Why does Atkins work?

13

Replies

  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,219 Member
    http://weightology.net/?p=265 For the good cals, bad cals folks.

    Can anyone on Atkins tell me if there is anything regarding refeeds or anaerobic performance? (serious question)
    Not sure about Atkins but there is of course the CKD (cyclical ketogenic diet).
  • grimendale
    grimendale Posts: 2,153 Member
    http://impruvism.com/why-calories-count/
    This got posted on another board, and does a really good job of explaining why weight loss is based on calorie restriction and why diets like atkins work (TL:DR version is that people tend to unconsciously eat less due to "being on a diet" and due to eating formerly "bad" or "forbidden" foods, plus protein tends to sate hunger better so people again eat less without realizing it).
  • 22dream
    22dream Posts: 60 Member
    also depleting glycogen makes you lose "fakeweight" otherwise known as waterweight.

    Yeah, and I've lost 37 lbs of "fakeweight"...


    LOL I HOPE TO LOSE 37 LBS OF FAKE WEIGHT SHYTTTTTT
  • danimalkeys
    danimalkeys Posts: 982 Member
    also depleting glycogen makes you lose "fakeweight" otherwise known as waterweight.

    Yeah, and I've lost 37 lbs of "fakeweight"...


    LOL I HOPE TO LOSE 37 LBS OF FAKE WEIGHT SHYTTTTTT

    Yeah, somehow I don't think 37lbs is all waterweight. When my son was in high school he wrestled at heavyweight, and he was 6'2 and 265lbs. He wanted to drop a weight class so he did a low carb diet. He lost 50lbs in 7 months, weighed in under 215 his 1st day of wrestling. He kept it off, but he was also in great shape both cardio and strength wise from all his training, even at 265lbs.

    Is it sustainable long term? Probably not but if you don't go back to your old bad eating habits once you have lost the weight, I don't' see why it can't be as successful as any other weight loss program. I think where people fail is they drop the weight and then go back to eating like they did before they lost the weight, regardless of how they lost it.
  • wideeyedla
    wideeyedla Posts: 138 Member
    I'm not doing Atkins this go around, but I am doing Paleo with whacked out macros ;). So, yes, ketogenic. I will ask the heavy lifter dude on the other board I am on for references to CKD and TKD stuff for you. Lots of nerdy folk over there who do their research. If I recall correctly, the principal is to burn all glycogen stored in muscles and then intentionally carb load for a period of time to restore it. Goal is to cut body fat without losing performance. But I had better double check. I know that there is heated debate.

    Bah, forgot to quote.
  • recoveryjunky
    recoveryjunky Posts: 162 Member
    I did it for about a month and a half and lost 20lbs. I really think I lost the weight because I was full all of the time. I know at least some of it was water weight but it's still gone. And for the people who say it's not healthy, neither is being at 50% body fat. I went down about three points on the BMI scale while doing it and those are real numbers. Now that I know I can stick to a way of eating, I just watch my calories and try to keep my carbs lowerish.

    Anyway, like I said, I was full all of the time and even though I was eating higher calorie foods, I was only eating a small fraction of what I was eating before.
  • GiGiBeans
    GiGiBeans Posts: 1,062 Member
    Doesn't seem that people understand how the Atkins diet really works. The assumption that you eat low or not carbs is only true for phase 1. Once you reach your goal weight, you slowly introduce carbs into your diet at 5 grams a day per week until you find the point at which you gain weight to determine how many carbs your body can handle. Some people can go as high as 120grams of carbs per day.

    Actually you add 5 grams a week back in phase 2, Ongoing Weight Loss, following a specific order so you can figure out your carb level for losing weight and any foods that cause cravings. By the time you get a few lbs within goal weight you go into pre-maintenance and keep adding carbs until you stop losing. Should you gain more than 5 lbs you go back to the carb level you lost weight at. I start gaining water weight over 150 carbs.
  • IronSmasher
    IronSmasher Posts: 3,908 Member
    We started off so well.

    Anyway, one of the latest shared by SS

    http://impruvism.com/why-calories-count/

    It's long, but it should answer all of your questions (including your science search difficulties).



    In addition, the 'science' in Fat Head was cringe worthy, and as for Gary Taubes.... no. Just no.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
    The calories in < calories out is a really really REALLY simplified method of describing how your body loses (or gains) weight. The reality is, not all your food gets fully digested and used by your body in most cases. This is why so many raw vegans and such can eat a MASSIVE amount of calories and not gain (and sometimes lose) weight. Its because the food is harder for the body to digest and quite often only a fraction of the amount is actually usable.

