Yosser

So is everyone that us on the atkins diet going to continue to the day they die????

Cause it sounds like once your on it you better be really strict 24/7 - 365 days a year!

Cutting DOWN on carbs is a excellent idea...CUTTING OUT all together is very bad. I too have read the books on how man/women survied on protein and vegatation etc etc, but look at the chinese their stable diet consists of RICE the highest form of carbs but you really don't see any obese chinese either do you? The same with Italians that eat pizza and pasta another really bad carb load but again you wouldn't call them the fattest nation in the world.

I think it comes down to exercise, the chinese eat rice but they work flat out 20 hours a day, they are burning the energy/calories up.

Tennis players at wimbeldon eat bananna's throughout their match...why?....well beacuse they are playing a physical sport 2,3,4 hours at a time their bodys need the fuel and a simple carb like a bananna gives them their spike they can proberly eat a pizza and a bar or chocolate at half time and they will not gain a pound.

The reason why America is such a problem is because they are too frigging lazy, I have seen countless posts on here about no pavements, getting weird looks because you and me are ACTUALLY walking down the street, its like WHOOOOA hold the **** on...there's a human actually walking.

Balanced diet is all about getting the percents right high protein, plenty of complex carbs (vegies), small amount of simple carbs(candy, fruit) and 10- 15% fat.....and most of all EXERCISE...

Do what one person said, get a dog and go walk a mile or two everyday, work out, walk to the store (if you have pavements )
walk to a park, just don't get like LAZY america and think that exercise consists of walking to your car and going to work/the store.

Diets are for cop-outs.

Dr. Yosser

englishinusa

There are several posts here from people who tried Atkins and think it's a great idea.

There are aso several posts here from people who haven't tried it but will tell you how awful it is.

Has anyone here tried Atkins and found it dangerous or ineffective?

Thought not.

There seems to be an amazing amount of anti-Atkins passion in the arguments of those who have achieved weight-loss through uncomfortable exercise and unsatisfying low-fat diets. Jealousy, perhaps?

Pimpbot

Yeah, but I'll race you around the block to see who wins

Pimpbot

I've seen my step daughter struggle with it and its restrictions, thats where I'm coming from. She needs to cut down on the amount that she eats, and this diet isnt teaching her that imo.

englishinusa

Of course, you'll need to use a calendar rather than a stopwatch to clock my time ...

Yosser

NO-one knows if its dangerous yet, cause its relativley new.
I love exercising and have never felt uncomfortable doing it. Jealous of what exactly? I can sit down and have a truly delicous heathly meal without going overboard. If I feel like a beer I'll have one, if I fancy some pasta I'll eat it but in moderation combine that with some fresh air excercise and I feel great.
Theres no need to deny myself anything!

If you want to drive to work, sit down all day, drive home, sit down at home and watch T.V and count carbs all day everyday for the rest of your life then go for it for each their own I guess.

Just tell me in 10 years if your still doing the same thing?

I haven't said anything about unsatisfying low-fat diets, thats just another con, LOW FAT yogurt.......mmmmm no fat but 17 grams of sugar instead.

englishinusa

In my experience, the main reason for the success of Atkins diets over the long term is a reduction in appetite.

Without the blood-sugar swings induced by eating carbs, I rarely get very hungry. In fact, a common comment from adherents is that they have difficulty eating enough!

If one is determined to eat in large quantities, or simply cannot do without high-carb foods, then this is not the right diet to follow. My success has been so marked that many other people at work attempted to follow the diet as well, and almost all of them found that they could not stop eating carbs.

englishinusa

> NO-one knows if its dangerous yet, cause its relativley new.

It's actually been around for over thirty years.

OTOH, there's no arguing that being eighty pounds overweight (as I was) poses very real health dangers.


> I love exercising and have never felt uncomfortable doing it.

Good for you. Can't argue that exercise isn't good for you (well, up to a point). Personally, I hate exercise, always have.


> Theres no need to deny myself anything!

If you exercise enough, you can eat whatever the heck you like. A friend of mine does 1-2 hours cardio a day, regularly runs marathons, etc. One of the benefits he quotes is that he can eat anything he likes. Well, sure ... if one's prepared to pay the price in terms of time, etc.


> If you want to drive to work, sit down all day, drive home, sit down at home and watch T.V and count carbs all day everyday for the rest of your life then go for it for each their own I guess.

