I've been on the Atkins diet for about a month now and I've stayed on the Induction plan, as he says if you have alot of weight to lose this is fine. I've been losing about 3-4 lbs a day with little to no exercise for the last 3 weeks. So My question is... How fast is too fast?

Three to four pounds A DAY? I'll have whatever you're smoking!

Is there a typo there? Do you mean a week?

Break it out as to how much you've lost in each of the first four weeks.

At your weight, a sustained loss of 3 to 4 pounds a week is not too bad but is about as high as you want to go.

No, I do not mean per week, I mean per day. For Instance thursday morning I weighed 347 lbs. Saturday morning I weighed just around 340. I weigh my self on the same scale each time, in a pair of socks and my underwear. Judging by the tone of that response I'm assuming most of the 15 views I got either think I'm lying or just crazy. All I know is what the scale says, and that pants I couldnt wear at the begining of the week fit at the end...

Hi - there is a "safe" formula for weight loss, but you have to take it with a grain of salt.

It's a general rule that the more you have to lose, the faster it will come off. So in the beginning someone with a lot of weight to shed may shed it quickly and then as they get closer and closer to goal, it will slow down considerably.

The other thing is that initially on low carb diets weight loss is faster for anyone, and then it starts to slow and stabolize.

3-4 pounds a day is a lot. But I would watch in month 2 and see if that trend continues - my guess is it will slow down. So long as you are following the plan and getting the number of calories you need, and feel well, I wouldn't worry too much. Good thing you are paying attention tho.

The "smoking" comment didn't imply that you were high or delusional, it was meant to imply that I want in on the secret!

But I am still confused by the numbers. If you have been losing 3-4 pounds per day for the last three weeks, that means that you have lost somewhere between 63 and 84 pounds in just the last three weeks. Yet your stats show a total loss so far of 45 pounds. How much of that was lost during Induction prior to the 3 weeks in question?

Losing seven pounds in a couple of days is not terribly uncommon - and neither is gaining seven pounds in a couple of days. That is within the normal variation that people our weight can have just do to water.

It would really be helpful if you could post the actual numbers for your loss week by week - or as best you can remember them if they aren't written down.

If you have really lost 60+ pounds in three weeks, I would recommend you see a doctor. Both because it might be indicative of something wrong and also because of concerns over your body to effectively adjust its electrolyte balance and other things in response to such rapid loss.

Oh, don't worry about a high number of views and low number of responses. That's the norm. Most people read far more posts than they reply to and there a lot of lurkers that only read the threads - they may not even be registered users which means they can't reply. Again, that's typical.

wow, to be a man for a month....lol. (Okay, had to get that little bit of jealousy out of my system!)

I'm sure the loss will slow. A lot of loss the first two-three weeks is mostly excess water. You were probably bloated in a major way--and so I bet your BP has plummeted, too. This is good news in a way (the quick initial loss), and a bit of bad news. The more bloat you had, the more seriously hyperinsulinemic you probably are.

Men can safely lose 2-3 pounds of fat tissue per week, with perhaps a bit more for the very overweight. And if you've never dieted before, it'll come off quickly this first time (but don't count on it coming off as easily if you yo-yo in the future!) If you continue to lose more than 3 pounds a week, I'd fret that I might be also losing some muscle mass in addition to the fat.

The way to avoid that: get your calories up but stay LC, and start lifting weights a bit to preserve what muscle mass you have.

HTH!

My Story:

About a month ago I got weighed in at the doctors at 385, that week i decided to give atkins a try, made it about a week, and felt rather horrible no difference in clothes fiting and what not, that saturday was my dad's birthday, woops 3 pieces of carrot cake...
I started again a few days later and was feeling almost no weight loss again but was feeling alot better. Day 10 of that second attempt (which would be about 20 days after original weigh in) I was down to 365 at which point I decided a 350 lb capacity scale (highest capacity I could find) would be close enough to my current weight.
This morning, like every morning for the last 8, I weighed myself again, with the same scale, in the same clothing, I was 336. The morning before(the day I first posted) I was 340. I suppose I mis-spoke when I said an average of 3-4 lbs a day over 3 weeks, but these last 6 or so days that has been the case. A rough average puts me at about 2.9 lbs/day over the last 10 days. While most people seem to start losing weight fast and slowing... Im starting slow and getting faster...
So recapping the confusing way I've stated the numbers:
Day -3 of LC lifestyle: Weight 385, i have no scale with capacity near that
Day 6 of LC lifestyle I eat 3 pieces of Carrot Cake, lots of milk and feel terrible
Day 9 of LC lifestyle: Start over with Induction again.
Day 19 of LC lifestyle: 10 days into induction part deux now, go back to dr's weigh in at 365... lost 20 lbs over the last 22 days.
Day 20 of LC Lifestyle: buy a scale with capacity of 350 weight 362
Day 24: 351 lbs woo!
Day 28: Today weight 336. Been on the "induction plan" for 19 days now
What I ate Yesterday:
3 strips of Bacon 2 sausage links 2 eggs
Cheeseburger, 2 Pickle Spears
4 broiled chicken strips with a salad (lettuce, peppers, cucumbers,3 slices of tomato)
Rather typical of how I eat day to day... Also seems rather typical of what every one else is eating.
I realize that there's margin for error weighing myself with a scale that when i started at 15lbs over its capacity, but what im experiencing doesn't seem to be average by any standard, and I suppose it has me a little worried. I've tried talking to the dr on the phone about it but he's completely anti-atkins. Im going to see him again April 3rd.

