Counting calories - advice, please

S t a c i wrote:
|| I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40
|| carbs a day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least 30
|| minutes of cardio a day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training
|| alternating upper and lower body. In addition to that activity, I
|| walk the dogs for about an hour a day total, and bicycle all of my
|| errands and to all appointments (no car). I would say I'm pretty
|| active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm eating. Additionally,
|| the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.
||
|| After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to
|| give it a go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close
|| track of what I eat. No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and
|| measuring everything, and keeping track in calorieking.
|| (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a downloadable program
|| that costs money. I like it better because it breaks everything
|| down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)
||
|| I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't
|| changed anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My
|| caloric intake is between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very
|| typical days. I honestly thought it would be much higher, and would
|| therefore clearly explain why the scale hasn't moved in a while.
|| But it seems that I'm already in a target range, if I'm looking at
|| eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight in calories. Right?

Maybe even a little low. You probably need to track for a longer period and
come up with an average. If you really eat at 1600 more days then not, then
your average may be more like 1600, than like 1100.

||
|| I haven't added anything new to my diet that might cause a
|| stall...everything I'm eating now is the same as when I was slowly
|| losing. Small amounts of caffeine and alcohol haven't caused me any
|| problems so far. I don't eat any frankenfoods aside from an
|| occasional Atkins shake, maybe one a week. I have also been able to
|| lose while staying at 30-40 carbs a day (until lately).
||
|| So now I ask the experts...what now? Should I try keeping calories
|| closer to 1000 a day? Is there something else I should be
|| considering? Maybe counting calories isn't my answer?

Probably shouldn't go below 1200.

It may be time to review your weight training. You don't work out with pink
weights do you? You know, the ones that weigh 2 lbs? YOu need to move real
weight and do exercises that invoke groups of muscle.

It might be time to add intensity to your cardio. HIT rather than straight
cardio.

http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/hiit.htm
http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/intbfatmetab.htm
http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/intbfat.htm
http://www.exrx.net/FatLoss/HIITvsET.html

||
|| Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I
|| should be shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any
|| ratios for LC.
||
|| Thanks in advance
|| S t a c i
|| 213/179/165
|| 5'11", 36 years old
|| Atkins for 6 months

I assume you have lots of visable fat, right? I once had a girlfriend (a
cop) who was 5'10" and weighed 180 lbs. That woman was solid.

Got any jpgs? The reason I ask is because you may have a typical female
view on things like weight. If you're a big strong lady, then that's you.
You're tall and you weigh 180. It might be really, really hard for you to
get back to 165 (yeah, that what you weighed at 15, right?).

If you really, really want to get back to 165, you might have to get extreme
on both exercise and dieting. Or, perhaps you should ask others if they
think that's a worthy goal.

The act and process of measuring calories has an effect on eating behavior.
It is likely you are eating less than you were before measuring. 1100 to
1600 sounds good.

Are you drinking the extra water?

What is your fat percentage by calories?

"S t a c i" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40 carbs

a

Quoted message said:

day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least 30 minutes of cardio a
day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training alternating upper and lower
body. In addition to that activity, I walk the dogs for about an hour a

day

Quoted message said:

total, and bicycle all of my errands and to all appointments (no car). I
would say I'm pretty active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm eating.
Additionally, the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.

After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to give it

a

Quoted message said:

go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close track of what I

eat.

Quoted message said:

No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and measuring everything, and keeping
track in calorieking. (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a
downloadable program that costs money. I like it better because it breaks
everything down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)

I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't changed
anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My caloric intake is
between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very typical days. I honestly
thought it would be much higher, and would therefore clearly explain why

the

Quoted message said:

scale hasn't moved in a while. But it seems that I'm already in a target
range, if I'm looking at eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight in
calories. Right?

I haven't added anything new to my diet that might cause a
stall...everything I'm eating now is the same as when I was slowly losing.
Small amounts of caffeine and alcohol haven't caused me any problems so

far.

Quoted message said:

I don't eat any frankenfoods aside from an occasional Atkins shake, maybe
one a week. I have also been able to lose while staying at 30-40 carbs a
day (until lately).

So now I ask the experts...what now? Should I try keeping calories closer
to 1000 a day? Is there something else I should be considering? Maybe
counting calories isn't my answer?

Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I should

be

Quoted message said:

shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any ratios for LC.

Thanks in advance
S t a c i
213/179/165
5'11", 36 years old
Atkins for 6 months

"Roger Zoul" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

S t a c i wrote:
|| I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40
|| carbs a day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least 30
|| minutes of cardio a day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training
|| alternating upper and lower body. In addition to that activity, I
|| walk the dogs for about an hour a day total, and bicycle all of my
|| errands and to all appointments (no car). I would say I'm pretty
|| active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm eating. Additionally,
|| the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.
||
|| After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to
|| give it a go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close
|| track of what I eat. No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and
|| measuring everything, and keeping track in calorieking.
|| (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a downloadable program
|| that costs money. I like it better because it breaks everything
|| down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)
||
|| I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't
|| changed anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My
|| caloric intake is between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very
|| typical days. I honestly thought it would be much higher, and would
|| therefore clearly explain why the scale hasn't moved in a while.
|| But it seems that I'm already in a target range, if I'm looking at
|| eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight in calories. Right?

