im thinking of trying the atkins diet, was wondering if anyone knew exactly what you can eat?

Try http://www.atkins.com/articles/atkins-phases

er, don't do it!!!

there's a thread about it already ;)

I'll find it for you

My sister does it every now and again, she loses about 1 stone in 6 weeks.

http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=54190

and puts it all back on again Nick?

The sports nutrition expert I know says this diet reduces your ability to store water, so you aren't losing fat, you're losing water.

This would explain why the people I know who've tried it look as though they have aged ten years along the way, as they are far more wrinkled and dried out from dehydration

thanks for the help, ill check those out:thumbsup:

its not the safest way to diet, it cuts out your carbs, which forces your body to use fat as an energy source, then when you will lose weight, if not controlled properly once your body has depleted all of its fat stores, it will use protien as a energy source, that basicaly means ur body will break down its own muscles.

it used correctly it an ok diet, not safe but ok
but its very tempting to stick to a diet that works, then it becomes dangerous

in my opinion, you should never completly cut carbs out of your normal diet, its to dangerous

you can however take some good idea's from the diet tho namely managing your carb and sugar intake to be significantly less then what your exerting if you are working out.

I did the Atkins diet when I was at my peak of lardiness, I was a 38" waist and weighed 15stone. I did the atkins and lost alot of weight in a short space of time however it left me quite weak and dizzy one a couple of occassions.

If you have alot of excess fat, then you DO want to be using it as an energy store in order to rid yourself of it, but do not crash diet like the atkins book tell you to do, it effected me very badly.

Its so easy to have an opinion on this without reading the book. Medical opinions seem divided.

3 years ago i read the book cover to cover and decided i'd like to try it. I dropped from 15 and half stone to 12 and a half stone in under a year - at a comfortable and stable rate of weight loss and experienced no unpleasant effects.

Since then, I have continued to manage my carb intake according to the books "lifetime maintenance" plan and the weight has stayed off - i feel healthier and more confident than i ever did before.

Good luck.

Check out the glyecmic index – not all carbs are bad…

http://www.glycemicindex.com/

its not the safest way to diet, it cuts out your carbs, which forces your body to use fat as an energy source, then when you will lose weight, if not controlled properly once your body has depleted all of its fat stores, it will use protien as a energy source, that basicaly means ur body will break down its own muscles.

it used correctly it an ok diet, not safe but ok
but its very tempting to stick to a diet that works, then it becomes dangerous

in my opinion, you should never completly cut carbs out of your normal diet, its to dangerous

you know your stuff. it sometimes annoys me when you see people posting crap thinking they know more about a diet. It annoys my fella too who is a qualified nutritionist, and uses this method to lose weight himself as he also does bodybuilding.

Diet is only 1 aspect of losing weight however. Exercise is also very important.

If your trying to lose weight...its Cardiovascular all the way...Running/Walking/Sports are good but in my opinion Swimming is the best if you can swim. I wouldn't advise stacking the weights and pumping it 10 times and then stuffing your face with creatine (like alot of blokes in my gym do!).

Diet is only 1 aspect of losing weight however. Exercise is also very important.

If your trying to lose weight...its Cardiovascular all the way...Running/Walking/Sports are good but in my opinion Swimming is the best if you can swim. I wouldn't advise stacking the weights and pumping it 10 times and then stuffing your face with creatine (like alot of blokes in my gym do!).

the more muscle you have, the more fat you burn, you need to have a balance of weight training AND cv. :loopy:

I used atkins for a few months, lost a stone or so, stopped and put on around two stone, and I know others who have had the same experience. I have been doing weightwatchers since last august and have now lost three stone. The weightwatchers plan fits in more easily with day to day existence and has worked better for me - might not be everybody's experience though

the more muscle you have, the more fat you burn, you need to have a balance of weight training AND cv. :loopy:

I completely agree, but if someone is quite lardy and wants to lose weight safely and maintain a good metabolic and heart rate then CV is important, with light weight exercises to extend that to reach your desired weight.

