I dont know what to think?

I started last week and did 3days of PP....then tried to do PP last weekend but failed as i was at my boyfriends house and hadnt told him about the diet. So my evening meals he cooked was full of oil, pork and pastry, 3 x toffees fudges, bag of chocolate raisins. (clearly lapsed)

Monday i got back on the scales i'd lost 3lbs from first reading last Wed. Since then i've been on PP. Today i'm back to 10.6 but have been very good the last two days, living off oatbran pancakes, eggs, smoked salmon, turkey marinated, cottage cheese and fromage fraise yoghurt.

10.7 Wed 21st
10.4 Mon 26th
10.6 Wed 28th

I also exercise a lot
swimming 2 x a week,
body combat 1 x a week,
body pump 1 x a week
body attack 1 x a week
RPM (spinning) 1 x a week

Why are i losing my weight???

My tummy and the rest of me feels tighter, but just not seeing the results like everyone else on the scales?

My boyfriend is now fully supportive and has even offered to put together some menus for me to make my dinner more interesting using the limited ingrediants (he's a chef in his spare time, but loves rich flavors) so feel better that my weekends with him will be more manageable.

Guess i just wanted to highlight, that exercise and diet isnt always key, as i'm finding out.

Thanks for reading my post and look forward to hearing any comments.

Shelley, Hiya I think it may have something to do with all the excersise, you will probably go back down tomorrow. I have to admit I lapsed today!!! it is coming up to that time of the month, also did not sleep well last night I woke at 4am so think blood sugar very low! I have eaten chocolate and mash potatoe but, I will get back on track tomorrow, I am too scared to weigh myself in the morning, I think there no point in beating ourselves up about it, you were right to go back on the attack phase straight away, we need to hang in there and carry on.. good luck Shelley
Peachcat x

Shelley wrote:

I also exercise a lot
My tummy and the rest of me feels tighter, but just not seeing the results like everyone else on the scales?
Guess i just wanted to highlight, that exercise and diet isnt always key, as i'm finding out.

Thanks for reading my post and look forward to hearing any comments.

Hi Shelley, and welcome!

Well, a few things come to mind:
• Are you drinking enough water? I try to get 3 liters or more down every day. I think that's critical to the success of this plan and actually every time in my life I've been thin, I was drinking water like crazy.
• Are you adding a lot of salt to your meals, or eating too much deli meats? I was losing a solid pound a day until yesterday, when I suddenly regained 2 pounds! I suspected it was that I'd eaten extra deli ham the day before, and skipped all deli meats for the day. This morning, the two pounds and then some were gone. So maybe think about reducing your sodium intake.
• My boot camp instructor tells me that sometimes it's possible to exercise too much - if you're overexercising your body produces cortisol and your metabolism slows way down. It's a tough balance to reach. I myself really love to be very active and would never want to stop working out, but I think sometimes it does negatively impact my weight loss efforts. Maybe add in a rest day where you just do some yoga, or a long walk?

Good luck - let us know how it turns out!

Hi Shelley

Don't worry about slipping, everyone falls off the path sometime - no matter what that path is. Diet's should be thought of in weeks rather than days. If you slip one day, remember it is 1 day out of 7 and get back on the diet. That means that rather than saying "today I ate a Mars bar, packet of Quavers and 6 chocolate chip cookies!!!" you're saying "this week I ate a Mars bar... etc." Thought about in this way, the correct way, the slippage in a minor dent in the diet and no major incident.

Another thing about thinking of your diet in terms of weeks rather than days is that daily weighing sessions are useless. Your weight will naturally fluctuate - so it will look like you've either lost a lot, a little, or put on some. Weigh yourself once a week at the most, for a more accurate guide.

The human body likes consistancy. If you eat the same amount of calories, fat, sugar, etc. every day - your body gets used to the pattern. If you eating is erratic, your body will act erracticly. Going on a diet, then eating a big meal with sweets, will temporarily throw your body into confusion. You can expect then some weird weight fluctuations. Forget about them and things will even out as you continue with the Dukan diet and you'll lose steadily (with the occaisional plateau, just to make things interesting).

Don't forget that if you are doing a lot of exercise, you will be developing muscle and this will make you physically heavier although you will be slim.

Finally, weighing isn't the best measurement of weight loss. A better system would be to take measurements of your stomach, chest, thighs and arms. After all, if you were currently as slim as you wanted to be, would you mind what you physically weigh? I know I'd rather be a slim 15st than a fat 11st

Still no weight lost, but body feeling very different then it usally does. I'm thinking longer term in regards to what the scales tell me. I'm got no reason to worry as i've been following the diet the same as everyone else on the PP attack stage. It will come in time. Thanks everyone for your comments. xx

Okay so finally i lose 1lb. Now 10stone 5lb this is a painful journey when you dont see results. Hopefully its about to turn around

hi, i am exactly the same as you, i havent lost weight since thursday and i havent cheated and i have exercised, i am desperate to see the scales move.

2lbs in 13days isnt a great result. Only twice have i fallen off the diet, but nothing major. Now managing my portions better and trying not to eat too much. With no carbs the results shouldnt be too far away now xx

Okay so now i'm back to the same weight i was on the 26th April.
10stone 4lbs 14/05 the scales are not flutuating as much as they use too, which is a good sign.
I have be very good and now feel this is the new way of eating rather then just a diet for short term results.
Currently on a PP today and tomorrow. Eating a lot less but sensible. I hope to lose the recommended two pounds before starting PV on Sunday. I will then be sticking to PV for 3days then 3days PP. I'm off to Barcelona at the end of the month as a treat from my boyfriend. God knows how i will cope. Hope the fish & sea food option is steamed and fresh salad see me through.