Maybe even a little low. You probably need to track for a longer period

and

Quoted message said:

come up with an average. If you really eat at 1600 more days then not,

then

Quoted message said:

your average may be more like 1600, than like 1100.

Yes, I'm going to keep tracking it to see what my average calories are for a
couple of weeks. I pretty much eat the same things from week to week, so 14
days should give me a solid idea.

Quoted message said:

||
|| I haven't added anything new to my diet that might cause a
|| stall...everything I'm eating now is the same as when I was slowly
|| losing. Small amounts of caffeine and alcohol haven't caused me any
|| problems so far. I don't eat any frankenfoods aside from an
|| occasional Atkins shake, maybe one a week. I have also been able to
|| lose while staying at 30-40 carbs a day (until lately).
||
|| So now I ask the experts...what now? Should I try keeping calories
|| closer to 1000 a day? Is there something else I should be
|| considering? Maybe counting calories isn't my answer?

Probably shouldn't go below 1200.

It may be time to review your weight training. You don't work out with

pink

Quoted message said:

weights do you? You know, the ones that weigh 2 lbs? YOu need to move

real

Quoted message said:

weight and do exercises that invoke groups of muscle.

🙂 No, not pink weights. I work out with heavier weights, and I work to
failure. Pink weights would never get me to failure.

Quoted message said:

It might be time to add intensity to your cardio. HIT rather than

straight

Quoted message said:

cardio.

http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/hiit.htm
http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/intbfatmetab.htm
http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/intbfat.htm
http://www.exrx.net/FatLoss/HIITvsET.html

My favorite cardio DVD is interval training, and I love it, but it's a
serious workout. When I started about 4 months ago, I was doing the
low-impact version of the workout, now I can do the high-impact.

Quoted message said:

||
|| Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I
|| should be shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any
|| ratios for LC.
||
|| Thanks in advance
|| S t a c i
|| 213/179/165
|| 5'11", 36 years old
|| Atkins for 6 months

I assume you have lots of visable fat, right? I once had a girlfriend (a
cop) who was 5'10" and weighed 180 lbs. That woman was solid.

Got any jpgs? The reason I ask is because you may have a typical female
view on things like weight. If you're a big strong lady, then that's you.
You're tall and you weigh 180. It might be really, really hard for you to
get back to 165 (yeah, that what you weighed at 15, right?).

I have some normal snapshot-type photos on my website - www.verypink.com -
but they aren't weight loss photos. (I'm the light-haired woman on the
front page.) I'm not a big strong woman. I have narrow shoulders, thin
arms and legs, and straight hips. I can clasp my fingers around my ankle
and touch my thumb to my middle finger. All of my weight is around my mid
section...below my bust and above my thighs. Its my understanding that it's
an unhealthy way to carry weight around.

Quoted message said:

If you really, really want to get back to 165, you might have to get

extreme

Quoted message said:

on both exercise and dieting. Or, perhaps you should ask others if they
think that's a worthy goal.

Yeah, I'll take both of your comments here to heart. I feel like I'm doing
a lot already, and extreme dieting and exercising is not the way I want to
live the rest of my life.

Thanks for your input, Roger.
S t a c i

"Ignoramus13790" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

You are at normal weight. Low carb does not take you to any arbitrary
weight, only to your ideal weight, and very slowly once you approach
your goal. What is happening is completely normal. I am also 5'11",
173, am low carbing, and not losing. Which is all fine with me.

I'm a woman, so I'm pushing "normal" weight at 179, even at nearly 6' tall.
Also, as I described in my reply to Roger, my excess weight is right around
my middle, not evenly dispersed over my body. My BMI is right at 25.

Quoted message said:

I would seriously think about redefining your goal and starting a
happy life maintaining your weight loss. You can think about losing
extra pounds a few months later.

That makes a lot of sense. Maybe I should stop stressing out about it right
now, give myself a few months of maintenence, and see what happens. I
always forget that 34 pounds lost and 10-15 pounds from goal is GOOD.
Instead of reflecting on what I've done, I'm always pushing ahead and
stressing about it.

Thanks for your reply, Ig -
S t a c i

Quoted message said:

i

S t a c i said:

I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40

carbs a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least 30 minutes of cardio

a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training alternating upper and

lower

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

body. In addition to that activity, I walk the dogs for about an hour a

day

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

total, and bicycle all of my errands and to all appointments (no car).

I

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

would say I'm pretty active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm

eating.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Additionally, the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.

After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to give

it a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close track of what I

eat.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and measuring everything, and keeping
track in calorieking. (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a
downloadable program that costs money. I like it better because it

breaks

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

everything down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)

I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't

changed

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My caloric intake is
between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very typical days. I honestly
thought it would be much higher, and would therefore clearly explain why

the

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

scale hasn't moved in a while. But it seems that I'm already in a

target

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

range, if I'm looking at eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight in
calories. Right?

