Atkins
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I tried Atkins in '99 I lost a lot a weight but I craved Apples BUT (I don't know if anything has changed) you could not eat apples to many carbs.
People are not saying that it does not work because it does you reduce a lot but it's not for the long term and if you start to eat like a normal person again you are going to gain the weight back.
I don't trust a diet where you can eat a whole bag of pork rinds and not an apple.
This is only my opinion
Has anyone on Atkins been on it for more that 5 years that I would like to know0 -
Personally, I would look at Paleo vs atkins. It's close to the same thing but Paleo eliminates processed meats and doesn't restrict carbs from fruit/veggies (just eliminates grains, dairy, legumes). But it can be modified as well.
For those on atkins how many calories were/are you eating?0 -
I have lost 46 lbs with an Atkins-like low carb way of eating. It really works well for me. By eliminating the high sugar/high starch foods like regular bread, while potato, rice, cereals, pasta,sugary desserts, and the like, I am in control of what I eat and eat foods I love. Since starting I have been exercising, and even participated in a triathlon sprint. I recommend low carb eating with an active lifestyle highly!
The problem with using this as a diet is that being fat is a symptom of carbohydrate intake, and once you add back the carbs you go back to the same lifestyle that caused you to gain in the first place. And since low carb is so easy to do and lose weight, when you go off of it you have not learned the self control skills that more traditional diets require - like counting calories and resisting carb binging. So if you go into this, don't call it a diet. Call it a lifestyle. And just eliminate the trigger foods from your diet. None is easier than one - it is much easier to not take the first bite than to not take the second! I eat low carb wraps, fruit, nuts and lots of veggies, in addition to a steady diet of meats and some cheeses. But not a single piece of white bread has crossed my lips since 12/31/2011.
As far as whether this is a natural diet, I think it is. Man has been on this planet some 2 million years. The wheel was invented 10,000 years ago. So how did man eat for 1.99+ million years? He didn't eat bread or pasta, and didn't drink soft drinks or fruit juices. Fruits and vegetables were very seasonal, and his body scarfed them down and to excess to gain weight and protect against him from famine. But when food was scarce and he ate meat, his body did not drive him to eat it all at once. He was in control and made it last. This is the kind of diet our body evolved on. It makes tremendous sence we over eat carbs and get fat. It's in our DNA! And if you've watched the mainstream nutrition advice morph over the past few years, the low carb comments have gone from unhealthy to recommended (although the name Atkins continues to be vilified, which I think is unfortunate).
I highly recommend people watch the movie "Fat Head". Horrible name but well researched and humorous. It will make you mad and forever change the way you look at food. It is free on Hulu, and snippets are available on YouTube.
If anyone wants support on a low carb diet, send a friend request and mention low carb.
First, carbs don't make you fat, calories do. The only thing extra calories will do is add additional glycogen/water weight. This is why you lose up to 10 lbs the first week or two. It's just less water weight. But if you are in a calorie deficit, carbs will not make you gain fat. The exception is people who have intolerance to gluten or a insulin sensitivity. And believe it or not, not all of us are addicted to carbs. I crave steak a lot more often than I would a pastry or pizza but I now if I eat greasy unhealthy foods my stomach pays for it.
Also, when you were referring to how we ate 10,000 years ago, that would be more of a paleo type diet as opposed to atkins. We didn't have bacon, sausages, hot dogs or other processed meats and they didn't restrict carbs either.0 -
Yup. Lost 49 pounds on it and stalled for over two years.
I love the Atkins diet, not because carbohydrates are bad, but because eating low-carb is a great tool you can use to keep your overall calorie intake low.
But in the end, it's the overall reduction of calories that makes you lose weight, not the absence of carbs which is why in long term studies of carb reduced diets the weightloss observed is THE SAME as what's observed in low-fat and low-calorie diets
Personally, on days that I eat relatively high-carb I also eat high-calorie. If I watch my carbs, my calories are naturally under control as well. Low-carb diets implicit a high protein intake, and study after study shows that eating a high amount of protein reduces hunger.
Also, be aware that for the first 2-3 weeks on Atkins every pound lost is 100% water.
Other great diet tricks to keep your overall calorie intake down is to eat high-fat (as fat is extremely filling, however not as much as protein) and even high sugar (if you are one who doesn't fall victim to sugar crashes) being that when you consume glucose (rather than fructose) your leptin levels significantly increase and therefore your hunger decreases.
Other great diet tools include drinking more water, eating a lot of veggies, avoiding white grains, etc. etc. - all methods that will keep your calories under control.
