The Atkins diet is a low-carbohydrate diet that was formulated by Dr. Robert Atkins. It is also known as Atkins and Atkins Nutritional Approach. Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution along with other series of books was authored by Dr. Atkins to discuss his concepts and ideas on the diet. Some of the health benefits are better memory and heart functions to name a few.

Dr. Robert Atkins formulated the Atkins diet to solve his own overweight problem. Based on a theory, overweight people ingest more carbohydrates. Since carbohydrates and fat are utilized for energy and carbohydrates are burned first, eating lesser carbohydrates means that body fat is burned in its stead.

The Atkins diet, even though has many success stories for losing weight is primarily for preventing disease, good health and maintaining weight. Further, it has four phases. The first phase is the induction phase wherein you are restricted to having only 20 grams of carbohydrates in a day. Alcoholic and caffeinated drinks and beverages are prohibited in this phase and mostly 4 ounces of meat, cheeses, 3 tablespoons of cream, 2 cups salad vegetables and 1 cup low carbohydrate vegetables is allowed. It has been reported that weight loss often occur at this stage.

The second phase of the Atkins diet is the ongoing weight loss (OWL) phase wherein 5 grams of carbohydrates is added every week to find the critical amount of carbohydrate intake that is essential for losing weight. If 4.5 kilograms or 10 pounds is reached within the target weight then the OWL phase stops.

Pre-maintenance is the phase succeeding the OWL phase where there is an increase in carbohydrate intake so that the amount of carbohydrate intake for maintaining weight is found.

The last phase of the Atkins diet is the lifetime phase. Under this phase, it is assumed that the habits achieved throughout the other phases are maintained so that you will not go back to pre-Atkins habits and weight. This phase values unprocessed food and it is a choice to go back to earlier stages if weight gain is experienced.

There are some people who are for or against the Atkins diet. It is important to see their views before embarking on the diet regimen right away.

Anti-Atkins:

• Atkins is connected with renal disease, heart disease, colon cancer and osteoporosis.
• Since it is a protein diet (mostly meat products) it is not vegetarian-friendly.
• It is a diet low in fiber but high in cholesterol and saturated fats.
• Calcium, potassium and magnesium are below the recommended daily values for the body.

Pro-Atkins:

• Fat and protein can be taken in.
• There is weight loss (steady and rapid).
• Appetite is reduced.
• Sugars and processed grains taken in are lessened.
• Atkins diet is a life-time diet plan.
• You can never be hungry with this diet plan.

The popularity of the Atkins diet was during the years 2003 and 2004. Statistics also showed that for every 11 adults, 1 was on the Atkins diet in the peak of its popularity. But with Atkins gaining popularity, sales of carbohydrates-heavy products declined tremendously. Soft drink companies even tried their hand in low-carbohydrate products to keep up with the trend. But when Dr. Robert Atkins had a fatal injury in the head which also lead to his death in 2003, rumors circulated that he suffered from a heart condition that was caused by his weight. In the year 2005, the company Atkins Nutritional filed for bankruptcy because of poor sales.

High protein eating is a bit controversial, because some critics claim that it can be too high in saturated fat and cholesterol. This can be true, depending on how you approach the program. It is possible to lose weight on Atkins even if you eat a lot of bacon, butter and eggs, but if there’s a history of heart disease in your family, that’s not advisable. The standard Atkins diet is not nearly as high in fat – it stresses healthier sources or protein such as chicken or fish.

A high protein diet limits your consumption of carbohydrates, such as bread, rice and pasta. Most of us eat too much of these foods anyway; in fact, some experts argue that some of us are even addicted to them. It’s true that when you get used to eating these foods, it can be hard to give them up. The Atkins diet forces you to do so during the early stages of the diet. In fact, even fruits and vegetables are limited. In the later stages of following the diet, fruits and vegetables are added back in, so you don’t end up deprived of vitamins and minerals. Another frequent criticism of the Atkins diet is that it deprives you of fruits and vegetables (which everyone agrees are healthy), but this just isn’t true in the long term.

