I had no idea!!!!

pollytunnel

Full Member
That this dieting thing took up so much of peoples life...now I am not being big headed but I have a life....I had a down moment and trawled through some of the threads on Atkins....I understand the idea of the low carb thing but M.G.what they can eat !!!what they cannot eat!!! This so called book must be as big as the Bible!!!! Its a lot simpler than all that surely ....Less in and more used up....Fat free or carb free...extra exercise..3 controlled meals..soup,shake etc...what could be simpler(simpler but in no way easy) And another thing one guy has been on the atkins for 9 years.....I know it must be maintenance (or he would have disappeared)...but I suppose it could make him some money as his specialist subject on Mastermind!!!! Horses for courses I hear you all say...your right none of my business really ...only too grateful Exante seems to do it for me...with a little extra protein thrown in.....
 
I bought the Atkins book and its probably bigger than the bible lol. I couldn't make head or tail of it at all

I really just wanted a list of what I could and couldn't eat but omg it was double dutch lol
 
Exante may not be the nicest tasting but its a good price...its only 600 cals and probably gives most people more vits ..mins..and trace elements than they would be getting on their normal diet...I do not want anything complicated where I have to cook the meals and weigh the ingredients....Thats what I mean when I say it's easy...It's done for you...I take my hat off to those who can do total 100 per.cent of the time ...thats too hard for me...but it is working ...Husband looks so much better (much smaller belly)...I have always told him that a smaller belly makes your willy look bigger...he believes me now!!! got a big grin on now.....does not seem to realise that the optimum word was LOOKS.....
 
pollytunnel said:
Exante may not be the nicest tasting but its a good price...its only 600 cals and probably gives most people more vits ..mins..and trace elements than they would be getting on their normal diet...I do not want anything complicated where I have to cook the meals and weigh the ingredients....Thats what I mean when I say it's easy...It's done for you...I take my hat off to those who can do total 100 per.cent of the time ...thats too hard for me...but it is working ...Husband looks so much better (much smaller belly)...I have always told him that a smaller belly makes your willy look bigger...he believes me now!!! got a big grin on now.....does not seem to realise that the optimum word was LOOKS.....

Love it !
 
pollytunnel said:
...Husband looks so much better (much smaller belly)...I have always told him that a smaller belly makes your willy look bigger...he believes me now!!! got a big grin on now.....does not seem to realise that the optimum word was LOOKS.....

Best thing I've read all week! Hahaha! X
 
pollytunnel said:
I have always told him that a smaller belly makes your willy look bigger...

And that ladies, is how you shatter a mans confidence lol

Poor guy... How would you feel if man came up to you saying you don't have bum enough to fill the jeans or that he (the man) had bigger breasts than you?

I'm up for being honest, but come on lol :p
 
TripleWhopper, the sad thing is that before my man lost his weight is that he did have bigger breasts than me. He's quite pleased to have a bigger looking willy too.
xxx
 
TripleWhopper, the sad thing is that before my man lost his weight is that he did have bigger breasts than me. He's quite pleased to have a bigger looking willy too.
xxx


:eek:


That was one of my main motivations for losing weight in the first place....moobs :eek:

Not attractive or easy to disguise, and it's so embarrassing having a bra fitted - lots of stores wouldn't entertain me...

They're still there, albeit smaller, so ambition no.1 is that target weight for me will be the moment these bazongas disappear for good ;)
 
Atkins is complicated at first until you learn what foods are ketogenic or not, and then it's like anything else that comes with practice.. you don't have to think about it much anymore.

There have been a lot of studies recently that show that the body's response to food is very complicated, and one ingredient can make or break that response. For instance, if you have some high-fat steak, your body will store X amount of fat (or not) but if that steak has a sugary or carb-y sauce on it, you are almost guaranteed that your body will not only store some as fat, but store MORE as fat than it ever would have if the sauce had been carb-free.

People who do Atkins may seem to be obsessed by the diet, but really, how many people obsess over food in general and we don't bat an eyelid? Atkins isn't easy for me because I really don't like to eat much meat. I tried and simply couldn't stand it. Exante is much better for me. But many others truly enjoy eating meat at every meal and Atkins is the easiest thing they've ever done.

