Doing Atkins

Three weeks ago we decided we were going to "do Atkins". For those who don't know, it is a controlled carbohydrate diet. Instead of counting calories, you count carbs. It is not a no-carb diet, you do get at least 3 cups of vegetables per day. You start off in an Induction Phase for 2 weeks you eat only 20 grams of carbohydrates per day, then you go into the Ongoing Weight Loss Phase where you increase your carbohydrate intake by 5 grams weekly until you reach the point that you are no longer losing weight. If you have more to lose, you cut back some and continue until you get to your ideal weight. The Lifetime Maintenance Phase includes many wholesome foods, even whole grains, fruit and legumes, but in controlled amounts. You determine through the process what your ideal carbohydrate intake is for maintenance of your ideal weight. As long as you don't exceed that amount, you will maintain your weight. That is our goal.

So 3 weeks ago we cut out all forms of sugar and grains. In the meantime I read the Atkins book and figured out what we had to do for Induction. We started Induction on the second week and after two weeks of that we have both lost about 6 lbs. I think this diet gets bad attention because it is really easy for people who cannot control their portions to go overboard, but if you do it correctly it has a lot of positive effects on your health. After doing it for 6 weeks I am going to have my blood tested again. My triglicerides were high last time, meaning I was eating too many carbohydrates, so I am hoping this will make that problem go away.

We have also been going to the gym. I love our gym. It is so big and clean. They provide towels and our membership came with 5 sessions with a personal trainer. Since we joined, we've had some friends join and so has my mom. It is great to see all these people make healthy choices.