The Ultimate Atkins Diet Plan: Your Guide To Success

The Atkins diet is a low-carbohydrate, high-fat, and high-protein diet. It was created by cardiologist Robert Atkins in the 1970s and gained popularity in the early 2000s. The diet focuses on restricting carbs and eating mostly fat and protein to burn body fat instead of carbs for energy, resulting in weight loss and a shift in metabolism. The standard Atkins diet is split into four phases, starting with a strict induction phase of under 20 grams of carbs per day and progressing to a maintenance phase where individuals can eat as many healthy carbs as their body can tolerate without regaining weight. There is also a newer version of the diet called Atkins 40, which has more relaxed rules and allows for a wider variety of food choices. While the Atkins diet can be effective for weight loss, there are some concerns about its potential long-term effects on health, such as an increased risk of heart disease and cancer.

Atkins 20 vs Atkins 40

Atkins 20 and Atkins 40 are two different plans under the Atkins Diet, a leading low-carb weight loss plan. The Atkins Diet is designed to flip the body's metabolic switch from burning carbs to burning fat. The main difference between the two plans is the number of net carbs one can consume per day.

Atkins 20

The Atkins 20 plan is the original approach for weight loss and is typically best for those who have over 40 pounds to lose or are diabetic. It involves starting with 20 net carbs a day with 12-15 net carbs coming from foundation vegetables. You can eat three meals and two snacks a day, and three 4-6 ounce servings of lean protein. As you approach your goal weight, you can increase your net carbs in 5-gram increments per week.

Atkins 40

The Atkins 40 plan offers more flexibility and a wider variety of food choices from the first day of your diet. It is perfect for those who have less than 40 pounds to lose. It involves eating 40 net carbs a day with 12-15 net carbs coming from foundation vegetables. You can eat three meals and two snacks per day, and three 4-6 ounce servings of lean protein. As you approach your weight loss goals, you can increase your net carbs in 10-gram increments each week.

General Tips for Following the Atkins Diet

• The Atkins Diet focuses on limited carbohydrates to help the body burn fat instead of sugar for fuel, contributing to higher and more consistent energy levels throughout the day.
• The average person can expect to lose 1-2 lbs per week. However, weight loss is influenced by exercise, food consumed, and diet.
• Net carbs reflect the grams of carbohydrates that significantly impact your blood sugar level. When on the Atkins diet, you'll need to calculate net carbs by subtracting the fibre content and sugar alcohols from the total carbohydrates.
• It is important to consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new diet plan, especially if you have a medical condition or are taking medication.

What to eat

The Atkins diet is a low-carbohydrate diet, which focuses on eating mostly fat and protein, while restricting carbs. The diet revolves around the idea of burning body fat instead of carbs for energy, resulting in a shift in your metabolism.

There are four phases to the standard Atkins diet, also called Atkins 20. The first phase involves eating protein, fat, and only 20 grams of carbs in vegetable form daily. This helps your body switch from burning carbs to burning fat, which is called ketosis. In the second phase, you start adding more nuts, low-carb vegetables, and small amounts of fruit to your diet. In the third phase, you continue to add more carbs to your diet until your weight loss slows down. The fourth and final phase is the maintenance phase, where you continue to eat in this way for the rest of your life to ensure that you don't regain the weight.

There is a newer version of the Atkins diet called Atkins 40, which has more relaxed rules. This plan allows you to start with 40 grams of carbs in your daily diet and doesn't exclude any food groups at first.

Proteins

• Seafood (fish and shellfish)
• Poultry (chicken, turkey, duck, pheasant)
• Beef, buffalo, lamb, elk, venison, etc.
• Bacon, sausage, deli meat (avoid fillers, added sugar, MSG, sulfites, and nitrates when possible)
• Eggs
• Quinoa
• Soy or beans (for vegetarians and vegans)

Fats

• High oleic safflower oil
• Salad dressings (no added sugar)
• Avocados
• Avocado oil
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Coconut oil
• Butter
• Cheese
• Cream
• Full-fat yoghurt
• Nuts and seeds (almonds, macadamia nuts, walnuts, sunflower seeds)

Carbohydrates

• Foundation vegetables (raw or cooked): alfalfa sprouts, chicory greens, lettuce, turnip greens, button mushrooms, artichoke, collard greens, broccoli rabe, sauerkraut, daikon radish, onions, cucumber, cauliflower, beet greens, Swiss chard, bell peppers, sprouts, mushrooms, squash, pumpkin, garlic
• Fruit: berries, citrus fruits
• Whole grains: brown rice, oatmeal, bulgur, quinoa, teff
• Dairy: almond milk, coconut milk, string cheese, ricotta, Greek yoghurt, heavy cream
• Legumes: beans, lentils

What to avoid

The Atkins diet is a low-carbohydrate diet, which involves restricting carbs while eating mostly fat and protein. The aim is to burn body fat instead of carbs for energy, resulting in a shift in your metabolism.

