Today, I took time to assess my numbers in the #1 Protein Power Book. Since Oct. 2003 I've gained another 10 lbs. I weight in at 190 when I first bought the book five years ago. Throughout that time my total cholesterol has been going up as my good cholesterol has been going down. I now weight 225 pounds and my cholesterol is high enough to be on medication.
My lean body weight is 134.2 . My protein requirement per meal is 29 grams. My ideal body weight is from 168# to 173#. I want to loose 50# and any help or suggestion is more than welcome. I intend to takes this book more seriously this time and it is a matter of staying alive.

Bigshot

Bigshot-You can do it! We'll be here to help cheer you on every step of the way. You made a major step today just posting your plan. You must be very excited to start. Good luck to you

Hi there! Welcome aboard.

I really do believe that PP is a very sensible plan. So have you actually started the plan or not?

Regardless, it might help to post some menus so we can maybe give you a little guidance. Remember that the protein requirement of 29 grams per meal is just the MINIMUM requirement. You can, and probably should, eat more than this.

Let's start from the beginning. I read from your stats and profile that you are male, 5'9" tall, and currently weigh 224. You also mentioned that you have read the Protein Power book. I assume this is the first book. That's great! If you can, get the second book (Protein Power Lifeplan) and read it, too. It doesn't replace the first book, but it goes into further detail on things. This is not to say, however, that the first book isn't good enough on its own. It is.

OK. Back to your stats. I'm obviously not privy to all the measurements and calculations you used to come up with the minimum protein requirement of 29 grams per meal. In the second book, however, it provides an easy-to-use chart based on height and current weight to determine the requirement.

According to the second book, you should be getting a minimum of 40 grams of protein per meal.

When I first read your post, I was thinking to myself that 29 grams per meal is not nearly enough. And I was right! AND, this is the MINIMUM per meal. You can even have more than this.

So, how about you post today's (or tomorrow's, or both!) menus. Be as specific as you can. Don't just say "a cheeseburger," say "a 6-ounce burger topped with a 1-ounce slice of cheese." This will help us help you.

You can do this!

Dear Bawdywench,

You are amazing and you've been through a lot. Nice to see that you can always turn adversities into positive results. I'm proud of you.
In so far as I am concern, I'm at the initial stage and still gathering information. I have made charts where meals will be planned accordingly. At this time I have removed all sugars and and I'm down to maybe two slices of bread per day. I've almost cut out all the coffee and all the beer drinking. I drink a lot of water and I walk about 2 miles a day. I eat fish, vegetable and some fruits but I'm not counting everything yet. I have to implement this program gradually. I have been the french fry and burger type of guy but now this is all changing. I will get the second book of PP and I am confident that I will be better regimented by the 10th of July

Bigshot

Welcome! Being a "super size fries gal" I can relate! One thing that I have really noticed is I really enjoy eating fruits now, they are actually SWEET! I can remember as a kid getting a cup of sugar and rolling my fruit in it to sweeten it up a bit! Most of the time I do not miss the fries ect.. and I feel better when I do not eat those foods! Good luck on your new woe journey!

And you can still enjoy burgers with osolo buns, or lettuce wraps or just on the plate! I use the lc ketchup and with the leftover grilled burgers I have used them in a lc tortilla wrap the next day!

There's LC bread out there, too. Just be choosy. The best I've found is Arnold's brand. Most are made from soy flour and taste "off." The Arnold's tastes like real bread.

You say you want to do it gradually. Everyone is different, but for a lot of people what works best is to dive in Atkins Induction style. That means 2 weeks of no bread or any grains, no sugar, very little artificial sweetener, etc., but adequate protein and veggies and salad. Here are two links (Parts 1 and 2) to the rules for Induction:

http://atkins.com/Archive/2001/12/15-238691.html

http://atkins.com/Archive/2001/12/15-64113.html

What strict Induction will do for you is to rid your body of the remaining carbs it has stored, bump you into ketosis (fat burning), and knock all carb cravings out of the ballpark.

I warn you, the first two to three days will be hell. You'll want bread, sugar, and high-carb stuff all the time. Then one day you'll wake up and all those cravings will be gone. Believe me, it will be worth it.

While their bodies are switching over from carb-burning to fat-burning, some people experience headaches and muscle fatigue. Just take some potassium (as many a six 99mg tablets a day, divided between morning and night). Some people also suffer from some constipation at first and take magnesium (a couple tablets in the morning is usually sufficient).

Anyway, just think about it. I know I recommended the second book, but you just might want to stick with the first book for now. It might be just too much information. Everything you need is in the first book.

There is also another site that might help. It's the site set up by the authors of PP (the Drs. Eades, who are real doctors, by the way). It's www.eatprotein.com. The people over there are very knowledgeable. The only trouble I've found with that board is that it doesn't get a lot of traffic, and typically you get maybe one or two replies to your question, and sometimes you have to wait days for that. The moderators (all extremely knowledgeable) will usually respond to your questions.

As Wendy (?) said in another thread, they tend to go right by the book over there. For some this is good, but others have to tweak things a bit.

When I had the most success with PP, I did it right by the FIRST book. I made up charts to divide the foods as recommended throughout the day. I also made up a quick-reference guide to the foods I tend to eat a lot (can you tell I was a technical writer for more than 20 years!). I've attached the charts I made. You can modify them to increase the protein as I mentioned earlier.

One more thing. You might not want to start out at the lowest level of carbs. The Eades recommend starting at either 30 or 55 carbs per day. They do say that if you're trying to counteract medical problems that you should do the lower level, but it's really up to you. Just remember to spread it out through the day.

