So I decided I was going to restart my low carb lifestyle. I have been using the My Keto Log to log my food and track my macros for the day. I started back Monday afternoon(I HAD to have a Chic Fil-a breakfast before I got into this lol) Anyways I am doing a mix between Keto and Atkins. Really just looking at staying within my goals and not worrying about calories but staying moderate there as well.

I weighed myself Tuesday using our scales at work as they have to be pretty darn accurate and I weighed 305(this is including work boots, radio, clothes and phone). So I figured I would just weigh myself at work for my checkins because I practically wear the same gear everyday. I wasn't going to weigh until next Wednesday but couldn't help myself and I am now at 301, so a 4lb loss in 3 days. Pretty ecstatic about that!

I have a gym membership I have been paying for since Feb. Unfortunately I have yet to go(I know right) and I do plan to start going as I now have 2 workout buddies so will always have someone with me lol. What kind of workouts should I be doing and how often? Any low carb recipes would be great if you have them available.

My current macro goals:

Calories: < 2000 (highest I've been was 1500 and that was a bacon breakfast day)

Carbs: < 25g

Fat: 166g

Protein: 100g

This is awesome, Blair! Good for you!

My favorite low carb recipes are cauliflower anything — substituted as pizza dough, breadsticks, or rice. It's a bit tedious but it's so delicious.

As for workouts, I recently started going to the gym (after a lifetime of exercising at home or just running outside) and it really helped me to have a one on one session with an experienced friend who 1) knows a lot of workouts and 2) could watch my form for me.

If your gym offers a free personal training session or you have a friend who has a lot of knowledge about good form, I recommend going together and having him/her show you a number of exercises and show you what muscle groups they target. A good rule of thumb is: if you don't like the exercise, you're not going to do it. ;P So learn a lot of different ones, take notes, and then you can mix and match everyday. Once you get a handle on the exercises you like and those that work for you, you can make them more challenging by increading resistance (adding weight or increasing resistance on elliptical/treadmill/bike) or introducing TABATAs & HIITs.

Find what works for you! 

I'm about to run out to the gym now. I usually decide what workouts I'm going to do the day of, depending on how I'm feeling (soreness, energy, goals). :)

You got this! Keep us posted!

I don't follow any particular diet except ''everything in moderation'' and probably somewhere along the lines of If It Fits Your Macros (IIFYM), so I can't really help with recipes. However, cauliflower is a great substitute and I would try it if I wasn't so lazy xD I should get one of those noodle things that you can make veggie noodles out of... like zucchini noodles... because pasta-anything is my weakness. Rice, too lol.

Now, the rest is just based on my experience.

Any time I've tried to eat low-carb, I don't feel satisfied after a meal. I also don't think carbs are the enemy, rather too-large portions and unbalanced macros are the problem. And lack of exercise of course, but that goes without saying. Carbs are actually really important. They're the most easily digested foods by our bodies and therefore are an important source of energy (at least in a short-term time frame, then the proteins and fats kick in). That's why I believe in balance rather than making a type of food a ''bad'' food because there's really no such thing.

As for working out, I'm all for a mix of cardio and lifting. Don't say you don't wanna get bulky, because you won't xD you lack the testosterone, and based on how you're eating, the calories to build big muscles. Plus, if you don't lift heavy, you still won't build massive muscles. You'll just end up with nice ''toned'' muscles and your body will likely feel better as it can cope with the demands placed on it.

Personally, I go to the gym 3-4x per week with my husband, and I've slowly progressed to lifting heavier weights, but as I mentioned above, I don't eat for getting big. I see more muscle as I've burned lots of fat off since January 2016. At that point, I weighed like 215lbs and now I'm at 191 ish, and I'm trying to get myself to reduce my diet by some calories for weight loss. I know the fat is still burning off though, because I fit in clothes that used to be too big, and some current clothes are getting too big.

My gym sessions usually last 1.5 hours, 25 minutes of which is cardio (including warm-up and cool down). The rest is lifting and stretching.

