Losing Weight Fast On Atkins

The Atkins Diet initially restricts carbohydrates to around 20 g per day. According to the official Atkins guidelines, there are no limitations on fat and protein intake. Newer versions of the diet recommend healthier food choices than the original version, which was created in 1972 by cardiologist Robert C. Atkins, but like the older version the diet still does not require any limitations of calories or portion sizes. The Atkins Diet can be effective because its food composition makes rapid fluctuations in blood sugar and appetite unlikely.

The Atkins Diet

The Atkins Diet guarantees fast weight loss if you adhere strictly to its guidelines. In the initial phase of the diet, you can consume 20 g, or about two servings, of carbohydrate-rich foods, such as rice, pasta, bread, legumes, starchy vegetables, fruit, breakfast cereal and sugar products. This is significantly less than the 6 to 11 servings of carbohydrate-rich foods recommended by the USDA. There is a lot of debate about whether restricting carbohydrates to amounts lower than six servings a day is healthy in the long run.

Weight Gain

When you eat carbohydrate-rich foods, the carbohydrate component of the foods quickly converts to glucose in the digestive tract. When glucose passes into the bloodstream, the blood sugar, or glucose, quickly rises. Insulin produced by the pancreas helps remove the glucose from the blood. The drop in blood sugar triggers a feeling of hunger. This normally would make you likely to consume food your body doesn't strictly need, resulting in weight gain.

How the Atkins Diet Works

Fat and protein do not convert into glucose in the digestive system. So, when carbohydrates are severely limited, only small amounts of glucose enter the bloodstream at any one time. As a result, your blood sugar stays relatively stable over time. When your blood sugar is more stable, you will tend to feel less hungry and, therefore, will be less likely to consume large amounts of food to satisfy your hunger. When you consume less food, you lose weight.

Calorie Restriction

Though the Atkins Diet does not require you to count calories, the diet works only if you consume fewer calories than you body needs. When you avoid carbohydrates, you are less likely to consume more calories than your body needs, but because the Atkins Diet does not restrict portion sizes and does not require calorie counting, there is a risk that you might consume too many calories to guarantee a fast weight loss. If you want to ensure a fast weight loss on the Atkins diet, it may be wise to limit the amounts of food you eat.

Exercise and Weight Loss

The Atkins Diet promises a quick weight loss even if you don't exercise. However, exercise can help ensure that you don't accidentally consume more calories than you use. If you don't have time for exercise, other kinds of movements can help ensure weight loss. Mayo Clinic's Dr. Jim Levine states that the main difference between lean and obese people is that the former group moves more while completing daily chores. For example, they rock back and forth, tap their food or contract and relax their muscles while reading, cooking or talking on the phone. These little movements can burn up to 400 extra calories a day. That's an extra pound of weight loss per week. You don't have to be naturally lean to benefit from this. To ensure a rapid weight loss, you can simply add these little extra movements to your daily activities.