sorta think it comes down to eat less or burn more...
like money---make more or spend less.
THAT IS the bottom line.
And actually, I will have to, after Belle clarified my understanding, at least partially agree with sudo.
While I agree with the emphasis on weight training, any exercise that impacts the balance of the equation, either consuming fewer calories or expending more, will ultimately impact weight management.
What the emphasis on weight training CAN do is assist a person in becoming a more efficient spender of calories. That's what I meant when I said that MUSCLE BURNS calories, but fat stores calories.
The more muscle you have, the more calories you can burn in a given period of time, than you otherwise would have. That goes for periods of exercise and periods of sitting/resting.
AND in case I missed anyone having added in this caveat, I apologize, but it's worth repeating anyway -- consult your physician before beginning any significant change in exercise routines.
It is so much more complicated than "just move more and eat less". There are hormonal, genetic, metabolic reasons why that doesn't work. It may work for some people, but it is not a blanket solution.
Calories are not created equal - the type of calories one eats is very important to a successful weight loss plan. Different bodies process calories in different ways.
Insulin plays a huge role in how much of our food is converted to fat.
How our cells respond to insulin.
Cortisol and stress plays a part.
The command center for the body's weight-management system resides in the hypothalamus—and it's calibrated to favor the preservation, rather than the elimination, of fat. That's accomplished through the hormone leptin, a crucial player in the brain's weight-management circuitry. Leptin is produced by the body's fat cells and signals the brain to regulate appetite and satiety—and, therefore, weight. If you lose body fat and leptin, it triggers hunger and the urge to eat; if you gain fat and increase leptin, you eat less. The more leptin your body produces, the leaner you tend to be; the less leptin you make, the higher your set point and the fatter you stay.
Researchers have discovered 10 microbes so far that trigger obesity—seven of them viruses. It may be a long shot, but for people struggling desperately to be thin, even the possibility of an alternative cause of obesity offers some solace. "They feel better knowing there may be something beyond them that could be responsible," says Dhurandhar. "The thought that there could be something besides what they've heard all their lives—that they are greedy and lazy—helps."
It's just way more complicated than that. If just eating less and moving more works for you, that's great! It's just not that easy for everyone.
I lost fifty pounds doing Atkins. Like Sudo said, I too ate like a hog. I was working on a ship in the engine room, and did no exercise other than the stressful six hours on six hours off round the clock engine room watches. I had the 12 to 6 watch and even did that terribly unhealthy thing of eating breakfast and then going straight to bed when I got off watch. My shipmates watched the pounds melt off me, and soon began to tell the crew messman (kind of like the crew's waiter); "I'll have what Jonny's havin"! But I would explain to them that they needed to read up on the diet, learn the details, and take it seriously if they wanted results. And yes! As Sudo said;
Brussels sprouts, asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, greens, zucchini or other squashes etc... salads
By George, I hadn't eaten that healthily in years! Plus, during the induction diet, I did in fact eat steaks, cheese burgers (hold the bun!), chicken, lots of salmon and halibut. And man oh man, the salads I used to put together at the ship's salad bar! And all healthy and good.
Plus, I experienced another awesome side effect that the good Dr. Atkins said would be a likely occurrence. My allergies went completely and totally away! Here in Southeast Alaska, home to the Tongass National (rain) Forest, there are skillions of Sitka Spruce and Northern Hemlock trees. And every spring, when the pollen comes forth, it can be see blowing in yellow billows in the sky. Just rivers of yellow pollen flowing down. And the sea here gets coated with it and it looks like sulfur floating on the surface. And I mean to tell you, that pollen would just take my head off every springtime! I dreaded it man, really. A couple of times the effect was so bad that the white of my eye actually swelled and closed over my pupil. Weird and painful, and gross! But, I started the Atkins diet in February, and by May had gone from a porky 265 down to a svelte and muscled 215. And the dreaded allergies did not show an ounce of it's previous presence. Not one dang sneeze compared to the sneezing fits that would go on and on until I could run my face under a cold water faucet or take a cool shower.
And those allergies have never returned, and I have only gained ten pounds back since 1998 when I did that. And, I haven't been that careful about carbs either, as of late...