Part frozen ice cream muller lights are seeing me through

same for me. 8kg to lose. Started the diet on Monday. Been on attack phase for 4 days now, 5th day today.

Radically different food to what I normally eat. I normally eat fruit, lots of vegetable soups and wholebran cereals like All-Bran. Pretty much no meat and probably not alot of protein. My biggest weakness has been the 2 -3 glasses of white wine (accompanied by cheese and a couple of crackers!) that I normally drink each night.

So, by moving onto this high protein meat-like diet and stopping the wine completely, I thought my body would be reeling in shock by now and throwing pounds off like nobody's business. Although to be honest, this "diet" seems to have me eating far more food and fat than I would normally eat.

Weighed myself this morning for the first time. Nothing, absolutely nothing. I'll keep going, but will be interested to hear how all the other "I'm not losing any weight" people get on over the course of time. Its a bit depressing coming onto these websites and seeing all the people screaming in ecstacy over how many pounds have fallen off them in week one.

Shelley, I'm not sure why you feel like you're eating more fat than you used to? I've been on the diet for three weeks now and I eat very, very little fat. I mostly eat fat-free cottage cheese, plain fat-free greek yoghurt (less carbs than regular yoghurt), fat-free ricotta cheese, egg whites (one yolk a day), tuna, canned salmon and grilled or boiled chicken breast. On veggie days I try to eat raw veggies (so as not to add butter, oil, or salt). So you can see, there is very little room for fat left in this diet. I've lost 11 pounds already. I also chug water and add fat-free milk to my teas and coffees. Where is your fat coming from?

I admit, I've had alcohol twice on the diet, it was vodka with soda water or sugar-free drink mix (so I am adding calories to my diet, but no sugar). I also run for about 40 minutes 4 days a week and try to lift weights for about 20-30 minutes 3 or so days a week. I see that you exercise a lot, but is your body used to it? Try picking one or two days a week and do some really intense intervals? Or try something that you're not used to, like running or power walking uphill. Don't be discouraged, weight loss comes from constancy. And remember that it's a mental game.

Mollysimkiss, I think you may have gotten Shelley and I mixed up. I was moaning about the fat. SHelley is talking about how much she exercises. So not sure if your reply was directed at me or her (?). I think we both mentioned alcohol.

On your comment on the fat front, all meat has fat in it. No matter how much you try to trim, it just does. As does oily fish. And eggs. So my fat has increased on this diet because my "usual" food pattern is almost exclusively vegetarian - fruit and v low fat vegetable soups (which I always select on the basis of a fat content of way below 1%). I would go for weeks at a time without touching meat or fish. Rather healthy too; save for a plumpish healthy (which I mainly put down to the wine)!!

I also exercise alot (aerobics/ step/ body pump) and have done for over 20 years (so one of those "dense", solid and slightly muscular bodies - nothing willowy about me). I don't think exercise is my problem. I'm wondering whether different body types react differently to this diet.

8 days on it now. And as at today I'm one pound heavier than I was when I started !! If things dont change soon I'm not sure this is the diet for me. I know that I can lose weight on my normal vegetarian diet as long as I cut all out alochol and nibbles. Well I've done that here, but swapped my vegetarian usual diet for all meat/fish/eggs/oatbran.

Shelley, how are you doing? And apologies for jumping onto your topic thread.

Ladies, have you considered where you are in your cycle? In my past experiences with low carb/Atkins type diets, my weight loss would come to a screeching halt for 7-10 days before and during my period and I would even gain a kilo or two (even 3 !!) .

Myself I have just started the Dukan attack phase 2 days ago, and although I haven't weighed myself , I tried on some jeans that were too tight last weekend and they defo feel looser ! I had really been struggling to lose weight lately as well, despite improving diet and exercise, so feeling encouraged. I like to measure success by my clothing and not the scale. Those skinny jeans never lie. When I am chunkier they just do not fit, and when I am losing, I dont see the muffin top.

I have kept clothing from the good old days when I weighed 55kg (now 64 kgs) , and I really hope I can get back into them ! I just know that the 7-10 days before and during my period I am just not going to budge much, but have to perservere regardless !

Hang in there girls, we'll get there !!! (I hope !!!)

7 - 10 days !!!!? Christ. So I should have just carried on drinking like a fish and swinging from the rafters for another week and a half before starting my diet next week. Fab. No-one ever suggested that one should time kicking off diet's around one's menstrual cycle. Thanks for the thoughts. I'll see what happens next week.

Well, 7-10 days is quite extreme, but I am unlucky in that department. Most people would probably fall into the 4-7 days category. But I have seen elsewhere in other diet forums that many women tend to stall just before and during their period but I bet your weight loss will kickstart with a vengeance soon enough !

Actually the pre-menstrual weight-loss stall is covered on page 84 of Dr Dukan's book (which I received today ). It says :

" You should also be aware that a woman's body retains water for three to four days before her period starts. This retention reduces the elimination of waste and stops the combustion of fat, momentarily reducing the diet's effectiveness and blocking weight loss"

Dr Dukan continues :

"It is important to realize that before a period starts, the weight-loss process has not been interrupted, just camouflaged and delayed by water retention, and that it will resume two or three days after the period....as soon as you eliminate the water, your low tide after the premenstrual high tide is often when you see the scales go down at a dizzying rate"

So if you are stalling around that time of the month, do not despair, ladies ! I have finally learned not to freak out when I cannot get into clothes during this time as I seem to shrink just a few days after once the water retention subsides. Just drink LOTS of water (I know you already are) but really try and eliminate salt as much as you can and replace with lemon and spices.