OK, so yet one more thing. Are you on any medications we should know about? Blood pressure meds, blood thinners, cholesterol-lowering meds? If so, please read those sections of the book very carefully and please be under medical supervision while doing this plan. The plan is safe, don't get me wrong. A problem can arise, however, because this plan will very quickly correct things like high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels, and if your meds aren't monitored and lowered accordingly, you could get yourself into trouble.

Keep us posted on how you're doing. If you like, jump into the daily "Java Room" thread. We've been referred to as a "sewing circle," but we offer a lot of support, not just for your eating plan, but also for your life. Or stay in separate threads. Your choice. Ask questions and we'll answer.

Good luck!

Attached Files

	Food Chart.doc (40.0 KB, 84 views)
	Carb Chart.doc (41.0 KB, 66 views)

Dear BawdyWench,

Thanyou for being so helpful. I have stayed up late last night gathering information about my diet plan. I will do as you recommend with respect to Atkins Induction. Today, I intend to get myself an ounce scale to measure accurately.
On June 25th of this year, the doctor put me on Crestor 10mg to lower my total cholesterol and to raise my HDL. My numbers have put me in the range of moderately high risk of heart disease. I discontinue taking the med after 3 days because I felt drained of energy. Instead I will work on dieting and exercise program. Oh by the way, I couldn't open the two charts you sent me but I will keep trying. This morning I weight 220 pounds but I usually swing within 5 pounds. Ok It's 9 o'clock and I'm starting Phase 1 Intervention and I will let you know how things are going. Thanks for helping.

Bigshot

Wow - thanks for those attachments, Wenchy. Those are great. Bigshot, they might work if you right-click them, and choose "save as...".

I keep falling into the habit of diligently recording my food in fitday, but not really caring what it's telling me. I get pretty lazy and careless about food. I think it's time for me to re-read PP as a refresher.

I find that whenever I use Fitday, I get too obsessive-compulsive with things. The daily chart seems to do the trick.

Bigshot, last time I got bloodwork my cholesterol had dropped from 242 to 225. It's doable.
Welcome to the thread!
Bawdy, great attachments. You should make them part of the sticky at the forum top.
Elaine

Bigshot - Hey, you can do this. Look at my stats, I was a starch-a-holic and now it doesn't even interest me. I think I've had such a quick weight loss because I do not eat anything but, meats, nuts, dairy, veggies and a little fruit. The only treats I allow myself are low carb ice cream and low carb Russell Stover candy. Ohh, life is sooo much better with this WOL! I'm behind ya!

Congratulation Ewinpa, great news about lower cholesterol. And thakyou Kristine, about the save as advice, I managed to open Wenchy's two attachements. These are really great.
I bought my tiny dieting scale and started the day just fine. I took 1 centrum select multivitamin, 1 600mg slow release potassium tablet. one vitamin e and one chewable vit C. I also take a couple of 1000mg Flaxseed oil capsule.
I drank water so much that I'm floating. Tell me what you think of skim milk. Can I drink it as much as I want.
Here is what I had today.
Breakfast:
1 coffee (no sugar and a touch of skim milk)
2 whole eggs and 2 more without the yolks (20g)
2 oz lean moose meat(14g)
1 toast(12g)
lots of fluid

Lunch
1 oz hard cheese(7g)
2 oz lean meat(14g)
Lots of fluid incl skim milk

Then things went wrong, I went shopping with my wife Sharon and we bought 2 pounds of sweet cherries. The were nice and cold and I must have eaten more that two cups of them. Not until I opened the attachement that I realized I had exceeded my carb for the day.

Dinner
I ate a bowl of good lettuce
2 oz of cheese(14g)
Then I had a hot dog.......bun and all

Will try to do better tomorrow......I weight 219 now

Ditch the skim milk. Use real cream in your coffee. A cup of skim milk has 12 g carbs, all sugars!

You figured out the cherry problem. I'd stick with berries right now. They're in season, they're low in carbs, and packed with antioxidants.

You're doing fine in the getting-enough-protein department... now you have to get those carbs down.

Good luck!

Thanks Kristine, I never realized the carbs in skim milk and true, it is sugar. So out goes the skim milk. I cut down a lot on my coffee from maybe 10 cups a day down to two. I'm loosing weight like crazy from 225 # I am now at 215 Right on this thing is working and I'm very happy. I had the wonderful zucchini pancake breakfast that I found on this site in the food section. My wife just wanted a taste a of it but then she wished I had doubled the recipe. At lunch I had 5 oz of walleye fillets with 4 green onions and l cup of chopped mushroom. I'm getting to be quite a cook. I just can't wait to try all these variety of omelets in the food section. My wife thinks I've gone nuts with this diet. Anyway, I hadn't eaten cheese and eggs much for such a long time because of cholesterol. Same with lean meats but now I just love it. I'm very grateful to you all.

Thanks Kristine, I never realized the carbs in skim milk. True, it is sugar. So out goes the skim milk. I cut down a lot on my coffee from maybe 10 cups a day (large double double)down to two without sugar. I'm loosing weight like crazy from 225 # I am now at 215 already. Right on, this thing is working and I'm very happy. This morning, I had the wonderful zucchini pancake breakfast which I found on this site in the food section. My wife just wanted a taste a of it but then she wished I had doubled the recipe. At lunch I had 5 oz of walleye fillets with 4 green onions and l cup of chopped mushroom slightly fried in butter and olive oil mixture. I'm getting to be quite a cook. I just can't wait to try all these omelets in the food section. My wife thinks I've gone nuts with this diet. Anyway, I had suppress my intake of eggs, lean meat and cheese for so long because of dietary cholesterol that now it feel good to let loose. I'm very grateful to you all.