    The same is true for the Atkins diet. The body does not effectively use fats and proteins to power the body. Your body runs on glycogen, or sugar. Protein, if I'm not mistaken, cannot be turned into sugar. Fats, on the other hand, can be, with much difficulty, turned into an energy source similar to sugar to be used by the body, but it is inefficient and puts you in a state of ketosis where sugar is completely depleted and they are going after the only thing that CAN be turned into energy, which is fat. This also includes body fat, not just the fat you are eating.

    Fat and oils, however, can often slip and slide through our system fairly quickly, meaning that many of those fat calories, since they are eaten in such large volumes, cannot possibly be handled by the digestive system in our bodies. The result is that much of the fat gets flushed out. In the end, the total calories that the body ACTUALLY got is much less than what was eaten. This, as you can see, creates the calorie deficit.

    The metabolic system of the body is far more than the simplified calories in and calories out paradigm, but that way of thinking is good for a lot of cases. Just not all. No laws of thermogenesis are being broken here, its just that the body gets rid of what it can't use at the moment (digestive wise).
    The human body can convert both fat and protein into glucose. The process is called gluconeogenesis and it's how the body maintains steady blood glucose levels during fasting periods.
  • astartig
    astartig Posts: 549 Member
    I think it's because it naturally suppresses your appetite/ and you feel more sated on high protein fat, making it easy to leave a deficit of calories. it's the reason the lowcarb high protein is a favorite of mine.
  • ngyoung
    ngyoung Posts: 311 Member
    I've been eating a high carbohydrate diet for a long time and am still losing weight, running and cycling longer and faster, consistently high energy levels, no complaints or issues. For example, yesterday I ate over 700 grams of carbohydrates - no biggie. Carbs aren't the enemy here, and people need to get that through their thick skulls. It is so idiotic to think that in the paleolithic era we ate boatloads of meat and fats, salty bacon and fried eggs, etc. The fact of the matter is that we were much like our primate cousins who eat a highly plant-based diet FULL of carbohydrates and sugars. SUGAR. Not the refined crap in foods nowadays, but natural sugars coming from fruits, berries, vegetables, leafy greens, root vegetables, etc. Nuts were not even a major go-to food for us as they took too long to crack open the shells to get at the "meat" of the nut. Very rarely do primates (and I'm still using them as a parallel to how we most likely lived long ago) eat meat or high-fat, high-protein foods, but they do in some cases/when it is available.

    Basically, Atkins is barking up the wrong tree for what is truly healthy for us as humans. Sounds like most people in the "maintenance" stage of Atkins are more along a Paleo line of nutrition than anything else, but the early stages, or weight loss stages, are downright nasty and dangerous. Treat your body right and it will treat you right.

    You can't compare our digestion to primates. They create fat during digestion through fermentation. Our stomach and digestion cannot do that. We have to get fat from our food. A proper Atkins diet only restricts fruits and veggies for a detox stage to reset the bodies digestion from years of consuming junk on a SAD and after that is accomplished you should be eating plenty of veggies and moderate amounts of fruit.

    For those thinking Paleo is just a new version of Atkins you are wrong. A Paleo diet doesn't mean low carb at all. Yes it does lend itself to cutting down on carbs but that is mainly from being strict about no refined sugars, carbs, and grains. Getting all your carbs from healthy natural sources of fruits and veggies. Anyone with a Paleo lifestyle should also be encouraged to not just eat animal muscle but also different organs and sweet breads that contain nutrients that just aren't found in the muscles.
  • highervibes
    highervibes Posts: 2,219 Member
    they are eating under their TDEE

    This. I ate very low carb before and I still tracked everything. Even with cheese and steaks and eggs and butter I was still way under my TDEE. Now I eat more carbs, about 120-130/day (net) and I'm still careful to get enough protein in and still under my TDEE... still losing weight. For me it was more sustainable to lose weight this way. I did initially need a sort of "detox" (I know, I hate the word too lol) from sugar and carbs but once my cravings were under control from about a month of low carb, I could safely "moderate" again. I still try and get most of my carbs from fruits and vegetables but I don't sweat a Cheeseburger, icecream or popcorn anymore. I'm no longer on or off plan, I'm just conscious and it STILL WORKS:)
  • wideeyedla
    wideeyedla Posts: 138 Member
    We started off so well.