But in the end, it's the CALORIES not the carbs that make you gain/lose weight. Which is why in long term studies people eating low-carb lose the SAME amount of weight as people who eat low-calorie. So don't fall into the very alluring trap of thinking carbohydrates are bad, because you are just fooling yourself.
I should say however, that as much as I love Atkins, the diet is NOT flawless. It has been shown in studies NUMEROUS times that eating low carb significantly raises cortosol levels and depletes serotonin levels. However, when you need to lose weight, eating low-carb is often times the lesser of two evils.0 -
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First, carbs don't make you fat, calories do. The only thing extra calories will do is add additional glycogen/water weight. This is why you lose up to 10 lbs the first week or two. It's just less water weight. But if you are in a calorie deficit, carbs will not make you gain fat. The exception is people who have intolerance to gluten or a insulin sensitivity. And believe it or not, not all of us are addicted to carbs. I crave steak a lot more often than I would a pastry or pizza but I now if I eat greasy unhealthy foods my stomach pays for it.
Carbs make you hungry. And hungry makes you overeat. And overeating makes you fat. Proteins and fats fill you up. And filled up people don't eat any more. And that makes you lose weight. I don't agree with your second sentence. Eating extra calories adds more than water weight!
The idea that "greasy" foods are unhealthy sounds good, but is it true? Do greasy foods make you fat? Man has been eating them for millenia, and have been much thinner than the current generation. What has been the big change in our diets that has caused so many people to be get fat? There is considerable evidence that it is the sugary, starchy, carb-rich foods. It is funny that people think that sugar is unhealthy, but most cereals (even healthy ones) are more sugary than table sugar, and therefore convert to sugar FASTER in the bloodsream than table sugar. But the same people that eat these foods put artificial sweeteners in their tea to avoid eating the unhealthy sugar. It is the same thing and people don't even know! That is sad to me.Also, when you were referring to how we ate 10,000 years ago, that would be more of a paleo type diet as opposed to atkins. We didn't have bacon, sausages, hot dogs or other processed meats and they didn't restrict carbs either.
Are you saying a paleo diet is a healthy diet? A paleo diet is characterized as a type of low carb diet. The kind of cards that you eat are not the sugars, starches, and grains of today's modern diet. And plenty of meat is typically consumed.
We've seen a steady stream of people saying they tried Atkins a while back, lost a ton of weight, and gained it all back. It has been shown many times that low carb diets yield better weight loss than other diets. It is also well documented that most dieters regain their lost weight - Atkins or otherwise. So there is near zero doubt that low carb eating is the easiest way to lose weight in the short term. Would you agree that if people could figure out how to maintain the loss, it would be truly awesome for obese people?
So what should you do? Not do the low carb diet and take a longer, harder road to weight loss with a lower chance of reaching your goal, or do low carb and figure out how the heck you're going to maintain your weight once you lose it?
Given the risk of regaining it, shouldn't a dieter spend a lot of time thinking about how to maintain your weight loss? Ask yourself, if I was at my goal weight would I eat that piece of chocolate cake. They idea you can just go back to the old you is unrealistic. Someone should write a book on how to maintain their weight loss after low carb! They'd make a mint.
I have learned the secret. It isn't that hard. Give up the unhealthy sugary foods of modern man for good. And exercise consistently. With those changes in my lifestyle I can have my 32 inch waist instead of the 40+ inch waist I started with. I can run a triathlon or 10k instead of tiring walking up the stairs. I can eat most all of the foods I love, including steak, hamburgers (low carb bun of course), fish, carrots and humus, nuts, salads, veggies, and even an occasional low carb confection WITH NO GUILT and without gaining weight.
I doubt I will convince the anti-low carb people in the forum to change their minds, and I'm not really trying to. I'm trying to reach those guys with a big belly similar to mine 10 months ago, wondering how the heck to chip away at the bulk that has accumulated around their middles and preventing them from enjoying life as they should. It can be done my friend. Watch the "Fat Head" movies. Read read read. You'll find that low carb is a healthy option for weight loss that many many men and women have used successfully to drop the weight in a hurry, and with an active low carb lifestyle, keep it off for good!
