Inspiration

Laura from Arizona is 56 years old. Laura follows Dr. Atkins' program for the most part, but occasionally does a couple days of the Stillman plan. Laura's current weight is 196 pounds, down 56 pounds from her pre-low carb weight of 246! When Laura began low carbing, she wore size 22/24, and told me that now her size 18s and larges are loose!

You've lost the weight. You got on the scales one morning and there it was, your goal weight. Or you went to the gym and had your body fat percentage checked and found out that you were already below your goal body fat percentage, even though you hadn't gotten to goal weight. Or you finally got into that goal outfit, that goal dress or pant size.

Much like how Dolly Parton has to be thankful to the underwire in her bra, I am so very thankful for the support shown by all my readers during my "Operation: Atkins 2.0"! I replied personally to many of you who mailed me, but after 36 hours, 2 boxes of Band-Aids for my blistered fingers, and a full bottle of Visine Eye-Drops, I decided to go with a blanket statement of thanks for the remainder of you. So if you didn't hear back from me, it's not because I'm unappreciative of the support, I just didn't have the time/strength/power to do it! The mind is strong, but the body is oh so WEAK!

Gerald and Linda from New York have both reached their goal weights by following a low carbohydrate lifestyle. Gerald follows the Atkins program, and Linda, who started with Atkins and then switched to CAD (The Carbohydrate Addict's Diet), is now back to Atkins.

Theresa from Florida is 5' 4" tall and 43 years old. She has been following the Atkins program since mid-September of 2001, and already lost 40 pounds, dropping from her high weight of 260 pounds down to 220 pounds. Last September Theresa wore a size 26, but she is now wearing 18/20s!

Mary from California is 37 years old, 5' 10" tall, and has been following the Atkins program since July of 2001. She has lost 59 pounds, dropping from 200 pounds to 143 pounds. Mary has reached her goal weight, and has reduced her dress size from a 16 to a 4/6!

I'm currently hovering around 240 pounds," says Meg, "and still hope to lose another 50 to 60. My panniculectomy surgery (removal of the abdominal "apron" of skin) only took off 17 pounds, not the 30 that the surgeon estimated, but I'm okay with that, and I've lost a bit more on my own, though the scale isn't moving as much as I'd like due to the fact that I'm building muscle. I do have some hernias from previous surgeries which will have to be repaired at some point, so with luck my insurance will pay for a tummy tuck."

Dawn in South Carolina is 32 years old and 5' 6" tall. Dawn contacted me, expressing the desire to share her success story with pregnancy and low carbing. Dawn had been doing the Atkins program for three years. Her pre-pregnancy weight was 133 pounds, and just prior to her delivery, she only weighed 157 pounds!

Diana from Illinois is 52 years old and 5' 4" tall. "I used to be 5' 6"," she laughed. "See what age and weight can do to you, besides giving you arthritis?"

CG from California is 43, and is happily married with two sons. She is 5' 5 1/2" tall and currently weighs 165 pounds, down 28 pounds from her starting weight of 193. CG's goal weight is 150 pounds, so she only has 15 pounds to go! When CG started low carbing, she wore a size 16, and she is now comfortable in a size 10. She would like to wear a size 8.

Cyndee from Washington State is 40 years old and 5' 3" tall. Cyndee began following Protein Power plan weighing 260 pounds, and currently weighs 134 pounds. She is just seven pounds from her goal weight of 127. Cyndee has dropped from a size 28W to her goal size of 10, even though she has not yet quite reached her goal weight!

Low carbing can be very lonely. We low carbers are not part of the mainstream of society (yet), and finding support and information can be pretty tough. I am convinced that one of the reasons Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig have been around so long and have been so successful as businesses is because they offer real, physical places to go to and real people to talk with.