The Atkins low-carbohydrate diet claims it can help you lose weight and prevent weight gain, improve your blood sugar control and reduce your carbohydrate cravings. The first three phases are for weight loss, and Phase 4, Lifetime Maintenance, is a long-term eating plan that continues to restrict carbohydrates. There may be negative health effects from restricting carbohydrates for so long, so talk to a nutritionist to help you develop a balanced eating plan that meets your nutritional needs.
Net Carbs
On Atkins, you count net carbs, or the total grams carbohydrates minus the grams of dietary fiber in food. Phase 1 starts with 20 g net carb. As you progress on Atkins and finally approach your goal weight, you gradually increase your daily net carbs until you reach your Atkins Carbohydrate Equilibrium, which means that you are not losing or gaining weight. This is your daily net carb limit for Lifetime Maintenance. Over time, weigh yourself regularly and reduce your daily net carbs by 10 g if you find that you have gained back more than five pounds.
Phase Instructions
Eat three to five small meals per day and have some protein and fat at each meal as you stick to your daily net carbs. As with the other phases of Atkins, your diet on maintenance emphasizes fat and protein, and Atkins.com suggests eating fatty foods when you feel hungry. The program recommends at least 30 minutes of exercise most days to keep your weight off, improve blood sugar control and reduce stress. Be sure to get your doctor's approval before starting an exercise program.
Foods
During maintenance, you can have as much as you want of carbohydrate-free meat, poultry, fish, shellfish, eggs, fats and oils. You can have vegetables, full-fat cheese and small amounts of fruit, nuts, certain grains and beans, as long as you stay within your daily net carb limit. You may not have refined grains, sweets or baked goods. Atkins Advantage bars and shakes, Day Break bars, and Endulge bars are sweet products that have artificial sweeteners to keep their carbohydrates low. All products from Atkins are suitable for maintenance.
Tips
Atkins.com states that you can have an occasional high-carbohydrate treat, but do not make them regular. Do not ever have trigger foods, such as chocolate or pizza, that you know you cannot stop eating once you start. Substitute a low-carbohydrate alternative to the food that you are craving. When you travel, resist high-carbohydrate temptations, and continue to count your carbohydrates to avoid gaining weight. To motivate yourself to stick to an exercise routine, choose activities that you enjoy, such as gardening, walking or swimming.
References
- Atkins.com: Phase 1: What You Can Eat in This Phase
- Atkins.com: Phase 4: What You Can Eat in This Phase
- Atkins.com: What Are Net Carbs?
- Atkins.com: Phase 4: Physical Fitness and Weight Maintenance
- Atkins.com: Phase 4: Troubleshooting in Phase 4
- Atkins.com: Phase 4: Objectives of Lifetime Maintenance
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