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  #1   ^
Old Wed, Mar-01-06, 21:40
Elizlea's Avatar
Elizlea Elizlea is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 58
 
Plan: Schwarzbein!!
Stats: -/-/- Female 162 cm
BF:unknown
Progress: 1600%
Location: Western Australia
Question weight gain - your experience?

Hello again everybody, sorry to post so much
I've been doing Schwarzbein since January, and have gained quite a bit of weight, for me, (can't fit into my pants, dernnit) though I refuse to get on the scales and see how much exactly because numbers upset me. Anyway I was wondering how many of you gained weight, how long it stayed on and if you lost it?? I guess I just want to be reassured that this IS just me healing, and that it will come off eventually. By the way my adrenals are burned out.

I love this way of living, I hope it actually does work!!

Thanks very much for any replies, this whole thing can get confusing.
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  #2   ^
Old Thu, Mar-02-06, 08:28
santabarb santabarb is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 3,433
 
Plan: Low carb
Stats: 198/179/160 Female 5'4"
BF:
Progress: 50%
Location: California
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Hello from here, Elizlea--
I'm just getting going on Schwarzbein actually. I can't explain the weight gain, but I wonder, are you trying for about 15 carbs a meal? It's a guideline, not a law. I don't put a carb into my mouth until I've begun with a protein. If you start your meal with the carbs part (i.e., piece of toast, then egg) it might stimulate the insulin more than you want.
Those lo-carb candy bars can be a real trap, despite the "no effective carbs."
I saw on another post that you are very fatigued by walking, right? Is anyone helping you with the adrenals? Sounds like an endocrinologist or someone of that ilk might be useful to you at this stage. I walk now, but at one point I could only really do swimming and pool aerobics.
I am so glad not to being trying to do Weight Watchers now. Schwarzbein seems like no deprivation. On WW the low, low fats and small portions and processed foods are so distressing and detrimental. This Schwarzbein method seems quite peaceful (less of a mental battle), by comparison.
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  #3   ^
Old Thu, Mar-02-06, 08:44
Cavendish's Avatar
Cavendish Cavendish is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,095
 
Plan: Anti-Estrogenic Diet/PP
Stats: 198/194/140 Female 5 ft 5 in.
BF:27.9%
Progress: 7%
Location: Seattle
Default

Hello Elizabeth!

I have been meaning to write to you since your first post and haven't quite made it yet...Weight gain is very common in the first stages of SP. According to what I have read, and what others have posted, while you are in your healing phase you may very well gain weight--I know I have in the past, and since I started the program (again) in February, I have gained a couple of pounds. I hope you won't be discouraged by it, I know that it is difficult--I have stopped weighing myself for the same reason, and am trying to concentrate instead on eating well. Welcome to the forums, and to SP!
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  #4   ^
Old Thu, Mar-02-06, 16:22
Elizlea's Avatar
Elizlea Elizlea is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 58
 
Plan: Schwarzbein!!
Stats: -/-/- Female 162 cm
BF:unknown
Progress: 1600%
Location: Western Australia
Smile

Thanls Santabarb and Cavendish!

Santabarb - Well, I read the second book and it said that if you had burned out adrenals, then you should eat 20 grams carbohydrate five times a day. Apparently she went a little less low carb as time went on !
I agree with you about the order you eat food in - i tend to go for the veg fist, then the protein and the carb last, so it doesn't go straight to my bloodstream.
As for the adrenals, I went to an endocrinologist a year ago who did extensive bloodwork and I can't remember if he did the adrenals, but everything was fine on paper. I went to see a naturopath who said I had adrenal burnout, plus I have the symptoms (and I know that in the last couple years I've done all I can to burn out my adrenals - huge stress, dieting, weight watchers, more stress..). But our family doctor told me to start walking, so I have. I lasted half an hour the first day and was ok (yay!! ), then accidentally went for 45 minutes the next day and crashed... so I'm learning my limits.
Gosh I know what you mean about weight watchers. I lasted a year... totally wrecked my health... This is a WAY better way to live.
Good luck on Schwwarzbein to you! I love it as well , and I'm trying not to care if I gain weight, and see it as truly a transition, and what you get for 2 years (at my age) of strict dieting.

