I joined the group a few weeks ago, but wasn't able to actually get myself started until today. I got scared off a little by being told how brutal the first 2 weeks are, so it took me a little while to work up my courage So far so good - the first day hasn't killed me yet!

Hi there: congrats on your "go" day. You received a lot of good advice on a previous thread in May and you've read the Atkins books so buckle up Dorothy because Kansas is going bye-bye . You are in for a rewarding time of your life if you are truly committed. Keep referring to the books, plan your food, buy those groceries and make this way of eating front and center of your life.
The more weight you have to lose, the quicker it will fall off at the beginning. Eat enough low carb healthy fat foods, eat salt, drink water. Even more important than weight loss is staying on plan. Most peeps here have learned that ON PLAN is more important than the scale. Each and every day.
Last thing, ask yourself if you've had enuf of the insanity of eating crap. Then be grateful each day of eating LCHF that you chose to say no to the insanity and YES to a new way of being that leads to freedom. This way the scale weight is not your only victory. Good luck!!

HI Itso!
Welcome to the BEST place for support, info and encouragement!
Work your plan, and your plan will work!
Best,
jams

Welcome!

You've started! Yeah!

I was so happy to get started because I felt I was getting control of my life. And the first two weeks weren't that difficult for me -- plus I lost over 15 pounds (probably a lot of that was water, but it was awesome). Just drink a lot more water than you think you want, and get in some salt.

Yeah, you started!

Like Kat, it wasn't that difficult for me and I had a similar loss for two weeks. I felt SO much better almost immediately, and that made it easy to really get into this WOE and now, 10 months later, I can't picture eating any other way. You can do it! The key for me was committing myself COMPLETELY--no little cheats or easing into it. I dove in and I think that helped to destroy my cravings right off the bat. Good luck!!

Some people DO have a tough time. I didn't, really. But two things can help, a lot. Drinking plenty of water so you don't get dehydrated as the water starts rushing out of your fat cells, and drinking salty broth.

When that water leaves, it takes a lot of salt with it, and that actually causes a lot of the yuckiness of carb flu.

Replace the salt, and you feel better!

This is gonna be FUN, itso!

Yeah, I'm not really having any of that "carb flu". Just cravings and hunger. And the hunger isn't really hunger because when I look at the stuff I CAN eat I don't really want it. But I've heard that the cravings can be bad for a couple of weeks and you just have to hold on to your willpower until all the carbs are out. Yay. And I was stupid today and forgot to bring my lunch to work. Sigh.
On the note of losing several pounds in that first couple weeks - I'm not going to get on the scale until the end of that induction period, but I'll admit that I'm a little worried that years of yo-yo dieting will have damaged my metabolism so badly that I won't lose much other than water.

Welcome, itsoeasy! GreekRibs is right - eating ON PLAN is better than watching your actual food intake. You will eventually level off and eat less, because you are less hungry, not because you're depriving yourself! This is a way of life, the long haul, in it to win it - there are tons of sayings, and they are all correct. Stick with it and you will love the results: the scale, how your body feels, the energy levels you gain, and overall just how much your whole life feels better. Good luck, and keep us posted

Make sure you are getting lots of FAT, as that helps make you feel full for longer. A lot of newer low carbers eat tons of MEAT but don't know that fat is so satiating. Coconut oil is good if you like it - just start out slow with only a little at a time since it can be hard on the tummy.