ARGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

O.K., I feel better . Just got control of a recent carb binge that has me up 10 pounds and I'm feeling a bit PISSED OFF. Nothin worse than feeling like you've got a few pounds to shed all while battling a carb addiction bad enough to put a full grown horse into a sugar induced coma.

I can't take this Atkins up and down crap any more though. I keep thinking Atkins is the right way because the cravings *DO* go away, but at the same time I feel like complete crap and horribly deprived the entire time I'm "in control". Atkins robs me of my sense of humor and depression is unavoidable. I loose to much weight as well so I think it's time to start thinking about my life here.

I'm pretty scared to start this WOE but I've gotta do something. I've gotten my CM meals down. Two TBLS of oil with a 6oz peice of white meat chicken breast salad. Getting all the calories I need each day is important to me, if fats get to low catobalism of muscle tissue is to great.

I believe I'll do carb cycling and eat a reward meal every other day as I think that's all I really need. Any advice on finding RM limits as far as carbhydrate amounts and types go? Any words of caution? Thanks all, wish me luck!!

Welcome! CAD really works if you follow the book as planned. I really push the limits so it is a Maintenance WOE for me and not a weight loss one, which is okay cause I am not looking to lose weight, but as you can see from the other posters here, it works very well for weight loss if you follow the plan. I chose CAD because I needed to be freed from the mood swings, carb fog, sugar addiction and reactive hypoglycemia that plagued me before this WOE. Plus heart disease and diabetes runs in my family. Have you read the book? CAD is more relaxed, CALP focuses more on balancing the reward meal. I try to follow CAHHP (Carb Addict's Healthy Heart Program) /CALP but usually end up doing more of a CAD reward meal. My advice is that you keep the CM's as clean and simple as possible, NO SNACKING, and keep the RM to under 60 minutes no matter what. I have had some of the most ridiculous RM's known to man and not even gained water weight the next morning. For 6 months I have maintained 95-100 pounds (I'm a very small framed 5'3" 20yo female) without excessive exercise. When I fitday'ed I averaged 1800-2200 calories and 80-100 net carbs. I don't advocate using the RM as a binge though, and that is my downfall. When I am going through stress/emotional eating I can pack 3000 calories and 300 carbs into my reward meal, and that is not healthy, nor is that following the CAD plan! You will not get your insulin in balance by doing that, and you will most likely feel like crap. I have done that several times this week and boy do I feel like crap. I am trying to get back on track though. The good thing is that it is SOOOOO much easier to get back on plan than on other plans like Atkins (in my opinion) because there is nothing "forbidden". No deprivation, no counting carbs or calories. And once you're on plan for 3 or 4 days, I swear your cravings and hunger are gone, and some days you don't even feel like eating breakfast or lunch or sometimes carbs at RM. You have to remind yourself to eat! But I always eat 2 CM's and my carbs at RM anyway so I don't kill my metabolism. Anyway, good luck and visit the boards for support or stop by my journal if you have any more questions... btw, WOWWWW you have lost a lot of weight, congratulations on your success!

Welcome to the easiest "diet" ever. Just keep your CM's clean and you should have no problems.

Good luck!!!

Have you read the book? CAD or CALP? CALP suggests balancing your RM 1/3 protein, 1/3 LC Veggies, and 1/3 carb. I don't always do this but when I do I feel better

You have come a long way! Wow! You are an inspiration. CAD is really good about controlling cravings if you stick to it by the book. It really works!!

Yup what they said, plus I forgot to stress: check labels! Don't assume that something is CM friendly. If in doubt, save it for RM. MSG is everywhere. And save your carb for last in your Reward meal. Tell us how your first day goes!

Don't be scared! If you do this right, you'll love it. As others have said, get hold of a copy of the book, stick to 2 CM meals in addition to your RM and don't do any snacking in between - CAD works because insulin response is governed by how frequently you eat as well as what you eat.



That sounds like a good idea. Don't worry too much about setting limits on carbs, just try to keep your plate balanced 1/3 protein, 1/3 LC Veggies, and 1/3 carb as Momto4boys says.

Good luck - and well done on the fantastic amount you've lost so far!

Wow, thanks for all the great replies guys . I feel right at home around here :^D.

I know I have an enormous amount of will power to work with but when your body is throwing all kinds of different signals and your emotions get thrown into the mix there's no real plan to get you on your feet when you feel you've tried everything and nothing but total depravation has worked. I know I'm not to blame for the carb craze I can get stuck in at times and I know how to be tough on a diet, but giving 110% to a diet that's starving my body is just no way to live!!!!

I can't believe it, but 4 months ago I cut out broccoli from my diet because I felt it was causing me to crave and I'd had never even heard of the CAD diet! Can you imagine how deprived I felt thinking I couldn't even eat broccoli if I wanted to keep myself even??, man was that a shocker for me. Glad to hear its not "all in my head" as my mom likes to tell me >:^(.

