looking for advice and buddies

I have been doing atkins for 4 weeks and I have only lost 10 pounds! I am 55 years old and i did this diet years ago and lost about 80 really easy, this time around I need to lose 60 and change my life style so I can keep it off but I am struggling! Any advice would be so welcome!

Hi Marcia,
I've been on Atkins for 4 1/2 months. I've lost 16 with about the same more I'd like to lose. My wt. loss has been really slow, and nothing for a couple months. I've now been actively logging food on this site, trying to eat dinner earlier, and exercising more. It just takes more time and effort at this age. I'm 52 and entering menopause. One word...SLOW. But I'm thrilled with the 16 so far and how my clothes fit and what I can wear! Be thrilled for your 10 loss, be diligent about logging food on this site. You may have already noticed that you have to watch how this site logs your food and how net carbs come up. Many items, unless you put in the specific brand, really vary in carbs, etc. I've added lots of recipes and custom foods to help out.
Hope some or all of this helps. I know it just really helps to have support out here.
Robin

Hi Marcia...I've just started Atkins this week so I'm not in a position to give you advice but I will be right along side of you through this journey. I am 62 and I can tell you that the older you get past 50, the harder the weight is to come off. Our bodies are changing everyday...menopause, diabetes, arthritis, etc.. I know this sounds like doom and gloom but the sooner we realize what's going on, the better it is to deal with it. I know for me, I'm taking it slow. I have 62 lbs to come off...my target is for 2.5yrs, I'll then be 65. That'll be a good birthday present!

You've done this before, you can do it again!
Linny

I'm back on Atkins again as well (I'm 54 years old) and I've only lost 5 lbs. in the last 4 weeks. I'm confused about why the loss is SO slow this time around and have been seriously considering (and doing research on) trying another DIET (ugh!, dislike that word). I just recently started on Fatsecret (what a GREAT site!)and i love that I can keep track of my net carbs every day.
I guess I haven't really given you any advice but you know the old saying "misery loves company" maybe between the 2 of us we can figure this out! Oh, by the way, congrats on the loss (jealous) keep up the good work!

Hey marcia, just took a look at your diet calender. Even though you dont have much logged, if the one complete day is right, i think your protein looks too high. You should try and keep your fat higher. It should go around fat 70% protein 20% and carbs 10%. Of course youll have to adjust it for your own preferences, but ive found that i lose much faster when i try to stick to this range. hope this helps some

Marcia, Tlegerski is right about the fat looking a bit low....but that's just 1 day.

Definitely log all your foods, every day, every meal, and we'll begin to see if anything needs a tweak or two. Assuming you're doing the 2010 version of Atkins, and not an earlier version, remember to get about 4-6 oz. of protein at each meal and 12-15 net carbs in foundation veggies. Trying to keep NC even lower than 20 (for Induction) is not necessarily better! And don't forget the water!

Frankly, I think it's great that you've lost 10 pounds in about 4 weeks! We can't duplicate what we did when we were younger....or the last time we did Atkins.....just have to go with what's happening THIS time and work with our bodies.

Hang in there....it CAN be done!

Hi Marcia- I just started Atkins on Monday and looking for buddies, too. I would love to trade tips with you along the way though!

Hi there! I'm only 2 weeks in to Atkins, switching from WW so count me in on the accountability buddies too! I really just started with the true induction yesterday because I joined a challenge that started yesterday, so no more loosely trying to stay under 20g carbs now it's a requirement for me! We can do it!!!

Hi Marcia, I think 10 pounds in 4 weeks is awesome. I'm only in my second week, lost 4 and I'm a happy camper. I'll be 55 this month and our bodies, the darn things just don't play as nice as they used to!

Connie, I switched from WW too, after 2 yrs, first year I lost great, then this last year..nothing, in fact I managed to gain 9 lbs! Granted my thyroid went off again, but Still! Good luck and hope this works for all of us!

tlegerski i made note of the percentages you posted, going to try REALLY HARD to stick to that as close as possible. i did not know about about the possibility of the fat being too low! wow!
Thanks for the tip!

You are so very welcome I just learned it not long ago and it has really helped me

I love all the info in this thread! I've been discouraged - lost 5 lbs after week one of Atkins Induction and now after week 3 it's just 4 lbs down. I'm going to be checking my percentages more closely.

Marcia - 10 lbs down sounds great to me! I, too, have found it MUCH slower going now that I'm older - it came off so much easier when I was in my 20s and 30s. I'll just have to be patient, I guess.

Dont be discouraged when you dont see the lose in pounds. remember that you are also burning fat and losing inches! The more weight you have to lose the longer you should stay in the induction phase once you go to the next phase the weight lose will be a lot slower because you will be adding more foods.

I think 10 lbs. is great also. I know it's discouraging when it seems so slow. I do think being successful on Atkins means learning to incorporate Atkins into your life. I've been up and down. I've started at the end of May and I've lost almost 10 lbs. I think I'm just a slow loser. Anyway, I will take a slow loss as opposed to what was happening before I started, which was continual gain even though I was not eating enough to gain. Good Luck!