Atkins...

[christine34]

Hi, having tried numerous diets, now turning my attention to Atkins..... here we go again... because I think I could stick to it (yeah right, I hear my brain go...) because it isn't so restrictive.

Has anyone ever tried it? My only worry is that I've heard and would imagine, that it's not so good for the arteries. Only plan to do it for around 6 months to hopefully get to target weight, then plan (plan being the operative word!) to just stick to 3 low calorie meals a day and exercise often....! Any advice appreciated.

Tried it for a week or so. Was very constipated and couldn't bear to eat the cream and butter recommended. Lots of people on here doing IPD (also called pig 2 twig) which is basically atkins. I think its very restrictive though as unlike a low calorie diet it completely cuts out whole food groups, like fruit and carbs. Some people really like it though.

Thanks, Forever, good to hear another view - have now officially started on first phase - will see how it goes!! thanks.

Am loving this carb-free diet! Have lost 4 lbs so far and am not suffering with headaches or bloating - seems to be working. Before when I've just cut down portion sizes and not tried to "snack", I have suffered terribly with headaches but so far so good with this! Will slowly re-introduce 20g of carbs into my diet in a week or two, but will still stay off pasta, potatoes, rice, bread for as long as it takes!!! I think seeing the weight come off is making it easier to stick to. Have a stone and a half still to lose now. Anyone else feeling better for less carbs? By the way, this is only a short-term measure to get to target weight, then plan to stick to healthy eating plan and exercise - have no plans to go "big" on carbs again, just have a small portion, i.e. 1 potato, handful of pasta etc.... only downside is drinking lots of water, I miss my cherry coke!!

I loved Atkins when I did it a few years ago and I lost loads of weight. I had a couple of check ups with my GP during this time (for another health issue) and my blood pressure, cholesterol levels were perfect so he told me to carry on with the diet despite the high fat content. I didn't suffer constiptation or headaches or even bad breath. I love meat so that really helped.

But it wasn't sustainable for me because I socialised a lot and found it difficult to reduce my carbs - so many temptations so once off Atkins it all piled back on again.

Now the weight is coming off again because I'm eating sensibly and eating less. I'm eating everything (no restrictions at all) but eating less because I'm simply reading my hunger/fullness signals better, with the help of Paul McKenna's eating principles. Much easier eating plan for me as I can eat carbs, fruit, meat, sugar, everything.

Good luck with Atkins, but be mindful of carb creep in the long term.

Thanks for your post, Bssh...;. made for interesting reading. Glad you're getting on well now.... I think your plan now sounds great - I think the key is definitely just to cut down on carbs (but not cut them out) and just eat less - I'm afraid before I just ate for the sake of it - I could actually feel my stomach crying out for mercy as I stuffed in every bit on my plate, even though I was clearly full! (I feel quite disgusted at myself now)! Good luck for the future.