Why Can't I
Lose Weight?
Part 1 (continued)
An Article by Atkins Center writer Sheila Buff.
First of 12 Secrets to Help You
Get Off a Plateau:
You've done everything right and lost weight steadily following the Atkins
Nutritional Approach... But now the scale won't budge. Or perhaps your progress
has slowed to a crawl. What gives? You've reached a plateau — when weight loss
slows or even comes to a stop. Or maybe you've faithfully followed the Induction
phase, but can't get off home base. Many of the reasons that people hit a
plateau explain why others can't even begin to lose weight.
Before you get discouraged and lose your commitment to long-term weight loss,
understand that plateaus occur in any slimming-down process. Stick with the
program and your weight loss will kick in again. "You may stay at one weight for
a month, then suddenly drop three pounds," says Colette Heimowitz, M.S.,
director of education and research at Atkins Health & Medical Information
Services. But it is also important to ascertain whether there is another reason.
First, says Jacqueline Eberstein, R.N., director of medical education at The
Atkins Center, figure out if you really are on a plateau. "The scale is the
least reliable reflection of fat loss," she points out. "Look at other markers.
Are you feeling better? Do your clothes feel looser? If you're losing inches but
not pounds, your fat cells are still shrinking. Also, check whether you are in
still in lipolysis/ketosis by using ketone strips. You're only on a plateau if
there's no change at all for more than four weeks."
Hitting at least one plateau is normal and to be expected. It's most likely to
happen, and most difficult to break through, if you've come to Atkins after
years of yo-yo dieting. "We often find that a patient will plateau at the same
points he or she always used to reach on previous diets," says Eberstein. "These
are the weights at which you naturally start to resist weight loss."
For many people, even those resistant to weight loss, breaking through a plateau
is often a matter of making simple dietary changes. In other cases, an outside
cause may be the culprit. You may need to modify your lifestyle and consult with
your health-care practitioner. Here are 12 items to consider:
Look for Hidden Carbs:
The first step is to examine your diet more closely. As Heimowitz explains,
"Hidden carbohydrates are everywhere, and you can end up eating them without
realizing it." Be especially careful when it comes to foods marketed as low-fat.
Manufacturers often make up for flavor in the missing fat by adding high-carb
fillers and sugar. Also avoid candies and cookies labeled sugar-free. The
products may not have any cane sugar in them, but they may still have at least 5
grams of carbohydrates per serving. Sugar, thickeners such as cornstarch and
fillers such as milk solids are found in all sorts of processed foods, including
many canned and dried soups, salad dressings, sauces, gravies and frozen
vegetables in sauces.
Watch out for condiments, too. Barbecue sauce, ketchup, and sandwich spreads
often have added sugar. For example, there are nearly 3 grams of carbohydrates
in a tablespoon of teriyaki sauce. When you're food shopping, read labels
carefully to find hidden carbs, and stay away from them. Remember that other
seemingly innocuous foods also contain carbs that should be included in your
daily tally. For example, a tablespoon of lemon juice includes a gram of carbs,
as does a tablespoon of skim milk or balsamic vinegar. And even a tiny sweet
gherkin pickle packs a whole gram. While seemingly insignificant on their own,
these can add up fast.
To determine if you're being sandbagged by hidden carbs, Heimowitz suggests
keeping a food diary for a few weeks. That way you can easily judge if your carb
intake is higher than you realized.