What is low carb?
We’ve all heard about the Atkins diet either good or bad, low carb eating is a weight loss program popularized by diet plans like Atkins, The Zone and South Beach Diet to name a few.
They all have the same basic premise, lower carbs eating will result in weight loss and help to make you healthier. Some studies have even found that eating from low carbohydrate menus may actually help to raise your good cholesterol.
If you decide that a lower carb way of life is for you, you are allowed to eat:
Tags: Atkins Diet Plan, carbohydrate, low carb foods, protein, Weight Loss ProgramsAtkins Diet Plan, carbohydrate, low carb foods, protein, Weight Loss Programs
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June 28 2008 | weightlossprograms.servicesite9.com | No Comments »
The Atkins diet Plan breakfast can usually composed of eggs strips of bacon and coffee. A snack might include coffee with cream, and chunks of cheese. A huge steak fried in butter could be dinner. Doesn’t this sound really good? It seems very tempting but there is a catch.
In the beginning you will have to give up most carbs, such as breads, potatoes, pasta, rice and other things like chocolate, cake, some fruits. In theory, when carbs are eliminated from the diet, the body burns stored fat. Weight loss is quicker because fat burns more calories than carbs.
Stable blood sugar levels help you to feel fuller thereby damping your appetite. The Induction is the first phase of the Atkins diet, which you follow for at least two weeks. Only 20 grams of carbs a day, but you can eat lots of red meat, chicken, fish, eggs cream and butter. That you want.
During this phase, your body learns to burn fat and not carbs. The ongoing weight loss phase is the second stage. Add 5 grams of carbs a day until you get to your critical carbohydrate level for losing weight. How many carbs can YOU eat and still lose between 1 and 3 pounds a week? Bread, pasta rice and potatoes are still taboo.
The pre-maintenance or third phase is started when you have only 5-10 pounds left to lose in order to reach your goal weight. Yes! Now you get to add 10 grams a day for one week, to your carb intake, to help your body adjust to the addition of carbs to your diet, and to the final phase of the diet.
Lifetime maintenance, phase 4, teaches you ways to stay motivated. Your carb intake is limited to 90 grams in a day. You will be eating low carbs for the rest of your life. Some doctors have expressed concern about the long tern effects of the Atkins and other low carb plans.
High saturated fat consumption may cause an increased risk of heart disease. The lack of certain nutrients in this diet could cause future health problems. The limited intake of calcium could possibly put you at risk for Osteoporosis. The low antioxidant nutrients could lead to cancer, heart disease and premature aging.
The Atkins diet is boring in the Induction phase. Vegetarians have a hard time with Atkins, particularly in the early stages, due to the limited amount of vegetables, nuts seeds and beans. The Atkins diet presents an image of good health from a proper diet. Some are concerned that once you go off the diet the weight comes back quickly.
The very low carbs in this diet could cause ketosis which can be dangerous for diabetics. The high cholesterol of this diet may cause constipation and heart disease because of the high fat content. This diet, low in fruits and veggies is consequently low in antioxidants that fight cancer. The Atkins plan is that it’s not intended for long term use and has serious side effects.
The Atkins Plan works, it is that simple. Weight loss is rapid and you can eat as much protein and fat, as you would like. The carbs eliminated by the Atkins diet can cause a loss of antioxidants which are known to prevent some cancers.
This high fat, high protein diet can increase the risk of elevated cholesterol and heart disease. This Diet really works, although some believe you can’t stay on it long term. If you go off the diet or cheat , you will begin to re-gain the weight. Once you start eating a more normal diet the initial weight loss will return.
As with any diet check with a physician-to make sure you are healthy to begin with. The Atkins diet, some believe, is not for long term use and that it poses some serous health risks. If you are overweight, you are already at risk for heart disease and other health problems, and Atkins could increase those risks.
About the Author
Martin Smith is a successful freelance writer providing advice on a variety of subjects. For more information on
Atkins diet plan or
Low carb diet plans, drop by the website. His numerous articles provide a wonderfully researched resource of interesting and relevant information.
Tags: Atkins Diet Plan, carbohydrate, low carb foods, protein, Weight Loss ProgramsAtkins Diet Plan, carbohydrate, low carb foods, protein, Weight Loss ProgramsShare This
June 06 2008 | weightlossprograms.servicesite9.com | No Comments »
There is a low carb version of almost every food on the supermarket shelves nowadays. There is low carb ketchup, salad dressings, and even low carb beer!
Is the carbohydrate content of our diet responsible for our size and our weight? I have two answers… yes and no. Stick with me, it gets crazy here.
The low carb option in weight loss dieting continues to gain popularity. It seems like we are saying that carbohydrates are the reason we become overweight. Far from it.
Carbohydrates are not the cause of our weigh problem
Carbohydrates are a part of all the foods that nature prepares for us - nuts and grains, fruits, and vegetables. If you get the idea that I am saying it was not originally intended for humans to eat meat, you are right.
I’m assuming you can follow my premise that humans came about according to the Creationists’ view of origins. I hope you’re comfortable with this. Grab a cool drink and try to relax in case this gets a bit hot for you. (And by the way, watch the carbohydrate content of the drink!)
According to the Genesis account, there was no sin in the beginning, no animal got hurt, no animal died. So there was no beef, chicken, nor pork on the plates. In fact, the instruction was, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food (Genesis 1 verse 29).”
You and I were designed to eat carbohydrates… and lots of it, too. And since that was perfect for our health then, it should still be great for us today. But that’s only half the story.
But we made smart carbohydrates, and a disaster…
We invented machines and processes that refine our food. We can even extract and preserve the nutrients from these foods, make them into pills and punches that are easy to carry around.
Why eat an orange when we can drink the juice from a bottle of a cute box? Hey, we can even make vitamin C tablets. After all, it’s the vitamins we are after, we don’t need to eat the orange and let the juice run down our cheeks and soil our clothes.
We can make low carbohydrate content foods too. We want to be able to drive all day or sit on our couches. It’s the 21st Century, we don’t need to walk anymore. Drive. Fly. Use the computer - we don’t have to move. So…
Who needs all that carbohydrate in our food? Sugar tastes good anyway, so we add it to peanuts, cakes, even to our meat. You can hardly find anything without sugar.
The no-so-sweet truth
It’s not the carbohydrate that is to blame for our problem of being overweight, it’s our lifestyle. It seems we have decreased our level of physical activity, altered the natural quality of the food prepared for us by nature, and are taking in more calories that we need (or can use.)
It’s not just one factor that is at the root of our problem of being overweight. It is all the habits and practices that constitute our lifestyle.
So don’t blame the carbs. There is no need to switch to low carb diets. We just need to do simple things like, having a good breakfast, avoid snacking (avoid acid reflux problems too), eat complex carbohydrate and high fiber foods, exercise daily, and get enough rest.
We were designed to function a certain way. If we don’t follow the Manufacturer’s recommendations we wreck the machine through improper operating procedures.
Are you overweight or obese? Don’t blame it on the carbs. Change the habits.
Copyright © 2006 by Bentley Thompson
Bentley writes about lifestyle-related conditions such as diabetes, obesity, high cholesterol, and cardiovascular diseases. He advocates the anti-diabetes diet which he describes on his website. You may visit his website and blog using the following URLs:
http://www.anti-diabetes-diet-supplements.com/ and
http://choosehealthtoday.blogspot.com
Tags: carbohydrate, dieting, low carb, weight losscarbohydrate, dieting, low carb, weight lossShare This
May 31 2008 | weightlossprograms.servicesite9.com | No Comments »
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