I am curious what diets some people are on. I hope that there won't be any critiscm about anyones plans after all, we are different and different diets may be what we need. I'm a low carber. You may of heard of Atkins, its a low carb, and not a high protein diet, I eat lots of veggies as well as have berries and some dairy. I'm low carb for life. Anyone else? No Flames ok?

THese days??? (implying I've been on many:) )

These days just trying to eat three healthy meals and maybe two snacks...and being aware of calorie level.... without being over obsessively neurotic about every mouthful that goes into my mouth. Exercise helps with weight loss and overall "feeling better". Motivation? Graduating from school in 3 weeks and would rather not look like "two ton harry" when I walk up on that stage :( to get my whatever......

I am on a Seefood diet. I see it and I eat it.

Ha. Ha. Ha....VERY GOOD Sixes......!!!!:)

I have never met a diet that was easy to stick to, that was healthy for me in the long term.

I try to do the low carb, high protein thing. I feel more alert. Carbs make me very sleepy, and the more I eat, the more I crave. If I eat concentrated sweets, my blood sugar will sometimes drop!

i'm watching my weight too for years; like a yo-yo. ten pounds up, ten pounds down. i cant keep off any weight i lose. i never weigh myself but sure can feel in my clothes when ive had one too many sweets or something. diets per se? not for me. as a good friend of mine says, the first three letters in diet spell "die".

I dont know what you call it, but mine is watching calories and eating low fat. I watch grams of fat very carefully. What is that diet called?

Lost 42 pounds last year on Atkins.

Energizer: GOOD FOR YOU.....let me ask you, are those pounds still off?:) If they are....GOOD FOR YOU DOUBLE....:) :)

I'm not dieting any more it's got me where I am today...

I just joined a gym last week ! I was told not to diet, watch my portions and try to eat well.

Paula

On Atkins I have lost over 60lbs.. I used to weigh 350!! I'm 286 now. :)

I've never really dieted before. I'm considering doing the Atkins thing.

I know a lot of people who have had great success loosing weight. Even though I don't need to loose weight I'd like to do it to see if it helps with ADD like Dr. Amen suggests.

I did Atkins for a while but I quit because of the horrible bitter taste I always had in my mouth. I later tried South Beach and I liked it much better. South Beach is still low carb, high protein but it differentiates between good carbs and bad carbs so you have more of a variety of foods. I was able to stick with it longer and I got better results than with Atkins. (Not flaming... :D )

These days I have my own ‘diet’ that I follow. I try to keep it balanced with a variety of good stuff and some treats once in a while if I earned it. But I am concentrating more on getting active. I think I have come about as far as I can go on dieting alone.

I've been on and off a low carb diet for some time. I've been reading that a low carb diet is VERY good for ADD'ers. Especially those of us with hyperactivity.

I have never stuck to a diet in my life. I just luckily lose weight with the weather or when I am very busy.

Lately I am just high protien, a little bite here and there. I have recently lost my appitite and am not looking for it.

In the winter I gain quite a bit and usually lose it by the end of summer or fall. This year I have just about got it off, due to the lost appetite.

I am puzzled why it went. Usually I lose a lot when I lose someone (death). The last time I lost weight this rapidly this was 911. 2 years later I lost my uncle and I lost weight, but not as rapid. I know this is morbid. I turned into a stick after my father passed. I never remember losing my apetite those times, just losing weight

I only recently made the connection when looking at photos of myself heavy/ thin and the dates taken.

So I force myself to eat tuna an egg and I always order salads when out. I keep V8 in the fridge and cheese sticks. As I am in a non cooking phase for about a year now.
Carbs give me allergies and blood sugar problems too.

Well they started a diet contest at work again. The last time they did it I won both times and the pot was over $500.

Well I had lost a total of 42 pounds on Atkins and welllllllllllllll, yes I gained it back plus 16 more pounds. So here I go again. And once I get the weight off this time, I am keeping it off. It is killing my self esteem.

I tried the south beach and didnt like that as much as atkins. I lost 60 pounds on it last year but put it back on cuz i have been in a carb frenzy for a year now. I do find with atkins my appetite is gone and I dont have the sugar lows and highs which helos me with my mood!

I have never met a diet that was easy to stick to, that was healthy for me in the long term.


Really? ...I would suggest that you just haven't found the right one then ;)

The word "diet" obviously can refer to the goal of losing weight, in which the most often method is restriction of calories w/ or w/o added exercise. But it can also refer to one's overall nutritional strategies. If people could understand that the best way to lose weight in a permanent way and remain healthy while doing so...is to not "diet" but to "plan your diet", things would be so much easier for them. It needs to become an overall lifestyle commitment.

