Effect of Atkins Diet

[al_yrpal]

With a forthcoming two week cycling tour coming up in June as well as preparing the bike I have been preparing myself by stepping up my rides and going on a diet to lose a bit of weight. In the past I have found that I don't do very well on ordinary diets so with the recent publicity on Atkins and its supposedy beneficial effects on Diabetes (I am type 2 controlled by diet and exercise), I thought I would try it. The Atkins book has been updated by a team of three doctors who specialise in the treatment of diabetes. I am hoping to loose about a stone over 10 weeks.

Weight loss seems to be working after the first two and a half weeks. Urine test strips confirm that Ketone levels are moderate confirming that fat buring is under way and I appear to have lost about 4 pounds. But I have a problem because I feel really knackered after a 20 mile training ride with aching legs in particular. I have never experienced this level of fatigue before. I intend to build up the training runs until I am comfortable with the 50 mile per day we expect to do on our tour, but because of the fatigue I am not progressing with fitness training as fast as I had hoped .

On the diet you are supposed to restrict carbohydrates so I am eating no bread rice pasta or potatoes. I just consume meat, cheese, eggs, fish, oils and fats alongside moderate portions of salad and low carb vegetables. Breakfast is egg, bacon and low carb bangers every day instead of the bowl of sawdust and a banana that I used to have! The Atkins theory is that your body switches from burning carbs to your reserves of fat and that what you eat is more satisfying, thus reducing the inclination to sneak in fat building snacks. On this latter point the diet certainly works well and I do not raid the fridge and eat forbidden things any more.

But.... I have visions of cycling snacks that are so common with Tour riders constantly nibbling away on carbohydrate rich energy bars and consuming isotonic drinks. Is the reason I am feeling so spent because I am not getting these short term energy boosts?

Anyone got any experience?

Al

[meic]

My totally prejudiced decision from a person with no qualifications in the subject is, dont have anything to do with the Atkin's diet.

Rapid weight loss in generally a bad idea and seldom shows any long term benefit.

I cant justify my ideas and would not comment if you hadnt asked but as you have asked, my personal opinion is that that diet is detrimental to anybodies health.

Restricting carbohydrates to encourage the body to burn off its fat reserves is rather undermined by the fact you are consuming lots of new fat.

[531colin]

Al
Your legs are telling you the answer to this one, aren't they?

[gbnz]

. I am hoping to loose about a stone over 10 weeks.....eat forbidden things any more.

I'd drop the Atkins diet and any other diet you may be tempted to go on. Good nutrition and gaining and loosing weight are all simple physiological processes. Study a guide to the basic building blocks of nutrition I.e. Anita Beans, Complete guide to sports nutrition, which provides some basic information on the requirements of the human body for calories, protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals etc, etc, etc

Though have to admit I always have a weight problem at this time of year- seven weeks of sunshine and cycling and I've already dropped 4 kilo's. I must remember to eat more at each and every meal. Second bowl of porridge on it's way!

[MikewsMITH2]

On the diet you are supposed to restrict carbohydrates

The problem with this is that most people feel lousy if they can't have carbs. A stone in 10 weeks is a modest objective. On most diets you will lose several pounds during the first week - I lost 8 pounds! - and 1 to 2 pounds per week thereafter. I went to Slimming World and lost 4 stone in 6 months. By keeping up regular exercise I have been able to keep the weight off, without going back. I also think that the SW programme got me in to better dietary habits. The reason why slimming clubs work for most people and diet books don't, is that you get weighed every week and you can't kid yourself it's working if the numbers in your book aren't reducing week by week. Also there is peer support and accountability and if it's not working you can get advice. SW have 2 or 3 diffferent programmes you can follow. One is low carb, another is primarly veggie and the other "extra easy" is a combination. They all seem to work well.

But.... I have visions of cycling snacks that are so common with Tour riders constantly nibbling away on carbohydrate rich energy bars and consuming isotonic drinks.

The reality is that some people seem to be able to eat a lot more than the rest of us and remain skinny. However during my weight loss campaign I found I still needed to eat on longer rides to keep me fuelled up. I had a nasty "bonk" after doing about 60 miles without eating anything. On a long ride you burn several hundreds of calories, so a couple of cereal bars and a banana or two won't damage your weight loss.

Good luck. It's well worth it!

[Gearoidmuar]

I tried it years ago and did lose weight, but I had to eat carbohydrate before and during my cycling. It's a diet which works but it's VERY boring. It does not work as Atkins thought, but later research showed that the way it does work is through the very hunger-suppressive effect of protein. Because of this you just eat fewer calories

My advice if you want to lose weight is the following. This demands discipline.
1. Get a notebook and write down EVERYTHING you eat and drink. Eat NO processed food.
2. Tie a string around your waist, not at trouser level but at bellybutton level. This will tell you if you're overeating. Tighten it a little every few days.
3. Drink plenty water. This helps to suppress hunger (which is often thirst, in fact).
4. Watch the booze, especially beer. It's fattening.
5. Do not eat chips, cake, biscuits, puddings, anything with added sugar.

