Wow I see some great things on here I was thinking about starting the Carb Addict or Akins but see after research it is not great to be to be primarly no carbs. It seem the Carb Addict was good because of reward meal but it concerns me about ketosis. I went to doc and he said my cholestrol was up Trig up and I am pre diabetic. I am changing my lifestyle totally by exercising but needed a good eating plan. I noticed that when I eat lots oc carbs I have more issues therefore I figure going semi low carb would be better than to low carb. I noticed Michaels Daily apple seems like it makes sense. I didn't like that I could not have oatmeal in the morning on Carb Addicts but you can have anything for reward meal. I feel I need some cards due to intense working out in the morning and I also like to eat with family in the evening it is important to me do you have any advice on what is the best low carb plan where there is some carbs but not so low that you feel weak . Thanks so much

Do more research, read, explore, then pick a plan. I can't tell you what plan is best for you. But any plan that has a "cheat day" is going to unrail you. Don't do it until you have a handle on your weight and your new lifestyle.

I do Atkins and eat my meals with the family. I prepare them a side dish thats higher carb. and I don,t eat that dish. One one night a week they have a really high carb. pasta meal . I prepare myself a nice huge taco salad on that night. Or if its pizza I take my pizza topping and dice it up over chicken breast and nuke it.

SOme of your information in your first post is not entirely correct. Atkins is NOT meant to be no carbs. At the lowest he want folks to eat 20-3 carbs a day. Specifically, this means 3 cups of green leafy salads OR 2 cups of fresh leafy greens and 1 cup of other vegies form the legal list ( low carbs like green beans, cukes, tomato, etc).

I tried the Carb Addict. Make fresh homemade lemon custard pudding for 4 nights of desserts. By the second night I was eating dessert 2,3 and 4. CA invoked cravings for me, and in other threads we have discussed this can be an effect in some/most people.

Many recent studies have shown that glucose and insulin are a real culprit in the modern diseases that the SAD has created: gout, rhumatoid arthristi, alzheimers, prostrate cancer, and the list goes on. http://www.nutritionandmetabolism.com/content/8/1/75

After about 2 weeks on the introductory level of Atkins, my cravings go away. THe longer I am LC, the fewer cravings plague me. Usually triggered by something I eat that I shouldn't have. Perhaps too much cheese, or nuts.

After 2 weeks, while we can continue with induction, he would like people to add a little more variety to the diet. He discusses this as a personal choice. THere are studies that support eating only meat as a food source, so only meat is a real possibility. Grass fed beef and organic grass fed chicken offers good all meat diets. ( I raise chickens. ) SInce you are new to all this from the sound of your first post I would like to make a few suggestions.

Use the basic 3 meal plan of the CA; eat the foods of Atkins, and when you can don't eat in the 2 hours before bedtime as metabolic effects come i nto play here.

Eliminate the sugar foods and find substitutes for the ones you liked. HIghly flavored meats; add cheese to broccali, that sort of thing. ANd find LC recipes that hit the spot. I found giving up desserts to be difficult; now I make yummy LC cheesecake etc to keep my taste buds happy.

Also, be aware that you will likely need supplement support on LC. THis is huge metabolic shift for the body. It is all very complicated but basically you will need replacement for potassium and chloride ( lite salt) magnesium and water. THis is a diruetic diet and will pull out a lot of water, with it goes ketones attached to one of the minerals and that pulls out more water. DRINK. Water is best. I limit myself to 2 liters of diet drinks, teas, water,etc.

THe first few months are challenging. Your eating habits are being changed; your body is having to adapt to the changes.

My doctors never said anything to me about pre-diabetes; I don't have all the symptoms I guess that is why they don't say anything. I do know when my BP rises to 120/82 they still don't say anything. I figured it out for myself. My BP is better when I stay LC, it creeps up if I stray. lol. My chol and trigly are good too.

Sorry this is sooo long. Atkins book is hundreds of pages, and I have been doing Atkins for 12 years. ANd read and tried a number of other LC plans.

I highly recommend the current book by the other doctors, and an old edition by Atkins himself. JAM PACKED. I re-read it as a resource and it has helped me when I hit a problem. He has seen it all. Some of the other LC plans are well worth reading for the content in general. I spent a summer trying several of the different LC plans and ended back at Atkins. IT works for me. The ONLY diet that has ever helped me lose weight and feel great.

This has been my experience and is my opinion. I hope you will read all the responses and find a path that is right for you. OH, and start a journal, it really helps to keep a history of what you eat and how you feel. GOod luck!!

By way of translation, SAD = Standard American Diet. I used to wonder about that one even after I had learned all the other acronyms.
Good information there, good luck.

Ms. Arielle,
"Water is best. I limit myself to 2 liters of diet drinks, teas, water,etc. "
Two liters every how many days?

Former Carbohydrate Addict dieter here - did it for a LONG time. With very little success. Every day felt like deprivation because I never got the cravings under control - I'd suffer all day with food I found unsatisfying and then binged. Agree with the above poster who was eating several desserts - my weird "thing" was chocolate squares on graham crackers. I'm doing Atkins right now and like it - but I also lost 40 pounds on Rick Gallops "GI diet" and that sounds like it might suit you well. It allows good quality carbs, and good quality fats. I found it pretty easy to do and I'm NOT a person with much self control.

I'd be leery to try any plan that let me have food as a reward. Food is fuel. nothing more, nothing less. Yet many of us use it for emotional reasons. The smallest amount of wheat or sugar send me into cravings hell.
It's like telling an alcoholic they can have a reward drink once a day.
Atkins induction phase is designed to test your metabolic resistance, you can quickly move up the carb ladder after that.
When i restarted, I didn't do induction levels. I had a good idea of where i needed to start based on past experience. By sticking to the induction food list (sans cheese and cream) I naturally eat 30-50 carbs a day. And I lose at a decent pace doing that.

I've never felt weak on LC. It takes me about 4 days to get into ketosis, I'm cravings free and feeling great.
If you're pre-diabetic, your body may take a few extra days to adjust to the lower blood glucose levels though.
Is there a particular reason you feel you need oatmeal in the morning or more carbs to exercise?