And so, the only thing negative I have seen with Atkins dieting is that it doesn't seem to be fair to women, and they don't seem to lose the weight in the manner that I have seen the men lose it.
And so Good Dr. Sudo, what about that? Why doesn't it work quite so good for women?
Women don't have the same success as men because we bear children...have more fat, are made to grow humans and our hormones respond differently. Plus...we have much less muscle mass that naturally burns calories even at rest.
And that's why exercise comes into play. Cardio, using weights, stretching are all good things to do for many other reasons besides weight control.
I actually prefer resistance bands to weights---it is a very different feel to pull rather than push. The results are you build muscle with no bulking at all...something we gals prefer!
I believe exercise alone leads to weight loss depends on your age. When I was 20, I gained 30 pounds. I started aerobics, which I did for 1 hour, 5 days a week. I lost 30 pounds in 3-4 months. I changed nothing about my diet.
Today, I can exercise that much, but it will be really slow progress in comparison to my earlier years. I know because I did step aerobics like a nut when I was at HQ. I was in my 30s while living there. I had to MAJORLY watch my calorie intake to lose any weight. I believe age and gender makes me weight resistant.
My husband lost 45 pounds in 3 months on the Atkin's diet. I believe he lost the weight on that diet because he ate way less than he did previously. I tried it, but I can't stick to that one. I love sugar way too much.
That's my experience anyway. Less fuel in and more fuel exerted will make you lose weight. It doesn't matter HOW you do it. If you find a way that works for YOU, stick to it.
It is so much more complicated than "just move more and eat less". There are hormonal, genetic, metabolic reasons why that doesn't work. It may work for some people, but it is not a blanket solution.
Calories are not created equal - the type of calories one eats is very important to a successful weight loss plan. Different bodies process calories in different ways.
Insulin plays a huge role in how much of our food is converted to fat.
How our cells respond to insulin.
Cortisol and stress plays a part.
It's just way more complicated than that. If just eating less and moving more works for you, that's great! It's just not that easy for everyone.
Yes the equation is simple, but the process, IMO also (as you have indicated you believe), is certainly more complicated.
As nota said, age plays into it... my understanding is because that as we age, we don't generate as much HGH (human growth hormone) on our own...
Indeed, there are numerous factors that influence metabolism, exercise and muscle mass being among them... stress and cortisol (cortisol being another hormone) definitely are on the list. I would (and DO) attribute a great deal of my past weight gain to stress.
No one that I've noticed, has mentioned SLEEP. Occasionally, there's a news item about a study showing that sleep deprivation can exacerbate weight gain... I believe sleep and stress are both MAJOR factors...
Combination, carbohydrates are fruits, starches, starchy vegetables (peas, corn) and anything with sugar basically.
Atkins is a fabulous diet and it seems to work best for men. Women too, don't get me wrong, but men seem to lose weight so easily, don't they?? It's all that muscle mass and those heavy skeletons they walk around with!
On Atkins you eat to your heart's content on beef, fish, eggs, chicken, pork, cheese, nuts, green (mostly leafy) vegetables, tomatoes, butter - things like that.
To find out all about it go to The Atkins Diet Homepage and read all about it. Sorry.. bread is very high in carbs. You can have all the meat and seafood you want but the veggies have to be the low carb veggies like spinach, asparagus, broccoli, squash, tomatos, cucumbers etc.. they have a complete list at the Atkins site and you can even download a carb counter that gives you the carb content of most foods.
But I'm telling you right off that you'll have to give up flour products (like bread), potatoes in any form, corn and rice. We're talking starches. Also, no sugar either. So its a tough diet for some people who love all those forbidden items. But for those of us who love most veggies and don't have a particular sweet tooth its great.
I am editing this because for some reason, there was only half of my post that you will read further down posted here. And so, the rest of what was here is two or three posts down. Not sure how that happened. Anyway, happy eating!
Besides what others have said, you may want to become familiar with reading the Nutrition Facts on labels of almost all foods these days.
That will tell you how much and in what balance or combination that item is in carbs/fat/protein.
Atkins sounds daunting, as in giving up all the stuff you love, but it's really not that bad when you get right down to it... or if not going gung ho on Atkins, decreasing carbs and increasing protein however you choose to do it.