(That last part was not directed to you Big...but I did want to comment on your comment, because dieting to lose weight does NOT have to be unhealthy. I have worked successfully w/ many people improving their diets to help them lose fat and improve their overall health, as well, I have manipulated my own diet and exercise to lose as much fat as possible and I can say w/ 100% certainty that when I am cutting, my diet is at it's most healthy...and not only is that great for fat loss and overall physical health, but it definitely helps w/ my ADD)

Unfortunately, I've been on the 'sneaking candy from my kids Halloween bags' diet for the past weekhttp://www.addforums.com/forums/images/icons/icon11.gif. But I just read something on Dr. Amen's sight about a high protein, low carb diet being helpful with energy level and concentration. I could benfit from a boost in both! Are any of you out there vegetarians, and if so, any advice about eating this way?

Unfortunately, I've been on the 'sneaking candy from my kids Halloween bags' diet for the past weekhttp://www.addforums.com/forums/images/icons/icon11.gif. But I just read something on Dr. Amen's sight about a high protein, low carb diet being helpful with energy level and concentration. I could benfit from a boost in both! Are any of you out there vegetarians, and if so, any advice about eating this way?

I am not a vegetarian, but I know a bit about it. What kind of vegetarian are you?

Ovo-lacto...

Ovo-lacto...


Ok...so you eat dairy and eggs. This is my favourite kind of vegetarian since it's easy to get protein. Most people, not just vegetarians, eat far too much carbs or the wrong kind of carbs, and not enough protein. You should have no problem getting your required protein intake. In terms of increasing energy and improving concentration, as well as becoming healthy and losing excess fat, the following recommendations would apply to just about everyone:

1) Eat smaller, more frequent meals. This helps to maintain steady blood sugar levels. This not only helps w/ concentration and more even energy levels, but it keeps the "sugar cravings" at bay. So instead of focusing on 3 big meals a day...consider eating 5-6 smaller meals spaced about 3 hours apart.

2) Meals should contain a balance of protein, fats, and carbs. This means that you don't have a meal consisting of only protein, or only fat, or only carbs. That is not healthy and that is not balanced. And especially a meal of only carbs would wreak havoc on your blood sugar levels.

3) Carbs should come mainly from high fibre whole grains and high fibre veggies. Avoid sugar laden, processed crap. Suggestions would be...any type of fresh non-starchy veggie, the dark green ones being best and highest in fibre. Sweet potatoes, yams, brown rice, brown basmatti rice, steel cut oats, old fashioned oats (w/o the sugar), red potatoes, breads need to be whole grain, not just whole wheat...read the labels. Dark rye is one of the best.

4) Fats....there's a lot of misinformation regarding fats. Some people avoid fat like the plague...believing in all the low fat hype. And then there's some who just don't pay attention to the types of fats they're eating. The thing w/ low fat products is for one thing...they replace the flavour of fat w/ sugar...and sugar is far worse for your body and brain than the proper kinds of fats. A lot of people have an imbalance of the EFA's. People would benefit in increasing their omega 3 fatty acids. These are available from flax seed oil and fish oil.

5) Protein sources ...obviously the majority can come from animals. For an ovo-lacto...protein can come from eggs, milk, cottage cheese, sugar free yogurt, and soy/whey protein powder. For stricter vegetarians, protein comes mainly from soy products, and the combination of different plant/grain/veggie dishes to complete proteins. In terms of Dr. Amens suggestions of following a higher protein diet...a general, and safe rule of thumb is one gram of protein per pound of lean body mass. If you are at or close to your ideal bodyweight, use your current bodyweight as a guideline. If you are extremely over or under ideal weight...then go by what your ideal weight would be.

So for myself, I weigh 130ish, and I am at my ideal weight and bodyfat levels so I would shoot for 130 grams of protein daily. This number, split into the recommended 6 meals a day, would mean I'd shoot for roughly 22 g of protein per meal.

6) Water is also often overlooked. Most people are seriously dehydrated on regular basis, and this affects just about every bodily function we have. If you get less than 4 litres a day, consider striving for that and feel the difference it can make!

Awesome- thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!!!!! One question- what about whole milk yogurts, like Brown Cow? Okay, two questions, if I can't put brown sugar in my oatmeal can I use honey? I do use all whole grain bread and lots of soy like edamame and tofu. Basically I think I have a fairly good diet, but often forget to eat or put it off until I feel jittery. Definitely need to drink lots more water and reduce bad carbs...

