No more scale!

I am so bad at updating this.

Mainly because Atkins has been so easy lately. I feel like I am coasting. I cannot believe that I am on a "Diet" and since I cannot believe that I am on a diet, I am not constantly thinking about it.

This, in itself, is a huge victory.

I do need to mention one thing though. We did remove the scale and put it up so that we can no longer obsess about the numbers.





No matter how good you feel, once you get obsessed with the numbers, it's hard to just keep treating it as a way of eating for life.

Letter to Friends and Family

Dear Friends and Family,

Please stop calling this plan the Heart Attack Diet.

It is discouraging, undermining, and really makes you all out to be saboteurs.

I eat more vegetables on this way of eating than I ever have in my entire life. I eat healthier than I have in my entire life. No processed foods, tons of water, less diet coke.

Recognize this plan for what it is.

My only way that I have found for me to lose a significant amount of weight... and keep going.

Sincerely,

Me

Day 207 (13 restart): Don't let yourself get hungry...

Today I had to go to Virginia for work.

I did not plan very well and so by lunch time, I was exhausted, dehydrated, and starving.

What I noticed was that when I am in that condition, I want to eat every carb in the book.

But, of course, I resisted and my saving grace was that they brought my salad before the carb-filled appetizer my friend had ordered or else I may have caved.

As soon as I ate the salad, I felt better. My resolve was back and I had no desire to eat any of the "cheat" foods.

Lesson: Don't let yourself get hungry. There is no reason to on this diet. Bring pepperoni, bring cheese, bring boiled eggs, bring anything you have to. But keep yourself hydrated and keep yourself full.

Day 206: (Day 12 Restart) I can do anything for a day...

As you may have noticed already, I changed the days back to the actual number of days it has been since I started this blog. After thinking about it, I feel like this is a continuous journey with ups and downs, struggles and backpedalling, and I want to document all of it. I do not want to consider this a new path. This is my Atkins journey and I feel like if I am not honest, even in simply naming the days, it cannot be trusted in its entirety.

So, officially, Restart: Day 12, Actual Journey Day: Day 206, this hit me hard knowing that I have only lost 32 pounds in 206 days, but then I must remind myself that I did take a hiatus for April, May, and most of June... And realize that that comes with consequences

Today has been a struggle. I weighed myself to find that I have gone up a pound. Not a huge deal except that I was already seriously wanting a cupcake. or a donut. or a bagel.

or any other forbidden item you can think of.

And then I thought, hmm, this could possibly be because Aunt Flo is coming to town in the next day or so, that makes complete sense.

So, as a precaution, I went out and bought sugar free chocolate. I am not eating it unless I absolutely cannot resist temptation, but simply knowing that there is the option is fantastic. For some reason, this helps me stay on plan tremendously.

But, the point. I did a raw food diet for 30 days, a 30 day challenge, and what kept me going was knowing that it was only 30 days and I thought... I can do anything for 30 days.

Well. That has become my motto for most things in this life. I can do anything for a day. And by goodness, I can stick to plan for a day even if it is a struggle to do so.

Day 11. This diet fits ME. but it might not fit you.

Today I was reminded of how far I have come when it comes to dieting in general.

I used to get really upset when whichever diet I was on wasn't making me lose at least a pound a day and at the very minimum a half a pound a day.

It just wasn't worth it to me. I would say, it's going to take me forever to lose it this way, let's crash diet.

And now, here I am at 26 years old, once again trying to climb down that weight ladder.

But with Adkins, I don't feel that push. I don't feel like I did with other plans. If I don't lose that week, then that sucks, but okay. If I do manage to lose a ton, then woohoo, but let's not expect it all the time.

It is a strange feeling to be on a plan that is quite restrictive and to still be okay with not losing. They say that when you find your perfect mate, that you will just know and that even though he may have faults, you will be able to accept them.

That's kind of how I feel about a diet plan, or a way of eating. This just... fits for me. It just works... for me. And it may not work for you or anybody else you know, but. It works for me.

I need the restriction, the complete removal of certain foods from my diet, perhaps for always. But, some people are not like this, some people need moderation, they need the ability to eat whatever they want within reason.

I need this. I need to know that I can only eat meat, eggs, cheese, salad. that's about it. and truthfully, as you've seen in my past posts when I was following this plan, that is not all you can have.

But, people do gawk and stand amazed when they say, "So, you can't eat any bread?" and you say no. They can't believe that somebody can live without bread.

Not only can I live without bread, but my energy shoots up without bread, I am not groggy, I am not having constant, consistent, can't live without bread cravings, I am able to turn down cupcakes and ice cream and chocolate...

What makes this diet worth it is that once you get past the first few days, it doesn't feel a whole lot like deprivation or like you are constantly fighting yourself.

It feels like you are making a choice not to eat the cookie, and that's it. No going back and forth, no thinking about the cookie once it's out of your sight. It is like...

It's like... this way of eating... actually gives you back the control that you should have over your food choices. It takes power away from the food and puts it back into your hands.

Though, I must still admit that I do like to smell those cookies sometimes. :)

Day 10. Going Low Carb in a Carb Filled World

Today I thought I would write about some lovely ways to stay low carb when on the go.

1. If you have a Jimmy John's, I do recommend that you try their lettuce wraps. You can get any sandwich made into a lettuce wrap. This is by far the most delicious option I have tried as far as converting a carb-filled meal into a low-carb meal.

2. Hardee's. This neat little fast food restaurant will convert any of their sandwiches, hamburgers, chicken dealios, into a low-carb version by simply switching out the bun for lettuce. Now, this does get kind of messy, so I recommend this only when you can sit down and eat it some place or when you are not driving.

3. Pepperoni. Who could ever leave this off the low-carb on-the-go list? It's easy, convenient, delicious. BUT addicting and something that should not be eaten on a consistent basis. One pack has over 1000 calories, so watch out, these are very easy to overdo it.

4. Cucumbers with Cream Cheese. This is a bit carb heavy, so you gotta be careful how much you eat, but, for a wonderful and healthy treat, just have sliced cucumbers with a bit of cream cheese spread on top, delicious. you can even make cucumber sandwiches with a bit of turkey.

5. Asparagus with cream cheese and turkey wrapped around the stalk. Mmmm... Once again, a little higher carb, but worth it in my book.

6. I almost never go anywhere without some snack cheeses. The kind I buy is called "Cow Pals" and it has 0 carbs per serving.

I am sure that there are several other places that serve low carb options on the go, but these are just my favorite options.

I have also found that if you go to a pizza place, your only option doesn't have to be a chicken caesar salad or a salad with ranch or any of that. A lot of places can cook the toppings separate from the pizza crust. When they can do this, I will order like a supreme pizza without the crust and without the sauce on top of a bed of salad greens and eat it with pesto or olive oil and sometimes even bring in my own low carb marinara.

There are so many options, you just have to know how to find them. :)

Day 9. - Is this a test?

Over the past two days, I feel very much like life is testing me. Maybe not so much life as just food.

I have not cheated once so far. And this has been largely due to the fact that cravings disappear after the first few days.

BUT. Yesterday, my boss for my marketing research job filled up the kitchen with new food. wonderful, glorious, fat-filled, sugar-filled food.

Mainly, and remember, I am doing this by memory, Mainly Milky Ways, Snickers, Twix bars, honey buns, breakfast breads, bananas, chips, cokes, pizza, donuts...

So, it was very difficult to just walk away from that. And then, today, at the ACS, our kitchen was filled with more donuts, cupcakes, etc. All of these just sitting there on the counter.

This is when it really helps to just focus. And just think, this is worth it. I do not need a donut. A donut is what got me to where I am today.