slip(s)!

:)
Kiks