The Atkins Diet
Introduction
With so much press and so many rumors, the Atkins Diet is already in question
around the country. People seem to think they know all about this protein-based
diet, and often the word “Atkins” strikes a dissonant chord in the mind because of
its limited food choices. However, the Atkins Diet is not just about getting rid of
sweets and breads (although it does encourage getting rid of these foods at first).
It is a lifelong habit-forming diet that is designed to first create a deficit of energyproducing foods so that you can lose weight, and then eventually the diet helps
you create a balance of carbohydrates that your body can handle without storing
everything as excess fat. We will further research this diet to point out its
advantages and disadvantages so that consumers can see if this diet is truly for
them.
Ingredients
The Atkins Nutritional Approach consists of four different phases: Induction,
Ongoing Weight Loss, Pre-Maintenance, and Lifetime Maintenance. These four
phases focus on different aspects of the diet, and each one presents its own
series of steps that help the dieter accomplish his or her goals.
Faze One, Induction, jump-starts the fat burning process by eliminating almost all
the carbohydrates from your diet. By doing so, the body is forced to use fat for
energy. This phase is only 14 days long, and you should see results within those
first two weeks. While you do not have to start on Phase One, it is suggested to
do so in order to maximize immediate results. There is a list of acceptable foods
to follow, including several sources of protein and a few sources for
carbohydrates and fiber (mostly salad and leafy greens). Energy may be lower
during the first couple of days, and you may feel hungry until the fat burning
process kicks in (about 48 hours). The first phase also has a strict set of rules
that must be followed in order to actually work.
Phase Two, Ongoing Weight Loss (OWL), is based on slower and steadier
weight loss utilizing a wider range of acceptable foods, including nutrient-rich
carbohydrates. These foods will help establish a fat-burning system in the body
while still maintaining that lower carbohydrate balance in order to boost weight
loss. This is the phase that any dieter can start on if they want to see more
gradual results instead of boosting their results with the strict Phase One rules
and food choices. Consumers are to stick with OWL until they are within 5 to 10
pounds of their weight loss goal.
Phase Three, the Pre-Maintenance Phase, is intended to help you get set for
lifelong eating habits. While Phase Two slowly increases carbohydrate intake by
5 gram increments, Phase Three encourages increases of 10 gram increments
as long as weight is still being lost. Ideally, weight loss should be less than a
pound per week. Essentially, you are inching towards your final goal while finding
the balance that works best for your body in terms of healthy carbohydrate
intake.
Phase Four is called Lifetime Maintenance because it is the stage at which you
have reach equilibrium—you are making food choices that help you maintain
your ideal weight. These choices do include carbohydrates, but they do so in a
much more appropriate way—complex carbohydrates are chosen instead of
simple sugars, resulting in better maintenance.
The idea, then, behind Atkins is that eventually the dieter will be able to maintain
their health goals without assistance from a book or site. The first three phases
do require some direction, but Phase Four is the lifelong phase in which you are
able to maintain your own dieting.
Cost
All the resources necessary for the Atkins Nutritional Approach are available
online at Atkins.com—completely free of charge. If you wish, you can purchase
Atkins Advantage products such as energy bars and shakes, but they are not a
necessity. The cost of food is the only concern, and since you are not buying any
special foods or products, you are simply required to buy appropriate groceries in
order to use this plan. With no cost to the dieter, this plan is an excellent way to
lose weight through proper food choices rather than stimulants and mood-altering
ingredients, as many other products suggest.
Website
The Atkins website, Atkins.com, is well designed and very well maintained. There
is more than enough information available for successful dieting, and it even
includes a shop for its related products. The website, though, lacks basic
functionality in its navigation, leaving the visitor to rely heavily on the Back
button. We would prefer a universal menu and consequent universal submenus
for each section. For example, when looking at the different phases, it would be
nice to have a Phase menu at the top or bottom of each page so that we can
quickly navigate from phase to phase. Otherwise, the site is in excellent condition
and provides more than enough support for any dieter new to the Atkins system
as well as dieters familiar with the system.
Positives
Encourages smart food choices to reduce weight.
Does not use stimulants or artificial mood enhancers to encourage weight loss.
Discourages sugar and simple carbohydrate intake in order to maximize fat
burning in the body.
Works towards lifelong results—not immediate and short-term results.
Negatives
Food choices at first are extremely limited.
Diet plan only works if the first rules are followed exactly.
Conclusion
With no additional cost and a wealth of online resources, the Atkins Diet is a
great option for dieters who have a sense of commitment for their dieting plans.
The simple diet bases its success on limiting carbohydrates to the bare
necessities so that our bodies eliminate stored fat before using new
carbohydrates as energy. While the rules are strict at first, eventually the plan
aims at finding an equilibrium between carbohydrates and proteins, producing
positive effects on weight maintenance. The goal is not to simply eat as much
protein and as little carbohydrates as possible—it is to create a balance between
the two that best suits your own body and metabolism. With this balance, weight
can be maintained easily, and by shifting the balance slightly towards proteins,
weight can be lost easily and steadily. The Atkins Diet is simply a smart choice
when followed correctly.