The Atkins Diet is based on the theory that overweight people eat too many carbohydrates. The diet, developed by Dr. Robert Atkins, grew popular with the publication of his book, "Dr. Atkins' Diet Revolution" in 1972. Today, many people are still following this low-carb diet, which emphasizes eating more protein and fat to help your body burn stored body fat. There are four phases; each allows you to eat certain types of foods, many of which are allowed in unlimited quantities while other foods are limited.
Phase 1
Phase 1 is the induction, and the most restrictive, phase of the Atkins Diet. During this phase, sugar, starches and most carbohydrates are not allowed. You have to count the net carbs you eat during a day and stay under 20 grams. Food that are allowed during this phase are proteins such as chicken, turkey, beef, fish, shellfish, pork, veal, eggs, and a variety of vegetable proteins. These can be unlimited, as they do not contain carbohydrates. Natural fats, such as olive oil, canola oil, butter, and avocado are also permitted. You may have up to 4 oz. of hard or aged cheese, half an avocado, 10 to 20 olives, an ounce of sour cream or 2 Tbsp. of cream in coffee, and up to 3 Tbsp. of lemon juice, as part of your daily carbohydrate intake, as long as you are careful with counting the carbs in the above items and stay under 20 grams.
Phase 2
In phase 2, you combine the foods you are permitted to eat during phase 1 with foods containing higher levels of carbohydrate. You may add a total of 5 daily net carbs per week. So, on a daily basis, you are permitted to have one of the following in the recommended portions (see Atkins website for recommended portion sizes): 1 percent cottage cheese, heavy cream, ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, almonds, brazil nuts, cashews, hulled sunflower seeds, macadamias, pecans, pistachios, walnuts, blueberries, cantaloupe or honeydew, raspberries, strawberries, lemon juice, lime juice, or tomato juice.
Phases 3 and 4
Phase 3, the pre-maintenance stage, occurs when you have almost reached your goal. Therefore, to slow the weight loss process, the daily net carbs per week increases to 10. Foods that are allowed during this phase are all of the foods from the previous two phases, and additional whole grains. These include, in the recommended quantities (see Atkins website for portion sizes): acorn squash, carrots, white potatoes, yams, black beans, chickpeas, great northern beans, kidney beans, lentils, Lima beans, navy beans, pinto beans, apple, banana, cherries, grapefruit, grapes, guava, kiwi, mango, peach, plum, watermelon, oatmeal, whole wheat pasta and brown rice. The same foods are permitted in phase 4. However, during phase 3, Atkins instructs dieters to find the level of carbohydrate consumption that allows them to maintain their ideal body weight within a 5 lb range, and to stick with this level for the rest of their lives, which is phase 4.
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