Curious: can anyone on Atkins post their cholesterol levels, too? I've heard from everyone that Atkins keeps it down, but I've heard no one with any test results to show that it helped them or kept it at normal levels.

I will keep you posted. Although I have a feeling I'll cheat while in Vietnam. I may need to start over in March. I have to eat wedding cake, etc.

You can find hundreds of people posting their before and after Atkins cholesterol numbers on the buletin board at...

http://www.low-carb-friends.com

YEAH....it's the caffeine.....hang in there it stops in 3-4 days......you might get a sore throat too. tough it out, it gets a lot easier.....

Yea, what he said. You'll feel crappy and weak for a few days and then you'll spring back and have tons of energy. You may have trouble having the "full" feeling when you eat. But it returns in about the same amount of time.

Two Week Progress Report

After 2 weeks I've lost 10 lbs and I'm going to extend my induction so hopefully I'll keep up the 5 lb/week pace. :)

Apparently, folks on Atkins should watch their fat intake.

Actually the article is false. Here's a letter I just got from Atkins.

Here's the text from the link at the Atkins website...


Atkins Has Not Changed

"Make That Steak a Bit Smaller, Atkins Advises Today's Dieters," published in the January 18th edition of The New York Times--and the subsequent publicity--is yet another dramatically inappropriate example of the media reporting on the media and perpetuating a false report on Atkins. This is a great disservice to the millions upon millions of Atkins followers who have been benefiting from this nutritional approach for more than 30 years. The accusation in the media, which claims that Atkins is retreating from its long-held position on the consumption of fat is simply wrong. It is a false premise created by members of the media themselves, based on input from "experts" who apparently have neither read any of Dr. Atkins' books, nor even casually browsed this Web site.

Atkins has not changed. The basic tenets of the Atkins Nutritional Approach™ (ANA), consistent since 1972, are to control the intake of carbohydrates, avoid refined carbs (like sugar and white flour), eat a balance of fats (including saturated fat but not trans fats) and consume a variety of protein sources, such as red meat, fish, poultry and tofu. Saturated fat remains a valuable part of the ANA. There is absolutely no scientific research to support any claims that eating red meat and saturated fat as part of your Atkins program is anything other then beneficial. These protocols have been consistently reinforced as safe, effective and beneficial and have been further supported by 17 studies released over the last three years.

Equally as important, and terribly troubling to all of us at Atkins, is the attempt once again by critics of Atkins to ignore fact, science and the clear messages stated in Dr. Atkins' own words over the past 32 years, in order to sensationalize the ANA as the "all-the-steak-you-can-eat" approach to weight loss and good health. This has never been true and the millions of individuals doing Atkins, along with the health care professionals who have read Dr. Atkins' books, clearly understand this. We would urge anyone who is confused, including the media to simply read Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution, Atkins For Life or The Atkins Essentials, or review this site, rather than interpret Atkins on the basis of sensational reports manufactured on hearsay and mischaracterization.

Even in the original 1972 edition of Dr. Atkins' Diet Revolution, Dr. Atkins explained, "fat allows for enormous variety in your diet; that vital and best of all, it keeps you from feeling deprived. Of course, you aren't confined to steak, you can have almost any kind of meat, fish or fowl." He continued, "One of the biggest reasons this diet works so successfully is because you eat protein and fat…."

Dr. Atkins made no secret of the fact that his methodology evolved over time as scientific discoveries added new and useful information. He rewrote his original 1972 book three times, exactly because he felt it was his responsibility to keep people up to date when it came to the most recent and relevant information on controlled carbohydrate nutrition and health. In the 2002 edition of Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution, he wrote, "Eat either three regular-size meals a day or four to five smaller meals. Eat liberally of combinations of fat and protein in the form of poultry, fish, shellfish, eggs and red meat, as well as of pure, natural fat in the form of butter, mayonnaise, olive oil, safflower, sunflower and other vegetable oils. Adjust the quantity you eat to suit your appetite, especially as it decreases. When hungry, eat the amount that makes your feel satisfied but not stuffed…."

By providing individuals doing Atkins with a life-long strategy, including exercise and meal plans (at various carb thresholds) incorporating a wide range of foods, as explained in Atkins for Life, Dr. Atkins believed he would finally put to rest the misconception that his approach was based on eating only red meat. His simple goal was that people would come to understand how to incorporate his controlled carbohydrate nutritional approach as the first step in gaining control of their nutritionally out-of-control lives.

Millions of individuals who benefit from doing Atkins understand that the ANA is a very effective four-phase approach to healthy eating. The ANA focuses on moving people away from diets loaded with refined carbohydrates like sugar and white flour to a lifestyle centered around eating whole foods and nutrient-dense carbohydrates like leafy greens, and finding a balance in the consumption of proteins and fat.

I'm back in Atkins. This time I bought the book and going to follow it more closely. Also I'm trying to get some exercise.

I'm going to take a lot of heat for this, but dammit, I have to rant. Its been a bad day already and The American Dream that sits across from me has been going on all day about the miracles of Atkins, but can't understand why his cardiologist visits are up due to chest pains.

I've reached my tolerance level -- Atkins is no longer a diet, its a freakin' cult. Every restaurant, even the fast foodieries, now has an Atkins menu. This form of diet comes and goes about every 15 years and the current revision isn't even what Atkins himself designed. And while the man himself died from a knock to the head, he was not just fat, but obese. But his heart problems were caused by a virus -- it had nothing to do with all the fat. Yeah.

How about this diet: stop eating so much and get some exercise. Why do so few people not consider that they should be eating portions equivalent to their activity levels? Sit at the office all day? Try not eating full portions. Everywhere you go, the poritions have increased in size and the activity level of the population has dropped. Remember the "complete breakfast" that was drilled into you as a kid that consisted a bowl of cereal, three pieces of toast, a glass of juice, and a glass of milk? That works only if you actually plan to do some physical activity during your day.

In the next year the billboards at McDonald's and Bennigan's will change their lettering, anyways, to read "South Beach Menu Here!" Atkins is a fad goes insane -- people now treat it as a permission to consume as much meat and chese and fat as they want.

I've been planning a thread about the Atkins bandwagon for a while...just haven't gotten to it yet. Based on what I've seen and read:

--There are real scientific short-term studies that show Atkins to be beneficial, when calories are limited to 1600-2000 a day.
--There are no long-term studies that show the effects of Atkins.
--When this was mentioned to Atkins, he said the government should pay for one.
--This diet has been around for 30 years...why is everyone trying to get in on it now?
--The issues surrounding Dr. Atkins's health before his death should most certainly be reviewed further.
--This is a fad that will eventually pass...b/c in the end, people love their carbs too much.

Why, in your opinion, is Atkins any more of a cult than the "lite" "low-Cal" diet it replaced? Why the hostility? Who gives a shit?

People who are looking to lose weight and wonder if this diet is truly legitimate or not.