Hi and welcome! Yeah, that first week's loss is awesome!
It doesn't last though; weight drops off slowly, 1-2lbs is pretty darn good. I weigh daily so I know the scale fluctuates, but the overall trend is down.
I've read countless pieces of advice of the boards saying "up the calories"; I'm a big believer in that. The body needs nourishment not punishment. This has been where Phen was such a godsend: I could eat, but then feel full and want to stop eating. I could be hungry but wait until I was able to eat a good meal, rather than grabbing a quick snack to hold me over.
My current low-carb diet came as the result of starting with an eating plan of "no white foods" (sugar, white flour, etc.) and gradually I found that I wanted less carbohydrates in general. I still make Basmati rice and barley, but am happy with much smaller quantities. And now here I am on a low-carb diet. I'm still surprised, but it just sort of happened. And even more bizarrely, my sweet tooth left as well.
Good luck as you figure out what's right for you. There's lots of different eating strategies used successfully by people on the board; try them on, if it fits, great, if not, try something else. Keep learning from your own body as to what it really needs. See you around the boards.