If you want to know about low carb diets and why they actually work, the best book I have read on the subject is Why We Get Fat and What to Do About It by Gary Taubes.
 
I think people on VLCDs become obsessed, too, to be honest. It's perfectly understandable when something works so well and the weight comes off so fast. However very fast weight loss can become addictive, so if the dieter quits the VLCD for any reason and then starts a more 'normal' plan, they crave that fast loss so much they often give up and go back to the VLCD. This can go on for not just years but for decades. I speak from personal experience here, and I know that others sometimes say similar things on Minimins.

The only thing that helped me maintain what my doctor describes technically as 'massive weight loss' was and remains vegetarian Atkins.
I owe everything I have achieved over the last ten-twelve years to a mixture of diets including Cambridge that helped me lose the weight, and vegetarian Atkins that has helped me keep it off.

Thanks to txgardenia for explaining how low-carbing works. And it does work. Better still it is sustainable for an entire lifetime. But that does not make it easy! Some people simply cannot stick to TFR diets, no matter how hard they try. Yet they can still enjoy the benefits of low-carbing, just with regular food.

Each of us seeks the best diet for us as individuals. What works for some may not work for others. Finding the one for US is what counts. Good luck everyone x
 
I love Atkins and after "trying" it for a short while I know I will go back if Exante gets hard. The only thing for me is the slow losses, that I can't stand and because I know Exante losses are massive I had to come back one last time. I find Atkins is simple really like any diet if you follow the guidelines. Also they are times when we've all had a bad day and the thought of a milkshake is unbearable yet on Atkins you can just have something, not a binge lol. I find people's attitudes when av said am on Atkins or Exante have been negative yet if I say weight watchers they are welcoming. At the end of the day I find if I obsess about whatever diet am on I tend to stick to it. X

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You guys should read a book called:

"EAT TO LIVE"

By dr. Fuhrman.

It's really good and shows scientifically how dangerous most diets are, and also Atkins.
 
Many diets are dangerous, sure. But the intention is to eat in this new, limited way for a short time, only, and then go into more sensible, balanced maintenance. That is the theory, the practice is often very different because most people with food and weight problems are addicts. We may not like that term; we may prefer to view it in a less harsh way. I am a food addict. Particularly carbohydrate food. In a nutshell! And addicts of all kinds are obsessive people. All or nothing, now or never, in or out, up or down. Extremes we find normal. Moderation is killing to us. The one thing we just can't do, or keep on doing.

Atkins by the way has changed a lot since it was first around in the 1960s. The emphasis now is on vegetables and lower GI fruits, and on healthy fats, not unhealthy ones. Quorn and Tofu and other meat-free protein sources are now part of the plan. This enables me, a near-lifelong vegetarian, to 'do Atkins' lol.

Atkins is not a fast weight loss diet, this is why so many of my fellow impatient all-or-nothing dieters stop and go back to TFR plans. If Atkins doesn't suit you - fine, some other plan will. But if you are addicted to carbs, and tend (like me) to repeat starve/binge patterns, it may be that you will always have problems with maintaining. If so it might be worth giving Atkins a real go.
 
Hi girlygirl, your last post hit home, yes I am a carb addict.
Was just having that conversation around the table last night with my OH, saying I know Im going to have to reduce carb intake when Im finished on Exante.
I would choose carbs over any other food, and 99 times out of a 100 make a meal of purely carbs (bit of veg thrown in).
Am not a big meat eater, I will when I have to, so most of my life been made up of carb meals.
Been thinking of what my plate looks like even when I have a mixed meal....errrrrr....10% everything else and 90% carbs!
So puzzled me for years, how do I get so fat when I dont eat so much (yes I know lots of reasons for me as well as this) but some of it will be my reliance on carbs.
Lightbulb moment, thanks for this post all who Ive read!! Am off to ponder!!
 
