Blogging from the Highlands of Scotland
'From fanaticism to barbarism is only one step' - Diderot

Monday 1 December 2003

Atkins Low Carbohydrate Diet - Weeks 23 & 24

... and the fourth and fifth weeks since I moved from 'Induction' to 'Ongoing Weight Loss'. Pretty good results were recorded in both weeks, the best for some time. Indeed, I had to take steps to reduce the rate of weight loss in week 23. I think this happened because I have started gradually to do lengthier and lengthier light 'jogging' during my daily dog-walks and had not been increasing my food intake adequately to compensate. Anyway, I see this as a good 'problem' to have! During the first week I was on step 4 of the OWL carb ladder. I lost 0.9kg (2.0lb). I remained on the same daily carb level during the second week, but ensured I was actually eating closer to the limits allowed, rather than instinctively restricting my intake to quite a bit below this, so in the second of the two weeks I lost 0.6kg (1.4lb), and my weight is now (as at Sunday 30th November) 69.0kg, a reduction of 29.0kg since I began (or 63.9lb) - I now have 4.0kg (8.9lb) to reach my target of 65kg. Measurement indicators for the 2 weeks:
- waist down a further 0.4 inches to 32.5 inches (total reduction so far 12.5 inches);
- hips down 0.4 inches to 39.6 inches (total reduction so far 8.9 inches);
- thighs down 0.2 inches to 22.9 inches (total reduction so far 5.6 inches).

OWL step 4 (max. 40g carb a day) allowed me to have small bowls of berries (for example strawberries, blueberries or redcurrants) liberally coated in double cream. Depending on how my weight loss progresses in the next one or two weeks, I plan to move from the 'OWL' stage of Atkins to 'Pre-Maintenance' - this is the 3rd stage of this eating plan and I think probably the most difficult as it involves further increasing food intake so that weight loss becomes barely noticeable on a weekly basis - certainly no more than 1 lb a week and preferably no more than about 1/2 lb. However, I am now pretty confident that I know enough about what I can and cannot eat to control my weight so that I have no real worries I may not reach my target sufficiently slowly for it to become second nature.

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