    Anyway, one of the latest shared by SS

    http://impruvism.com/why-calories-count/

    It's long, but it should answer all of your questions (including your science search difficulties).



    In addition, the 'science' in Fat Head was cringe worthy, and as for Gary Taubes.... no. Just no.

    Someone shared this article with me to refute my Taubes mention. I will admit when I am wrong :)

    http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2011/08/carbohydrate-hypothesis-of-obesity.html

    It is a critque of the insulin reaction theory, and worth a read. Taubes is, after all, a journalist. and not a scientist.

    That being said, I still know that keeping refined carbs out of my diet, and limiting fruit, and staying in mild to moderate ketosis is good for what ails me. Food as medicine.

    I will read the article you posted later for more edification.

    For the record, it is probably true that most people doing low carb are at a deficit. I am having a hard time meeting my daily minimum. If you are doing ketogenic sanely, and eating lots of green leafy stuff and other veggies with healthy fats and good protein (I do not live on bacon and hamburgers, and I don't do cheese), then you tend to stay full.
  • milesvictors
    milesvictors Posts: 83 Member
    I've been eating a high carbohydrate diet for a long time and am still losing weight, running and cycling longer and faster, consistently high energy levels, no complaints or issues. For example, yesterday I ate over 700 grams of carbohydrates - no biggie. Carbs aren't the enemy here, and people need to get that through their thick skulls. It is so idiotic to think that in the paleolithic era we ate boatloads of meat and fats, salty bacon and fried eggs, etc. The fact of the matter is that we were much like our primate cousins who eat a highly plant-based diet FULL of carbohydrates and sugars. SUGAR. Not the refined crap in foods nowadays, but natural sugars coming from fruits, berries, vegetables, leafy greens, root vegetables, etc. Nuts were not even a major go-to food for us as they took too long to crack open the shells to get at the "meat" of the nut. Very rarely do primates (and I'm still using them as a parallel to how we most likely lived long ago) eat meat or high-fat, high-protein foods, but they do in some cases/when it is available.

    Basically, Atkins is barking up the wrong tree for what is truly healthy for us as humans. Sounds like most people in the "maintenance" stage of Atkins are more along a Paleo line of nutrition than anything else, but the early stages, or weight loss stages, are downright nasty and dangerous. Treat your body right and it will treat you right.

    You can't compare our digestion to primates. They create fat during digestion through fermentation. Our stomach and digestion cannot do that. We have to get fat from our food. A proper Atkins diet only restricts fruits and veggies for a detox stage to reset the bodies digestion from years of consuming junk on a SAD and after that is accomplished you should be eating plenty of veggies and moderate amounts of fruit.

    For those thinking Paleo is just a new version of Atkins you are wrong. A Paleo diet doesn't mean low carb at all. Yes it does lend itself to cutting down on carbs but that is mainly from being strict about no refined sugars, carbs, and grains. Getting all your carbs from healthy natural sources of fruits and veggies. Anyone with a Paleo lifestyle should also be encouraged to not just eat animal muscle but also different organs and sweet breads that contain nutrients that just aren't found in the muscles.

    You're telling me that people are doing a detox on meat and fats? That is one of the dumbest things I've ever heard...the best way to detox is on plant foods, not filling your colon with rotting, rancid meat. You need mass amounts of micro-nutrients to cleanse the cells and flush out toxins (thus the word, "detox", or detoxifying the body from build up un-natural cells, mutations, buildups, etc). And what makes you think we need so much fat anyways? The easiest, most accessible source of energy comes from carbohydrates. It is silly to me that people would think that our evolutionary way of eating would use an inefficient form of energy production/use, such as the process to break fats and proteins into usable sugar in our bodies. The nation is turning into a bunch of carb-o-phobes and it is pretty absurd. All macros are important, but some just make more sense to consume than others.
  • theseus82
    theseus82 Posts: 255 Member
    I know I said I wasn't going to weigh-in after my original post. But not one defender of Atkins has said a single thing about any of the information in my post. Animal protein is bad for you. Eating high amounts of cholesterol and fat will damage your capillary system, your kidneys, and your liver. Ketosis is not a healthy internal chemistry for the body. It is a sign that something is wrong.

    Atkins will shed weight, but that doesn't mean it's healthy. See: anorexia. See: any crazy method that sheds weight at the expense of healthy diet or lifestyle.

