I really need some support

[KitsyKatsy]

I read Protein Power several years ago and got on the low carb diet, lost lots of weight and was also working out so I got pretty healthy. I was back to wearing size 8. I stayed that way for a couple of years, so I know low-carb is healthy and do-able.

After having a couple of foot surgeries, which messed up my leg, which led to arthritis and eventually a hip replacement, I've spent the last three years gaining everything back - and then some!

I've been trying for a few months to get back on the carb wagon, but I'm hitting walls. I seem to go in and out of ketosis, and I don't like cooking so I get bored with my food. I appreciate that Atkins has come out with frozen meals; I don't have a lot of time and they're a lifesaver for lunching at work. But...

Their bars are very sweet, and I think I probably eat too many as morning snacks, snacks on-the-go, and as dessert in the evenings. I need suggestions on alternate sources of snacks. I eat cheese sticks sometimes, or cottage cheese, but they don't have any chewing satisfaction. And I need to come here and read other people's stories and tactics. Everyone around me here, (especially co-workers), eat very unhealthily and bring in things like doughnuts and sausage biscuits to share. Gee, thanks for the heart attack! :p

So, I'm here for a kick-start and some support from other people who want to be healthy again.

[Bonnie OFS]

I eat cheese sticks sometimes, or cottage cheese, but they don't have any chewing satisfaction.

I know what you mean - I miss the crunch of popcorn. I've found that celery has a satisfying crunch and doesn't lead to overeating. Makes my tongue feel funny, tho. ;)

I, too, find the Atkins bars to be a danger zone. It's way too easy to keep munching away.

[LorelaiS]

I wonder if any other kernel type foods can be popped, they'd be tiny but popped flax seeds would be tasty. :D

I love that my store now has hard boiled eggs. And I use pork rinds when I really need some crunch.

[KitsyKatsy]

There is actually someone in my office who has done the low-carb, and she said she ate pork rinds for crunch and taste. Sounds awful but maybe when I tried them before I wasn't on Atkins. Food tastes different once you're not feeding yourself sweets and starches.

Celery won't work; I hate those strings that get caught in your teeth and frequently the celery itself is kind of bitter. Also, I buy it to use as a dipper for peanut butter or hummus, but it seems to droop really quick and I figure if it looks droopy it's probably not crisp. I do have good luck with green bell pepper strips though; the taste goes really well with hummus.

[LilyB]

Cheese chips. Crunchy, salty goodness.

I heat shredded cheddar cheese in the microwave in a silicon cake pan. It will be lacy and crispy and turns brownish.... and it is very tasty. Break into pieces, blot, (or pour the cheese oil off to use for cooking your eggs in) and enjoy.

[Elizellen]

Or put little piles of grated cheese or small cubes of block cheese on your baking sheet or pan a little distance apart so you have lots of individual cheese crisps (chipc in USA)

[Elizellen]

If you are not trying to kill off your sweet tooth (not eating sweet stuff for a couple of weeks really helps if you do want to do that) then you could always make variations of the "muffin in a mug" recipes using little piles of "batter" on a silicon baking sheet or parchment paper or in mini muffin moulds, adding berries, ginger, spices, sugarfree syrup, etc to make a sweet treat.

Here are some I made with blueberries added

http://forum.lowcarber.org/gallery/files/5/2/9/9/4/bluebun4.jpg

[KitsyKatsy]

I like the cheese idea. :yum:

What constitutes the batter for the muffin in a mug? I could control the sweetness on that and maybe wean myself away from my enslavement to Atkins bars :D

[Elizellen]

What constitutes the batter for the muffin in a mug? I could control the sweetness on that and maybe wean myself away from my enslavement to Atkins bars :D
Good idea! :thup:

I think the usual recipe is this
Ingredients

1/4 Cup flaxseed meal
1/2 Teaspoon baking powder
1/2 packet granular sugar substitute (sucralose)
1 Teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 Teaspoon butter, melted (or canola oil)

Directions

Mix the flax meal, baking powder, sugar substitute and cinnamon in a coffee mug or single-serving soufflé dish.
Add the egg and butter (or oil). Mix with dry ingredients.
Microwave 1 minute or more, until firm
Turn out and serve with butter or cream cheese. Or toast before applying spread. Makes 1 serving.

If you don't want to eat that much ground flax at one time the recipe also works with only 2 Tablespoons of it.

You can leave out the sweetener and cinnamon to make a tasty bread roll, cook it in a square container to get a small "loaf" or spread it out thinly on a baking sheet or parchment paper to get a flatbread that you can cut into slices for sandwiches or toast.


