Stalled???

What to do in a stall?
I get asked this a lot........

First of all sorry to just sort of abandon my blog, I've been super busy and try to keep up with questions and pm's on Facebook and the forum and my blog has been neglected lately. This post is something that I posted a few weeks ago about stalls. I've re-typed this same thing a few times to different people and figured I might as well add it here for reference too.

The most important thing is not to give up!!!

Sure, I've had stalls..... you can't lose 249 lbs and not have some stalls along the way..... and lately I've been stalled for like 3/4 months, (or wait has it been longer then 3/4 months??? I don't remember now LOL) except I lost an inch or two around my middle. Stalls suck but it happens the more you lose and get closer to goal. I have 16 lbs left that are annoying me. But I can live with that.

Everyone is going to stall along the way, but you can't give up, just keep going. You body needs time to adjust to the changes, even losing 20 to 30 pounds can make a big difference. Sometimes you need to just maintain for a bit and then you'll start losing again. So be patient and let your body catch up. Also your skin shouldn't get as saggy if you lose slower too, so don't be in a huge rush and get discouraged if you stall, this is a long term change for your health not just a diet.

Take a look at your water consumption. Often times thirst can be mistaken for hunger. You feel hungry, but you're really thirsty. So when I feel hungry I get a drink and see if I'm still hungry or not. I've also heard that by the time you feel thirsty that you should have already gotten a drink. I got bad about not drinking enough at work. I'd go to work, start working and not go get any water until the afternoon. I was really thirsty but like I dummy I sat there still working instead of stopping to get a drink. Then my co-worker was doing the same thing, so I sent her a calendar invite with "Drink Water" on it twice a day at 11am and 3pm. It's harder to ignore when both of our calendars pop up a reminder message and we both go get water. We've even added a 3rd co-worker to the calendar invite now. :)

The next thing to look at is your added "low carb products" make sure you are counting all those extra carbs, check your breath mints and gum, check for lots of added sodium it could be water weight. You need to keep drinking plenty of water or else your body will try to store it too.... it sounds counter productive but drinking water can help with water retention. You do need some sodium, but it's in a lot of foods so just make sure that you're not getting a ton of it.

Lunch meats are quick and easy and taste good but can often be loaded with sodium. If you're eating a package of lunch meat a day and stopped losing then maybe re-evaluate that..... same with hot dogs and some sausages and bacon can do it for some people. If you're mostly eating those types of foods maybe swap out for some grilled chicken, tuna, beef or something that you cook at home that isn't processed. I like my bacon a lot, ok fine.... I love bacon!!!!!! It's one of those things I just have to have so I try to find one that isn't as salty and then try not to have a bunch of lunch meat, sausage or hot dogs on the same day. But if I do, I don't flip out about it because I expect to retain water due to the extra sodium.

Take a look back to the basics, read the posts about how to do induction right, read the food lists again, make sure you're not getting too much caffeine, lack of sleep, missing meals, sometimes you can be eating too much food for example if you were 525 lbs and use to eating 5 or 6 cups of food at once.... then suddenly you're 350 lbs and still eating 5 or 6 cups of food, not because you are hungry, but because you're programmed to do it.... you think that's a normal portion size.... umm no..... don't starve yourself but make sure that you're really hungry before you eat more.

As time goes on and you lose weight then re-evaluate your portion sizes as you go. Eat slowly, drink water before your meal or with your meal. Ask yourself are you really hungry or are you just thirsty? We can often feel hungry when we are really thirsty. Lots of times when on low carb we won't be hungry and then we need to remind ourselves to snack on a boiled egg here and there or a piece of string cheese just so we don't end up going all day without eating. Part of the healthy lifestyle change is learning how to eat properly. You don't have to transition over night, but as you progress in your weight loss just look back on everything and see if something else needs to change.

This was posted on the Atkins Facebook page:
"Guess what the #1 Atkins question on this page is? "I'm stalled! What am I doing wrong?" You really need to read the latest Atkins blog post: Plateaus: Once More With Feeling." Required reading for people who expect daily miracles on their scales! "
Plateaus, Once More with Feeling

So ummm..... apparently it's a pretty common problem. So don't feel all alone.

Here's a couple other links too:
How to Do Induction Right

What You Can Eat in Phase 1 (Induction)

If you're bored of eating the same things I have some food suggestions on my blog too, they are not all totally induction friendly so just make modifications if needed.
A few of CJ's tips for success and a food list.

CJ's List of meal ideas.