Hello. My name is Lauren Shepherd and I am a reporter for Time Magazine and a fellow Atkins dieter. We are working on a story about low-carb products--how much they help you when you're on the diet, whether you can still lose weight if you eat them and how they taste. If anyone is willing to talk about it with me, that would be great. Feel free to call me at 804-649-6513 or reply to this post. Thanks so much and good luck on the diet!

Just spoke to Lauren on the phone - she is legit as far as I can tell and knows quite a bit about our various low-carb diets. She is both easy to talk to and a very efficient interviewer. I urge those interested in contributing to her article to call her soon.

I limit myself to mostly to some low-carb protein bars I like, usually about 1/week, when I've failed to take some good food with me somewhere. Occasionally, I'll have a low-carb chocolate treat.

I make sparing use of processed low-carb products. For one thing, mimicking my prior diet with low-carb analog foods keeps me in the high-carb mindset of needing those products to begin with. In addition, to my way of thinking, one of the objectives of eating LC is to eat more naturally, as well as eat fewer carbs. Furthermore, low-carb specialty foods are a poor nutritional bang for the buck. Since I have only 40-70 g. of carbs to eat each day, I need all of them to be chock full of vitamins and minerals (as well as the co-factors required for absorption). Low-carb tortillas and spaghetti don't measure up. Lastly, low-carb specialty foods are more expensive than standard groceries. My grocery bill has already gone up, due to my increased protein and high-quality fat intake. I can't afford much on top of that.

I was on Atkins before and lost weight - several years ago. At that time there were not all the low carb products and I lost a lot of weight real fast. I started Atkins again the last of May and I have lost 20lbs. but I started using the low carb products and I believe it stalled me. I love the Atkins shakes and the Atkins chocolate - all of them but I quit losing weight once I ate them so I quit all the low carb products this past week and have lost 2 more pounds so I am assuming the low carb products is what was doing it. I just miss the shakes and candy!

We're all very opinionated. you've come to the right place.

I've tried a LOT of products that range from to As far as the Atkins brand.. I'm almost to the point of not using, since they get more and more expensive, and less and less in the quality and quantity department. Soon, I'm expecting a postage-stamp size "food" bar for $3.99... Keto is my favorite brand at this time, but living in the middle of nowhere, my selection is fairly limited without paying the sometimes outrageous shipping some online companies charge.

I think, also, that a lot of companies are underreporting the real amount of carbs in their products. (My "grassy knoll" doughnut theory )
It's the newest bandwagon for the marketers to jump on. I remember when the low-fat craze hit, and products that never HAD fat started screaming "LOW FAT" on the label... now it seems to be a race to churn out low carb/ high protein "foods" ... and while a few are genuinely what they claim, I suspect that a few shortcuts are being taken. I'd be interested in seeing a test comparing stated carb counts vs. actual carb counts.

Here in Europe, low-carb does not have the media exposure it has in the US yet, we are still in the lowfat - phase . And therefore the industry has almost no LC-products on the market. All we have got is diet coke and some other sugar free sodas and there are some speciality stores, mostly in the UK, who sell various LC-brands, but they are expensive as hell.
I do concur with wendy40 , all these LC-products, be it bars, candies or pasta, throw be out of ketosis and give me the same sides "normal" carb foods do, especially sugar cravings. And most of these LC products taste like shit anyway (like most lowfat-foods also btw).
After trying a lot of them I stick to all the food which is low- to zero-carb by design: meat, sausages, cheese, fish and small piceces of assorted fruits. Plain Water, coffee and diet coke is what i drink.
LC gives me so much benefits - less need for sleep, more endurance in the gym and on the job, superior sexual performance , heightned mood, ... - that i can live with sometimes eating the same things for days in a row.

if you are interested how one, who was a fat sloth for 30 years of his life, can look after 1 year of running Aktins see: http://www.atkins-at.com/forum/album_cat.php?cat_id=1

I've been lowcarbing for a little over a year and have tried to keep things simple and natural. I tried the low carb tortillas after having been on Atkins for about 6 months and they made me sick! Those low carb products are still somewhat processed and EXPENSIVE. Just not worth it to me......with the exception of chocolate! I have always been a chocolate lover. At first, the only chocolate that I could find was in the low carb bars that ATkins and others put out. But they were almost a meal in themselves and I tended to stall in my weight loss. What I wanted was more of a chocolate candy type of snack. Ross's chocolates are by far the best....much better than ATkins. That's the only manufactured low carb food I eat.

Kathy

Kathy, what is Ross's? I've never heard of that? Did it stall you like Atkins does? Just wondering - chocolate is my big downfall and I haven't had real chocolate in 2 months but I have had Atkins and I think it is doing to me the same the real choc would so I am not having any more if I have another craving for it I will just have the real thing.
Thanks
Wendy

I actually heard abuot Ross's chocolates on this forum. you can order them on the web at rosschocolates.com (I think). I have been fortunate to find them at my local Safeway store. They are expensive, but I try to keep them to a minimum. As for stalling me, yes, if I eat too many of them. If I limit them to once or twice a week, it seems to be ok, but i have had 'binges' where I eat them daily! Not good! But for us chocoholics, it's a great way to fulfill that particular craving. And they melt easily for strawberry dipping!
Kathy

good thread..
I'll be completing 1yr of Low-carbing soon. I use low-carb fibre
tortila occasionally... I like to eat "REAL FOOD" (from S P) & stay out of processed/canned/cooked food...

few thoughts here..

