How to Follow Dr. Atkins' Four-Part Program

I believe my diet is a lifetime nutritional philosophy focusing on the consumption of nutrient-dense, unprocessed foods and vita-nutrient supplementation. It has many levels, with four main parts: induction, ongoing weight loss, pre-maintenance and maintenance. The following will give you an overview of each part.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

The 14-Day Induction Diet

1. Restrict carbohydrate intake to 20 grams per day.

2. Avoid eating fruit, bread, grains, starchy vegetables or dairy products other than cheese, cream or butter during this period.

3. Remember that intake of carbohydrates is usually 3 cups of salad vegetables or 2 cups of salad vegetables plus 1/3 cup of cooked vegetables whose composition is less than 10 percent carbohydrate.

4. Eat other permitted carbohydrates such as nuts, seeds and olives - as long as your total remains at 20 grams or below.

5. Choose vegetables such as asparagus, okra, eggplant, all salad vegetables, and broccoli - any nutritious, nonstarchy vegetable which is 10 percent carbohydrate or less. You will need to use a carbo counter to see the full realm of your choices.

6. At this first level, eat all meat, all fish, all fowl, all shellfish, all eggs. They are all permitted, except for luncheon meats containing nitrates or sugar and products that are not exclusively meat.

7. Eliminate diet cheese, cheese spreads, and whey cheese. All other cheese is permitted, unless you have an allergy to milk products.

8. Eliminate caffeine if you are addicted to it. Otherwise, you may have it in limited amounts.

9. Drink water, herbal tea (no barley, dates, figs or sugar), club soda, and decaffeinated coffee and tea. Read labels carefully if you are drinking diet soda, flavored bottled water and iced tea. Make sure there are no carbohydrates in your beverages.

10. Avoid margarine. It is considered a health hazard. Butter is permitted.

11. Use vegetable oils such as canola, walnut and soybean. Look for labels that say "cold-pressed." Avoid heating polyunsaturated oils; heating changes the chemical bonds, making these fats unhealthy.

12. Use mayonnaise, unless you are on a yeast restriction.

13. Avoid all "diet foods" unless they specifically state that they contain no carbohydrates.

14. Read all labels carefully. A label that says "sugarless" does not necessarily indicate that the food doesn't contain carbohydrates.

15. Check labels on chewing gum, over-the-counter medicines and other products you may not normally think of as food. Many contain sugar or other carbohydrates.

16. Use lipolysis testing strips to test your urine, to make sure that you are in ketosis - which means you are burning fat.

17. Take supplements and vita-nutrients according to the Atkins plan.

Ongoing Weight Loss

18. Figure out your critical carbohydrate level for losing (CCLL) when you enter the ongoing weight loss level (OWL). This number is, as defined by the Atkins diet, the most liberal level of carbohydrate consumption that corresponds to your own individual metabolic capacity to continue taking off excess pounds.

19. Increase your intake of carbohydrates to the level where you will still continue to lose weight.

20. Continue a close count of your carbohydrate intake. For an average person with an average metabolic resistance, that number is between 15 and 40 grams of carbohydrates per day.

21. Stick with low-carbohydrate vegetables, seeds and nuts.

22. Learn new recipes to keep the food interesting. Use the Atkins recipes and cookbooks, or similar ones for low-carbohydrate cooking.

23. Experiment with new vegetables. There are a huge number to choose from, both for cooking and eating in salads.

24. Eat berries. Fruits are still restricted because of their high sugar content, but berries are lower in carbohydrates, delicious and packed full of nutrients.

25. Expect weight loss to diminish as you liberalize the diet. You can speed up or slow down the diet, depending on your carbohydrate intake.

26. Continue taking vitamins and vita-nutrients as designated by the program.

Pre-Maintenance

27. Production of ketosis begins to vanish at this level. You can deviate a little, but don't lose track of the basic diet.

28. Increase your carbohydrate intake, as long as you are still able to lose those last few pounds.

29. Begin deviating very slowly. Start with one or two deviations a week, such as a baked potato or a serving of fruit.

30. Be careful about not blowing the complete diet. Deviate sensibly.

Maintenance

31. Figure out your critical carbohydrate level for maintenance (CCLM). This is the amount that you can eat and not begin to gain weight.

