Well, it’s working. If by no other reason I can tell by the funky taste in my mouth. The score? Lost two pounds this week. Not exactly what I’d expected. “Don’t lose hope” Elihu tells me, “you’ve lost one guinea fowl!”. Dear boy. There are so many stories of people losing gobs of weight during the ‘induction phase’, which are the first two weeks of the diet (during which you eat no more than 20 grams of carbs in a day). I experienced some pretty dramatic weight loss myself during induction, some eleven years ago. Although I’d hoped for similar results, I have a couple of ideas as to why things didn’t turn out the same this time…
First is portion size. I remember all this chatter about how ‘you can eat as much meat and cheese as you want on Atkins!’ – so I’ve pretty much done that. But hey, this is a diet, and the idea is still to use more fuel than you take in – so why push it? But I know I did – having three eggs when the diet recommends two, upping the steak size just a skich… Maybe that’s why I was never hungry! So this next week I’ll be a bit better regarding portions. Then there’s the bourbon chicken from the mall’s Famous Cajun joint. One bite in and I knew it was not what I should be ingesting. Both the chicken and the green beans were kinda sweet and glazed. I had a feeling they’d be out, but in that it was my big meal for the day and we weren’t due to be home for hours, I ate it. So that mighta stopped or slowed my induction process. Atkins folks say that just one bite of a sugary food – even a taste – can switch your body back into a carb-burning machine just like that. Sounds a bit much, but I can’t know for sure. Then there’s exercise. The folks at Atkins also say that exercise is a non-negotiable. Yeeps.
Not that it’s had anything to do with my diet, but I’ve been sick for the past few days too. Fever and the usual suspects made sleeping difficult. Usually I’d have taken some Nyquil, but this time it was out, too much sugar and alcohol. Last night was long, but thankfully it’s over. Elihu and I are both taking a day off from school today. I just wish I could make myself some tea and toast. Man, who knew cutting out carbs would be such a bummer? Ah, but instead of thinking about what I don’t have, I need to concentrate instead on what I do have: heavy cream in my tea… This is one of the handful of tiny incentives that keep me going. That, and the idea of losing twenty pounds – or four guinea fowl, whichever. !
The Hillhouse 
Diet, excercise and self-discipline in what you eat is definitely a positive thing. Not that I’m an expert on diet and nutrition, but I’ve read enough on it to know that fruits and vegetables have all sorts of enzymes which fuel the immune system. These are things that you just don’t find in a vitamin tablet, so I’m uncomfortable with the idea of a diet which forbids one from eating such things. Blueberries and blackberries (the non-electronic kind, that is!) are concentrated with antioxidants which protect the body from cancer and other illnesses, so I hope that you don’t write off these natural sources of valuable nutrition forever. One can’t live on protein and fat alone. Yes, protein makes us strong and gives us energy, but it still is important to get the full range of nutritional needs that a variety of foods bring.
Of course, the way that we eat in our society means that we usually have way too many carbohydrates, which convert into sugars which slow the metabolism and make us fat. Sugars and carbohydrates are definitely bad. Processed foods (which have become such a common part of the diet of millions of people) are loaded with the things that mess up our health, and I’m convinced that this is why diabetes and obesity has become such a common thing in the last few decades. Still, there’s a difference between the natural sugars in berries and the processed sugars in junk food. Processed sugar and corn syrup goes straight to the bloodstream, messing up the metabolism and other systems (pancreas, etc.), but eating a little natural fruit like apples, mangos, berries, tomatoes and pomegranates bring natural enzymes and natural sugars into the body in a more measured pace. There’s a world of difference between eating a sugary doughnut and a handful of blueberries.
Well, there’s my two cents’ worth of opinion on this subject. You have my best wishes, and I hope that this diet does indeed turn your system into a carb-burning dynamo, as they say it will. With the proper exercise, it should work well. Just try to make sure you get the full range of nutrition. Best wishes for all success in this regimen and in everything else, as well. You’re a strong person, and I’m sure that you will do well with this. Just try not to overdo things, and overstress yourself. Don’t run more than 100 miles per day!