Best of luck!0 -
Wow. Lots of bad info on Atkins here. I'm going to address one point at the moment. Atkins diet is FULLY sustainable. In fact, it's the only sustainable way of eating that I've ever discovered, and I've tried so many. If I DO go back to eating a bunch of bread and potatoes and sugar. I'll definitely gain my weight back......then again, eating that crap is what made me fat....so, try a little logic. Weight loss is a lifestyle change. No matter what method you use, if you 'quit it' you'll gain your weight back. Atkins is the one way of eating that doesnt make me miserable. Do I miss carby stuff? Yeah...sure....I'd totally love some fries and sandwiches and a snickers bar, but I dont NEED them the way I used to, and I dont crave them anymore. My relationship with food has changed. I cant use food for comfort, and frankly that's the only reason you're gonna be eating that snickers bar. I use food for fuel now...my triglycerides have gone from 228...to 82, on my high fat, moderate protein, low carb 'diet.'
@FooChick you are right! So is my Friend Theologynerd who is not really a nerd
Hugs to you both! :flowerforyou: The truth is I lose more wieght with Atkins than I do counting calories alone. I agree with Foochick although she stays lower in carbs than I. I have many health issues so I can't stay at 20 carbs or less for long. My goal is 35-50 carbs highest 70 carbs a day. I do not suffer carb flu when I raise the limit a bit higher. Carbs were a comfort food for me so there are times during stress I crave carbs still, but I do not give into the craving. People lets face it sugar is not only addicting it tastes great! I kicked the sugar drug and I never want to go through the sugar withdrawals again. I am like Foochick and Theology, we know we do not want to become addicted to carbs again. Everyone has to judge for themselves whether carb counting is for them, for me I will be doing it the rest of my life along with counting the calories.
During Atkins induction I never counted calories only carbs. I battle insulin resistance so my body does not burn carbs the way healthier bodies do. I am also hypoglycemic and gluten sensitive. I eat healthy fats, lower carb fruits, and plenty of vegetables. Each day I strive for lower carbs but still count calories and it is working I have lost many inches. I battle hypothyroid also so this makes it extra hard to lose weight as I do not take the meds anymore too many side effects.
If this had only been water weight I lost it should have returned and it has not. I did not have a scale when I first did Atkins induction for 3 weeks so it is not included on my ticker but just guessing in the 3 weeks of eating 20 carbs or less I dropped between 15-20 lbs. No 2 people are the same they need to judge for themselves if this is a life style they can live with. It is sustainable and I have proven it now for 7 months. The person that said metalic breath and dry mouth was probably from me not drinking enough water was right. I still struggle with doing that.0 -
Tried it in '05. It's a non-sustainable diet, in my opinion.
For this type 2 diabetic guy it is very sustainable. Low carb and exercise enables me to keep my blood glucose down and control the diabetes without shooting insulin. Did I mention that I hate shooting insulin? Haven't had to in quite a while now. Helps that I love any sort of meat, cheese or dairy.0 -
Ketosis is not ketoacidosis.
Yup.0 -
Whenever I hear the, "Once you quit, you'll gain it all back!" argument, I giggle. It makes me think, "I lost all this weight after giving up twinkies, but when I started eating them again, I gained it all back!" If something works, and you quit doing what works and therefore stop getting results or get the opposite, why is that a shock? I've never tried Atkins, but the logic out there just kills me.
This! 1000 times this!
I lost 100 pounds using a program called diettalk..not sure if it's around anymore, but very similar to MFP. I quit logging, pulled a chair up to the trough and regained every ounce and more. I don't go around saying that tracking calories and exercising sensibly doesn't work.
I lost 100 pounds using WW. I quit counting points, pulled a chair up to the trough and regained every ounce and more. I don't go around claiming that WW is a fad (gimmicky maybe) and that tracking points and exercising sensibly doesn't work.
I've lost 95 pounds eating low-carb. Not necessarily Atkins ( or keto or South Beach or etc., etc.) but I've eliminated grains and all but very small portions of legumes and fruits. The difference is that this time I'm diabetic. So, this time there will be no logging stoppage and no pulling a chair up to the trough.
Just because someone no longer wants to follow their "diet" doesn't mean the "diet" is unsuccessful. Pulling a chair up to the trough is unsuccessful as a maintenance plan.0 -
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We've seen a steady stream of people saying they tried Atkins a while back, lost a ton of weight, and gained it all back. It has Given the risk of regaining it, shouldn't a dieter spend a lot of time thinking about how to maintain your weight loss? Ask yourself, if I was at my goal weight would I eat that piece of chocolate cake. They idea you can just go back to the old you is unrealistic. Someone should write a book on how to maintain their weight loss after low carb! They'd make a mint.
I
You're in luck! It's called Dr Atkins New Diet Revolution. Frankly, Dr Atkins probably spends more time talking about the ongoing weight loss and maintenance phase than he does the induction phase, which is what most people primarily think of when they hear Atkins. Almost all the 'dieters' I know out there have lost and regained weight, no matter what the method. Why? Because they decided they werent going to eat the way they did to lose the weight. No matter what weight loss method you use, success or failure is completely linked to it's sustainability. I happen to love meat, veggies, eggs, berries, cheese, nuts...and how the help me help myself.