There are lots of ways to make your meals interesting without adding lots of sugar and starchy foods.
I have had no trouble at all giving up potatoes and most fried foods.
On veggies and meats, various sauces (like cheese or cheese sauce on broccoli) and various Mrs. Dash saltless concoctions work wonders in making it feel like you're not giving anything up. To sweeten things, SPLENDA is wonderful.
Well Rocky, Ive been on diets and lost weight spectacularly.
The only problem is, one cannot hold to those requirements forever because one feels hard done by eating such tiny serves.
As long as I can EAT it shouldnt be a problem.
My experience was at Weight Watchers, who set a weight stipulation that you are obliged to attain. They insisted I be a weight, 78 kilos, that I didnt want to be.
So I dropped out after getting to the weight I was happy with. 92 Kilos. 200LB.
Take the time to go out and buy the book "The New Atkins Diet Revolution" By Dr. "So and So" Atkins. It is easy to understand, and it will teach you the difference between carbohydrates and proteins.
Basically, the formula is this:
Our bodies need "fuel" as a car does need fuel to run. The basic fuel we use is sugar in it's various forms, and it "powers us through out the day" as we do whatever it is we are doing. And so, if we eat lots of sugar (sweets etc), our body which needs that fuel says; "Hey! I'll grab the easiest source of fuel, which is the "sugar in that cheese cake she just pounded down her gullet!" And the body then uses that easily supplied sugar source as "fuel".
But what if a person does not like to eat "sweets" but loves pasta, potatoes, white rice, and bread? Is that so wrong? Well, that person may not enjoy sugar in it's purest form (SWEETS), but, guess what? Our bodies take these carbohydrates (pasta, potatoes, white rice, and bread and beer), and turns it into SUGAR for fuel for the purpose of "motating us around". And do you know what the body does with the excess sugar that we do not use because we are almost always overloaded with carbs and sugar? IT TURNS IT ALL IN TO FAT. It stores it as fat. It turns it into the visible fat that we so loathe and detest. But, the Body, in it's "ignorance" is only thinking about "helping us out". Our body is thinking; "Well, I certainly have enough fuel for the moment, so, I will store this excess sugar/carbs as fat, which I just might need some day if my body's owner should ever get poor enough to not be able to buy food for awhile....'
So, here's the deal:
"YOU STOP FEEDING YOUR BODY SUGAR OR HIGH CARB FOODS THAT TURNS INTO SUGAR WHICH THEN BECOMES STORED AS "FAT FOR A RAINY DAY", AND MAKE YOUR BODY START USING THAT STORED UP FAT FOR "FUEL" WHICH WILL THEN BURN UP AND ULTIMATELY MAKE YOU SKINNIER AND LIGHTER!".
In other words, "use the fuel that you have stored up for years or decades (the FAT), and quit adding to it for awhile. Eat proteins in their various forms, and lose a bunch of weight in the meantime!
But I do recommend that you read Dr. Atkins book, and get the real and accurate info from him!
And in contrast to eating lots of carbs and sugar, experience and enjoy the wonderful world of low carb veggies, salads, high in protein meats such as beef, poultry, and fish, and enjoy the hell out of it as you watch the pounds melt off and your palate ask for "seconds"! Thirds! As the fat melts away...
experience and enjoy the wonderful world of low carb veggies, salads, high in protein meats such as beef, poultry, and fish, and enjoy the hell out of it as you watch the pounds melt off and your palate ask for "seconds"! Thirds! As the fat melts away...
I think I will JL! You inspire me to mouthwatering action!
Combo, reading the book really is the best way to understand how and why the plan works. Most people find that after being on it for a while, you really don't miss the bread and things that were primarily in your diet before going low carb.
Protein and fats fill you up on less food and they take longer to digest so you don't get the crashes and "OMG, I'm so eff'n hungry" feelings you get when eating carbs. It IS something that a person can easily do for the rest of their life.
Some other similar diet plans are "Sugar Busters", "Protein Power" and "South Beach" - most people learn the basics and then tailor the way they eat to fit with their own food preferences and lifestyle.