There is a theory that sounds good to me that if you see the foods you like as the ones that are white/beige/light brown...then these are the carbs...If you think about it high carb foods are these colours...trying to make your food intake contain foods that are naturally coloured..reds/greens/oranges/ and make your plate as colourful as poss would cut these carbs out and give us the anti-oxident foods that are good for us...Those who are eating again soon ..may like to try this...I know I love a challenge and a colourful plate is a challenge for me....
 
Until everyone here realises that we have a food problem like drug or alcohol consumption, things won't change.

I quit my job this month, I'm selling everything I have and taking a one year rehab alone in my house in Portugal.
It will be my own version of big brother but with a much more important agenda.

Drastic? Yes some told I'm crazy, but I will be the last one to laugh.
 
So glad you found something useful in my post! Many, many overweight people are addicted to carbs. We don't suddenly awaken in the night crying, omg I just HAVE to have some salad! Some lettuce!

When we fall off plan it can be in a spectacular fashion. We can eat and eat and eat until we feel so full we hurt but we could still I bet squeeze-in just another mouthful or three. That is addiction. We try to stop doing this, we try to 'cut down', and we cannot. We cry and torment ourselves, call ourselves horrible negative names and swear up and down that we will start tomorrow and Boy! THIS time we won't fail.. then we do. Ten times more, twenty. If you try to quit any behaviour or substance that is harming you physically, mentally and spiritually, you are addicted. Knowing that takes away the guilt, to be honest. knowing that by low carbing you can stop this craving on a day to day, meal by meal basis, is liberating. Yes it will take a bit of commitment but you won't ever starve or feel disgusted with yourself after a tasty low carb meal. Freedom.

It seems to me that 'normal' weight people or only slightly overweight ones may not have a problem with carbs. So they can eat takeaways occasionally, and McDonald's, and fish and chips and milkshakes... they don't crave food all night afterwards.

I suspect that all heavily overweight and morbidly obese people, do have a problem. Limit the carbs and the weight falls off them, every time.

There is a steady flow, actually, of VLCD dieters to and from the Atkins forum. There always has been. After VLCD experience we learn that limiting carbs is a very good idea. But since we are now addicted to fast losses, and seeing the numbers on the scale go down like lightning, we surrender the new peace we have found with regular food and go back to the VLCD. This process is often repeated over and over. The very successful VLCD dieters may not need to ever switch; some lucky people just 'get it' right away and lose tons of weight in record time. But the rest - the real strugglers and agonisers, may need to swap very fast losses for that precious peace.
 
Until everyone here realises that we have a food problem like drug or alcohol consumption, things won't change.

I quit my job this month, I'm selling everything I have and taking a one year rehab alone in my house in Portugal.
It will be my own version of big brother but with a much more important agenda.

Drastic? Yes some told I'm crazy, but I will be the last one to laugh.


Wow! Good for you. You have taken on board that you are addicted, and that you need to address this side of your weight problem, not just to go on chasing the fast losses we ALL crave.

I worry about you being all alone in that house, I must say. I hope you have family or friends there to support you or the going could get very tough.

As you say it is the same with us as it is with others and alcohol/drugs. But we have turned to food for many years to get us through lonely times, sad times, work troubles, life troubles etc and the danger of falling back into that pattern will always be present.

All the very, very best to you and please keep posting x
 
There is a theory that sounds good to me that if you see the foods you like as the ones that are white/beige/light brown...then these are the carbs...If you think about it high carb foods are these colours...trying to make your food intake contain foods that are naturally coloured..reds/greens/oranges/ and make your plate as colourful as poss would cut these carbs out and give us the anti-oxident foods that are good for us...Those who are eating again soon ..may like to try this...I know I love a challenge and a colourful plate is a challenge for me....


The highest carb foods I can think of - cakes, sweets, biscuits, etc. - are usually very bright in colour. Sugar is by far the worst carb for health. And it is to sugar in particular that I and others are addicted, as well as to starches. I have to cut sugar out of the picture or I will very soon fall off the wagon. They put sugar in meat pies, too, stews, ready meals and most low-fat products. It improves texture and makes us want to clear our plates!

The Food Industry has a lot to answer for.
 
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