Many people have turned to popular commercial diets to help them lose weight. Diets such as the Atkins Diet, South Beach Diet and the Neanderthin Diet all emphasize low-carbohydrate consumption. Lowering your carbohydrate intake, particularly simple sugars, will cause your body to burn fat as the primary source for energy. While there is nothing magical about the diet, lowering your overall caloric intake and the amount of carbohydrates you consume can help you lose weight. Please speak to your doctor before making drastic changes to your diet.
Atkins Diet
Created in 1972, the Atkins Diet was one of the first weight-loss diets that restricted the intake of carbohydrates. The diet has four phases. In the first phase you will reduce your carbohydrate consumption from 45 to 65 percent to about 10 percent. This amounts to about 20 g of carbohydrates a day which is a drastic reduction in carbohydrate intake for most people. As your body composition begins to improve, more carbohydrates, in the form of vegetables are added back into your diet. The majority of the calories in all four phases of the diet come from lean proteins like poultry, eggs and fish. This diet is especially effective in controlling diabetes. The Atkins Diet has high amounts of fiber which slow the rate at which food is digested and keeps blood sugar levels stable.
South Beach Diet
The South Beach Diet also emphasizes high-protein and low-carbohydrate consumption to help you meet your weight goals. The South Beach Diet has three phases and many of the same principles as the Atkins Diet. Just like the Atkins Diet, the first phase of the South Beach Diet restricts carbohydrates to only 10 percent of your total calories while you focus on eating lean protein. Over the remaining two phases of the South Beach Diet you will increase your carbohydrate intake to 27 and 28 percent, respectively. Unlike fad diets both the Atkins and the South Beach Diet incorporate an indefinite maintenance phase that try to make your weight-loss sustainable.
Protein Power Diet
The Protein Power Diet is similar to the Atkins and the South Beach Diet. The underlying philosophy behind the diet is to avoid carbohydrates, particularly simple sugars, so you can control your blood sugar levels and not release insulin which stores fat in your body. Phase one is limited to 30 g of carbohydrates. The maintenance stage of the Protein Power Diet allows for 55 g of carbohydrates. The creators of the Protein Power Diet, Dr. Michael R. Eades and Dr. Mary Dan Eades claim that high-protein and low-carbohydrate consumption will keep your blood sugar balanced and keep you from storing fat because there will be no drastic insulin spikes.
Most low-carb diets for weight loss are similar. They stress high-protein, moderate dietary fat intake and restrict carbohydrate consumption heavily. While they may help you lose weight, some people can experience side effects such as fatigue, joint pain, ketosis and depression by severely restricting their carbohydrate intake. Please talk to your doctor before beginning any of these diets.
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