I really wish that people would not go on these stupid diets!!!!! Its simple, all you need to do is eat healthy food: potatoes, fish, veg,rice etc. and do a spot of exercise every now and again!!! just join a yoga class or something & walk places! its actually quite fun! xxx

Leave the Atkins well alone. Its a mad one. Dr atkins was 18 stone+ when he kicked the bucket/hit the pavement!

Simple fact. The body needs carbs to function properly.

a safer bet is the GI - BBC website has decent links to it - which shouldnt produce weight loss so dramatically, time-wise, but should get the weight off and help keep it off long-term.

My thoughts are to aim to get the weight off slowly, as its more likely to stay off that way. Aim to lose a pound a week. Cutting 250 calories out of you everyday diet (this is approx 1 choccy bar or 1 can of pop), and burning off 250 extra calories per day (10 - 15 minutes on a treadmill does this for me) should start you off well enough

did it for 10 days, sucks donkey balls and is exactly what your breath will taste and smell like! forget it and go do some excercise! ;)

hi you might want to take a look at www.low-carbdiet.co.uk i lost three stone with the help of these lovely people on the forum who i believe are more genuine than weight watchers and its free!

Not read all post so sorry if someone has put similar. The atkins diet does cut out all your carbs and you do need some.

When i diet i try to reduce carbs and never eat them after 5pm so sometimes for my tea i have just meat and veg.

Try this for a week and you will have lost 5lb at least for a jump start.

Breakfast: Cereal OR 2 slices of toast

Dinner: Salad with a filling (chicken, tuna etc not cheese) and a yogurt

Mid afternoon: Piece of Fruit OR 1 rich tea biscuit

Tea: Tin of Soup (any kind as most aren't over 300cal) and a piece of fruit

Good luck in losing the weight.

The thing about Atkins is that it is a long-term plan. As a fad diet it will not work.

The idea is that you cut out carbs (a process which has bad side effects like bad breath, and is also expensive), then build them back into your diet at a level your body can deal with while dropping down to your ideal weight and maintaining it. GI index can be used in conjunction withthis approach so that you get the most out of your carb intake.

My brother in law's dad used this approach and now controls his weight very easily - but Atkins is for the long-term only.

I'm very sceptical that any fad (by which I mean short-term) diets work. To change your weight you need to change your lifestyle - for good - and get the right balance of food and exersise.

This is why the weightwatchers plan works well. Depending on how you work it, it allows you to anything you like, but you have a daily points allowance. This means you can eat 3 square meals a day, but make good choices about food type and portion sizes. It also helps you see the consequences of your choices. The points are based on a simple formula calculated by the energy (calories) and saturated fats. It also takes into account exersise.

All in all, losing weight is pretty simple (in theory). Every day you take in energy from food and drink. Every day you burn energy working your body - particularly while exersising. If there is energy left, the body will store it as fat. If it needs more energy than it has, it will take fat and burn it. So, if you expend more energy than you take in, you will lose weight. Simple! The difficult bit is fitting that into your lifestyle.

Good luck with it, whatever you choose to do.

go to the gym!!!! then you can still eat what ever you want easy as that. no diets just aren't good for you, you need carbs, meats etc.. get off your ass lol

go to the gym!!!! then you can still eat what ever you want easy as that. no diets just aren't good for you, you need carbs, meats etc.. get off your ass lol

It takes the average person around an hour of medium intensity aerobic exercise to work off a standard sized mars bar. To suggest someone can eat "whatever you want" and simply "go to the gym" is either pre-supposing an entire life spent in vest and shorts, or quite dumb.

It takes the average person around an hour of medium intensity aerobic exercise to work off a standard sized mars bar. To suggest someone can eat "whatever you want" and simply "go to the gym" is either pre-supposing an entire life spent in vest and shorts, or quite dumb.

Definately! A biscuit alone on average is around 150-200 calories, now on a treadmill that calculates at around 15 minutes running to take off (although I understand those readings aren't entirely accurate).

The key to losing body fat is quite simple, exert more calories then your taking in...however social habits are the hardest to shake for most peopl.