Feb

4

Atkins Diet Foods – A Guide To Low Carb Food Products

Filed Under Atkins, Diets, Low carb foods, Main Content, Weight Loss | Leave a Comment

Atkins diet foods are many and varied, so much so that many people are surprised at just how many different kinds of foods are allowed on the Atkins diet food plan. You still have the responsibility to select appropriately and double check the actual carb content of different foods, but you will quickly learn just how varied and interesting a low-carb lifestyle can be.

The Basics of the Atkins Diet Plan

The basic philosophy behind the Atkins diet plan is that if you switch to a low carb diet your body’s metabolism will adjust and start to burn stores of fat. The process starts during the induction phase when you change your eating habits substantially so that you only consume 20 grams of net carbohydrates per day. Net carbs are determined by taking the total grams of carbs in a food and subtracting the amount of fiber grams.

Once you are past the 14 day induction phase you then start to increase your daily net carb intake a little bit each week – starting at 25 grams per day, then the next week going to 30 grams per day, and so forth. As you raise your intake gradually, you pay attention to how much weight you continue to lose, until you find a level at which weight loss slows significantly or stops altogether. When you get close to your goal weight, you move into pre-maintenance and maintenance phases so that low carb choices become part of your everyday lifestyle.

Defining Low Carb Foods

Low carb foods are those that have low enough levels of carbohydrates that they are considered Atkins diet foods. In general, meats, poultry, fish, leafy green vegetables, eggs and butter form the core assortment of your low carb food choices. Some cheeses and other dairy products are relatively low carb but typically are not allowed in huge quantities while on the Atkins low carb diet plan.

Remember, though, a food which is high in carbs but also high in fiber can be eaten as part of a low carb lifestyle because the goal is to keep net carbs low, not just carbs as a whole. Make sure you read the labels of the foods you buy to determine the net carbs, and consider carrying a pocket sized carb counter with you to double check the net carb counts in fresh foods.

As the Atkins diet plan exploded in popularity over the last few years, many food producers have tried to get in on the phenomenon by promoting their products as low carb. The problem is, though, that many of these foods are not really low carb. With the exceptions of certified Atkins diet foods, you should never just believe the large print on the front that says low carb. Always, always read the nutrition label and confirm for yourself whether or not the food is really low carb.

Finding Low Carb Foods

Finding low carb foods is as easy as going to the grocery store, dropping into the convenience store located at your neighborhood gas station, or going to your favorite restaurant. Of course, some places will have a better selection of Atkins diet foods than others will, and some will also have more high carb temptations, but there is no reason for you to visit a specialty store in order to get the low carb foods you need.

Atkins Diet Foods from the Grocery Store

In the grocery store you have a huge selection of foods, ranging from fresh to processed, all of which you can check for net carb count. Processed foods will have nutrition information printed on the outside box or label, making it easy to determine net carbs. Fresh foods are a bit more difficult because that information is not printed on the food item and usually not on the shelf label. You can certainly remember a few core fresh foods that are allowable, but a really good tool is to carry a carb counter in your purse or pocket so that you can check it if you have any questions.

Convenience Store

In a convenience store, you have to search a bit more for the low carb Atkins diet plan foods. The big display of chips, candy, cookies and more is not a place you are likely find low carb choices, but if you go a little further in you can usually find official Atkins snack bars, liquid shakes or even some fresh foods that are low carb.

Restaurants

Restaurants can be a bit tricky because you do not always know what is in that great tasting gravy or sauce, but most eating establishments now offer designated low carb choices. If in doubt, order your meal without sauces and other add-ons that may have hidden carbs.

When you find a restaurant that serves a good selection of low carb foods that you enjoy, be sure to give the manager or owner positive feedback and make that establishment a primary choice whenever you want to dine out.

Atkins Diet Plan Meals

Atkins diet foods are much more than individual foods. They can be combined in many ways to create tasty and interesting meals, but even the most dedicated low carb follower can get tired of the same old thing. The best way to keep your low carb meals interesting is to seek out a variety of Atkins diet plan meals.

There are many cookbooks and recipe books available that are filled with low carb meal choices using approved Atkins diet foods. All you have to do is mix and match each day or each week to keep a variety of meals on the table.

Another reason to have a good cookbook or recipe book on hand is for those times when you are tired, running late or otherwise need to come up with something low carb to eat when maybe you do not feel like putting a lot of effort into it. These are the times when you will be most tempted to grab something that is not low carb, so having a collection of Atkins diet food recipes close by can help get rid of that temptation.

About the Author: Kevin Urban is the editor at http://www.atkins-diet-advisor.com, an easy-to-use resource providing detailed information on the Atkins Diet Plan.