Hopefully this lifestyle is a fit, I still feel awful guilty when eating carbs and I think that's going to take quite some time to get rid of. I love eating those craving reducing meals though and look forward to getting creative :^D. I will make sure to check in and keep up to date with this forum.

I have both the books but I've been so diligent about keeping my cravings down that I've already got many meal plans ready for CM. I would like to know what you guys have been eating at your cm's? Is the amount of fats in your C/Ms an issue? I usually like to start off my day with about 2 tbls of MCT oil or Flax mixed into a bed of fresh lettuce, 5 or 6 oz of lean chicken breast (for protein) and believe it or not, MUSTARD!!. Call me a nut but mustard on a chicken salad with flax seed oil is to die for. Try it sometime!

I don't know if CAD would be much use for weight loss for me, but I'll most certainly give it a shot. At the very least I should be able to maintain on it, which is really all that counts since I know full well how to loose weight.

What are everyone's C/M meals like? Thanks all!! :^D

I have about 1/2 c. veggies and 4-5 oz. cooked protein. I try to keep it simple.

Well I've given CAD a shot and I'm pleased to say that the Hour rule works wonders!!!! It's great not feeling like crap the day after eating carbs. No water, my weight is back down to 180 and I feel clear headed! Loosing control is still an issue that will have to be figured out but at least there's a rule out there that will help with the weight gain and inability to function. I lost control yesterday, but I've been hypocaloric and I had not had carbs since last friday, kinna bad idea for someone with an ED so I asked for it.

*BUT* My "binge" was tiny compared to my "ah screw it who am I kidding, go all out" usual junk craze, and I kept it VERY even protein and veg wise which helped out a ton.

Sugar has to go somehow though, the damge it dose in such a short period of time is astounding. Anyone broken free from sugar? If only it didn't get stored as surface fat so darn quickly! Any advice/books on how to break the grips of sugar? (chocolate chip cookies=the death of me).

I have a friend who weighs 139 pounds at 5'11 who has a problem with sugar. He says he'll buy whole bags of cookies and tear'em up in one sitting and it makes him feel like crap for days! Even though he has a problem of being underweight he still has a sugar addiction battle that really effects his life. I'll have to get him on this diet!!

Hi BD, glad to see CAD is working for you!
I was skeptical at first before I tried it, but after the first few days I was a believer. My CMs are pretty much like Zuleikaa's- 4-6 oz protein (meat, eggs, cheeses or combinations of those), 1/2 cup veggies (certain vegs trigger me, so I don't have too many vegs), 1-2 tablespoons fats (usually straight oils or homemade dressings cause of MSG).

Regarding "breaking free" from sugar, I'm sorry to say that even on CAD, I have a sugary dessert every day. BUT the difference is, I don't drown myself in it, AND I really only have it because I can/because it is offered or because it is a nice way to end the meal. BUt for the other 23 hours of the day, I do not crave or obsess about sugar like I did pre-CAD. So although I am not sugar-free, I am sugar-addiction-free. Does that answer your question?

THat's so funny, I am just like your friend. I have always been underweight but a severe carb addict. I have a clinically diagnosed ED, binge eating disorder/compulsive overeating, and I have been to therapy and even been prescribed medication for it. It has helped a little (with addressing the emotional root of the problem) but the only thing that has controlled the frenzied carb craving and addiction has been CAD. I don't fall asleep in themiddle of the day anymore due to sugar spikes and crashes like I did pre-CAD, and I don't experience mood swings and carb fog like I did when my insulin was on a constant rollercoaster. I used to eat 3 boxes of cereal in one sitting and wash it down with a pint of ice cream. I am not THAT bad anymore. THe only time I "binge" on CAD is for emotional reasons, when I'm really depressed and under a lot of stress; and it has always been in the RM and I never really gain from it. I'm trying to get the stress under control though thru journaling and therapy and it's helped, so far 2 days of clean (well, sorta unbalanced but not bingeing!) CAD-ing and I feel great already!
Keep us updated!

Holy lord spirit, I couldn't imagine weighing only 100 pounds!

For me it's nice to know that even people without weight problems have the issue. Well maybe not nice to know people are suffering but it certainly helps me feel like I'm not alone on the issue.

CAD is most certainly the answer to killing cravings/brain fog/water retention. Awesome tool for binge management, I don't hold much hope for it being a weight loss program though. I might be able to shrink my over all frame/size with it but any type of junk eating still showes wear on the body in my case. Perhaps I'll shoot for a healthier carbohydrate and keep away from wheat for a while.

I am reading the CAD book , but can't figure out what a CM is.

Is that the low carb meal and if so why not refer to it as the LCM?

CM = Complimentary Meal
CS = Complimentary Snack
RM = Reward Meal

I see the complimentary snack and the reward meal in the book, but not the complimentary meal. I am reading the 1991 edition of the Carbohydrate Addict's Diet that I checked out from the library.

I am living proof. I have lost 10 lbs only on CAD. Its the only program for me and this time next year I will be proof because I will be at goal