What Is The Atkins Diet?
It’s hard to believe that it was way back in 1972 when Dr. Atkins introduced his controversial diet program to the world. Atkins introduced us to the idea of high protein dieting with a corresponding virtual elimination of carbohydrates from our diets. But there is no denying that Atkins took off like wildfire in the 1990s and is going strong today. So it would do us well to dig down to what really makes the Atkins system work for so many people.
Eliminate carbs - the main point of the Atkins diet is that you must cease eating carbohydrates, or at least greatly reduce the consumption of carbohydrates. According to the Atkins diet, sugars are burned before anything else in the body, including fat. So if you consume too many sugars you are not allowing your body the opportunity to burn fat; as a result there is no weight reduction.
One reason Atkins is popular is that it replaces carb consumption with high protein food groups so you are actually encouraged to eat a lot of meat, cheese, fish and eggs which other diets restrict heavily. And since the body burns off fats easily without carbohydrates in the system, Atkins allows you to enjoy some fats like butter and salad dressings that people hate to give up.
There is a transition the body goes through when we pull carbohydrates out of the diet called “ketosis” which means the body starts burning other things for energy, mostly fats. This is the heart of Atkins because as the body turns to fats to compensate for the lack of carbohydrates to burn, not only does weight loss occur but visible fat disappears.
In addition to eating changes, when we become “Atkins people” there is the behavioral change of no longer being timid about asking for what we need when we eat out. An Atkins dieter must learn to be strong at restaurants and make sure the server brings things that fit the diet plan. So if you are in a burger joint, you can have the meat and the fixings but the bun has to stay in the kitchen. Other sacrifices that must go from our restaurant choices are french fries as well as pasta, potatoes and any food group that is high in sugar that will reverse the changes we are looking for in the way our metabolisms work.
People who know the secret of how to be successful using Atkins are not embarrassed to make unusual requests in a restaurant. But by being courageous and outspoken that you are on Atkins and proud of it, you lay the groundwork for success. Because just like in anything else in life, to be a success you have to put out the effort and put up with the sacrifices.
There is a lot to know about Atkins that we cannot cover here so be proactive and get a book or two so you can learn more details of how this plan really works day by day. A good Atkins book will show you some workable tips and insider tricks on how to be an Atkins success story and still enjoy the foods you love. And once you start networking with other Atkins disciplines, you will get lot of recipes from other dieters and from great web sites that spring up all the time with new ways to lose weight the low carb way.
The statistics don’t lie that Atkins is a workable program that has been a huge success for a lot of different kinds of people. You should expect a transition period as you move out of a lifestyle of eating carbs and become used to the Atkins system. But that minor discomfort is certainly worth the big results you can effect if you can get on the Atkins diet and stick with it.
Filed under: Health & Fitness