Eating to diet the Atkins way starts with the “Induction Phase” of Atkin’s trend-setting low-carbohydrate diet program. Learning how to lose weight by eating meats and fats instead of bread and pasta is a great way to dive into your new dietary eating plans and start a healthy weight loss program.

How to lose weight using the Atkins Diet Weight Loss Program has filled the self-improvement and cookbook aisles in bookstores for over a decade. Health institutions and diet analysts continue to evaluate the validity and results of the Atkins Diet. Despite the death of the founder, Dr. Robert Atkins, which led to substantial financial setbacks for the Atkins Company, the Atkins Diet continues to survive. The setback was temporary. Modernizing the Atkins Diet Program and focusing on today’s mobile society led to a rebound, and dieters all over the world continue to learn how to lose weight with the Atkins Diet Weight Loss Program.

Atkin’s dietary methods vehemently refute the government’s proposed food pyramid. Atkin’s food pyramid places breads, grains and pastas at the top, indicating that there should be low consumption of these foods. The government’s food pyramid puts the same category at the bottom of the food pyramid. This is a key factor in learning how to lose weight with the Atkins Diet Weight Loss Program. (Sticking with the diet is the number one factor for success!)

There is scientific evidence that the Atkins Diet Weight Loss Program succeeds in six months. If you are planning to start with the Atkins Diet – it’s important that you strive to maintain their dietary, nutritional, and physical recommendations for at least six months. Many dieters resolve to continue the Atkins diet after six months to continue losing weight, and others are satisfied with their weight loss after six months.

As with any plans to lose weight, the most trying part of the diet is in the beginning. Having the resolve to follow through with the diet will no doubt contribute to your success. Atkins begins with the “Induction Phase.” Learning how to get through the “Induction Phase” of your dieting plan is the most important part of the diet. The main idea behind Atkin’s dietary theory is to burn fat rather than carbohydrates. During the “Induction Phase” your diet goal is to get your body to begin this state of dieting. Pastas, starchy vegetables and grains are not allowed during this phase, although they may be introduced in small amounts later on. You are instructed to stay away from breads, sweets and alcohol, and drinking eight glasses of water a day is mandatory.

Learning how to stay away from grains and sweets certainly isn’t easy – and Dr. Atkins was aware of the cravings that a lack of carbohydrates would produce with such a drastic change in a person’s eating habits. Hence, meats and fats are allowed to alleviate the cravings for carbohydrates. Dr. Atkin’s also allows for eating three meals a day, or eating several smaller meals. How to lose weight with the Atkins Diet Weight Loss Program starts with getting through Atkin’s dietary eating restrictions during the “Induction Phase.” Start inducting yourself into the weight loss hall of fame – and see how successful the Atkins Diet can be. Once you get through this phase – you’ll be well on your way to reach your weight-loss goals.

With all low carbohydrate diets claiming success, it can be hard to start the correct low carbohydrate diet for you? Are all low carb diets alike? It can be overwhelming with all low carb diets, products and plans you see everywhere. Luckily, these diets have been analyzed extensively. We’ll get into all low carb diets – what works and what doesn’t.

First enjoy this delicious recipe that is ok for all low carb diets:

Yummy Fast Breakfast Recipe

Easy Mushroom-Zucchini Greek Omlette

2 eggs

2 Tbsp water

Dash of onion, cumin and/or garlic powders

1 tablespoon olive oil (or nonstick cooking spray)

1 cup diced, or chopped Zucchini squash

1/4 cup sliced white mushrooms

1/4 cup shredded cheese

Green Olives for garnish

Add oil to small skillet, (or spray with nonstick cooking spray) and heat over medium heat.

Saute zucchini and mushrooms for 7 minutes, or until tender. Lightly whip by hand eggs and water, add dash of onion, cumin and/or garlic powders. Pour egg/water mix into skillet.

When top is firm, sprinkle cheese onto half the omlette. Fold over other half. Serve each portion with Green Olives and sliced tomatoes.

Yields 4 servings

Total Net carbs: 3 grams per serving

Ok, Here are is the first review of the most well known of all the low carb diets: The Dr. Atkins Diet

Of all low carb diets, Atkins is probably one of the most popular there is. Most reviewers offer several reasons why Atkins is so attractive. The Atkins Diet can bring fast results. Atkins dieters notice a weight loss of eight to fourteen pounds within the early induction phase of the diet.