Allll the overweight people here are using the method that they've found that works for them. Why the low fatters seem so pissy toward the low carbers is beyond me. I support anyone who's found something they can work with toward health and fitness. I guess most people dont 'get' low carb because they havent taken the time to truly figure it out...there's more to it than creating a calorie deficit...and it's fantasically wonderful!0 -
I haven't tried Atkins but generally try to stay on a very low carb diet.
For those who don't know, there's an iPhone app out there called HealthyOut that helps you find restaurant meals that fit with the Atkins diet. Just a tip for those who still want to eat out while on Atkins.0 -
Personally, I would look at Paleo vs atkins. It's close to the same thing but Paleo eliminates processed meats and doesn't restrict carbs from fruit/veggies (just eliminates grains, dairy, legumes). But it can be modified as well.
For those on atkins how many calories were/are you eating?
I have never heard of this plan I will look into it
I don't restrict my calories normally, but I tend not to eat over about 1200kcals as I can eat a lot of food for that of calories, and struggle to go over that much more. For 1200 I get breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks0 -
Sorry the last post doesn't make much sense, I'm typing on my phone0
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Whenever I hear the, "Once you quit, you'll gain it all back!" argument, I giggle. It makes me think, "I lost all this weight after giving up twinkies, but when I started eating them again, I gained it all back!" If something works, and you quit doing what works and therefore stop getting results or get the opposite, why is that a shock? I've never tried Atkins, but the logic out there just kills me.
This! 1000 times this!
I lost 100 pounds using a program called diettalk..not sure if it's around anymore, but very similar to MFP. I quit logging, pulled a chair up to the trough and regained every ounce and more. I don't go around saying that tracking calories and exercising sensibly doesn't work.
I lost 100 pounds using WW. I quit counting points, pulled a chair up to the trough and regained every ounce and more. I don't go around claiming that WW is a fad (gimmicky maybe) and that tracking points and exercising sensibly doesn't work.
I've lost 95 pounds eating low-carb. Not necessarily Atkins ( or keto or South Beach or etc., etc.) but I've eliminated grains and all but very small portions of legumes and fruits. The difference is that this time I'm diabetic. So, this time there will be no logging stoppage and no pulling a chair up to the trough.
Just because someone no longer wants to follow their "diet" doesn't mean the "diet" is unsuccessful. Pulling a chair up to the trough is unsuccessful as a maintenance plan.
Beautifully put0 -
8lbs of water weight...
Funny cus I'm now down 26 pounds and have gone from a size 16 to a 140 -
Everyone is talking like I'm someone who has always struggled with my weight - I am not. I have just had a baby. I don't follow atkins to the extreme, I just eat lots of veg, salad and fish. Unhealthy? I think not.
As for losing weight only being hard when youre on a fad diet - no it's not. By that statement I meant it's hard to lose weight, as you have to sort out the emotional problems associated with gaining weight, and people often find it hard to get the motiviation and drive to lose weight.
I started this post as a general chat for people eating similar foods to myself to discuss recipe ideas etc...but thanks to the over opiniated people getting their two pence worth there is little chance of that. So I will start a new thread somewhere else. Thank you all for your opinions, but my eating habbits are my own business and no-one elses
Atkins, by definition, is an extremely low carbohydrate diet.
Everyone appears to be trying to help, with nothing to gain on their part.
It's not your own business, the NHS is legally obligated to fix anything you mess up by following a fad diet linked with heart disease and osteoporosis, by spending the money we've all spent through tax.
As someone who always works and lost her dad to stomach cancer I find your response rather insulting. My health is very important to me after watching my father die slow and painfully. My dad had cancer before I fell pregnant and then I buried him a week before my daughter was born. So I more than most have looked into the danger of Atkins thoroughly and am well informed. Like I have previously stated i follow this diet very loosely. I don't count carbs in my salad and veg I have as much as I like as I think doing so is ridiculous. I am in excellent health, I eat better than most people I know. Sat at work the other day whilst colleagues went on their McDonald's trip and I had a lively chicken salad.0 -
First, carbs don't make you fat, calories do. The only thing extra calories will do is add additional glycogen/water weight. This is why you lose up to 10 lbs the first week or two. It's just less water weight. But if you are in a calorie deficit, carbs will not make you gain fat. The exception is people who have intolerance to gluten or a insulin sensitivity. And believe it or not, not all of us are addicted to carbs. I crave steak a lot more often than I would a pastry or pizza but I now if I eat greasy unhealthy foods my stomach pays for it.
