Tip 1 is to eat when you're hungry. And always have something you can eat. All-phase Atkins bars and shakes, cut up veggies, celery and no-sugar peanut butter, cold cuts, tuna salad, hard-boiled eggs, cooked chicken, sliced or cubed cheese. Later on have nuts and berries. Have it in the house, have it in your purse, in your car.

If you are hungry and you don't have stuff you can eat you will either 1) Eat something you shouldn't, that will throw you out of ketosis or 2) stop low carbing altogether because you think you are hungry all the time.

So, eat. And eat right.

Tip 2 is to get over the mentality that you love carbs. Do you love your kids or do you love cake? Do you love your husband or do you love pasta? Do you love yourself or do you love Snickers? Do you love your life or do you love cookies? You probably love your kids, your husband, yourself and your life more than any carb.

You probably like carbs and you like the way a lot of high carb foods taste. But you don't LOVE them enough that you couldn't give them up in exchange for feeling better, being more healthy and looking better.

If you eat low carb you'll learn to enjoy high-carb foods more. Maybe in 3 or 6 months you'll have a really awesome piece of cake from your area's best bakery and it'll be super good. And the next day you'll just continue on eating low carb and not beat yourself up about it because it was worth it. That'll be way more enjoyable than breaking down and having a stupid peanut butter & jelly sandwich one late night or 98 cents worth of spaghetti noodles.

You don't love carbs. You won't miss them.

Go get 'em!

Part 1: http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/ketones-and-ketosis/tips-tricks-for-starting-or-restarting-low-carb-pt-i/

Part 2: http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/saturated-fat/tips-tricks-for-starting-or-restarting-low-carb-pt-ii/

Oh and P.S. I LOVE CARBS!!!!

Thanks

All the advice you'll get here is great, but I wanted to pass on a little secret. When you cut out what I call "crap carbs" from your diet, your taste buds change. Food tastes richer and more flavorful. And the oddest things will now seem very sweet ( big surprise : yellow summer squash is very sweet). You will actually start tasting things for the first time. It's like learning to eat all over again. So don't be afraid to try new veggies that never seemed good before. You'll be happy !!!!

True - I never noticed how sweet that sweet potatoes really were (on their own, no added sugar, just some butter & cinnamon!) until recently. And I can't stand "normal" milk chocolate (it just tastes like crap sugar!!) now that I've been eating 85% dark chocolate!

(PS...my carbs are a little higher ~100g right now until rugby season is over, hence why I've been eating sweet potatoes! I'll drop back down in a few weeks)

Read Dr Atkins' New Diet Revolution to understand the basics of low-carb. I used to be a junk-food junkie, but once I got into ketosis, those cravings went away.

I really have to agree with this poster. I've read Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution and it really helped put things into perspective. Just know that that first week, especially if and when you do the Induction Phase of Atkins will be a little tough. You will definitely crave "crap" carb. You will feel a bit run down and have very little energy. Once you get through that first week, you'll be amazed at how you feel.

My hubby and I started the Induction Phase in Feb. He has lost to date 46 lbs and I've lost 21 lbs. We have gotten so disciplined with our eating habits that we only shop the outside of the store. We not only follow the Atkins diet, but we've also started to eat clean. If an object has more than 2-3 ingredients in it, we don't buy it. I have started eating veggies I never thought I would like and I find I love them.

It is a process, don't give up. Go one day at a time. I hate to use a reference like being an addict, but if you think about it we are all addicted to carbs. It's how most of us were brought up. White bread, potato's with dinner or breakfast, sugar filled desserts. Once you get this down, all of those "crap" carbs will not taste as good as you remember. My hubby and I now have problems eating deep fried foods and anything with sugar in it.

Good luck to you on your journey. The best thing to do is not call it a diet, call it a lifestyle change. The reason I say this is once you lose the weight, you will not want to go back to eating the way you did.