Hello,

I have been doing Atkins for 3 weeks now, and am still on induction. It is great as I feel like any previous food addictions are gone.. I used to juust grab some ice cream and stuff my face with it with no control whatsoever....

My new dilema arrived 3 days ago in the form of a box of Splenda... I didnt realize that I was missing sweet food until I purchased that, and now am mixing Splenda with cream cheese or unwhipped whipping cream a couple times a day (the latter tastes just like melted ice cream!)

My question is: How much Splenda are we allowed to have? Is it okay as long as our total carb count for the day including Splenda remains less than 20? My total weight loss has been 12 pounds in 3 weeks (11 pounds lost in the first 2, 1 lost in the third week) Could it be the Splenda that slowed things down, or the extra whipping cream and cream cheese??

Any help would be appreciated.
J

Hi there J......

First let me welcome another Beautiful British Columbian to the forum! It's great to have you here.

I will celebrate my one year anniversary of doing Atkins on September 13...less than a month away. My point is that I have a fair bit of experience under my (8.5" smaller) belt.

Since LCing is about a complete change of eating habits for most of us as well as something we need to undertake for a lifetime, it's more important, I think, to make this fit us well enough that it will be something we can do.

That said, I would recommend that you be careful with the Splenda. Not so much because it will most likely stall you if used in any quantity over about a teaspoon a day, but because if you had a habit of indulging your sweet craving, then you may be out of control in a new way. Too much sweet is still too much, whether it's high or low carb.

My personal goal is to have my eating habits under control for the first time in my life. I have learned that certain foods become a habit with me and I have a voracious hunger for them. It's a lot easier to stay in control if I avoid these foods. Yes, I do sometimes still have an urge for them and when I choose to indulge it, as I did for about a month, with creamcheese mixed with cocoa powder and splenda, then I accept the resulting 'stall' as my payment fot it.

LOL....and you probably just wanted someone to say: Eat as much splenda as you like, it won't hurt! Too bad it's not that simple.

I wish you every success on your LC journey.

Marlaine

Thanks Marlaine,

When I first started reading the posts here a couple weeks ago, I found that I truly enjoyed reading your posts, and therefore it was a welcome surprise to find that you had replied to my first question.

Yes it would have been nice if we were allowed to have as much Splenda type treats as we wanted, but I did have the feeling that we werent really supposed to, which is why I only waited 3 days before asking hehe.

I am commited enough to the Atkins lifestyle that I can control my Splenda intake, although creamcheese, splenda AND cocoa does sound delicious!! (lol) However, Atkins is the only way of eating that I truly feel I can live with permanetly. It just so happens that I love steak and vegetables, and dont feel like I am missing out on anything. I can go to the movies, and just have bottled water instead of the usual popcorn and pop because I just finished a beautiful dinner of rib steak and asparagus. Had I just had some rice and steamed vegetables, I know for a fact (from previous experience) that I would have purchased that popcorn and pop without even thinking twice about it.


Anyways, Thanks Again,
J

J......

My pleasure.

Keep an eye on the Canada forum cuz that's where you'll find information about LC get togethers we have here. Karen and Ruth and a few other regulars, get together with pot lucks, dinners and coffee clatches, from time to time. It's a great way to keep inspired to stay with the LC WOE and be with folks who condone the way we eat!

Marlaine

According to the book, 2 or 3 packets of Splenda are what Dr. A reccomends. The reason is that the packets have some carbs in them due to the filler used to give the splenda bulk.

Stuff sweetened with splenda (soda, syrup etc.) are sweetened with the straight stuff and contain no fillers. Therefore they contain no carbs.

Some folks stall with splenda, so be careful. Just take it easy and see how it goes.

Hi there jimmeh

I went to visit you in your journal and discovered that you didn't have one. One of the advantages of having a journal is that it gives the rest of us around here a place to visit you.

I hope that you find this message and that we hear how it's going with you and LCing. When you come back, please consider starting a journal.

Marlaine

P. 126 "Sucralose is safe, non-calorica and does NOT raise blood sugar."

Sucralose is Splenda.

p. 127 "Note that each packet of sugar substitute contains about one gram of carbohydrate so don't forget to include the amount in your daily totals."

Does anyone know how much is in a packet? It isn't a lot, not even a teaspoon. It pours out of the box more generously, doesn't it?

I agree, to an extent, with what Marlaine wrote about changing our WOE and avoiding foods that stimulate cravings. But I have to say that if it is OK with Atkins, it is ok with me.

If a tiny packet of Splenda and some cream cheese is going to keep me where I want to be. . . more power to it. Splenda does not cause me to experience sweet cravings. My sweet cravings are all in my head, just like when a drug addict's body is clean. . . . they still crave their drug of choice even though it is no longer a physical cravings.

Stalls and the reasons for them are just as individual as a person's DNA.

Often on these forums I see folks stating as irrefutable fact what is, perhaps, merely their opinion; or, in the alternative, a reflection of what is true for them (but not necessarily for others).