I love to cook and try new things, so experimenting with spices, ethnic dishes and fresh herbs is always fun for me and keeps the meals from getting boring and monotonous. If you like to cook, Kaylyn's Kitchen is an excellent resource for low carb recipes. I make her egg muffins almost every week. She's a South Beach eater and here's a link to Pasta Queen - she lost half her body weight on South Beach.
Guys, Atkins is updating their website and they are giving away prizes to people who submit photos and their personal Atkins success story. Details here.
Can you still drink on these diets? Like is an occasional beer or glass of wine or cocktail okay?
In terms of "strictly speaking," I don't know.
In terms of common sense, given that any such "diet plan" is primarily a guideline (or set of them) for developing lifelong healthy eating habits, I'd say (based on discussions with nutritionalists/dieticians) that it would depend on how frequent the occasion.
Indeed, there are some benefits to the occasional beer or glass of wine (especially red wine).
Hi Belle. Thanks for the mention of South Beach & the tips - we'll definitely follow up on those. Before I started South Beach, my doctor told me I was prediebetic - glucose level in the 280's & she wanted me on medicine. A week & 1/2 into phase 1 of South Beach, & I had normal glucose levels.
Some one was mentioning that for some reason, they found it hard to get off pastas, carbs, sugary treats. The reason is because of sugar addiction. Phase 1 of South Beach is the most severe, but even in that phase, your diet is new & varied, & you eat as much as you want. There is no pasta, bread, or alcohol in phase 1. But the cool thing about it is that after those 1st 2 weeks, you've broken the sugar addiction.
in phases 2 & 3, you start to add back in some of the things not allowed in phase 1. One of the cool things I noticed though is that, after phase 1, my tastes had changed. 100% whole wheat pasta is a little much for me, but I require some degree of whole wheat in my pasta or there is just no flavor to it - it is just too bland. Also breads that are really dense complex carb breads are a treat once in a while, but the idea of having a white bread sandwich everyday - no thanks. I'd as soon eat air.
Also, there is no calorie counting - just eating good foods.
Chas, about drinking. The designer of South Beach is a cardiologist. He's okay with not drinking, but he thinks that red wind is beneficial (obviously it can be overdone). Next in line, if you must, I think is cocktails - as long as there is no sugary mix in there. Then comes white wine - I might have cocktails & white wine reversed, but I don't think so. Last is beer. He frowns upon beer. Even light beers are usually almost the same carb content as the regular - somewhat of a misleading scam going on there.
Personally, I find that drinking beer & staying fit don't work well for me. So, I let my wife educate me on red wines. Now, I'm sophisticated .
Thanks, Tom. :) I'm doing low carb for my blood sugar and to avoid Diabetes, too.
Chas, the body processes alcohol first, so while it's not a carb - it does have to be "dealt with" before the body can go back to burning fat, so, it's not really good if one is trying to lose weight but some people CAN drink moderately (red wine and spirits - not beer or other high sugar/calorie/carb drinks) and lose weight. It depends on one's body, really. If one is not trying to lose weight, then there is definitely nothing wrong with imbibing in a "low carb friendly" drink. :)
I'm doing a medically supervised diet using OptiFast shakes. The 6 shakes a day give you all of your daily nourishments. I drink at least a half gallon of liquid a day and am limited to 12 oz of caffeine a day. It is less than 1000 calories a day. www.optifast.com
The liquid diets sound great and I think I could stay on one.
The only thing that bothers me is I knew someone who did lose a lot of weight on a liquid diet and had to have her gall bladder removed, the emergency doctor said, as a result of it.
So, maybe they've fixed whatever caused those things by now. Hope so.
Belle's link is about how I was going to answer you but don't overlook what Tom posted. The whole reason I started this thread was about how the low-carb diet gets so little respect even in the face of overwhelming evidence that its the healthiest way to eat. Having problems with a gut, cholesterol levels and maybe even fasting glucose levels? You cut out the carbs!! Presto the problems are gone! Try doing that with a low fat diet and you'll fail miserably 90% of the time. You want to drink some alcohol? Low carb works with that as well.
