# Opinions wanted



## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

I am going to use this as my way of holding myself accountable for my diet. Please feel free to join in or if you have any tips or suggestions for better alternatives please feel free to say so. I been working on my meal plan for my first week of Atkins. This is my 3rd attempt at Atkins and hopefully this time I'm more successful. So here it goes,tomorrow's meals will be:
Breakfast: 3 eggs from my chickens,scrambled and topped with cheddar cheese
Lunch: salad with leafy greens, hard boiled eggs,cubed cheese and bacon
Dinner: baked salmon with a avacado and cilantro "salsa"


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## MELQ (Feb 27, 2011)

sounds yummy ! remember not to dwell on foods you give up. say to yourself - I can have it, I just don't want it


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

Studies indicate your gut bacteria determine your food likes. You may benefit from the recent research into the gut biome.


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

MELQ said:


> sounds yummy ! remember not to dwell on foods you give up. say to yourself - I can have it, I just don't want it


Great advice


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

Darren said:


> Studies indicate your gut bacteria determine your food likes. You may benefit from the recent research into the gut biome.


Interesting,I haven't heard about that


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## NRA_guy (Jun 9, 2015)

My wife and I decided to do the NutriSystem diet a few years ago.

They ship you 3 meals per day and snacks. You can eat all the salad and fruit you want as I recall.

The food was not great tasting but it was enough to fill me up.

We lived on NutriSystem for about 6 months.

I lost 30 lbs; my wife lost little if any weight.

I never regained the weight back and now I eat whatever I want.

Men lose weight easier and faster than women.

I think that it's more about reducing the AMOUNT of food that you eat, rather than WHAT you eat.

And exercise is good, but you won't lose weight unless you also reduce your food intake for a lengthy period.


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

Started the morning out with two hard boiled eggs and lemon water.


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

Only day 4 and down 5 pounds. I know it's water weight but still I'm excited. Definitely having hard time going with out pop but I refuse to give in


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## Skamp (Apr 26, 2014)

I'll ask a simple question first. Are you taking a multivitamin?


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

Skamp said:


> I'll ask a simple question first. Are you taking a multivitamin?


Yes I am


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## Skamp (Apr 26, 2014)

Do you have, or desire, any way to track those micronutrients that you are supplementing?


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## ShannonR (Nov 28, 2012)

Keeping extremely busy and away from the kitchen helps me alot. I know it's difficult with kids though...


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## Elffriend (Mar 2, 2003)

Stay hydrated because you do lose a lot of water in the beginning, especially on a low carb diet. And sometimes people misinterpret thirst as hunger.

I can eat a salad every day if I have different dressings for it, so stock up on high fat, low carb dressings or recipes to make your own.

Be ready for snack attacks. One of the things about Atkins is that you are never supposed to be hungry. If you feel like eating, EAT. Just make sure it is something allowed during induction. I personally don't like hard boiled eggs, but I know fellow Atkins followers who always have some on hand. Some folks keep pre-cooked bacon, pepperoni, different kinds of cheese etc in the fridge just so they can have some quick to grab.


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

Skamp said:


> Do you have, or desire, any way to track those micronutrients that you are supplementing?


Not really,I'm a simple person


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

ShannonR said:


> Keeping extremely busy and away from the kitchen helps me alot. I know it's difficult with kids though...


Kids are snack hounds,lol


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

Elffriend said:


> Stay hydrated because you do lose a lot of water in the beginning, especially on a low carb diet. And sometimes people misinterpret thirst as hunger.
> 
> I can eat a salad every day if I have different dressings for it, so stock up on high fat, low carb dressings or recipes to make your own.
> 
> Be ready for snack attacks. One of the things about Atkins is that you are never supposed to be hungry. If you feel like eating, EAT. Just make sure it is something allowed during induction. I personally don't like hard boiled eggs, but I know fellow Atkins followers who always have some on hand. Some folks keep pre-cooked bacon, pepperoni, different kinds of cheese etc in the fridge just so they can have some quick to grab.


