Newbie From Pa And So Discouraged

[KIMMIFIER]

HI. I'M KIM FROM PA. I HAVE WELL OVER 100LBS TO LOSE AND AM FOLLOWING ATKINS. GREAT SITE!

I SWORE I WAS NOT GOING TO CHIME IN AN INTRODUCE MYSELF HERE AND BE NEGATIVE BUT I GET THE IDEA EVERYONE IS PRETTY SUPPORTIVE HERE AND I COULD USE SOME SUPPORT ABOUT NOW.

I STARTED ATKINS 1/29/03 AND LOST 8LBS THE FIRST 3 DAYS. I AM ASSUMING THAT IS WATER WEIGHT AS WITH ANY FIRST FEW DAYS OF A DIET. THAT SAID, IVE LOST NOTHING SINCE AND IM ON DAY 10. TOTAL STALL.
A TYPICAL DAY FOR ME ON ATKINS LOOKS LIKE THIS:

BREAKFAST
2 EGGS WITH 1 SLICE OF AMERICAN CHEESE
4 SLICES OF BACON

LUNCH
2 SLICES OF TURKEY
2 SLICES OF BACON
2 THIN SLICES OF CHEDDAR CHEESE

SNACK
1 DEVILED EGG
1-2 SLICES OF TURKEY OR OTHER LUNCH MEAT

DINNER
STEAK
1/2 CUP BROCCOLI W/CHEESE OR A SMALL SALAD W/CHEESE

I USUALLY AM VERY FULL AND DO NOT HAVE CRAVINGS. CARBS TOTAL 15-17 ON MOST DAYS. I CAN REACH 20 CARBS BUT I FEEL LIKE IM EATING TOO MUCH WHEN I DO.

I TAKE ATKINS NUTRIPAK VITAMINS AND SPLIT THEM BETWEEN DINNER AND LUNCH.

I DRINK A MINIMUM OF 64OZ OF WATER A DAY. MOST DAYS DOUBLE THAT.

I RIDE A STATIONARY BIKE EVERY DAY FOR 2-30 MINS (4-6 MILES)
I OCCASIONALY DO HAND WEIGHTS WHILE RIDING, MAYBE TWICE A WEEK.

I AM HONESTLY READY TO GIVE UP. THE ONLY THING THAT KEEPS ME GOING IS SEEING HOW LONG SOME OF YOU HAVE BEEN STALLED AND HAVE THE PATIENCE TO STICK WITH IT. THE SUCCESS STORIES ARE AWESOME BUT IF I CANT LOSE WEIGHT FOR 7 DAYS STRAIGHT AND IVE DONE THE BEST I CAN THEN HOW CAN I EVER FEEL LIKE I WILL BE A SUCCESS?

SORRY TO DUMP ON YOU GUYS LIKE THIS. I KNOW IT ISNT MUCH OF AN INTRO. JUST FEELING A LOT DISCOURAGED WITH THE ATKINS PROGRAM RIGHT NOW.

[Lesle]

Veggies?
Hi Kim,
Try not to get TOO discouraged, but I know I do too now and then!
It's impotant to eat about 3 cups of low carb veggies every day. Most people eat a big salad and a 1 cup serving of of LC veggies.
Veggies help keep things moving, too, if you get my drift. :daze:
Also, you might want to consider keeping a journal here. It helps to keep track of what you eat, exercise, mood etc. It's a great tool!
Keep working hard, and post often...you'll do fine!
Lesle

[putali]

Hi Kim....
I agree... you need more veggies! I bet your carbs are nowhere near 20 grams / day. Even adding a salad to your menu will probably help.

Also... stalling on day 10 is totally normal... and not really a stall. Your body is just adjusting to burning fat instead of glucose. I, too, lost 8 pounds the first week... and then only one the second week... and then up and down the same two pounds for two weeks after that! Finally this week I've dropped another 4 pounds or so and am back on a roll. I know it's frustrating, but you've gotta have patience. Those first 8 pounds weren't your imagination... this WOE does work!

Have you measured yourself? One thing that got me through the few weeks of not much movement on the scale was the fact that I was still losing inches.

Good luck and hang in there!

[AmberAA1]

Hi Kim, Don't get discouraged, we all have our good weeks and bad weeks. I don't know if you have been through the forum but they have a stalled link. I leave you the link. Also did you hit the triple digits club yet? They may have some good ideas for you over there. I agree with the above advice, I didn't see much in veggies. Good luck on your LC journey.

