Popular Diets Reviewed: The New Atkins Revolution

Pre-Maintenance
Once you’re within 10 pounds of your weight goal you will gradually increase your carbohydrate intake by 10 grams every week until weight loss slows down to less than one pound per week. Continue at this level until you reach your goal and maintain it for one month. This carbohydrate amount is considered your Atkins Carbohydrate Equilibrium.

Lifetime Maintenance
Once you’ve reached and maintained your goal weight you move onto lifetime maintenance. According to the diet, if you continue to keep your carbohydrate consumption at your Atkins Carbohydrate Equilibrium you will be able to stay within 5 pounds of your goal weight. The biggest different that I’ve noticed between this phase and pre-maintenance is that the diet encourages the use of the many Atkins bars and shakes during this phase.

My Thoughts
As I mentioned above, I am not a fan of the Atkins Diet and after further review of it’s principles I still feel the same. This diet is low in fruits, vegetables and whole grains. The diet does not encourage low fat protein sources and does not differentiate between healthy and unhealthy fats, except to discourage transfat. However, saturated fats like poultry skin and butter are allowed in unlimited amounts. These principles go against the recommendations for cancer prevention as well overall good health.

While carbohydrate intake varies with each person, it can be as low as 40 grams per day in the maintenance phase, which is still lower than most health experts recommend. Carbohydrates are vital for bodily functions. They are needed for breathing, maintaining body temperature, as well as for the contraction and relaxation of the heart and other muscles.

It is generally recommended that carbohydrates provide about 50 to 60 percent of your daily calories. For someone on a 2,000 calorie diet that means 250 grams per day. Consider that a 2,000 calorie diet is high for someone who is trying to lose weight, even someone on a diet as low as 1,200 calories should have at least 150 grams of carbohydrates per day.

*Grade: D. This diet does not meet accepted standards for a healthy diet. It does not include all of the food groups and does not differentiate between healthy and unhealthy proteins and fats.

* Popular Diet Rating System

A: This diet meets accepted standards for a healthy well-balanced diet. It recommends food from all food groups with an emphasis on healthy choices within each food group.
B:This diet meets most accepted standards for a healthy well-balanced diet. It emphasizes healthy foods but does not include food from all food groups.
C: This diet only meets some accepted standards for a healthy well-balanced diet. It does not differentiate between food choices in each food group and therefore does not emphasize healthy foods.
D: This diet does only meets one or two accepted standards for a healthy well-balanced diet.
F: This diet does not meet any accepted standards for a healthy well-balanced diet. It does not differentiate between healthy foods and unhealthy foods and/or does not meet caloric needs.