A Few Tips on Induction

There are a few tips that you should remember when you are in the induction phase of low-carb eating. Some people don't think about these things, and they definitely affect your success. Induction can last anywhere from three days to two weeks. I feel like after three days, I can start to be a little less strict, and consider my induction to be over. There are some who feel induction should last for two weeks, but if I am too strict like that for too long, I always worry that I am going to give up in a hurry. The following tips can help you to not only survive induction, but to get the best possible result from it.

Tip # 1:
Only eat when you are hungry, and only eat enough to make you not hungry anymore. Don't over eat when you are in the induction phase. Your carbs should be limited to 20 per day, and you should not just eat all day long because the food is there.

Tip # 2:
Try to drink lots of water, and steer clear of caffeine. Water is always the best thing to drink when you are trying to get healthy, and you should drink large amounts of it. It's fine to drink carbonated drinks, but they should be free of caffeine when you are in the induction phase.

Tip # 3:
Do not consume alcohol during induction. Alcohol can have an affect on many of the factors that are involved in low-carb dieting. There are low-carb alcohols out there that are fine to drink in moderation while you are living a low-carb lifestyle, but they are not acceptable to have during the induction phase.

Hopefully these tips can help you to have a great induction phase for you new way of eating. It is an important part of low-carb life, and should not be done lightly. Jimmy Moore has done a few videos explaining the dos and don'ts of low-carb. They can be found here. Good luck.

To Begin With...

How to get started on the low-carb lifestyle...

The first thing that you need to do if you are considering cutting back on your carb intake is do a little bit of research on what low-carb dieting means. There are many versions of low-carb diets out there, and without doing the proper research, it will be difficult for you to predict which version will give you the best results. You can research in a number of different ways. You can ask people you know what they know about low-carb. You can join forums online, and ask all the questions you like. You can do Internet searches to find out information about low-carb. There are also a lot of books on low-carb dieting that you can buy.

The best books on low-carb are written by Dr. Atkins. He is the leader of the low-carb craze, as it is so often called. He has some fantastic books that explain low-carb in detail. I recommend buying at least one of his books, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to go ahead and purchase more than one. All of his books contain information that is important, and the information contained in each one differs. My favorite is Atkins for Life, which contains great information, as well as six month's worth of meal plans.

After you have purchased some books, you need to brush up on the low-carb lingo. For example, the word induction is a word that many people may not know. If you have no book to tell you what induction is, you can find out what it is here.

Finally, once you have learned the terms that you will need to be familiar with for the low-carb lifestyle, you need to begin to shop for your new lifestyle. The first thing to make sure that you have on hand is canned tuna fish. Tuna is, ounce for ounce, one of the highest sources of protein around. Peanut butter is something that I like to keep on hand. Fresh vegetables and peanuts are also great to have. Ground beef is wonderful to have in the freezer because it is so versatile. It can be made into almost anything. I also like to have cheeses in my refrigerator always. Any kind of cheese will do. I love them all.

Hopefully this will help you to know where to begin now that you have decided to go low-carb. The next post will help you to know what to do once your induction phase is over. Come back, and find out.

Beginning the Low-Carb Lifestyle

In response to the question posted by Angie from Thrifty Florida Mama, I would love to post a step by step, how-to on the low-carb lifestyle. It can be quite confusing if you haven't read any of Dr. Atkins' books. Most people think I just eat meat all day long, kind of like a lion. Contrary to popular belief, there are more foods on the low-carb lifestyle than meat, cheese, and water. That being said, those three are my favorites. Tomorrow's post will be a tutorial on how to get started, what to do after induction, when it's okay to stray from low-carb, and what to do when you have reached your goals for getting healthy. I will also give some suggestions for books to buy, snacks to always have on hand, and any other advice I can think of between now and tomorrow's post. So....Until tomorrow, enjoy your sugars and pastas, because soon, you'll be with me, Loving the Low-Carb Lifestyle.