Personally, I don't count carbs. I simply don't eat anything with carbs in it. No sugar, bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, corn, peas, fruit, etc.


> Just tell me in 10 years if your still doing the same thing?

Kept it up for nine months so far - no previous diet lasted more than six weeks. Another benefit - it's comparatively easy to stick to (for me, at least).

Yosser

Quote....Personally, I don't count carbs. I simply don't eat anything with carbs in it. No sugar, bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, corn, peas, fruit, etc.


Sounds delicous

englishinusa

Ah, but plenty of steak, eggs, bacon, cheese, vegetables ...

Tequila, vodka, etc. are also carb-free (but watch those mixers).

Yeah, it's a pain sometimes. But I've lost over sixty pounds and I feel so much better for having done so that it's worth it.

effi

I have not tried it, but a male friend did. He did good for a while, lost a lot of weight, but then started to get sick. He ended up in hospital and was told to come off the diet immediately. We are not designed to eat only high protein diets. We need well rounded meals and excercise.

Pimpbot

While I am not Atkins favorite fan, I do wish to congratulate everybody on this thread who has lost a great deal of weight. Dieting is one tough s.o.b. to do whatever diet you choose. It takes a great deal of will power to just start one. So congrats.

NC Penguin

When it comes to issues relating to health, it's the long term effects that are sometimes overlooked.

Those who've been on the Atkins diet may have lost weight during the time they were following it, but how many remained at the desired, lower weight for a year, two years, five years, ten years?

People currently on the Atkins diet, in my opinion, are paying to be guinea pigs and any dangerous effects on the internal organs, etc. will be revealed over time.

It's like with AIDS and Cruetzfelt Jacob disease. The symptoms can show up many years later.

Also, with smokers who kick the habit, it's a minority who remain non-smokers even a year after giving up the poisonous weed.



NC Penguin

englishinusa

> Those who've been on the Atkins diet may have lost weight during the time they were following it, but how many remained at the desired, lower weight for a year, two years, five years, ten years?

I'm sorry, but this is just silly. That comment applies to every weight-loss program.

If someone is overweight, it is because they have a lifestyle that makes them gain weight. The only solution is to change their lifestyle so that they lose weight. That might be changing diet or exercise patterns.

But it's a no-brainer that if they return to their original lifestyle then the weight will come back!


> People currently on the Atkins diet, in my opinion, are paying to be guinea pigs ...

Paying ... ? If I am not buying bread, how is that "paying"?


> ... and any dangerous effects on the internal organs, etc. will be revealed over time.

So, the assumption is that a dietary change must be bad unless it has proved otherwise over a period of decades??

Atkins has been around since 1972. Thirty years good enough?

And even if there is a risk, what about the very clear and well understood dangers of being overweight? Is it better to be diabetic and suffering from heart disease than to risk the vague and unlikely health complications of low-carb dieting?


> It's like with AIDS and Cruetzfelt Jacob disease. The symptoms can show up many years later.

Oh good grief! Those are DISEASES!


> Also, with smokers who kick the habit, it's a minority who remain non-smokers even a year after giving up the poisonous weed.

... and nicotine is a chemical addiction!

Hardly valid comparisons.

NC Penguin

This thread is specifically about the Atkins diet. It's not a typical weight loss program like Weightwatchers but a more extreme form of diet.

But it's a no-brainer that if they return to their original lifestyle then the weight will come back![/QUOTE]

I'm giving the former Atkins dieters the benefit of the doubt that they maintain a healthy diet after giving up the Atkins diet.

I think many Atkins dieters are buying the Atkins branded foods and other low carb foods. I think it's true to say that most, if not all are more expensive than regular foods.

The diet may have been introduced in 72 but far fewer probably followed the diet in the 70s.

[QUOTE]And even if there is a risk, what about the very clear and well understood dangers of being overweight? Is it better to be diabetic and suffering from heart disease than to risk the vague and unlikely health complications of low-carb dieting?[QUOTE]

I'm not disputing people's efforts to loose weight or become healthy. I just have my doubts about the Atkins diet.

No need to get your knickers in a twist. I'm just citing an example of health problems that arise suddenly, sometimes years after the action(s) that triggered the risk.

I get the impression that you're either the ghost of Mr. Atkins or the owner of a healthfood store or some place that sells Atkins branded products.



NC Penguin