Beginning of week a spent few hours prepping snacks and put them in fridge. So far celery with cream cheese has been my saving grace. Too many hard boiled eggs isn't good for anyone within 5 miles of me,lol


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## ShannonR (Nov 28, 2012)

Cheese and turkey breast in fridge for easy grabbing right now, also a variety of fruit and a bunch of squash from the garden which I enjoy frying up often. Hard-boiling some eggs to keep on hand sounds like a great idea too!!

I think a lot of the time I eat just because I am bored and don't really know what to do with myself since moving to town. There aren't any goats to chase here, or fences to fix, or turkeys to argue with........


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

ShannonR said:


> Cheese and turkey breast in fridge for easy grabbing right now, also a variety of fruit and a bunch of squash from the garden which I enjoy frying up often. Hard-boiling some eggs to keep on hand sounds like a great idea too!!
> 
> I think a lot of the time I eat just because I am bored and don't really know what to do with myself since moving to town. There aren't any goats to chase here, or fences to fix, or turkeys to argue with........


I bet you're going crazy trying to fill your time. I too am a boredom snacker


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## HermitJohn (May 10, 2002)

Good luck. Hopefully as they say, third time is a charm. And yep, cutting back on carbs without something like diabetes hanging over your head, very difficult. And carbs are cheap, addictive, and profitable, and EVERYWHERE, so hard to get away from them, short of being a hermit.


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## NRA_guy (Jun 9, 2015)

The best way to avoid eating junk food is to not buy it (and don't cook it) in the first place.

Corollary: Never go to the grocery store hungry.


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

NRA_guy said:


> The best way to avoid eating junk food is to not buy it (and don't cook it) in the first place.
> 
> Corollary: Never go to the grocery store hungry.


Yes I've learned to eat before going shopping


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## emdeengee (Apr 20, 2010)

After years of struggling with weight I was finally able to lose it and keep it off by simply never allowing myself to get really hungry. I ate/eat three meals and up to three snacks. You do not have to increase your food intake but simply divide up your food so that you have something to eat between breakfast and lunch and lunch and supper. And keep something back for those times when you get hungry after supper. If you are never really hungry you do eat less.

Also have patience. Changing your eating habits - whichever food plan you decide to follow - takes time. At least 3 weeks to get out of old habits and then the longer you are eating new foods the less you want the old foods.

Portion sizes are vitally important not just to keep within caloric counts but to ensure that you are getting the proper nutrition. I still weigh or measure everything. I purchased long handled measuring spoons to use as serving spoons and this works great at controlling portion sizes.


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## katlupe (Nov 15, 2004)

Oregon1986 said:


> I am going to use this as my way of holding myself accountable for my diet. Please feel free to join in or if you have any tips or suggestions for better alternatives please feel free to say so. I been working on my meal plan for my first week of Atkins. This is my 3rd attempt at Atkins and hopefully this time I'm more successful. So here it goes,tomorrow's meals will be:
> Breakfast: 3 eggs from my chickens,scrambled and topped with cheddar cheese
> Lunch: salad with leafy greens, hard boiled eggs,cubed cheese and bacon
> Dinner: baked salmon with a avacado and cilantro "salsa"


They say three times is the charm! I started out on Atkins myself, but now follow the Ketogenic plan which is low carbs and high fat. Never felt better. The science behind this is that fat satisfies you and causes you not to be hungry. Honestly I forget to eat sometimes. If you are hungry you eat and there is no worry about eating junk food because once you become "fat adapted" you won't even desire it. I hope you do well starting out. Many times people quit because they slipped, but the key is to just get back onto it.


