I think it might be time for me to dust off my copy of the book and re-read it. For the last several months, I have been following my own version of low carb dieting. As best as I can -- stress makes me eat, but I won't go into personal details.

If memory serves, I tried to meld the two diets to suit me by eating more lean protein and a lot of vegetables and even some fruit. Atkins was hard for me to follow because I really do love fruit, and prefer it as a dessert to anything else. I've never considered this a particularly unhealthy repast, and I'm pretty sketchy on the details of how fruits in particular fall in the glycemic index (which barely makes sense to me, and I'm not stupid). However, I eat far less fruit than I used to.

Other things that were hard to give up, like carrots, I now eat, but not nearly as much as I used to: I've been known to eat an entire pound of carrots at once. And corn, though I limit myself to half an ear. I do not put fat on cooked carrots or corn, and try to limit my intake of fat on days when I am desperately craving vegetables. Sometimes a large drink of water ends these cravings, sometimes not.

Dairy, especially yogurt, is still a huge struggle for me. Cheese is yummy, but it leaves a bad aftertaste in my mouth. I drink a lot of unsweetened soymilk (Westsoy has 4g of carbs and 3g of fiber or some such). I limit my intake of yogurt to only a few times per week.

I thought I would miss bread a lot more than I do, but I allow myself a serving of bread about once a week, usually with butter or cheese. Having once been my favorite snack, bread and soft cheese is just as much food for my soul as anything else. And I think IR Diet addresses that, though maybe indirectly. Also, I once lost 65lbs living on mostly bread, cheese and fruit juice for over a year, so I have a hard time accepting that Bread is Evil. In the same vein, I also allow myself a small bit of sugar once a week as well (sometimes less, because sugar has a slimy quality). If the choice is between backsliding a little or falling off the wagon completely, I opt for the former.

Hope this helps. Not feeling very coherent at this very moment.

Erin