18 A Regimen to Jump-Start Weight Loss

The heat is on. You've been invited to a friend's beach house two weeks from now. But you're spilling out of all your bathing suits; some of them look as though they might actually burst. Crying won't burn up enough calories to shed those pounds. You need a high-powered solution that will' last a lifetime so you never have to repeat this misery.

Your problem is simple. You don't know how to start. Even. though you've read everything in this book so far-you still want a bit of help to get going. Truly, I wish you could call me up or come see me, and we could work together to change your life. But we know that is not practical. So, in this chapter I give you some very specific infonnation and some very specific meal plans. Follow them to the letter and you will be well on your way to feeling good, looking good and being healthier. And well on your way to fitting into those bathing suits.

I've made the point ninny times in this book that Atkins is an individualized nutritional approach. But it has been my experience that certain people succeed much better if given a stria regimen to follow. It is likely that if you eat exactly what's presented to you here, yon will achieve weight loss. So, at the end of this chapter is a week-long menu that spells out precisely what to eat. If you've opened the book directly to this chapter, the following instructions before the menu, will be very important. FOr the rest of you, they will be a good review.

Remember, I don't advise losing more than one pound a day. (People with a lot of excess weight may lose more than a pound a day in the beginning. And you may very well lose water weight this fast in the beginning, and that is also okay.) That's about as fast as a normal human body can dump pounds safely and comfortably. Go faster, and you'll probably pay. Your metabolism won't have had time to adjust, you'll be losing an excessive amount of water and minerals and you may well feel fairly awful: Back off, for heaven's sake, and don't say I didn't warn you. Your body has its own wisdom, so listen to it.

And, just in case you actually did the unthinkable and skipped the beginning of the book to get to this chapter, let me repeat one important health warning: None of the weight loss phases of Atkins is appropriate for pregnant women or nursing mothers, and people with severe kidney disease should not do Atkins at all.

Ready...

I want to pause for a minute to remind you about the Atkins Nutritional Principles for weight loss. These points are so important I can't risk that you somehow skipped over them in our earlier discussion.

·During the Induction phase of Atkins your body switches from primarily burning carbohydrates to burning fat as its main energy source.1-s

·Controlling carbohydrate intake stabilizes blood-sugar levels, producing diverse and favorable physical effects. You will achieve these benefits by switching to the slower burning fuel found in thorns and fats.

·Typical results of these changes are a decrease in appetite, reduced sugar cravings and dramatic increases in energy.

Set...

As you jump-start your weight loss, remember that carbohydrate intake during Induction should be no more than 20 grams a day in the form of vegetables and other acceptable food choices. In this phase, you will be eating no breads, sugars, grains, potatoes, rice, pastas or fruits. Once your carbohydrate intake goes below a certain threshold, you will primarily bum your body fat for fuel. Since your body stores enough carbohydrate reserve to fuel it for approximately forty-eight hours, it will take that long for the process to start. You may feel hungry and out-of-sorts for the first two to three days. Be patient and persist.

Go!

1. Eat three meals a day. Stabilizing the blood sugar is the basic tool of controlled carbohydrate weight loss, and to achieve this you should not go longer than six waking hours without eating acceptable food. You can, however, eat four or five smaller meals a day, so long as you don't exceed 20 grams of carbohydrates.

2. You are permitted to eat liberal amounts of eggs, meat and fish, including beef, Pork, chicken, turkey, duck, wild game, shellfish, veal and lamb. Eat until you feel pleasantly full, but do not gorge.

3. Liberal amounts of fats and oils are permiUed. This includes butter, olive oil, mayonnaise and any oil that is liquid at room temoerature. (Consume no hydrogenated oil or other trans fat: including margarine.)

4. Herbs and spices are permitted as long as they do not contain sugar.

5. Cheese (aged full-fat, firm, soft, semi-soft) is limited to three to four ounces daily. Fresh cheese, such as cottage cheese and farmer's cheese, is too high in carbohydrates for Induction.

6. You may have up to three cups loosely packed (measured raw) salad vegetables each day. This includes all leafy green vegetables, mushrooms, celery, radishes, green peppers, and cucumbers (see also "Salad Vegetables" on page 125).

7. Other vegetables low in cadx)hydrates are limited to one cup daily. (If you have a cup of these veggies, consume only two cups of salad vegetables.) This includes the following non-starchy vegetables (see also "Other Vegetables" on page 126):

·Artichoke hearts

· Asparagus

· Bean sprouts

· Broccoli

· Cauliflower

· Eggplant

· Kohlrabi

· Okra

· Onion

· Pumpkin

· Rhubarb

· Sauerkraut

· Scallions

· Snow peas

· Spaghetti squash

· String beans

· Tomato

· Turnips

· Water chestnuts

· Zucchini

·8. You may also include the following items in your daily cart) count:

· Olives (up to twenty)

· Avocados (up to half a small avocado)

·Lemon/Lime juice(two to three tablespoons)

·Cream (heavy, light or sour,two to three tablespoons)

9.You must drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of pure water daily. This can be filtered, mineral or spring water(not seltzer).You may also have unlimited amounts of herbal tea(without sugar),but these do not count toward your total of eight glasses.

10.Drink only decaffeinated coffee and tea use only acceptable sweeteners(listed in #13 below).

11.Alcohol is not permitted in any form.