I haven't added anything new to my diet that might cause a
stall...everything I'm eating now is the same as when I was slowly

losing.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Small amounts of caffeine and alcohol haven't caused me any problems so

far.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I don't eat any frankenfoods aside from an occasional Atkins shake,

maybe

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

one a week. I have also been able to lose while staying at 30-40 carbs

a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

day (until lately).

So now I ask the experts...what now? Should I try keeping calories

closer

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

to 1000 a day? Is there something else I should be considering? Maybe
counting calories isn't my answer?

Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I

should be

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any ratios for LC.

Thanks in advance
S t a c i
213/179/165
5'11", 36 years old
Atkins for 6 months

--
223/173.4/180

Staci,

Is it possible that you've hit your body's idea of your correct weight?

You're pretty tall and with all the exercise and previous weight gain you
probably have a lot of muscle and bigger bones. I have a friend who is your
height who looks quite good at your weight.

The nutrient breakdown that worked for me was about around 68% fat, 7 carb,
25% protein with carbs rising as high as 11%.

-- Jenny - Low Carbing for 5 years. Below goal for weight. Type 2 diabetes,
hba1c 5.7 .
Cut the carbs to respond to my email address!

Jenny's new site: What they Don't Tell You About Diabetes
http://www.geocities.com/lottadata4u/

Jenny's Low Carb Diet Facts & Figures
http://www.geocities.com/jenny_the_bean/

Looking for help controlling your blood sugar?
Visit http://www.alt-support-diabetes.org/Newly%20Diagnosed.htm

"S t a c i" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40 carbs

a

Quoted message said:

day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least 30 minutes of cardio a
day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training alternating upper and lower
body. In addition to that activity, I walk the dogs for about an hour a

day

Quoted message said:

total, and bicycle all of my errands and to all appointments (no car). I
would say I'm pretty active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm eating.
Additionally, the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.

After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to give it

a

Quoted message said:

go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close track of what I

eat.

Quoted message said:

No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and measuring everything, and keeping
track in calorieking. (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a
downloadable program that costs money. I like it better because it breaks
everything down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)

I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't changed
anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My caloric intake is
between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very typical days. I honestly
thought it would be much higher, and would therefore clearly explain why

the

Quoted message said:

scale hasn't moved in a while. But it seems that I'm already in a target
range, if I'm looking at eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight in
calories. Right?

I haven't added anything new to my diet that might cause a
stall...everything I'm eating now is the same as when I was slowly losing.
Small amounts of caffeine and alcohol haven't caused me any problems so

far.

Quoted message said:

I don't eat any frankenfoods aside from an occasional Atkins shake, maybe
one a week. I have also been able to lose while staying at 30-40 carbs a
day (until lately).

So now I ask the experts...what now? Should I try keeping calories closer
to 1000 a day? Is there something else I should be considering? Maybe
counting calories isn't my answer?

Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I should

be

Quoted message said:

shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any ratios for LC.

Thanks in advance
S t a c i
213/179/165
5'11", 36 years old
Atkins for 6 months

S t a c i wrote:
|| "Roger Zoul" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
|| news:[email hidden]...
||| S t a c i wrote:
||||| I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between
||||| 30-40 carbs a day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least
||||| 30
||||| minutes of cardio a day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training
||||| alternating upper and lower body. In addition to that activity, I
||||| walk the dogs for about an hour a day total, and bicycle all of my
||||| errands and to all appointments (no car). I would say I'm pretty
||||| active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm eating.
||||| Additionally, the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.
|||||
||||| After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to
||||| give it a go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close
||||| track of what I eat. No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and
||||| measuring everything, and keeping track in calorieking.
||||| (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a downloadable
||||| program that costs money. I like it better because it breaks
||||| everything
||||| down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)
|||||
||||| I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't
||||| changed anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My
||||| caloric intake is between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very
||||| typical days. I honestly thought it would be much higher, and
||||| would therefore clearly explain why the scale hasn't moved in a
||||| while.
||||| But it seems that I'm already in a target range, if I'm looking at
||||| eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight in calories. Right?
|||
||| Maybe even a little low. You probably need to track for a longer
||| period and come up with an average. If you really eat at 1600 more
||| days then not, then your average may be more like 1600, than like
||| 1100.
||
|| Yes, I'm going to keep tracking it to see what my average calories
|| are for a couple of weeks. I pretty much eat the same things from
|| week to week, so 14 days should give me a solid idea.

