Janina's Pity Party
Hello my beloved fat-family,
I need help/support/a hug.
I got on the scale this morning and was up .6 lb's. Not a big deal, but the point is that it was "up" and not "down".
Atkin's is hard. It's a very restricted diet. And I'm literally suffering on this damn plan to get the results I need. It's only been 3 weeks, but the first few weeks are the hardest, which is why I'm *****ing right now. Three weeks and I'm already stalling? Are you kidding me!??!
I skimmed my diet with a fine toothed comb and figured out that I should NOT be eating almonds. That's been my only comfort food on this damn diet, and I have to give them up. I'm not happy about this.
I just don't understand. The last time I did Atkin's (February 2007), I ate Macadamia nuts like they were going out of style. I snacked on whip cream out of the can (less than 1 carb per serving so I'd have like 5 servings and call it a snack). I ate protein pudding and not one thing effected me in a negative way. Why can't I do all that now??!?
I don't know what to do, you guys. I'm at the end of my rope. I've tried every diet in the book, got so desperate that I went for surgery, managed to pick the most difficult surgery out there (yay me
) and now I'm back to where I started - dieting again. WW was no help, Calorie Counting was no help, nutritionists were no help, so I figured Atkin's might kick my ass into gear. And nothing. Well, not completely nothing, I did go down 4 pounds in the first week, but haven't seen results since. I pee on the strips and see some color change, so I must be at least semi-in ketosis. Why isn't this working??
I'm becoming more creative with my Atkin's diet. I made Eggface's crustless quiche's last night. I'm really trying you guys!!
I think I'm going to cut out the Almonds and do Atkin's 100% by the book for the next week. If I still don't see results, I'm going to start walking on my treadmill (something I KNOW I should have been doing months ago). I just want to tweak my diet first and see if that was the problem. If I change my diet AND my exercise, I won't know which one was the problem.
I'm at my desk right now at work and I'm crying over this **** I feel beyond pathetic. F*ckin' hell... 
Although I have a plan, I really don't know if I'm doing the right thing. Should I stick to my plan, do Atkin's religiously for a week and see if the problem was the Almonds/low carb snacks? Should I just say good bye to Atkin's and go back to low calorie bull**** and throw my ass on the treadmill? Do I talk to my doctor about an RNY revision? I'm really considering it. 
I'm so sorry I'm throwing a pity party but you guys are the only people I feel comfortable enough to discuss this **** with.
I love you!
Atkins and ketosis does work for a good 1/3 of total loss it appears, but you are not the only onewho experiences this stall thing. All I can say is i think it's cuz our bodies seek homeostasis and will find a way to hold onto weight again. I crusie lowcarbfriends, and very rarely do peopl seem to lose more than 30-60# then it's all over.
If you told us this before sorry but i do not recall: have u been to a endoctrinologist? A good one?
Then my final question: do you go to your surgeon's office for follow ups? I read that WLS-ers who are faithufl about followups lose better.
You do not eat much, you are extremely rigid, it looks to me. ((((neeen)))))) that sucks, it really does. If my questions go int he crapper, I guess you have no recourse but to get RnY.
"The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd rather not." ~Mark Twain
Neecee, I'm so stuck...
I have seen a thyroid doctor before (a few times) and they tested me a couple times and showed nothing wrong with me. I'm f'ing fine... Unbelievable.
I think about doing the RNY route and all I can do is cry.
*edited - I forgot to answer your question about follow-ups.
I did go religiously to the surgeon for follow ups, but haven't had to go since January because I haven't needed a fill. I'm still tight enough where I have throw-up episodes because I'm so tight. So I haven't needed to check in. Plus, everytime I go, she just asks me if I've exercised and I tell her No, and she yells at me.
Janina.. baby.. .. first of all (((((Janina))))) I KNOW what you're feeling. Knowing what you're feeling doesn't change things though.. they are what they are. We have a problem here.. so let's just sit back and figure out a solution.
I'm sorry you are finding this way of eating uncomfortable. Maybe we should look at the whole thing and figure out why. I think you've been through much worse with the surgery and dieting afterwards.. it's just that this is coming after a long, tiring road.. and it's getting to you. Look how much weight you've lost already! Yes, your body wants to say "enough"! So we have to confuse it a bit.. .shake things up.. add things, subtract things... then go back to what works. LET'S CONFUSE THE **** out of your metabolism!
I want to tell you not to worry about the few ounces... and in fact.. DO NOT fret over t
DIETS SUCK!!! EXERCISE SUCKS!!! Doctors who tell you that there is nothing wrong with your thyroid when it's a known fact that if you are more than a hundred pounds overweight...you have thyroid issues, all I have to say about those doctors is 
.Now here's my opinion, for what it's worth, on you and Atkins. Atkins is a "formula diet". It has to be followed to the tee in the beginning and then adjusted to fit 'your' metabolism after induction...very time consuming and tedious testing what you can and can't tolerate. After hearing what you said about your lifestyle, I don't think that Atkins is for you. You don't do your own cooking, so you aren't in control of all of your ingredients, and you don't exercise, very important with Atkins once you have lost some weight and stall. And even though you've lost weight on Atkins before, you have changed the equation with surgery, so your metabolism is different now.
My suggestion is to go with the plan that is supposed to work with your surgery and do it to the letter. I'm not so sure what that is, but it's what you're wired for now. If you need some help with it, go back to your nutritionist and ask more questions now that you know how it feels to be banded.
I don't know you're story well, but you seem to have a li'l aversion to exercise.
But here's the deal. You HAVE to do it! I know with me, it has reached the point that exercise only helps me maintain, but over a hundred pounds ago, if I wasn't doing it, I wasn't losing. I think it sucks that your doc just yells at you for not doing it instead of motivating you to do it. I think the most important thing for you to do is to find a way to motivate yourself to workout faithfully. Trust me, once you start sweating like a pig, you'll regret poor food choices that slow you down and make you feel like a slug.We're here for you, gurlee, and we're cheering that you beat the crap outta that wicked obesity,
Mary
on 9/8/08 3:24 am
I share your frustration! I was almost 300 pounds, eating only cabbage soup for weeks and NOT losing and one thyroid test showed nothing; another finally showed I had hypothyroidism and when I began medication, I started losing weight easily although I measured everything and ate healthy foods, in normal quantities.
I believe diet is important but I REALLY believe that for those of us who have dieted off and on for years, exercise is the KEY to losing/maintaining. Not just any exercise. I think it takes a combination of cardio and weight training and if I had to choose only one, I'd choose the weight training because it changes your body. Building muscle allows the body to burn energy while lying still, doing nothing. It is critical that you exercise, even if you hate it! It has to become a way of life. It is the same to me as brushing my teeth - it's simply not an option to NOT do it (unless my drs tell me I cant). And I believe that it has to be something OTHER than what you normally do. So, for what it's worth, get yourself going on a plan to build muscle. You will change your metabolism and change the way your body looks and feels. I weigh far more now than I ever did and yet I'm much "thinner" than ever.
Embrace your success 'cuz you've already accomplished ALOT!
Best wishes,
Kim J.
