Atkins - Does it work? How much did you lose on Induction?

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skimpyskimp
skimpyskimp Posts: 44
in Health and Weight Loss
Just wondering what's everyone's verdict on Atkins? I plan to use Atkins until I reach my goal weight and then to follow the Zone for maintenance.

I'm 5ft2, currently weigh just under 140lbs and want to get under 120lbs. Heaviest weight was around 175lbs.


Can anyone share their weight loss progress using Atkins?
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Replies

  • LJSmith1989
    LJSmith1989 Posts: 650
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    TDEE - 20% = You can still eat carbs! wooohooo!
  • goodtimezzzz
    goodtimezzzz Posts: 640 Member
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    huge mistake DO NOT DO IT!
  • dpollet2
    dpollet2 Posts: 68 Member
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    My in-laws did Atkins. First of all, have you read the book? To do it right you're supposed to take tons of vitamins and supplements. I don't personally know anyone who's kept the weight off with it, but I'm sure there are people out there.
  • salladeve
    salladeve Posts: 1,053 Member
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    I did Atkins about 15 years ago and did have success with it while I was on it. I lost 60lbs in about 9 months, however I did not feeI good the whole time I was on the diet. I have since gained back the weight (plus more), and will not try it again for several reasons:

    The moment you go back to regular eating, the weight starts creeping back on
    It is not a healthy diet for the long term
    Your breath is HORRIBLE! its the excess ketones, and entering into a fat-burning state of ketosis
    The lack of carbs caused severe headaches for me
    Sleeplessness
    I was extremely tired all the time

    The only thing I can say is if you do go on it, go short term. I lost about 20lbs the first month, so if I had it to do over I would have switched to a healthier diet at that time to continue my weight loss. The diet is high is fat and animal proteins which has been linked to many health problems later in life. This time around I'm focusing on a healthy BALANCED diet, and a change in my eating habits, hopefully it will last long term.

    Good luck in what ever diet you decide to do.
  • Babarrosa1
    Babarrosa1 Posts: 98 Member
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    Don't do it! Yes the weight melts off. But it comes back!. Atkins is something that you have to commit to. Low carbing for life (and I just couldn't do it love bread too much). It works for some people. It didn't work for me. Low carbing really messed with my mind - but that was just my experience.
  • changeyourlimits
    changeyourlimits Posts: 43
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    hi,
    It will work however this is a start up diet. Once you stop the diet and haven't made significant changes then the weight will comeback. I used Abs Diet as my starter diet. Just start planning for what is next after that. If you want the healthy body for the long run understand that you have to make the changes for life.
  • endoftheside
    endoftheside Posts: 568 Member
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    Honestly, if you want to do Zone for maintenance I would just start doing that now. It's really tricky to transition off of low carb without gaining weight, and since you have relatively little to lose to begin with, it might be demoralizing to immediately put back on some weight as you re-fill your glycogen stores.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,695 Member
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    ANY DIET works if followed. Staying on it after goal is the challenge. Personally I've never done one (with the exception for competitions) that kept me restricted from foods I like to eat. And that's why I've basically been the same size for 30 years now.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • seena511
    seena511 Posts: 685 Member
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    as others have said, unless you're going to do it for the rest of your life then i would find another method. my mother had great success and keeps the weight off as long as she stays away from carbs. it's important to note as well that she still ate at a deficit and exercised in addition to the lifestyle change.
  • martinah4
    martinah4 Posts: 583 Member
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    All right, I'll be the one proponent of Atkins on this thread.
    Atkins works, and it works long term if you stick to the plan. It is perfectly healthy to eat this way, as I have been for more than 2 years.
    Please go out and buy yourself a copy of the book and read it. A good book is Atkins Essentials. Very handy.
    My advice:
    Follow the plan, work your way up the "carb ladder", until you get to the final phase which is (in a nutshell) finding the foods that you can eat that will help you maintain your goal weight. For a lot of people this is very similar to the South Beach diet, and actually even less strict.
    The replies above seem to mostly be hearsay, and not all of it is factual or true.
    Another suggestion is to find some low-carb or Atkins groups on here, and join them. There are thousands of people who following a low-carb/Atkins diet who are very successful and can help you with questions and menus.
    Again...and most important...read the book and stick to the plan! Good luck!
  • Sawjer
    Sawjer Posts: 229 Member
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    My DJ/Close friend was obsessed with this diet, he lost big and then when he came off it would eventually put it back on. He then switched over to calorie counting after my boss lost big on it, he has since lost 2 stone and says he hasn't felt so great in his life and refuses to ever go back to Atkins diet and I mean he was obsessed with this diet.
  • jen_zz
    jen_zz Posts: 1,011 Member
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    ANY DIET works if followed. Staying on it after goal is the challenge. Personally I've never done one (with the exception for competitions) that kept me restricted from foods I like to eat. And that's why I've basically been the same size for 30 years now.

    ^^ this. Any "diet" works but they don't last very long.
  • martinah4
    martinah4 Posts: 583 Member
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    ANY DIET works if followed. Staying on it after goal is the challenge. Personally I've never done one (with the exception for competitions) that kept me restricted from foods I like to eat. And that's why I've basically been the same size for 30 years now.