My own experience with the alcohol though was that I had to cut it out altogether while I was losing my weight. I had a bad 6-pack of beer a night habit and even though I switched to Michelob Ultra beer, I didn't really start losing the weight until I went alcohol free AND started doing 30 minutes of fast walking each morning. Then the pounds just melted off like magic. Later I could add some alcohol without gaining my weight back. I guess it depends on how fast you want the weight to come off in the first place.
Increasingly now its being being recognized by more and more experts that its the high carbohydrate diets that are the scourge and whats been giving us heart problems, type II diabetes and strokes all along.
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Rocky
THAT IS the bottom line.
And actually, I will have to, after Belle clarified my understanding, at least partially agree with sudo.
While I agree with the emphasis on weight training, any exercise that impacts the balance of the equation, either consuming fewer calories or expending more, will ultimately impact weight management.
What the emphasis on weight training CAN do is assist a person in becoming a more efficient spender of calories. That's what I meant when I said that MUSCLE BURNS calories, but fat stores calories.
The more muscle you have, the more calories you can burn in a given period of time, than you otherwise would have. That goes for periods of exercise and periods of sitting/resting.
AND in case I missed anyone having added in this caveat, I apologize, but it's worth repeating anyway -- consult your physician before beginning any significant change in exercise routines.
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Belle
I respectfully disagree with you and Rocky on this one. :)This is a great article why
It is so much more complicated than "just move more and eat less". There are hormonal, genetic, metabolic reasons why that doesn't work. It may work for some people, but it is not a blanket solution.
Calories are not created equal - the type of calories one eats is very important to a successful weight loss plan. Different bodies process calories in different ways.
Insulin plays a huge role in how much of our food is converted to fat.
How our cells respond to insulin.
Cortisol and stress plays a part.
It's just way more complicated than that. If just eating less and moving more works for you, that's great! It's just not that easy for everyone.
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J0nny Ling0
I lost fifty pounds doing Atkins. Like Sudo said, I too ate like a hog. I was working on a ship in the engine room, and did no exercise other than the stressful six hours on six hours off round the clock engine room watches. I had the 12 to 6 watch and even did that terribly unhealthy thing of eating breakfast and then going straight to bed when I got off watch. My shipmates watched the pounds melt off me, and soon began to tell the crew messman (kind of like the crew's waiter); "I'll have what Jonny's havin"! But I would explain to them that they needed to read up on the diet, learn the details, and take it seriously if they wanted results. And yes! As Sudo said;
By George, I hadn't eaten that healthily in years! Plus, during the induction diet, I did in fact eat steaks, cheese burgers (hold the bun!), chicken, lots of salmon and halibut. And man oh man, the salads I used to put together at the ship's salad bar! And all healthy and good.
Plus, I experienced another awesome side effect that the good Dr. Atkins said would be a likely occurrence. My allergies went completely and totally away! Here in Southeast Alaska, home to the Tongass National (rain) Forest, there are skillions of Sitka Spruce and Northern Hemlock trees. And every spring, when the pollen comes forth, it can be see blowing in yellow billows in the sky. Just rivers of yellow pollen flowing down. And the sea here gets coated with it and it looks like sulfur floating on the surface. And I mean to tell you, that pollen would just take my head off every springtime! I dreaded it man, really. A couple of times the effect was so bad that the white of my eye actually swelled and closed over my pupil. Weird and painful, and gross! But, I started the Atkins diet in February, and by May had gone from a porky 265 down to a svelte and muscled 215. And the dreaded allergies did not show an ounce of it's previous presence. Not one dang sneeze compared to the sneezing fits that would go on and on until I could run my face under a cold water faucet or take a cool shower.
And those allergies have never returned, and I have only gained ten pounds back since 1998 when I did that. And, I haven't been that careful about carbs either, as of late...
And so, the only thing negative I have seen with Atkins dieting is that it doesn't seem to be fair to women, and they don't seem to lose the weight in the manner that I have seen the men lose it.
And so Good Dr. Sudo, what about that? Why doesn't it work quite so good for women?
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Rejoice
Women don't have the same success as men because we bear children...have more fat, are made to grow humans and our hormones respond differently. Plus...we have much less muscle mass that naturally burns calories even at rest.
And that's why exercise comes into play. Cardio, using weights, stretching are all good things to do for many other reasons besides weight control.