Why does eating a high protein, low carbohydrate diet make you lose weight? The reasons are complex, and related to individual body chemistry. The fact is that eating a lot of processed carbohydrates is a big problem for many of us, because they raise the body’s glycemic index. Cutting out or limiting carbohydrates reverses this process, switching your body in a different gear – it turns into a fat-burning machine. The fact is that the high protein approach is one way in which many people have lost large amounts of weight. Some of these are individuals who have been unable to lose weight using any other diet or weight loss program.

The Zone is a gentler approach to high protein eating, but it is based on the same principle. Unlike Atkins, the Zone allows you to eat a balanced diet of protein and ‘good’ carbohydrates at every stage. Like Atkins, it limits or eliminates processed carbohydrates such as bread, pasta and baked goods. Over time, the Zone is probably as effective as Atkins, though Atkins can have some rapid, spectacular results when you first start following the diet.

Both of these approaches to weight loss should be lifelong changes, rather than diets that you ‘go on’ for a short period of time. Atkins has a ‘maintenance’ phase that allows you to eat a balanced diet, but maintain the eating habits that you have learned so that you don’t gain the weight back. Some experts recommend that if you start to notice your eating habits slipping and pounds creeping back on, you should go back to the first stages of Atkins for a while, and a eat a more restricted diet until you get back on track. Most experts encourage you to forget the old-fashioned idea of ‘going on a diet’ for a short period of time, and then going back to your old habits. That usually doesn’t work in the long term.

Exercise is also a very important part of this and any weight loss program. You can do any type of exercise you like. The best thing seems to be walking, if you do enough of it. In fact, walking for an hour every day might be a better way to lose weight than running two or three times a week. If you make exercise a part of your life, day in and day out, you have the best chances of controlling your weight for a lifetime.

High protein eating plans are not for everyone, but the fact is that they have worked for thousands of people in the past, even those with extreme or stubborn weight problems. Try Atkins or the Zone, or read about them online, to learn the basics and decide whether this diet is for you.

I have personally tried low carb diets and Atkins diet and these diets made me lose weight very quickly. However not only did I lose body fat weight, I also lost muscle weight. I had very obvious muscle and fat loss because I can visually see my reduced muscle mass in the mirror.

This certainly isn’t healthy. Furthermore, the more muscle mass that you lose, the less toned your body shape is. The end result is that you will end up thin and yet looked flabby with lose skin.

The frustrating part will be that after you are off the low carb or Atkins diet, you will very probably gain back all the weight that you have loss and even more. This is because your muscles are active and they continuously burn calories. Since you have less fewer muscle mass now, your body’s metabolism or capacity to burn calories slows down tremendously.

In other words, when you put on weight again, you are putting on body fat instead of muscles if you do not exercise. You will be fatter and less healthy than before you went on the low carb or Atkins diet. To compound matters, because of lesser muscle tissues resulting in lower metabolism and thus lesser calories being burnt, you are going to get fatter.

Since then I have stayed off both low carb and Atkins diet. Both types of diets are almost similar as they require you to cut down drastically on your consumption of carbohydrates. Atkins diet went a step further by advocating almost no carbohydrate consumption for 2 weeks before adding some carbs to your meals gradually thereafter.

Besides losing muscles, how safe are low carb diets? This is what Dr Lyn Steffen and Dr Jennifer Nettleton from the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health commentated in a Lancet report , “Low carbohydrate diets for weight management are far from healthy, given their association with ketosis, constipation or diarrhea, halitosis, headache and general fatigue to name a few.”

The doctors warned that the diet increases protein load on the kidneys and alters the balance of acid in the body. This also results in loss of minerals from the bone stores and affect bone strength. The doctors went on to say that, “Our most important criterion should be indisputable safety and low carbohydrate diets currently fall short of this benchmark.”