I agree.

||
|||
|||||
||||| I haven't added anything new to my diet that might cause a
||||| stall...everything I'm eating now is the same as when I was slowly
||||| losing. Small amounts of caffeine and alcohol haven't caused me
||||| any problems so far. I don't eat any frankenfoods aside from an
||||| occasional Atkins shake, maybe one a week. I have also been able
||||| to lose while staying at 30-40 carbs a day (until lately).
|||||
||||| So now I ask the experts...what now? Should I try keeping
||||| calories closer to 1000 a day? Is there something else I should
||||| be considering? Maybe counting calories isn't my answer?
|||
||| Probably shouldn't go below 1200.
|||
||| It may be time to review your weight training. You don't work out
||| with pink weights do you? You know, the ones that weigh 2 lbs? YOu
||| need to move real weight and do exercises that invoke groups of
||| muscle.
||
|| 🙂 No, not pink weights. I work out with heavier weights, and I
|| work to failure. Pink weights would never get me to failure.

Okay. I had to ask though because you can't just assume...

||
|||
||| It might be time to add intensity to your cardio. HIT rather than
||| straight cardio.
|||
||| http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/hiit.htm
||| http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/intbfatmetab.htm
||| http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/intbfat.htm
||| http://www.exrx.net/FatLoss/HIITvsET.html
|||
||
|| My favorite cardio DVD is interval training, and I love it, but it's
|| a serious workout. When I started about 4 months ago, I was doing
|| the low-impact version of the workout, now I can do the high-impact.

Okay....but just in case, please read some of those pages that talk about
why HIIT works (I should have typed HIIT before, not HIT -- two very
different things). Since you are able you may want to incorporate some of
the HIIT ideas into your workouts, if you aren't using them already. The
idea behind HIIT is to burn more bodyfat....it's backed up with research and
this could have some importance to what you're trying to achieve.

||
|||
|||||
||||| Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I
||||| should be shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any
||||| ratios for LC.
|||||
||||| Thanks in advance
||||| S t a c i
||||| 213/179/165
||||| 5'11", 36 years old
||||| Atkins for 6 months
|||
||| I assume you have lots of visable fat, right? I once had a
||| girlfriend (a cop) who was 5'10" and weighed 180 lbs. That woman
||| was solid.
|||
||| Got any jpgs? The reason I ask is because you may have a typical
||| female view on things like weight. If you're a big strong lady,
||| then that's you. You're tall and you weigh 180. It might be
||| really, really hard for you to get back to 165 (yeah, that what you
||| weighed at 15, right?).
||
|| I have some normal snapshot-type photos on my website -
|| www.verypink.com - but they aren't weight loss photos. (I'm the
|| light-haired woman on the front page.) I'm not a big strong woman.
|| I have narrow shoulders, thin arms and legs, and straight hips. I
|| can clasp my fingers around my ankle and touch my thumb to my middle
|| finger. All of my weight is around my mid section...below my bust
|| and above my thighs. Its my understanding that it's an unhealthy
|| way to carry weight around.

Well, in those photos I see a very attractive, not-at-all overweight
light-haired woman. So, you may be at the point where you're going to have
to work hard for further improvement. But I hear you....if you know there
is some fat around your mid-section, and you feel you have some more work to
do, then it may be time to start really paying attention to diet and
exercise. You'll also have to realize that progress may take a long time,
too.

||
||| If you really, really want to get back to 165, you might have to
||| get extreme on both exercise and dieting. Or, perhaps you should
||| ask others if they think that's a worthy goal.
||
|| Yeah, I'll take both of your comments here to heart. I feel like
|| I'm doing a lot already, and extreme dieting and exercising is not
|| the way I want to live the rest of my life.

Well, at least read up on HIIT. IMO, it is extreme only from a certain
point of view. In terms of time, it is not extreme. What is perhaps extreme
is the intensity part of it. But, depending on what you're actually doing
now, it might bring you some benefit in reaching your goal. And don't stop
weight training. You may need to refine your program, however. Make sure
you're got some squats and deadlifts in your program. Those movements invoke
a lot of body muscle and as a result will develop a lot of muscle. Over
time, adding more muscle will help you get and stay trim. Working out
smartly, along with eating smartly, will make your goal easier to achieve
and easier to maintain. And plan on getting there slowly, too.

Just a few comments to add to everyone else's...

S t a c i said:

I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40
carbs a day.

As you near goal, you may find that *increasing* carbs somewhat may
help, in that you're well out of the realm of plentiful body stores
and the extra carbs may help keep your metabolism up. Similarly, one
day every 1-3 weeks of "high carb gluttony" (refeed) may help boost
your metabolism. Read some of the leptin links on my website[1] for
background info on why this may help.

There have been a few cases of people here who stalled because carbs
were held too *low*, who found that higher carbs levels allowed them
to lose for longer periods of time. There's an ideal carb level for
each of us it seems, but lower is not always better.

Quoted message said:

Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I
should be shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any
ratios for LC.

Ratios are misleading. You need a certain minimum grams of protein,
more if strength training (~0.8 g/lb bodyweight, or about 150g for
you, = 600 kcals). You've set your carb level (40g = 160 kcals). The
rest of the calories come from fat ((1600-660)/9 = 104g, (1200-660)/9
= 60g, etc).

Note also that strength training will suck up dietary carbs. Are you
adding extra carbs around your training sessions to compensate?

