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I'll chime in.
I did the Atkins diet while trucking. Sitting 14-16 hrs. a day, minimal exercise. Lost 30 lbs. eating things I love such as all the meat and dairy (no milk) I could stuff into my piehole.
Losing weight in my profession is tough, and if it worked for me, I'm convinced. It states no more than 21 g. of carbs per day, which is pretty much an order of toast and you're done. So I decided to throw the bread/carbs out totally until I saw a decent result. I can eat fast food if there's no other choice, just throw the buns out.
I realize there are different folks who despise eating too much meat, etc. but again, it worked for me in my environment, and that's HUGE in and of itself.
Nothing like losing weight while downing bacon, eggs, butter, sausage, cheesburgs, hotdogs, lunch meat rolled up with cheese and mustard/mayo...where do I sign???
Is it healthy to do? Who knows. There's a whole lot more dead doctors though, than there are red meat eaters...
^^^ thats not atkins or healthy. Its just lowered carb intake. Milk has carbs by the way. Dairy is limited on atkins and so are the etc your mentioned as part of your diet. Atkins actually encourages you to avoid those types of low carb junkier foods.
Well, different strokes for different folks evidently. I went to the Atkins site, printed out what was "accepted" to have, along with a printout of the carb index of all the food groups. Lost 30 lbs, doing it this way. I didn't drink milk either, as I stated.
What influenced me to do it was a friend of mine who lost over 100 lbs. on the atkins diet. At first, I thought he was ill until he told me how he did it.
The plan stated at that time (maybe this "New" plan is different, haven't looked at it yet,) that 21 grams of carbs per day was the limit. I did less than that everyday, so it worked. remember, everybody's built different, metabolisms, frames, etc.
Being 30 lbs. overweight isn't what I consider healthy, either. Now that it's gone, better choices are prevalant. That's what keeps it off, not having to stay on a rabbit food diet the rest of youir life...
Dolly Parton lost around 50 lbs. 25 years ago, and I remember her diet consisted of southern fried foods, pizza, a lot of "brow raising" foods. But all in moderation...
I am aboslutely convinced the Atkins diet works and think much of it is calorie restriction because there is only so many calories of meat and fat you can eat without feeling stuffed. Yes, some is due to the inefficient burning of fat and ketone bodies.
But, in line with many many people, I just could not comply with such a restrictive diet and know you don't *have* to be on such a diet to loose/maintain weight. Also I do not think we were built to eat such a diet for the long haul in terms of vitamins, minerals, fiber etc. Our bodies were clearly designed to be omnivores - not herbivores,not carnivores.
I would love to see 30-40 year health data on folks who have stuck on this since the 1970s though.
When I went low carb with South Beach I did lose weight. But I never stopped craving carbs and when I exercised, well, I just did not feel all that energized by it.
Honestly, I just feel better when I start my mornings with an apple and a bowl of whole grain cereal (as opposed to something high protein like an egg beater omelet or a chicken breast). Once I get a great walk in, I feel energized by it for the rest of the day. I do avoid eating a lot of "white" carbs and I stick a lot to whole grains, veggies/fruits, lentils, low fat dairy, etc. But I usually eat only 1 serving of meat per day which is about all I want.
I think Atkins is good for people who like to have (and crave) a fair amount of meat/animal protein in their diet.
The excess acidity of this diet can destroy calcium in the bones, teeth and damage your kidneys and liver due to ketosis. It can also depress your central nervous system (i.e., your BRAIN).
In addition to leeching calcium from your bones it can also reduce muscle mass.
Then there's the danger of steroids and hormones (rbgh) from all the meat you are eating, along with the antibiotics.
Weight loss is not necessarily a sign of good health. Not if it means weaker bones and less muscle.
The excess acidity of this diet can destroy calcium in the bones, teeth and damage your kidneys and liver due to ketosis. It can also depress your central nervous system (i.e., your BRAIN).
In addition to leeching calcium from your bones it can also reduce muscle mass.
Then there's the danger of steroids and hormones (rbgh) from all the meat you are eating, along with the antibiotics.
Weight loss is not necessarily a sign of good health. Not if it means weaker bones and less muscle.
This is another case of a website popping off about Atkins without really knowing what they're talking about and not citing any scientific studies.
As for the myth that low carb diets will depress your central nervous system, I quote from "The Anabolic Solution" by Dr. Mauro DiPasquale.
Quote:
Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) is the source of all metabolic activity in the human body. In
order to get the energy the body needs for muscle contraction, breathing, brain cell function
and virtually all other activities, ATP must be generated. People have gotten the idea that you
must have the glycogen and glucose that comes from carbohydrates for the body to produce
and replenish ATP and survive.
What people don’t understand is that protein and fat have their own mechanism for providing
energy to the body and replenishing ATP. It’s a misconception that you need carbs to function.
When carbohydrates make up the bulk of your diet, you basically burn the glucose from the
carbs as energy. Glucose enters the body, and insulin is secreted by the pancreas to utilize it for
immediate energy, or store it as glycogen in the liver and muscles. The glucose not stored as
glycogen is made into triglycerides (bodyfat). When needed for energy, the stored glycogen is
converted back to glucose and used up directly by a cell or transported through the bloodstream
to other cells for conversion and use as energy.
When fat makes up the bulk of your diet, you don’t have those large amounts of glycogen or
glucose available for energy anymore. Most of your energy will come from the breakdown of
free fatty acids from your diet or from the fat stored on your body. Instead of burning the stored
glycogen or glucose for energy, the body burns free fatty acids or triglycerides (the storage form
of the free fatty acids).
Basically, a diet high in fat activates the lipolytic (fat burning) enzymes in your body and
decreases the activity of the lipogenic (fat producing) enzymes. Dietary free fatty acids and
triglycerides become the body’s main energy source. The triglycerides are broken down to free
fatty acids and then ketones, a source that can be used for energy by body cells.The free fatty
acids take the place of glucose, and the triglycerides act like glycogen.
When carbs are the main form of energy to the body, the body produces insulin to process it
and store it. This is all well and good but, as we discussed above, one of the problems with
insulin is that it activates the lipogenic (fat producing) enzymes on the body and decreases the
activity of the lipolytic (fat burning) enzymes. What this leads to is an increased storing of body
fat and a decrease in the amount of stored fat that will be burned.
The exact opposite occurs on the high fat diet. After undergoing the “metabolic shift” from
being a carb-burning machine to a fat-burner, lipogenesis (the production and laying down of
fat on the body) decreases, and lipolysis (the burning of both dietary and bodyfat for energy)
increases. You’re burning fat as your primary fuel, and instead of using glycogen or breaking down
precious protein, you’ll burn off the fat on your body for energy as needed.
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