Dr Atkins, the creator of the Atkins diet died in 2003 after he was alleged to have slipped on an icy road and hurt his head fatally. However his medical report stated that he had a history of heart attack, hypertension and congestive heart failure.

Were Dr Atkins medical conditions related to his low carbohydrates diet is anybody’s guess. Do you want to take the risk by going on a low carb diet? I don’t think I will. If I ever want to lose weight again, I will rather go on the proven method of healthy eating and regular exercises instead of jumping on any fad diets.

Here’s a couple of recipes for low carb cookies that you might enjoy:

Low Carb Chocolate Chip Cookies

I reduced some of the fat in this recipe by eliminating 1 egg yolk and replacing oil with apple sauce. You can reduce the fat and calories by about another 25% by using lowfat margarine instead of butter, but watch out for the trans fats in whatever you decide to substitute.

Ingredients

• 1 ¾ cups Atkins Bake Mix
• 1 ½ cups Splenda
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup butter
• 1 egg
• 1 egg white
• ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Combine Bake mix, Splenda, and baking soda in a bowl and set aside. In another bowl combine margarine and sugar beating until creamy. Add eggs, applesauce, vanilla and mix well. Combine wet and dry ingredients and use a mixer on low speed to blend well. Fold in chips.

Drop dough by level teaspoons onto greased cookie sheets. I find they come out better if I flatten the dough down on the sheet. Bake at 350 for 12 minutes, let cookies cool on trays for 2 minutes, then transfer to wax paper or wire racks for further cooling.

• Makes 5 dozen cookies
• Serving size = 1 cookie
• Carbs = 5.5 grams
• calories = 40

Ginger Spice Cookies

These cookies are only mildly spicy, but if you want more zing just add more of the spices!

Ingredients

• ½ cup butter softened
• ½ cup Splenda
• 1 1/3 cup Atkins Bake Mix
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• ½ tsp ginger
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• ½ tsp cinnamon

Preheat Oven to 375 degrees F. Beat butter and Splenda until creamy. Add egg and vanilla and mix well, until light and fluffy. Add Atkins Bake Mix, baking soda, salt and spices and mix until well blended.
Drop by rounded teaspoons onto baking sheet. Bake 7 to 8 minutes.

Makes 32 cookies Approx ½ gram carbs per cookie

The Atkins Low Carb Diet Difference

What has made the Atkins diet program continue to be so popular over the years when other diet plans have come and gone? What is so different about the Atkins diet guidelines that have allowed followers to be so successful with their weight loss?

The difference is in the attitude that the Atkins low carb diet fosters. It is not just a temporary pattern of eating, nor is it a huge cutback in calories that cannot be maintained over time. Instead, the Atkins diet program is really a lifestyle, not just a diet program. It focuses on changing habits for long term effect, not just short term cutting calories and then a return to old eating patterns.

Making it Easy to do Atkins

Most people find it easy to follow the Atkins low carb diet for two reasons:

• The food is delicious – no bland or boring meals
• The food is easy to find – at the grocery store, at convenience stores, at restaurants, and more

The taste of food in the Atkins diet meal plans is really different from other diet plans. You do not have to deprive yourself of the foods and flavors that you really enjoy. In fact, you are practically required to eat the foods and flavors that you most enjoy. What a deal!

With other diet plans, it can be tough to find the food that you are supposed to eat each day. Some plans require you to buy their own food, which is okay if you have easy access to it and do not ever eat a meal out. With Atkins, though, you know which foods are okay and which ones are not, and you use that information to select what you eat no matter where you may be.

Make it Yourself or Buy it Pre-Made

The Atkins low carb diet lets you have the best of both worlds when it comes to selecting food. You can make meals yourself by selecting from the huge list of allowed foods, or if you are in a hurry, you can choose pre-made meals from the Atkins group themselves.

