[pspalin]

AFter 2 1/2 yrs doing lc, I decided to spice it up a little and switched from counting all carbs to doing net carbs---i have gained 13lbs! I have been stalled since Jan '08 and was getting just plain aggrevated with the whole process. Exercising, meat & egg fast, dropping carbs and calories, you name it and I have done it and not one ounce moved on the scales for 7 1/2 months! Then I got George's video and books, plus a ton of others and decided I would try the net carb way and now I am back in the "2's" for the first time in over a year and feel like I haven't accomplished anything. Can someone please help me? I should be an expert on this by now but I feel like a newbie with no where to go! btw I did the measurement thing and nothing changed there either, except this extra 13 lbs making me feel like a blimp in my clothes.

Thanks Pamela

[valvenus]

Let me say first, that I know how frustrating a gain can be especially when you can't get the pounds back off and you don't know why they came back in the first place. Now, have you changed any other of your eating patterns like eating later at night or eating more calorie dense foods? Are you still drinking your water and exercising? Have you tried eating "all natural", meaning if it doesn't grow out of the ground or eat something that grows out of the ground you don't eat it?(that excludes all processed meats and cheeses) Pretty much everything processed out.

[pspalin]

I went from exercising daily-both cardio and strength- to doing nothing the past 6 weeks...thinking I could kick start the weight loss when I started back to exercising. As far as my food goes, this is where I got in trouble I think- I ordered low carb bread to add to my "green eating" I eat basically organic. I went crazy buying the almond, coconut flours and all the other stuff that low carb recipes require. It has been a crazy whirlwind of trying to get this started over. I have $300.00 worth of bread in my freezer that is suppose to be 4.5 carbs per 2 slices. Gotta get it together!

[DonnaT]

Maybe your body just can't tolerate any grains at all. Even low carb bread has wheat in it. You might have a wheat intolerance. Also have you had your thyroid checked? Maybe the exercise you are doing has added muscle too. Of course I don't think you have added that much muscle in six weeks, but it might be part of the problem. My suggestion would be to do some research on the affects of wheat on some people. It can wreak havoc on a body that doesn't tolerate it. I find I do better not eating any grains at all. Also I have heard that you should add carbs back in gradually. It could also be that you have a low threshold for carbs. Some people start to gain on as little as 40 net carbs a day. Some who are much more active can handle more. Dr. Atkins book explains this too. Also many have undergone stalls, but with perserverance they finally begin to lose weight. Keeping a journal may help you to see where you might be going wrong.

[Margot]

Hi,
I have been low carbing for a lot of years. I lost 75 lbs eating low carb/ low cal. I noticed that when I tried to switch from the original Atkins plan to the newer one with net carbs that I did not loose weight. I have never done well with the pre made shakes or the protein bars. I find if I stick to real foods I do better. Real foods don't come with added sugar alcohols they do have fiber as a result occasion I will subtract the fiber off of real foods. Since Dr. Atkins died I think the focus has been on pre made foods they sell and not on cooking with real foods. I love the Stella real foods approach.
The other thing that I have to keep in mind is just because something has low carb or nets carbs does not mean it is low calorie. Calories do add up. I'm not saying you need to go crazy counting or cutting them. If you have a choice to make between two low carb products be at least mindful of the calories. You can pile them on eating the shakes and protien bars.

Keep in mind too that the portion size makes a huge difference too. The serving size may only be 1/4 cup and if you eat or drink cup worth you have to multiply by 4. Some products brag about being 4 carbs per serving and you my think it is the whole bottle when a serving according to the company that made it is only half or a 1/4.

I try to use cheese, and sour cream, heavy cream, butter more like condiments as the calories add up fast.

The whole net carb thing makes things like low carb pasta and some interesting baking products but I try to use them very sparingly.
I seem to be able to maintain on them but not loose.

So there you have my 2 cents worth on net carbs.
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[Agail]

VERY well said Margot!
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~Sometimes we all need a little encouragement~
~Our food choices makes us healthy or unhealthy I've chosen healthy~

~Gail~

[mhayden999]

Something I have found that is important to remember, "Fresh is Best" The reason is that you know what is in it. Just about every processed item that claims to be low carb is loaded with sugar alcohols, flour, grains, etc.

