Hi Robin!
It sounds like there's a lot of things affecting your current situation. First of all, it is a good thing that you've maintained your weight with your busy schedule. Having a hectic life makes it much more difficult to stay focused, especially if you are eating out a lot. You seem to be mentally ready to tackle losing again, which is important. What you seem to be looking for is what direction to take. I think what is really important is to truly identify what has caused your rut. If it is simply your busy schedule, then recomitting to your Protein Power/Atkins combo is probably the best route to take. If it is b/c you are truly not happy with this WOE, then there are many other options out there. I would ask yourself what it is that you truly want to eat, that will make your eating plan most liveable to you. Obviously, there is NO plan that will allow you to eat whatever you want, whenever you want it. But there are lots of LC variations. Here are a few that come to mind for me:
-Lean for Life:
Positives-allows fruit and/or grains for every meal daily from the start, eat 5-6 times during the day to balance blood sugar, lots of protein, very structured, quick weight loss, maintenance program closely resembles traditional lowfat diet
Negatives-very low calorie and low fat, very structured (some people need this, others need more freedom)
-CAD:
Positives-Helps control cravings, can eat any carb desired during daily reward meal as long as it is balanced with protein and veggies, reward meal can be altered to different times of the day for events such as weddings
Negatives-Only allowed to eat 4 times per day max, very low carb and low fat during all meals except reward meal (very limited in foods allowed during low carb low fat meals), reward meal must be consumed within 1 hour limit and be balanced, slow weight loss
-The Zone:
Positives-No foods are strictly forbidden at any time, eat 3 meals per day plus 2 snacks, very structured
Negatives-Relatively low fat and low calorie, very structured, may experience cravings at such high carb levels
-South Beach:
Positives-Allows reincorporation of healthy carbs in higher quantities and quicker than many other plans, not as structured, limits saturated fats (if you believe this is healthy, you will like this)
Negatives-Lack of structure? Too many carbs allowed? Are saturated fats the enemy?
These are just a few plans that I have read about, but certainly is not an all-inclusive list. Some people really want the fruit and not the fat. If that's the case, I would go with Lean for Life or the Zone. Some can do with the limited carbs and would prefer to eat more fat. Then I would do either Protein Power or Atkins. Let us know what you decide. We are here for you!
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