LesAtkins.com

Drinking the Sugar-Free Kool-Aid

I have seen it all over the place. In the grocery store, the drug store, on the billboard and in the gas station. My name seems to be up in lights! Unfortunately, the name “Atkins” is not celebrated because of me (yet).

The Atkins diet has been around for some time now and like many “diets” it has had fluctuating levels of popularity. I have met some people who swear by it and I have met others who said that it was just another one of those shim-sham diets that didn’t work. Yes I know that there are skeptics for everything and, yes, I know that Dr. Robert Atkins (not related to me) was reportedly obese when he died, but that does not mean the diet does not work. Overall I had heard pretty good things about the Atkins diet and I could not think of a more appropriately named diet for me.
I have discovered that my mid-section had become…well…larger than it should be so I decided to do something about it. I started the diet about two and a half weeks ago and I must say that I am impressed with the results thus far. I lost about 10 lbs. after two weeks! I am rarely hungry because I am eating all the time (it seems that way anyway). I just don’t eat many carbs. During the initial stages of the diet you are supposed to consume no more than 20 grams of carbs per day. I got a little gung-ho about it and have made it a goal to get as close to 0 grams per day as possible. So far I am doing pretty well. I eat a lot of meat, eggs, and cheese (specially selected). The idea of eating all of that stuff seemed a bit unhealthy, but I did more reading about this diet and found that despite all of the cholesterol intake my personal cholesterol count would actually go down.

What many people seem to misunderstand about the Atkins diet is the “0 carb” period. Many people that I have talked to have had the idea that the Atkins diet requires one to have no carbs…forever. This is not the case, of course. That would indeed be unhealthy During the initial two weeks (some go longer of their own choice) one is to keep a really low carb count (less then 20). After that period, when the dieter has seen some good results for their efforts and has reach their desired weight, Atkins encourages the dieter to slowly increase their carb intake and maintain a healthy diet.So far I have lost just over ten pounds and I am very happy about. I have a way to go before I reach my desired weight, but I know that I will get there before long.

I have also started going to the gym during my lunch breaks. My company offers its employees a free membership to Gold’s Gym. A number of my co-workers as well as my management go to the gym at lunch so we all ride together to get there. It is nice to have not only the support at home, but also the support at the office. Since I have started working out and exercising I feel better than I have felt in years.

Wish me luck. I will update you on my progress.

For more information about the Atkins diet visit their website at www.atkins.com.