Losing weight can be stressful. Determining the appropriate weight loss diet for your body is not easy. You have to consider many factors, especially how it can impact your overall health.
When you first hear the words "weight-loss diets," you will immediately think of no carbs or vegetarian options. However, weight loss diets do not necessarily mean meat-less; the Atkins diet can prove that.
What is the Atkins diet?
Robert Atkins was an American doctor specializing in cardiology in the 1960s. During that time, he published a study about eliminating starch and sugar from one's diet. He published the study together with his colleague, Dr. Alfred W. Pennington.
The two doctors started putting the theory into work. After a few days, they were able to see immediate changes in their bodies. Atkins lost a reasonable amount of weight, and their findings were all positive. Hence, the diet is popularly followed by many people today.
The diet, which Atkins developed, is considered to be the father of all low-carb diets. Although it was not him who first discovered a carb-free diet, he successfully introduced the concept.
Atkins printed his first publication about the diet in the early 1970s. The book publication was an immense success, and it contained all the waist-reduction formulas he used. The book sold over 15 million copies to this day, making it the best weight loss book ever recorded.
How the diet works
The Atkins diet is similar to a ketogenic diet. Both types of diet show the importance of eating fat and protein but eliminating the intake of carbs. Since there is no intake of carbohydrates, your body will get energy by burning fats.
Ketogenic diets switch the body from burning carbohydrates to burning fats for energy instead. That is why the keto and Atkins diets work if you want to lose a specific figure of weight.
However, it's not always rainbows and butterflies because the diets also have their downsides. Since the ketogenic diet has high percentages of ketones, it could cause a problem and lead to ketosis.
What are Atkins' four diet phases?
Casting off carbs entirely from your regime is the initial phase of the Atkins diet. Always remember, the diet restricts the intake of carbs, and there is no exception. You are solely permitted to consume 20 grams of carbs per day.
The main goal of this phase is to let your body rely on body fats for energy conversion. If you follow this religiously, you will lose weight in as fast as two weeks.
For the second phase, you are allowed to take 25 to 45 grams of carbs per day. This stage will let your body be familiar with carbs again without having to gain weight.
The third phase will fully re-introduce carbs on your system. This stage is also known as the pre-maintenance stage and will test your tolerance to forbidden foods. When you can maintain your goal weight for a month, you can embark on the final diet stage.
Lastly, the fourth phase will be the lifelong phase of you in the diet. During this time, you will be able to maintain your weight. You will also know how many carbs will work for you, and how many you should include in your diet.
