The Atkins Diet has certainly had its critics in the past, but that all looks set to change. According to wellness expert Shannon Clark, ‘The popular “Atkins Diet” used to be known by many as the steak and eggs diet, where you basically ate as much protein and fat as your body could handle while disregarding carbohydrates from your diet and overlooking where your fat was coming from…The problem however that came about as a result of this diet, was that many people started worrying about their overall health, particularly with respect to heart disease and high blood pressure…So now, Atkins has revitalised their approach. They are no longer just focusing on foods that are high in protein and fat, but are taking a more well rounded approach to their diet guidelines and touting the importance of healthy carbohydrates and fats combined with protein.’
The diet is still composed of four different phases, but let’s take a look at each one in a little more detail:
Phase One: ‘The first phase starts you out with a total of only 20 net grams of carbohydrates per day, coming from vegetable sources,’ notes Clark. ‘The rules of this phase are basically to include a protein and fat with each meal and keep carbohydrates to the minimum of 20 grams. You are encouraged to drink a lot of water and to really read labels and be on the lookout for “hidden carbohydrates”. Generally this phase is followed for about two weeks.’
Phase Two: Clark points out, ‘The second phase of the diet is very similar to the first, also emphasizing weight loss, except that now you are going to add five grams of net carbohydrates per week to your diet until you have only five to 10 more pounds that you want to lose. The real purpose of this phase is to learn your body’s tolerance to carbohydrates and how many and the type you can have while still being successful at weight loss. The diet does advise that you should be adding low glycaemic carbohydrates, such as more vegetables, berries, nuts and cheese to your diet as you gradually increase the total carb count. Additionally, they state that if you are an avid exerciser, it is a good idea to bring it up to 60-90 grams of carbs per day as your body will need it to maintain the intensity of your workouts.’
Phase Three: ‘Otherwise known as pre-maintenance, this stage of the diet is designed to help you learn how you are going to have to eat in order to be able to maintain your weight loss in the future,’ Clark explains. ‘They instruct you in this stage to start upping your carbohydrate intake by 10 grams a week, rather than the five grams per week you did in phase two. You will keep doing this until your weight loss has stopped and you are now maintaining your weight, or are losing at a very slow weight. This would then be considered your maintenance level carbohydrate intake (called Atkins Carbohydrate Equilibrium – ACE). They recommend you adding a wider variety of carbohydrates to your diet at this point.’
Phase Four:Clark details, ‘Finally you complete this diet with stage four, maintenance. At this stage the new Atkins emphases an altered food pyramid than what is set as the standards. Whereas the normal food pyramid has grain products at the bottom, the Atkins has the meat and alternatives group there. Then next you have your vegetables group, followed by the fruit group, then by the oils, dairy and nuts group and lastly you have your grains group – this being the smallest and what you should choose least often.’
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