Laura's Atkins Diary 2013

[lollycakes]

So, after about two years since I last logged in to the MiniMins website, I've finally come to a point in my life where I need to do something about the extra weight I'm carrying. It has been holding me back far more than I'd like to admit, and the longer I leave it, the worst it will inevitably get.

I'm not entirely sure how much weight I have to lose - I haven't weighed myself for a very long time - though, at the moment, I'm far more focused on losing inches rather than making sure the number on the scale starts to go down! I'm hoping to achieve this through a combination of Atkins, weight training and cardio. I should, within the next week or so, have a 50kg barbell & dumbbell set to use, and I've a selection of cardio DVDs at my disposal, though I'm going to ease in to the cardio slowly.

Whether anyone will read and/or respond to this diary remains to be seen, but what better way to be held accountable for my progress than to have an open and public diary, available to thousands?

Anyway... On to the actual diary itself!

Day 1
Monday 2nd September 2013

Breakfast - I didn't actually eat anything for breakfast because I hadn't gone shopping for groceries. But, starting from tomorrow, breakfast is non-negotiable.

Lunch - A large salad of iceberg lettuce, rocket, cherry tomatoes, grilled chicken, crumbled goat cheese and a basil pesto dressing made from about a tablespoon of olive oil and half a tablespoon of basil pesto.

Dinner - Another large salad of iceberg lettuce, rocket, cherry tomatoes, red onion, grilled chicken, a couple of slices of lean baked ham, crumbled goat cheese and basil pesto dressing.

I also snacked on three small, skinless, baked chicken thighs between lunch & dinner. I'm going to try to avoid snacking in future, though.

Exercise-wise, I did bicep curls, overhead presses and lateral raises - 2 sets of 16 reps for each exercise - using light hand weights. I'm not going to jump into exercising full force, though I know it's imperative for long-term weight loss. But at my current weight, most exercises are uncomfortable, so I don't want to push myself and get injured. Or worse, push myself, fail and then give up.

 

[teeney]

Hi Laura and welcome!

Menu sounds great, careful with the toms though. Why skip the snacks? The chicken inbetween could save you from nasties! I'd be leaving the skin on too, keep the fats up.

Sounds like you are in the right frame of mind to succeed, excellent that you are not bothered by the scales, lots of us on here too hung up on them.

Look forward to reading your posts

 

[Jonsgirl80]

Hi and welcome.

Yep teeney is right.

no need to avoid snacking - if you are hungry eat something (legal)!

tomatoes and red onion are quite high in carbs for induction - although i know some of the more recent atkins books say you can have them they are best limited to small quantities if you can (spring onion is better than normal onion carb - wise)

Well done on making a start and on the exercise.

Good luck with your loss x

 

[ladyfelsham]

Hi Laura and welcome

Agree with the others - also watch the carbs in pesto, some can be really high (they also add sugar arggghh!) -don't forget full fat mayo as a fab dressing

 

[lollycakes]

Hi! Thanks for the replies.

Everything I've read so far says there's about 4g carbs in 4-5 cherry tomatoes - which is the amount I was using, sliced in half to make them go further. I'm also trying to avoid snacking too much because I want to reset the way I eat. Set meals, rather than grazing constantly. Not that I'm adverse to snacks, I just want to keep them to a minimum! I'd normally eat the skin of the chicken, but these were cold pre-cooked ones, and the skin was limp rather than crispy. Not so yummy!

The pesto was made from basil, olive oil, two types of cheese, pine kernals and some preservatives, but I mixed it with some extra olive oil to make it go further. I hope I've kept it induction-friendly! Although, if I'm entirely honest, my daily carb intake is probably closer to 30g than 20g. But I intend to stay around the 30g mark for as long as possible, so I hope it won't have a negative impact on weight loss. From what I've read, optimal weight loss comes from keeping carbs under 50g a day, so I think 30g will be ok, particularly as they're almost exclusively from veggies. But if anyone knows better, please tell me!

 

[lollycakes]

Day 2
Tuesday 3rd September 2013

Breakfast - 2 egg crepe-style omelette with spinach, feta, mozzarella & sliced spicy smoked sausage

Lunch - Chicken salad with lettuce, cucumber, a few cherry tomatoes, some olives, some sliced spicy smoked sausage, crumbled feta, pesto dressing

Dinner - Baked chicken thigh (skin on, sprinkled with dried chilli) with some steamed cauliflower & broccoli

I've also drunk nearly 4 litres of water so far.

Exercise-wise, I did more bicep curls & overhead presses using a 2 litre bottle in each hand. I'm getting a proper set of weights tomorrow so I'll be able to do deadlifts, squats, etc. as well. And I bought something called a Seated Pedal Exerciser. It's basically the pedals of a bike, which you can use anywhere. I've read up on it, and it seems to burn the same amount of calories as a regular stationary bike, but for only £15.95 + £4 P&P. So I definitely couldn't pass it up. Especially as actual stationary bikes cost around £200 and have a relatively low weight limit - unless you opt for something that costs more than £1000, which I cannot afford!

