So, i know there are people who can't handle what i'm about to say but i'm in the war-zone for a reason.

Basically, i've come here because i've been questioning information and whether this L/C thing is going to work and it has me really thinking about my choices and because i frankly feel a bit depressed in general (maybe my TOM or hormones or whatever). But instead of raging them on my husband or just being a mope i decided to research them out. It kinda made it worse, but at least i can decide if i'm at peace with the results


I decided to do a lot of research because i noticed, on this forum and another L/C forum i regular, that many people experience minimal weight loss during induction (for atkins) or after induction they stall, or they end up having to count calories or reduce their fat intake or even HAVE to exercise to keep a steady weight loss/week or they even gain weight or fail. For these reasons, i kept asking myself, if they are counting calories, exercising and reducing fat, what on earth makes this way of life any different than any other diet?

My results lead me to some interesting articles of which had many different results. Mostly though the ones that caught my eye talked about how, L/C really ISN'T different than any other diet in many ways.

The factors behind why we lose weight on L/C are basically the same concept as any other diet.

1. you restrict your intake of certain foods.

By restricting your intake of certain foods, whether it be calories (just eating less foods) or removing carbs or eating low fat, you are still simply doing just that -reducing. Any reduction in food types or amounts will result in water weight loss. In 80% of food consuption based diets (that is not pills or surgery or fasting) you will always lose water weight.

Looking back on all the diets i've tried, it's true i lost weight (actually on some more weight than i've lost so far L/Cing) in the first week usually around 8-10lbs.

2. weight loss stall at or around 2 weeks or a month.

As with most diets (jenny criag, weight watchers, atkins etc..) you stall because your body realizes what you are doing and starts to adjust accordingly to the process at which it now has to function.

I am on day 12 of induction on day 7 of induction i'd lost 7lbs and though i told myself i would not weigh until after my TOM was over i snuck in and weighed myself anyway. I have gained 3lbs back, so in 12 days i've lost 4lbs. (not good in my history of dieting by any means) even if i factor in a 5lb addition for TOM retention that's only 8lbs in 12 days. (1lb in the last 5 days). My body has always been one massive stall. Before L/C i usually ate 1 meal a day 6 days outta the week and 3 on a weekend day. I maintained my heavy weight (give or take 5lbs) for the last 3-4 years unless i dieted.

Stalls can be cured on most diet plans however. You change up the routine, people suggest cutting this adding that, exercise (yeah right lol).

3. Weight gain or weight loss goal reached.

This is direct from one article i read:

"A low-carb diet does not necessarily mean a low-calorie diet. While many low-carb dieters experience quick weight loss at the beginning of their diet, the initial water loss that accompanies a low-carb, high protein diet may be causing the numbers on your scale to go down. After your initial period of weight loss, or water loss, consuming more calories than your body requires, regardless of the type of food, causes your body to store the excess calories as fat. Extra calories contribute to weight gain. In order to lose weight and keep it off while on a low-carb diet, it is important to choose low-calories foods that help you stick to your daily caloric range and avoid foods high in calories and fat."

For me this makes sense. You cant expect to eat anything your heart desires even if it's on an "approved" list. Every body is different and most bodies (especially one stuborn like mine) will find a way to go back to it's "comfortable" place storing fat, no matter what form it comes in, be it Fat, Protein, Carbs etc.

One of the main assumptions of why L/C people reach their weight goals (most of which were due to "over eating" weight gain in the first place) is because of this (from another article):

"Long term, low-carb dieters may also find the reason they're losing weight is the lack of variety in foods allowed. There's less interest in those foods, therefore there's less intake and fewer calories consumed. When dieters go off the low-carb diet, the weight comes back- end of story."

This is EXACTLY what i am experiencing now. I am so bored with the same 8 things i can eat (and afford) that i not only am not hungry (because protein does take longer to break down) but also because i'm totally dis-interested in my options. This completely works for people who eat, just to eat. But i never had this issue before L/C i wasn't hungry then either.

Simply lowering what i put in my mouth does not result in weight loss for me. The only time in my life i ever lost weight and maintained the weight loss was when i worked a physical labor job (in 110 degree Alabama weather) and kept the job for 2 years, i lost 20lbs in a month, and an additional 30 over the first year. I weighed around 200lbs (give or take 5lbs) the entire time i worked that job, and i still only ate maybe 1x a day (but i did drink alcohol a lot back then on the weekends i was in my early 20's). My point being that if L/C only works for the weak-willed maybe i've chosen the wrong path?

There were ZERO articles pro or con about L/C diets that didn't mention that eventually yes you will have to cut calories (that part for me is irrelevant). But there was an article that said that over consuption of Protein may result in weight GAIN as stated here:

"People on low-carb diets may gain weight if they eat too many fatty foods without exercising enough to burn off the extra calories. If you replace your carbs with fat, you're getting 5 more calories per gram than you were before. Without regular exercise, those fatty foods can add up to extra pounds. Constipation can also be a result of a low-carb diet, and weight gain. It is important to remember fat and protein can both be converted into glucose if necessary through a process called gluconeogenesis and thus spike blood sugar levels and cause you to store this glucose if needed for bodily function."

I find myself pretty much 'force-feeding' the fat and some of the protein. I make a large salad and pick around the chicken and bacon, and am stuck with a plate of meat, of which i will choke down 1/2 of and toss the rest. The only place i don't slack on is butter/marg consuption, although i don't really eat many foods that require it anymore therefore i eat much less butter than i did before L/Cing.

I have 2 more days left on induction. I feel tired all the time, the atkins flu (though i'm pretty much over the worst of it now) kicked my but, i feel depressed, i have a sweet tooth that i never ever had before L/C (i think mostly from the desire to taste something outside the list for variety's sake). I want to feel excited, energized and proud of what i've done thus far, but i don't. I feel lackluster in my results and in the prospect of a future on L/C. I've even read that a LOT of people never make it past adding so much as 30-40 carbs/day to their diet to maintain. This leave very little room for variety i'm sure. It truly isn't the food i miss, so much as my mood i miss.

This isn't so much a list of factual statements meant to offend or even pursuade anyone, they are simply my findings, and my mood at this time and the way i'm feeling sometimes it just helps to get things on paper. I also read that having a once a month cheat meal is actually beneficial because it gives you something to look forward to, keeps you on the straight and narrow and lightens your mental stress for "dieting." In addition can actually keep your body having to produce extra energy to deal with the appearance of something new to break down, helping you from stall. I know for some cheating just means a snowball effect, and right now i don't need to cheat or even "care" about cheating.. but that in itself is the problem.. i just don't care. ... *sigh*