I am not doing atkins but I am watching my diet again. I use myfitnesspal.com. It's just a website where you can record your food for the day and it calculates your nutrition and calories for you. Pretty much everything I eat I can find in their database so there isn't much manual logging. Just find the item and click on the serving amount. It also tracks your weight and gives you this gratifying graph to show you how much you have lost. I also have an app for it on my android. If anyone wants to be fitnesspal friends, just pm me. (It doesn't show your friends what you weigh, either.)

Last year at this time, I was 15 lbs heavier than I am now, but since I lost some on fitnesspal, I have gained back about 5 lbs of it. Time to get back on the wagon!

That's a great resource kerosene! I've already signed up. :) It doesn't really take atkins style diets into account, but it's good to see how it counts everything up.

Thanks so much for sharing. :)

Chicken Soup al la Trish!
 

Tonight I made chicken soup for dinner, and there'll be enough to freeze for those days when I can't be bothered cooking, or for meals tomorrow.

I just made the recipe up as I was going, but it's pretty basic. I'll try and get the quantities right here for anyone that's interested.

2 medium brown onions
12 large button cup mushrooms
1/2 bunch of celery
2tblspn chopped parsley
2tblspn chopped chives
6 cloves of garlic
oil for frying
1 large chicken (I used free range, but whatever's easiest)
about 8 litres of water
1 tblspn sambal
salt and pepper to taste

Heat up the oil in a large pot then add the first six ingredients. When they've softened and the onion has gone translucent, drop the chicken in on top, then fill the pot enough to cover the chicken.

Bring the water to the boil, the lower the heat so the liquid is simmering with the lid on. If you take the lid off, you'll have to keep adding more water, so it's up to you, but I prefer to keep the lid on.

Simmer for around 2 hours or until the flesh falls easily off the bones. When you get to this stage, you need to have a large plate next to the pot and try and pull the carcass out in large pieces, then simply separate the flesh from the bone and put it back in the pot. That's a bit of a tedious process, but it's worth it I think.

Once all the chicken is back in the pot, you should have a fairly solid sort of soup which looks much like the picture below. At this stage I add the sambal (which is really just minced chilli) and salt and pepper. You could also put in a couple of stock cubes if you find the chicken flavour is not very strong.

After that, you're ready to serve.

Tip: If you want your soup low fat, you need to take the skin off the chicken before you put it in the pot. Alternatively, you can cool the soup down overnight or for the day (if you're cooking in the morning) and then simply scrape the fat off the top. I don't like this method though. It kinda makes me not feel like eating the soup after looking at all the fat. lol

Attachment 36657

This ...... and this. One chocolate, one slip, isn't failure. How a person reacts to it might be, however.
Keep up the good work, everyone!

I got on the scales this morning and it says I've gained 600gms!!!

My honest reaction was, WTF am I even bothering. obviously I'm meant to be fat! Then my logical mind kicked in and reminded me that I've been a little bit stopped up in the outlet over the last couple of days, so that could have something to do with it. My second thought after that was, to stop weighing myself every day and just do a once a week weigh in.

So, Friday is going to be my weigh in day, and I'm going to stick with that which makes my weight loss for last week only 300gms, but that's ok. It's better than a weight gain!

ETA: I'm wondering if my slow down in weight loss is because I'm doing much more exercise and the fat is converting to muscle which means that once my body gets to it's ideal muscle mass, I'll then start losing weight more quickly?

Anyone have any ideas on that?

I think that could absolutely be it. Concentrate less on the numbers and more on how you feel.

I don't weigh myself, and at the doc I tell them I don't want to know the number. They will tell me how much I've lost, though, if I have.

I go by fit of clothes and such. There will always be weight fluctuations anyway, and I would find that discouraging. Maybe weigh yourself less often, if you want the numbers. For me, the "number" is just depressing. I hated the "number" when I was in HS and fit as a fiddle, because I was an athlete, and not a petite little thing...whose numbers were so tiny!

Just some thoughts. :)

Oh, I don't have a clue what 600 grams equals in pounds. :blush:

about half a lb. ;)

I've been doing a bit of research this morning. Apparently some people's bodies take longer to create that chemical change on atkins, so if you feel you're not losing weight quickly enough, you should stay on the induction phase for longer, so that's what I'll do i think. :)

I'm not finding it too bad, so I'm not concerned about that.

I concentrate on how I feel.

Do I feel better, more energetic, skin looser, clothes fitting better?

then I'm on the right track and I don't sweat the small fluctuations.

A lot of the weight you lose right off on Atkins is water weight. Low carbs is an excellent diuretic.

Good to know Bri. Thanks.

How are you feeling today? I feel like I've been running off at the mouth (fingers) ever since you started the thread. lol I'm just a bit excited. Hopefully I'll get over it soon huh? ;)

I need to weigh myself everyday to keep me grounded, but realistically -for many women- once a month is ideal. Bodies change so much with the menstrual cycle. Women are probably at their heaviest on the first day of their period (I certainly am), so most likely the day they don't want to see the results when they step on the scales, but that is also the day most likely to provide the most accurate month-to-month comparison. First thing in the morning, after a bathroom visit, before any tea/coffe/water/diet coke/moma's pick-me-up or food.