Cavendish - Thank goodness other people go through this! I'm not discouraged all the time, but it takes effort to see beyond the weight gain and be glad about all the ways your body is healing. But if other people have gone through this and come out ok, it makes me feel very reassured. Even if no one else had done this I'd stick with Schwarzbein, what is the alternative? I'd never gor back to weight watchers or Atkins after reding her books but that's just me (no offense to those doing Atkins or WW).

Thanks again for the replies
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  #5   ^
Old Fri, Mar-03-06, 09:55
ArticCat's Avatar
ArticCat ArticCat is offline
Organic Lifestyle
Posts: 214
 
Plan: SBP (Organic & Balanced)
Stats: 165/135/130 Female 5'6''
BF:
Progress: 86%
Location: Rocky Mountains
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I have been using the SBP as a guideline for over 3 years now. My weight flucuates about 5-7 lbs depending on what I have been eating or what time of month it is or if I have been sick. I made the same mental change though that a few of you are trying to make and I fully support it. Remember that you are working on getting healthier and healing your body and weightloss will become a side-effect in it's own time. I have been losing about 5 or so lbs a year and am on my last 5 or some. I don't really weigh in anymore because at this point I know I can't count on the number since I have started to weight lift and the number moves naturally. I feel bad for the people that get upset because the scale has gone up 1-2 lbs over night. I held 5 lbs of water weight for a week because I was sick. Focus on changing your habits and then decide if you need to tweak it to lose some weight. It's taken me a lot of patience, but taking it slow and changing my focus to health from weightloss has kept me moving the right direction even if it takes me 5 years to lose 30 lbs. I know I will keep it off because I have changed my lifestyle instead of going on a plan for a few weeks. Keep it up. Focus on some non-weight related goals.
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  #6   ^
Old Fri, Mar-03-06, 09:59
ArticCat's Avatar
ArticCat ArticCat is offline
Organic Lifestyle
Posts: 214
 
Plan: SBP (Organic & Balanced)
Stats: 165/135/130 Female 5'6''
BF:
Progress: 86%
Location: Rocky Mountains
Default

I also found that I tend to "gain" 5-7 lbs and then "lose" 7-8 of them in a few weeks, so it is kind of a two steps forward, one step back thing. If you really want you could track your weight daily for a few months to see if you can see a cycle. I found it to be very informative, but you have to do it for at least 3-4 months before you start to understand the cycles and flows. I would NOT do it if you think it will discourage you to right the numbers down on those days that it goes up. I didn't do this exercise until I was very comfortable with the way I was eating and was feeling confident with my direction and the SBP. The numbers weren't going to change the way I ate or exercised.
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  #7   ^
Old Fri, Mar-03-06, 11:31
santabarb santabarb is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 3,433
 
Plan: Low carb
Stats: 198/179/160 Female 5'4"
BF:
Progress: 50%
Location: California
Default

Great to hear from you all and your combined wisdom. That's what these forums are about, aren't they? Combined wisdom.
I wanted to mention something to each of you, but Elizlea in particular, since she is passing through stressful moments of (hopefully very brief and inconsequential) weight gain.
Here in the US we have a hightech gadget store called Brookstone where they are now carrying body composition monitors. It's a scale by a company called Tanita that not only measures your weight, but water weight, muscle weight, fat weight, bone weight, visceral fat, etc.
Weight loss alone does not offer a clear window for perceiving what is happening. Some people do lose weight, but it's water weight, or muscle mass loss. Obviously what we're really after is a decrease in fat, since it is not active like muscle, besides being unsightly on most people. Rubenesque was cool once--but we're not Dutch ladies in the 17th century, are we?!

Maybe, Elizlea, you could find this gizmo on the internet or at a comparable store in Western Australia. It wasn't cheap (+- $US 100), but I will track the percentages and see if I can get the muscle mass to increase and decrease the fat mass over time.

