Atkins Review

I must admit, I am inspired by PattyTherre's and Jo's reviews of The Atkins Diet. Enough so that I wanted to write my review of this diet as well, just to round out the group.

I turned to The Atkins Diet several years ago in my late twenties, when I was looking to drop about ten pounds. To be completely honest, I am always looking to drop about ten pounds. Even when I was a child, and a small one at that, I felt fat. I turned to the Atkins Diet after low-fat diets seemed to become too restrictive, and also because my boyfriend's father had lost more than fifty pounds with the diet, and kept it off! I really respected the man and even though my boyfriend joked that his dad's diet was the "Meat, meat, meat and meat diet," I was intrigued. It seemed to have really worked miracles for him.

About the Atkins Diet
This diet is similar, only a bit more extreme than the very popular "South Beach Diet". Both diets include an "Induction Phase" and the Atkins Induction Phase restricts carbs greatly. Essentially, the premise of this diet is that you should restrict/eliminate carbs as much as possible, which sends your body into ketosis. Once in ketosis, the body turns to fat for fuel, and burns fat more efficiently. Once you've started losing weight on the Atkins Diet, you then begin to monitor your body's state of ketosis, with "Ketostix", which yes, you pee upon, and when you're ready to start maintaining, you gradually increase your body's intake of carbohydrates until your body goes out of Ketosis. That's your maintenance level of carbs, and you then monitor that level going forward, manipulating your body's level of ketosis to most efficiently burn fat and help you lose weight.

What you can eat on the Atkins Diet
We all know that Atkins requires you to eat low-carbohydrate foods, but the foods that contain carbohydrates may surprise you. Onions have more carbs than most Atkinsers would like (they carmelize well, in fact, due to their sugar content which = carbohydrates). Things you would consider perfectly innocuous, suddenly have hidden sugars that you've never thought about. Almost any vegetable that you thought was nice and sweet is sweet because it's got carbohydrates. It is particularly tough to follow the Atkins diet during the "Induction" phase when you are advised to eat fewer than twenty grams of carbohydrates.

How I Did on the Atkins Diet
I was completely miserable from day one on this diet. I recall vividly the painful first days of the Induction phase. The book explains that soon the sugar cravings, which are most intense when you allegedly need to be on low-carbohydrate diets the most, will soon fade. For me, they did not. I remember being weak on day 2 and very, very depressed and upset, already feeling like a failure. I went to a grocery store and purchased a four pack of sugar-free Jello. I had a tough time getting my money out for the purchase because my body was literally shaking like I had a bad case of D.T.'s with zero carbohydrates in my system. I took my purchase to the car and ate every single one of the Jello cups, which even though they had no sugar, helped subside the shaking somewhat. That evening I went out to a steakhouse and had a steak and broccoli, and I felt better.

Over the course of about six weeks, I joyously checked my Ketostix to ensure I was in Ketosis and I lost fifteen pounds, sure enough. But I was miserable. I kept trying to find low-carb or no-carb alternatives to the food items I craved like a madwoman. Sugar free cheesecake isn't that great. Stevia, a sugar supplement, didn't help. In essence, I struggled mightily to continue this diet. I had thought it would be so easy. Who doesn't like steaks, and eggs, and bacon? But after awhile I began to grow incredibly queasy at the thought of yet another slab of meat, or bacon. Even the roughage and vegetables allowed on the Atkins diet weren't satisfying for me. Carrots, onions, potatoes and corn were the enemy. Broccoli, asparagus and brussels sprouts were good. This was depressing.

Cat's Bottom Line
I gave the Atkins Diet the old "college try" as some might say, and I failed. I didn't fail to lose weight, indeed I lost fifteen pounds, but I lost the weight mostly because I was queasy and repulsed by the thought of another low-carbohydrate meal. I believe that the Atkin's Diet works exceptionally well for certain types of people, namely diabetics who absolutely must get their blood sugar under control in order for them to live a healthy lifestyle. The greatest poster children for the Atkins Diet are both my ex-boyfriend's father, and an old friend of mine: males who are Type 2 Diabetics who have essentially utilized this diet to completely reign in their blood sugar and get their weight problems under control.

I believe the Atkins Diet is based on sound science, it's just not science that applies to everyone. If you're a few pounds overweight, and don't have blood sugar processing issues such as diabetes or hypoglycemia, then the Atkins Diet may be a quick way to shed a few pounds, but frankly I don't think it will improve how you feel enough to make the sacrifice worth the effort. That's where I came from, and that's why I think I couldn't succeed at this diet, which should be adopted as a lifestyle in order to help as much as possible. But I do know people who have lost weight and controlled it, and their health, by restricting carbs as directed by the Atkins Diet, and for them, this regimen is a blessing.

Seriously consider what your reason is for considering this diet, and adopt it if it's appropriate for you. If it's not, consider something less restrictive and more likely to be followed by the general population. For most people, I'd recommend something simpler and less restrictive, such as Weight Watchers or a modified South Beach diet.

I'd recommend this diet to a friend - with the caveat that it must be appropriate for their physical needs, not just a quick way to lose twenty pounds.