The Atkins and keto diets are two of the most well-known low-carb diets. Both diets drastically reduce carb intake, but there are important differences between the two. The Atkins diet is a low-carb, moderate-protein, high-fat diet, whereas the keto diet is a very low-carb, moderate-protein, high-fat diet. The keto diet restricts protein to 20% of daily calories, while the Atkins diet has no such limit. The keto diet promotes one way of eating for the entire duration of the diet, whereas the Atkins diet has a multiphase approach, with the carb intake gradually increasing in each phase.
Characteristics | Values |
---|---|
Carbohydrate intake | Atkins 20®: 20-25 grams per day in the first phase, gradually increasing to 80-100 grams per day in the final phase. |
Carbohydrate intake | Keto: 5% of daily intake, or 20-50 grams per day. |
Protein intake | Atkins: no limit, but up to 30% of calories from protein depending on the phase. |
Protein intake | Keto: restricted to 20% of daily calories. |
Fat intake | Atkins: high fat intake. |
Fat intake | Keto: 75% of remaining calories from fat. |
Phases | Atkins: split into four phases, gradually increasing carb intake and adding more foods. |
Phases | Keto: one way of eating throughout the diet. |
Weight loss | Atkins: likely to result in weight loss, particularly in the short term. |
Weight loss | Keto: likely to result in weight loss, but may be difficult to maintain. |
Health benefits | Atkins and keto: may improve blood sugar regulation and reduce risk of heart disease. |
Health risks | Atkins and keto: may lead to nutrient deficiencies, especially if not carefully planned. |
Health risks | Keto: associated with an increased risk of kidney stones and heart disease in the long term. |
Sustainability | Atkins: may be more sustainable due to its flexibility and gradual reintroduction of carbohydrates. |
What You'll Learn
- Atkins 20 is the original Atkins diet and has four phases
- The keto diet restricts protein to 20% of your daily calories, while Atkins does not
- The keto diet is more restrictive than Atkins
- Atkins is a less restrictive approach as you don't have to monitor ketones
- The keto diet was not created as a weight-loss programme
Atkins 20 is the original Atkins diet and has four phases
The Atkins diet is one of the best-known diets worldwide. The original version, now called Atkins 20, is still the most popular. It is a low-carb, moderate protein, high-fat diet and is broken down into four distinct phases, based on your daily allowance of net carbs (total carbs minus fibre and sugar alcohols).
Phase 1, also known as Induction, is designed to kickstart your weight loss. It involves shifting what you eat to change the way your body uses nutrients. During this phase, you should consume 20-25 grams of net carbs per day until you are 15 pounds from your goal weight.
Phase 2 is about balancing your diet and maintaining your momentum from Phase 1. You will start to climb the Carb Ladder by slowly adding different foods like nuts, seeds, berries, and legumes. The goal is to find a healthy diet that's right for you. This phase typically lasts until you're within 10 pounds of your goal weight.
Phase 3 is about fine-tuning and customising your diet. You will continue to add more carbs to your diet, with a focus on finding a permanent way of eating that suits your lifestyle and preferences. During this phase, your net carb allowance is raised to 50-80 grams per day until you have met your goal weight and maintained it for one month.
Phase 4 is about maintaining a healthy weight and transitioning to a permanent, sustainable way of eating. You will continue to add ingredients like full-fat yogurt, fruits, and whole grains to your diet. The goal is to equip you with the knowledge to stay in control of your weight and make healthy choices.
The Atkins diet has evolved to offer a variety of plans, but Atkins 20 remains the original and most popular version. It is a well-known and effective approach to weight loss, offering a structured and flexible way to improve your health and manage your weight.
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The keto diet restricts protein to 20% of your daily calories, while Atkins does not
The keto and Atkins diets are both low-carb diets that can help with weight loss, diabetes management, and heart health. However, there are some key differences between the two. While the keto diet restricts protein to 20% of your daily calories, the Atkins diet allows for up to 30% of calories from protein, depending on the phase. This means that the Atkins diet is less restrictive when it comes to protein intake.
On the keto diet, the goal is to keep your body in a state of ketosis, where it burns fat instead of glucose for energy. To achieve and maintain ketosis, the keto diet restricts total carb intake to less than 50 grams per day, with less than 5% of calories coming from carbs. The Atkins diet, on the other hand, follows a multiphase approach, gradually increasing carb intake over time. While the introductory phase of Atkins restricts carbs to 20-25 grams per day, this number increases in subsequent phases, eventually allowing up to 100 grams of carbs per day for ongoing weight maintenance.
The higher protein allowance in the Atkins diet means that it offers more food choices and a greater balance of macronutrients. It is also more flexible and may be easier to stick to in the long term. The keto diet, on the other hand, is more restrictive and may be challenging to follow, especially due to the strict limit on carb intake.
Overall, while both diets may be effective for weight loss, the Atkins diet may be a more sustainable and realistic approach due to its flexibility and the variety of food choices it offers.
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The keto diet is more restrictive than Atkins
The keto and Atkins diets are both low-carb diets, but the keto diet is more restrictive than Atkins. While both diets drastically reduce carb intake, there are some key differences.
