What do you think of Atkins?

[billmac]

Most low carb diets acknowledge that calories still matter. Their position is that on a low carb diet you are satisfied easier and stay satisfied longer, since the reduction in carbs keeps your blood sugar stable.

I have followed a lower carb regimen (sometimes unfaithfully) for about 3 years. I've lost 60 lbs and my lipid profile is excellent, with the exception of HDL, which I have to raise. The only way (sans drugs) I can do that is to eat more fat. (olive oil, nuts, etc).

 

[mindgame]

i think the atkins diet will help you lose weight but its so unhealthy..

anyhtign that tells you fruits and veggies are bad is idiotic..IMO...

if you ate like that forever you would have dried up insides..

you would be thin but prob die after 20 years of doing it..CHOLESTERAL from all those meats
-
just use patience and have some self control and a lil excersize wouldent hurt and you will be fine..
i lost 30 lbs just by changing the way i ate..no excersize..

 

[billmac]

i think the atkins diet will help you lose weight but its so unhealthy..

anyhtign that tells you fruits and veggies are bad is idiotic..IMO...

That's true. Any diet that says fruits and veggies are bad is idiotic. The Atkins diet (and no other locarb diet that I know of) does not say that. Have you read all of this thread? Have you read the Atkins book? Have you read any locarb books?

if you ate like that forever you would have dried up insides..

What does that mean?

you would be thin but prob die after 20 years of doing it..CHOLESTERAL from all those meats

Many people on locarb diets report improved cholesterol profiles. Myself included.

 

[Bangbang]

Any diet where it's ok to eat bacon but not vegetables is just CrAzY !

I have used the Atkins diet and loss a lot of weight very fast with no side effects. I never get tired of bacon. yummy

 

[Tater Tot]

I have used the Atkins diet and loss a lot of weight very fast with no side effects. I never get tired of bacon. yummy

Im not going to say too much about this because I dont want to start a war.. I'll just say I can loose a lot of weight just taking speed, or just eating cabbage, or just drinking beer..But its not healthy.. If you crave something (atkins people understand) like bread, well your body is tring to tell you something..You can loose weight fast alot of ways but the key is keeping it off when you leave the diet..Michael in Fort Worth should step in here, he knows the most about this..



The Tot

 

[Rob Babcock]

Im not going to say too much about this because I dont want to start a war.. I'll just say I can loose a lot of weight just taking speed, or just eating cabbage, or just drinking beer..But its not healthy.. If you crave something (atkins people understand) like bread, well your body is tring to tell you something..You can loose weight fast alot of ways but the key is keeping it off when you leave the diet..Michael in Fort Worth should step in here, he knows the most about this..



The Tot

I was gonna leave this alone, but you make a good point. When your body craves something, there is a word for it: Addiction. You crave bread because you're addicted to the carbs, just like a junkie craves smack or an drunk craves a drink. And just like them, the thing you crave is killing you. Cravings are a really bad thing to trust.

When you follow the Atkin's diet properly, these cravings virtually disappear. Like any other addict, the cravings will return when you decide to "give yourself a taste".

If you remove the word "diet," which is misleading, and substitute "good nutrition", you'll find there's no reason to go back to the awful way you were eating before.

 

[GB]

When your body craves something, there is a word for it: Addiction. You crave bread because you're addicted to the carbs, just like a junkie craves smack or an drunk craves a drink. And just like them, the thing you crave is killing you. Cravings are a really bad thing to trust.

I have to respectfully disagree with the above statement. As any 7th grade biology student will tell you, a craving denotes a deficiency in the system. If your body is craving something then if could mean it needs something that you are not getting enough of by what you are already eating. If you get a craving for red meat, for example, then you may be running low on iron. Cravings are not a really bad thing to trust, you just need to be smart about it. If you just had red meat for 7 days in a row and today you are craving a huge steak then you are probably not deficient in anything, but if you have not had any red meat in a while and now you are craving it then listen to your body. It is trying to tell you something important.

 

[chefhelper]

I'm with jkath also...eating a well-varied, fresh-cooked diet has always worked for me. If people could listen to and learn to trust that their bodies know what they need, we would all be a lot healthier.
I love bacon but I also love strawberries and fresh breads. It's all about balance.

 

[Claire]

OK, give all of us a break here. A craving doesn't necessarily mean an addiction nor a deficiency. I used to crave a steak during my periods (OK, I'll go along with the deficiency one on that ... losing blood, wanting blood). I don't even eat beef weekly, so it'd be pretty silly to call that an addiction. Women crave really stupid things during their pregnancies. One time Sis & I were in a grocery and she looked at a wine display and said she wanted that. I grabbed it. I looked at a chocolate display and grabbed that. We looked at each other and realized that we were at the same time of month. Sis seldom-to-never drank, and when she did it wasn't wine. I eat chocolate a few times a year. If these are addictions, then ... well, they aren't, no matter how you look at it. All cravings are NOT addictions, neither are they necessarily deficiencies. Sometimes you just really, really want something. When you'd kill for a wide screen TV ..... what do you call that?

 

[Rob Babcock]

I'm overstating that to make a point- it's not intelligent to assume that merely being hungry for something means you should eat it. Think about it; how often do you crave sweets? Then consider this- it it ever a good thing to eat them? What nutrient or mineral do you get from cake, cookies or ice cream? Those things are purely empty calories. All you can do is survive the damage they do.

What if you "crave" broccoli? I guess you're in luck! But who "craves" that?

All I'm saying is that your body is "stupid". It may "crave" things it needs, like when you're dehydrated and you want water. Or you may crave a nic fix when you haven't had a cigarette for 10 hours. The body can't be trusted to reliably tell you what you "need" because it's just tuned in to wanting what it's used to. Are all cravings bad? Of course not. Don't don't be so stupid as to think because you want something that it's good for you. If that was true we'd all look like Jessica Alba or Brad Pitt.

 

[Andy M.]

...If that was true we'd all look like Jessica Alba or Brad Pitt.

Aren't there any other choices?

 

[HappyAvocado]

What if you "crave" broccoli? I guess you're in luck! But who "craves" that?

i am not really up to speed on atkins, but i do have to comment on this. i crave vegetables all the time, usually fresh greens like kale and chard. if i go on a vacation and cant get my usual amount of veggies i dream of salad. am i a weirdo, i dont know... i also crave carrots. but i cant believe that i am the only person who has ever craved broccoli... i also crave chocolate, but thats another story, lol.