Atkins Diet or known as Atkins Nutritional Approach is a low-carbohydrate diet created by Robert Atkins. It mainly involves the small consumption of carbohydrates to trigger the body’s metabolism from metabolizing glucose as energy, hence turning fats into energy. This process is called ketosis. PhenQ reviews also suggest that you use the supplement to boost your metabolism further to quickly lose weight.
Like the Caveman Diet, the Atkins Diet is a high-protein, high fat but low carbohydrate eating program. It allows simple meat dishes, cheese, and eggs while limiting carbs that include sugar, bread, pasta, milk, fruits, and vegetables. So if you are looking for a fad diet, Atkins’s diet is ideal for you.
According to the latest form of this type of diet, it is now all about eating healthy and delicious foods. This can be any food that you like such as protein-rich foods, fruits, nuts, vegetables, and whole grains foods. The theory about ketosis is simple, burning glucose thru the reduction of carbohydrates-rich foods helps produce insulin. Insulin is responsible for an increase in weight gain, hunger, and food cravings. In this process, the body’s stored fat will be converted into energy, which leads to weight loss.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Atkins Diet
Over the years, Atkins’s diet plan has been re-written several times just to achieve the most nutritionally balanced diet program. Today’s new version of the Atkins diet is focused on diversifying its food sources and taking out some dietary fats in its menu. However, monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats are not emphasized with regard to saturated and trans fats. Foods high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals with a sufficient amount of protein will help your body in full.
Although this type of diet was never been fully researched, the Atkins diet receives a few commendations from different health firms stating that it can help improve the health status of an individual and not just in the weight issues department. It is reported that this diet helps improve blood cholesterol and blood sugar levels as well as increased weight loss.
However, the loss of weight is not sustained at a longer period of time and the previous successes are linked to weight loss itself and not to the diet. This makes the Atkins diet to be more inconclusive compared to other weight loss diet programs. This high protein, low carb eating regimen is not highly recommended as others are saying pertaining to the Atkins diet.
The process of the Atkins diet
The processes or phases of Atkins’s diet are simple and is divided into four stages. Atkins diet is centered on the induction process which commonly lasts for two weeks and is restricted in the carbohydrate-rich diet. An average of 20 grams of carbohydrates is required each day for two weeks. It includes foods such as bread, fruits, dairy foods, and vegetables in very limited servings (approximately 15 to 20 grams respectively).
However, the induction phase can also be applied in a prolonged period as long as you are getting positive results (meaning you are losing weight). But there are some health requirements along the way as this type of diet regimen is very difficult to follow, not to mention its health risks. Some of the factors that need to be monitored while doing the Atkins diet are:
- blood chemistry status
- sleep patterns and mood swings
- self-examination (physical and emotional conditions)
- blood pressure level (does it spike your hypertension?)
- blood sugar levels (is it normal during the entire diet course?)
Because of these requirements, Atkins’s diet is much better if under medical supervision or under the supervision of dietitians and fitness experts. This diet is perfect for those people who want to lose weight fast. But if you want a long-lasting result, then you need to incorporate more ways to stay in shape that includes regular workout and carb blocker supplements.
