lizzy is right. We are here to support each other. And also, we are here, like it or not, to share our experiences. My experiences over the last twenty years have been : paying enormous amounts of money to external resources like WW, slimming world etc etc etc. They all work in the short term, that's why they are so successful.

They don't work in the long term, that's why we are here, looking for sustainable weight loss. You 'start a diet' is just an excuse to let yourself off the hook.

This is not a diet, it's a whole lifestyle change. Welcome aboard

Atkins is not a fad diet..............It is a lifestyle change. Anyone that has read the book (any version) would know how many times this is stated throughout the book.

As for HCG, I am not doing the under the tongue drops. I got the same HCG powder from my doctor and a mixing kit that I used previously when I was undergoing fertility treatments. Except the dosage for the HCG plan is way smaller than it was when I was using it for fertility treatments.

You are right, no matter what plan or design your own plan it is a LOT of hard work.

Are you seriously contemplating the rest of your life on this 'diet'? What happens next? Are you going to live the rest of your life like this? Or is a tolerable, self tailored and healthy option better?

For some, Atkins may be tolerable. I couldn't do it b/c I love my carbs. But for someone that doesn't have a love affair with carbs, I could see how they could go their life low carbing it.

IMO that's like asking a vegetarian to eat meat or vise-versa. For some people that's the lifestyle, diet or whatever you want to call it that they choose to follow.

Someone with metabolic disorders and gluten intolerance would thrive on an Atkin's type, or similar low carb method of eating. Before industrialization or colonization, many indigenous people did very well on specialized diets and they quickly succumb to diabetes and other disorders when introduced to a modern diet. Just because one method works for one does not mean it's the best for all.

I agree, Atkins, WHEN DONE PROPERLY, is a sustainable diet. The problem is, many people out there take it upon themselves to just ditch carbs and CALL it Atkin's. One of the docs I work for has done Atkin's, properly, for years and he's probably the fittest guy I know. But when stuff like this is successful, it gets taken out of context and warped from what its original intent was. I can see HCG having the potential to even out a true hormone imbalance. I can't see HCG as a "miracle cure" that makes 500 calories/day feel like you just ate Thanksgiving dinner.

To answer your question, YES, I intend to eat the rest of my life on a low carb way of life - a true lifestyle change.

Atkins got me started and it is easy to adhere to. However, once I have my hormones lined out and the weight is coming off easily again I will be actually going more strict than Atkins and finish my transition over to the Paleo lifestyle.

My body feels much better with no grains, beans, legumes, lentils and dairy.

So for me, I feel my best with a higher fat, moderate protein and low carb eating plan.

Regardless if you start out on a plan or whatever, when you get to maintenance you are basically tailoring the plan to fit your lifestyle and your own needs.

My husband happens to thrive better on Atkins because his body can tolerate grains, beans, legumes and dairy.

I, however, can not. So even though we are both on a low carb lifestyle - my eating plan is a lot more strict than my husbands.

Actually, the longer I am on a Atkins or Paleo type plan, the more I have gotten into changing my lifestyle, even down to making my own shampoo, soaps, body washes, and house hold cleaning supplies.

I am willing to bet that my husbands eating plan does not differ that much from yours unless you are eating a bunch of processed foods.

I personally agree that is how ANY plan gets a bad name. When they say they are doing one plan when it is very far from the actual thing they are doing.

I have seen the same thing with regular old calorie counting on another website.

Any plan can be a healthy way to lose weight or it can be detrimental to a person's health...........

There are reasons why the books outline the plan in a specific manner.

Everyone follows some type of plan and just because it has a book that goes along with it doesn't make it a fad or unhealthy.

The good thing about following a "diet plan" and tracking it through a meduim such as Fitday is what one can learn about what works best for themselves. Then you can take that diet plan, and learn to use it as a lifestyle approach.

So basically, if one goes "on" a diet but doesn't learn and use it for lifestyle changes, then it's a temporary fix at best. I think that may be the point that gallusgal was trying to make.... and Primal Lioness is also proof that the learning approach works.

Yes, in a way your are right about what Gallusgal was trying to get across, but it falls on deaf ears and eyes when one is putting others down for following a prescribed plan just because it comes from a mainstream book or manuscript.

Just doing your own thing does not equal success either.