Awesome- thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!!!!! One question- what about whole milk yogurts, like Brown Cow? Okay, two questions, if I can't put brown sugar in my oatmeal can I use honey? I do use all whole grain bread and lots of soy like edamame and tofu. Basically I think I have a fairly good diet, but often forget to eat or put it off until I feel jittery. Definitely need to drink lots more water and reduce bad carbs...

I'm not sure what that brown cow is...i've never heard of it. When going for yogurt, you really need to read the labels. Most are fat free now...which as I said before, means lots of added sugar. And some that are sweetened use aspartame, which is supposed to aggravate ADD symptoms. When choosing a yogurt, go for #1) a plain, unflavoured yogurt, to which you can add your own fruits, #2) a sugar free, pre-sweetened flavour, sweetended w/ nutrasweet or splenda, and the last option #3) if all else fails, compare labels and choose the one lowest in carbohydrates...because most of the carbs in yogurt come from sugar (not all mind you, as milk has lactose, which is a form of sugar...but not the one you need to worry about).

I am not a big fan of "low fat" products, but in terms of dairy...the lower fat versions are usually healthier assuming no added sugar. There is no benefit to choosing a high fat dairy product.

Regarding sugar versus honey....honey is still sugar, it's still going to have the same effects on your body. I would suggest using some kind of alternative sweetner...it may take some getting used to, but you will get used to it. Stevia is a natural sweetner that could be used. Also, splenda is pretty popular. As I said before, try to avoid aspartame, as I've read recently that it aggravates symptoms.

Definitely try to eat on a regular basis...before you get that jittery "oh my gosh I have to eat now" feeling.

I just read Dr Amens info on the classifications of ADD and the diet adjustments. (is he legit?) and he says since I was not the hyperactive type, but the anxious/innattentive, I should have a diet rich in complex carbs, the "hypers" need the high protien. I still say a common sense (is it a real food? does it make me feel good?) approach is best. I do find I am much better without caffeine

Generally I do not find dieting works at all and being a former messed up eater, I have accepted that I will just be what I am.

Two great sweetners: Splenda and erithytol.

Bad sweetners cause tummy problems: maltitol, lactitol, sorbitol. Stay away from these.

I now rarely have: White flour in anything. Any milk products but low carb.

I was doing Atkins and lose 20 pounds. I am still low carbing but am less fanatical about it. I found when my carbs got really low that my hair started falling out and my mood was erratic. I am now doing semi-Schartzbein. It is hard to stick to however because it requires too much forethought.

Thinking: Oh yeah. That is my problem in the first place. Schartzbein may be too complicated for me.

I've never had much luck with dieting. I never stick with it and when I do actually loose weight I gain it back. I know this is because I starve my self or skip meals and cut my calorie intake to about 700 a day. I finally realize to lose weight means eating right. I've been on a diet now since Jan 1st and lost 8lbs in 11 days. Being on Adderall, I doubt a lot of that is water because I always feel dehydrated. The difference in my diet now is I don't skip meals, I cut out fat except for chicken without skin and fish, eliminated caffeine, cut my sugar intake by only having a little sugar at a time so I don't have insulin surges, have starch carbs only in the morning, drink about a gallon of water a day and keep my calorie intake between 1200-1400. I also exercise 40 mins. a day. I feel much better and have tons of energy. By cutting my sugar I don't crave sugar anymore so I don't binge like I use to or have that uncontrollable hunger feeling. I know this is only the start of my diet and I've heard the first two weeks are the hardest but so far it hasn't been difficult.

I'm on the ADD Nutrition Solutions diet. I'm not doing it to lose weight, but I probably will lose some. It seems to be helping my ADHD symptoms quite a bit. When I stray from it my head gets fuzzy, l feel lethargic, and just generally don't do as well (more forgetful, disorganized, depressed/anxious, and so forth). It's a really big change, so probably isn't for everybody (no dairy, eggs, wheat, corn, peanuts, oranges, processed food with any additive, preservatives, or dyes), and no chocolate -- I cheat a bit on that one. After a month you can start testing some of the food groups one at a time to see how you do -- so far wheat and peanuts are definately out -- I had an immediate negative reaction to them. The difference in how I feel is just amazing though, so for me it's worth it. The difference between being functional and non functional (I'm not on medication).

Scattered