The Incredible Shrinking Woman

Some of you know that I have been losing some excess poundage.
Those that don't - or haven't seen me since before I gained the weight- may be in for a bit of a surprise.

A few years after college I started gaining an average of 2-3 pounds a month.
Over 5 years that was a lot of extra weight. Not being a small girl to begin with, it became a real concern.

I now know that my attempts to lose the weight through the classic Low Fat/High Carbohydrate
lifestyle were wrong. It was exactly that which led to the weight gain in the first place.

Now, I'm sure I'll get all kinds of lovely fan mail telling me how wrong and unhealthy
a low carbohydrate/adequate protein/moderate fat diet is - but I ask that you look
at how the facts have come through for me. Then, follow a few of my links
and if you then want to join in I'll link you to a wonderful list that is great for supporting
this WOE (Way of Eating).

In addition to a solid way of losing weight without starving, this is also a recognized
WOE for helping diabetics control their sugar levels. With this in mind, I have
been joined in my LC endeavors by my dad (a diabetic) and my mom.
Here are my before and after pictures, with stats, and their before pictures.

Anita	July 17, 1998 5'6" 225 pounds Triglycerides: 142 Coronary Risk 4.55 Clothing Size 18 % Body Fat: 49	August 3,1999 (picture is from April) 5'6" 176 pounds maintaining since 12/22/98 Clothing Size: 10/12 % Body Fat: 26 Triglycerides: 102 Coronary Risk 3.96
Dad	April 10, 1999 295 pounds 6'3" Goal 230 pounds? Sugars averaging 150+ Clothing: 19"Neck, XXL Pants 44 Waist Will add the rest when I know	August 15,1999 250 Pounds Sugars averaging 80-95
Mom	April 10, 1999 231 Pounds 5'1" Dress size: 24W Shirts: XXXL Goal 145 pounds Will add the rest when I know	August 15,1999 210 Pounds

Now, I am currently a bit over half way there. I had lost 45 pounds as of Christmas, and have
maintained that loss. Although I continue to lose occasionally,
I am more interested in maintaining the health benefits I have gained.
Particularly, I am proud of my parents. My father for controlling his sugars, and my mother for persisting
through a slow start. I am eventually shooting for a Body Fat Percentage of 15-20%. What is yours?
However, it is no longer a goal that controls my self esteem. My health and weight are such that I am
happy with myself, and with the knowledge that additional weight loss will come if I decide it is needed.

Some may say that this lifestyle will raise my cholesterol - well, as you can see, mine
has gone down. Also my triglycerides have gone down as well.
I'm not the only person who has had this kind of results - check out the medical research.

This WOE is currently being used as a "breakthrough" way of treating epilepsy, MS, IBS and more.
I put that in quotes, because this is not a new idea. For the most part, this is how we have been eating since
we left the garden. Many people follow a stricter version of LC called the Paleolithic diet. This version
follows the eating ways of humans from hunter/gatherer times.

So - Want to visit a few good sites that have done all the work to put this information
together so I don't have too?

Links to links

An Obsession with Low Carb Eating
Low Carb Lifestyles Page

LC Programs

Dr. Bernstein's Diabetic Solution
Neander Thin
Protein Power
Dr Atkins
The Zone

Great Products
(I do not have any connection to these companies, I just buy their stuff)

Splenda (a wonderful sugar replacement)
The Low Carb Connoisseur

Recipes

Thinner.com

Or if you have decided to give it a try-
Order one of these books:
Feed Your Kids Right: Dr. Smith's Program for Your Child's Total Health
Carbohydrate Addict's Diet: The Carbohydrate Addit's Program for Success
Low Carbohydrate Cookbook

Well, I hope you enjoyed visiting, to see the rest of my homepage, click on the puppy!