Here is the tofu shirataki dish I ate the other day. :D The noodle tasted different from regular pasta, of course. Still, I had hoped it would taste like regular fettucine, hehe. Actually, it lacked of taste. It was a bit chewy but rather than spending all night chewing it, I practically swallowed them whole. Who chews their food anyways. :lol: I think this noodle might fit best in a noodle soup type of dish. In conclusion, the dish was okay because the shrimps were quite flavorful. Perhaps had my sister seasoned the noodles more, it may or may not tasted differently. But I was fine with it. I'm not a picky eater. :D

That looks yummy Lola!

Ali, I think it's great that you're updating often about your progress. It helps keep your excitment going. I personally like it because I can take this opportunity to share my experience too. I usually have no one to talk to about these things. :p: And don't sweat about the daily or occasionaly weight fluctuations. It's the long run outcome that counts. It will take time. The fat in our body has gotten too comfortable and is just too lazy to move. :lol: When you start plateauing, which you will, we will help you overcome that then. In the meantime, keep it up!

Thanks! If you read carefully, you'll notice that I didn't cook it. :lol: Notice the portion size? I used to eat twice as much. Now I am only eating that little, and I intend to keep it that way so I won't gain back my weight.

Sorry - I ate a baddie.

had peppers yesterday and I think I've been poisoned - I was up all night with very bad symptoms.

I'll write more when I'm better.

Ugh. Last time I felt like this was four years ago.

I hope you feel better soon Bri. Sucks when you're trying to be good and something bad happens.

On the up side, if you've been throwing up, it might help your weight loss. ;) Sorry, bad joke, but still, I hope you feel better soon.

wow. THAT certainly sucked.

I bought red, orange and yellow peppers and roasted them. About 12 hours later I was wishing for death. Food poisoning from "healthy" foods!

Oh, the irony!


I feel much better now but not like running any marathons - or even errands. Besides, it's too damn cold anyway.

Even thru all that my resolve is intact and I am trudging ever forward to lose this weight. After all, I want to look good for the apocolypse. :D

Good for you Bri. I'm glad you're feeling better. :)

Peppers are the fruit of teh debbil. That is all. (feel better soon, Bri)

I'm glad you're feeling better, Brianna. Sure sucked that eating healthy food made you sick. I would've gone right back to burgers and pizzas. :D

Had a delish lunch - ground sirloin on shredded lettuce with salsa, cheese and sour cream. Very yummeh.

I've lost weight and feel oh so much better.

No gas, no GI upset (well, except for the food poisoning...) and my skin looks really nice and smooth.

Great stuff Bri. Same here more or less.

I'm so glad I decided to do this. I'm equally glad that I have a partner in crime. :)

About a year ago I saw a message on Facebook (one of my friends had commented on it).

*not their real names, but something like that.

Yeah I laughed. I just did again. I'm a bad person.

Rainbow and Possum are ill?

Better call in Gypsy and Snake*


*two actual monikers of dudes who worked in the Steel Mill.

I am trying to go gluten-free at the suggestion of my family doc. Here is a low carb pizza recipe I found on MyFitnessPal.com:

1 cup raw cauliflower processed to look like rice
1 oz. cheese (mozzarella, I'm assuming)
1 egg (may substitute eggs whites - 1/4 c.)
mix and spread into 9" circle on parchment paper (over a flat baking pan)
bake at 450 until dark - edges very brown
throw on your toppings - pizza sauce, turkey pepperoni, peppers, cheese, etc.
broil until cheese is all melty
let cool 5 minutes so crust is holdable

I haven't tried this yet, but I tried GF pizza crust last week and it wasn't so good. I'm going to try this next. I've been logging my food/exercise on MFP and it has helped. Good luck!

tap tap tap/Paging Dr. Clodfobble. Paging Dr. Clodfobble.
Dr. Clodfobble please report to this thread... thank you./click

That shit's gonna taste like cauliflower, not bread. But if you like cauliflower, I guess it would be okay.

It's allll about the brands. Most are completely inedible, but a rare few are good. This is the one you want, I promise you a thousand times over. Barring that, Kinnikinnick is okay, but it's not as good as Venice Bakery. Everything else is not worth trying.

Thanks Clod.

Wow. That paging shit really works, huh?

:D

Hihi....that's cuz Dr. Clod is a super woman. ;)

OMG I AM NOT. Spending hours on the Cellar instead of folding my laundry might make me lazy and happy, but it does not make me super woman.

:lol: Woman, just take any compliments thrown your way. ;)

I'm not sure why, but today - this afternoon in particular - I feel totally exhausted. I had a bit of a lie down for an hour and was better enough to go out and do a bit of gardening afterwards, but still, every other day I've felt pretty much tip top all day long.

I did have a little bit of flour on some calamari I was served for lunch today. It was only a very light coating (I didn't realise there'd be any, but such is life), so in all, probably not even a tablespoon full, but still, I wondered if that might have been it after not having had any of those sorts of carbs for close to three weeks.