    I usually stay out of the ever present Atkins or no Atkins debate that is constantly fought out on these boards. But the one time I weigh-in, I see pages of post with every Atkins' defender giving my post a wide berth. Who wants to challenge my points? I've been following this discussion, if not posting constantly.

    Anyone who follows Atkins and wants to learn from practicing medical doctors like Neal Bernard or Dean Ornish that Atkins will jeopardize your longterm health. . . really needs to consider reading the books I have mentioned. When you are 20 years older and your doctor tells you your kidneys are failing, it will be too late to then go looking for the information you so resisted in the present moment. . .
    Dr. Neil Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes
    Food Revolution by John Robbins
    Watch any lecture by Dean Ornish, M.D.

    Excessive meat consumption triples your risk of certain types of cancers: mainly: breast, prostate and colon.

    World class athletes are learning that vegan or vegetarian diets are giving them a performance edge in their sports.

    Vegan and vegetarian diets are generally better at reducing insulin resistance (increasing insulin sensitivity).

    The more vegetables you eat, the less of the bad stuff you eat.

    Eating a meat heavy diet is quite probably bad for your kidneys, your vascular system, and your heart. The Western diet, high in meat consumption, tracks with heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

    There are plenty of medical doctors that now advocate a vegetarian or vegan diet. Note, the first U.S. government panel tasked with creating the first food pyramid was going to advise Americans to eat "little to no meat products." The cattle association got an advanced copy of their report and collectively freaked the F out. They lobbied the government to rework their findings not include this suggestion in the final report. The entire history of this was published in the New York Times. It was about 15 pages worth of article. I didn't look extensively for it, but if you look for an NY Times article that talks about the food pyramid task force in the 70's, you're getting warmer.

    Atkins is good at burning glycogen storage in your liver in the first weeks. This is the "easy" weight to lose. Weightloss slows way down after that. My brother has been on again off again Atkins and has
    1) never been ever to stick to it for the longterm
    2) never loses much after the first few weeks
    3) belittles and condescends me constantly for being a vegetarian. I have lost 110 pounds since starting WW. For at least 5 years I have been a vegetarian, and I get to eat very large volumes of vegetables and thus can trigger the "full" sensation because eating sessions have to do with food volumes as much as anything else.

    These are just my points. Google the things I've mentioned, consider reading the books I've mentioned, or watch Dean Ornish's lectures on YouTube.

    I will not get mired in a debate over my facts. If you don't agree, feel free to post responses. But replying for me would just be redundant. I have heavily researched these issues. Atkins may work for some, but they are going to damage their kidneys in the long term because Ketosis is not a positive condition. It is the body's homeostasis run amok. Homeostasis is the measure of the body's internal functions working harmoniously and in alignment. Ketosis is not a positive internal body chemistry. At least research the critics of Atkins for their views on Ketosis. You are playing with your body chemistry in the worst way when you starve yourself of all carbs. I eat 200 or more carbs a day and I lose weight EASILY when I stick to program.

    edit: I don't mean to sound hostile in that final paragraph. Debates over the Atkins diet on MFP boards are constant. People on both sides have very strong opinions about it. I usually stay out of it. People usually don't change their minds when they feel so strongly about it. I'm fine with anyone not agreeing with what I said in this post. But I'm prophylactically stating that I have said what I have to say, and if you don't agree, there is really nothing more I have to say against the Atkins diet.
  • highervibes
    highervibes Posts: 2,219 Member
    I know I said I wasn't going to weigh-in after my original post. But not one defender of Atkins has said a single thing about any of the information in my post. Animal protein is bad for you. Eating high amounts of cholesterol and fat will damage your capillary system, your kidneys, and your liver. Ketosis is not a healthy internal chemistry for the body. It is a sign that something is wrong.

