I was always the skinny kid, but my weight started creeping up in my early twenties.

I'd heard of the Atkins diet a long time ago, but I fell for the conventional wisdom and tried to stick to a low-fat, high-carb diet. It didn't work.

The slow weight gain and my inability to reverse it left me resigned to an unavoidable middle-age spread.

I joined a health club in Feb after my doctor recommended that I do so after poor results during a physical. I started the resistance training and the protein shakes. I made great gains on strength and muscle tone, but my body fat pecentage barely budged and I gained weight.

Then I saw an interesting episode of 20/20 about dietary fat and low carb diets in July. My jaw hit the floor! Could this possibly be true? I read Gary Taubes articles and bought the Atkins book. It all started to make sense.

I threw out all the sugary/startchy stuff in my pantry and fridge; bought a Tanita body-fat scale; stocked-up on meat, dairy, and vegies; and started the Atkin Diet on the first of August.

I lost 8lbs the first week. A total of 12 during the first two weeks. I could not believe it!

I've had to deal with my cravings and setbacks. My good-cop/bad-cop Tanita scale busted/praised me for my behavior the very next morning. The instant feedback helped me to maintain discipline.

I soon discovered all the wonderful low-carb sites on the web. I've learned a whole new way of cooking and eating. I went from perparing 20% of my own meals to over 80%. My collection of cooking knowledge and appliances continues to grow.

The best thing about this WOE is how it changes your mindset. I now think of my weight and BF as things entirely within my control.

Now that I've met my weight goal and erased the last 20 years of weight gain in a single season on Atkins, I'll be switching to TKD. My next goal is increased LBM with 10% BF. I no longer consider this wishful thinking, just a matter of time.

Thanks, Low Carbers

Steve

LoCHO Bozo, laughing the fat away

Congrats!

Thanks for sharing your great story! Gives us all hope.