LoreeAnne's Journal, 06 September 2010

Hi LoreeAnne, adding the calories without fat or carbs is tough. Shrimp is a good way of doing this, also squid but it's slightly higher in carbs. I'm sure other kinds of lean meat would work too. If you don't mind the fat my weakness is macadamias: 1 oz (a good handful) is over 200 calories with very few carbs. And of course there's cheese. And salami. -- Adam 

I would suggest adding healthy fats...you actually need them to lose fat...I know, sounds wrong...but it is true. Olive Oil, butter, cream - in small moderate amounts will benefit you and your lifestyle of eating...increasing your calories, while not increasing your carbs. Maybe some online reading about healthy fat ideas...the nuts suggestion is a good one, almonds too...or a healthy natural peanut butter w/ celery...but you'll have to swap out some other carbs to do that...or avocado..but again, it'll have to be 1/4 of one...and even w/ that you'll need to make some other adjustments somewhere w/ the carbs...hope that helps a little. 

The other ratio was the proper one. You need the fats to get into Ketosis. Fats will improve your mood. If you are just starting, induction flu is typical as your body cleanses itself of glucose reserves in the liver. Atkins 72 (the original book) allows unlimited protein, 4 oz cheese and 2 cups of lettuce per day (1 @ lunch & dinner). You may want to go there for a week and see how you fare. If you are still stalling, try a fat fast with lots of eggs. Good luck! 

You're right to look at adding calories. Some days with 800-900 calories are probably too low for you....you've seen the recommended range of 1500-1800 for women. That's an average, and some women, may need more or less than that to lose effectively. You may need to fine tune the program to suit your own metabolism. You're also barely at or below the bottom of suggested protein amounts per day. That requirement is based on gender and height; see latest Atkins book (or atkins.com) for details. Adequate protein is needed to maintain your lean muscle mass which you want to keep burning fat for you! Wifezilla was quite right to refer you back to the other ratio, your first one, with 60%fat/30% protein/10% carb, at least for Induction. Adding protein will increase your calories with a mix of protein AND fat, which works to keep you satiated. Look for meats like chicken with the skin and beef with marbling. In later stages of Atkins, when you're trimming a bit of fat to allow for more carbs, you can look for leaner selections of meat. Remember, you've lost 12 pounds in less than a month, so you ARE moving right along.