[TughEmotteTug]

The foundation of Atkins is in the basics... veggie carbs, good fats, protein, supplements, water, exercise, paying attention to the limits.

For August... how about we focus on the basics again? It doesn't matter what phase you're in, the basics MATTER.

Veggie carbs... Induction means 12 to 15 net carbs every day, OWL and beyond this doesn't change. You still need the minimum.

Good fats... this isn't rocket science. Trans fats are out. Natural animal fat, EVOO, avocado, olives are in. Some is good... too much is not. Be reasonable when you add fats. The Induction food list says 1 TBS is a serving. Why do they say that unless it's important??

Protein... current recommendation is 6 oz per meal. NOT a plate sized steak. Again... some is good, too much is not.

Supplements... a basic one a day without iron. How hard is that?

Water.... necessary for life, only second to oxygen. Think about that. Now go get a glass of water. LOL

Exercise... our bodies are designed to move, so get up and move. More.

Limits... did you know that there are daily limits on cheese, mussels, oysters and artificial sweeteners?

I'm challenging anyone who wants to participate to get back to the basics with me! Throughout the month of August let's post and share when we are successful with one of the basics. Something like... I drank ALL my water today AND remembered my vitamin. These will help remind all of us to keep building on the foundation... to keep the diet strong and successful.

Who's in?

Oh... and if you want to add a wt loss element to August... go for it!

My wt loss goal for August is to see 127... and have it stick. That's 2#.

Tril

[Adiamant]

I'm in ......
Hit all those things today but the vitamin....thanks for the reminder!

[TineSeign]

I've been doing pretty good on all my basics lately. Plan to keep it going through august.

Daily Green Smoothie ( I gave up on salads, I just couldn't stand them anymore, plus I can push the veggie amount up without all the other bs like dressing)

Lifting every third day pretty consistent for about two weeks

Water- I don't have a choice unless I want to wake up with cotton mouth.

Vitamins - pretty good with the morning set, I'll occasionally miss taking the night time set.

Cheese - no comment. :P ( Maybe an ounce or two over depending on the day )

Protein - never been a huge meat eater. I've actually drink atleast one protein shake a day to try protect my muscle or help with the muscle recovery after a workout.

I wake up feeling great, so I got to keep it going.

oh yeah, weight goal is to bust through 250 big time and get the 230s in sight for an Sept goal.

[TughEmotteTug]

What's in your green smoothie?!?

[TineSeign]

What's in your green smoothie?!?

depends on the day. I try to vary my veggies so its not the same thing every day.

Since I've been doing it about a month, I've used kale, spinach, chard,mache, and dandelion greens so far.

flavoring - garlic, ginger, cilantro, basil, mixed berries, cranberry.

I sometimes throw the protein powder in the smoothie too.

[Adiamant]

ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...I gotta say that sounds perfectly awful!!! But hey if you like it - go for it!

[TineSeign]

ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...I gotta say that sounds perfectly awful!!! But hey if you like it - go for it!

for me, it beats chewing on leaves for 10-20 mins. :P

[TughEmotteTug]

Yeah... I think I'll stick to eating it like a rabbit. LOL

[tipokotap]

I need to tighten up...I'm an OWL but still, here are my worst lapses:

*Not enough water.
*Not getting regular exercise.
*Having more than one glass of wine.
*Some days not enough veggie carbs.

I'm religious on the vitamins, good on limiting protein, pretty good at not overdoing the cheese, etc. and having good fats in moderation. I'll work on getting those "sometimes" issues consistently GOOD.

I would like to leave 134 far behind and be somewhere between 131.6 and 132.6 by the end of the month (my scale weighs in .2 increments.)

[Adiamant]

I was listening to something on NPR this afternoon that was talking about raw food verses cooked food. Michael Pollen who wrote - the Omnivores Dilemma (which I am reading at the moment) was saying that there are more calories etc... in cooked food than with raw. Basically because the digestive system has to do less work to do, and the calories are more accessible.

So I am wondering...when you blend all that up and make it more easily digestible...are there more calories and carbs than if you chewed like a rabbit for 20 minutes even though it is not cooked???? Not that there are a lot to begin with...but you are making things really easy on your digestive system - I wonder how the fiber is affected as well?

Just some random pondering from a tired person.......................

[TughEmotteTug]

You can't put more calories or carbs into food by changing it without taking away from or adding to it.... if you take one raw apple and calculate the carbs/fat/protein then that is what is in it. Chop it, cook it, freeze it... the same. HOWEVER, processed (chopped, cooked, diced, mashed) can reduce the VOLUME of the food. That's why 1/2 cup of raw broccoli has fewer carbs (and therefore, calories... since calories are determined by the grams of fat, protein and carbohydrate in a food) than 1/2 cup cooked broccoli. That doesn't make raw broccoli "better". You're actually eating less broccoli when you eat 1/2 cup raw vs 1/2 cup cooked.

