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I know there are some folks on here who have done the low carb / Atkins thing to great success. Well, tomorrow (Monday 7-26-04) I start on my quest to get in shape. I will be on a modified version of Atkins, under the tutelage of a bodybuilder friend of mine who has me buying all sorts of supplements and protein shakes and so on. I think it's going to be hateful but I'm determined to do it.

Anyway, I'm interested in your experiences. What's the Atkins/low carb thing like? What should I expect with regard to daily living? Any valuable "lessons learned?"

Thanks in advance. As you can see from the pictures from Laurinburg, it's been, um, quite a while since I've gone on any sort of fitness plan. That all changes in about an hour.

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Karl S.
2014 Baby, 2014 House, 2013 Ford Focus ST, 2013 BMW 328i, 1994 Mercedes E320
(Insert passive aggressive signature line here)

I did it last year and lost 25 pounds. I'd say this:

1) Get the "just kool aid" packs (the kind without sugar, just raw concentrated artificialness, tea bag size) and use Splenda as the sweetener. You'll find that "Dang, just give me something to drink that tastes like anything!!!" Especially breakfast.

2) Splenda, in general, will be your friend.

3) Cheesecake, no crust, is zero carb. (When applying #2)

4) I have pretty much given up cereal for breakfast, even now that I'm not following the diet. I ate a lot of eggs...

5) Along the lines of #1, for soda, find "Diet Rite". They have a cola and a "white grape" 7-upish soda. Not many sodas use Splenda.

6) The hardest part is finding something crunchy. Lack of a variety of texture is a bigger problem than variety of taste.

7) Exercise. Looks like you'll have that covered. I did 2x a week, about 45 minutes.

That's all I have for now. Oh yeah: burger buns in general are pretty tasteless. It will be weird, but you'll get used to that in short order.

Anders

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Lina Racing: As Seen On Radio

Splenda is definately the sweetener to use...tastes good.

For crunchy food, look for Wise brand flavored pork rinds. I found barbecue and salt and vinegar, they're much tastier than just plain. Don't bother with Atkins brand chips, yuck! Celery sticks stuffed with cheese are good too.

Carb Options makes some really good products, but WARNING...don't get too dependent on products, sometimes they have other ingredients that can deter weight loss.

I mix up a flavored water for us...a mixture of water, lemon juice, lime juice and splenda. We especially like this while racing.

Meat, cheese, meat, eggs, pickles, meat, olives, some types of nuts, salads, meat...

The good thing is that you can eat all the steak, lobster, shrimp, pork chops, bacon (check the label for phosphates or sugar) and similar that you can hold, along with a green salad with an appropriate dressing for lunch and dinner. We tend to have a lot of meat salads for lunches...like tuna or chicken. Use mayo or Carb Options dressing in the salads. I also make meat rolls for our racing lunches. Roll turkey (check the label for sugar), ham (same thing), or roast beef and cheeses...maybe add a pickle or lettuce leaf and you have a "sandwich".

Actually we've been off the diet most of this year. I've had a lot of ups and downs in my life and the diet has had to be put aside. I'm sure we'll be back on it soon again. In the past we've both lost 20-45 lbs while on it, but we tend to still maintain a similar eating plan even after, it's too easy to just put it all back on.

Good luck!

Ahhhhh yet another person giving the Low Carb thing a run. I have been on Atkins for 15 months now, and have lost ~65 lbs, so I have a bit of experience here.

-First off READ THE DAMN BOOK!!!! I hate reading just as much as anyone else, but just trying the diet from "word of mouth" usually doesnt cut it. Sounds like you have this covered.

-Do induction for as long as your mental health can take it. You will understand what I mean after you have been Low Carbing for awhile. However, start giving yourself a "cheat" a month after you have dieted for ~2 months. It REALLY helps you keep your sanity.

-Try to stay away from the "Low Carb" replacent stuff in the begining. Keep it simple, Meat, Meat, and Salad. After you have dieted for awhile, you can get the low carb bread just about anywhere now. I would stay away from the Atkins brand bread, I would rather lick the parking lot than eat that stuff. Also, stay away from the Carb Solutions Ice Cream, I SWEAR that stuff has crack in it.

-Splenda ROCKS!!!

-Sugar Free Jello and Whipped Cream is a good snack and almost makes you feel "normal"

-Little cubes of cheese make a nice snack too.

-Exercise will help ALOT. I didnt hit a lick, but still did pretty well.


Hope this helps a bit and good luck in shedding the lbs!

Ryan
Low carb freak

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02 Focus SVT
STF 9

Aaron's bee low carb for years, Sally and I are on-again, off again.

You can find plenty of junkfood in the sectoin of the grocery store for diabetics ("sugar free candy.")

