Sorry, can’t explain it, I can just experience it.
And it’s not at all unusual, you know. Look at all the skinny people that can eat like horses and stay slim anyway. It’s obvious they simply excrete the excess as opposed to storing it. Look at the people who starve themselves and stay chubby anyway. A calorie is a calorie is a calorie is simply not that simple.
Look, Stoid, I like you. I really do. I am not trying to attack your personal favorite diet. I am not denying that SenorBeef and many, many others have happily lost weight following Atkins.
I am not attacking Atkins, OK?
But please don’t assume that this is the best and only diet for everybody on the planet. I have had 3 friends (not including myself) who tried it and didn’t like it, and maybe 4-5 folks I know who tried it and were happy. I am not suggeesting that Atkins stinks because it didn’t work for a few folks…
But NO DIET IS PERFECT FOR EVERYBODY. I have different health issues than some other people, right? Do I need a cite for that? If Atkins works for you, wonderful!! Enjoy your bacon and your swimsuit! Great! I only suggested why I suspected it worked for my sister, and several others, and why those factors did not come into play for me. I followed induction to the letter, peed on the Ketostix and got the correct color, did it all…but I ate quite a bit and did not lose. My pal Kim did the same thing, and did not lose. My sister ate less (although plenty) and did lose. She says she is eating more, but I can see her leaving food on her plate! She never ever ever did that before… And SenorBeef is doing the same thing…he swears he is eating more, but I’ll bet he never realized how much he was eating/snacking before. I am NOT suggesting that you folks are lying. Really. But I’ll bet you can’t eat 5000 calories a day on Atkins and lose. Maybe you can eat 2400 and lose, rather than 1800 on a different plan, but you can’t go overboard every day or it will not work. Dr. Atkins even says so in his book, something like “eat only when you’re hungry,” which to me says that even he knows that there is a limit to what you can eat and still lose weight.
The study you mentioned in the OP did not (IIRC) suggest that one can eat as much as they want of anything they like (Atkins-approved) and lose weight. I believe the study was about blood pressure and cholesterol levels on Atkins. So why are we arguing? I’m a liberal, for pete’s sake! We should be pals!!
-Theobroma
I’m sorry, I wasn’t spoiling for a fight with you. I said I accepted that it didn’t work for you, you just said originally that it didn’t work for anyone you knew. I think…I didn’t go back and check.
And the one thing I have not talked about is appetite: yes, absolutely, a high-protein, high fat diet definitely leaves you satisfied sooner than a high-carb diet. Several reasons, not least being palate fatigue.
I’m fine withthe fact that some people don’t like it and it doesn’t work for everyone. And I never claimed that we could stuff ourselves and get thin. I’m just fed up with people who deny the fact this diet works for reasons OTHER than calorie restriction. It’s annoying (not talking about you) to be told that you don’t know what you are really eating, you don’t understand what’s happening in your own body, you must be doing x, y, z. Some of these posts really start to feel alot like people are telling us low-carbers that we are too stupid to know what the hell is going on in our own lives, and that’s pretty rude, actually.
But we can be pals. I’m always happy to find a fellow traveler on the liberal road. (didja see Al Gore on Charlie Rose? he’s getting more and more direct and specific in every interview, it’s cool…)
Well…OK. I’m not mad anymore.
I think folks don’t count calories on Atkins because they don’t have to, and don’t count calories pre-Atkins because they aren’t dieting. My pals who DID like Atkins said that they were eating more than on any other diet ON WHICH THEY LOST WEIGHT. My brother-in-law saw his blood pressure drop, too. (Which is in agreement with the study quoted in the OP)
Personally, I agree with you there, too. When thousands of people lose weight on any plan (WW, Zone, Atkins, Deal-A-Meal, or anything else) it’s kind of silly to deny that it works for them. I mean, c’mon! They can’t all be lying or delusional! Most weight-loss people are pretty fixated on their intake, not necessarily in denial…especially the ones who are successfully getting thinner.
Interestingly, my sister was afraid that I would give her grief for going on Atkins because I am a pharmacist, and would assume that it was dangerous and awful. Atkins takes a very defensive posture, and he gets attacked an awful lot, but really! She should give me a bit of credit for independent thought… And I think that doing these studies is a great start in understanding how the body processes food. I am no fan of the nutritional gods who proclaim that all people in the USA, no matter their medical state, should cut down on salt and eat oat bran and avoid eating cholesterol.