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

katlupe said:


> They say three times is the charm! I started out on Atkins myself, but now follow the Ketogenic plan which is low carbs and high fat. Never felt better. The science behind this is that fat satisfies you and causes you not to be hungry. Honestly I forget to eat sometimes. If you are hungry you eat and there is no worry about eating junk food because once you become "fat adapted" you won't even desire it. I hope you do well starting out. Many times people quit because they slipped, but the key is to just get back onto it.


Thank you. Are you doing it long term or just as a means of loosing few extra pounds? I've found I'm rarely hungry and I actually crave water


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

Friday is weight in day and I'm actually excited because I feel better already. I'm proud of myself for not giving up when I pass cookies that I swear are screaming my name or when the craving for dew hits me and knocks me on my butt


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

emdeengee said:


> After years of struggling with weight I was finally able to lose it and keep it off by simply never allowing myself to get really hungry. I ate/eat three meals and up to three snacks. You do not have to increase your food intake but simply divide up your food so that you have something to eat between breakfast and lunch and lunch and supper. And keep something back for those times when you get hungry after supper. If you are never really hungry you do eat less.
> 
> Also have patience. Changing your eating habits - whichever food plan you decide to follow - takes time. At least 3 weeks to get out of old habits and then the longer you are eating new foods the less you want the old foods.
> 
> Portion sizes are vitally important not just to keep within caloric counts but to ensure that you are getting the proper nutrition. I still weigh or measure everything. I purchased long handled measuring spoons to use as serving spoons and this works great at controlling portion sizes.


What are your go to snacks


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## emdeengee (Apr 20, 2010)

I am a lacto,(dairy) ovo (eggs) pesco (fish) vegetarian and I also really like my carbs - especially bread, pasta, rice and fruit. I did the Atkins plan about 25 years ago but it did not work well for me. It worked wonderfully well for my Dad. He lost 30 lbs in about 6 weeks and never gained it back. However sometimes I see that I need to improve my protein intake.

My snacks are always small. Just enough to take the edge off the rumbly tummy. They include fruit - staying within the daily recommended allowance - and sometimes 1/3 cup of plain yogurt with the fruit especially when I have berries. Nuts and seeds or all kinds ( almonds, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, cashew, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and hemp seeds) and this includes a teaspoon to half a tablespoon of peanut butter on a whole grain cracker or with half a banana. 

I also love to eat what we call " dippy veggies". Lots of low calorie veggies cut into finger food sizes and dipped into any salad dressing that you like. I mostly go for olive oil, red wine vinegar and Dijon mustard. This takes a long time to eat and really fills you up. I also sometimes eat a hard boiled egg and when our friend makes his salmon jerky I like to chew on that. When my Dad was on Atkins my Mom made a lot of meat jerky for him to snack on and he liked it so much that he continued to eat this as a snack. She never used soy sauce or liquid smoke.

In the winter I will often have a bowl of veggie soup in the afternoon - very low in fat and calories - or a small bowl of bean chill. By small I mean about half a cup of chill. At first small portions seem, well, really small, but eventually you do get used to eating less.


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## Oregon1986 (Apr 25, 2017)

emdeengee said:


> I am a lacto,(dairy) ovo (eggs) pesco (fish) vegetarian and I also really like my carbs - especially bread, pasta, rice and fruit. I did the Atkins plan about 25 years ago but it did not work well for me. It worked wonderfully well for my Dad. He lost 30 lbs in about 6 weeks and never gained it back. However sometimes I see that I need to improve my protein intake.
> 
> My snacks are always small. Just enough to take the edge off the rumbly tummy. They include fruit - staying within the daily recommended allowance - and sometimes 1/3 cup of plain yogurt with the fruit especially when I have berries. Nuts and seeds or all kinds ( almonds, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, cashew, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and hemp seeds) and this includes a teaspoon to half a tablespoon of peanut butter on a whole grain cracker or with half a banana.
> 
> ...


I love dippy veggies,lol. Tomorrow I weight in and I'm feeling good. My clothes are already fitting looser and I've got a lot of energy


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