    This is such a misinformed post I don't know where to start...
  • AbsoluteNG
    AbsoluteNG Posts: 1,079 Member
    I know I said I wasn't going to weigh-in after my original post. But not one defender of Atkins has said a single thing about any of the information in my

    No one wants to respond to your post because you're ignorant of the fact that Atkins diet was created for diabetics and works well with anyone who is insulin resistant, which makes up one third of the American population.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,219 Member
    I know I said I wasn't going to weigh-in after my original post. But not one defender of Atkins has said a single thing about any of the information in my

    No one wants to respond to your post because you're ignorant of the fact that Atkins diet was created for diabetics and works well with anyone who is insulin resistant, which makes up one third of the American population.
    Or that it's full of biased propaganda........
  • AbsoluteNG
    AbsoluteNG Posts: 1,079 Member
    I agree. He's preaching eating vegetables which I don't have a problem with but for someone who is insulin resistant, a normal 1500 calorie to 2000 calorie diet based mainly on vegetables could skyrocket glucose levels through the roof. Vegetables are carbs and they do spike glucose levels, just not as high as sugar or pasta but if you eat 1500 calories worth of vegetables, I'd imagine a diabetic going into a some sort of coma.
  • VorJoshigan
    VorJoshigan Posts: 1,106 Member
    I know I said I wasn't going to weigh-in after my original post. But not one defender of Atkins has said a single thing about any of the information in my post. Animal protein is bad for you. Eating high amounts of cholesterol and fat will damage your capillary system, your kidneys, and your liver. Ketosis is not a healthy internal chemistry for the body. It is a sign that something is wrong.

    You straight up said you DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT FACTS.

    Animal protein is not bad for you. China study says no such thing, and the correlations for vegetable protein in the study are just as bad as for animal protein. Also, all look at the numbers for all cause mortality in the china study. The whole study is crap and you can get it to say pretty much anything you want it to say.

    Regarding high cholesterol and fat, I agree if you're talking about trans fats or too much omega-6 fats, or even too much omega-3 fats. MUFAs and SFAs seem to be fine from the latest things I've been reading, and saturated fat even seems to have a protective effect on the liver.

    Ketosis is a perfectly healthy state to be in. Your body burns ketones any time it's not burning sugar. i.e. any time one of us overweight people loses weight, we're burning ketones. Eskimos lived off of meat and blubber and seemed to not have too many health issues that weren't associated with a generally hostile environment.

    I'm not usually in ketosis and I'm not an Atkins adherent, but your post deserved some disagreement.
  • astartig
    astartig Posts: 549 Member
    Actually, you don't need carbs and fat to build protein, you need amino acids, which come from protein.

    Low carb works for some people, and if used in the short term very low carb diets coupled with adequate protein do allow them to lose fat while retaining muscle mass. When the body is in starvation mode it breaks down protein into amino acids to generate the minimal amount of glucose it needs for survival (very small amount--the rest of the body can burn fat). So if there is adequate protein/amino acids available via diet such as small frequent meals that contain high protein levels, the body doesn't need to break down lean body mass (protein) into amino acids.

    Long term inadequate intake of carbohydrates can cause problems because of the vital nutrients that accompany those carbohydrates can be missing. However, the body actually doesn't have a minimal amount of required carbohydrates per day in order to survive, unless you want to count 0 as a number. Also it is much healthier for our colon to have fiber. Healthy kidneys and livers handle low carb just fine, but some people have suggested that the higher acid produced by the metabolism can lead to bone loss (again, need long term studies to tell if short term low carb effects bone density in the years to come).

    More studies are needed to tell if a 6 month to 12 month period of low carb diet is more hazardous to the health than an extra 50-100 lbs.

    Some people eat normal or high carb (typical american diet) and still eat like crap, and take in little to no nutrients or fiber. Those who are obese as well, coupled with diabetes, heart disease, htn....will a low carb diet in the short term really cause more of a health issue, if they can eat a "normal" diet once they have reached goal weight?

    I don't know, but think short term very low carb is less dangerous if the weight can be kept off, at least compared to doing nothing.


    And for the person who thinks low carb causes more foul flatulence---from personal experience I was much more gassy (embarrasingly so) on Jenny Craig than the low carb diet. On low carb diet gas production was tiny, almost zero. At least until I started to add in more fruits and veggies. Don't know if everybody experiences that but unfortunately I did.
    l

    Re:flatulence. I wasn't on a diet before other than trying to be low glycemic in general. but my gas was so bad my hubby called me domo kun.

    flatulence after a week on this diet (including a very decent amount of veggies) zero.
  • astartig
    astartig Posts: 549 Member
    I know I said I wasn't going to weigh-in after my original post. But not one defender of Atkins has said a single thing about any of the information in my post. Animal protein is bad for you. Eating high amounts of cholesterol and fat will damage your capillary system, your kidneys, and your liver. Ketosis is not a healthy internal chemistry for the body. It is a sign that something is wrong.

    Atkins will shed weight, but that doesn't mean it's healthy. See: anorexia. See: any crazy method that sheds weight at the expense of healthy diet or lifestyle.