IMHO, your body builder firend is likely going to kill you with the GNC stuff, not only will your wallet suffer, but your body will too. There is no regulation in the supplement industry, and now's the wrong time to be taking ephedra (on purpose, or by accident). You kidneys are already going to be working overtime, and adding protein shakes/supplements is just going to hurt them more.

Buy and read the Atkins book, probably better would be the South Beach book. South Beach even includes a sample diet to get you through the first few weeks.

There isn't anything magical to the diet, if you stick to it pretty well you will lose lots of weight. I've dropped 5-8 lbs in the past 2 weeks (were "on" right now).

Yeah, the first week will suck, but by week 2 you should notice that you aren't hungry all the time and all will be well.

Scott

I haven't been on it for years, but for about 8-10 months. I've lost about 35 and kept it off pretty easy, especially considering I haven't worked out in 3 months since moving and taking the new job, and I haven't gained a pound. (That will change tomorrow morning, a strict workout begins again)

As for the diet, I think the key is to look to stay as natural as possible. The supplements and low carb foods out there will not only eat you out of house and home, but the government has no guidelines in how each company calculates 'net carbs'. Some subtract sugar alcohols and fiber, and some get even more creative.

My diet consists of a lot eggs, bacon, meats of all varieties, and lots of salads (stay away from carrots). Reading the book does help a lot. As for drinks, I drink a lot of water, Fruit2o (fruit flavored water), crystal light, and too much iced tea (unsweetened, but sweetened with Equal). The increased caffeine is bad for metabolism, but I haven't had a soda in over 5 years, so it limits a lot of my options. The Hood Low Carb Regular and Chocolate Milk are unbelievably good.

Beer is a tough one, and I don't remember a low carb King Cobra. I have gone from drinking straight Guinness to Miller Lite and Rolling Rock Green Light. As for Michelob Ultra, stay away from that watered down piss. It makes Miller Lite seem light a fine pilsner. Another thing I drink to stay happy is Bombay Gin and diet tonic, as well as Skyy with diet tonic, lime juice, and topped with whipped cream (stirred well). It's a nice sweet island like drink. (Not something to drink with the guys )

The weight drops off really quickly at first, and then you tend to level off. Those that know 'the Zone' diet understand that your body will plateau at points until you do something different to get through the plateau. Changing workout routines will usually help if you get stuck at an undesired weight.

Best snack: Get yourself a Fry Daddy, fill it with Canola oil and get it ready to fry. Cut up boneless chicken breast into 1.5" cubes. Roll the cubes in grated Parmesean cheese and throw them in the fryer. Meanwhile, heat up some Hooters Wing sauce in a pan. Hooters sauce is available at most grocery stores, it's made with butter, and has *zero* carbs. I usually do a half and half mix of mild and hot sauce. Then after frying the chicken, drop them in the sauce and put them on a aluminum foiled baking sheet. Repeat until you have a nearly full sheet. Then dribble more wing sauce over the batch, and throw them in the oven for 10 mins at 350 degrees.

You'll end up with some yummy boneless buffalo wings, that are not only very low in carbs, but tastier than anything I ever had at Hooters. - AB

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'14 Toyota Sequoia Platinum 4WD
Super Westerfield Bros - '93 Integra - LeChump Du Jour
STX 93 - Scion FR-S

Aaron, you're eating the wrong things at Hooters then

By the way, the one on Aviation Parkway is now open, and VERY worthwhile. You know, for the food.

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Has no responsibility whatsoever.

I've been off it for a couple of months and gained about 10 pounds back, but I'm about to start again. I lost 40 lbs total and I'm still down 30 lbs.

My tips (some of which have already been mentioned):

- Breakfast

Sausage, eggs, and bacon. Mmmm. I like to brown the sausage and then scramble eggs in with it and put 3 strips of bacon on the side.

Sometimes I drink one of those Atkins shakes (just like slimfast, but low carb instead.) Get the "Vanilla" and "Chocolate Delight" from SAM'S CLUB...If you don't have a Sam's club membership, get one now and go buy a few cases of these shakes. They are far too expensive at Food Lion, Target, or Vitamin Shoppe. When you don't have time to cook breakfast or you need to skip lunch, they will be your best friend. You may want to pick up one of those tiny refridgerators from Target (the ones that run off ac or dc and hold about 6 cans) so that you can keep some at your desk at work.

Take a multivitamin every day and drink a lot of water with breakfast. You will be amazingly thirsty on this diet, so you won't have trouble drinking lots of water.

- Lunch/Dinner:

I pretty much consider myself to be eating the same thing I did before, only I substitute the fries/biscuits/macaroni/etc for veggies. Eat some vegetable with EVERY DINNER. Try to eat at least one veggie with lunch so that you aren't just eating piles of meat (like everyone seems to think Atkins is.) My favorite meals:

1. Barbecue with one serving of green beans. The greenbeans do have some carbs, so don't eat more than one serving daily.
2. Chicken - either grill it and melt some cheese on it or bake it in a pan with chicken broth.
3. Steak - Try different ways to season it. Melt some Blue cheese on it...wow.
4. Fish - I grill fish all the time.

