I found this website because my hubby was put on a low carb diet by his dr. He's only been on it since Tuesday but has lost 6lbs already. I'm thinking about giving it a go myself but where I'm a veggie, most of my diet is carbs. I'm planning on trying to start on the 15th of May and would like to try to get together as many meal options etc as possible and also research into the diets before I start. I'm a really picky eater, I don't eat mushrooms or eggs but I will eat the occasional bit of haddock, chicken breast or turkey breast. Anyone have any suggestions as to what plan would be best for me and where I can find some menu ideas? Thanks

Hi! Your hubby's doctor must be quite enlightened! Good for him/her. And good for you for supporting him and being willing to change your eating habits, too. I think the best way to start, especially if you're not that concerned with your own weight loss, is to figure out what has to go: potato, flour and sugar products. Then build on stuff that's left over. Lots of veggies, some low carb fruit if you want, nuts, peanut butter, cheese, fish, etc. I highly recommend tofu or other soy products - they taste fantastic and soy is good for you.

As for menu ideas, go to the section with recipes. There's a ton! These folks are really creative cooks.

Have fun - low-carbing will probably make you feel a lot better.

Hello annaL!

I'm glad you asked!

That was my dilemma when I first started thinking about low-carbing. I've been low-carbing since February and though I haven't lost a lot of weight, I've lost inches and feel terrific!

I bought the Atkins book but ended up giving it to my carnivore sister. I know some people have managed to do it while being vegetarians but I didn't find it particularly veggie-friendly (I don't eat anything that had a mother, as a co-worker once said, except eggs).

I've heard that Protein Power and Carbohydrate Addicts Diet (my sister's current flavor of the month...) are vegetarian-friendly. Every plan has its quirks so you might want to check these both out and see if they appeal to you (they're fairly popular and should be in any good bookstore).

I'm doing The Schwarzbein Principle myself. If you'd like to learn more about it, go to www.schwarzbeinprinciple.com. She has a 4-week menu plan all laid out especially for vegetarians, and she has a chapter in her book devoted to vegetarians, and she has a couple of patients whom she discusses in her book who are vegetarians, and she has a vegetarian cookbook! Now that's what I call respect!

Be warned, though, she's a bit of a purist. She's against artificial sweetners, ketosis, processed foods, and goes so far as to recommend you eat mayonnaise made from cold-pressed oil and organic vegetables. I don't quite go so far as buying only organic vegetables (when my bosses raise my salary 200%, then I'll buy only organic vegetables! ) but I've gone so far as to make my own mayonnaise from cold-pressed canola oil because I couldn't find any at the store that didn't have sugar in it! (I'm a little anal about things, though, so I'm no example...). It's worth thumbing through the book just to get an explanation of all of this stuff.

Basically you just have to check those plans out and decide for yourself what looks good to you.

HTH!

Tal

I've got a hold on her book and veggie cookbook at my library, I just have to wait until they come in. Thanks for your help!!