i started atkins nutritional approach way back in july...i worked out, followed the diet pretty close...and nothing happened but fatigue...so i started drinking juice to gain the energy to workout. well i'm not great at failure, so i started it again...and without cheating this time! the results? i've not lost a single pound, and i'm starting to feel sick again. i fell off the wagon again yesterday b/c i couldn't take the feeling. it's almost like i'm dying...not just sick...as if i was starving to death, although i'm not really hungry per se. i'm so tired all the time i can't workout, and my head feels heavy and tired. i'm wondering if this has anything to do with insulin or t3 levels? i can't really approach my dr about this b/c she'll just go on and on about how my weight is fine. i put on 10 lbs last summer, and can't seem to get rid of it so that i might fit into my clothes. perhaps this could also be a reason why i'm not losing weight? finally, the really strange thing is that i'm producing ketones!!! i wasn't producing them during the first couple days of the diet...but began and continued everyday thereafter for pretty much the past 2 weeks.

Give us an example of what you eat in a day, that will help us help you. Have your tried using www.fitday.com ? It will get to the nitty gritty of your daily intakes.

With only 10 pounds to loose, you will lose it much more slowly than someone with a good bit of weight to loose. It also could be what you suspected - you body may be "comfy" at your weight.

let's see...a typical day:
morning:
2 or 3 eggs with 1/4 cup chopped green onions and cheddar cheese

afternoon:
grilled chicken breast (not always, but sometimes with about 1 cup salad)

dinner:
hamburger patty with a slice or two of tomato and a leaf or two of lettuce.

i also snack on atkins protein bars (no more than one every couple days) or atkins home-baked cookies. i drink some water (but i'm really not that fond of the stuff), so i drink a lot more perrier - sometimes with lemon. there are also some days where i don't have breakfast, or rather replace lunch with breakfast because i'm not up in time for breakfast, and i don't eat past 8:30 at night, so on those days i'm eating two meals instead of three, but i'll usually grab a meat snack during the day - such as back bacon, sausages, etc. since i sometimes don't eat my 20g of carbs in veggies and i'm a little hungry during the day, i'll grab a handful (small at that) of macadamia or chashew nuts. some days i'll have a cup of tea, with heavy cream or decaffinated coffee. i'm not taking any supplements except vitamin C every few days.

a side note: i'm back to not producing ketones since i've fallen off the wagon...so shouldn't that indicate that i *should* have been losing fat? why else would the ketones be there?

Hi there Angel,

I'd like to make a few points.

Firstly, at 5'8 and 140 pounds you are nowhere near overweight. In fact, you are lovely and slim. So I have to agree with Talon that this is probably the weight where your body feels "comfy" and it will hang onto whatever it can to prevent weight loss.

Secondly, just because you are spilling ketones into your urine does not mean that you are actually burning fat. It can result from simply ingesting dietary fat, dehydration, or alcohol consumption. (Can you tell I think ketostix are a waste of time and money? )

Thirdly, "frankenfoods" such as low carbs bars stall a lot of folk. They contain sugar alcohols, which allegedly are not perceived as carbs by the body. Unfortunately many bodies do in fact perceive them as sugars and hence can stall.

So my suggestion would be to keep low carbing - I think it is by fat the healthiest way to eat.
I would ditch the bars for a while and keep them for occasional use only.
Try to drink more plain water. Perrier does have a little sodium which could be causing a little fluid retention. Try adding a slice of lemon to each glass - that's the only way I can get my SO to drink water!
I think you could well afford to eat more. Have you tried Fitday yet? Remember the 10-12 times your weight in calories guideline is for weight loss - as you really should not lose too much more weight, you can afford to go above that.
You will almost certainly feel much better if you are eating more.
And keep up those vegies! Remember to subtract the fibre from the total count and remember, too, to add lots of butter, oil or mayo to your veg.

All the best to you, matey!

Rosebud

Two things I have noticed.

First, are you getting enough calories? That could be the problem in losing weight if you are not getting enough calories. You can calculate your intake by using www.fitday.com and see if that is the case.

Secondly, I think your carb intake may be a little too low for you to feel well. I think everyone is different, but I would be having the same tired "can't work out" symptoms (plus some) at such a low carb rate. I realize Atkins does not require any carbs, but I couldn't get my carbs that low as you and be able to function, much less work out. Can you think about upping your carbs some to, say, 30g per day, and if it still doesn't help, to 50g per day? According to Protein Power, if you have only a few pounds to lose, 50g carbs per day is what is recommended.

Tomo

thanks for all of your help everyone!

Tomo: I've figured out exactly what you were saying..although i'm not sure if it will help lose weight yet. I've been keeping track of the calories and carbs that i've been eating and discovered that i'm not eating nearly enough calories...and i certainly could use an increase in carbs. in addition, i'm taking supplements. hopefully this will help!

*cheers!*