Some of the most popular pre-made foods include:

• Breakfast bars
• Snack bars
• Meal replacement bars
• Liquid shakes
• Candy
• Ice cream

Pre-made foods are really convenient and easy when you are on the go and do not have time to eat a regular meal, or just to carry along in your purse or briefcase for those times when you need a little boost. Many people keep a box of snack bars in their office drawer or a few liquid shakes in the office refrigerator just to have on hand.

How does Atkins Compare to Other Low Carb Diet Plans?

When the Atkins low carb diet first came out in the 1970’s it was unique; there was nothing comparable in widespread use. During the resurgence in the 1990’s and 2000’s, though, a whole host of imitators and similar versions began to appear.

Most of those other low carb diet plans were similar to the Atkins diet guidelines, but they lacked two important components for success:

• A proven nutritional approach
• Ongoing support and motivation to stay with a low carb lifestyle

The Atkins diet program is a proven nutritional approach. When you feed your body a diet high in carbohydrates that is what it burns mostly for fuel, leaving fats to build up and get stored away. Reducing the carbohydrate intake, though, forces the body’s metabolism to “switch gears” so to speak, and start burning stored fats instead.

When you adopt an Atkins-based low carb lifestyle, you are not left alone to muddle through entirely by yourself. There are many Atkins books, articles and other publications available to encourage you and motivate you to truly change your lifestyle. There are carb counters, calendars, food journals, cookbooks, recipe collections and more – just about any kind of support or helpful tool you could possibly want.

The Atkins web site is also a tremendous source of information and support. There are free online classes, discussion groups, informational articles, and a free e-mail newsletter. All of these items are designed specifically to help you adopt and maintain a low carb lifestyle so that you can enjoy dramatic and lasting weight loss success.

Atkins Controversy

Of course, no diet plan is without at least some controversy along the way, and Atkins is no exception. Some people are very concerned about the high levels of fats allowed on the diet, especially during the induction and weight loss phases.

What most naysayers do not fully appreciate, though, is that as your body becomes accustomed to a low carbohydrate lifestyle you can gradually increase carbs. Over time, your diet gradually starts to include many more varieties of nutrients, offering you a good solid nutritional base to keep you active and healthy.

Another reason to appreciate the unique Atkins low carb diet is that it cuts down on harmful sugars and other sweets without leaving you with uncontrollable cravings that cause you to have episodes of binging on cookies, candy and other sweets. Atkins is a satisfying collection of foods, allowing you a taste of sweets now and then but generally keeping you satiated and satisfied thanks to the variety of other foods that are allowed.

Getting Started

Before starting any diet or nutritional regimen, you should consult with your doctor and have a thorough check up. He or she will then have a baseline of information about your health, making it easier to track your progress and really see how much your health improves over time.

I encourage you to work with your doctor and connect with others who are following a low carb lifestyle in order to gain the maximum benefit and effectiveness from the Atkins low carb diet.

According to Atkins diet plan, carbohydrates are restricted in an attempt to control your body’s way of metabolizing foods. This diet plan is mainly based on the fact that, instead of burning glucose, it allows your body to burn fat.

Atkins diet plan is mainly based on consuming high levels of protein and low levels of carbohydrates. It has become a popular weight loss approach for most of us. Atkins diet plan consists of four phases.

They include:

• Induction phase
• Ongoing weight loss phase
• Pre-maintenance phase
• Lifetime maintenance phase

Induction phase:

This is the first phase of Atkins diet plan. During this phase, you are allowed to take only 20 grams of carbohydrates per day. You have to avoid caffeine and alcohol completely. Due to this, your body is in the state of ketosis. Ketosis is a phase in which your body burns fats as fuel but not glucose.

During this phase of Atkins diet plan you will lose most weight. Nearly you will lose 6-8 pounds for every week when you are in this phase.

Ongoing weight loss phase:

The objective of this phase is to slowly introduce carbohydrates back into your diet, but you are not allowed to consume a greater amount. You can increase the intake of carbohydrates up to 5 grams.