My mum said something today which kind of bummed me out. She made a comment about the size of my meals. I don't think she understands that my large plate of chicken & salad - which fills me up without leaving me feeling stuffed - is better for me than her small plate of pasta would be. I'm trying not to let it get to me, but it makes me feel as though, whatever I do, I'm never on the right path.

 

[Kat1e]

Hi there Laura sounds like a great start

I sometimes feel guilty when i'm on workshops - people see me eating a large delicious cooked breakfast, i load up my plate with loads of meats/salads off the lunch buffet and eat well for dinner but you know what - wheni eat well this way i lose weight and i'm not hungry for biscuits all day. The upside is looking and feeling good so go for it!

 

[ladyfelsham]

Just keep on keeping on and try and shut out comments from people, even those like your mum who are trying to help - just tell her to wait and see the results!

Top marks on the menu, by the way - good amount of fat, protein and veg

 

[lollycakes]

Thanks!

I keep worrying if I'm eating too many carbs, though I'm trying not to think about it too much. I figure, if I've cut out all processed carbs like bread, pasta, sugar, etc. as well as all grains & starchy vegetables, and I'm eating enough protein and drinking plenty of water, I should be ok.

I think that once I start working out - there was an issue with the set of weights I ordered, so they won't be here until Friday - I'll start to feel a little more confident. That said, this morning when I woke up, my urine definitely smelled... different! TMI, I know, but I've read that a change in the smell of urine is an indication of ketosis. I bought some of those Ketostix from Amazon, so when they're delivered, I'll start using them once a day just to keep an eye on things.

It's definitely hard to shut out all the negative comments, even when I know they come from a supportive place. I've spent a long time being incredibly unhappy with myself and I'm desperate to change that, but I'm also incredibly doubtful of my ability to actually lose the weight, so every little comment - regardless of how well meaning - feels like not only do I doubt myself, but everyone else doubts me as well! I'm not going to use that as a reason to give up, though.

Day 3
Wednesday 4th September 2013

Breakfast - As boring as it sounds, I had the exact same thing as yesterday! Trying to do Atkins on a budget can be tricky, but I find it more do-able if I stick to similar things each day. A spinach, cheese & smoked sausage omelette is pretty hard to beat, though.

Lunch - Again, the same thing as yesterday. I use the Tesco Everyday Value range of cooked tikka chicken. It's about £1.85 for 240g and it's 1g carbs for half a pack. I realise I could opt for plain chicken for 0g carbs, but the tikka spice makes it much more interesting flavour-wise!

Dinner - Yep, same as before. Except I added some green beans as well. I'll change it up eventually - I'm thinking about mixing the cooked chicken with the veggies, pouring over some cream cheese thinned out with water and a little garlic, and baked in the oven. I've made this before and it's so good! Especially if you top it with some grated parmesan for a crispy top.

As I type this, I'm drinking a cup of coffee made with sweeteners & cream and eating an Atkins Advantage Chocolate Decadence bar. They were on sale in Tesco - £1.95 down to £1.42. Still pretty expensive for what it is, but it's rich and fudgy and it's helping the need to comfort eat. I only bought two because that's all they had in store, but I think I'll cut the next bar into several pieces, because it really is very rich and chocolately. It's almost like a cross between a brownie and a bar of fudge. Surprising, considering it's only 2g carbs for a 60g bar!

I've got about another 1 1/2 litres of water to drink before I go to bed, and if I snack on anything later, it'll be a few slices of lean baked ham.

I've also bought 180 capsules of double strength Raspberry Ketones online, because I've read that they can help shed extra weight. They might be completely useless, but right now I'm willing to try anything - within reason! And I feel like, if I'm sticking to Atkins as much as I possibly can, and I start working out 3-5 days a week, the Raspberry Ketones can only help, right?

I think my biggest struggle is going to be dealing with the fact I'm an emotional eater. Upset? Eat. Happy? Eat. Bored? Eat. It's funny though, because it was the break down of a relationship that spurred me on to do this, but it's the break down of the relationship that makes me want to eat all the comforting things I shouldn't!

I'm waffling now, but it helps to have somewhere I can blah blah blah, even if no one's paying much attention!

 

[Kat1e]

My personal recommendation - enjoy the real food, have an extra helping of chicken or whatever, add cream, but avoid the atkins bars! They are evil, dont help sort your insulin, are notorius stallers and stop your tastebuds changing! Doesn't mean you shouldn't have in house - that's what they are for. I used to take to restaurants and special dinners and eat when others had dessert...when i was a year past their use by i finally threw them out lol

Keep going - this really does work. I still remember hubby saying - dont get so fixated/bought in; you will be disappointed well like a typical man he lost a ton but i got there and now we live this way

 

[lollycakes]

Eek! Are the bars really that bad? I'm glad I only bought a couple now! They said they were induction friendly and I wanted (needed!) something sweet, so I hoped an Atkins Advantage bar would curb that - which it did! But I also bought some sugar free jelly to make and I've got cream to use in coffee, so I hope those will help with the sweet/sugar cravings a little better.

