Atkins Diet
Eat all the meat you want, just cut down on carbs and sugar
The Atkins diet considers the bad carbohydrates (carbs). The diet is called “The miracle method” because it helps people to lose weight very quickly. The Atkins diet, is the most well-known and marketed low-carbohydrate diet / low GI-diet. The big difference is that the Atkins diet doesn’t seclude the “bad fat”. Instead you can eat all the protein and fat you want and still lose weight, as long as you cut down on the carbs and sugar. 50-75% of the daily energy should come from protein and fat and the rest from carbs.
Robert Atkins (1930-2003)
Dr Robert Atkins, is the founder of the Atkins Diet. He was an American physician and cardiologist who suffered from being overweight. In the 1960s Dr Robert Atkins read about a diet in the Journal of the American Medical Association and got inspired and developed the Atkins diet. In 1972, after successfully treating over thousand patients, he released a book called “Dr. Atkins’ Diet Revolution” and it became a bestseller. So what is the big success secret?
Cut down on the carbs so your body can burn more fat
Dr Atkins was aware of two facts:
- The body metabolizes carbs first and then it burns fat.
- It takes more calories to burn fat. So in order to lose weight you need to burn fat and by doing this you have to burn carbs first.
The Atkins diet therefore cuts down on carbs, especially bad carbs with high GI. This way the body will be forced to burn more fat, because the body doesn’t have much carbs to burn. So when you cut out carbs, your body is forced to burn its stored fat in order to provide it with energy. You burn more calories when your body burns fat (compared with carbs) which means that you’ll lose weight more quickly. By cutting out carbs, blood sugar levels remain more stable throughout the day, and a more stable blood sugar level prevents overeating.
The two phases
The diet consists of two phases. In the first phase you should remove everything that contains carbs from your diet: sugar, milk, fruit, pasta, rice, serials, beans, potatoes and some vegetables. You may eat unlimited amount of meat, fish, eggs, olive oil, cheese, mayonnaise, cucumber and green leaf salad.
In the next phase there are fewer restrictions and you may eat all kind of vegetables, grains and corn, but sugar of any kind is strictly forbidden.
Low on vitamins, minerals and fibers
Since the Atkins diet is low on calories you will lose weight but you should be aware of the fact that the diet is very low on vitamins and minerals. The diet is also low on fibers that help lowering the cholesterol level in your blood as well as being vital for your intestines. The brain needs the blood sugar and that is why you shouldn’t exclude carbs entirely. The Atkins diet will help you lose weight fast as a short time solution, but in the long run it may be better to have a more balanced diet.