I actually prefer resistance bands to weights---it is a very different feel to pull rather than push. The results are you build muscle with no bulking at all...something we gals prefer!
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Nottawayfer
I believe exercise alone leads to weight loss depends on your age. When I was 20, I gained 30 pounds. I started aerobics, which I did for 1 hour, 5 days a week. I lost 30 pounds in 3-4 months. I changed nothing about my diet.
Today, I can exercise that much, but it will be really slow progress in comparison to my earlier years. I know because I did step aerobics like a nut when I was at HQ. I was in my 30s while living there. I had to MAJORLY watch my calorie intake to lose any weight. I believe age and gender makes me weight resistant.
My husband lost 45 pounds in 3 months on the Atkin's diet. I believe he lost the weight on that diet because he ate way less than he did previously. I tried it, but I can't stick to that one. I love sugar way too much.
That's my experience anyway. Less fuel in and more fuel exerted will make you lose weight. It doesn't matter HOW you do it. If you find a way that works for YOU, stick to it.
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Rocky
Yes the equation is simple, but the process, IMO also (as you have indicated you believe), is certainly more complicated.
As nota said, age plays into it... my understanding is because that as we age, we don't generate as much HGH (human growth hormone) on our own...
Indeed, there are numerous factors that influence metabolism, exercise and muscle mass being among them... stress and cortisol (cortisol being another hormone) definitely are on the list. I would (and DO) attribute a great deal of my past weight gain to stress.
No one that I've noticed, has mentioned SLEEP. Occasionally, there's a news item about a study showing that sleep deprivation can exacerbate weight gain... I believe sleep and stress are both MAJOR factors...
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Combination
Sudo, anyone, Im stupid, and fat.
What foods are carbohydrate?
I might try the method you espouse.
Thanks.
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Siouxzahn
Combination, carbohydrates are fruits, starches, starchy vegetables (peas, corn) and anything with sugar basically.
Atkins is a fabulous diet and it seems to work best for men. Women too, don't get me wrong, but men seem to lose weight so easily, don't they?? It's all that muscle mass and those heavy skeletons they walk around with!
On Atkins you eat to your heart's content on beef, fish, eggs, chicken, pork, cheese, nuts, green (mostly leafy) vegetables, tomatoes, butter - things like that.
And plenty of water and enzymes and fish oils.
Enjoy.
:)
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Combination
Where does bread fit in? I eat a lot of bread.
I dont mind excluding certain foods, but I dont want to spend my life living on tiny portions meat with a pile of lettuce.
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Sudo
Combination,
To find out all about it go to The Atkins Diet Homepage and read all about it. Sorry.. bread is very high in carbs. You can have all the meat and seafood you want but the veggies have to be the low carb veggies like spinach, asparagus, broccoli, squash, tomatos, cucumbers etc.. they have a complete list at the Atkins site and you can even download a carb counter that gives you the carb content of most foods.
But I'm telling you right off that you'll have to give up flour products (like bread), potatoes in any form, corn and rice. We're talking starches. Also, no sugar either. So its a tough diet for some people who love all those forbidden items. But for those of us who love most veggies and don't have a particular sweet tooth its great.
sudo
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J0nny Ling0
I am editing this because for some reason, there was only half of my post that you will read further down posted here. And so, the rest of what was here is two or three posts down. Not sure how that happened. Anyway, happy eating!
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Combination
Ah thanks Sudo.
You have explained the whole thing in very clear terms in less than a paragraph! I see it clearly now.
Many thanks.
And yes. Im eating exactly the stuff that I shouldnt be eating. :blink:
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Rocky
Besides what others have said, you may want to become familiar with reading the Nutrition Facts on labels of almost all foods these days.
That will tell you how much and in what balance or combination that item is in carbs/fat/protein.
Atkins sounds daunting, as in giving up all the stuff you love, but it's really not that bad when you get right down to it... or if not going gung ho on Atkins, decreasing carbs and increasing protein however you choose to do it.
There are lots of ways to make your meals interesting without adding lots of sugar and starchy foods.
I have had no trouble at all giving up potatoes and most fried foods.