    I usually stay out of the ever present Atkins or no Atkins debate that is constantly fought out on these boards. But the one time I weigh-in, I see pages of post with every Atkins' defender giving my post a wide berth. Who wants to challenge my points? I've been following this discussion, if not posting constantly.

    Anyone who follows Atkins and wants to learn from practicing medical doctors like Neal Bernard or Dean Ornish that Atkins will jeopardize your longterm health. . . really needs to consider reading the books I have mentioned. When you are 20 years older and your doctor tells you your kidneys are failing, it will be too late to then go looking for the information you so resisted in the present moment. . .
    Dr. Neil Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes
    Food Revolution by John Robbins
    Watch any lecture by Dean Ornish, M.D.

    Excessive meat consumption triples your risk of certain types of cancers: mainly: breast, prostate and colon.

    World class athletes are learning that vegan or vegetarian diets are giving them a performance edge in their sports.

    Vegan and vegetarian diets are generally better at reducing insulin resistance (increasing insulin sensitivity).

    The more vegetables you eat, the less of the bad stuff you eat.

    Eating a meat heavy diet is quite probably bad for your kidneys, your vascular system, and your heart. The Western diet, high in meat consumption, tracks with heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

    There are plenty of medical doctors that now advocate a vegetarian or vegan diet. Note, the first U.S. government panel tasked with creating the first food pyramid was going to advise Americans to eat "little to no meat products." The cattle association got an advanced copy of their report and collectively freaked the F out. They lobbied the government to rework their findings not include this suggestion in the final report. The entire history of this was published in the New York Times. It was about 15 pages worth of article. I didn't look extensively for it, but if you look for an NY Times article that talks about the food pyramid task force in the 70's, you're getting warmer.

    Atkins is good at burning glycogen storage in your liver in the first weeks. This is the "easy" weight to lose. Weightloss slows way down after that. My brother has been on again off again Atkins and has
    1) never been ever to stick to it for the longterm
    2) never loses much after the first few weeks
    3) belittles and condescends me constantly for being a vegetarian. I have lost 110 pounds since starting WW. For at least 5 years I have been a vegetarian, and I get to eat very large volumes of vegetables and thus can trigger the "full" sensation because eating sessions have to do with food volumes as much as anything else.

    These are just my points. Google the things I've mentioned, consider reading the books I've mentioned, or watch Dean Ornish's lectures on YouTube.

    I will not get mired in a debate over my facts. If you don't agree, feel free to post responses. But replying for me would just be redundant. I have heavily researched these issues. Atkins may work for some, but they are going to damage their kidneys in the long term because Ketosis is not a positive condition. It is the body's homeostasis run amok. Homeostasis is the measure of the body's internal functions working harmoniously and in alignment. Ketosis is not a positive internal body chemistry. At least research the critics of Atkins for their views on Ketosis. You are playing with your body chemistry in the worst way when you starve yourself of all carbs. I eat 200 or more carbs a day and I lose weight EASILY when I stick to program.

    edit: I don't mean to sound hostile in that final paragraph. Debates over the Atkins diet on MFP boards are constant. People on both sides have very strong opinions about it. I usually stay out of it. People usually don't change their minds when they feel so strongly about it. I'm fine with anyone not agreeing with what I said in this post. But I'm prophylactically stating that I have said what I have to say, and if you don't agree, there is really nothing more I have to say against the Atkins diet.

    I'm giving it wide berth because it's full of propaganda and I don't feel like debating with someone on a cracker barrel. you're seeing one tree in a forest. It's just not worth arguing with someone who presents as a fanatic or believer. you go. you believe what you believe but it's not the whole story and it's Not fact.

    but I recognize that nothing I say would ever be able to change your mind on the topic so why would I bother? silence doesn't mean you're right. It means you're so wrong no one wants to go there.
  • nancycaregiver
    nancycaregiver Posts: 812 Member
    also depleting glycogen makes you lose "fakeweight" otherwise known as waterweight.

    Wow!! You mean I had 81 pounds of water weight!?!? No wonder I was always needing to pee!!
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,658 Member
    Oh, you eat LOTS of food out of the box on Atkins. Shakes, bars, baking mixes, low carb baked goods. All full of soy and artificial sweeteners.

    You don't HAVE to do Atkins that way, but it is very easy to get sucked into it. So you wind up still eating a great deal of sweet foods.