P.S. If you feel hungry a lot, your calories may be too low...

https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/peggy3.htm (about carbs)

http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/ (calorie calculator based on several factors, including what your goal is)

Amen to carbs and lifting, tana! 😊✌🏼✌🏼💪🏽

Hahahaha yes! :D They make me feel like Wonder Woman!

I haven't had a problem with hunger. I feel satisfied and thats staying within my macros, sometimes over 1 or 2 but not extreme. Like I said I'm not being strict on it, just watching and making better meals and eating better. I LOVE carb, specifically potatoes. I mean literally every meal had some kind of potato in it and even though it wasn't much it was still pretty much every meal. Mind you I was only eating once a day and just grazing the rest of the time. My fitmiss has done good for curbing hunger and I don't feel deprived at all which is great. Any time I have done straight atkins or counting calories I have always felt deprived and like I could eat the wall just because it's there!

I agree not all carbs are the enemy that's why there is an allowance for carbs in the macros. When your body immediately stores carbs and sugars as fat though it is the enemy. I am pretty active. I walk about 5-7miles a night at work over a 12hr period, then I have the things I do at home but my body is used to it and it doesn't help I just stay at a stalemate. The only thing that has helped is cutting carbs. Some people are better low calorie, but for me low carb works, I just had to find a version that worked best. Having said that I call my plan a mix between atkins and keto because I will stay within my macros for a 2 week period and then I plan to take a day to have the things I 'miss' so I don't fall off the wagon midway through the week when everyone at work is ordering chinese food and I can't stand my cravings!!!

Thanks for the info though it is appreciated. I made Garlic Parmesan Wings for supper and lunch tonight, had a mixed vegetable medley with it. I also have my fitmiss and a yogurt for the night as well ;) Tomorrow night it is Shrimp and Broccoli in keto friendly alfredo sauce(parmesan cheese and heavy whipping cream!) YUM YUM but these are not every day meals and I need more flavorful ideas ;)

Yea of course you do what works for you and cheat meals help because, hey, we're human and we crave the good stuff xD I just wanted to present another way of doing things in case you liked the sound of it. Sounds like you just need more exercise, really. The weight should start coming right off! :)

I've hit 16lbs weight loss in 3 weeks guys! I still haven't made it to the gym, my work schedule is horrid when it comes to trying to do anything on off time. Our first cheat weekend I said afterwards that I wasn't going to do that again. I felt like I had undone everything I did in those 2 weeks. I will do a cheat meal or treat from now on but not a whole weekend/day. I have had a few meals where I worked in foods I love but had enough to stay within my macros so I didn't blow my day away on a french fry lol.

This past Sunday was ROUGH! I woke up too late to prepare anything for supper and threw a bunch of snacks I keep on hand inmy lunchbox for work. I got to work and after 2hrs I was STARVING. Literally looked up carbs and calories for a whopper meal lmao not going there! I ran to the food lion on lunch break and found they had Atkins meals(LIFESAVER) so I had a sausage breakfast bowl and that held me all night! I bought some more meals and keep them in the freezer now for those crazy days. I had one of the Atkins pizzas tonight and honestly for a microwave pizza and 11g carbs it wasn't that bad! 

Just thought I would share an update! YAY 16lbs GONE!

Wooo awesome! Congrats on losing so much weight so quickly!

I agree about having cheat meals as opposed to cheat weekends, though. You probably don't undo all the progress by having a cheat weekend, but it's just unhealthy anyway. Even I only ever do single meals, but I do allow myself to get stuffed xD Doesn't take much though, I'm not used to or comfortable with big portions anymore. Meal prep is absolutely key for busy lifestyles. I have time to cook so I don't usually bother. I just buy what I'll make in the next few days and no sodas or chips or anything like that go in the cart. I find that if I keep cheat meals in restaurants, I'm able to stay away from them during the week. Of course, the longer you keep up the habit of eating healthy meals, the quicker you lose your cravings for junk. Not that you won't eventually want a pizza because pizzas are so darn good, but you won't be thinking of junk food every day.