h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I know that I can't eat this way forever, but I have gotten rid of the need to eat the way I used to...tons of breads and pastas and crap. I eat fruit now. And veggies. And soy...oh, man, do I eat a lot of soy products.

Life kills you eventually, anyway.

Yep, I am one to talk - I have an eating disorder

I am very good at knowing what is right, but doesn't mean i follow my own advice.
I have qualified as an animal nutritionalist, which although various animals have different dietary requirements, it does mean that i know the importance of a balanced diet.

But like i said, i don't take any notice of it myself.

Something gets us all in the end but i guess we need to minimise the risks.

Montana Redhead, I'm afraid it was me who stated what you're referring to:

"What I do take issue with is someone's (can't remember who) assertion that Atkins puts you into ketoacidosis. It doesn't...it puts you into ketosis, which is a similar kidney filtering process, but is NOT the same thing. Also, he states in bold letters in his book that anyone with any sort of kidney problem EVER to be throughly vetted by a doctor before starting."

You're right, they're not the same thing.

I'm afraid I didn't state strongly enough that for a diabetic IN GOOD CONTROL OF BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS, ketosis is possible. However, if in poor control to begin with, ketoacidosis CAN result.

In ketosis, the body burns fat for fuel, while using the glucose that ALL food becomes normally.

In ketoacidosis, WHEN THE BODY CANNOT PROCESS THE GLUCOSE, as in UNCONTROLLED DIABETES, the body breaks down fat AND muscle tissue for fuel, with acidification of the blood as a result. Enough acid (acetone) in the blood for long enough and an uncontrolled diabetic would go into a coma, and risk severe kidney damage.

Unfortunately, a lot of people have type 2 diabetes and don't even know it, around 10% of diabetics, I think. This is why Atkins and Agatston, and any other doctors worth their salt, tell someone who even thinks they might have a health risk to see a doctor first before starting a diet.

My hesitation to use "full-on" Atkins is my PERSONAL caution; your comfort level may vary. I've already developed vision problems due to years of being a poorly controlled diabetic, before I got that old "diabetic religion".
As I said before, I use a similar but less stringent diet, called the south Beach Diet.

As for the bad breath thing, a lot of vegetarians complain that that's caused by eating meat. Probably a result of high protein intake, period. The "fruity" breath (I'm told it smells like fermenting overripe grapes) is different and signifies acidosis is starting to take place. Run to the doctor if that happens.

By the way, I go back to my doctor Friday morning for the first time since starting the program; I'll post the results here if anyone's interested.

SC

In reply to MR's posting no.59:


But let me clarify one point. Refined carbohydrates, which are high on the glycemic index, speed up the creation of cholesterol in the body, correct? So eating lower on the glycemic index helps slow down the process, all other factors being equal?


Eating food with low glycemic index keeps the cholesterol production on a level where your body can cope with it, instead of too high and unhealthy levels.

The nutrionist had this example of a construction worker who had come up to her after a lecture and asked about cholesterol. He had been eating 12(!) eggs each day for several years, but he was a bit worried about the big intake of cholesterol.

It turned out that his cholesterol levels were just fine, both the 'bad' and the 'good' one, balancing nicely, probably because of a balanced diet (I doubt he *only* ate eggs). Now, this concerns a normal, healthy person - it might be different if you have trouble with your pancreas or other things

Citizen - as you would have read on this thread, Atkins doesn't tell the world to go out and eat fry ups. The 'strict' regime is only for 2 weeks, after that you eat more carbs, but not as much as you may usually do, because you're not using up the energy they provide.

Somebody with a very physical day job would need more carb intake. (But somebody with a very physical day job would probably have no need to lose weight!)

And it's not just red meat either. It's recommended to eat a lot of fish - something all doctors are telling us!


It does annoy me when people spout 'oh all you can eat is fry-ups, cheese and red meat' - when in fact, that's absolute cobblers.

It is a fairly balanced diet - you're told to eat more vegetables, more lean meat, more fish. And when you bring in more carbs - it's things like potatoes - not 'refined' carbs.

And as has been said - you can even eat fruit

In fact - one of the best desserts you can have on Atkins is strawberries and cream - as strawbs have one of the lowest carb content in fruit.



