New girl

[panam97]

Hi there

Well, here I am again. Post Christmas and once again determined to shed the festive excess. I'm 5'6 and weigh 12 stone!!!! I work out 3 times per week (spin/running). The weight at which I am most comfortable is between 10 and 10 1/2 stone. I have sat steady at around 12 stone for the past 2 years and am determined to shift that stone and a half. I have heard so much about reducing carbs and how better people feel for it. I would appreciate ANY advice. :yum: :yum:

[aj_cohn]

Welcome to the forum panam97. I suggest that you pick a specific LC plan (http://www.lowcarb.ca/atkins-diet-and-low-carb-plans/) to follow, then read the book for that plan (you'll have to look on the Primal Blueprint site (http://primalblueprint.com/) for that diet's description). Otherwise, you'll be reading and getting contradictory suggestions and won't know which ones to pay attention to.

There are also two good posts in the Newbies' Questions section (http://forum.lowcarber.org/forumdisplay.php?f=110) that will save you from making a lot of newcomer mistakes. One bit of information that's not there (yet) is the importance (IMO) of setting a target body fat % rather than a target weight. The BF% statistic should determine your goal weight, not the other way around. Here's a web page (http://www.bmi-calculator.net/body-fat-calculator/body-fat-chart.php) that explains more about why you should set your BF% target first. You can start with this page (http://www.builtlean.com/2010/08/03/ideal-body-fat-percentage-chart/); be sure to look at the age-adjusted chart for your gender.

Next, calculate your current percentage of body fat. The best tests (dunk tank and BodPod) are very accurate (within 1%) and very expensive. Calipers are next best (within 1-2%) but cost about $15 and require practice (and some personal guidance) to use skillfully. All other methods are accurate to within 3-5%. If you have a tape measure, you can use this online body fat % calculator (http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/body-fat-percentage-calculator).

Then, calculate your ideal body weight (http://www.builtlean.com/2010/05/04/ideal-body-weight-formula-how-to-calculate-your-ideal-weight/).

Be prepared to feel under the weather for about 2 weeks. The symptom even has a nickname: induction flu (terminology from the Atkins diet). Your body's adjusting to an abrupt shift in its primary fuel source, and forum members report symptoms of being fuzzy-headed, fatigued, and achy. The most intense part of it lasts 2–3 weeks; full adaptation takes 6–8 weeks. Make sure you're eating enough fat (your new primary fuel) so that your body doesn't think it's starving. Many forum members aim for 65–75% of calories as fat.

Next, be kind to your body during the adaptation/induction period. You're shocking your body, suddenly depriving it of its usual fuel source and forcing it to use another it's not yet fully equipped to do. Reduce exercise to some mild, 30-minute walks a few times/week. During my first time low-carbing, it was about 6 weeks before I felt like working out, and then I had such a rush of energy that you couldn't have stopped me.

Also, due to the large volume of water loss during this time (as the body uses up its major glycogen stores), you're likely to lose a lot of electrolytes in that water:

Calcium
Magnesium
Potassium
Sodium

It would be prudent to supplement all of these during induction/adaptation:

Calcium-Magnesium: buy a good cal-mag pill. I use the Pioneer brand, made from ground cow bones, because it has all the co-factors (e.g., silica and boron) required to assimilate calcium.
Potassium-Sodium: 4-8 oz of regular/low-sodium V8 daily. The regular stuff has 470mg K and 420 mg. Na/cup, and the low-sodium stuff has 819mg. K and 141mg Na/cup. Be aware that V8 has 8g net carbs per 8 oz.


Even after induction, keep an eye on your potassium and magnesium intake; hardly anyone gets enough. The body needs 2mg of potassium/calorie eaten (http://www.krispin.com/potassm.html) daily, and about 400 mg magnesium daily (50% of calcium intake, and 10%-15% of potassium intake). Tools like MY P.L.A.N. on this site enable you to make good estimates about your intake from food.

Dr. Mike Eades has a good post (http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/saturated-fat/tips-tricks-for-starting-or-restarting-low-carb-pt-ii/) about supplements to take when re-starting low-carbing that's useful, too.

After my first six weeks of low-carbing, I've tried to get all my electrolyte minerals from food, because I can never know how much I'm absorbing from a pill.

Lastly, check in and contribute here frequently, even if it's just to start a journal. Because you'll be eating a "strange" diet to most people, you need support (I guarantee that someone will warn you that eating all that fat will give you a heart attack and "all that protein" will explode your kidneys). This forum is a true virtual community, full of knowledge, wisdom, and caring people.

[panam97]

Thanks everyone. Atkins it is!!! Starting today. Fingers crossed.

[Emzi06]

Welcome panam87! This is a great place for support, I'm sure you'll love it here! Good luck on your LC journey :)