Glad I found this forum!

[KittieMcG]

I am beginning my LC lifestyle tomorrow morning. I am so glad I found this forum, because sometimes I feel so alone in this journey of weight loss. My husband is slim, children are slim, but mama is FAT! I dont recognize myself anymore. I am so tired of feeling guilty about being fat. I'm tired of this "muffin top" appearing everytime I button up my pants. I'm tired of pulling my shirt down to cover my belly. I'm tired of constantly thinking about what I have or havent eaten in a day.

I've been overweight all my life. With each child, I gained weight. I tried low fat, starving, etc. I was about to give up when I found Atkins. I lost over 30 lbs last year eating LC. It was the only time I've ever been able to loose weight. After 4 months of being on a strict LC WOE and exercising 6 days a week, I began reading about cheat days. Some people said it helped boost weight loss. I thought "hey, eat things I dont normally get to eat and still loose weight, I can do that!" Well, that was the beginning of the end...

I began stalling. After 6 weeks of not loosing a lb, and still working out six days a week...I started slipping. The first thing to go was the exercise. It would be 3-4 days a week, to 1-2 days a week, to not working out for weeks at a time. I slowly stopped exercising all together. With this, my one "cheat day" turned into 2,3,4,...then I totally went off LC. That was back in October 2005. I didnt LC through the holidays, and kept saying I would start over in January. Well, Jan came and went....Feb...March... and here we are in April. I have gained back 15 lbs. I know that if I dont start LCing, I will gain the rest of the weigth back and more!

I need a support group. I need to be accountable to someone, other than myself. I will especially need support during induction.

With the weight gain, I have 70 lbs to reach goal. At this point, I dont have a timeline, I just want to focus on getting started and being persistent. I HAVE TO DO THIS!!!!!

I began walking a few weeks ago, and eating healthier, but I am now ready to buckle down and get this weight off. I'll thank the forum in advance for your help. I know many of you are inspiring me, and you dont even know it.

Gd bless you in your journey,
Kittie

[Paleoanth]

Welcome!

Cheat days don't work for me either. One turns into two which turns into three which turns into a 10 pound regain.

You might want to start a journal and either use the MY PLAN area on the top of the page to track your food intake or get a free account at www.fitday.com

[fluffybear]

And a big..........


WELCOME

[nancyn28]

Welcome to the forum. I'm an all or nothing gal too. One thing that has helped me the last 6 weeks or so is I read Dana Carpender's How I Gave Up my Low Fat Diet and Lost 40 Pounds . She talks about "planned indulgences" She never has a cheat day but plans to indulge a few times a year, it helped my birthday not go from one day to two, to three etc...Good luck and many blessings. We can all get through this together. :agree:

[ardentluma]

Well, now you know that cheat days will not work for you. Listen, I am totally for cheat days. But not until after you have reached your goal and have had a few months of eating on a Atkins for life plan. (Eating at your optimal carb level.)

I know a couple who eats LC (they are both at their goal weights) all week and then whatever they want on the weekends. I know I could not do that. It would bring back my sugar cravings. Wait until you have reached your goals before you begin have the occasional no-no snack. Until then, there are PLENTY of low-carb indulgences that can help you when the cravings are far too high to manage. Low carb cheese cake, cookies made with almond flour... Check out the recipe section. That doesn't mean you can pig out on these either, but the occasional nibble won't cause you to gain either. I also find that eating SF desserts (not store bought cookies, cakes, ect..but homemade.) also keep me fuller and even though they are sweet, they do not cause me to want to eat sugar.

Good luck with your success and don't give up when the stall comes. It comes for almost everyone. I'm patiently, and not eagerly, waiting my turn.

[liddie01]

i eat sf jello with sf whipped cream a lot, it workes well for me, :wave:

[mrstmitch]

Welcome to the forum, Kittie!

I'm in the "no-cheat" club, myself... never really works out for me. Next time you think about cheating, think about this comment that you made in your introduction:

.........I dont recognize myself anymore. I am so tired of feeling guilty about being fat. I'm tired of this "muffin top" appearing everytime I button up my pants. I'm tired of pulling my shirt down to cover my belly. I'm tired of constantly thinking about what I have or havent eaten in a day.

And then embrace that the low carb lifestyle will help you regain all the confidence and joy that you deserve in your life. You have to believe that, as long as you don't give up, you WILL reach your goal someday! AND, you will have a lot of support along the way on the forum.

[peony8702]

[B]ditto...kitty! You are not alone....I am new too, and identify totally with your feelings....I need other people that are living the LC lifestyle....it is the only way for me. I know I have to be CONSISTENT...WHICH IS NOT MY STRONG SUITE...LEFT ALONE WITH MYSELF!