On veggies and meats, various sauces (like cheese or cheese sauce on broccoli) and various Mrs. Dash saltless concoctions work wonders in making it feel like you're not giving anything up. To sweeten things, SPLENDA is wonderful.
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Combination
Well Rocky, Ive been on diets and lost weight spectacularly.
The only problem is, one cannot hold to those requirements forever because one feels hard done by eating such tiny serves.
As long as I can EAT it shouldnt be a problem.
My experience was at Weight Watchers, who set a weight stipulation that you are obliged to attain. They insisted I be a weight, 78 kilos, that I didnt want to be.
So I dropped out after getting to the weight I was happy with. 92 Kilos. 200LB.
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J0nny Ling0
Combo,
Take the time to go out and buy the book "The New Atkins Diet Revolution" By Dr. "So and So" Atkins. It is easy to understand, and it will teach you the difference between carbohydrates and proteins.
Basically, the formula is this:
Our bodies need "fuel" as a car does need fuel to run. The basic fuel we use is sugar in it's various forms, and it "powers us through out the day" as we do whatever it is we are doing. And so, if we eat lots of sugar (sweets etc), our body which needs that fuel says; "Hey! I'll grab the easiest source of fuel, which is the "sugar in that cheese cake she just pounded down her gullet!" And the body then uses that easily supplied sugar source as "fuel".
But what if a person does not like to eat "sweets" but loves pasta, potatoes, white rice, and bread? Is that so wrong? Well, that person may not enjoy sugar in it's purest form (SWEETS), but, guess what? Our bodies take these carbohydrates (pasta, potatoes, white rice, and bread and beer), and turns it into SUGAR for fuel for the purpose of "motating us around". And do you know what the body does with the excess sugar that we do not use because we are almost always overloaded with carbs and sugar? IT TURNS IT ALL IN TO FAT. It stores it as fat. It turns it into the visible fat that we so loathe and detest. But, the Body, in it's "ignorance" is only thinking about "helping us out". Our body is thinking; "Well, I certainly have enough fuel for the moment, so, I will store this excess sugar/carbs as fat, which I just might need some day if my body's owner should ever get poor enough to not be able to buy food for awhile....'
So, here's the deal:
"YOU STOP FEEDING YOUR BODY SUGAR OR HIGH CARB FOODS THAT TURNS INTO SUGAR WHICH THEN BECOMES STORED AS "FAT FOR A RAINY DAY", AND MAKE YOUR BODY START USING THAT STORED UP FAT FOR "FUEL" WHICH WILL THEN BURN UP AND ULTIMATELY MAKE YOU SKINNIER AND LIGHTER!".
In other words, "use the fuel that you have stored up for years or decades (the FAT), and quit adding to it for awhile. Eat proteins in their various forms, and lose a bunch of weight in the meantime!
But I do recommend that you read Dr. Atkins book, and get the real and accurate info from him!
And in contrast to eating lots of carbs and sugar, experience and enjoy the wonderful world of low carb veggies, salads, high in protein meats such as beef, poultry, and fish, and enjoy the hell out of it as you watch the pounds melt off and your palate ask for "seconds"! Thirds! As the fat melts away...
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Combination
I think I will JL! You inspire me to mouthwatering action!
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Rocky
Of course, you should also be able to find that book at your local library.
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Belle
Combo, reading the book really is the best way to understand how and why the plan works. Most people find that after being on it for a while, you really don't miss the bread and things that were primarily in your diet before going low carb.
Protein and fats fill you up on less food and they take longer to digest so you don't get the crashes and "OMG, I'm so eff'n hungry" feelings you get when eating carbs.
It IS something that a person can easily do for the rest of their life.
Some other similar diet plans are "Sugar Busters", "Protein Power" and "South Beach" - most people learn the basics and then tailor the way they eat to fit with their own food preferences and lifestyle.
I love to cook and try new things, so experimenting with spices, ethnic dishes and fresh herbs is always fun for me and keeps the meals from getting boring and monotonous. If you like to cook, Kaylyn's Kitchen is an excellent resource for low carb recipes. I make her egg muffins almost every week. She's a South Beach eater and here's a link to Pasta Queen - she lost half her body weight on South Beach.
