Gaining weight back...

trustymutsi

I just started today, and as I've been researching the program, I have read several people warning that you WILL gain the weight back as soon as you stop, and that the majority of weight loss is water weight.

My feeling is, the times people gain it all back is because they go back to eating the way they did before Atkins, not because they slowly eased into the maintenance phase.

Has anyone experienced the weight suddenly coming back on, even though they gradually introduced some healthy carbs back into their diet? Thanks for any feedback.

sb4480

Honestly, you run the risk of that with every change in eating pattern. if you do something drastic and then go back to your "normal" (i.e., disordered) way of eating, then you're going to put it back on. People preach that Atkins isn't a diet, but a lifestyle change. I don't know that the atkins program specificially needs to be the change, but certainly LCHF can be embraced. Once you've reached your goal or you've found a sweet spot to lose a safe amount of weight, you can start introducing more carbs into your diet until you're at a place where you can maintain easily. But they need to be smart choices, like sweet potatoes and carrots and fruit. Not processed and refined carbs like bread and chips and other garbage.

trustymutsi

Honestly, you run the risk of that with every change in eating pattern. if you do something drastic and then go back to your "normal" (i.e., disordered) way of eating, then you're going to put it back on. People preach that Atkins isn't a diet, but a lifestyle change. I don't know that the atkins program specificially needs to be the change, but certainly LCHF can be embraced. Once you've reached your goal or you've found a sweet spot to lose a safe amount of weight, you can start introducing more carbs into your diet until you're at a place where you can maintain easily. But they need to be smart choices, like sweet potatoes and carrots and fruit. Not processed and refined carbs like bread and chips and other garbage.

That's what I figured. Thanks.

I'm into day 2, and doing well! Tired, a bit cranky, but doing well!

sb4480

Good job! Don't forget, you can drink caffine and take pain relievers to deal with the lethargy and headache.

trustymutsi

Good job! Don't forget, you can drink caffine and take pain relievers to deal with the lethargy and headache.

So far I haven't had too bad of headaches. I'll keep that in mind though!

MelRC117

I'll just throw in my experience but I have alot more weight to lose than you do.

I first did Atkins/low carb a few years ago and lost 90 pounds. I did it very consistently for about 9 months (but I didn't follow the specific phases). I changed jobs and kind of lost sight since I was very happy with my progress. If I noticed my jeans fitting tighter I'd do low carb again and watch my intake. I gained about 5-10 pounds back and kind of hovered between that. Keep in mind though I did have more weight to lose still and I didn't follow the phases or slowly introduce carbs. I didn't go directly back to horrible eating habits calorie wise, but I did have my fair share of carbs.

After having my son I am now back trying to stick to low carb since it worked so good for me before and I didn't gain a ton of weight back until I got pregnant. Then I let myself go. Lesson learned.