Also, most dieters like following the Atkins approach. Watching carb levels is all that’s required , and the foods you are allowed to eat with Atkins, like hamburgers, steaks, and rich foods are enjoyable to many people.

Negative comments, though, may include the fact that the body may respond poorly in the early days. You may feel overtired, stressed. Some may even have a headache.

Studies are still being evaluated, but many suggest that this diet lowers blood sugar, triglycerides, cholesterol and saturated fat levels, helping heart health.

Dr. Atkins believed that nearly all obesity is caused by overactive insulin production and not by overeating. He believed that overeating could be caused by carbohydrate addiction and that most overweight people actually ate less than their slim counterparts.

However, they crave and eat carbohydrate, which raises their insulin levels and suppresses fat burning. He also recommends the use of dietary supplements to help balance nutrition and the bodies systems.

The Atkins Diet has four stages: the Induction diet, the Ongoing Weight Loss diet, the Pre-Maintenance diet, and finally the Lifetime Maintenance diet. The Induction diet is very strict as far as carb elimination (20 grams or less per day), but generous in the allowance of fat and protein. Low starch vegetables are the recommended source of carbs.

This phase of the diet lasts 14 days and is followed by the Ongoing Weight Loss diet (OWL). The OWL phase allows for the reintroduction of certain good carbs but the levels are kept below 40 grams a day. Dieters stay on OWL until they reach their ideal weight.

Once the ideal weight is reached dieters transition into the Pre-Maintenance diet, where they experiment with reintroducing certain good carbs until they discover the total carb grams they can consume in a

day and still not gain weight.

Here is a tip for success with all low carb dieting:

Start your diet with a daily food diary, record everything you eat, what you were doing at the

time, and how you felt. That tells you about your temptations, the emotional states that cause you to snack and may help you lose once you see how much you eat. It is good to keep detailed records, in order to guarantee your success.

Often people go off low-carb diets, even those that help you lose 10 pounds in 2 weeks, because they lack good recipes. It’s too boring. Get good recipes!

The Atkins Diet Plan was created by Dr. Robert Atkins in the 1960′s. He made changes to a diet he read about in the Journal of the American Medical Association, because he had his own issues with weight. After success with the diet, both for him and patients, he then wrote Dr. Atkins’ Diet Revolution in 1972 (which I still have), and then the revised Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution. A lot of disagreement surrounds this diet, and many people have had success with it.

Atkins recommends staying away from:

Refined carbohydrates

Sugar

Flour

High fructose corn syrup

Saturated fats are not a problem, but avoid the trans fats from hydrogenated oils

There are 4 stages in the Atkins Plan:

Induction Phase:

The first phase of this low carb diet is designed to put your body into ketosis. Ketosis means that the body will produce ketones from the fat, and is used as fuel instead of carbs. It causes you to lose some weight fast as your body burns carbohydrates from your reserves. This phase is also very strict. Meat, eggs, oil and butter are allowed. A certain amount of cheese is allowed as well.

Ongoing Weight Loss:

In this phase of the Atkins plan, a carbohydrate ladder is followed by slowly building up your carbohydrate intake, you still lose, but you’re learning your glycemic intake levels, and curbing your cravings.

There is a full list of allowed food in the Atkins Diet book, but some of the food you’re allowed to have is vegetables from the Induction phase, nuts, berries, some fruit and starchy vegetables.

Pre Maintenance:

You enter pre maintenance as you approach your goal. Carbs are increased again, until you are able to eat enough without gaining weight.

Lifetime Maintenance:

A bigger range of food is allowed once you have achieved your weight loss objective. Carbohydrate consumption is increased a bit more as well. You stay at this stage for the rest of your life. Should you start to gain weight, you go back to a previous Atkins diet phase until you lose weight.

Advantages of the Atkins Plan:

If you’re a meat lover, this is the diet for you.

