Atkins Diet - Your Experiences Please?

I'm amazed by the number of people that DO imply I only have "a few pounds to lose".

 

I don't have ANY to lose, thanks very much, my BMI is 22, right in the middle of healthy.

why would you want to try the diet then? According to weight watchers, your healthy weight is between 127 and 147 lbs. As you said, your weight is right in the middle of healthy. You could stand to lose or gain a few without any ill effects.

I'm not understanding where you're going with this.

Hey there,

I tried the South Beach Diet which is like the Atkins Diet. I have so to say I had the WORST experience ever. I could not think, I could not concentrate, I was fatigued all the time, my stomach hurt, I just felt alwful. IMO, I think the human body needs carbs, GOOD carbs such as fruits, dairy, and whole grains, and wheat. I strongly feel one should not deprive him/herself of anything. I believe in moderation.

On the otherhand, I had wonderful results with Weight Watchers. A person doing WW can eat what he/she wants as long as he/she stays within the point range. I learned so much about my eating habits, how much I eat and what I eat. I lost 27 pounds and have kept it off for FIVE years. I still do the new things I learned on WW.

Great!

 

When you see your neurologist, ask him about what's best for you also in terms of diet.

 

 

 

Or your psychiatrist

 

Anywho, I happen to believe atkins is just an artifact of people confusing causation with correlation.

Fact: People eat icecream in the summer.

Fact: People drown more in the summer.

Not Fact: People drown because of eating icecream in the summer

 

It's also an artifact of people assigning poplularity and name recognition to otherwise well practiced activities:

Fact: People who eat less carbs, more low cal veggies, and excersise more lose weight

Fact: People who use the cathode diet eat less carbs, more low cal veggies, excersise more, and stand on their head for 30 seconds a day lose weight.

Not fact: Standing on your head in the cathode diet is any better or worse than regular dieting.

 

I've found, through various avenues, the extreme atkins diets are the diets that are attackedThe "modified" atkins diets that are proposed to be much safer than the more extreme versions are hardly any different than a regular diet (eat less calories, excersize more) see example 2.

I mainly wanted to try it because I was just curious after reading William Leith's experiences with it. I thought "I want to see what that's like, if I'd feel any better".

I'd ask my psychiatrist, if I hadn't fired her.

I did the virtual opposite of the Atkins diet.

I just cut my fat and grease intake as much as possible. I did not change my starch intake at all. I lost the weight over a year and I never was hungry or tired. I avoided all fried foods, especially deep fried. Also avoided cheese, mayo, and any other high fat foods. I did not avoid red meat or anything that extreme, but I did and do try to avoid very fatty meats (no sausage for example). I also had to not eat pizza more than once in a while. No more desserts either. No more French fries.

I suffered no hunger or tiredness at all. I did suffer some food cravings the first week. Then I mentally or physically adjusted. To stay sane and motivated, I allowed myself one day per week to eat whatever I wanted, but only in reasonable portions.

The first 25 lbs was lost by purely by the above dietary restrictions. The next 20 by excercise in addition to diet.

Now I want to lose another 10 pounds because I'm still about 15 lbs overweight. To lose the next 10 lbs, I will either have to cut my starch intake since my fat intake is already low, or I'll have to exercise much more. I think I'll do some of both.

I think it's going to be harder to lose the last 10 lbs than it was the first 45 lbs. Why? Because my body is now very determined to hold onto what's left of my fat.

A person can lose weight by burning more calories (excercise), or by cutting calories by reducing fat or starch. Ideally, some of each is the best route. Since fat also clogs a persons circulatory system (heart disease), I chose to cut that as much as possible before cutting my starch. However, at some point a person must cut their starch too.

The above based on my experiences. I made that diet up myself and it works. If I were to name it, I'd call it the "Common Sense Weight Loss Plan You Can Do for Free".

Mmm, I lost over 40lbs 2 years ago by doing something similar, Charley...so I fully believe you.