declaring victory..?

I have been hovering one up and one down from 165 for almost two months now.
(though actually the weekly averages trend down with more spent at 164
lately so perhaps I am losing very slowly)

the thing is, both my wife and my doctor thought165 should be my goal, but
my doctor agreed that it would not hurt to go to 160 as a parking weight so
I would have some room to maneuver as I tried to maintain the weight. (I am
a borderline big boned 5'9'' tall, though i used to be 5' 10", and weighed a
skinny 145 in high school and thin to normal normal 160 out of college, all
of which was more than a quarter of a century ago)

After the rapid then consistant weight loss of the first 4 months of this
diet, this has been frustrating. Part of it is trying to get used to having
new OWL options (nuts being the big problem) and keeping them in moderation,
but as several people here noted, atkins supposedly will not take off weight
below your ideal weight.

Today I got my bp checked again (a forearm system, never seen one of those
before) and it was the lowest yet, 124/67. Since it was equitensive numbers
(150's/90's) that really got me to focus on the diet and exercise, this set
me to thinking whether I should continue to try and wring those last 5
pounds off, or go ahead and declare victory and begin trying to move towards
maintenance. I have always thought this would be the hardest part, and want
to get to see how maintenance is going to work (I am worried that I have
been struggling to lose with no effect for the past too months, it feels
like an relenting and I will begin gaining again, which was my original
reason for wanting to lose the extra five pounds.)

I am a numbers/charts and goal obsessed person (computer programmer type) so
this is a hard call, but the numbers do seem arbitrary. Is this a common
dilema? I have lots of loose skin, some of which seems like it still has
some fat lining, but everyone and their brother says I have lost enough
weight (to the point of being annoying)

Bob

Bob, congrats on your loss! That is fantastic! but remember, it is not over
really, you've only just begun. lol, pun intended. I think that if your
numbers are good, you feel good, and you look good--then declare your
victory. Only you know how you feel and if losing 5 pounds more for "ease"
is too difficult, then let it be. You have done a wonderful thing; you have
attained your set weight and are ok with it. Ya know, doctors don't know
*everything*. Obviously, there is no real medical reason for you to lose 5
pounds more, so be happy, kick back and enjoy your success. If people keep
nagging you to lose the 5 lbs and it gets on your nerves, just tell them you
lost it and are 160 so they can leave you alone! LOL! Then you can enjoy
your weight in peace. But you still plan to stick to low carb don't you?
Cause now you can graduate to Lifetime Level, now. Good luck, Bob! And you
have inspired me to keep working toward my goal!

Juju
352/351/185



"bob" wrote in message
news
I have been hovering one up and one down from 165 for almost two months
now.
(though actually the weekly averages trend down with more spent at 164
lately so perhaps I am losing very slowly)

the thing is, both my wife and my doctor thought165 should be my goal, but
my doctor agreed that it would not hurt to go to 160 as a parking weight
so
I would have some room to maneuver as I tried to maintain the weight. (I
am
a borderline big boned 5'9'' tall, though i used to be 5' 10", and weighed
a
skinny 145 in high school and thin to normal normal 160 out of college,
all
of which was more than a quarter of a century ago)

After the rapid then consistant weight loss of the first 4 months of this
diet, this has been frustrating. Part of it is trying to get used to
having
new OWL options (nuts being the big problem) and keeping them in
moderation,
but as several people here noted, atkins supposedly will not take off
weight
below your ideal weight.

Bob,

True maintenance is probably very close to your current diet since, in fact,
you've been maintaining.

This is especially since you're trying to maintain blood pressure. Most of
us have a carb level where the diuretic effect of the diet reverses and we
regain water weight. At that level, you might see your blood pressure go
back up.

The only way you are going to get that last couple pounds off is by cutting
calories. Once you do that, you run the risk of having to maintain at a
lower caloric level. It's probably not worth it.

The idea of going lower so you can eat a bunch more is an illusion. The
lower you go the more likely you are to depress your metabolism and
encourage a much more intense weight regain rebound.

-- Jenny

Cut the carbs to respond to my new email address!

Weight: 168.5/137
Diabetes Type II diagnosed 8/1998 -
HBa1c 5.2 10/03
Low Carb 9/1998 - 8/2001 and 11/10/02 - Now

http://www.geocities.com/jenny_the_bean
How to calculate your need for protein * How much people really lose each
month * Water Weight Gain & Loss * The "Two Gram Cure" for Hunger Cravings
* Characteristics of Successful Dieters * Indispensible Low Carb Treats *
Should You Count that Low Impact Carb? * Curing Ketobreath * Exercise
Starting from Zero * Do Starch Blockers Work? * NEW! Why the Low Carb Diet
is Great for Diabetes * NEW! Low Carb Strategies for People with Diabetes


"bob" wrote in message
news
I have been hovering one up and one down from 165 for almost two months
now.
(though actually the weekly averages trend down with more spent at 164
lately so perhaps I am losing very slowly)

the thing is, both my wife and my doctor thought165 should be my goal, but
my doctor agreed that it would not hurt to go to 160 as a parking weight
so
I would have some room to maneuver as I tried to maintain the weight. (I
am
a borderline big boned 5'9'' tall, though i used to be 5' 10", and weighed
a
skinny 145 in high school and thin to normal normal 160 out of college,
all
of which was more than a quarter of a century ago)

After the rapid then consistant weight loss of the first 4 months of this
diet, this has been frustrating. Part of it is trying to get used to
having
new OWL options (nuts being the big problem) and keeping them in
moderation,
but as several people here noted, atkins supposedly will not take off
weight
below your ideal weight.

Today I got my bp checked again (a forearm system, never seen one of those
before) and it was the lowest yet, 124/67. Since it was equitensive
numbers
(150's/90's) that really got me to focus on the diet and exercise, this
set
me to thinking whether I should continue to try and wring those last 5
pounds off, or go ahead and declare victory and begin trying to move
towards
maintenance. I have always thought this would be the hardest part, and
want
to get to see how maintenance is going to work (I am worried that I have
been struggling to lose with no effect for the past too months, it feels
like an relenting and I will begin gaining again, which was my original
reason for wanting to lose the extra five pounds.)

I am a numbers/charts and goal obsessed person (computer programmer type)
so
this is a hard call, but the numbers do seem arbitrary. Is this a common
dilema? I have lots of loose skin, some of which seems like it still has
some fat lining, but everyone and their brother says I have lost enough
weight (to the point of being annoying)

Bob

"bob" wrote in message om...
I have been hovering one up and one down from 165 for almost two months now.
(though actually the weekly averages trend down with more spent at 164
lately so perhaps I am losing very slowly)

I encourage you to declare victory, and my guess is that 6 months from
now you will be steady around 160.

The scale isn't important, unless you're a jockey. What's important
is your health and your blood pressure.

Congratulations!

T.