In this phase of Atkins diet plan, you need to find the critical carbohydrate level that your body requires in order to continue losing weight. The correct level will allow you to eat carbohydrates that won’t affect your weight. This phase continues until you will come within 10 pounds of what you want to weigh.

Pre-maintenance phase:

In this phase you are allowed to eat 10 grams of carbohydrates in your diet per week schedule. The main goal of this Atkins diet plan is also to find the critical carbohydrate level in order to keep your weight where you want it.

In this phase of Atkins diet plan, you will lose weight slowly and you will be able to test certain foods to observe if you can safely add them to your diet without weight gain. Once you achieve your goal weight, you will enter into the maintenance phase of Atkins diet plan.

Life maintenance phase:

In this phase you need to add some more carbohydrates into your diet, but not bad ones. This phase helps you continue to follow the eating habits that you picked up during this diet. You will be suggested to choose healthy carbs instead of bad ones such as whole wheat bread.

Once you get into this phase and start to gain weight then you need to go back to an earlier stage and start again from there.

The problems and consequences of Atkins diet plan:

• You will lose weight very quickly if you follow the Atkins diet plan.
• You won’t feel hungry because your body produces ketones, which act as an appetite suppressant.
• Atkins diet plan has some disagreeable physical side effects. Sometimes you may feel tired, constipated, have bad breath and lack of energy.

Before following Atkins diet plan, it is better to do your own research, because there are problems and consequences for every diet. It is best to visit your doctor to make a decision about which diet best suits for your condition.

First of all, be creative in your meal planning. Remember that most diet books and written to entice readers to try new combinations of foods. The recipes within those books contain the most expensive ingredients. You don’t have to cook like a professional chef in order to be able to experience the benefits of the Atkins diet. There are many simple recipes that you can make that are within the plan and cost much less than the ones shown in the diet books. If you modify the meal plans with the books, you can enjoy the low carb lifestyle on a budget.

One of the most important steps to take is to buy your meats in bulk. When you stock up on large packages of ground beef, chicken and fish you cut down on your protein costs. You can separate the large packages into small freezer bags and freeze them in meal-sized portions. Two to four chicken breasts in a bag are easy to defrost and make a good-sized meal. You can also cook ground beef in many different varieties and freeze the cooked portions. Try doing a portion of the meat with taco spices, another portion with hamburger spices and the third portion with Italian spices. That way you’ll be able to use lots of hamburger meat and still have variety in your diet.

Also, look at less tender cuts of meat to trim costs in your grocery money. While fillet mignon may be tasty, it doesn’t fit into every budget. Less tender cuts of beef and pork make excellent crock-pot meals, and using a slow cooker will help tenderize them.

Look to alternative protein sources like eggs and tofu. Both of these items pack a powerful protein punch for a fraction of the cost of meats. Nuts are a great protein source as well, but they can become expensive very quickly. Some recipes call for expensive macadamia nuts and cashews. Walnuts, peanuts and almonds contain just as much protein for a fraction of the cost.

Mixed vegetable salads will make a large portion of your daily Atkins meals. While it may be tempting to buy bagged salad that is already chopped, you are going to be paying $2 to $3 per bag. You can buy three heads of different types of lettuce for the same cost and make the equivalent of six bags of prepackaged salad. Also, consider investing in a salad spinner. This handy device will make homemade salads crispy and satisfying.

Be creative with your menus and use produce and meats that are on sale. If you’ve got a recipe that calls for chicken breasts and turkey happens to be on sale, go ahead and substitute this week. Make sure to carry an acceptable food list with you the grocery store so you can tell whether a sale food is an okay substitution on the Atkins plan.

When you go to the store, you can also cut costs by limiting your purchase of low-carb packaged foods. These items are really expensive, and sometimes full of harmful chemicals. They may also contain hidden carbs which can stall your weight loss efforts. The Atkins plan can be effectively followed without using any of these products. Unless it’s a special occasion, skip them all together.