This one should have the answer to any low carb question you may have:http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=28939


This one is about stalls, hope these can help you.http://www.lowcarb.ca/tips/tips008.html

[kypraia]

Hi Kim,

Please don't be discouraged!! Losing 8 pounds is a great accomplishment, why are you trying to detract from that?? You should be proud of yourself, honestly. I also lost 8 pounds during the first week or so, and then I stopped losing for about 3 weeks, and then I started again. It takes time for your body to adjust. You've made the decision to lose weight the healthy way, so now you can try to let your body do it the way it needs to do it. I know how frustrating it is, especially at the beginning, and this is the biggest test of your determination. If you can stick it out over the next few weeks, you WILL get the reward of watching your weight steadily decrease in the coming months.

So PLEASE don't give up!!! Don't be so hard on yourself. It didn't take you 2 weeks to gain the weight, so don't expect to lose it all right away either. Giving up, especially when you need to lose 100 pounds to be healthy, is just NOT an option. We are ALL here for you, to offer advice, experience, and encouragement. With support, we can all accomplish our goals.

Start a journal, so we can continue to support you in the future.

Best, Kypraia

[liz175]

Hi Kim,

Welcome to the forum. :wave: I can totally empathize with you about how difficult it is to face the amount of weight you need to lose. I started out over 350 pounds in July (I don't know how much over because my doctor's scale only went up to 350) and I was down to 294 this morning -- still more than you weigh!

I can tell you that my weight loss has gone in spurts. I lose a few pounds, then stop losing for a week or so (and sometimes even gain two or three pounds), and then start losing again. You can't treat it like a race when you weigh almost 300 pounds -- it is inevitably going to be a long process.

I had the advantage of not being able to get weighed for my first two months doing this because I didn't have access to a scale that went over 350. Therefore, I had to take it on faith that this was working. If you are really stressing out about the numbers on the scale, you might try hiding it for a few weeks and then weighing yourself. If you stop lowcarbing, what are you going to do? You've lost some weight and you are not gaining -- I bet that is better than you did on your previous way of eating. Hang in there and you will start losing again.

You also might want to check out the Triple Digits Club, this is the link:

http://forum.lowcarber.org/forumdisplay.php?forumid=49&s=

It's for people with over 100 pounds to lose. You'll find lots of people there who face the same issues you face. Those of us with over 100 pounds to lose definitely have different problems than people who need to lose 20 or 30 pounds. You also might want to read through the journals of some of the people who post in the TDC. You'll see that they go through periods of losing and periods of maintaining their weight or even gaining a little. That is normal.

Have a little patience and see where you are in a month. The people who are successful at this treat it as a long-term change in their eating habits, not as a quick fix.

And do increase the amount of vegetables you are eating. That will help your health as much as losing the weight will help it.

Good luck to you. I'm glad you found us and I hope you stick around.

[macc]

Hi Kim! Glad you've joined us. Now DON"T GIVE UP!!! You are doing great!
I started this the same time my husband did. He exercises a lot more than me, and has lost quicker than me, but we're both losing. I lost quickly at first, then for three weeks didn't lose any weight (and didn't cheat at all); then I started losing again. During the time I didn't lose weight, I did lose inches. SO, be sure you measure yourself, and keep track of your inches. You may be losing more than you think :)
This site is very encouraging. You can confide in us anytime :) :)

macc

[Caroline_T]

I know how depressing it can be to have that much to lose - I was over 310 when I was in my 20's. Setting intermediate goals really helped me, and that's what I'm doing now. I usually make it the next lowest 'important' number. Right now for me that's 225 - then I'll go with 215.

If anyone saw the movie with Jodie Foster called "Contact" - there's a quote in there I always use - the father tells her "Small Steps, Ellie" when giving her advice. I always think of that when I get overwhelmed with a goal like weight loss.

[jude]

Hi Kim,

I didn't notice anyone mentioning Fitday http://www.fitday.com
It's a great site where you can enter your food and find out out many carbs, calories, etc you're eating. The ratio should be in the neighbourhood of Fat 70%, Protein 25% and Carbs 5%. If you're like the rest of us, you'll find you're not eating enough fat.

It would probably help if you stayed away from processed meats like bacon and turkey. And everyone is right in telling you "more veggies!". And, yes, stop weighing yourself every day. That can be so defeating.

The fact that you don't have major carb cravings is a bonus. I'd be willing to bet that one of your problems is overcoming the low fat brainwashing we all had to get past.

You've lost 8 lbs? You say it's water? Who cares! It's the number going down that's important! Congratulations!

judy