Thanks for the clarification.

You do appear to be dropping very rapidly - especially over the last eight days. If your scale is to be believed (always an issue, but your clothing fit seems to back it up) then you have dropped 26 pounds in 8 days. That pretty much has to be water being purged. But it would be strange to have that much excess water hanging around after having lost another 20 pounds over the previous three weeks.

Do you have any idea what your blood pressure has been doing during this time?

I admit a part of me is very envious - but I am also a bit concerned that something else might be going on. Don't ask me what. But if you see a similar drop over the next week, I would go see someone. If you gain some of that weight back, then I would breath a sigh of relief and chaulk it up to you body going through some really bizzare water rebalancing.

BTW: If you have a doctor that is anti-LC, and if you are serious about adopting LC as a permanent WOL, then you would probably best be served by finding a different doctor. Just as so many doctors are too prone to blame everything on your weight, so too will an Anti-LC doctor be too quick to blame everything on your WOE.

It's probably a long shot, but is there any sort of directory of Doctor's that are supportive of LC diets? As for my Doctor he is very anti-LC and attempting to explain to me that ketoacidosis and heart disease is a probable effect of "High Fat" diets as he chooses to refer to them. Good think I've taken a hoard of bio classes in my day.

As for my blood pressure I remember him taking it, but I didn't ask what it was or bother to look for myself. Currently, using my mom's machine it reads 123/79.

Tell him that you have been trying to learn more about these harmful effects and that you can't find any actual papers or studies on the ill effects of high-protein, high-fat intake among people that are severely limiting their carbs. That you can find lots of information on ill effects in people that are eating normal or near normal carb level, but that you don't see why the effects would be the same. Ask him to point you to specific papers that address that specific question - the ill effects of high-protein and high carb in people that are also severely restricting their carbohydrate intake.

As for a directory of LC-friendly doctors. I don't know. I would imagine that there are lists someplace.

Thanks for your post. I have also been a little concerned about how quickly the pounds have been coming off. According to the Atkins site (I'm paraphasing) so long as you are: eating enough calories, feeling better, and have no dizziness or other ill effects since starting the new WOL you are probably not losing too fast. I do agree with the other posters that a quick check at the doctors wouldn't be a bad idea just to check that all your numbers are still in line. As for your doctor not being a fan of the diet, he/she doesn't need to agree with what your doing to be able to check your body chemistry.

Good luck and I hope you have continued success.


PS Yes many of us lurk, but think off all the inane comments you might have to wade through if we commented on every note we looked at that had already been thoroughly discussed.

3 strips of Bacon 2 sausage links 2 eggs
Cheeseburger, 2 Pickle Spears
4 broiled chicken strips with a salad (lettuce, peppers, cucumbers,3 slices of tomato)

I ran those numbers quickly through fitday and even being generous with the amounts for the cheeseburger and the strips of chicken, I still couldn't get the calories over 1000.

Your calorie deficit has to be amazing and kind of ill advised. Someone at our weight needs quite a few calories just to be sedentary.

You have to eat more; about 10 x your goal weight in calories. The weight will still come off, but at a more reasonable, rational speed. Slow it down. And see the doctor.

slowday

First, I agree...just from reading what you ate, without the benefit of Slowday's fitday calculation, my gut reaction was to tell you that you are waaay low in calories. The 10 - 12 times calorie thing is correct . Your ratio of fat/protein/carbs should be about 65/30/5. The best way to figure out these numbers is www.fitday.com, as Slowday used.

Now on to your sadly misinformed doctor. The concern about ketoacidosis is a common but huge mistake that a lot of health care folks make. Low carb does NOT produce ketoacidosis, it produces ketosis, two entirely different things. Ketoacidosis is a dangerous condition common in diabetics. Ketosis is when evidence of fat burning show up in your breath and urine. Your doc needs to do some research before preaching the dangers of Low Carb.

If finding another doc is a problem, go back to yours and have him run a full lipid panel...and compare it as you go along and see how your numbers change. It is common for triglyceride levels to drop drastically with this WOE, as well as a rise in good cholesteral levels. Some panic when bad cholesteral numbers rise a little, but it's the low and the triglycerides which determine heart health. There are lots of good links about this in the main menu.

I just love taking proof of misinformation and shoving it back at these so called health care professionals. Many of them have heard snippets of rumor and bashing on Dr. Atkins, and take it as gospel. It's a shame though that they don't read current studies that dispute that standpoint. Like the recent one conducted by Duke University. Now from where I stand...Duke is a much more reliable source than Dr. Whoever, who obviously doesn't read his medical journals till he runs out of other bathroom reading material.

Please keep track of that weight loss, please visit fitday and put in your number, please eat more, drink lots of water...and I mean LOTS...., and please start a journal. It's the best way to track your intake, and visit others. A great source of info and comraderie...and we have a buncha fun!!!..Visit me at mine and let me know when you have one up and running. I'll check on ya and bash yer doc some more...lol.


Sam