A few Questions abotu the Atkins diet?!
Question: I want to start tomorrow....and I know in the first 2 week induction you are limited...but what kind of foods can you eat?
I have heard you can eat a lot of eggs and such but wouldn't this make you gain weight, not lose it? I'm a bit confused on how Atkins can help you lose so much weight in the first 2 weeks (My friend lost 20 pounds in the 2 week induction)
Also I heard after getting off the Atkins diet that the weight can come back...this didn't happen with my friend since she kept excercising and watching what she ate, but she introduced carbs back to her diet and she didn't gain any weight back.
Any info would be greatly appreciated since I'm a bit confused, also any personal experience would be wonderful!......thanks
Answers: I want to start tomorrow....and I know in the first 2 week induction you are limited...but what kind of foods can you eat?
I have heard you can eat a lot of eggs and such but wouldn't this make you gain weight, not lose it? I'm a bit confused on how Atkins can help you lose so much weight in the first 2 weeks (My friend lost 20 pounds in the 2 week induction)
Also I heard after getting off the Atkins diet that the weight can come back...this didn't happen with my friend since she kept excercising and watching what she ate, but she introduced carbs back to her diet and she didn't gain any weight back.
Any info would be greatly appreciated since I'm a bit confused, also any personal experience would be wonderful!......thanks
Foods you can eat on in the induction weeks: eggs, steak, chicken, turkey, bacon, cheese, pepperoni, sausage, shrimp, ground beef, olive oil (any oil really), heavy whipping cream (great in coffee!), and almost any vegetables. See the general pattern? You can eat as much protein and fat as you want, but can eat no more than 20 carbs a day. Here's a complete list with more details:
http://www.atkins.com/articles/atkins-ph...
Your egg question: No, eggs would not make you gain weight. After 2-3 days without carbohydrates (your body's first choice for energy, which you get from fruits and breads and cereals, etc), your body runs out of glycogen and starts burning fat for fuel. This state is called ketosis. If you want to be sure you've achieved ketosis, you can buy ketosis strips from the pharmacy (they're cheap). Ketosis strips test your urine for ketones.
Your question about getting off Atkins: yes, as with any diet you will gain the weight back when you stop doing it. You're not supposed to ever "get off" any diet! Diets are supposed to be lifestyle changes. If you eat 2000 calories a day, then go on a diet and only eat 1500 calories a day, you'll gain all the weight back if you start eating 2000 calories a day again.
So why didn't your friend gain weight back? Because she did exactly what you're supposed to do on Atkins: you slowly add more carbs every week after the Induction Phase, until you find just the right amount of carbs for your body. That's what Phase 2, 3, and 4 of the diet are all about.
There are two ways people screw this diet up:
1. They accidentally eat more carbs than they're supposed to. This will sabotage the ketosis and you won't lose weight. Take the carb rule very seriously.
2. They skip on the fat. You HAVE to eat fat on the diet, otherwise it won't work. One of my favorite meals on the Atkins diet was 3 McDonald's Double cheeseburgers without the bun!
Atkins is just one diet of many. Ketosis might no be safe for all people -- it's technically starvation (people who are starving to death are also going through ketosis). I linked you to the Atkins website, but you should get more info from other places too. The internet is full of scientific diet advice.
Your body has certain requirements, which include 50% of your daily kcals from carbs, 30% from fats, and only 20% from protein.
When you get off any kind of fad diet like this, the weight will come right back on. It does trigger short-term weight loss, since your body will be lacking a sufficient supply of carbs (which is its main source of energy) so your metabolism will turn to other sources (fat and protein). You will lose weight at first, but it will mainly be water, the carbs in your muscles, some fat, and muscle mass.
I wouldn't recommend a diet like this. It can lead to numerous health complications, it's very hard to stick to, and it doesn't promote healthy eating habits.
The Atkins diet is animal protein combined with non-starchy carbohydrates and you steer clear of starchy carbohydrates. If you combine starchy carbohydrates with animal protein then you will gain weight. Non-starchy carbohydrates are fine.
You can get a whole book on the Atkins diet from health stores which would be a good investment as it explains the induction period and what you must do after that plus a lot of other information. Apparently some changes are required as you progress from one week to the next week.