I might buy a bar of Lindt dark chocolate instead. If I remember correctly, there's about 20g carbs in their 85% bar, so... 2g carbs for a single square? It doesn't sound as satisfying as the big 60g Atkins Advantage bar, but it's probably closer to real food!

Then again, if it's not in the house at all, I can't eat it no matter how much I want it! But I've always found that method throws me off course much quicker, because I find I get frustrated and as soon as I come across something - anything - sugary, I'll eat it.

 

[Jonsgirl80]

Hi Laura

we are all here paying attention so don't worry about waffling (if you want to see some real waffling you should check out my diary lol)

I am also an emotional eater I eat when I'm happy and I eat when I'm sad. I'm working really hard to find other things that make me happy instead of turning to food.

Unfortunately Katie is right about the Atkins bars - they're not very good for you and too much can give you some unpleasant symptoms so probably best avoided unless your desperate.

there are a few lovely recipes for chocolatey things floating around at the moment (in teeny's diary I think) chocolate bark, ganache or cheesecake may satisfy your cravings for something sweet without having to resort to the bars x

 

[lollycakes]

I'll definitely check out the recipes! I'm a sucker for sweet things - I love to bake and experiment with recipes - and when the craving hits it's so very, very hard to resist! But I'm assuming the cravings will start to disappear after a while? I don't want to become reliant on the Atkins bars, so if I can find another alternative, that will be fantastic.

I've actually made cakes using almond flour & powdered sweetener before and they were really good. The only issue I've found is that I'm the only person in my family that has ever done low carb/Atkins before - my mum and my sisters have always gone the calorie counting route - so even if I halve a recipe for low carb muffins or something, I still end up with too many and it's difficult not to eat the lot! That said, I saw a low carb muffin recipe where they were 1.5g carbs per muffin, so I suppose even if I ate all of them, that would only be 9g carbs. More than I should eat, of course, but far less than even just 1 regular muffin!

Low-Carb Muffins - Sugar-Free Muffin Recipe

 

[Jonsgirl80]

Yes the cravings will go soon, I have a massive sweet tooth generally but it has gone.

so much so that I made a batch of low carb chocolate mousses for a picnic we had last week I ate one but the rest ended up going in the bin as I just wasn't bothered about eating them. I have the occasional bit of sugar free jelly but that's about it.

i know what you mean about cooking when it's just for you. I'm the only one in my family that does Atkins, my hubby is a devotee of slimming world. I have to make sure I don't cook too much as it just goes to waste because I can't eat it all x

 

[lollycakes]

I used MyFitnessPal to check how many carbs I've been eating, and if it's correct - which I hope it is! - I've been eating between 25-30g. I was closer to 30g today because of the Atkins Advantage bar and the tablespoon of cream in my coffee, but they're not going to be daily things, so I think I can somewhat safely say I'm closer to 25g most of the time. That makes me feel a lot better. I was worried I was miscalculating and eating way too many carbs without realising it!

 

[lollycakes]

I'm looking forward to the reduction in appetite that ketosis brings. I love food which I don't necessarily think is a bad thing, but I'd rather love it in smaller portions!

 

[Jonsgirl80]

Me too! I reckon I eat a quarter of what I used to eat because I'm not really hungry - sometimes I have to remind myself to eat.

some people are more tolerant of carbs than others. Officially it's supposed to be 20g on induction but you should do whatever works for you. Perhaps see how you get on and look at cutting back a bit if your losses are not as good as you hoped?

 

[lollycakes]

That's exactly what I'm going to do. I figure if I eat plenty of veggies and my weight loss stalls, it gives me room to switch things up, cut back on some veggies and replace them with some extra protein. If, on the other hand, I can lose weight while eating 25-30g that's even better.

I've also noted that MyFitnessPal says I'm eating around 2050 calories a day. Is that too many? I think the recommendation for women is around 1500-1800 calories, but I know that the normal rules don't apply on Atkins. I've also been told by a certified personal trainer and many people who take fitness/health extremely seriously that most people under eat calories-wise. So, I'm hoping my calorie intake is on point. I'm a little wary of eating too much fat, but I suppose I could add an extra tablespoon or two of olive oil to my salad or over my veggies for dinner?

 

[lollycakes]

Actually, it was 2050 today because of the Atkins Advantage bar and the cream in my coffee. Without those, it's more like 1700-1800.

 

[Jonsgirl80]

Most of us don't worry about our calories at all ( i believe the odd one or two do restrict their calories i think - for whatever reason, but I never have and I've generally had good losses)

i think I eat quite a lot of fat too - certainly loads of butter and oil and quite a bit of full fat cheese and cream and fatty meats. It can be difficult for people to get their head round because it goes against everything we have always been told about weight loss and being healthy but it does work. A lot of people on here, myself included, eat coconut oil ( you can use it to cook with or in recipes), it's supposed to be very beneficial - perhaps that is something you could look into? X