    I would recommend Gary Taubes as a resource if you are really interested in how insulin and hormones impact weight
    Loss/obesity. They are currently researching which comes first, obesity or insulin resistance.

    Is low carb for everyone? Nope. But for people with certain medical conditions, it is a great way to learn to use food as medicine. Johns Hopkins has been treating epilepsy with ketogenic diets for 100 years. The science IS there.

    I technically do Keto and did Atkins before all the prepackaged crap was in existence. I lost 100 lbs and kept it off for 18 years. I gained back due to serious lifestyle changes several years ago. I've lost 37 lbs over 3 months on Keto with another 30 or so to go.

    A lot of people do not realize just how revolutionary the ketogenic diets were regarding treating such conditions as Epilepsy, many think such diets are just fads, this is not true and as you correctly stated, the science is there, very much so.

    Are you on the Keto diet for health reasons? curious.
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,658 Member
    also depleting glycogen makes you lose "fakeweight" otherwise known as waterweight.

    Wow!! You mean I had 81 pounds of water weight!?!? No wonder I was always needing to pee!!

    :noway: You must have been sloshing around like a good'un! :laugh:
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
    also depleting glycogen makes you lose "fakeweight" otherwise known as waterweight.

    Wow!! You mean I had 81 pounds of water weight!?!? No wonder I was always needing to pee!!
    Yes, that's exactly what it meant. Are you intentionally being argumentative? Approximately 5-10 pounds of initial weight loss on a ketogenic diet is water weight due to glycogen depletion. This is why ketogenic diets show faster weight loss in the short term, but over 12 month periods they show no difference in overall weight or fat loss compared to a higher carb diet. Nobody (except the posters who really seem to just be trolling) is stating anywhere that all weight lost on a ketogenic diet is water. I suppose it's always easier to pretend to be ignorant than to have a rational conversation, though.
  • I don't know why, but YES, it does work better than any other diet I have tried. I have been dieting and exercising for 2 months, logging everything I eat and all exercise, keeping at about 1200 calories a day, and I have not lost a single pound. Now I am doing Atkins, and in 3 days, I have lost over a pound. And I am eating 1600-1800 calories a day. I hope it keeps working...
  • milesvictors
    milesvictors Posts: 83 Member
    I don't know why, but YES, it does work better than any other diet I have tried. I have been dieting and exercising for 2 months, logging everything I eat and all exercise, keeping at about 1200 calories a day, and I have not lost a single pound. Now I am doing Atkins, and in 3 days, I have lost over a pound. And I am eating 1600-1800 calories a day. I hope it keeps working...

    Honestly, its probably because you are now eating 1600-1800 calories a day. You are no longer fighting your biological hormones of digestive functions and giving yourself enough calories to operate properly. This probably has little if anything to do with Atkins vs vegan vs whatever. Just saying...
  • kskonkol
    kskonkol Posts: 14 Member
    I don't want to enter into any debate about this one.... but the movie FatHead probably gives a better description of low to moderate carb theories than most things I have seen. You can watch it free on youtube.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evcNPfZlrZs

    The gist of it is lowering your blood glucose by consuming less sugars/starches, and thus your insulin response....which in turn should lower the fat storage.

    Folks will debate till blue in the face over it all.

    Personally, I can only say moderate to lower carb has helped me control blood sugars and drop pounds better than calorie control alone. But I also agree, the overall calorie number is important too. I don't think too low is good, nor do I think an unlimited amount of calories is fine even if it is low carb.

    I think different bodies have slightly different needs. Overall, it is worth paying attention to BOTH calories and carbs in my opinion. I hope the link helps.

    Fathead's main takeaway is eating at a deficit causes weight loss, most of the other stuff in the movie was nonsense

    I thought the main takeaway was that he really, really hated the movie, Supersize Me, and needed to vent.
  • also depleting glycogen makes you lose "fakeweight" otherwise known as waterweight.

    Wow!! You mean I had 81 pounds of water weight!?!? No wonder I was always needing to pee!!

    Exactly my mom lost 100 lbs on Atkins in 1 year. She had gastric bypass and died in 11 mo from the surgery. Her levels were amazing, better than mine after the 100lb lose and she is 25 years older than me. I'd like to lose another 90lbs of water weight.
    If I ate as much fruits and veggies on another diet my body would go into shock. I'm sensitive to sugar and border line diabetic.

    So I agree with you whole heartedly!