Finally, its best to plan your meals and your shopping trips so you can buy your groceries in an effective manner. Going to the grocery store unprepared or, even worse, hungry can spell disaster for your budget. Plan each week’s menu out ahead and time and then buy what you need to make those meals.

One of the signs of carbohydrate cravings is a compelling hunger for carbohydrate rich foods. You will high carbohydrate foods. Some sugar substitues and sugar alcohols can mimic sugar and also lead to the same cravings.

High carbohydrate foods are everywhere. Eating the high-sugar, refined starch foods will feed your cravings and create more. High levels of carbohydrates produce high levels of the brain chemical seratonin, which is the chemical found in Prozac and other anti-depressants. So eating high levels of carbohydrates is self-medicating. People with low levels of seratonin are prone to using carbohydrates like a drug.

It may seem impossible to live on a low-carbohydrate diet. Following the Atkins plan is one of the best ways to break the need for carbohydrates and take back your life and your health. The Atkins plan helps you take control of your cravings and stop all the negatives that comes with them.

The induction phase of the Atkins Diet is often the hardest to followdue to craving, these will lessen as your body becomes more used to eating a protein-centered diet. In order to keep your cravings in check, eat small meals or snacks that contain protein every few hours.

Make sure you are getting enough levels of the essential fats. Omega three fish oil sometimes helps stave off carbohydrate cravings.

Remember there is very often an addiction to carbs that you will need to deal with. This is normal. Your body is used to running on a diet full of sugar and carbohydrates. These feelings generally don’t last more than the two-week induction period. Stay strong and enjoy your new body.

This is a cause for concern, and the reality is that without these supplements, malnutrition would be a big problem. Fruit and vegetables are an important source of soluble and insoluble dietary fiber, as well as crucial phytonutrients and antioxidants, including lycopene, carotenoids, phytic acid, bioflavanoids, and others. Fiber is important in preventing heart disease, diabetes, and constipation. Phytonutrients have a range of benefits that include a cancer-protective effect, an anti-aging effect, and other specific health benefits.

Whilst it is possible to get vitamins and minerals in a bottle, the enzymes (that help with digestion), and these other phytochemicals, are not so easily represented. Supplements are also a poor source of fiber. To get any significant amount of these from supplements is going to be an expensive option, and there is always the risk that the broad spectrum is not well represented.

There are some negative consequences of the Atkins diet that can affect the level of certain vitamins and minerals in the body – even if we are still losing weight. So, whilst it may seem like the short term goal (weight loss) is being met, there may be a health cost that becomes more apparent over time.

For example, a diet with high amounts of calcium and cheese, such as is encouraged by the Atkins diet, will result in a loss of calcium in the urine. This calcium is taken from our store of it in our bones. The acidity in meat and cheese upsets our internal pH balance, which then causes our body to remove calcium from the deposits in our bones in an effort to rebalance it.

This is borne out in the Harvard Nurse’s study, where those nurses that ate more animal protein had significantly increased risks of fracturing their forearms. Other studies have shown a link between meat consumption and hip fracture. And a rather interesting study from 2002 by researchers at the University of Chicago and Texas found that after two weeks on the Atkins diet, people were losing 258 mg of calcium a day, in their urine. This loss of calcium in the urine in such quantities can lead to kidney stones forming. To make matters worse, the Atkins diet is deficient in calcium anyway – even with most of the recommended supplements.

This makes it particularly dangerous for long term usage, especially if you are in a risk group for osteoporosis.

There are other risks of the Atkins diet, but it is definitely not something to be undertaken without all of the supplements. Whether the increased cost of these supplements makes it worthwhile – or sufficiently mitigates the risks – is another question.