Anyway, I'll see how I feel tomorrow. I'm going to the gym anyway, so maybe that will help.

I've lost 4kg now.

Just a quick reply, but hopefully I can come back with more insight. But for now, I think you're not eating enough. It happens with me sometimes. The problem with eating Atkins is that we gotta cook! UGH! If we run out of time or feeling a bit lazy that day, we eat whatever's there and usually it's not enough calories. I'll get into it more but I had to stop Atkins this week because I wasn't eating enough and my body couldn't handle the intense workout I was doing. Ali, you're exercising too, right? Write down what you eat. Perhaps you're not eating enough. Have snacks in between if needed. What I do for snacks sometimes is cold cuts. Yeah, choose something healthy. It's better than nothing. I dunno. I'll be back.

Btw, congrats on the 4kg lost!! YAY!!!!!!! Keep it up woman!! It'll be all worth it one day. Remember to keep on walking!

Yeah, I'm eating less than 1200 calories per day mostly, but I really feel like I shouldn't be eating too much more than that because it just seems like too much.

Maybe I should just bite the bullet and try and eat more. :)

Have a steak! ;)

1200 calories is too little! What Brianna said, have a steak. :D Just make sure you cut off all the fat and stuff. I don't like eating those stuff and yet, my cholesterol is too high. go figure.

haha...I have been eating lean beef and chicken like there's no tomorrow. lol I've just had breakfast which consisted of 4 slices of shortcut bacon. That means the round bit of the bacon without the fatty streaky tail bit. It was only thinly sliced.. Anyway, I can't fit anymore in. :(

Ali - are you getting sick of meat?

do you have any good recipes to impart? I'm getting rather bored.

Is fish allowed?

I got sick of meat. Do you guys eat fish? Add fish and other seafood if y'all don't eat them now. I also eat lots of salad to help balance out all the meat I'm eating. I didn't follow Atkins strictly, but if you do, I think during the first two weeks of the induction period, you're not supposed to eat slad too much?

Oh yeah, I forgot to add. I also eat fried tofu. Yeah, isn't so healthy but I was really sick of meat. I also had nothing else to eat on vegetarian days, hihi. Once the induction period is over, I think, maybe?, you could cheat by wrapping meat and salad in rice paper that you had wet so it'd be soft. You can eat the rolls with sauce. If y'all think you'd be interested, tell me and I'll give you more ideas.

We have fish here quite often, and prawns and crab (although I think I read that crab is high in carbs), but yeah, I'm a bit sick of meat and eggs.

My weightloss seems to have stalled a bit, so I'm going to try the 'zig zag' diet which is proteins only on monday, then proteins and salad and low carb veges fo the next 5 days, then the seventh day is the eat what you want day, including carbs, then back to day one and start the cycle again.

Apparently what happens is the eat what you like day causes the fat cells to open and then when they don't get what they really want the next day, they all deflate and get flushed away. That's the theory.

So anyway, today for breakfast I had bread and honey. God it was good!

I don't think so ... did a google search ...
.

I might have phrased that incorrectly, but I meant that the fat in the cells gets flushed away.

I know the cells are there for good, unless I go and get them sucked out I supposed.

gotcha.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! Unless you're extremely disciplined, it's a slippery slope. Try to stay on Atkins at least a month. I know it's difficult, but it'll be worth it. Up your exercise, not eat carbs. If you gotta eat bread, go with wheat. Eat brown rice rather than white. And remember to keep your portions reasonable, meaning smaller, but not too small that you'd go hungry. I know it's bad but I would drink diet soda to help curb my craving for more food. I buy those Atkins bar or Atkins shake for snakes in between meal when I really need it. And remember to drink lots and lots of H20.

Sniff...sniff...okay, gotta go shower. I just exercised, hihi. :p:

It's the zig zag diet lola. It's what you're supposed to do. ;)

It's basically the same as atkins, except you take one day a week off.

I'll let you know how it goes.

I feel: remarkably better.

My joint stiffness/achiness is gone.

My GI complaints - gone. No bloating, no gas, no gallbladder pain. Nothing.

No afternoon death cycle fatigue.

Sleeping better.

Skin looks freaking awesome.

I feel way too good to go back to sugar. I think I'm really allergic to sugar and flour.
I feel so much BETTER.

I'm so happy for you Bri, I want to grab you by the shoulders and kiss you like a Jewish grandmother.

That's great Bri. :)

I think being off sugar and wheat is a good thing too.

Ali: Okie, good luck! Keep us posted on your progress. :)

Brianna: Excellent! Keep up the good work. :thumb2:

thanks, guys.

You all help me keep on keepin' on.

And that's a wonderful thing.

Alrighty, what's going on here? No posts in a week?

Don't tell me that just cause I'm off the wagon you all decided to jump off in sympathy?

Come on Bri, this is all about you. Are you still doing it? How's it going? I'll diet vicariously through you now. :)

I'm still dieting.

My computer access is very limited. Hoping I get one soon.

I"m doing ok!

Glad to hear it.