Processing foods doesn't make calories or carbohydrate more absorbable in the sense that your body gets more of it somehow. What processing does is make it easier for your body to DIGEST it... since part of the digestion is done before it even hits your mouth. If you drink your veggies your body doesn't have to chew in order to swallow and then break down the larger pieces in your gut. So digestion is FASTER. The fiber doesn't change, the nutrients don't change (the MICRONUTRIENTS may change when you heat a food, though), the calories don't change. Because it's partially digested, your stomach will empty much faster... and if there's any downfall, it's that you'll be hungry faster. And if you happened to be eating a high carb food, your body would absorb the glucose faster... and cause a larger insulin release. That's not good. But since we're not eating mashed potato we're ok.

As for making things easier on your digestive system... it might be that liquified veggies make the micro-nutrients more easily absorbed. Now THAT would be an advantage, wouldn't it?

[TughEmotteTug]

Back to basics I've done today:

Walked on treadmill 2 miles in 40 minutes.
Did a heavy (but only 12 min) upper body workout (arms feel like jello now).
Drank 32 oz before lunch.
Had b'fast.

What have YOU done today?

[goldeneggs]

I would like to join you all here as well. Newbie starting tomorrow - 8/5/09 and I love this challenge idea!

I am preparing for my start - I work long days with a 2 hr commute each way so lots of planning involved. But I feel this will be a great adventure!

My exercise is a positive for me these days. I average about 15,000 steps daily on my pedometer. It really is a great thing - something my employer has for us. We each have pedometers and then plug it in online and sets up courses for us throughout the world! It is fun and I am near the top

Thanks again,

Patty

[SM9WI8oI]

Hi I would like to join the August challenge. I like the idea of reporting he good things we have done for ourselves...

I have been skipping my vitamins too much..plan on getting back on track with that.
I weigh 190 and hope to weigh at least down to 195 at the end of August. I would love to say more but havent been able to exercise much ..hopefully soon my dr will release me..I have been able to get around more though.

I look forward to seeing everyones progress

[tipokotap]

Good to see new folks joining in!

Water OK today, had the vitamins, lowered my carbs to Induction level to help jump start me, prepped for tomorrow so I'll be on plan at work, so that's the good news. Exercise - bad news. I'll try to actually take a lunch break tomorrow and walk, even tho it is hot and sticky.

Toni

[TughEmotteTug]

Things I did right today...

Water
Ate out... had broiled seafood, green beans and wine. Man, that was good.

I probably didn't eat enough... and I didn't walk. But there's always tomorrow.

[Adiamant]

Things I did right today

Made my water goal
Took my vitamins
Had 6 0z of protein for lunch and dinner
Had all my veggies today....
Did not eat cookies when I was left alone with them!!!!

I did not have the opportunity to exercise today
But Tril is right....there is always tomorrow!

[Flistelib]

Well, it's only 11:00 am but I had a really good Atkins breakfast.
That's saying alot being I binged two days ago and I'm still not back to my ketosis energy. I also drank alot of water so far today.

[tipokotap]

Hi, Batyaboo! Good to hear from you.

I was UNDER everything today.

It was cool today so I walked 1.5 miles after work! No mosquitos~

Breakfast was lite, as well as lunch. Lots of raw veggies. Had an "Induction level" dinner...salad, cheese and deli meat. Today was MY day to "break through" the "pound barrier!"

THEN I was led astray by evil companions. My super neighbor across the street had a birthday last week. I made her a birthday card which PROMISED to provide ingredients for her favorite after-dinner drink, a (pardon me, censors!) "Buttery Nipple" made with Butterscotch Schnapps and Bailey's Irish Creme. Later, this week, I bought the bottles at the ABC Store for her.

She cashed in her card tonight. I begged forgiveness for not participating, I TRIED to reason with her, I did EVERYTHING in my power to resist, but she FORCED me!

The truth is, I'd only had 15 carbs for the day, after dinner, and this is my OWL/PreMaintenance phase, so it is time to test and set my limits. I had ONE! Testing the limits...I Googled it...15 carbs!!! ONE! So it was a lousy day for nutrition, but still within carb limits overall.

Even "no carb" alcohol prevents using up fat. Bailey's??? Egads!! Time will tell. I walked a mile and a half...

[SM9WI8oI]

hey guys ...of course on my last post I meant to say 185 ahah...no change for me this week.