[goatwarden]

My sentiments and qualification to comment are similar to meic above. My limited understanding of research into why people lose weight with Atkins is that, by cutting out carbs, you present your body with food which it can only absorb a small proportion of the nutrients available so the net effect is your calorific intake is reduced.

To my mind it is much healthier to eat a normal diet in moderation to achieve the same result. The more you exercise, the more carbs you can eat! My wife can regularly be heard screaming at the telly " eat less, move around more!" when watching heart rending stories about children whose life is meaningless because they are overweight and want surgery.

Personally I get quite light headed sometimes whilst riding and relieve this by eating something sugary (favourites are Crunchy bar or Asda dried cranberries- which appear to be mostly pineaple syrup.)

[GrahamNR17]

My observations having had to share a lab with someone on the Atkins. For the first month or so:

Extremely bad breath
Constipation
Thunderous headaches
Bad moods

From thereon it settled, and weight loss continued. He still smelled funny though.

[rohai545]

There are not many active people and even fewer athletes on the Atkins Diet, if any, who subsist on this diet, and that's probably for very good reasons?

Have you spoken to a health professional about the glycaemic index (GI) of foods in your diet? The presence of diabetes makes it a bit more complicated to give 'simple' advice on this type of forum.

Krish

[Jonty]

In your position I would take the advice of my doctor and try and get a second medical opinion. I think diets are a load of nonsense for most people - all you have to do is to eat a bit less and exercise a bit more.
However this will probably not apply to you as you have an existing and potentially serious medical condition. If you're washed out I think it may be worthwhile having more modest cycling aspirations and not putting your system under too much strain.
I appreciate however that this could be a difficult decision to make if you've set your heart on it.
jonty

[gilesjuk]

Atkins = diet for lazy people.

If you're into exercise then low carbs is a bad idea, they fuel your exercise.

Also, having a bit of meat on your bones will help on the cycle tour. It's like carrying a reserve supply of energy.

[kevinp]

Rather than diet try a healthy eating plan, this will contain everything you need to stay fit and healthy and do your training. I lost my weight 10 stone by following the Weight Watchers plan, yes people do find it odd to convert food to points but it works and if you follow the plan you will lose weight, this is my blog if you are interested

http://myweightloss-kev.blogspot.com/

Remember the problem with a diet is that it has a start and a finish, most follow this to the letter then put the weight back on when they have finished their diet. What you need to do is change the way you eat and feel about food, rather than some fad diet.

[Si]

Yes, what Kevinp said. The assumption that you can diet, lose weight and then return to your 'normal' life is one that commonly sees dieters weighing more than when they started the diet. It is very noticeable, when looking at these diet plans, that so few offer any real suport to those who have reached their target weights. The diet industry, for the most part, thrives on yo-yo dieters; it has a vested interest in people putting the weight back on again.

[thirdcrank]

I'd just support everything that others have said. Losing weight for healthy people is gradually burning off more calories than you consume.

I've probably mentioned on here that in the 1970's and after having two children, my wife tried several diets including a high protein one. She ended up with gallstones which went undiagnosed for a long time because she was not fair, fat and forty, but rather, dark-haired, slim (not needing to diet IMO) and only 30. It was a nightmare which lasted several agony-filled years.

It's a bit like Mr Micawber but instead of only spending 19/6d in the £ to achieve happiness, you need to burn off £1-0s-6d in old money, or rather in K calories.

( This is why, having spent part of last year with a pot on my leg and only slowly getting full movement back in my ankle, I'm expanding round the middle. )

[MikewsMITH2]

The diet industry, for the most part, thrives on yo-yo dieters; it has a vested interest in people putting the weight back on again.

I would disagree with this. My experience with Slimming World and my wife's with Weightwatchers is that they want you to stay in when you've reached your target weight so that you keep it off as a motivator to other members and an advert for them. The group leaders are very passionate and supportive. It does them no good if people go around saying "I lost it but I put it all back on again". The problem is that most of us regard being overweight as a "one time" issue that can be cured and once we've lost weight, we think "I'm normal now and I can eat like everyone else.". Reality is, if you've got a weight problem it doesn't go away, its an eating disorder, you have to watch what you eat for the rest of your life and keep up the exercise plan. It doesn't seem fair but that's they way it is. I stopped going because I didn't want a weekly visit to a slimming club to become a way of life for me.

The advice to "eat sensibly" is fatuous because the medical authorities keep changing their minds about what a healthy diet is. Now I just try to avoid obviously hi energy fatty or sugary foods, pastry, chips, cakes and sweets, moderate the booze and get out on the bike as often as I can. The other "big thing" is quite obvious and is the basis of the "fat pig" diet. This is reduced portion size; one piece of toast, half as many spuds, one sausage not two etc. Most overweight people just eat too much...for them. What is right for one person my be too much for others, depending on lifestyle and genetics.