Diet Update
Well, it’s been a week and as near as I can tell, I’ve lost over 8 pounds. That sounds like a lot but I’ve still got a long way to go. I am noticing that some of my jeans feel looser, though. I’ve started taking a vitamin supplement (as Atkins recommends) but I haven’t noticed any effect from that yet. I also harnessed some of this new-found energy yesterday and headed back to the gym for the first time in a week. I did my entire weightlifting workout PLUS two miles on the treadmill. Surprised even me! And what’s more – I think I’m going to go run again today… outside! Y’all have convinced me to give it a try. I’ve got a little two-mile route planned out through the neighborhood. I’ll let you know how it goes. Later: It didn’t go so well. I wore way too much clothing, and within 10 minutes I was sweating bullets. Next time I’ll forgo the sweat pants and long-sleeve T-shirt in favor of cooler attire.
On the food front, meals are getting less boring as I figure out how to cook more stuff with the limited carbs I’m allowed. I’ve become the Queen of Eggs. I fry ’em, I boil ’em, I make omelettes. Yesterday alone I made deviled eggs AND a chicken-egg salad. I’ve also decided that as I’m not drinking or eating sugar, I am allowed a new vice – Diet Coke. I always hated the stuff before, but somehow now that I’ve kicked the sugar habit it tastes a lot better. I think I prefer the Lemon version, even though it originally reminded me of Pledge. But I drink a can or two of that everyday and pretend that I’m getting lots of sugary goodness. It helps.
8 responses
8 pounds? Oh my goodness! In a week!
Hope you enjoy your outdoor run. I think it’s much more interesting to watch the world go by than pound the treadmill.
See, I have trouble in the real world. I like the treadmill because I can watch TV or listen to music and completely disassociate my mind from what my body is doing. That’s what allows me to run at all. When I run outdoors, I can’t zone out as easily as I’m trying not to trip, get run over, etc. Maybe it just takes practice though. I’ll try it a few more times before I give up.
That’s awesome – see what I mean about the kick in the pants weight loss it gives you? But, be CAREFUL – losing more than two pounds a week is unhealthy, so, make sure you go to the maintenance diet in week three- no matter how tempting. Your liver can get all f-ed. But, AWESOME!
TD – Actually in the newest version of the Atkins book, he says he recommends you lose no more than one pound a DAY. And he says that you can stay on induction as long as you want. I think the liver damage thing is something everybody hears but there aren’t any hard statistics on it.
i’m so torn on this atkins thing, kris. to this vegetarian ex-bio major, it sounds like a recipe for…well, bad stuff, but you seem to be doing well and feeling even better, so there’s really not much i can say other than keep drinking that water! i’d also make sure you mention the diet to your doc the next time you go in for a physical, just to let them know what’s what.
as for the running outside, i find that i get real hot real fast as well. i would suggest investing in some clothes that wick away moisture really well. this sort of gear can be kinda spendy, but unless you’re running five or six days a week, you can get away with a few pieces, as long as you do laundry often enough.
i also used to be incapable of running without some sort of walkman, but eventually weaned myself off of it since they were frowned upon by that 10K i did. finally, i tend to run in semi-busy parts of town for two reasons, (1) there’s less of a chance of someone messing with me and (2) i’m less likely to stop running if someone could be watching.
keep up the good work, woman!
I was torn on it too, B. In fact, my boss at Coachmen (where I worked summers and part-time through college) was on it and I just made fun of him 24-7. I knew a bunch of PW girls who were doing it too and I couldn’t believe they were so stupid. I was a total skeptic. Then I read that NYT article a weeks or so ago and it made me think how I had all those attitudes without anything concrete to really base it on. I mean, it blew my mind that all these scientists just wrote him off without even doing any research! We’ve all been buying the “low-fat” stuff for years without realizing how little dietary and nutritional study had been done on it. So I bought his book. Even if you don’t buy his scientific explanations (which sound pretty plausible to me), the one thing you can’t deny is that people have been doing this diet for thirty years and nearly all of them say it works. Nearly everybody knows somebody who’s lost weight on it. I was interested in all the backup information he presents too. I mean, the statistics show pretty clearly that the “obesity epidemic” happened right around the time the number of processed and refined carbohydrates in our diet exploded. There are also a number of famous studies about island nations where the population was quite healthy before colonization and the arrival of the “Western diet”, which now makes them all obese and diabetic. Also, as soon as you start counting how many carbs you eat a day it just staggers you. I read labels now, and you wouldn’t believe how much of the “99% fat free!” stuff is only fat free because they bulk the rest of it up with sugar. At any rate, I figured it was worth two weeks to test out. I’m not going to do any permanent damage in 14 days, right? And besides, I actually figure we’re eating way more healthy now. Even the most rigorous stage of Atkins (where we are) recommends three cups of veggies a day, so we’re having salads and squash and bok choy and green beans and all kinds of numminess that I didn’t really eat back in the “big bowl of pasta” days.
Man, I sound like an evangelist. Apologies. All that aside, I’ve been amazed that this is actually working. Every time I get on the scale I’m surprised to see the needle’s moved a little further to the left. I even jumped on the ones at the gym, the evil scales that have sat at the same number for the past four months. They moved four kilograms to the left. Can’t argue with that?
The only problem is that I’m still craving carbs and beer. I’d kill for a piece of garlic bread and a Mars bar. But somehow seeing positive results makes it worthwhile.
And I’ve definitely got more exercise energy. I’m actually looking forward to going to the gym today, because I know it’ll help me towards my goal and I’ll feel great afterwards. Weirdness.
I sound like a pod person. I promise I won’t try to have Dr. Atkins’ baby or anything. 🙂
And thanks for the running tips! I’ve got some nice shorts and tees for running; I just made the mistake of thinking “cool morning” = “wear lots of layers”. Plus it’s REALLY warm in the sun here. I’ll give it another shot tomorrow.
phew! i thought no carbs=no fruits or veggies. as for the no beer, think how cheap of a date you’re going to be when you decide to go off of [or modify] the diet! 😉
Nah, it’s not “no carbs”. You’re limited to 20 grams/day during the first two weeks, but then you work up from that gradually to find the level at which you can maintain you weight. You’re also supposed to make sure you get good carbs (i.e. veggies and nuts) as opposed to bad ones (glazed doughnuts *drool*).
And I’ve already decided to have a alcoholic splurge day next weekend for our housewarming party. No WAY I’m having lots of people over SOBER. 🙂