Hello

Since joining the forum I discovered that I had far too few carbs and calories (Carbs: between 3 - 7 and Calories: between 750 and 850) and that it was the possible reason why I was on a 2 month stall.

I increased carbs to between 7 and 12 ... but I am adding a little bit more every day and won't stop until I am at 20g per day. I only started increasing 3 days ago. I increased calories to around 1750 and that is 1000 more than what I used to have. The balance between fat, proteien and carbs are now more or less ...

Fat 69%
Proteien 29%
Carbs 2 - 3 %

I only started to drink more water. Lots more. (And of course now I go to the toilet lots more too.)

BUT ...

I gained 5 pounds in the last three days !! (and no ... it isn't that time of the month, or even close to it.)

My questions:

Shall I go on eating like this (and increase the carbs even more) or shall I go back to increasing carbs, but cut the calories? I have struggled so hard to get it off ... and have been so patient during the stall. I am scared that if I continue with 1750 calories, I will gain even more. It was an experiment to start with, so when do you know something you experimenting with isn't working? Do I continue for a week and maybe gain 10 pounds???????? When I was at 3 - 7 carb and 750 - 850 calories I didn't get rid of any fat for two months, but I didn't gain any either. The moment I started increasing, I gained.

I also started taking L Carnitine 1500g daily (mornings) about 2 weeks ago. That doesn't seem to work either.

Please ... I need some advise.

Rey

Yes you may have gained 5 pounds in three days, but it's 5 pounds of water, not fat.

That is why we go on about keeping carbs and calories up. Calories so your body will not go into starvation mode and carbs so you will learn that it is not a "diet", but a way of life. At low calories and low carbs, do you see this as something you can do for the rest of your life? What will happen when you go into maintenance? Atkins is very adamant about the phases in his program: Induction, OWL and maintenance because this is how his method works best. Without following this, you are into a cycle of yo-yo dieting that is based on restriction, rather than abundance. It's a horrible thing to live in fear of eating and following as per plan with individual tweaking will eliminate that.

Increase your calories with fat and keep increasing low-carb vegetables. Yes, you may gain weight, but this is the effect of starvation, then abundance. Reassure your body that you are not trying to starve it by keeping your carbs and calories at a steady non-starvation level. Stop doing this to yourself, please!

Here are a few links with more information:

Why 10 x calories?

Fat and Keeping Calories Up

More on Fat and Keeping Calories Up

The Wrong Way to do Atkins

Karen

Hi there Rey......

Thought I would share my 2 cents worth too.

In order to gain a pound, one must have eaten 3500 excess calories. I don't think that you actually ate the 17500 excess calories it would have taken to actually gain 5 pounds of fat. Sometimes the simple math can reassure us. I'd recommend that you carry on as you have been. If you read the beginning of my journal, you will see that I too was someone that was afraid to eat enough. Having a history of low fat/low cal dieting sets us up for difficulty in learning to EAT EAT EAT as we need to when LCing. Thanks to the support and help in this forum, I was able to get past that uneasy beginning and have carried on to have the success I'm enjoying today.

Keep at it....LC will work for you too.

Marlaine

Its water retention. Carbs retain water and since your putting in MORE then your bodys ever had (2 months I think you said..) It makes since why you would gain.

Just drink MORE water to even it off and get rid of it. It's not fat.

Thanks to you two very kind ladies I now understand much more about what is going on in the body (I have read and reread the links you sent Karen) and it all makes sense now. :-)

But ... I have two more questions.

1. Can I eat 20 grams of carbs tomorrow ... or do I have to keep adding little by little? Maybe stupid question, but I am not sure because I have been on much less carbs for so long.

2. "Yes, you may gain weight, but this is the effect of starvation, then abundance." ... For how long can this go on before I will stabilize and then start shedding again? I know it differs for every person but would like to hear any thoughts on it.

Thanks very much.
Rey

I think your body will probably be grateful for all the vegetables you are eating, so I would shoot for the 20 carbs right away. It may also help to shake things up a bit.

I can't answer your second question. Your body has to be reassured that you are not playing a trick on it again and will be willing to shed the weight when it knows it's not starving.

Don't despair! Low-carbing is a long learning process. Every time you learn something new and get comfortable with low-carbing as a way of life, you will have less to fear.

Karen

All right ...

So here is how I broke the stall ... but the history first. :-)

11 November 2001:
Started LC
Carbs 3 - 7 g
Calories 750 - 850
Weightloss after first week: 13.2 pounds

11 February 2002 (3 months later)
Weightloss: 48.62 pounds

09 April 2002 (2 Months later)
NO WEIGHTLOSS!!

But I discovered this forum, asked a couple of questions and learned that I didn't eat enough. I pushed up the carbs and calories, gained 5 pounds of water in 3 days, panicked and asked some more questions on the forum. I was told to be patient and that it is water and ...

to answer my own question I asked Karen on April 14 about her her comment ... "Yes, you may gain weight, but this is the effect of starvation, then Abundance."

"For how long can this go on before I will stabilize and then start shedding again?"

It took me one week to break the stall. I now eat
Calories 2400 - 2500 (instead of 750 - 850)
Carbs 21 (instead of 3 - 7)

April 9 - Day 1 on increased carbs and calories: gained 2 pounds of water.
April 10 - Day 2: Gained 2 pounds of water
April 11 - Day 3: Gained 1 pound of water
April 12 - Day 4: Shed 2 pounds of water
April 13 - Day 5: Shed 2 pounds of water
April 14 - Day 6: Shed 1 pounds of water
April 15 - Day 7: Nothing happened
April 16 - Day 8: Nothing happened
April 17 - Day 9: Lost 0.22 pounds of fat after a 2 month stall!!
April 18 - Day 10: Shed 0.44 pounds of fat!!

and yes, it is FAT because ...

Since I started LC (now Atkins), I took regular measurements. I got rid of 18cm around my waist and 4 cm around my hips. This morning I was still the same around my waist, but 2cm down around hips (where I have most fat).

I am so proud that I was so patient during the stall and discovered the forum where I learned about my mistakes.

Thank you Karen, Marlaine, SlimShAdY and Nat. :-)

Rey

See! It works if you work it!

Go fearlessly into the low-carb dawn. Persistence and knowledge pays off.

Congratulations!

Karen