Another thought-- get some fresh bell peppers in an Italian market and dip slices into a fancy, cheesy artichoke dip. Mmm... Italian cheeses... Snack on olives and nuts...

I'm sure you folks didn't intend any harm, but my cholesterol level has risen 15 points just reading this thread. :&

I order low cal meals from the airlines and on Swiss that meant low carb and no sauces, it was usually a chicken breast and vegs. You can try that.

At breakfast, most hotels will boil you an egg for a little extra price if you are getting a continental breakfast. I stay where there are small buffets of cheese and meat for breakfast. So I have my ham, egg and a little cheese, with a chaser of a piece of the bread.

You might want to check with your hotel to see what the offer.
Like you have read here, eating in a restaurant is no problem, you just order what you eat.

Have fun, (I had the same concerns as you when I first went on The Zone).

Now I think I would quickly get sick eating all that cream. Eggs and milk--bad combination for me--impossible to digest! I think low-carb is not necessarily the same as Atkins, by the way.

Ira, read the latest research--you'll find that on low carb your HDL (good cholesterol) goes up, your LDL (bad) goes down, and your triglyceride levels plummet. In other words, your lipid profile is better than on high carb, low fat.

MizzEve- Hi I like to protein bars from Attkins, you can get them on his website, I think it's attkinscenter.com or you can usually buy them at trader Joe's in a box of 12.
I have to get the name of the little protein meal packets, they are great for traveling.I will be in Italy for 2 weeks in Sept. & plan on taking a box.
I will post the name a.s.a.p.
Best of luck
Fluff

Degas

I don't understand your point about salad dressing.

Surely all the carbs are distilled out during the vinegar making process? And aren't you going to dress salad in roughly an oil 4: vinegar 1 ratio?

So what's the low-carb problem in dressing a salad in Italy? If vinegar really is a problem, just dunk the salad in the oil. A great way of checking whether the restaurant really is serving extra virgine or whether it's palming you off with some kind of sump oil they bought down at the Ingrosso.

Oil and vinegar is indeed carb-free, but some prepared dressings, at least in the US, have lots of added sugar.

Atkins is just one of many in the low-carb diet category. I have a shelf full of low-carb diet books that I've collected, going back to the 1800s!

Did you know you can make 3 hard boiled eggs in a small coffee maker?

Makes sense! That's the best tip I've read all day, and useful even for non-dieters!

Carbs and salad dressings.

Yes, but we're talking about Italy. Why would anyone even dream of using prepared dressings in Italy? As for bringing dressings from the US....

Oil and vinegar. On every table in the country. That's how salads were meant to taste.

I've been on Atkins--low carb--for 4 months. Lost 34 pounds and 4 trouser sizes. Had chlorestoral test 2 weeks ago, went from 260 to 180. My doctor said he is going to try Adkins as he has had several patients with similar experiences in the past year.

Eat that beef, chicken, and fish.

MizzEve--you need to find different restaurants. I've not had any trouble getting double vegetables instead of a starch. Can't imagine why a waiter would be flustered by such a request as it is quite common, even before Adkins.

I agree that it is easier to eat low-carb in Italy than in the U.S. You can always forego the pasta. Unfortunately, I love pasta and all its sauces, so I have it once a week.

Just order a secondo rather than a primi, and add either a salad or vegetables.
The desserts in Italy aren't all that great, except for panna cotta, so that's easy for me to give up.

Also many appertizers are no-carb (seafood, prosciutto and the like).

Breakfast at the hotel isn't a problem either as you almost always have the choice of cheese and cold cuts. Going to a bar in Italy for breakfast is a problem because the only thing available is pastries, as wonderful as they may be.

You will walk a lot as everyone says, and you will probably be drinking more water than usual, so weight gain shouldn't be a problem.

This makes me feel that my trip to London and Paris in October shouldn't be too bad (food wise) after all. I too have been on Atkins for 3 months and have lost 23 pounds. My HDL is double what it has ever tested at before -- and I haven't taken up exercise to get it there. And I feel better than I have in a long time. I sure don't want to give that up while I'm on vacation.

Are you going for business? Because I hope diet and vacation are never thought of together! But truly, if you explore like we did, you'll need some carbs. We ate a ton and walked so much we both ended up losing some weight!