Hello all. I'm new here. I really need help. I'm trying this low carb thing. I'm reading the south beach diet book. I also have Atkins for life, but haven't read it yet. I'm been doing this nearly a month. I felt awful about two weeks in. Thanks to you guys though, I read about that and wasn't surprised. I'm not losing any weight. In fact my clothes are feeling a bit tighter. I feel great though. Last night I feel off the wagon and had some cereal. This morning I went right back on. I'm hoping this diet will work, but so far it hasn't. Should I be counting calories too. I've been trying to stick to the list and I read the label on anything I eat. I don't know what else to do. I like the idea of this diet. Even if I don't lose, I will still track my carbs. I had no ideal how many I was eating. Come on guys, I need help or maybe encouragement.

Put a sample of your menu down so that we can have a look?? However, falling off the wagon with cereal wont help lol!! The one thing I've found with this eway of eating is that you simply cant cheat

Jo xxx

Thanks for answering. Haha I know I shouldn't hav had the cereal, but I felt a little down because I am actually trying to follow this plan but it doesn't seem to be working. Today I had 2 eggs with light cream(scrambled) and 2 pieces of sausage pattie and water. For lunch hadngrilled chicken salad with tomat bacon bits cheese and ranch dressing and water. For a snack, a sausage link. For dinner we will have a tomatoe avocado blue cheese salad with a sausage link. I was taking an Adkins bar for lunch but everyone says they are not good somthismweek I won't have them. I had at least one per day. I'm gonna stick with it. Maybe I can tweak it and get results. I'm pretty active I clean 4 big houses from top to bottom every week. Thanks for any suggestions

You are definitely right to ditch the Atkins bar - the sugar alcohols they are sweetened with cause stalls for lots of dieters. I know this isn't a really popular suggestion, but try tracking your calories for a few days and see where you come in at - shouldn't be higher than within 200 calories of your BMR.

Check the ingredients in the sausage, they may have sugar.

Good point, Becky

In UK almost all sausage products have added rusk (wheat product) as well as an extender, so label reading is always needed!!

The sugar alcohol in the atkins bars cause me to have cravings and gain weight.

This week will not use Atkins bars. Today had sausage and egg burrito
From McDonald's, but I ditched the wrap. Lunch was cheese and turkey wraps and collard greens. I checked label on the sausage and it had 3 gm of carbs and cheese has a trace and turkey has 1 g. And lots of water. I started taking a multiple vitamin today. Does anyone feel like their muscles are feeling squishy or soft. It could be my imagination or I have been reading too much haha. Thanks for answering you all.

It's Monday and I feel great. I have not gotten on the scale but I can visibly see a change in my body and I hav a dress that I keep trying on. It's getting better. I will stay strong. My question today is what to use to fry shrimp. That's all I want fried . I bought some soy flour. It made a good thickner for gravy. Will it be good to flour shrimp?

Soy flour is nasty, IMHO. Check out the cooking forums, here. People use almond flour, coconut flour, lupin flour, pork rind crumbs, peanut flour, and probably a few more I've forgotten.

Be sure to taste the soy flour before you waste good shrimp with it. You may hate the taste.

Absolutely not. Low carb preserves muscle mass as it preferentially burns fat. Resistance exercise will make them feel more substantial.