Sorry I missed Gore!
RTFirefly, Waistwatcher sodas are splenda sweetened. I especially like the orange flavor because splenda lends a sort of creamy taste to most things you use it in, and it makes the soda taste like a creamsicle. I recommend that you buy it in the cans, though, because the 2 liters go flat quicker than name brand sodas do IME.
In March I was diagnosed diabetic and I immediately started a consistent carbohydrate diet - not quite the same as the Atkins diet, but aggressively limiting my carbs to about 130 grams a day, but otherwise not counting the fat or calories that I ate. I’ve lost 75 lbs., and I feel really great.
My diabetes is diet-controlled, and after a couple of months I didn’t have the carb cravings that I used to have. If I wasn’t diabetic, I would probably eat less than I do now, since I often eat when I’m not really hungry to bring my blood sugar back on track.
Oh god, after a couple of months? I crave carbs so bad it is hell if I don’t eat something once a day. Total. Carb. Junkie.
Yeah, it took a couple of months. But I don’t have the cravings at all any more. I don’t know that I would have tried any sort of carb limiting diet if it was not made necessary by a medical problem. If I had, I doubt I would have stuck to it. Since I had to, I’m much happier and healthier than I was last year.
Being a smoker, carbs and nicotene withdrawl feel very similar to me, honest. But when I say carbs, somehow sugar doesn’t apply. It is the cereal-y goodness of crackers, breads, cookies, etc. A Pepsi won’t work.
Frankly, I don’t care much for sugar at all. But bread… oh god… [drool]
My .2 cents. Im 6-4 and was almost 280 3 years ago.I had never dieted before and had to realize 2 basic concepts about myself. Number one im a big guy and not the type that can eat a 4 ounce serving of ANYTHING. And # 2 lets face it im a lazy fuck who wont ever ever ever exercise. With these two issues as a given in my life i still looked for something that i could deal with and still lose weight. No way right? Well i started the Atkins diet and 6 months later had lost 40 lbs and 2 months after that lost an additional 20 lbs, i got down to as low as 212 almost 18 months later until i started cheating and have since gained about 20 lbs back but am still in the 240s range. I drank alot of diet soda and ate the atkins carb bars for my dessert substitute. I ate pork rinds instead of potato chips. I mean im a guy that can eat 2 TRIPLE wendys cheeseburgers<1.5 lbs of beef> for lunch. I just take off the bun. I can and do, sit down and eat an entire meatloaf by myself for dinner. I ve never noticed any energy level changes as i always had enough before and still do. One thing if you DO cheat you get this wicked carb hunger and you just stuff yourself with them and i found that it takes about 3 days of NO carbs to make up for the losses of 1 day of cheating. So it comes off really fast but once you go of off it comes BACK real fast. So Atkins doesnt call this a diet per se but more of a lifestyle change. I also find it ironic that many posters fall back line was always consult your physician or nutritionist before taking up any diet etc. and the nutritionists that i always used to talk to were agast at the notion of consuming so many fats. Im glad this thinking is slowly being turned. around now. YMMV
Don’t panic: different people react differently. For me it only took 48 hours.
I’ve never been big on sugary stuff, either. I can take or leave chocolate or cake. It was bread, potatoes, rice and especially croutons (my favorite snack food, and great in soup or salad) that were the hardest to stop.
I agree with Stoid. I’m an obese female, 43 years old, and have failed at every diet I’ve ever tried. I’ve been doing very well on Atkin’s. I no longer attack pastries, muffins, danish, etc. as though the earth will stop if I don’t have them. For about 3 days, I have withdrawal symptoms from severely limiting simple carbs. After that, my headache goes away, I can think clearly and my mood lifts. Even if I wasn’t losing weight, I would still follow this eating plan. I read his book thoroughly and I eat more salads and dark leafy green vegetables in one day than I used to eat in a week of giving up. And I’m losing weight at around 5 pounds a week, which is not water weight. I’m fitting into some clothes I haven’t been able to wear for years. I just make sure to drink large amounts of water, eat fiber, and take a multi-vitamin pill.
All this publicity stems from a study that was paid for by Atkins. Do you think there are honest results? Why don’t you go to http://www.vegsource.com 's home page and read the article “Big Fat Lies”? It tells the truth of how this research was done.
