MrBen

A protein based diet can lead to ketosis, which comes with a line of medical issues, as well as being very difficult to maintain for most people. I wouldn't recommend cutting your carbs excessively.

Cengiz

I did not mean cutting carbs excessively,rather I meant having more proteins than carbs.When you have excessive carbs your insulin level rises and then drops which in the end can cause diabetes type 2 as your body can not produce insulin anymore.I think a 50-60 gr carbs can be quite sufficient as daily intake and most of that should be from vegetables.I am 58 and my diet has been like that for nearly 20 years.I do not believe in counting calories though.

JackieC

It took about two weeks before I started losing -- but then it went pretty fast. The scale said I lost about 7 pounds by a month out but my body told a more dramatic story, I think because the loss of bloat is such a significant change. My clothes starting fitting so much more comfortably and my stomach flattened out more than it has in years.

Now that I've started working out, the scale has inched back up a few pounds, which might be because I'm building a little muscle back.

You didn't ask specifically about skin but that's where I've seen the biggest difference. My previously red, blotchy, saggy skin, complete with black circles under the eyes, looks better now than it did five years ago. It is actually glowing again. I just love to see it; it's like it's outward proof of the changes within. It is not only the lack of drinking and better hydration -- it's also because now I do my skin regimen every night instead of blowing it off and falling into bed.

Stick to the program and you'll see results -- inside, outside and all around. Yay!

MrBen

Oh that's fine, I thought you were referring to the M.A.N.S/Atkins diet.

JackieC

Generally, reaching ketosis is attained when keeping under around 20 grams of carbs a day (ish). This is pretty difficult to do unless you are going hardcore no carbs. Instead, I try and do protein "based" eating and stay away from processed sugar and carbs, while still ingesting the "good" carbs that are in some vegetables, etc. I stay out of ketosis but also stay away from those mean ol' carbs that are so bad for us unless we're about to run a marathon or something.

Cengiz

Atkins diet is not a good idea in the long term,I mean if you need to loose a lot of weight.İt encourages you to eat lot of fat.But on the other hand natural fat is not bad at all,like butter and especially olive oil as long as it isn't too much.Too much pasta ,makaroni have much less calories,but worse!

MrBen

Yeah, I know a couple of guys who use ketosis to maintain their body fat percentages (they're into bodybuilding) and they just seem hungry all the time. I'm with you on the calorie counting, you can just ruin food for yourself if you overanalyse dieting, when I'm hungry I eat. I just try to make sure what I'm eating is good for me and I'm not eating out of boredom. If I stop losing weight, I'll re-evaluate things then.

Renarde

I lost ten lbs, no exercise, and eating tons of ice cream in the first two weeks of sobriety. I've kept it off with no effort at all, though I do enjoy working out. I've been sober for a little over 5 months.

Cengiz

Well,fat and proteins make you fuller than carbs MrBen compared to carbs.Too much carbs (depends on which foods you get them) may be filling but after a short while,they make you feel hungrier!For example in summer my favourite is cold water melon and I love it!When I have 2-3 slices of it,I get hungry about an hour later but when I have a large steak with its natural fat in,then it keeps me full for long hours,and a large steak with 2-3 glasses of red wine would be ferfect of course!

jessie65

I've been sober for 6 weeks (tomorrow), and haven't lost a single pound, sadly enough. Last time I stopped drinking I lost about 15-20 lbs. in that time, doing nothing different but not drinking.
This time I've been walking, lifting weights, eating less, and can't shed an ounce. Extremely frustrating!!

MrBen

The diet they are on is extreme low carbs, when you have almost no carbs in your diet and you work out all day, you have to eat an incredible amount to eat a surplus of calories required to build muscle. Honestly, it must cost a fortune eating that much.

Cengiz

Well MrBen,give my regards to Leeds where I lived for a year in the mid 70'ties!

Yes,as you say it does cost a lot!Everything costs nowadays!

FreeOwl

Day 31 and I'm down 12 lbs.... all I've done is stop drinking and continue my routine of at least a couple gym sessions a week.

WHOOOOT!!

koko

Been sober 30 days..spinning and weight training 4 to 5 days a week..I lost about 6lbs..have tolose 10 more to get to my goal of 145..I'm a female and 5"7...My skin looks so much better too! I love it..Trying to stay protein based but Ive been craving carbs and sugar..plus I love to eat and cook!I'll get there at least I'm not drunk..lol

Cengiz

Koko,

Alcohol gives you cravings for sugar,ie carbs.Alcohol itself turns into sugar and fat in your body!İt takes long time to recover from these cravings and it can take as long as 2 months or even more!..

Too much carbs is as bad as alcohol.I would forget about low fat but high cab foods and stick to natural proteins like meat/chicken/Fish and salads,vegetables!I would forget about fruit or at least have very little!Blood sugar causes nearly all the diseases in the body!

JackieC

Oh goodness, I disagree that too many carbs are as bad as alcohol! Like you, Koko, I've been craving carbs and sweet things as well, which we all know is normal when quitting drinking. Don't beat yourself up about it and don't force too many food limitations on yourself too soon. Sobriety is the priority and I think that if that involves some ice cream and cookies to make it happen, then enjoy the sweets and pat yourself on the back on the sobriety. There's time later to tighten up on our eating habits when we are more secure in our recovery.

Ncognito13

I donate blood plasma. It saves lives (and you get a couple bucks and free Gatorade). They always weigh you. They thought the scale was off because I went from 187 to 175. I do bike a lot. Maybe 60+ miles a week.

Cengiz

Alcohol is sugar!

letustrythis123

I'm down 8 pounds from my last weigh in but about 13 from what I've consistently been. During my last two months of drinking, it really started to catch up and I had no appetite, just another one of the reasons I became really scared of what was happening. I was not eating, had zero appetite and so I leveled out at a certain weight which was four pounds lower than what I'd been through most of the last x amount of years. In 2 weeks though I'm down a solid 8 pounds. It's crazy. And here I was thinking vodka didn't do anything to weight gain. I was drinking about 800 calories or more of it a day. I was drinking a pint and then some wine. Mixers were water because I'd gotten so lame I didn't care. I remember the days when I wouldn't drink if I didn't have a mixer and then I said hey, what the hell, water will do just fine. Even thought I was getting hydration by doing it that way.

Kris47

WEIGH to GO!

Still managing a few up and down. Have been craving sugar as I know cuz I'm not ingesting Alcohol. I'll ease up in a few weeks.