Hi Mike,

I can't improve on TrainerDan's advice. Like Dave Bing, who answered you in the Atkins forum, I'm not having a problem with low carbs and heavy resistance.

But I just wanted to add a suggestion from my own personal experience. Before you start lifting, MEASURE yourself. I lost weight steadily from the end of June to the end of January (87 pounds) while completely inactive. Then I started both cardio and resistance training. Some six weeks later I weighed in again and just about went crazy when I saw that I had gained 6 - 9 pounds in the time that I had been exercising.

It's almost certainly muscle (and water). I can tell because my jeans fit about the same. But I was extremely upset when I saw the scale move in the wrong direction. Actually, I cried.

So in order to be able to interpret your results from lifting : MEASURE, MEASURE, MEASURE. If your lifting is sucessful you will gain weight while losing fat. Believe me, you'll want the measurements to be able to convince yourself of that fact.

Wa'il has had the same results from weight lifting: he is gaining weight while losing fat. Check out his recent journal entries.

Allison