12.Treat aspartame(NutraSweet? or Equal?)with caution.Avoid whenever possible. This includes products sweetened with this ingredient, such as diet sodas and diet Jell-O.Check labels on other products that purport to be low or controlled carb.

13.You may use up to three packets of sucralose (Splenda?)daily.(More and more products are being made with Splenda? so if you use any,include those grams in your tally also.)

14. Exclude the following items entirely:

·Sugar (in any form, including corn syrup, honey and maple syrup)

·Milk and yougurt(cream is allowed in limited amounts)

·Fruit and fruit juice

·Flour products (breads, pasta, crackers, etc.)

·Grains

·Cereals

·Beans and legumes

·Starchy or high sugar-containing vegetables(potatoes, yams, corn, peas, parsnips, beets, carrots)

·Sweet condiments(such as most ketchups, barbeque sauce and balsamic vinegar)

·French dressing, Thousand Island dressing(check labels for carb count)

·Cottage cheese, farmer’s cheese and other fresh cheeses

·Nuts and seeds

15. When eating out be careful that you’re not consuming “hidden”carbohydrates in sauces or breaded products.Tell your waiter that you would like your food prepared free of sugar,flour and cornstarch.

16.Unless you are physically unable to do so,exercise every day,even if it’s just a walk around the block.This is an important part of the program in all phases and will certainly increase the rate at which you lose weight.

17.Chapter 23 will give you extensive details on nutritional supplementation for the atkins Nutritional Approach.Aat this stage you should, at a minimum,take a good daily multivitamin with minerals, including potassium, magnesium and calcium but without iron.

Time to Be Strict

Anyone who is committed to doing Atkins properly needs to follow these rules to the letter.Remember that it takes two to three days for the body to switch to fat burning.One cheat and you’re back to a glucose-burning metabolism.You can lose the effects of two or three days of fat burning with one cheat. So if you have the misguided belief that you can do Atkins all week and then indulge over the weekedend,don’t expect to see dramatic results.

Let me emphasize two key points:

1.You may have heard that you can eat as much as you desire of the acceptable foods.This is not the case.If you stuff yourself with steaks and cheeseburgers, some of that protein will convert to glucose in your body. Instead, simply eat the amount that allows you to feel satisfied.If you have been overeating for, years, perhaps even decades, you may not know what being satiated feels like. Experiment and find that place where you say, "I could eat more, but I 'am satisfied." Know that you can have a snack in an hour or two if you wish.

2. Number 16, on page 231, with regard to exercise, was not put in there merely as decoration. Exercise is good for you, and it will help you lose. Moreover, it not only causes you to burn calories, but it accelerates your metabolism, increasing the speed with which every other part of a weight loss program works and keeps you on the road to better health.

Now to the meal plans. Follow this menu for the first week, then repeat it for the second week. Items with an * are included in the "Food and Recipes" section starting on page 367.

One-Week Induction Menu

MONDAY

Breakfast

Two' scrambled eggs

Two turkey sausages

Lucnch

Greek salad made with 'Romaine lettuce, half a tomato, feta cheese, olives and dill vinaigrette

Small can of tuna

Dinner

Veal Scallops with White Wine Caper Sauce*

Sauteed spinach

Gelatin dessert made with sucralose topped with whipped cream

Snack

Controlled carb strawberry shake

TUESDAY

Breakfast

Crustless Quiche*

Two tomato slices

Lunch

Chicken salad served over chopped cucumber, radishes and watercress

Dinner

Maple Mustard-Glazed Salmon*

Sauteed broccoli with red pepper

Small green salad with vinaigrette

Snack

Ten to twenty olives

WEDNESDAY

Breakfast

Smoked salmon and cream cheese roll-ups

Two hard-boiled eggs

Lunch

Homemade Chicken Soup*

Dinner

Broiled steak

Oven-Fried Turnips*

Amgula and Boston lettuce salad

Snack

Turkey, Romaine lettuce, mayonnaise roil-up

THURSDAY

Breakfast

Western omelette with green salsa

Lunch

Vegetable broth with shredded white radish

Shrimp salad over greens

Dinner

Turkey Cutlets with Green Peppercorn Sauce*

Cauliflower-Leek Puree*

Gelatin dessert made with sucralose topped with whipped cream

Snack

One ounce Swiss cheese

FRIDAY

Breakfast

Two ounces cream cheese sprinkled with cinnamon and fiaxseeds

Two Bran-a-CrispTM crackers

Lunch

Chef's salad with blue cheese dressing

Dinner

Pork burgers

Creamy Red Cabbage Slaw*

Broiled portobello mushrooms with sesame oil

Snack

Mocha granita

SATURDAY

Breskfast

Whitefish salad

Two tomato slices

Lunch

Ham, spinach and cheese omelette

Mixed green salad

Dinner

Herbed-Roast Chicken with Lemon*

Buttered green beans

Italian Almond Cream*

Snack

Celery stuffed with Roasted Garlic and Vegetable Dip*

SUNDAY

Breakfast

One and a halfslices Zucchini Nut Bread*

Two ounces cream cheese

Lunch

Broiled cheeseburger

Large mixed green salad with two tomato slices

Dinner

Cajun Pork Chops*

Sauteed kale with garlic

Snack

Controlled carb vanilla shake

Having seen how straightforward it is to get started, I have only one question: Are you going to read the rest of this book? There is only one answer. You must, because your health and well-being depend on it. Bm let me remind you: Two weeks won't get the job done-only a lifetime of healthoriented behavior will.