Quoted message said:

213/179/165
5'11", 36 years old

Your stats aren't too far off from mine (5'10", 170lbs, 38y). You're
at the "why is it so hard to lose weight!" stage. At this point,
there are no magic bullets left besides lots of hard work over long
periods of time to get small results. Since you're close to goal,
it's probably a good idea to start transitioning your diet from the
weight loss phase to the pre-maintenance phase, which gives you a more
balanced set of nutrients (Atkins himself says that LC is "unbalanced"
in order to compensate for an unbalanced previous diet, and has you
increase carbs as you approach goal to maintain the proper
compensation levels).

[1] http://www.delorie.com/health/

"S t a c i" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40 carbs a
day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least 30 minutes of cardio a
day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training alternating upper and lower
body. In addition to that activity, I walk the dogs for about an hour a day
total, and bicycle all of my errands and to all appointments (no car). I
would say I'm pretty active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm eating.
Additionally, the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.

After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to give it a
go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close track of what I eat.
No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and measuring everything, and keeping
track in calorieking. (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a
downloadable program that costs money. I like it better because it breaks
everything down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)

I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't changed
anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My caloric intake is
between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very typical days. I honestly
thought it would be much higher, and would therefore clearly explain why the
scale hasn't moved in a while. But it seems that I'm already in a target
range, if I'm looking at eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight in
calories. Right?

I haven't added anything new to my diet that might cause a
stall...everything I'm eating now is the same as when I was slowly losing.
Small amounts of caffeine and alcohol haven't caused me any problems so far.
I don't eat any frankenfoods aside from an occasional Atkins shake, maybe
one a week. I have also been able to lose while staying at 30-40 carbs a
day (until lately).

So now I ask the experts...what now? Should I try keeping calories closer
to 1000 a day? Is there something else I should be considering? Maybe
counting calories isn't my answer?

Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I should be
shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any ratios for LC.

Thanks in advance
S t a c i
213/179/165
5'11", 36 years old
Atkins for 6 months

You say you've stalled at 179, but that may just be an overall weight
stall and not specifically a fat-loss stall. Have you kept track of
your measurements? You may find that the weight stays the same as your
measurements drop. Muscle weighs 1.5 times more than fat by volume.
You may be losing fat and gaining muscle. My wife gets frustrated too,
but I watch and see her size go down while all she sees is the number
on the scale.

The Zone Diet aims for 7/9/3 ratios of protein/fat/carbs. That is one
"block" of protein is 7g, carb 9g and fat 3g. I think that is a good
middle of the road ratio to follow.

TC

On Tue, 16 Nov 2004 09:35:39 +0100, "S t a c i" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40 carbs a
day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least 30 minutes of cardio a
day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training alternating upper and lower
body. In addition to that activity, I walk the dogs for about an hour a day
total, and bicycle all of my errands and to all appointments (no car). I
would say I'm pretty active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm eating.
Additionally, the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.

After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to give it a
go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close track of what I eat.
No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and measuring everything, and keeping
track in calorieking. (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a
downloadable program that costs money. I like it better because it breaks
everything down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)

I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't changed
anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My caloric intake is
between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very typical days. I honestly
thought it would be much higher, and would therefore clearly explain why the
scale hasn't moved in a while. But it seems that I'm already in a target
range, if I'm looking at eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight in
calories. Right?

Here are some random thoughts/suggestions and not in any particular
order:

(1) You had mentioned the tendency to carry excess weight in the belly
elsewhere in the thread. This can be an indicator of insulin
resistance, which may cause weight loss to proceed at a slower rate.
Take a look at your current waist/hip ratio; is it 0.8 or more?

(2) The last 15-20 pounds can really be a pain to lose, especially for
women. Assuming you're making a good faith effort to do your best
(and it sounds like you are), patience and consistency is key.

(3) 10x bodyweight can be a little close to maintenance for some
people to see appreciable results over a short period, especially
women. Continue to log calories, and use a seven day average. Since
8x bodyweight is a little over 1400cal, aim for average consumption
between 1400-1500. Don't go below 1200.

(4) You may have lost a pound or two of fat over the last six weeks
even though the scale doesn't show it. 1-2 lb isn't going to make all
that much difference with tape measure either. Keep in mind that
water retention could mask changes for purposes of scale or tape.

(5) Like Cubit said, just the act of actually measuring food and
logging intake can cause one to consume less -- even though it may not
seem to be the case. A couple of extra bites, ounces, grams, etc. can
add up, so your intake may have been a little more before you started
logging.

[snip]

"Roger Zoul" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

||| It might be time to add intensity to your cardio. HIT rather than
||| straight cardio.
|||
||| http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/hiit.htm
||| http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/intbfatmetab.htm
||| http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/intbfat.htm
||| http://www.exrx.net/FatLoss/HIITvsET.html
|||
||
|| My favorite cardio DVD is interval training, and I love it, but it's
|| a serious workout. When I started about 4 months ago, I was doing
|| the low-impact version of the workout, now I can do the high-impact.