With dinner I usually have a chicken breast, fillet of fish, or steak surrounded by salad or asparagus.

If all else fails and you don't want to cook, try going to Hardees for their low carb burger. Go to TGIFridays for a steak with broccoli and cheesecake for dessert. Go to Hooters and order skinless wings (supposedly low carb...I don't know for sure though.)

Get a couple of cases of low carb chocolate bars/low carb reeses cups from Sam's Club too. You'll be glad you have them when you start to crave.

And that low carb chocolate milk is awesome...I still drink it even though I'm not dieting. The white milk sucks though.

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I sold my Saab to the devil...
And all I got was this crappy SUV.

Pepsi just came out with Pepsi Edge. It is their version of coke C2 but instead of Nutrasweet, Pepsi uses Splenda. It isn't a Sugar Free drink but it is lower in sugar, carbs and calories than regular Pepsi. Sugar 20g as opposed to ~40g. Carbs 20g - ~35g. Caloried 70 - 140. These are based on a 12 oz can serving.

It doesn't taste half bad either. Much better than Diet Rite. My wife drinks Diet Rite and I have tried all three back to back to back and my order of preference is C2 - Edge - Diet Rite.

I have been on a semi low carb diet since the beginning of the year and have lost ~30 lbs without really trying. If I would get off my arse and hit a gym every once in a while I might actually be able to reach my goal.

Rice, if you are looking for stuff to satisfy your sweet tooth, try the Splenda ice cream. Kroger carries several brands but our favorite is the Kroger Private Select, or something like that. It tastes just as good as regular ice cream.

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Todd Breakey
STS 42 - 1992 Sunburst Miata
Dammit!
"You souldn't play leap frog with a porcupine. You might get hurt." - Eliza

Wow, thanks for the replies everyone. As I sit down to my second protein shake of the day its helpful to see that so many folks have made this thing work. These protein shakes are freaking terrible.

I'm pretty much doing Atkins but with a twist. After my workout in the afternoon I take R-ALA and add dextrose to the final protein shake. Supposedly, this combination drives the dextrose directly to the muscles rather than fat. I have to say that I'm skeptical but I've seen the guy who's helping me and obviously he's figured something out. This is apparently the set of tricks bodybuilders use when they're trying to trim up for a show. We'll see.

One piece of information I can pass on to the rest of you - don't buy your stuff at a retail store. You can get supplements, protein, everything, for far less on the Internet than at a place like GNC.

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Karl S.
2014 Baby, 2014 House, 2013 Ford Focus ST, 2013 BMW 328i, 1994 Mercedes E320
(Insert passive aggressive signature line here)

Hope the bodybuilder is not a BALCO employee, I don't know what the protest requirements are for cars on steroids

The low carb thing is great for short term wt. loss, but long term use of it has not been studied as far as I know. When you eat lots of protein and your body is not using it to build muscle you have a lot of extra nitrogenous wastes from the breakdown of the extra protein that your body has to excrete. You have to drink plenty of water to make sure you give your body a chance to get rid of the extra nitrogenous wastes. Also, I do not think eating large quanities of beef is good for you no matter what diet you are on. Omega-3 fatty acids found in nuts, oils and fish are supposed to be good for your heart and your waste line. Make sure you check with your PCP before you start a new diet like Atkins.

Marcus

Edit: Also, make sure you start a reasonable exercise plan you can stick with. Don't let you weight lifting buddy get into some kind of balls out muscle building thing you will get sick of in a month.

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Silver Honda
Green Ford
Blue/White Suzuki
Red Triumph
Grey BMW

"Never let life be shaped by fear of its end"

No, you're a towel!

One or two things I will add...

I dropped my cholesterol level mass amounts after I went on Atkins. My doctor was thrilled and decided not to put me on threatened meds. I've also done better heart wise. I feel more energetic while on the diet too.

EVERYONE'S body is different, and it handles digestion/weight loss or gain on an individual basis. Realize from day one that that is the case, you can't base what will happen to you on any of the rest of us.

Done. Polished off a gallon of the stuff today. Was carrying it around work all day looking like an idiot.



Also done. I'm taking 2tbsp of flax seed oil per day.



He's covered that one as well. See I used to work out many years ago so it's not completely foreign to me. This guy is working me back into it gradually so I don't hate it, like all the rest of the times I've attempted, unsuccessfully, to start back.

It's a big change for me but the time has come. I weighed myself today and was stunned, and not in a good way.

El yuck! What does that stuff taste like?

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Silver Honda
Green Ford
Blue/White Suzuki
Red Triumph
Grey BMW

"Never let life be shaped by fear of its end"

No, you're a towel!