1. I find LC lifestyle is very easy to maintain.
2. I eat more vegs and low GI fruits than I ate before LCing.
Many times I find myself looking for good sources of carb
(80gm per day)..and I take it from carrot,beet, legumes,lentils..

There's one more thing I thought about after considering the whole low carb food product thing.
I think of myself as an addict, actually. When I think about it, what are most alcohols and beers made from.....grains. What is bread and pasta made from....grains. Now, I'm not an alcoholic, but I believe I was addicted to grains in the form of breads, baked goods and pasta. And just like an alcoholic, the more I ate the less satisfied I was and the more I wanted!
I know that some alcoholics won't drink the 'near-beer' like O'Douls, etc because it is just too close to the taste of the real thing and they fear a relapse. I guess I feel that way about lowcarb breads, baked goods, etc. I have felt so good without them for this long (over a year). I guess I am afraid of being triggered into 'using' again.
Maybe someday I can handle some really wholesome, whole grain or sprouted bread. And, I might try baking something using soy flour over the holidays this year. But for now, give me my piece of chicken, fish or meat, a serving of asparagus, and a salad and I am happy! Very Happy! (ok, a piece of chocolate for desert on Sundays... ).
Thanks for doing this article....looking forward to it.
kathy

I've been sticking to real foods, very close to induction, just adding berries recently (I've been LCing for about 3 months). I've been quite satisfied just eating these real foods so had no reason to add prepared foods. However, the one item I did miss consistently was ice cream. Then I went to BJ's Wholesale Club and found they are now carrying Atkins Indulge Ice Cream. I tried the vanilla and it is DELICIOUS!

This product has definitely helped me stay true to the Atkins WOE because it satisfies the one craving I had for something "illegal". The taste is very satisfying and the texture really creamy like regular ice cream. Now that I have this treat to look forward to once in a while, along with my berries and heavy cream, my sweet cravings are satisfied.

As long as you are diligent reading the ingredients of such products, and use them only in moderation, I believe they can be useful.

For the most part, I eat only whole, natural foods. I have the occasional Atkin's bar because I prefer those to other brands. I have to be careful with them though becaue they cause cravings for me. I've had LC candy also, but again, cause cravings. If I really need a treat, I will try to make my own using bakers chocolate and splenda or I might have a bowl of fresh berries in cream.
I've eaten the Atkin's Bread on 2 different occasions when we made eggs benedict. I think next time I'll just skip the bread as it didn't really taste all that great and definitely wasn't worth the price.
The one LC product that I do indulge in on a fairly regular basis are La Tortilla brand tortilla's. They make lunch on the go very easy. I make tuna salad, egg salad, or just a meat wrap. Very quick and easy and I find that I like the flavor in them much more than regular tortillas. Sometimes I even use them for a breakfast burrito. Also, about once a week I have the Keto hot cereal, but I need to make sure that I eat some protein along with it otherwise it's too big of a carb hit.

Interesting to see the range of experiences with LC foods in here! It really does seem to be trial and error.

Like most folks, I try to stick to whole foods...and contrary to what most of the country likely thinks about Atkins, I have yet to eat a piece, let alone a slab, of bacon at breakfast.

I did find that I was not eating enough (heavens to Mergatroids!) so I began to supplement with a LC bar or shake, usually one or two servings a day. I think I was stalling b/c I was only eating 1,200-1,400 calories a day but I honestly wasn't hungry. Fitday revealed the problem. The chocolate meal bars are pretty good, any of them, but the Atkins chocolate and peanut butter was very good. Some of the fruit ones are

I LOVE La Tortilla original flavor tortillas and do a lot with them. I also like Keto spaghetti, especially with some pesto and chicken, WOW! As for ice cream, I can make my own with fresh goat milk (since I raise the buggers!), so I haven't bought any yet.

I like the Keto products a lot...I eat the cold and hot cereals and have their ketchup.

I tried a Pure De-Lite chocolate bar and found it quite satisfactory for a chocolate fix. Ross and I haven't met yet, and from what I hear, this is probably a good thing.

Walden Farms has a line of dressings and condiments... I'll make my own, thanks.

I order my stuff from vitaglo.com and get free shipping with $50 or more, which isn't hard since I buy my vitamins there. I think these products make doing LC quite doable.

I haven't lost a huge amount of weight but I have lost major inches, so the weight is bound to come soon. The best thing: being off the sugar merri-go-round. I feel good and my skin is clear. Can't wait to see my bloodwork in a couple months.

Someone mentioned not eating LC food products as perhaps akin to alcoholics not drinking fake beer. I am a sober drunk and I don't drink fake booze, but these don't seem to bother me. But I don't do a lot of them either. For once I don't abuse something!

badgoat

Hi Badgoat!
I just read your post and I was smiling for once reading these post - you sound so positive!
How do you make your goat ice cream? Not that we have a goat, we actually looked for one earlier this spring and couldn't find one we could afford - but thats beside the point. We just have 100 acres of land and thought we needed a goat on it but I can buy goat milk - in a can probably not like the real stuff. Is goat milk lower in carbs?
One more question and I'll leave you alone. I understand you ate the lc stuff and it doesn't effect you? I am thinking maybe that is what I was doing wrong. I would drink an atkins shake for breakfast and I was satisfied until lunch - then I would eat a small lunch and maybe a shake for a snack. (in case you can't tell I love them so I am just wondering if that was stalling me instead of just the lc products. I would be satisfied eating a atkins pb cup but I quit buying them because I thought they were stalling me.
OK I have rambled on too long.
Thanks for the input!