Note: The study participants on the Atkins plan took fish oil supplements, but the low fat eaters didn’t. This COMPLETELY alters the test results and isn’t fair. Also, what exactly were the low fat people eating? Was it a junk low fat diet or a low fat, whole foods diet like Dr. Barnard and Dr. McDougall advocate? That makes a HUGE difference. A lowish fat diet that is full of crappy dairy products and turkey isn’t going to make you healthy.
I am a size 2, happy strict vegetarian. I eat carbos and they don’t make me fat. Now, that’s not bragging, I’m just trying to get the point across that carbos do not make you fat.
Many years ago I fell for Atkins’ ideas and had horrid consequences from his plan. I had to quit it within 3 weeks. Some of what I experienced were: horrible body odor and bad breath, dizziness, weakness, loss of muscle tissue in my legs, severe chest/heart pains, low blood sugar attacks, weird heat flashes, kidney pain, etc. etc. None of these got better until I went to a McDougall style of eating. These things were serious and I thought I was going to die of a heart attack at one point the heart pains and palpitations were so bad.
Also, something that most people don’t point out is that although it’s great to be slim, what about what you are doing to the planet and animals by chowing down on as much beef as possible? And, what about the unseen damage that’s happening to your body from eating high acid food (osteoporosis)? Think about more than the size of your butts please!
In truth & light,
Atheria
I forgot to add that your brain needs sugar to function. It feeds off of carboydrates/glucose. It is very important for you to get natural sugars.
And, there are legitimate problems with SOME grains for SOME people. Many people are allergic to glutens and/or wheat. Just eliminating wheat makes many people feel much better. There is no point in throwing out the baby with the bathwater.
In light,
Atheria
Carbs may not make you fat, but they certainly make *me * fat. Don’t assume everyone is like you. If you’d said “carbs do not make everyone fat” I would agree.
…and “vegsource.com” doesn’t have an agenda…? That article starts badly, because it describes a “high fat” diet; Atkins is a “low carb” diet. It just doesn’t proscribe fats. Furthermore the claims that it raises cholestorol are bunkum; this is borne out by research. The entire article is as biased as any pro-Atkins article. There just isn’t enough research to prove anything either way.
Look, it might not work for you, but it works for many people, as evidenced by this thread. Furthermore, carbs may not make you fat, but I believe they contributed to my fatness before I “fell for” Atkins.
Re. the planet - yes, I think you have a point about unbridled beef production. Which is one of the reasons I chow down on fish, little baby lambs, and chicken, and have beef about once a month.
Sez who? I was carb free for about 2 months and felt more acute than normal.
In indecision and flourescence,
jjimm
Two people I know, an Uncle and a friends, have tried the Atkins diet. After about three or four months, both lost a little weight, and acquired many, many hemorrhoids.
There’s no fiber in meat, cheese, milk or eggs. This is bad.
Haven’t there been numberous other threads about the Aktins’ diet? I thought everyone decided it was bad because it tricks your body into thinking it’s starving. The results are quick weight loss, yet the process is terribly stressful for your body, especially your heart.
If this diet works for you, great. Just please be aware that any diet should be used as a catalyst to shift your eating habits into a healthier lane. You can’t live on the Atkins diet forever.
And, yes, if you’re trying to lose weight, regular exercise is more effective than any diet. Cheaper, too.
But, I do agree with Atheria. Vegetarians are, on averagem 20 pounds lighter than omnivores. (20 pounds may not seem like a lot, until you buy 20 pounds of butter and see how much of your refridgerator it takes up.)
Good luck with your respective diets!
TGD
Sorry screwed that quote up the last sentence is mine starting with" Vegetarians are on avg 20lbs lighter?"
Sounds like somebody has a problem with cause and effect, if the cat falls off the table a second before thunder booms, does that mean the cat falling caused the thunder? IOW, did the doctor that treated the problem say the diet is what caused it?
This tells me you don’t know the diet well. Atkins diet does not disallow fiberous vegetables at all. There is also fiber suppliments. AFAIK milk is not allowed on an Atkins diet, the lactose, which is a sugar, is not a good thing for this diet. Cheese of course has no lactose. (none of the cheeses I have anyhow)
If it tricked your body into thinking it was starving, your body would start storing food, and GAIN weight.
A low carb diet is not bad for your heart, diabetics do just fine on them, and usually have to stay on them for the rest of their lives. If anything, switching to a low carb diet helps prevent heart disease and lowers blood pressure. This link talks basically about low carb diets and the benifits. (basically about insulin)
It is 4 pages long, but well worth the read.