    ^^ this. Any "diet" works but they don't last very long.

    This is true. You have to have the mind-set of making it a life-style change. Of COURSE if I go back to eating the way I ate before (which is why I put on the weight to begin with), I will put the weight back on. When I quit doing Weight Watchers, I gained my lost weight back.
  • jzammetti
    jzammetti Posts: 1,956 Member
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    All right, I'll be the one proponent of Atkins on this thread.
    Atkins works, and it works long term if you stick to the plan. It is perfectly healthy to eat this way, as I have been for more than 2 years.
    Please go out and buy yourself a copy of the book and read it. A good book is Atkins Essentials. Very handy.
    My advice:
    Follow the plan, work your way up the "carb ladder", until you get to the final phase which is (in a nutshell) finding the foods that you can eat that will help you maintain your goal weight. For a lot of people this is very similar to the South Beach diet, and actually even less strict.
    The replies above seem to mostly be hearsay, and not all of it is factual or true.
    Another suggestion is to find some low-carb or Atkins groups on here, and join them. There are thousands of people who following a low-carb/Atkins diet who are very successful and can help you with questions and menus.
    Again...and most important...read the book and stick to the plan! Good luck!

    I did Atkins years ago and it worked for me wonderfully (lost nearly 20 pounds just in the Induction phase - which was a lot different then than it is in the new book, from what I understand). However, I did not learn to eat better for life, which is what I am doing now with my calorie counting. Since I did not learn any new skills (besides low carbs), I eventually regained all the weight with my bad eating habits. I think low carb is great for some people if you can stick to it (I clearly could not). I think you can do it if you are thinking about gaining those skills while you do it so you can sustain the losses (but I do not think it is necessary...). Best of luck to you.
  • AllThatWeightlossJazz
    AllThatWeightlossJazz Posts: 21
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    I did it years ago and lost 30 pounds but quickly gained it back ( and more )
  • ryry_
    ryry_ Posts: 4,966 Member
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    It works, but I don't do it anymore because it was not sustainable for me.

    Google sugar free sheila for a site about a girl that has lost and maintained it for several years. She has lots of free and useful info.
  • Fozzi43
    Fozzi43 Posts: 2,984 Member
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    I had a friend that did Atkins..her breath smelt rank and anything she lost..she put right back on.
  • highervibes
    highervibes Posts: 2,219 Member
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    I follow a low carb approach (not any in particular, just low carb so my sugar cravings stay away as well as my blood sugar stays consistent as I'm insulin resistant) I ALSO count calories, because no matter what you eat you can not lose weight if you're eating too much of it. I believe this gives me an edge because I do learn portion control and I also learn which carbs affect me more negatively (sweet potatoe is much better than wonderbread :P)

    I lost a fair bit the first couple of weeks, 7lbs but the rest seems to come off about 1lbs/week. I eat about 1800 on days I"m not active to about 2000 on days which I am. Seems to work just fine for me and I am learning a lot about myself in the process. I don't expect to gain anything back even when I add in more carbs because I will still be eating aroung 1800 calories/day. The bottom line is no matter what you choose, too many calories is going to undermine your efforts so evne though Atkins says not to count calories I would count them based on your TDEE -20,15,10% whatever.
  • acurauk
    acurauk Posts: 9
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    I did atkins for 2 months last year June. I lost 2 stone is two months and after the induction felt great......BUT i started eating properly and i have put on 3 stone! So i am heavier now than i was before. It is a really boring diet and does drain you out of your energy for about a week. The food is very repetitive and there is a lots of fat involved which is not good for you. I would not recommend that diet to anyone, but it is your own choice. If you have anymore questions, ask.
  • FlippinNora
    FlippinNora Posts: 41 Member
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    I follow a low carb approach (not any in particular, just low carb so my sugar cravings stay away as well as my blood sugar stays consistent as I'm insulin resistant) I ALSO count calories, because no matter what you eat you can not lose weight if you're eating too much of it. I believe this gives me an edge because I do learn portion control and I also learn which carbs affect me more negatively (sweet potatoe is much better than wonderbread :P)

    I lost a fair bit the first couple of weeks, 7lbs but the rest seems to come off about 1lbs/week. I eat about 1800 on days I"m not active to about 2000 on days which I am. Seems to work just fine for me and I am learning a lot about myself in the process. I don't expect to gain anything back even when I add in more carbs because I will still be eating aroung 1800 calories/day. The bottom line is no matter what you choose, too many calories is going to undermine your efforts so evne though Atkins says not to count calories I would count them based on your TDEE -20,15,10% whatever.

    Basically this ^

    I'm also low carbing at the mo because a) I know I'm pre-diabetic and low carbing seems to be the only way I can lose right now and b) I can't do 'no' carbs.

    I've done Atkins before and quite honestly I just felt toxic the whole time, same with Dukan which has you no carbing for the first week and then alternate days with no veg etc. I love me my veg and I neeeed my veg. So 'no' carbing just wasn't sustainable.

    You will lose, you will lose quick but, whether you sustain it (or can stomach it) is another matter.

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