In our Bread and Baking forum there are many variations to experiment with.
Here is the Index thread - click on the name of a recipe to see its thread.
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=221144

[slimby30]

I, too, am looking for a crunchy popcorn-like snack, to munch..

I read lots of recipes of "cauliflower"popcorn..

I will try some tonight, mainly will melt some butter, mix with salt, then toss some popcorn-sized florets in the mix, then bake on a sheet..

Flavor variations can happen in the future if the idea is successful :lol:

Good luck, KitsyKatsy, and stick around for lots of support :)

[KDH]

Are you following a plan? You said you did PP years ago, but are you now, or are you just kinda eating low carb stuff and bars and whatever?

After over a decade low carb, with several 20-30lb rise and fall moments, I don't know everything, or anything close to it. But I do know that two things will help. 1) pick a plan and stick to it. Do a CLEAN induction if you chose Atkins (I suggest books he actually wrote himself, but others disagree, it's your choice) do a CLEAN induction. No cheats, no bars, no frankenfoods. Give your body a couple weeks to adjust, or you will keep flailing along without results. 2) educate yourself. It is not enough to know "less carbs is good". If you want to make this a way of life, you need to read everything you can get your hands on, watch lectures on YouTube, listen to Podcasts. Gary Taubes, Tom Naughton, Jimmy Moore, they are all your friends. And there are tons more. The more you know and the more you understand not only WHY this works, but why you gained in the first place. Instead of the "less fuel=less fat" mantra that not only is incorrect, but if not corrected in your mind, can be detrimental to your loss.

I would bet that a lack of mobility had almost nothing to do with your gaining. And that eating carby garbage due to boredom and/or frustration was the main problem. Plus, it's so easy at goal, right? Thinking "well I'm not FAT anymore, I can eat normal stuff!" Best of luck.

And ditch those god-awful bars. If nothing else.

[Nancy LC]

Check out the thread about boredom in my signature.

[newfiemom]

I hate regular pork rinds...they're just gross. But I LOVE the barbeque ones for when I need a crunchy snack.
The bars are bad news, at least for me...They keep me craving something sweet.

[Just Jo]

Are you following a plan? You said you did PP years ago, but are you now, or are you just kinda eating low carb stuff and bars and whatever?

After over a decade low carb, with several 20-30lb rise and fall moments, I don't know everything, or anything close to it. But I do know that two things will help. 1) pick a plan and stick to it. Do a CLEAN induction if you chose Atkins (I suggest books he actually wrote himself, but others disagree, it's your choice) do a CLEAN induction. No cheats, no bars, no frankenfoods. Give your body a couple weeks to adjust, or you will keep flailing along without results. 2) educate yourself. It is not enough to know "less carbs is good". If you want to make this a way of life, you need to read everything you can get your hands on, watch lectures on YouTube, listen to Podcasts. Gary Taubes, Tom Naughton, Jimmy Moore, they are all your friends. And there are tons more. The more you know and the more you understand not only WHY this works, but why you gained in the first place. Instead of the "less fuel=less fat" mantra that not only is incorrect, but if not corrected in your mind, can be detrimental to your loss.

I would bet that a lack of mobility had almost nothing to do with your gaining. And that eating carby garbage due to boredom and/or frustration was the main problem. Plus, it's so easy at goal, right? Thinking "well I'm not FAT anymore, I can eat normal stuff!" Best of luck.

And ditch those god-awful bars. If nothing else.


:thup: :agree: I agree 100% with everything you've said.
I've been there done that (got the t-shirts in size XL to 3X to prove it) about the I'm at goal now I can eat like regular carb-eating people -- gosh I'm such a idiot (or WAS) now I know this is a WOE...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Success is not Final. Failure is not Fatal.
It’s the Courage to Continue that Counts.” Winston Churchill

[Just Jo]

I hate regular pork rinds...they're just gross. But I LOVE the barbeque ones for when I need a crunchy snack.
The bars are bad news, at least for me...They keep me craving something sweet.

I read a post on here some where on the forum, where someone sprayed regular pork rinds with butter flavored cooking spray and sprinkled them with powdered artificial sweetener and cinnamon... sounds interesting!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Success is not Final. Failure is not Fatal.
It’s the Courage to Continue that Counts.” Winston Churchill

[redvelvet]

I know what you went through.
I was in great shape, walked everywhere, worked out every day, swam.
Then a Doc decided to straighten my foot, it was going sideways.

3 years in a wheelchair

Now size 2x

No more, I am counting carbs and this time eating my vegetables and in a few weeks adding fruit.