Okay....but just in case, please read some of those pages that talk about
why HIIT works (I should have typed HIIT before, not HIT -- two very
different things). Since you are able you may want to incorporate some of
the HIIT ideas into your workouts, if you aren't using them already. The
idea behind HIIT is to burn more bodyfat....it's backed up with research

and

Quoted message said:

this could have some importance to what you're trying to achieve.

Will do. I'm willing to take the extra steps here, and try different
things. Thanks for the links, I have some reading to do!

Quoted message said:

|||
||| Got any jpgs? The reason I ask is because you may have a typical
||| female view on things like weight. If you're a big strong lady,
||| then that's you. You're tall and you weigh 180. It might be
||| really, really hard for you to get back to 165 (yeah, that what you
||| weighed at 15, right?).
||
|| I have some normal snapshot-type photos on my website -
|| www.verypink.com - but they aren't weight loss photos. (I'm the
|| light-haired woman on the front page.) I'm not a big strong woman.
|| I have narrow shoulders, thin arms and legs, and straight hips. I
|| can clasp my fingers around my ankle and touch my thumb to my middle
|| finger. All of my weight is around my mid section...below my bust
|| and above my thighs. Its my understanding that it's an unhealthy
|| way to carry weight around.

Well, in those photos I see a very attractive, not-at-all overweight
light-haired woman. So, you may be at the point where you're going to have
to work hard for further improvement. But I hear you....if you know there
is some fat around your mid-section, and you feel you have some more work

to

Quoted message said:

do, then it may be time to start really paying attention to diet and
exercise. You'll also have to realize that progress may take a long time,
too.

Thanks Roger...but the last time you had your head examined was...? I'm
only sort of kidding here, I still believe that I have significant visible
fat to lose. I'm also a master of clothing camoflauge. Although, I suppose
it's possible that my head is still somewhere closer to me at 213 pounds,
and not 34 pounds lighter. You've made a good point about allowing further
progress to take a while.

Quoted message said:

Well, at least read up on HIIT. IMO, it is extreme only from a certain
point of view. In terms of time, it is not extreme. What is perhaps

extreme

Quoted message said:

is the intensity part of it. But, depending on what you're actually doing
now, it might bring you some benefit in reaching your goal. And don't

stop

Quoted message said:

weight training. You may need to refine your program, however. Make sure
you're got some squats and deadlifts in your program. Those movements

invoke

Quoted message said:

a lot of body muscle and as a result will develop a lot of muscle. Over
time, adding more muscle will help you get and stay trim. Working out
smartly, along with eating smartly, will make your goal easier to achieve
and easier to maintain. And plan on getting there slowly, too.

Gotcha, thank you. I can see myself beefing up (ha) my routine with more
intensity, but working out for an hour a day, which is what I'm doing now,
is probably all I can afford time-wise. The links you gave me will provide
some good ideas.

Thanks
S t a c i

"Cubit" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

The act and process of measuring calories has an effect on eating

behavior.

Quoted message said:

It is likely you are eating less than you were before measuring. 1100 to
1600 sounds good.

I have been careful not to change anything, but I see what you mean. The
act of measuring cream for my tea causes me to use less...I'm sure I was
using a bit more when I was just dumping it in the mug.

Quoted message said:

Are you drinking the extra water?

At least two liters a day. Sometimes more, but rarely less.

Quoted message said:

What is your fat percentage by calories?

My average (4 days now) is 82 g a day of fat. I just googled the formula,
and fat is 9 calories (I hope this is correct.) So, I'm averaging 738 fat
calories, which would be about 54% of my average daily calories. I have no
idea what my target should be. (I hope I did the math correctly.)

Thanks, Cubit
S t a c i

Quoted message said:

"S t a c i" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40

carbs

Quoted message said:

a

Quoted message said:

day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least 30 minutes of cardio

a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training alternating upper and

lower

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

body. In addition to that activity, I walk the dogs for about an hour a

day

Quoted message said:

total, and bicycle all of my errands and to all appointments (no car).

I

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

would say I'm pretty active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm

eating.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Additionally, the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.

After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to give

it

Quoted message said:

a

Quoted message said:

go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close track of what I

eat.

Quoted message said:

No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and measuring everything, and keeping
track in calorieking. (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a
downloadable program that costs money. I like it better because it

breaks

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

everything down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)

I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't

changed

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My caloric intake is
between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very typical days. I honestly
thought it would be much higher, and would therefore clearly explain why

the

Quoted message said:

scale hasn't moved in a while. But it seems that I'm already in a

target

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

range, if I'm looking at eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight in
calories. Right?

I haven't added anything new to my diet that might cause a
stall...everything I'm eating now is the same as when I was slowly

losing.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Small amounts of caffeine and alcohol haven't caused me any problems so

far.

Quoted message said:

I don't eat any frankenfoods aside from an occasional Atkins shake,

maybe

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

one a week. I have also been able to lose while staying at 30-40 carbs

a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

day (until lately).

