The last 15lbs, atkins for a quick finish?

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dmzf
dmzf Posts: 47 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So I am just 15lbs away from my goal and I am soo ready to be done.. Unfortunately the closer I get the harder it is to drop the weight. Has anyone had luck with Atkins at the end of this journey before maintainance phase starts? Any thoughts? Thank you in advance and best wishes to you and your success.
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  • wmagoo27
    wmagoo27 Posts: 201 Member
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    Low carb diets have some merits and it may be worth a shot to lose the last 15. I would suggest a different diet than Atkins though. I've had good experiences with Cyclical Ketogenic Diets during cutting phases in the past. The regular cycle of a high carb day helps to support a more active lifestyle that Atkins doesn't allow for. There is a 'Keto' group on these forums where you may be able to find more in depth information and good opinions.
  • taylorwaylor
    taylorwaylor Posts: 417 Member
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    Dont do it! Once you lose the rest your going to gain it all back by eating normal again. Maybe you arnt eating enough right now?
  • schondell
    schondell Posts: 556 Member
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    If you started morbidly obese I think atkins would be a good way to kick start weight loss but maybe not necessarily a good way to "finish it off". Just keep doing what you're doing and start sliding into maintenance! :)
  • boatsie77
    boatsie77 Posts: 480 Member
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    ...finished? ...done? How drastic will a change to maintenance be from what you've been doing up to now?
  • AllTehBeers
    AllTehBeers Posts: 5,030 Member
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    ...finished? ...done? How drastic will a change to maintenance be from what you've been doing up to now?

    I'm curious too. You haven't given any current exercise plan, any goals (other then an arbitrary number), or anything that you might want to accomplish (5k, 10k, weight training, p90x, ect..).
  • NBSfit
    NBSfit Posts: 44 Member
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    Rock on for getting this far!

    Depending on what your exercise routine looks like, you may find that the best way to lose the last 15 or 10 or 5, is to increase the amount of calories you eat. Just a little at a time. 100 calories a week. When you do it this way, it is really easy to determine the right number of calories for you because you'll see the scale move. When it does, try 100 more. It's just as easy to see when it stops moving. I had five pounds that I've been holding onto for a couple of years that I was thinking was just part of me, but when I increased my calories by 400 a day, I lost the weight and have kept it off. Nothing else changed. I'm 5'2" and now I'm 113 pounds. Before I was eating at most 1400 cal per day. I lost the weight at 1800, and am experimenting with 1900, but it isn't looking good, particularly since I injured my shoulder and can't lift the weights I'm accustomed to.

    Good luck!
  • nancycaregiver
    nancycaregiver Posts: 812 Member
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    I am an Atkins advocate but I have to agree with the people above me. If you go low carb then when you get to goal, start scarfing down carbs again, you will put it back on much quicker than you took it off. Keep doing what has gotten you to 15 pounds from your goal. Yes, it will come off much slower the closer you get but it will be much more permanent. When you reach your goal, do you plan on eating the way you did before? Surely you have learned how to eat healthy through your journey. I hope you keep that up! If you decide to go low carb, plan on doing it forever.
  • Dave198lbs
    Dave198lbs Posts: 8,810 Member
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    So I am just 15lbs away from my goal and I am soo ready to be done.. Unfortunately the closer I get the harder it is to drop the weight. Has anyone had luck with Atkins at the end of this journey before maintainance phase starts? Any thoughts? Thank you in advance and best wishes to you and your success.

    Atkins, or any low carb eating plan will result in a loss of significant water weight IF your pre Atkins diet was moderate to heavy carbs.

    Carbs hold water for us.

    It is a good way to cut your weight temporarily for a contest or a weigh in but will not result in long term fat loss.

    The last 10-15 pounds are SLOW to come off and getting your numbers (TDEE and calories in) as accurate as possible is crucial.

    good luck
  • CarlieeBear
    CarlieeBear Posts: 325 Member
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    My biggest concern would be that you jeopardize the good eating habits you've built during your weightloss. I'd say keep at it and try not to stress about it. You're almost there!
  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    The Atkins approach is a lifestyle change. If you don't intend on controlling carb intake for life, just stick to what you have been doing.
  • TheVimFuego
    TheVimFuego Posts: 2,412 Member
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    People keep on saying you'll gain the weight back after you get off Atkins. When you do low carb you lose a lot of water and glycogen(carbs in the muscles) which can result in a quick weight loss of 5-10lbs within a week. Once you incorporate your carbs that weight will come back. Any fat your burn will stay off you as long as you don't increase your calories above maintenance calories. It's not like you're going to gain 25lbs just by eating some carbs.

    Yup.

