4 Ways to Pick Atkins Diet Entrees

1. Eat the Meat

In order to pick Atkins diet entrees, you should know the acceptable meat items you can eat on the diet. Since you can eat many meat items liberally, you'll have a much easier time planning your meals around the meat source. You can have almost all fish, poultry, shellfish, beef, pork, lamb and eggs while following the diet. Only a few meat sources have a high number of carbs, and you'll need to reduce the number of these items in your diet: oysters, mussels, processed ham, bacon, salami, hot dogs and other deli meats. Keep in mind the way meats are prepared as well. You should grill as often as possible and avoid using any additives or breading that can add carbs to the Atkins diet entrée.

2. Low Carb's the Key

Sticking to the Atkins diet, especially during the first phase of the diet, involves watching the number of carbs in your food entrees. People often associate the Atkins diet with eating a lot of meat, since it's low in carbs. However, dieters have other low carb options. For the first phase, you're allowed 20 net carbs each day. Your carbs will come from cheeses, salads and other non-starch vegetables. Recommended low carb items, besides meat, include cheddar cheese, cream cheese, Gouda, mozzarella, mushrooms, peppers, celery, lettuce, cucumbers, pumpkin, artichokes, peas, broccoli, onion, cabbage, zucchini, herbs, spices and many more delicious items. You can download a complete listing of foods you can eat while on the diet from the official Atkins website. You'll also find recipes for different diet entrees, including Asian Beef Salad, Crab Cakes, Baked Meatballs and Atkins Quesadillas.

3. Follow the Food Pyramid

After the first phase of the Atkins diet has ended, you'll still want to know how to pick Atkins diet approved food entrées in order to follow the lifetime maintenance phase. Grain products are at the top of the Atkins Food Pyramid. In the middle you'll find a very moderate amount of seeds and fruits. At the bottom of the food pyramid, you'll find protein sources and non-starch vegetables. Plan your diet entrees around the pyramid.

4. Make Simpler Atkins Food Choices

Due to the popularity of the Atkins diet, prepared snacks, beverages and entrees with the Atkins stamp of approval can be purchased. Use the snack bars and shakes as meal replacements or eat them while on the go. You don't need to worry about the nutritional values of these products since they follow the diet plan's recommendations. All of the Atkins Advantage food products contain plenty of fiber and protein while keeping the sugar and carb count extremely low.