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Feb

4

Atkins Diet 101 -

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Who does not desire to have a fit and shaped up body? Perhaps we all do. Overweight is one of the biggest enemies of our health. But factors such as sedentary work, lack of time to exercise and the availability of delectable fast food have made it extremely difficult to have stabilized weight.

It is not only a person’s appearance that is badly affected by being overweight but also his fitness. Usually obese people keep on confronting one or the other health problem. There are times when excess of weight becomes a mental torture and leads to depression.

It is quite an easy task to gain weight but immensely difficult to reduce it. Though there are various remedies prescribed to shed weight, all can’t to followed or trusted. One old and quite effective way to become light is the use of Atkin’s Diet.

Dr. Robert Atkins (1930-2003) was the father of Atkin’s Diet. In 1972 he popularized the diet in his famous series of books. In practical application also the diet turned out to be quiet successful. Thus it became more and more popular with time.

Dr. Atkin believed that carbohydrate is the primary reason behind gaining weight. This is because carbohydrates are composed of energy providing items such as sugar, starch, cellulose and gums. So if a person reduces the intake of carbohydrates (carbs) he or she can greatly get rid of many pounds. Thus people should avoid potatoes and other starchy vegetables along with sugar, grains, pastas and fruits for these are the major sources of carbs. In the opinion of Dr. Atkins doing this will translate a carbohydrate-burning metabolism to a fat burning one. Atkin’s diet is critical of carbs related but not of fatty and protein rich stuff. In fact it recommends its users to eat food that provides them fats and proteins. In the case of proteins it particularly emphasizes the consumption of animal protein.

Though atkin’s diet has done wonders in many cases, it has many shortcomings. If this diet is quite popular with one set of people, some others are enormously critical of it. this is because of several reasons. Firstly Atkins meals are not only low in carbs but contain negligible amount of essential vitamins, minerals, fiber and other nutrients. Secondly atkin’s diet is flourishing with cholesterol boosting fats that can be very troublesome. Thirdly since atkin’s diet promulgates animal protein, vegetarians find it difficult to adopt it. In the fourth place according to the American Heart Association (AHA), a high protein diet is not adequate to lose weight. So diets such as Atkin’s can cause nutritional deficiency and other cholesterol related problems (cardiac arrests) in the long run. Finally critics believe that eating meat and other high protein products can lead to osteoporosis, colon cancer, heart diseases and renal diseases.

However the best way to reduce weight is to avoid excess as well as complete elimination of anything. A person should take a diet rich in essential nutrients (vitamins, minerals, proteins, fibers etc.), stay away from fatty foods as much as possible. Also carbs such as sugar should be consumed in a regulated manner.
About the Author: Mansi Aggarwal writes about atkins diet. Learn more at http://www.theatkinscraze.com

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Feb

3

Atkins Diet - A Straight-up Review

Filed Under Atkins, Diets, Weight Loss | Leave a Comment

My husband and I went on the atkins diet several years ago. This is the first time my husband has done any dieting. I on the other hand have tried every diet know to mankind. Of course he dropped 10 pounds the first week, and could not understand why I am always saying that weight loss is difficult. I did lose 6 pounds the first week so I had to agree that the diet was working.

The first two weeks were difficult to get used to eating only low carbohydrate foods. Once we got past that two week mark we found that it was an easy diet for us to follow. On the atkins diet you eat mostly protein. My husband has always been a big meat eater so that part was easy. It was more difficult for him to give up the potatoes and bread that he ate along with his meat. We needed to find alternative foods that were allowed on the atkins diet.

I bought the atkins diet book which not only outlines the diet but also has recipes. It is amazing how you can eat a lot of food on the atkins diet and still lose weight. The main challenge is getting some variety into your meals. When we first started the atkins diet the dinner meal was very easy to prepare. We would have some type of protein, fish, animal protein, chicken or beef and a large leafy salad with bleu cheese dressing. This was not that different than what we ate before it was just minus the potato and bread.

After a few weeks the lack of variety started to bore us. We were both losing weight, so that helped keep us motivated, but we were getting tired of the same meal each night. Then I discovered some of the recipes in the back of the atkins diet book. Our favorite is mashed cauliflower.

It is the same texture as mashed potatoes. The atkins diet book also had a recipe for a salad that has all the same ingredients as potato salad, minus the potatoes. You substitute cooked cauliflower. I was doubtful at first, but it tastes wonderful.

Over the years we have added carbohydrates back into out diet. Initially we both gained some of the weight back, but now we have found the right balance for each of us. Long term with very low carbohydrates did not fit our life style, or taste buds, but the atkins diet was an effective way for us to take off pounds.

About the Author:
John Wellington provides readers with up-to-date commentaries, articles on fitness, health and other related information.

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