If you are still struggling, get back to fresh. In fact, George was telling me that he doesn't buy roasted peanuts...he buys raw ones and roasts them himself, that way he knows what is in them.

It is a little more work, but the rewards will be worth it.

Mark
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You can get what you want in life, if you help enough people get what they want--Zig Ziglar

[Agail]

Who is that "doll baby" Mark??
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~Sometimes we all need a little encouragement~
~Our food choices makes us healthy or unhealthy I've chosen healthy~

~Gail~

[Margot]

A Hardy Here Here to Marks comment!
Fresh is best!
Today I made my own Jimmy Dean style Sausage. All of his were laced with sugars. I simply bought ground pork with nothing but salt added and added my own splenda. They turned out great. If its fresh and I made it I know what is going in my mouth. No more products with mystery ingredients for me.

Blessings, Margot
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[lisar514]

Newbie here with a question on stalls...

What about the flours (almond and soy) - I was leaning more towards almond flour as I think it would taste better.

I wanted to try some low carb pancakes over the weekend and wanted y'alls opinion on those types of recipes.

Today is my day 3 - won't weigh until Monday - but I already feel better...sticking with pretty much meats, salads, veggies, cauliflower mashed potato and sometimes at night I'll whip up some whipping cream w/splenda and vanilla for a treat...

Hope I'm on the right track!!

Lisa

[Margot]

Lisa,
I make my pancakes with vanilla whey power and an egg vanilla and a packet of splenda. They come out quite nice.
I have not made them with soy or almond flour yet. The almond flower is my favorite but the calories add up fast due to the higher fat content in almonds.
I like the almond flower in baked goods.
The soy flour I like for pizza crust - using Georges recipe book. I would probably use a mix of the two for pancakes so I would have the rich nutty flavor of the Almond flour and the lower calories of the soy. I made some wonderful muffins using the almond flour, a variation of a muffin recipe in George's books. Both flours are wonderful low carb choices a huge improvement over the old way of making pancakes. Its a journey experiment and have fun. Share some of what you discover.
Use the search and look for pancakes I'm sure you will find many posts with good advice.
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[dab50]

I love the almond flour LC pancakes. Unlike Margot, I don't count any calories or fats - only carbs. I have not had a problem with them as far as I can tell. I also love the cream cheese/egg pancakes. They are really simple - 2 oz of cream cheese w/ 2 eggs. Soften the cream cheese before adding the eggs. Mix well and cook just like pancakes. In fact, I may have some for supper tonight. Donna

[su]

when i have flour i only use the almond because i dont like the flavor of the soy.. but watch if you over use them they can cause stalls...
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"there is no new food"
"nothing tastes as good as being thin feels"

[Margot]

Its not that I don't use cream cheese, whip cream and other higher fat and calorie things like the almond flour. I just try to remember that calories do add up. Where I can lighten things up I do. Like the Almond breeze milk is lower calorie than the Hoods Milk - which is way lower than real milk. So I have swithced to using it in my tea and in recipes. If I can use the Almond milk or half almond milk and half whip cream the recipe will be consideralby lower in calories. I find if I eat pretty low most of the day there is plenty of room for a delux dinner and nice desert. Which is a lot of what makes this work for me - I like a nice home cooked dinner and dessert is kind of a reward for sitcking to the low carb plan all day.
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[OceanDreaming]

Hi Lisa!

Everyone here is on a different low carb journey. Are you on a specific plan-Atkins, Protein Power, South Beach, etc? Or just eating fresh Stella Style? Different plans give different advice about soy and nuts. I can tell you that personally speaking, I avoid soy as much as possible (personal preference) and I have used almond flour quite a bit in the past. I was eating the almond meal pancakes and waffles nearly every day and when I stalled back in July I decided that was the culprit. My advice is start slow and see how you do. If your weight loss starts to slow down, back off.

Happy to have you here! Hope this has helped!

Angie
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Angie