In any case, you are eating wonderfully delicious and healthy foods in the right ratios and if you were very faithful to Weight Watchers you probably went through a lot of deprivation. What bugged me most about it (apart from the accounting aspect of it) was how fats are so terribly restricted--and I wasn't going to use up my valuable points just for a pat of butter! So, this Schwarzbein Principle is so doable and enjoyable!
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  #8   ^
Old Sat, Mar-04-06, 00:05
santabarb santabarb is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 3,433
 
Plan: Low carb
Stats: 198/179/160 Female 5'4"
BF:
Progress: 50%
Location: California
Default

By the way, have any of you looked at Linda's Low Carb Menus and Recipes? They're brilliant. The site was recommended by meldan111 on the Schwarzbein thread here on the Active Low Carber Forums. No reason to ever be bored with these fabulous cookies, snacks, dinners. It's extremely professionally done--great graphics, very logical, great food. See it at http://users3.ev1.net/~fontlady
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  #9   ^
Old Sat, Mar-04-06, 01:18
Elizlea's Avatar
Elizlea Elizlea is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 58
 
Plan: Schwarzbein!!
Stats: -/-/- Female 162 cm
BF:unknown
Progress: 1600%
Location: Western Australia
Talking Thanks!

Thanks for the help everyone

ArticCat, I soaked up everything you said, thankyou so much. I don't think it would be wise for me to step on the scales right now, it would upset me too much. I know I've gained and I can deal with it without having it in front of my eyes in a number. And in any case, the scale lies! Part of my gain will have been muscle and bone, I hope, not just fat.

Santabarb, thanks for the info about the brookstone gadget, I will look into it. I think part of the reason I'm gaining is BECAUSE I was so religious on weight watchers. I ate NO fat at all. Ok, under a gram in everything, I'll put it that way. And I got pretty thin, and so I kind of guessed that my healing phase would involve weight gain, as I had been so restrictive before and was starting from a small point. Before, all I ate was vegies, beans, no-fat splenda sweetened yogurt and apples. My body is probably piling on allthe cushioning it can in case another WW "famine" happens again
Thanks for the support, it really does help.

You ladies are great!
P.S. I LOVE this way of living, it is so healthy AND yummy, I'm going to stick with it no matter what.

Last edited by Elizlea : Sat, Mar-04-06 at 01:21. Reason: added a sentence
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  #10   ^
Old Mon, Mar-06-06, 09:35
santabarb santabarb is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 3,433
 
Plan: Low carb
Stats: 198/179/160 Female 5'4"
BF:
Progress: 50%
Location: California
Default

Hello, Artic, Cavendish and Elizlea!
This morning I had whole milk cottage cheese, one half slice of sprouted grains toast with butter and half of an orange. The bread is flourless, just made by grinding 7 kinds of sprouts and runs at 16 grams of carb a slice. One half orange is about 7 or 8 grams. I find that I can have more variety of the carbs I like and feel satisfied if I make adjustments in the portion. Do you have any favorite breakfasts (other than the awesome cream cheesy eggs!)?
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  #11   ^
Old Mon, Mar-06-06, 21:55
Elizlea's Avatar
Elizlea Elizlea is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 58
 
Plan: Schwarzbein!!
Stats: -/-/- Female 162 cm
BF:unknown
Progress: 1600%
Location: Western Australia
Default

Well, my fav is eggs scrambled with green onion and capsicum, with veg (leftvers usually, i.e. stir fry, green beans or steamed broccoli) and either brown rice or beans, drizzled in a little olive oil.

Then my FAVOURITE meal of the day is lunch when I have a fantastic salad with:
Lettuce, cucumber, rice, kalamata olices, tomato, sweet onion, shredded carrot, tuna and homemade salad dressing.... unbelievable.

Long live schwarzbein meals!!
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  #12   ^
Old Tue, Mar-07-06, 03:25
Cavendish's Avatar
Cavendish Cavendish is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,095
 
Plan: Anti-Estrogenic Diet/PP
Stats: 198/194/140 Female 5 ft 5 in.
BF:27.9%
Progress: 7%
Location: Seattle
Default Good Morning Everyone!

