[Seisyvose]

Hello,

Overall I have been very successful on Atkins, having lost (and kept off) 25 kg since starting roughly a year ago.

In the last 6 months though my weight has pretty much levelled off and been fluctuating in a +/- 2kg band.

I realise i am no longer as strict as I once was and eyeball portions, rather than weigh them. On an almost daily basis, I probably have cream and cheese (but not in huge proportions) and whilst I have cheated over the year...it is rare. I think my body has just reached its calorific equilibrium and thus only smaller portions or the introduction of exercise is going to spur more weightloss.

I'm a bit concerned at the moment as I've never been to test my cholesterol and just wondering if people there are people out there that have whilst on Atkins. I know the theory that your cholesterol levels will be higher, but your good cholesterol will be much higher than your bad, so whilst the absolute levels of cholesterol are higher, this in effect cancels each other out.

Would love to hear from anyone regarding their experience about cholesterol on Atkins.

Cheers,

C

[sarasaraseda]

Cory... that has been my experience. My total is high if you only consider that one number. But, if you look at individual numbers everything is great. My ratio of total to HDL is good. So go get checked. You should anyway.

Tril

[zooworms]

Tested 1 Week Prior to Atkins Induction
2/25/2008
Weight: 290
LDL Cholesterol: 220
HDL: 30
Triglycerides: 210
Total Cholesterol: 250+ (I don't recall exactly on this one and she did not write it down for me.)

Results after 1 full year on Atkins.
3/10/2009
Weight: 211
LDL Cholesterol: 143
HDL: 35 (still need to bring this one up)
Triglycerides: 125
Total Cholesterol: 203

[sarasaraseda]

The component MOST effected by diet is tryglycerides. Mine was 38 in January. Trigs should be under 150. HDL they want above 40, mine is 85. So... ya know... this works. IF you follow it. Mess around and go on and off, though, and you'll do yourself more harm than good. You can't be "kinda" doing Atkins and expect the same results.

Fat + protein (and a LITTLE carb) = good health
Fat + carbs = poor health

Don't worry about the fats, they don't hurt your numbers... unless you add carbohydrate to that fat. THEN things go bad.

FYI... to find your ratio divide your total cholesterol by your HDL. This number should be 4.0 or less. If it is, you're good to go.