    Low carbing was great for me to recalibrate my sweet and focus more on nutrient-dense foods (I did it for 6 months) but long-term it wasn't really going to do the job, dietary variety won out for me. If I want a sandwich, I'll have one. I like bananas, apples, big ones too, how many carbs in there? Don't care.

    Atkins isn't magic, as others have said, there is no "metabolic advantage" if you eat at the same calorie levels.

    Slow and steady is the way to go as you get closer to goal. By whatever combinations of food/drink do the job to achieve that energy gap.

    Some people find appetite is easier to control when low carbing, this is valid reason for doing it but not for a 'quick finish'. And yes, most of the initial weight lost is water/glycogen which is easily regained.
  • seena511
    seena511 Posts: 685 Member
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    Dont do it! Once you lose the rest your going to gain it all back by eating normal again. Maybe you arnt eating enough right now?


    this. once you start eating a normal amount of sugar again you will put the weight right back on. unless you plan on sticking with it for the rest of your life, i would just try to reduce your sugar intake overall rather than try to eliminate it.
  • Dave198lbs
    Dave198lbs Posts: 8,810 Member
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    this. once you start eating a normal amount of sugar again you will put the weight right back on.

    this will only be true if there is an over all caloric surplus
  • bionicrooster
    bionicrooster Posts: 353 Member
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    I find that calorie deficit is the only true indicator of losing weight. I do find that I tend to lose more and feel fuller when I am eating a very high protein diet. Atkins is easy, give it a try for a week or two and see what you think.
  • afcgirl
    afcgirl Posts: 31 Member
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    Lots of misinformation on here about Atkins, but what else is new? :)

    I have been eating low carb for more than five years and have lost fat and kept my weight off. I do eat higher carbs occasionally and I don't gain weight faster than I did after going off weight watchers or other low fat diets. With any diet plan, you will gain quickly when you go off and start scarfing down food. That's just life unfortunately.

    That being said, I would not recommend Atkins just to lose weight if you don't believe it is a healthy lifestyle that you plan on continuing with.

    Good luck!
  • alyssamiller77
    alyssamiller77 Posts: 891 Member
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    Lyle McDonald recommends a LOW CARB diet (20% of cals from carbs) along with a specific workout regimine in "The Stubborn Fat Solution". I haven't tried it yet but have talked with a number of others who have and have found it very successful. I wouldn't recommend the full-blown Atkins approach because that's really a full process designed for someone starting from scratch with a sort of "shock to the system" at the beginning meant to manipulate hormonal changes and such.

    Another thing you might think about trying that has been working for me recently as I try to rip off a few last stubborn pounds is calorie cycling. I'm on an overall calorie deficit (400 per day) but pick one to two days a week where I eat to maintenance or a little above. So far I have been seeing nice losses in the days following those higher calorie days.

    Another option I know that people have used that's been successful is to take an actual diet break. Go two weeks at maintenance and then go back to a deficit again. Same kind of concept, the bumped up calorie intake seems to adjust your body's hormonal response and when you go back to deficit the losses get a kick start again.
  • alyssamiller77
    alyssamiller77 Posts: 891 Member
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    With any diet plan, you will gain quickly when you go off and start scarfing down food. That's just life unfortunately.

    Well yes if you jump off your diet plan and go back to over-eating you're going to gain weight no matter what. If you use a controlled approach and stick to your proper macros, you shouldn't be gaining weight back. However, what people do see after Low Carb diets is a small weight gain despite not over eating. It's actually fully expected and scientifically explainable. It's not some huge uncontrollable packing on of fat but rather a 5-10 lbs increase as a result of re-introducing carbohydrates to your system.
  • dmzf
    dmzf Posts: 47 Member
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    Thanks everyone. I do have a clean diet and exercise regularly, just getting anxious to hit my goal. Looks like I have some more research to do. Happy holidays :)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    So I am just 15lbs away from my goal and I am soo ready to be done.............

    What happens when you're done? You could do Adkins for a couple of weeks, and you would probably drop those last 15 pounds...but you might put those right back on when you re-introduce carbs, even in moderation.
  • claritarejoice
    claritarejoice Posts: 461 Member
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    Hi everyone, you gave some great advice to the original poster, I thought maybe you could help me too. I quickly lost 30 pounds on 1200-1400 calories a day. Then when I crossed into my healthy weight category I increased my eating to 1500 a day. Now I haven't lost weight for a month. I want to lose 15 more pounds. I'm 5'7" tall and weigh around 157. I don't know my bf% for sure but the online calculators say 26-30%. I have a sedentary/office job but I walk and exercise every day. I don't take cheat days. I measure and track all my food as much as possible but as you know there are many foods that you don't know the exact numbers for like restaurant food or at friends' houses. Any ideas that you have for losing the last 15 pounds are welcome! Thanks!

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