Guys, Atkins is updating their website and they are giving away prizes to people who submit photos and their personal Atkins success story. Details here.
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ChasUFarley
Dumb question, I'm sure....
Can you still drink on these diets? Like is an occasional beer or glass of wine or cocktail okay?
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Rocky
In terms of "strictly speaking," I don't know.
In terms of common sense, given that any such "diet plan" is primarily a guideline (or set of them) for developing lifelong healthy eating habits, I'd say (based on discussions with nutritionalists/dieticians) that it would depend on how frequent the occasion.
Indeed, there are some benefits to the occasional beer or glass of wine (especially red wine).
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Tom
Hi Belle. Thanks for the mention of South Beach & the tips - we'll definitely follow up on those. Before I started South Beach, my doctor told me I was prediebetic - glucose level in the 280's & she wanted me on medicine. A week & 1/2 into phase 1 of South Beach, & I had normal glucose levels.
Some one was mentioning that for some reason, they found it hard to get off pastas, carbs, sugary treats. The reason is because of sugar addiction. Phase 1 of South Beach is the most severe, but even in that phase, your diet is new & varied, & you eat as much as you want. There is no pasta, bread, or alcohol in phase 1. But the cool thing about it is that after those 1st 2 weeks, you've broken the sugar addiction.
in phases 2 & 3, you start to add back in some of the things not allowed in phase 1. One of the cool things I noticed though is that, after phase 1, my tastes had changed. 100% whole wheat pasta is a little much for me, but I require some degree of whole wheat in my pasta or there is just no flavor to it - it is just too bland. Also breads that are really dense complex carb breads are a treat once in a while, but the idea of having a white bread sandwich everyday - no thanks. I'd as soon eat air.
Also, there is no calorie counting - just eating good foods.
Chas, about drinking. The designer of South Beach is a cardiologist. He's okay with not drinking, but he thinks that red wind is beneficial (obviously it can be overdone). Next in line, if you must, I think is cocktails - as long as there is no sugary mix in there. Then comes white wine - I might have cocktails & white wine reversed, but I don't think so. Last is beer. He frowns upon beer. Even light beers are usually almost the same carb content as the regular - somewhat of a misleading scam going on there.
Personally, I find that drinking beer & staying fit don't work well for me. So, I let my wife educate me on red wines. Now, I'm sophisticated
.
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Belle
Thanks, Tom. :) I'm doing low carb for my blood sugar and to avoid Diabetes, too.
Chas, the body processes alcohol first, so while it's not a carb - it does have to be "dealt with" before the body can go back to burning fat, so, it's not really good if one is trying to lose weight but some people CAN drink moderately (red wine and spirits - not beer or other high sugar/calorie/carb drinks) and lose weight. It depends on one's body, really. If one is not trying to lose weight, then there is definitely nothing wrong with imbibing in a "low carb friendly" drink. :)
Here's a great article on it.
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waterbuffalo
The liquid diets sound great and I think I could stay on one.
The only thing that bothers me is I knew someone who did lose a lot of weight on a liquid diet and had to have her gall bladder removed, the emergency doctor said, as a result of it.
So, maybe they've fixed whatever caused those things by now. Hope so.
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Sudo
Chaz,
Belle's link is about how I was going to answer you but don't overlook what Tom posted. The whole reason I started this thread was about how the low-carb diet gets so little respect even in the face of overwhelming evidence that its the healthiest way to eat. Having problems with a gut, cholesterol levels and maybe even fasting glucose levels? You cut out the carbs!! Presto the problems are gone! Try doing that with a low fat diet and you'll fail miserably 90% of the time. You want to drink some alcohol? Low carb works with that as well.
My own experience with the alcohol though was that I had to cut it out altogether while I was losing my weight. I had a bad 6-pack of beer a night habit and even though I switched to Michelob Ultra beer, I didn't really start losing the weight until I went alcohol free AND started doing 30 minutes of fast walking each morning. Then the pounds just melted off like magic. Later I could add some alcohol without gaining my weight back. I guess it depends on how fast you want the weight to come off in the first place.
Increasingly now its being being recognized by more and more experts that its the high carbohydrate diets that are the scourge and whats been giving us heart problems, type II diabetes and strokes all along.
sudo
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