There are several foods and drinks that should be avoided or limited when following the Atkins diet. These include:

• Sugar: found in soft drinks, fruit juices, cakes, candy, and ice cream.
• Refined grains: white bread, white rice, and white pasta.
• "Diet" and "low-fat" foods: these can be very high in sugar.
• High-carb fruits: bananas, apples, oranges, pears, and grapes (during the induction phase).
• Starchy vegetables: potatoes and sweet potatoes (during the induction phase).
• Legumes: lentils, beans, and chickpeas (during the induction phase).
• Alcohol: it is recommended to refrain from drinking for the first two weeks.

In addition, it is important to be mindful of portion sizes and to choose unprocessed, whole foods whenever possible.

Atkins diet phases

The Atkins diet is a 4-phase plan. Here is a breakdown of each phase:

Phase 1: Induction

This phase is designed to kickstart your weight loss. It involves eating under 20 grams of carbs per day for 2 weeks, focusing on high-fat, high-protein foods, and low-carb vegetables like leafy greens. This phase helps change the way your body uses nutrients, shifting from burning primarily carbs to burning fat. The length of this phase depends on your weight loss goals.

Phase 2: Balancing

In this phase, you slowly add more nuts, low-carb vegetables, and small amounts of fruit back to your diet. You increase your carbohydrate portion size while still losing weight. You can choose from a wide variety of foods, including protein, veggies, pasta, and potatoes.

Phase 3: Fine-Tuning

When you are very close to your goal weight, you can add more carbs to your diet until weight loss slows down. This phase is about understanding your carb tolerance and finding the balance between weight loss and a diet you can maintain.

Phase 4: Maintenance

In the final phase, you can eat as many healthy carbs as your body can tolerate without regaining weight. This is a permanent way of eating that allows for flexibility and a wide variety of food choices.

It is important to note that not all phases may be necessary, and some people choose to skip or modify certain phases based on their individual needs and preferences.

Atkins diet vs keto

The Atkins and keto diets are two of the best-known low-carb diets. They are similar in that they both drastically reduce high-carb foods, including sweets, sugary drinks, breads, grains, fruits, legumes, and potatoes. However, there are some key differences between the two.

The original version of the Atkins diet, now called Atkins 20, is broken down into four phases, based on your daily allowance of net carbs (total carbs minus fibre and sugar alcohols). The introductory phase is the most restrictive, allowing only 20-25 grams of net carbs per day, mostly from nuts, seeds, veggies, and cheese. In the second phase, you can consume 25-50 grams of net carbs, adding in foods like blueberries, cottage cheese, and yogurt. In the third phase, you increase your net carbs to 50-80 grams, and in the fourth and final phase, you can consume 80-100 grams of net carbs per day for ongoing weight maintenance.

The keto, or ketogenic, diet is a very low-carb, moderate-protein, high-fat diet plan. The goal is to get your body into a metabolic state called ketosis, where it uses fat instead of sugar from carbs as its main energy source. To reach and maintain ketosis, most people need to limit their total carb intake to 20-50 grams per day, which typically involves consuming less than 5% of calories from carbs, 10-30% from protein, and 65-90% from fat.

One of the main differences between the two diets is that the Atkins diet gradually increases your carb intake, while it remains very low on the keto diet. This means that the body stays in ketosis on the keto diet, but only enters ketosis during the first and possibly second phases of the Atkins diet. The Atkins diet is therefore less restrictive, allowing for a wider variety of foods, including more fruits and vegetables, and even some grains. It is also more flexible in terms of protein intake, with no limit on the amount of protein that can be consumed, whereas the keto diet restricts protein to 20% of daily calories.

Both diets can lead to weight loss, with some studies showing that low-carb diets like Atkins and keto result in more weight loss than other diet plans. They may also help improve blood sugar regulation and decrease the risk of heart disease. However, the long-term effects of the keto diet are not well known, and it may be more difficult to stick to due to its restrictive nature.

Frequently asked questions