Low Carb Challenge: Week 2 – Getting Started

Wow, what a week! We started the challenge on Monday, June 1st. Our group of willing participants all ready to go head-first into the new low carb world. It’s tough during the first couple of weeks, just finding your footing. It’s all about looking at eating, in a whole new way. Many of us are used to counting calories, being strapped with the label of “dieting” and feel like if you aren’t starving, you aren’t losing. But low carbing isn’t a diet, it’s a lifestyle. When you low carb, you aren’t worried about eating less, as a matter of fact, you want to eat more. You want to be full, you don’t want to be hungry at all. We are counting carbs, not calories. Good things like cheese, meats, veggies and yes, even bacon, can be eaten as needed to keep the hunger at bay. That’s what was challenging to most of our team during the first week. It was hard for them to wrap their heads around the idea that they could eat and not be hungry, and still lose weight … and lose weight they did!

In just the first week, we have run the gamut of our team members losing anywhere from 16 pounds to just shy of 3.  But everyone has lost, and that’s the amazing things about low carbing. Once you get it, check your labels and stay at 20 net carbs or less per day, there is no way NOT to lose weight. It’s just basic science, and don’t we all love science when it allows up to drop the extra pounds?!

I am so excited about our Feminine Collective group! Our online Low Carb Summer Challenge team is a diverse group of women from all parts the globe. We are all ages, sizes, and backgrounds. We are even lucky enough to have several team members acting as advisers that, like me, had lost weight years ago and are still living the low carb lifestyle successfully.

This is one of our advisers, Donna. She has already lost 78 pounds and has just 30 more to go to hit her personal weight loss goal. She looks great and feels great too. We’ll be hearing more about her and the other Feminine Collective Summer Challenge team each week.

Speaking of the team, we have all been working hard together this week. Getting the pantries cleared out of sugary foods, getting the Fat to Skinny book read, and buckling down to start our first week going completely low carb. There were a few minor setbacks, and some problems just getting into the low carb groove at work. I put a message out to everyone on the team last Friday asking: What were the hardest things for you this week getting started?

Below are a few of their replies

Joann: Meal prep. I’m a full time working mom who commutes 3 hours daily. When I get home from work, all I want to do is relax and spend some time with my 2-year-old. Since the baby, eating has been about convenience and ease. This requires work, preparation and thought, which is a difficult adjustment. Plus Friday was National Donut Day. I’ve been offered free donuts three times today! But I have resisted the urge to run downstairs to Dunkin Donuts.

Donna: I need to figure out how to plan for having more veggies and fruit incorporated into my carb totals. I need to get the ones with higher fiber, low sugar, and especially grab those cruciferous veggies that help to burn the fat!

Flo: Well, for me, the hardest thing is working 10-12 hour shifts, not having a decent place to eat near the job, nor the time or proper info to get nutritional content. Also, I missed not getting to eat popcorn at the movies.

Trixie: No sugar … and no sugar! I had already stopped diet soda and I’m finding I miss that even more than before.

KeKe: The hardest for me is getting my mind right knowing I can no longer have sugars and Zesta crackers or anything I feel like eating. It is a process to get my mind focused even though I need to do this, my mind can care less.

Jo Jo: The hardest … Just getting it together. So easy to say … next meal or tomorrow, I have found the easiest meal is breakfast.

All in all, the team did great.

So you’re thinking now … how do I get in on this? Well it’s easy, you can do it along with us at home in just a few easy steps.

Step One: I recommend you pick up a copy of the low carb plan we’re using. I can’t stress enough how much this book has changed my life. It’s called Fat to Skinny by author Doug Varrieur. It’s a quick read, but will make the new low carb lifestyle really come to life for you.

Step Two: Clean out your pantry. You will go through sugar withdrawals your first week or two. Much like a smoker trying to quit smoking, it’s easier when the sugary, bad foods aren’t around for you to eat. Throw it all out, give it to friends, or donate it to food banks … whatever you need to do to get it out of the house.

Step Three: Take a full body selfie, the tighter the clothes the better. This is for you, to show your progress. Month by month take a new photo and you can document your weightloss. It’s a great way to look back and see all the progress you’ve made.

Step Four: Start losing weight! We are here with you. You can contact me through Feminine Collective at aByteOfLife@FeminineCollective.com, or on Twitter @femininecollect. Share your progress with me and I’ll include it in our weekly challenge updates.

What are you waiting for? Take the challenge with us. Start today and change your tomorrow, once and for all.

Week 1 – The Rules
Week 2 – Getting Started
Week 3 – Favorite Things
Week 4 – Screwing Up
Week 5 – I Want Candy
Week 6 – Taking Care of You
Week 7 – You Can Do It!
Week 8 – Wine, Beer, Tequila? Definitely!
Week 9 – Carb Creep
Week 10 – Hollywood Eats Low Carb. You Can Too!
Week 11 – Wow! You Did it!

Photo Credit: j0sh (www.pixael.com) via Compfight cc