You’ll keep your sugar level down

You’ll burn fat

You can eat whenever you want

Things to watch out for when starting Atkins:

People say that they can’t do Atkins because it makes them feel weird, dizzy or just generally funky. Compare it to the alcoholic who has stopped drinking: they go thru DT’s – detox on some level, some have it really bad, and some don’t. You can – and should – expect a reaction with any diet that you go on that eliminates the garbage in your body.

Disadvantages of the Atkins Plan:

I’ve had friends say they get really tired, feel sick to their stomachs, and experience headaches in the beginning the Atkins Diet Plan. Carb withdrawal? I haven’t cut my carb intake too much in the recent past, so I can’t judge.

Low carb intake. I’m happy to switch to healthier carbs, but I won’t eliminate them.

If natural weight loss is your goal, choosing low carb foods that are nutrient dense will help you achieve the best results. By opening your mind to a new way of obtaining nutrition, you have the opportunity to create a lean, healthy version of yourself like you have never experienced before.

Carefully choosing low carb foods for natural weight loss requires a mental shift in the way you buy your nutrition. First, you should realize that there are now many options for prepackaged nutrient dense food formulas that can deliver natural weight loss safely, effectively, and conveniently. Once you make the choice to shop differently, you’ll find that the products you need are easier to find than you ever imagined. In today’s age of modern conveniences, it’s really not any more difficult to discover these nutrient dense, low carb foods than it is to fill your shopping cart with junk foods.

One of the first steps in creating that mental shift necessary for natural weight loss is to open your eyes to the power of real, whole food ingredients that have been concentrated into easy to mix formulas. These kinds of low carb foods are not typically sold in stores, but you will easily uncover them on the Internet. NuPlus is an example of a product that packs powerful nutrition into fewer calories. This makes it a very effective, nutrient dense food choice for achieving natural weight loss as well as other health benefits. This one particular low carb food product is made entirely from whole food ingredients that have been combined from numerous all-natural sources. It’s much different from the typical low carb junk food products you may have seen in the past.

This type of product makes it easier than ever to achieve natural weight loss. The convenient little packets can be shaken, stirred or blended with any kind of liquid to create a delicious snack that satisfies your hunger and loads you up with vital nutrients, instantly. You can eat what you want for fun, but you’ll have all the serious nutrition you need at home, at work, or on the go with these handy, portable low carb foods.

The versatility of nutrient dense foods like these makes it easy to add them to any diet. One reason they work so well for natural weight loss is that they fill you up and satisfy your body on a whole different level. This way you don’t crave foods with empty calories. By taking advantage of modern technology with these new kinds of low carb foods you can make a huge difference in your overall health while at the same time contributing to a safe, effective, natural weight loss program.

Not only are nutrient dense food formulas like this good for you, they taste great, and are convenient enough that they can quickly enhance your life. Obviously, though, the first step is to believe that concentrated, low carb foods really do work for natural weight loss. Search online for them, try a few of these innovative, new low carb foods and see if they work for you. It may be difficult to understand how this alternative way of obtaining nutrition is possible until you try it. Now is the time to step into the future and achieve natural weight loss a healthier, more efficient way. Give it a try. What have you got to lose, other than a few pounds?

With so many conflicting studies and vague interpretation of information, it’s not surprising that there is a lot of confusion when it comes to the value, safety and efficacy of low-carb diets. It seems like heated debates are everywhere!

Whether it’s the South Beach or Atkins, or some other low-carb plan, as many as 30 million Americans are following a low-carb diet.

Advocates contend that the high amount of carbohydrates in our diet has led to increasing problems with obesity, diabetes, and other health problems. Critics, on the other hand, attribute obesity and related health problems to over-consumption of calories from any source, and lack of physical activity. Critics also express concern that the lack of grains, fruits, and vegetables in low-carbohydrate diets may lead to deficiencies of some key nutrients, including fiber, vitamin C, folic acid, and several minerals.

Any diet, weather low or high in carbohydrate, can produce significant weight loss during the initial stages of the diet. But remember, the key to successful dieting is in being able to lose the weight permanently. Put another way, what does the scale show a year after going off the diet?

Let’s see if we can debunk some of the mystery about low-carb diets. Below, is a listing of some relevant points taken from recent studies and scientific literature. Please note there may be insufficient information available to answer all questions.