The keto diet restricts protein to 20% of your daily calories, while Atkins has no such limit. The keto diet also places more emphasis on eating healthful fats than the Atkins diet. The Atkins diet allows for a moderate protein intake, while the keto diet restricts protein sources as the body may break down proteins into glucose for energy.
The Atkins diet is broken down into four phases, based on your daily allowance of net carbs. In the first phase, you are allowed 20-25 grams of net carbs per day. In the second phase, this increases to 25-50 grams. In the third phase, you can consume up to 80 grams of net carbs per day. The final phase allows for 80-100 grams of net carbs per day for ongoing weight maintenance.
On the other hand, the keto diet promotes one way of eating for the entire duration of the diet. You cut your carbs down to about 5% of your daily intake. This equates to about 25 grams of carbs per day. Seventy-five per cent of your remaining calories will come from fat, and 20% from protein.
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Atkins is a less restrictive approach as you don't have to monitor ketones
The Atkins and keto diets are separate diets that both take a low-carb, high-fat approach to dieting. However, the Atkins diet is considered a less restrictive approach than keto as it does not require the monitoring of ketones or strict adherence to macronutrient targets to stay in ketosis.
The keto diet, or ketogenic diet, is a very low-carb, moderate-protein, high-fat diet plan. The goal of the keto diet is to get the body into a metabolic state called ketosis, where it uses fat instead of sugar from carbohydrates as its main energy source. To reach and maintain ketosis, most people need to restrict their total daily carb intake to 20-50 grams. This typically involves consuming less than 5% of calories from carbs, 10-30% from protein, and 65-90% from fat. As a result, the keto diet can be challenging to stick to and may require medical supervision. Some people on the keto diet choose to monitor their ketone production using blood, urine, or breath tests, which can be difficult and costly.
On the other hand, the Atkins diet is a low-carb, moderate-protein, high-fat diet that is broken down into four phases based on daily net carb allowances. The first phase, Induction, restricts net carbs to 20-25 grams per day. This is similar to the keto diet and is likely to cause the body to enter ketosis and start burning fat. In the second phase, net carb intake is increased to 25-50 grams per day, which may also be sufficient for some individuals to enter ketosis. The third and fourth phases allow for even higher net carb intake, with the final phase permitting up to 100 grams of net carbs per day for ongoing weight maintenance.
The main difference between the Atkins and keto diets is that the Atkins diet involves gradually increasing your carb intake, while it remains very low on the keto diet. This flexible carb limit makes the Atkins diet less restrictive and allows for a wider variety of foods, including more fruits, vegetables, and even some grains. With the Atkins diet, you do not have to monitor ketone levels or strictly adhere to specific macronutrient targets to stay in ketosis. Instead, you can focus on choosing healthy foods and limiting refined carbs, which can improve health regardless of your carb intake.
While the keto diet may be beneficial for some individuals, moderate carb restriction, such as in the later phases of the Atkins diet, is generally sufficient for most people to experience the benefits of a low-carb diet.
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The keto diet was not created as a weight-loss programme
The ketogenic or keto diet is a low-carb, high-fat diet that was originally used to help reduce the frequency of epileptic seizures in children. It was first used as a medical diet, and researchers later discovered that it may also be beneficial for weight loss.
The keto diet is a metabolic approach that aims to force the body into using a different type of fuel. Instead of relying on sugar (glucose) from carbohydrates, the keto diet relies on ketone bodies, a type of fuel that the liver produces from stored fat. This metabolic state is called ketosis.
Ketosis is achieved by drastically reducing carbohydrate intake and replacing it with fat. This typically involves limiting carb consumption to around 20 to 50 grams per day, with fat comprising 65-90% of daily calories. The high-fat requirement means that followers must eat fat at every meal, including healthy unsaturated fats like nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, and olive oil, as well as saturated fats from oils, lard, butter, and cocoa butter.
While the keto diet has been shown to aid weight loss, it is not primarily a weight-loss programme. It is a medical diet that carries serious risks and should only be attempted under medical supervision. Some of the potential risks of the keto diet include nutrient deficiency, liver problems, kidney problems, constipation, and fuzzy thinking or mood swings.
The keto diet is not meant to be a long-term dietary change for weight loss. It is meant to be a short-term change to jump-start weight reduction. Once an individual resumes a normal diet, the weight is likely to return. Therefore, the keto diet was not created as a weight-loss programme but rather as a medical intervention with potential weight-loss benefits.
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Frequently asked questions
The Atkins diet is a low-carb, high-fat diet that was introduced in 1972 by a cardiologist named Robert Atkins. The original version of the diet (now called Atkins 20) is still the most popular and is broken down into four phases, which are based on your daily allowance of net carbs.
The keto diet, or ketogenic diet, is a very low-carb, moderate protein, high-fat diet plan. The goal of the keto diet is to get your body into a metabolic state of ketosis, where it uses fat instead of sugar from carbs as its main energy source.
The Atkins diet and the keto diet are both low-carb diets that may aid weight loss and improve overall health. The Atkins diet is less restrictive than the keto diet, as it gradually increases carb intake and allows for a wider variety of foods. The keto diet, on the other hand, keeps carb intake very low to maintain ketosis. While there is overlap between the two diets, it is important to speak to a doctor or dietitian before combining them with keto pills or making any drastic changes to your diet.