I would eat a steak for breakfast lunch and dinner, Atkins coconut bar, one a day and cheese, old cheese, or cook and eat a whole roast beef.

No more stops and starts.

I work from home, so I can eat all day and order in for lunch, that is finished with.

I am also doing the tread mill, and I started weight lifting.

Time goes quickly and I want to be healthy.
Last Sat my blood sugar was 30 (coma time Canadian measurement)
This Sat it was 7 and I range between 6 and 8.

I am getting there and always willing to talk.
:wave:

[KitsyKatsy]

thanks for the recipe Eliz; I think I can get the flaxseed meal this week. If not I'll find it on the internet. I like that idea of making it into bread slices.

I also agree with maybe reading Atkins again; I read it long before I read Protein Power so it's very out of my consciousness. I do read online articles, but going back to the primary source of low-carb would probably be helpful. I've been trying to go back to what worked well for me previously, but I do seem to be kind of "flailing around."

I've read something about the paleo-diet, but it doesn't seem to be quite the same thing. A food truck here in town advertises itself as selling only paleo food, but it sells tacos with shells made from arrowroot, which on further investigation I couldn't find as being any better (carb-wise) than flour. Strike the paleo diet :lol:

The hardest thing for me is going to be stopping eating the Atkins bars or making sweet flavored whey powder shakes.

[KitsyKatsy]

You said you were three years in a wheelchair. So can you walk normally now?

I don't need walking aids as in walker or cane but I can't actually walk very far. I can on a treadmill where I have something to hold on to, or in a store where I have the cart to hang on to. I don't go to malls or stores where there are no carts unless it's a quick in and out situation.

I did just start yoga classes again, and swimming, plus some machine-assisted weights (in place of lunges and squats mainly). I think that's where my frustration is coming from; I'm doing something active four days a week and expected at least some results. I work full-time, have grandchildren and errands and other things that take time; I don't really want to add more workouts.

I'm curious to know what you're doing and what rate of success you're having.

[redvelvet]

No I am not walking normally and I never will.

My foot is carved up inside, nerves all cut, and it gets progressively worse.
I have to have a Croc on my foot at all times in the house and even to step into the bathtub.
Outside I have been wearing Crocs also, but if I step on a pebble or a piece of salt, I go right over.

I can wear Alegria Clogs, but they can be heavy, so I am going to try Scetchers and I order Easy Spirt from the states.

When I go to a mall, and I do every day, I work from home so I finish at 3:00 and take a taxi 5 min up the road and walk around (with the cart) for an hour or two. The tread mill at home I can do for 30 min.
I also do weights at home.

After the operation I tried one of those electric carts in the store, I knocked down three aisles, the store crew was running after me picking up stuff while I heard my husband laughing 3 aisles away.

I used to swim laps for two hours straight every morning and I can't swim a stroke, I have a flotation belt, I stopped going two years ago.

I tried the belt on two months ago, it wouldn't fit, so I started to look for a new one, on the weekend I went down the basement and saw it so I tried it again, I went running up stairs yelling it fits, it fits!
My husband looked at me and said "I adjusted it for you when you said it was to small"!

So swimming I will go again.

Diet I use Atkins, and every 2nd or third day I go to the store and buy one Atkins Coconut bar, I am stopping that for a while, I don't lose when I eat the bars, also when I buy the Atkins Choc drinks, I drink them all in the day, so I don't buy them anymore.

We have a low carb store in our area, I don't go there anymore, I tend to want to buy the donuts, the sales clerk tried to push their ice cream last time, I asked him if we could eat the whole container, he said "Oh no, you can only have this much.
I told him I didn't get fat having only that much. Now I order online, not as many impulse buys.

My name is Pat, I live in Ontario, Canada, married, one daughter 31 a teacher and one Ragdoll cat named Bree

Talk to me anytime

[April 2]

I have had great success with using no more than 2 ounces at any one time, Scharffen Berger's bittersweet chocolate, or Lindt's intensely dark chocolate with sea salt. I keep extremely careful control of my blood glucose using food, so I am hyper alert to sugar. Neither of these choices spike my blood glucose (whereas "sugar free" will every time) and they satisfy a great deal due to the deep chocolate flavor and the touch of sugar. Keep in mind that you must like REALLY DARK chocolate. These are not sweet, candy style chocolate bars. Anyway, I hope it helps a bit!

[2thinchix]

I sprinkle pork rinds with vinegar - Since I haven't tasted a Salt and Vinegar potato chip in over a year, I can fool my taste buds into thinking that's what it is ;-)