I think sometimes people are just jealous cuz it seems too good to be true


(also - lost 1.5lb this week even though I haven't had time to exercise )

"And it's not just red meat either. It's recommended to eat a lot of fish - something all doctors are telling us!"

Have to agree with this my fish intake has shot up (and this from someone who doesn't like salmon, tuna etc etc - in fact I only like chip shop fish). I've been eating masses of hoki (more sea friendly than cod) with the batter removed. Also sainsburies do a complete caesar salad that adds up to only 7g carbs (for half a pack without the parmasan - don't like cheese)...which includes croutons (to satisfy any bread cravings).

Went out for a meal (bacon cheese burger - bun + masses of salad) and to the pictures last night and the haagan das cafe had raspberry sorbet (with a very small amount of added sugar) - it was absolutely gorgeous. The easiness of eating out is what impresses me (oh and before I would have had the bacon cheese burger with the bun and a great big pile of chips...and chocolate ice cream...in a chocolate cone...with chocolate sprinkles and some chocolate for later).

I've been avoiding chocolate completely because it's the one thing I don't trust myself to just have a little bit...but to be honest I don't crave it anything like as much as I did. Still get occassional cravings for hot buttered toast...but I hardly ate any toast/bread before starting the diet so I think it's just the smell from making hubby's breakfast every morning.

Why do I get the feeling that artificial sweetened cheesecake without the crumb base is ok too?

Also I really need to play around and try to make some lemon curd with artificial sweetner (or try and find some in the shops) - then I can make ice cream using lemon curd and double cream

I'm sorry - it is too good to be true. Double cream on a diet ????? There's something wrong somewhere. Where's that going if not to your waistline ? Your heart maybe ?
Not jealous at all - as I said I'm not on any sort of diet apart from a make sure I exercise type diet and not overindulge on any sort of food type diet.
If the average Atkins person would have, before going on the diet, 'picked a bacon cheese burger with the bun and a great big pile of chips...and chocolate ice cream...in a chocolate cone...with chocolate sprinkles and some chocolate for later' then I am not at all surprised that they lose weight..........

Did I say double cream? No. See, that's what I'm on about, you're adding your own nonsense to make it sound worse

The point PQ was making, is that it's easier to be good on Atkins than any other diet.

And as I've already said, but Atkins-is-evil bigots seem to ignore, is that it is quite a balanced diet (after the first strict 2 weeks), especially for people who sit down all day in their work.

It's not always easy to find the time to exercise, the only bit I can fit in is the walking to work. Believe it or not, some people really are too busy to find time to exercise.

mmmmmmm, backlog

I attempted the Atkins, did very well on it, but couldnt keep it up! It went really well, and i lost the weight from where i wanted to, which was good. But i good recipie i found was:-

Chicken/Turkey breast
Lemon
Salt and Pepper
Mixed Herbs,

You rub the lemon, salt, pepper and mixed herbs into the chicken, then cook it in its own juices, on the side, you have runner beans, or whatever low-carb veg you want with it, plus a side bowl of rocket salad, depending on the size of your appetite, very nice too

'Did I say double cream? No. See, that's what I'm on about, you're adding your own nonsense to make it sound worse'

Did I say you said double cream ?? No I didn't
If you are saying double cream is nonsense then you'd better tell fellow Atkins people fast................

'The point PQ was making, is that it's easier to be good on Atkins than any other diet.'
Oh - so you read some of PQ's points then ???double

The double cream/sugar free lemon curd ice cream idea is just a recipe I know of that would be allowable in the atkins diet - in moderation. It's a very rich ice cream so more than a spoonful is too much, but like all diets having some treats is a good idea - instead of low fat (high sugar) frozen yoghurt or sponge pudding I'd rather have a spoonful of a very tasty lush ice cream (especially if we're likely to have guests round who will want a pudding and will feel awkward if their host doesn't join in).

And as for the meal I would have had (burger+chips+chocolate ice cream (the rest of the chocolate stuff was put in for comic effect - like I said my weakness was chocolate)). I usually had burger + chips in restauraunts like that (TGI fridays to be exact) because it's the cheapest thing on the menu (and even then works out at £10 a pop). I wouldn't (and didn't) eat like that every day - last night was a night out (the first one in about a month) - I was just emphasising how easy it is to stick to the atkins diet when eating out - something that's very difficult on weight watchers or similar low calorie low fat diets (unless you want to eat out at brewers fayre and have the same meal every time).