So now I ask the experts...what now? Should I try keeping calories

closer

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

to 1000 a day? Is there something else I should be considering? Maybe
counting calories isn't my answer?

Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I

should

Quoted message said:

be

Quoted message said:

shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any ratios for LC.

Thanks in advance
S t a c i
213/179/165
5'11", 36 years old
Atkins for 6 months

"DJ Delorie" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

As you near goal, you may find that *increasing* carbs somewhat may
help, in that you're well out of the realm of plentiful body stores
and the extra carbs may help keep your metabolism up. Similarly, one
day every 1-3 weeks of "high carb gluttony" (refeed) may help boost
your metabolism. Read some of the leptin links on my website[1] for
background info on why this may help. http://www.delorie.com/health/

Quoted message said:

There have been a few cases of people here who stalled because carbs
were held too *low*, who found that higher carbs levels allowed them
to lose for longer periods of time. There's an ideal carb level for
each of us it seems, but lower is not always better.

Yikes. I've been so careful with carbs for the last six months that the
thought of increasing them makes the hairs on my arms stand on end. But,
I'm going to go ahead and re-read the next section in the DANDR book, Pre
Maintenence.

Quoted message said:

Your stats aren't too far off from mine (5'10", 170lbs, 38y). You're
at the "why is it so hard to lose weight!" stage. At this point,
there are no magic bullets left besides lots of hard work over long
periods of time to get small results. Since you're close to goal,
it's probably a good idea to start transitioning your diet from the
weight loss phase to the pre-maintenance phase, which gives you a more
balanced set of nutrients (Atkins himself says that LC is "unbalanced"
in order to compensate for an unbalanced previous diet, and has you
increase carbs as you approach goal to maintain the proper
compensation levels).

Thanks, DJ. The advice from everyone seems to be that weight loss is
probably going to be pretty slow from here out out. Hard work, small
results, as you said. Such a sharp contrast from the way the first 20 lbs
fell off my body!!

Thanks again
S t a c i

"Jenny" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

Is it possible that you've hit your body's idea of your correct weight?

You're pretty tall and with all the exercise and previous weight gain you
probably have a lot of muscle and bigger bones. I have a friend who is

your

Quoted message said:

height who looks quite good at your weight.

I suppose it's possible, but this is where vanity comes in. I don't look
how I want to look yet. I know I'm healthier and more active now, but I
would really consider it success to not be able to pinch inches around my
midsection.

Quoted message said:

The nutrient breakdown that worked for me was about around 68% fat, 7

carb,

Quoted message said:

25% protein with carbs rising as high as 11%.

Thanks for that. I'll enter these as my goals/budgets in my software.

S t a c i

"tcomeau" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

You say you've stalled at 179, but that may just be an overall weight
stall and not specifically a fat-loss stall. Have you kept track of
your measurements? You may find that the weight stays the same as your
measurements drop. Muscle weighs 1.5 times more than fat by volume.
You may be losing fat and gaining muscle. My wife gets frustrated too,
but I watch and see her size go down while all she sees is the number
on the scale.

Yes - this is a frustrating thing! I've actually seen my waist measurment
go up and down from week to week, and it has to be because of all of the ab
strengthening exercises I'm doing.

A few months ago someone posted a link to www.sizebase.com, and I visited
the site and entered full-body measurements. I regularly track
bust/waist/hips, but I had info in there for my whole body. When I went
back to the site recently, I was surprised to find that I lost an entire
inch off my neck! My neck! A whole inch! Measurements are a really
satisfying way to track weight loss.

Thanks, TC
S t a c i

"Concordia" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

(1) You had mentioned the tendency to carry excess weight in the belly
elsewhere in the thread. This can be an indicator of insulin
resistance, which may cause weight loss to proceed at a slower rate.
Take a look at your current waist/hip ratio; is it 0.8 or more?

Yes, my waist/hip ratio is .84. I've never had an hourglass
figure...depending on my weight, I've either been an "apple" or a "ruler".
I just looked up insulin resistance in the DANDR book, and Atkins mentions a
link between insulin resistance and high cholesterol - but my cholesterol is
always at the low range of healthy. I'll keep reading what Atkins has to
say about it. As you mentioned, it could make for slower weight loss.

Quoted message said:

(2) The last 15-20 pounds can really be a pain to lose, especially for
women. Assuming you're making a good faith effort to do your best
(and it sounds like you are), patience and consistency is key.

I've seen this said lots of times on this NG, but naturally I don't want it
to be the case with me! 🙂 Especially when I know how easily weight came
off when I first started LCing. My plan now is to stick with what I'm doing
for the most part, not stress about losing, and just maintain for a few
months.

Thanks for your reply, Concordia -
S t a c i

"S t a c i" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

Yes, my waist/hip ratio is .84. I've never had an hourglass
figure...depending on my weight, I've either been an "apple" or a "ruler".

Correction - when I did my own math, my waist/hip ratio was .84. Now I just
found an online calculator that gave me a ratio of .79. Huh. I know I'm
bad at math, but I thought I could handle this. Please, no snickers from
the crowd.

