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I've been on low carb many times in my life, but when I started trying to lose weight in 1996, I finally stuck with it. I weighed 208 when I started. In December 1998 I got down to 137. I've been maintaining ever since then.

Myrna from Pennsylvania is 46 years old, 4 11" tall, and follows the Atkins program. When Myrna wrote to me, she wanted to share with our readers not only her Atkins success story, but also how she fell from grace, and has rebounded after making her goal weight, then regaining from her first time around with low carbing. Myrna started her low carb journey in Sept. of 2001 at 165 pounds and a size 12. She achieved her goal of 125 pounds and a size 6 after only four months low carbing.

We've been discussing the history of diets and dieting. It may seem obvious to you that the idea of the calorie, at least as it pertains to dieting, must have been with us since the beginning of dieting. However, such is not the case. As we discussed last time, it wasn't until the 1890s and early 1900s that chemists Wilbur Atwater and Russell Chittenden did the initial work of measuring food as units of heat that could be produced by burning it. But from the get-go, the calorie concept has never been nearly as scientific as it may appear.

Barry Groves is the author of Eat Fat, Get Thin! He and his wife, Monica reside in Oxfordshire, England, and have been eating "the way we have evolved to eat, mostly carnivorous", since 1962. Barry is 65 years old, 5 9" tall, and currently weighs 156 pounds from his starting weight of 190 pounds. Monica is 63, 5 6" tall, and holding at 126 pounds. Monica's starting weight was 161 pounds.

Anne from Tennessee is 54 years old and 5' 4" tall. She has been following the Atkins program for six years.

I had already determined that Christmas Eve would be an allowed cheat day for me, but I was dreading it - because I knew I'd be fighting cravings for the next two months, just as I did after Thanksgiving.

Low Carb Breakfast Variety - Alternatives to "I'm Sick Of Eggs" - Eggs are a staple for low carbers at breakfast. They're quickly prepared, inexpensive, and versatile. While eggs do contain 0.6 grams of carbohydrates per egg, the carbohydrate count is low enough that they are easily incorporated not only into low carbohydrate breakfasts, but lunches, dinners, and snacks as well.

Chicken Alfredo With Zoodles was a grand experiment. I really wasn't sure if my family would like it, but the concept seemed sound so I gave it a whirl. It was a resounding success, everybody liked it, and my picky daughter got up early the next morning and polished off the leftovers before anyone else got up. (She's not into sharing when it comes to food.)

Our low carbohydrate way of life is not new, dear readers. Last time I told you that the world's very first diet book was a low carbohydrate plan written in the mid 1800s by William Banting. Banting was told about this approach to obesity control by his ear doctor, Dr. William Harvey. Dr. Harvey said that he had heard about healthful advantages from a diet low in sugar and starch while he was in Germany and Paris. He related that he had traveled to attend a lecture given at Stuttgart by a celebrated physician and professor, Dr. Niemeyer. Dr. Harvey had also gone to Paris to hear a certain Doctor Bernard report on using the diet plan for treatment of diabetes.

Kristina from Indiana is 5' 5" tall and 46 years old. She started her low carb journey weighing 178 pounds and wearing a size 16. She currently weighs 148 pounds and is wearing a size 10. "I started with Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution and Protein Power," Kristina told me. "Now, I am drifting toward The Zone and Protein Power."