Ah, I see now PQ that you mentioned double cream - didn't see that before I got hoity toity

I was pleased to see though that double cream had less carbs than single! As to whether the fat content would be horrendous and put the nation in hospital.. it's a treat. Not a daily thing to eat. The same as cake, and more healthy!

Aha eating your words then. You really thought it was an absurd idea too for a moment before you found out it was an Atkins thing.
Regardless, it's really really weird that double cream is OK and even better than single cream. For a diet. So I suppose you'd pass on the virtually fat and calorie free yoghurt with real fruit which is actually very tasty and go for the double cream icecream instead ??? It's an incredible view on healthy eating you have to admit.
And I don't spend all day exercising as I too am an extremely busy person. I am away from my house for over 11 hours each day through commuting and being at work. It amazes me the amount of people on all sorts of diets who don't consider exercise as part of their losing weight campaign at all - getting buses for two stops, always always taking the lift for a few floors and using their cars for the paper shop. All of which can take longer anyway !

"virtually fat and calorie free yoghurt"

If you can tell me where to find this I'd buy some in a second - but all the low fat yogurts for sale near me have *more* sugar in than the normal yogurts - and the reduced sugar ones have more fat. Yogurt tastes sweet - it's naturally rich(ish) in sugar - cream (unsweetened) doesn't taste sweet. Personally I've never been fussed on either (I don't like dairy products they don't agree with me)...I'd rather have a small pot of strawberries and rasperries and blueberries with a small amount of artificial sweetner (the sugar based one - not aspartame). Double cream has carbs in it - you aren't allowed unlimited amounts on the atkins diet - like everything every food you eat adds up.

And as for double cream being better than single cream according to the atkins website it isn't - it's the low fat (higher sugar) cream that they suggest you avoid.

And as for passing on the fruit and taking ice cream instead - who suggested that was for healthy eating - I suggested it as a *treat*, a dessert I could make which others would enjoy which I could enjoy with them without compromising my diet or making them feel uncomfortable.

Citizen - next time you go shopping can I suggest you read the nutritional labels on food - low fat almost always = more sugar...and more sugar = more cholestorol (as someone pointed out earlier in the thread). Your body doesn't absorb most of the fat you eat when on the atkins diet it passes right through - the body doesn't waste energy trying to break it down when there are fat stores within the body already being processed(I've got toilet-ry evidence of this which I'm sure you don't want to see).

As for exercise - it's an intergral part of my weight loss plan - and the technique I plan to use to keep my weight off.

mmmmmmmmm, anyone for a chill pill?

Different diets work for different people, as different people burn fat up in different ways (just thinking if i can put the word different in here any other way?)

The Atkins does work, but to be honest I found that it only worked for a short period, slip of it, and you put the weight straight back on, but that is what I found! But then i only needed to lose just over half stone, so i guess if you need to lose a lot, it would be a great helping hand, as you would lose a lot, and when you SLOWLY come of it you would bit a tiny bit on, so it would do a hell of a lot of good in that aspect, and everything taken in moderation!

The virtually fat free yoghurts are Muller Light and are less than 0.5% fat and just over 100 cals for a big 200g carton.
What % saturated fat is double cream or single cream and how many calories ?

So OK I lied about virtually calorie free ! Sorry - just re-read my post. Low calorie though for a big filling dessert. Tasty too

S, I think the problem you're having here is that you equate the word 'diet' with deprivation. That's the thing about Atkins that I love...I don't feel deprived. I actually wrote this down yesterday, so I could show you what I eat, and how it's not nearly as "bad" as you think...I even weighed my food!

Breakfast: 2 eggs, 1/4 c chopped artichoke hearts, 1 oz mozzarella cheese.

Lunch: 1/2 large chicken breast cooked with taco seasoning, 2 cups mixed greens, 2 T ranch dressing, 1 oz. cheddar cheese.

Snack: 1 oz beef stick

Dinner: grilled pork chop (5 oz) with grilled onions, green beans.

And that was it.

Tell me, what is so unhealthy about any of this? That I used a spot of butter to cook my eggs? That I didn't trim *all* of the fat off my pork chop? that my cheese wasn't lowfat?