I had one of my favorite breakfasts this morning. I make what I call "vegetable hash" which is: Onions, sweet peppers, muchrooms, and eggplant all diced quite small, and fried in butter until well done. I have this with eggs cooked in the oven with cream and chives and salt and pepper. Today I added in a couple of sausage patties diced up with the veggies. I didn't add in any extra carbs, because the veggies alone are about 3 cups of vegetables, which would be around 25 grams of carbs. I suppose I didn't really need the eggs as well, I could have just had the veggies with sausage and it would have been fine, but I was extra hungry this morning...

Elizabeth--I'm right there with you about salads for lunch!! Love them--I have salad for lunch almost every day with cucumber, peppers, tomatoes, avocados, olives, carrots and broccoli, etc. I usually add chicken, fish, shrimp or steak for a little protein. There are just so many good things to have with salad! And I love Dr. S's dressing recipes!
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  #13   ^
Old Tue, Mar-07-06, 19:12
santabarb santabarb is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 3,433
 
Plan: Low carb
Stats: 198/179/160 Female 5'4"
BF:
Progress: 50%
Location: California
Default

Hello, Artic, Cavendish and Elizlea (alphabetical order)-
It was good of you to post your "faves." I have copied them for my Schwarzbein cuisine files. We're having cold days now, but it'll soon warm up and I will try your salads.
While you are sleeping in your time zones (I'm west coast USA) I am cooking a dinner of buffalo meat, garlic, onion, diced eggplant and those narrow, young French green beans. Others will have whole wheat pasta. I might have just a few-maybe ten whole wheat penne pasta? I'm so grateful to be able to use olive oil liberally again! It feels like freedom to me!
Are there any sites on the internet you would recommend for ideas? It seems there are many discontinued threads, and not many Schwarzbeiners.
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  #14   ^
Old Tue, Mar-07-06, 22:56
Cavendish's Avatar
Cavendish Cavendish is offline
Senior Member
Posts: 1,095
 
Plan: Anti-Estrogenic Diet/PP
Stats: 198/194/140 Female 5 ft 5 in.
BF:27.9%
Progress: 7%
Location: Seattle
Default

Hello Santabarb! One of the sites I use for recipes (besides Linda's which I love, is Lowcarbluxury.com) They have some very good recipes, with carb counts--not nearly as good as Linda's site, but still very good recipes! Also Karn Barnaby's gourmet site has some wonderful recipes--there is a link to that from the homepage here I believe. She is (I think she still is?) the head chef at the fish house in Stanley Park in Vancouver--(Wonderful place to go, beautiful views, excellent food...I love Vancouver!! It's my favorite city in North America, with the possible exception of San Francisco, Portland, OR, and Seattle. Actually, I just love the Pacific Northwest...Getting a bit homesick atm.)
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  #15   ^
Old Fri, Mar-10-06, 18:47
Elizlea's Avatar
Elizlea Elizlea is offline
Registered Member
Posts: 58
 
Plan: Schwarzbein!!
Stats: -/-/- Female 162 cm
BF:unknown
Progress: 1600%
Location: Western Australia
Talking websites & weight gain

Quote:
Originally Posted by santabarb
Are there any sites on the internet you would recommend for ideas? It seems there are many discontinued threads, and not many Schwarzbeiners.


Other than the schwarzbein website I don't know of any SBP internet resources.

I agree with ArticCat completely!! I was told about the SBP through word of mouth, otherwise I had never heard of it. I think most people who hear about it and don't read the book think it is an ultra low carb diet (if they are on a low fat high carb diet) or another high carb diet (if they are on something like Atkins). If only everyone HAD to read the book!! LOL

Anyway hapy cooking - we bought the recipe books, and they are worth every cent.

BTW, on the weight front I am still gaining I think. So far I've gone from size 8 Australian pant size (size 4 American) to a loose size 14. And My sides are getting folds!! Argh! I look like an accordian! I've never had that before. I'm still trying to keep positive.... don't know what I could be doing wrong (or hopefully I am just healing, won't gain any more and will lose eventually). I'm going to start keeping a journal, to keep closer check. And at least I'm not bright yellow anymore, and I know I'm gaining muscle too. Anyway. I better go start my homework.. no rest for the wicked, right?

Last edited by Elizlea : Fri, Mar-10-06 at 18:54. Reason: added stuff
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