Carbs make you hungry. And hungry makes you overeat. And overeating makes you fat. Proteins and fats fill you up. And filled up people don't eat any more. And that makes you lose weight. I don't agree with your second sentence. Eating extra calories adds more than water weight!
The idea that "greasy" foods are unhealthy sounds good, but is it true? Do greasy foods make you fat? Man has been eating them for millenia, and have been much thinner than the current generation. What has been the big change in our diets that has caused so many people to be get fat? There is considerable evidence that it is the sugary, starchy, carb-rich foods. It is funny that people think that sugar is unhealthy, but most cereals (even healthy ones) are more sugary than table sugar, and therefore convert to sugar FASTER in the bloodsream than table sugar. But the same people that eat these foods put artificial sweeteners in their tea to avoid eating the unhealthy sugar. It is the same thing and people don't even know! That is sad to me.Also, when you were referring to how we ate 10,000 years ago, that would be more of a paleo type diet as opposed to atkins. We didn't have bacon, sausages, hot dogs or other processed meats and they didn't restrict carbs either.
Are you saying a paleo diet is a healthy diet? A paleo diet is characterized as a type of low carb diet. The kind of cards that you eat are not the sugars, starches, and grains of today's modern diet. And plenty of meat is typically consumed.
We've seen a steady stream of people saying they tried Atkins a while back, lost a ton of weight, and gained it all back. It has been shown many times that low carb diets yield better weight loss than other diets. It is also well documented that most dieters regain their lost weight - Atkins or otherwise. So there is near zero doubt that low carb eating is the easiest way to lose weight in the short term. Would you agree that if people could figure out how to maintain the loss, it would be truly awesome for obese people?
So what should you do? Not do the low carb diet and take a longer, harder road to weight loss with a lower chance of reaching your goal, or do low carb and figure out how the heck you're going to maintain your weight once you lose it?
Given the risk of regaining it, shouldn't a dieter spend a lot of time thinking about how to maintain your weight loss? Ask yourself, if I was at my goal weight would I eat that piece of chocolate cake. They idea you can just go back to the old you is unrealistic. Someone should write a book on how to maintain their weight loss after low carb! They'd make a mint.
I have learned the secret. It isn't that hard. Give up the unhealthy sugary foods of modern man for good. And exercise consistently. With those changes in my lifestyle I can have my 32 inch waist instead of the 40+ inch waist I started with. I can run a triathlon or 10k instead of tiring walking up the stairs. I can eat most all of the foods I love, including steak, hamburgers (low carb bun of course), fish, carrots and humus, nuts, salads, veggies, and even an occasional low carb confection WITH NO GUILT and without gaining weight.
I doubt I will convince the anti-low carb people in the forum to change their minds, and I'm not really trying to. I'm trying to reach those guys with a big belly similar to mine 10 months ago, wondering how the heck to chip away at the bulk that has accumulated around their middles and preventing them from enjoying life as they should. It can be done my friend. Watch the "Fat Head" movies. Read read read. You'll find that low carb is a healthy option for weight loss that many many men and women have used successfully to drop the weight in a hurry, and with an active low carb lifestyle, keep it off for good!
Best of luck!
If you can provide some studies that low carb has greater long term success over other calorie restriction programs, that would be great. I am not watching the mainstream media either. I look at scientific journals and studies from places like the NIH. As noted below and my favorite quote of it is below too.
"Evidence abounds that low-carbohydrate diets present no significant advantage over more traditional energy-restricted, nutritionally balanced diets both in terms of weight loss and weight maintenance."
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14672862
Also, paleo isn't low carb, it's moderate carb. I do 80/20 paleo and even on full paleo days I eat up to 200g of carbs from fruits and veggies.
Also, I am not trying to start a conflict, I think it's great that atkins has work for you and has developed a good lifestyle for you, but Atkins is no more successful than any other calorie restriction program. And that huge initial weight loss is from storing less glycogen/water. That is why people lose 10 lbs the first week.0 -
Also if you would like to get into a political discussion about where our tax money is being spent then we would have to start a whole new thread. Almost accusing people on a low carb diet who are lowering their bmi of wasting government money when the biggest financial drain are people that are overweight or are smokers - which I am neither.0
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8lbs of water weight...
Funny cus I'm now down 26 pounds and have gone from a size 16 to a 14
I would suggest tracking your body fat then you can tell how much is lean body mass vs muscle loss.0
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