Differences Between Low-Carb Diets

There are many popular diets designed to lower carbohydrate consumption. Reducing total carbohydrate in the diet means that protein and fat will represent a proportionately greater amount of the total caloric intake.

Atkins and Protein Power diets restrict carbohydrate to a point where the body becomes ketogenic. Other low-carb diets like the Zone and Life Without Bread are less restrictive. Some, like Sugar Busters claim to eliminate only sugars and foods that elevate blood sugar levels excessively.

What We Know about Low-Carb Diets

Almost all of the studies to date have been small with a wide variety of research objectives. Carbohydrate, caloric intake, diet duration and participant characteristics varied greatly.

Most of the studies to date have two things in common: None of the studies had participants with a mean age over 53 and none of the controlled studies lasted longer than 90 days.

Information on older adults and long-term results are scarce. Many diet studies fail to monitor the amount of exercise, and therefore caloric expenditure, while participants are dieting. This helps to explain discrepancies between studies.

The weight loss on low-carb diets is a function of caloric restriction and diet duration, and not with reduced carbohydrate intake. This finding suggests that if you want to lose weight, you should eat fewer calories and do so over a long time period.

Little evidence exists on the long-range safety of low-carb diets. Despite the medical community concerns, no short-term adverse effects have been found on cholesterol, glucose, insulin and blood-pressure levels among participants on the diets. But, adverse effects may not show up because of the short period of the studies. Researchers note that losing weight typically leads to an improvement in these levels anyway, and this may offset an increase caused by a high fat diet. The long range weight change for low-carb and other types of diets is similar.

Most low-carb diets cause ketosis. Some of the potential consequences are nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and confusion. During the initial phase of low-carb dieting some fatigue and constipation may be encountered. Generally, these symptoms dissipate quickly. Ketosis may also give the breath a fruity odor, somewhat like nail-polish remover (acetone).

Low-carb diets do not enable the consumption of more calories than other kinds of diets, as has been often reported. A calorie is a calorie and it doesn’t matter weather they come from carbohydrates or fat. Study discrepancies are likely the result of uncontrolled circumstances; i.e. diet participants that cheat on calorie consumption, calories burned during exercise, or any number of other factors. The drop-out rate for strict (i.e. less than 40 grams of CHO/day) low-carb diets is relatively high.

What Should You Do?

There are 3 important points I would like to re-emphasize:

1)The long-range success rate for low-carb and other types of diets is similar.

2) Despite their popularity, little information exists on the long-term efficacy and safety of low-carbohydrate diets.

3) Strict low-carb diets are usually not sustainable as a normal way of eating. Boredom usually overcomes willpower.

It is obvious after reviewing the topic, that more, well-designed and controlled studies are needed. There just isn’t a lot of good information available, especially concerning long-range effects. Strict low-carb diets produce ketosis which is an abnormal and potentially stressful metabolic state. Under some circumstances this might cause health related complications.

The diet you choose should be a blueprint for a lifetime of better eating, not just a quick weight loss plan to reach your weight goal. If you can’t see yourself eating the prescribed foods longer than a few days or a week, then chances are it’s not the right diet. To this end, following a moderately low fat diet with a healthy balance of fat, protein, carbohydrate and other nutrients is beneficial.

If you do decide to follow a low-carb plan, remember that certain dietary fats are associated with reduction of disease. Foods high in unsaturated fats that are free of trans-fatty acids such as olive oil, fish, flaxseeds, and nuts are preferred to fats from animal origins.

Even promoters of the Atkins diet now say people on their plan should limit the amount of red meat and saturated fat they eat. Atkins representatives are telling health professionals that only 20 percent of a dieter’s calories should come from saturated fat (i.e. meat, cheese, butter). This change comes as Atkins faces competition from other popular low-carb diets that call for less saturated fat, such as the South Beach diet plan. Low-carb dieting should not be considered as a license to gorge on red meat!

Another alternative to “strict” low-carb dieting would be to give up some of the bad carbohydrate foods but not “throw out the baby with the bath water”. In other words, foods high in processed sugar, snacks, and white bread would be avoided, but foods high in complex carbohydrates such as fruit, potatoes and whole grains, retained.