Basics of the Atkins Diet

The Akins Diet is based on the premise that by following its principles, you will be able to lose weight, keep the weight off permanently, and attain a state of good health that will help prevent chronic disease.

Phases of the Atkins Diet

Like the South Beach Diet, the program consists of phases. The four phases are presented here:

Phase 1--Induction

During this phase of the diet, individuals severely restrict their carbohydrate intake, causing the body to go into a state of ketosis, during which calories are burned at a rapid rate. The only carbohydrates permitted during this phase are green, non-starchy vegetables. Carbohydrate consumption must be less than 20 grams each day. This is the toughest part of the diet for many people. The benefits are that blood sugar is stabilized, due to the lack of refined carbohydrates, and cravings for sugar begin to become minimized. The induction phase typically lasts two weeks.

Phase 2—Ongoing Weight Loss

During this phase, individuals gradually increase their carbohydrate intake each week by 5 grams, until weight loss comes to a standstill. They then reduce their carbohydrate intake once again to the point where the extra pounds continue to come off. Most people eat between 25 to 50 grams of carbohydrates daily during this phase, depending on their individual metabolisms.

Phase 3—Pre-Maintenance

This phase is reached once the weight loss goal is almost reached. Dieters gradually increase their carbohydrate intake until weight loss has almost stopped. As the carbohydrates are increased, dieters are encouraged to follow the glycemic index, which Atkins calls “The Atkins Glycemic Ranking.”

Phase 4—Lifetime Maintenance

This is the phase that people stay in once their weight loss goal has been accomplished. They eat the amount of carbohydrates that does not cause them to gain weight. Atkins claims that eating this way for a lifetime will cause individuals to become healthier and reduce their risk of chronic disease. Sugar, bread and starchy foods will always be severely restricted.

Why Do the Atkins Diet?

Many people enjoy the this plan, as it promises weight loss to people while permitting the unlimited consumption of protein products such as steak, eggs and full-fat cheese. Many people do lose weight on this diet, most likely because eventually, many people become tired of eating a diet that consists primarily of meat and other “heavy” foods. Constipation has also been reported to be a problem on this diet, as has loss of energy. However, there is a biological background that supports this diet, as many hunter-gatherers subsisted primarily on a diet of meat, nuts and seeds for many years.

Atkins claims that following its diet program will reduce cholesterol. The rational for this, in spite of the large amounts of fatty foods consumed, is that only 25 percent of the cholesterol in the blood comes from the type of food that is ingested, rather the majority of cholesterol is produced by the liver. This no doubt helps to explain why certain individuals seem to be predisposed to high cholesterol, regardless of their diet.

Atkins is very similar to other diets in that the weight will come off much faster when exercise is incorporated into the plan. Of course, exercise also reduces the risk of disease and provides an enhanced feeling of well being, in addition to burning calories.

Additional Offers

At this point, being a large corporation, Atkins offers many prepackaged foods that can be purchased, such as energy bars in flavors such as Cookies and Cream. They have also partnered with many other companies, including TGI Fridays. Many cookbooks and other products can also be purchased from them.

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