Day 1- carb detox

This is why some of us were carb nazis during our weight loss period. We've seen too many people not make their goal weight because they started the carbs back too soon and then the carbs took over.

I know it is VERY difficult. Yorkie Girl just did a low carb week last week I think. You might get some ideas from her.

I just found queso blanco (finally) and that is such a delish treat that that helps me.

I also allowed popcorn LOADED with butter when I am low carbing. Popcorn does not seem to set off carb cravings for me.

I also ate the darkest chocolate I could find (at Aldi) which had only 8 carbs per piece. That satisfied my chocolate craves and also did not seem to set off the carb monster. I think that is because it is so low sugar.

Also, like you mentioned, upping the protein shakes always helped me get the scale moving when I was in a mini-stall.

That's all I got for you Bean. Hope it helps a little.

 Thanks Becky, these are great tips :)  I'll be putting them into practice if the cravings get really bad.  So far, I'm doing OK, yay!

I need to find a good recipe for s/f chocolate cheesecake. That would be yummy.

Beemer where did you find the queso blanco?

I've been frying all sorts of Mexican cheese, but finally found queso blanco at Sam's Club. It was $18 (yikes) so I just sliced it and bagged up three slices per baggy and froze them. I'm not going to let an ounce of that $18 go to waste!!!

Wow- I'm right there with you!!! I was training for a marathon so I felt justafied in letting those carbs in, but now... the run in OVER and it is a complete nightmare trying to get those carbs back OUT of my diet. Need to seriously overhaul my eating plan. I am in maintenance mode and now that I'm not training anymore, I gotta clean my act up... the scale is starting to creap upwards and I'm not ok with it!!!

Thank you for this post, i needed it!!!

Who woulda though... addicted to... carbs?? I mean... come on!! But it absolutely feels true.

 I know- the carb monster is a tricky evil being...  Good on you for running marathons!  That is one of my "hopes", but I'm not sure if my joints will allow me to (stupid Lupus and degenerative crap).  Best of luck to you cleaning out the carbs!

Your will power is no match for tasty carbs, if that's how you plan to beat the carbs, you're going to lose. There is only one way you can beat the carb monster, one way and one way only, that way is to refuse to buy the damn things. If you buy them you will eat them, no ifs, ands or butts about it.

Stop buying them, then you can beat it.

Kerry

 I don't buy them.  The only carbs that hit my cart are low carb tortillas, low carb bread, Dreamfields and brown rice.  The crap comes from other places (my parents and husband mostly).  I try to say no, but the reply is always "well DH or baby can eat it" and it shows up here.  From now on, no more.  If it shows up, it's going in the trash in front of whoever brought it.  These people think they are being nice, or helpful- but in reality, they are killing me...

Well, I know what you're talking about, people are always bringing us cookies etc. Barb used to be bad about this too, but I've pretty much cured her. She is now well aware of how me + carbs = gas and since she has to live with me, she is becoming pretty vigilant about helping me avoid the carbs. I don't really understand the mechanics of it, but the gas really gets going as soon as I lie down if I've been eating carbs. So on a carb day, sometimes Barb ends up getting up and sleeping on the couch and that has pretty much cured her of feeding me carbs.

I don't know if there's a way this can help you or not, but it has been a big help for me.

A lot of peeps do have trouble buying carbs at the store saying to themselves that they will only use them as a reward for being good etc. Doesn't work that way, if you buy them, you eat them.

Kerry

 Oh, I so need to do this.   It is still hard and I struggle with emotional eating all the time still (sorry, newbies!).  I see a therapist 2 x a week, and we talk about my addictive personality: to food, to buying books and magazines (kind of random but adds up), to anything like that.  I am always trying to "fill" myself to feel normal and trying to stuff my feelings instead of dealing with them.  It is a really hard battle.  Even now I work to find good substitutes since I have really poor coping mechanisms for stress.  And I am dealing with 2 kids under 5, a pending divorce, sick pets, deaths in the family, you name it this year.  I am much higher weight-wise than I want to be, but I am trying to just deal in the best way I know how.  I have a fridge stocked with good things.  But for the past few days I have wanted comfort.  Now, after some really upsetting news, I have NO appetite for anything.  

You know, I hate to say it, but for some of us, the food is just a life-long struggle.  We have a tool that 
REALLY helps, but it is still hard.  

J