I just got Dr. Westman's booklet, and have started the plan. I have a few questions:

1) He says no "flavored" yogurts, but then also says that yogurt is not a part of the plan. In his video, he says Kroger's Carb Smart is ok. What about high fat Greek Yogurt? Any yogurt ok?

2) He limits leafy vegetables as well as the non-starchy ones. Did I read that right?

3) What about nuts? He doesn't say either way yay or nay.

4) It was written over a year ago. Any updates or changes? Is there a place I can go online to get updated info on his plan?

Anything else I should be aware of? Thanks!

Dr. Westman, is first, a clinical researcher. The pamphlet and program closely follows what Dr Atkins used in his clinic at the time he did the studies on the Atkins diet in early 2000s. It has some extra limits that make it easier to control intake of research subjects. What is written is what worked in those published studies, and he doesn't change this program without a lot of evidence to do. It is identical to what was given to me four years ago. As president of the ASBP, who now teaches other bariatric physicians how to implement a LC diet in a clinical setting, this pamphlet is sold on Amazon to make it easy for other ASBP doctors to obtain multiple copies for their practice. Nuts are not allowed, not because of their carbs or any complicated reason, other than people tend to overeat them. A program could say 2oz.of nuts allowed, but guaranteed people would exceed that, which doesn't fly when you are trying to control variables in a study. Ditto reason for 3 cups veg, 2 salad, 1 cooked. Period. Did I eat more salad than that while his patient at the clinic? Yes, but it was my choice, as any variation off the program was. If I returned in a month and had stopped losing weight, then I would be advised to limit veg again. When you are actually working with a bariatric doctor who is monitoring your progress, you can make the program your own, as Dr Atkins and Jackie Eberstein did too. But the pamphlet has a basic diet that works...and really, no nuts is better

Add: I only used real foods, with a primal bent, e.g. not Duke's mayo but made my own light olive oil mayo. CarbSmart yogurt is disgusting, I used some Greek yogurt, but dairy stalls some people...so keep to those dairy limits as well.

Thank you so much! I am actually happy for the veggie limits. I do love veggies, with butter, but on almost all diets I've tried, I feel compelled to eat more veggies than my stomach wants. Two cups/one cup is just right for me. I also love nuts, and actually learned to keep to 2 oz daily, but I want this plan to work for me, so I'm following it as is.

One more question...(for now!)

There are days when eating in the morning doesn't feel good, though drinking a smoothie is fine. Using a scoop of 100% Whey Protein from Costco, I mix in 1-2 free range eggs, about a cup of raw kale, ¼ cup frozen cucumbers, cartoned coconut or soy milk (0-1 net carb per cup), 2 oz of firm tofu, 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed, cinnamon, and a couple shakes of de arbol pepper powder.

The net carb count altogether comes to about 7. Is whey protein ok as long as i am staying within the carb limits?

I don't mind the carbsmart from Kroger's (Fred Meyer in the Pacific Northwest), but would prefer high fat Greek yogurt. Again, staying within carb limits, can i have the Greek yogurt? How about the tofu?

That's more than one question

If you have no problem with coconut or almond milk, many people use those instead of cream. With the whey protein and Greek yogurt, you enter the gray area of sensitivity to dairy or the Insulinotropic effects of whey especially, http://intensivedietarymanagement.com/insulin-index/ that may stall your weight loss. You would be better without, it is not on this program, but again if you want to try it occasionally, your choice. See if it stops weight loss. Because I believe any and every form of soy is unhealthy*, never asked about soy and never heard him mention those products. No idea about tofu, but the rule is, if it is not on page 4, and now page 5 also, don't eat it. Makes life simple.

*http://www.grassfedgirl.com/10-reas...-sour-on-soy-2/

Previous page posted another talk by Dr. Westman about how to implement the clinic diet. It has been removed from that link and placed on this new YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0...VaA?app=desktop

This talk was at a nutrition conference in California in March. Some in the audience wanted to learn how to teach the program to others. So this is similar to the Class talk, both in content, and really poor production quality! But good information if you want to do this diet as he teaches it at Duke. And the other talks on this channel are good too; good LC info and doctors, same poor quality.

Thank you again. You're a rock star!

There is so much conversation on soy and yogurt. Here's what Volek and Phinney say about Greek yogurt:
"Total carbs in yoghurt may seem high, but much of this was converted to lactic acid[13] which does not raise insulin or interfere with ketosis."

Also an interesting read from Dr. Susan Love about soy:
http://www.dslrf.org/cnr/content.as...9&PID=4&CATID=0

I honestly don't eat enough of either to cause me concern.

The whey protein seems to help me lose weight. The most I use in any one day would be a scoop.

I'll follow your good advice and watch what happens; for the most part, it's pages 4 and 5 for me. I'm down 2 lbs since starting this two days ago.

Again, thank you.

Update: Now down 3 lbs. after 5 days.

I am loving this WOE. It's hard to explain, but I have a simple calmness about me that I've never experienced with any other plan. For instance, I don't feel the need to eat everything on my plate; I don't spend the day keeping track of what I "get" to eat, like 4 oz. of cheese (I may end up having 1-2 oz., but never more. No desire for it! Amazing). I awaken in the morning without desperation. I don't miss fruit or nuts. If I want a sweet after dinner I mix freshly ground flaxseed, cinnamon, nutmeg, and a tablespoon of healthy oil into my Carbmaster yogurt. And at that, maybe every other day or so. The biggest WOW! for me is that I have breakfast with a regular coffee, and use ONLY one tablespoon of heavy whip (Darigold 40%), and end the day with...get this...DECAF coffee with ONLY one tablespoon heavy whip. I am almost never hungry, and when I am, I do not feel desperate. I take my time in the kitchen (which I have now rearranged and organized—miracle of miracles). One more thing...I am quite sure that having to limit my veggies has taken a huge amount of angst off of me. Instead of feeling like I must eat more than I want and stuff them down, I am able to have a few bites of several that I like throughout the day. My fist has become my BMF (best measuring friend).

Anyway, that's my experience so far.

Casey, thank you for that update. Maybe it is all those good fats firing in your brain now? Or removing gluten's opioid effects on the brain that support the sense of calmness? Dr Perlmutter of Grain Brain writes about that (and talks in his PBS special which is back for some city's PBS Fund Raising season now).

But this Duke program just removes many decisions...it is simplicity itself. I started with the New Atkins for New You program using net carbs, and it worked in the beginning, but all that weighing and measuring and calculating 'net' was a pain. After my first appointment with Dr Westman and then using his clinic plan, I just remember it now as life being easier, one measuring cup and a tablespoon.

The thing about soy now, in the US, is that it has been genetically altered to contain the weedkiller, Round-Up.

Also, I've read a lot about how fermented soy, which is how it is done in Asia, has a different effect.

Ketosis happens under 50g. total carbs, not net carbs. The introduction of net carbs to low carb diets has been the bane of many and I, for one, do not find it helpful in the least.

I woke up this morning celebrating my entry into a new decade, and a 4 lb weight loss this week. Best present ever!

I'm doing net carbs and staying at 20, but if I counted total carbs, I still don't go over 30. So far so good. I also seem to be back in ketosis much quicker than I expected when I started the Westman routine last week. I had been doing LCHF for 8 months but lost no weight (nuts and WAY overdoing fats). Took 2 months on the Fast Metabolism Diet with friends who have lost 110 lbs between them on it, but I did not respond well to it. Love Westman!

Happy Birthday, Casey!! Today was my father's birthday, too.

Actually it'd be much easier if fiber were already subtracted from the carb count as it is in the U.K.