How Much Weight Will Be Lost On The Atkins Diet?
Like most people who are going on a diet, your first goal is weight loss. The basic answer to that question is “as much as you want.” But there are many things behind that answer that affect the results for each person. Because of this, every person will have somewhat different results.
First of all, there are multiple phases to the Atkins diet and each phase has different rates of weight loss.
During the induction phase, you will lose weight much faster than in the rest of the diet. Because of the severe limit on net carbs, your body will burn stored fat at a much higher rate than normal.
The Atkins diet book says that you can expect to lose between 6 and 15 pounds during this first two weeks of the diet.
After the first two weeks, the rate of weight loss slows down a bit over time. In the ongoing weight loss (OWL) phase you add carbs to your daily diet until your weight loss slows to a more modest 1-2 pounds per week. Some weeks may be a little lower and some weeks a little higher, but if you stick to the plan as published you should see a nice, steady and healthy loss rate.
Once you are within 5 to 10 pounds of your goal weight you switch to the pre-maintenance phase, and your weight loss rate will drop again. During this phase, you are experimenting to find the carb level that will help you maintain your current weight, so there will be a time when you may feel like you are barely losing any weight, but if you follow the plan you should lose around 1 pound a week.
So, to lose significant amounts of weight, over 50 pounds, should you stay on the induction phase longer than the 2 weeks? The answer is no. Staying on that phase too long can be unhealthy, and it is not intended as a long term plan for losing significant amounts of weight.
You can lose all the weight you want on the Atkins diet, it just may take some time to lose a lot. Of course, that is true of any healthy weight loss plan.
Diet alone will sometimes result in slower weight loss, or even a plateau where you lose no weight. To maximize your results, exercise should be combined with diet. This will help increase both the total amount of weight you lose and the rate at which you lose it.
How much total weight you lose depends on how well you follow the plan and how long you stay in each phase. Some people report losses of 100 pounds or more. Those results may be atypical, but there are many people that report losses of 25 to 35 pounds. The Atkins diet has been shown to be an effective way to lose as much weight as desired for people who follow the plan over time.
