My Dad has been on Atkins for awhile but as soon as he "cheats", he seems to gain alot of weight.  I'm worried about him.  Is there a plan that is easy to follow that is good for you?  He's not really keen on veggies but will eat salads!  Any advice?

I find Atkins a little worriesome - like anything that is extreme, it has potential problems.  However, I have found a modified version of the Atkins diet to be very effective.

In essence you eat plenty of quality protein (but not as much fat as in Atkins), and plenty of fruit and veg - or in your dad's case, lots of fruit and salad.

What you limit is obviously junk food, sweets etc, but also bulky carbs - cereals, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes.

What I find works best is to eat them in the morning (for example cereal with yogurt and fruit for breakfast), but then stick to the meat/fish/eggs/beans plus fruit/veg/salad for lunch and dinner.  Then two days per week you can eat a normal amount of carbs.

What this does is stop your body going into a starvation mode, but allow it to gradually get used to less carbs.

It's a pretty healthy way of eating - certainly better than a regular 'diet' - and has worked well for everyone I know who's done it.

You should lose 1 - 2 lbs per week doing this, and because you're not completely starving or denying yourself, it's pretty sustainable.

Good luck!

Hi Macnabs - you seem to know a lot about this - can you explain the bit about "not as much fat as in Atkins"?

I am confused - I know you have to eat protein and veg and keep away from carbs - so where does the fat come from?

have you found that you get smelly urine and bad breathe...as that really puts me off with my job?

Hi:

The basic rules of the Atkins allow you to eat all types of meats, poultry, seafood, eggs, cheese, butter, cream, oil, nuts, plus a few non-starchy vegetables.  After the first couple of weeks you can gradually re-introduce certain carbs in small quantities.

With almost zero carbs and all your calories coming from protein and fat, it's possible that your total dietary fat and saturated fat intake may increase total blood cholesterol levels and LDL-cholesterol.

 

I guess my main point is that reducing carbs (particularly processed ones) would probably help most people who are overweight - but I don't see the benefit of loading up on fat at the same time - especially saturated fats.

 

Hope that answers your question.

 

Regards,

 

Don

 

That's pretty much the way I eat when I'm in a low training period.  Keeps the calories down a bit but is still healthy.  Guess it would work pretty well as a diet if you were strict.

I think Atkins is horrible - I can't beleive that all that meat and fat can be good for you.

Hey - just joined the list and wanted to say that I've found Atkins is not just great for keeping slim - it's also a good plan to follow for me because I'm into bodybuilding and have to keep my protein intake up.  As long as you stick to lean meats, and burn calories through building muscle it's a healthy way to go - I'm bulking up and getting rid of flab at the same time.

 

I'd guess you're probalby eating more fresh veg and fruit than the strict Atkins, right?