Atkins - is it for real?

[lisalisa]

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I did atkins for a quick weight loss. Lost about 9 lbs in 3 weeks, but have to say i put it all back on and more once i stopped it. Have heard this from lots of people so just giving you a warning.

I am doing slimming world now and am much happier as it is more balanced. You are complaining about being limited on cheese and oil with SW but on Atkins there are so many more things you will have to do without. More than anything I missed fruit.

Hello - I did it for 2 weeks and by the Saturday of both weeks I had to have a little bit of carbs. as I felt so ill. Lost about 8 pounds and went onto weight watchers after and have lost a stone. 1.5 stone to go. I wouldn't do Atkins again to be honest. Dreadful salty taste all the time and the feeling of being really thick headed and unhealthy generally. Good as a kick start though if you can stomach it. Haven't had any eggs since - Sick of them!

lisalisa did you start it yet ???

I would like to do Atkins as now only have half a stone to lose and can't motivate myself to do it any other way. The thing that puts me off trying is that you can't have milk (is that right?) so no cup of tea in the morning. Could manage without tea and coffee in the day but not my morning cuppa. Is there a way round that one girls? TIA.

Atkins works - I didn't thinkit would as it turns everything you've ever learned about dieting on its head. After the first day or two I found it easy - but by the end of 2 weeks had had enough.

I had no bad breath
No wind
No constipation (drank loads of water)
lost 10lbs in 2 weeks

but contrary to popular belief had NO energy (maybe this was because I didn't have that much to lose)!

I'd say its good to kick start your diet but I wouldn't stay on it for too long

cellulitequeen - we have skimmed milk at home and I still had it in my tea - still lost the weight. Beware 'carbohydrate free' drinks as they contain aspartamane and this can prevent weight loss.

Just for the record:

My dad has type 2 diabetes. Started using insulin in 2002 after a quadruple bypass. Since then he had started putting on weight. In the end he put on over 2 stone, which is not good when your diabetic. My dad was recommended a diet by his cousin (who is also diebetic) which apparantly came from the american diabetic society. He checked with his dietician who said it was OK for him to go on it.

Basically he has no carbs during the day, but then eats a normal balanced meal in the evening. He has lost 21 lb in 10 weeks, which is a nice steady weight loss. He has cut his insulin by half and is feeling great.

I have been on the Atkins diet before and personally found Atkins worked really well for me. I have defintiely changed my eating habits because of it and eat far less carbs than I did before and far less refined food stuffs.

The only problem for me is not being able to drink .

BR

Thanks for that J2 and BR. I only intend to do it for a couple of weeks anyway. Can you drink normal diet drinks if doing the 2 weeks induction and can't you have a little bit of alcohol i.e. gin and slimline tonic, no wine obviously.

I lost weight very quickly on Atkins & found it easy, didn't feel ill, did it for about a month I think. DH didn't approve. I got 'food doctor diet' which is much healthier in the long term. There is an initial week-long diet with it & I lost at least 2 llb a day on it. Didn't feel too good though, but felt great about loosing all that weight. May try it again, but gonna try Atkins first, as it appeals to the pig in me.

Yes, it really did work for me. I lost 10lbs in 2 weeks, and 1.5st overall, which I did not put back on. Had loads of energy and for the first time ever was honestly never, ever hungry despite the fact that I was eating less than I ever had!

But, couldnt stay on it for too long - started heaving at the sight of yet another bacon rasher or boiled egg. But it is great for a quick weight loss, and as a boost to get you diet going. I should really do it again to get me out of this dieting rut I am in!

I need to lose about 2 stone by xmas, have done slimming world before, but soo bored of it. Going to try atkins, does it make a lot of difference if i do a lot of exercise, and what effect does it have if I drink alchol? I could just have vodka and diet coke, but i'm not sure how much this would slow the weight loss down?? How quickly did people lose weight on atkins if they did it seriously??

Sorry I haven't read the rest of this thread so apologies if I'm repeating what others have said but Yes it is for real it does work and you'll lose weight really quickly BUT when you stop it may well all come back on again (and more). I used it 4 years ago and lost nearly two stone for my wedding but when I started eating normally again - and I mean normally - well balanced healthy stuff not chocolate pies and cakes I put on more than I'd lost - I do think it does strange things to your metabolism. I ve just lost a stone (post baby weight) in about 10 weeks quite painlessly by cutting down on bread and potatoes and lowering starch in the evenings - feels much more sustainable than total atkins.

Oh yeah just thought I'd mention - creamed cauliflower is really yummy and a perfectly acceptable lower carb substitute for mashed potato on fish pie/shepherds pie etc

I had a flatmate who was on Atkins, he lost tons of weight but felt like crap. Headaches and no energy. He gave up after a month and put all the weight back on so I'm not convinced. And I can't believe that eating a load of fat can be good for you.

So do you think that if i lost most the weight i wanted to (on atkins) then switched back to slimming world that would work? I wouldn't eat white bread anyway, but does brown bread have such a bad effect on your weight as well??

I felt ill on it, almost like having a very bad hangover and after just three days, my DH said my mood swings were so bad, he begged me to come off of it. I'm now doing e-diets (which incidentally has the atkins as an option). You can access that through Tesco website.

This is my second day now of atkins, i've been really scrict, have felt a bit queasy, but have lsot about 4 lbs already! Also am starting the yogalaities dvd thats a mixture of yoga and pilatates, (not sure how its spelt though) does anyone know how long it takes to see results, i mainly want to lose my bingo wings on my arms, so i'm hoping this will do the trick!

Also does anyone know if you can have pepperamis on the induction stage of atkins??

I eat peperamis all the time on atkins

I started atkins in nov 2002 when i stopped bf my ds2. went from 12 st to 10st in less than 6months. went gym regular. weight exercises i got stronger and stronger, but the cardio did suffer at first, did the induction stage for several weeks gradually came off it but avoided eating bread for a long time, would feel awful if i ate bread too often anyway.

I started atkins again yesterday, to lose weight after stopping bf ds3.

the best thing about atkins is the appetite suppression it causes. I think part of this is because you aren't being told 'you've eaten your allowance, so starve!' there is always something to eat.

try macadamia nuts. lovely sainsbury's sell them

atkins type diet is the only one the ever works for me but i modify it - i eat all veg i want, have ground seeds and nuts with yoghurt every day to avoid constipation, all my life i have craved sugar and since being on it on and off over the last 3 years my sugar addiction has gone - i lost about 2 stone on it and kept it off - when not on it i am much more careful about how much carbs i eat - gone back on it now as want to loose another 2 or 3 stone - the key for me was not to follow the atkins dogma too closely and eat lots of veg except potatoes

fleurie - have you ever looked at South Beach? It's a bit like you describe, with low carbs, but lots of fruit and veg.

i have heard about it, but not bought the book as hoping - heard good reports about it though