This online calculator (http://www.ahealthyme.com/topic/waisthip) tells me
I'm an "avocado", not an "apple". The results also say "Your waist is
larger than 30 inches, which means your chances of getting coronary disease
is double that of women with smaller waists (28 inches and under). " Yikes.
These results can't possibly take into consideration that I'm nearly 6'
tall...I haven't had a 28 inch waist since I was a skinny kid in jr. high.

S t a c i

Probably they don't take into consideration your height. I checked out your
website and thought you looked great. So, those last few pounds are going
to be rough. When someone reaches them quickly, as quickly as the others
fell off, I figure that they just stopped a little sooner than the next
person. 🙂

I liked your cross stitch and afghan too. They were nice.

I too went down to 150 quickly and then, screech, it was like I halted. I
hadn't done anything special to get to 150...no counting calories and
hardly any exercise. However, from there on out, it went slowly. Then,
since I think my body wants to be at 150, which is right at the top of the
normal for me, I wanted to be below that and right in the middle of normal
and not just flirting with the top edge of normal.

But, the next few pounds were hard. What I found I did was exercise more
(I had previously not exercised...didn't feel like it and the weight just
peeled off..), then once in a while, I had a "big day"...went to a
restaurant and ate fajitas and ate the whole thing platter full..including
the tortilla, just didn't eat the rice that went alongside. It seemed to
jog something in my system and actually helped. Then, I would set another
small goal (a couple of pounds) and then when I reached it, I made myself
some LC ice cream because while it didn't make me gain, it didn't help me
lose since I made up a liter of pure cream at a time....using cocoa to
flavor it. It helped keep me on track so that I could "live" this way, in
spite of everyone around me eating high carb.

Becky P.
www.family.solidrockpl.org

It sounds great. Now you just need time.

"S t a c i" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Cubit" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

The act and process of measuring calories has an effect on eating

behavior.

Quoted message said:

It is likely you are eating less than you were before measuring. 1100

to

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

1600 sounds good.

I have been careful not to change anything, but I see what you mean. The
act of measuring cream for my tea causes me to use less...I'm sure I was
using a bit more when I was just dumping it in the mug.

Quoted message said:

Are you drinking the extra water?

At least two liters a day. Sometimes more, but rarely less.

Quoted message said:

What is your fat percentage by calories?

My average (4 days now) is 82 g a day of fat. I just googled the formula,
and fat is 9 calories (I hope this is correct.) So, I'm averaging 738 fat
calories, which would be about 54% of my average daily calories. I have

no

Quoted message said:

idea what my target should be. (I hope I did the math correctly.)

Thanks, Cubit
S t a c i

Quoted message said:

"S t a c i" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've been stalled at 179 for six weeks, while staying between 30-40

carbs

Quoted message said:

a

Quoted message said:

day. I'm also working out 5 days a week...at least 30 minutes of

cardio

Quoted message said:

a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

day, and 20-30 minutes of resistance training alternating upper and

lower

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

body. In addition to that activity, I walk the dogs for about an hour

a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

day

Quoted message said:

total, and bicycle all of my errands and to all appointments (no car).

I

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

would say I'm pretty active, and kept a good grip on the carbs I'm

eating.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Additionally, the measuring tape hasn't budged, either.

After reading endless posts about calorie control, I've decided to

give

Quoted message said:

it

Quoted message said:

a

Quoted message said:

go. I've got my food scale, and I'm keeping very close track of what

I

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

eat.

Quoted message said:

No guessing anymore! I'm weighing and measuring everything, and

keeping

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

track in calorieking. (Calorieking is a lot like fitday, but it is a
downloadable program that costs money. I like it better because it

breaks

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

everything down into grams, which is the unit my scale uses.)

I've been keeping track of calories for a few days, but I haven't

changed

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

anything yet. I'm surprised by what I'm finding! My caloric intake

is

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

between 1100 and 1600 a day, for three very typical days. I honestly
thought it would be much higher, and would therefore clearly explain

why

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

the

Quoted message said:

scale hasn't moved in a while. But it seems that I'm already in a

target

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

range, if I'm looking at eating between 8 and 10 times my bodyweight

in

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

calories. Right?

I haven't added anything new to my diet that might cause a
stall...everything I'm eating now is the same as when I was slowly

losing.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Small amounts of caffeine and alcohol haven't caused me any problems

so

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

far.

Quoted message said:

I don't eat any frankenfoods aside from an occasional Atkins shake,

maybe

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

one a week. I have also been able to lose while staying at 30-40

carbs

Quoted message said:

a

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

day (until lately).

So now I ask the experts...what now? Should I try keeping calories

closer

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

to 1000 a day? Is there something else I should be considering?

Maybe

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

counting calories isn't my answer?

Last question - can someone tell me the protein/fat/fiber ratios I

should

Quoted message said:

be

Quoted message said:

shooting for? I've googled it, but haven't found any ratios for LC.

Thanks in advance
S t a c i
213/179/165
5'11", 36 years old
Atkins for 6 months