The basic philosophy behind the Atkins diet plan is that if you switch to a low carb diet your body’s metabolism will adjust and start to burn stores of fat. The process starts during the induction phase when you change your eating habits substantially so that you only consume 20 grams of net carbohydrates per day. Net carbs are determined by taking the total grams of carbs in a food and subtracting the amount of fiber grams.

Once you are past the 14 day induction phase you then start to increase your daily net carb intake a little bit each week – starting at 25 grams per day, then the next week going to 30 grams per day, and so forth. As you raise your intake gradually, you pay attention to how much weight you continue to lose, until you find a level at which weight loss slows significantly or stops altogether. When you get close to your goal weight, you move into pre-maintenance and maintenance phases so that low carb choices become part of your everyday lifestyle.

Defining Low Carb Foods

Low carb foods are those that have low enough levels of carbohydrates that they are considered Atkins diet foods. In general, meats, poultry, fish, leafy green vegetables, eggs and butter form the core assortment of your low carb food choices. Some cheeses and other dairy products are relatively low carb but typically are not allowed in huge quantities while on the Atkins low carb diet plan.

Remember, though, a food which is high in carbs but also high in fiber can be eaten as part of a low carb lifestyle because the goal is to keep net carbs low, not just carbs as a whole. Make sure you read the labels of the foods you buy to determine the net carbs, and consider carrying a pocket sized carb counter with you to double check the net carb counts in fresh foods.

As the Atkins diet plan exploded in popularity over the last few years, many food producers have tried to get in on the phenomenon by promoting their products as low carb. The problem is, though, that many of these foods are not really low carb. With the exceptions of certified Atkins diet foods, you should never just believe the large print on the front that says low carb. Always, always read the nutrition label and confirm for yourself whether or not the food is really low carb.

Finding Low Carb Foods

Finding low carb foods is as easy as going to the grocery store, dropping into the convenience store located at your neighborhood gas station, or going to your favorite restaurant. Of course, some places will have a better selection of Atkins diet foods than others will, and some will also have more high carb temptations, but there is no reason for you to visit a specialty store in order to get the low carb foods you need.

Atkins Diet Foods from the Grocery Store

In the grocery store you have a huge selection of foods, ranging from fresh to processed, all of which you can check for net carb count. Processed foods will have nutrition information printed on the outside box or label, making it easy to determine net carbs. Fresh foods are a bit more difficult because that information is not printed on the food item and usually not on the shelf label. You can certainly remember a few core fresh foods that are allowable, but a really good tool is to carry a carb counter in your purse or pocket so that you can check it if you have any questions.

Convenience Store

In a convenience store, you have to search a bit more for the low carb Atkins diet plan foods. The big display of chips, candy, cookies and more is not a place you are likely find low carb choices, but if you go a little further in you can usually find official Atkins snack bars, liquid shakes or even some fresh foods that are low carb.

Restaurants

Restaurants can be a bit tricky because you do not always know what is in that great tasting gravy or sauce, but most eating establishments now offer designated low carb choices. If in doubt, order your meal without sauces and other add-ons that may have hidden carbs. When you find a restaurant that serves a good selection of low carb foods that you enjoy, be sure to give the manager or owner positive feedback and make that establishment a primary choice whenever you want to dine out.

Atkins Diet Plan Meals

Atkins diet foods are much more than individual foods. They can be combined in many ways to create tasty and interesting meals, but even the most dedicated low carb follower can get tired of the same old thing. The best way to keep your low carb meals interesting is to seek out a variety of Atkins diet plan meals.

There are many cookbooks and recipe books available that are filled with low carb meal choices using approved Atkins diet foods. All you have to do is mix and match each day or each week to keep a variety of meals on the table. Another reason to have a good cookbook or recipe book on hand is for those times when you are tired, running late or otherwise need to come up with something low carb to eat when maybe you do not feel like putting a lot of effort into it. These are the times when you will be most tempted to grab something that is not low carb, so having a collection of Atkins diet food recipes close by can help get rid of that temptation.