32. Fluctuations in weight are common, as long as they are very small. Once you go 5 or more pounds above your ideal weight, it's time to cut back again.

33. Remember that this diet will always restrict your carbohydrate level somewhat. A person with an average metabolism usually must stay between 40 and 60 grams of carbohydrates per day. Continuing with fresh nonstarchy vegetables, seeds, nuts and berries is the easiest way to eat more variety and still remain within your personal boundaries.

34. Cautiously reintroduce vegetables that contain more than 10 percent carbohydrates, as well as whole grains such as oats, barley and couscous.

35. Keep the sugar, white flour and processed foods out of your life, except for special occasions. Sugars supply empty carbohydrates devoid of nutrients.

36. Take care not to reactivate old addictions to sugar, starchy foods, bread and so on.

37. Continue taking vita-nutrients as prescribed in the diet.

38. Exercise. You should have been doing this all along, but if not, now is as good a time as any. It will help keep the weight off, reduce fatigue and keep you in better health.

Tips & Warnings

• Avoid losing track of your carbohydrates once you reach the maintenance level. This is the weight where you want to be - and more importantly, where you want to stay. The Atkins diet is a lifetime plan to keep you slim and healthy, with good eating habits.
• Speak with your doctor before beginning this diet if you have any chronic health conditions. Certain medications may make it more difficult to lose weight, and certain illnesses may call for a restriction of protein.
• If you have any questions or concerns, contact a physician or other health care professional before engaging in any activity related to health and diet. This information is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment.

Who Can Help:

• Overweight? Lose 30+ lbs without pills or diets- guaranteed
• Arthroscopic Alternative to Spine Surgery- For Back & Neck - Free MRI Review by our Doctors. Get your life back!
• Do you suffer from back pain? Learn more about our Medicare approved back support system. Medicare covers 85% of the cost.

on 8/8/2006 I lost a tremendous amount of weight with the Atkins diet and have kept it off for more than 2 years. I eat lean protein and low carb vegetables and I also like the Breyers low carb (carb smart brand) ice cream as an end of day treat. There are so many good low carb products out there that staying on this plan is easy!

on 1/26/2006 I suffer from moderate insulin resistance and there is no treatment available for it. I have tried many diets, but as long my body is in carbohydrate burning mode I gain weight and am constantly hungry, even when I feel full I am still starving. Insulin resistance means my cells ignore insulin and so do not take up carbohydrates and burn them properly. Having unused insulin in your blood is then used for its secondary function, to convert unused carbohydrates to fat which is then immediately taken to be stored on your body; in other words straight to your hips. If I eat normally and walk at least an hour per day I do not gain weight but if I fall below that I gain weight fast. I have tried increasing walking to two hours per day and I still do not lose weight and I feel even more hungry since my cells are being starved of carbohydrate energy because the insulin is being ignored. Over the last three years the only style of eating that has helped me is the Dr Atkins diet. While I agree it can be a crazy diet, the important thing is that it works, and very well at that. I eat three meals a day and rarely snack. My hunger is satisfied and I have no cravings for breads and sweets. The first few days on the diet I felt a little tired, but after that it went back to normal. I do find I am more puffed out when I walk up hills. This is because you need a lot more oxygen to burn fat than when you burn carbohydrates, since carbohydrates carry oxygen with them and really the only critical need of oxygen is the toxic by product of burning carbohydrates, lactic acid which the oxygen neutralizes. I do not recommend lifting weights or doing any other heavy physical activity as these activities require carbohydrates. Since fat burns too slow to keep up, you easily end up with an injury if you do these sort of exercises on the Dr Atkins diet. If you do suffer a muscle injury you will have to eat carbohydrates and proteins again to help it heal, otherwise it takes too long on the Dr Atkins diet and you will suffer pain for a long time. Swimming is harder since you breath less often, so I would not recommend that either on Atkins. The first 5 days on the induction phase I lost about 4-5 pounds and in the last 3 weeks I have lost 13 pounds to no ill effect, except when I forget to eat vegetables with my pork chop.
When I cook my bacon and eggs the amount of butter I use is really funny, and people cannot believe I lose weight using so much. As well as losing a lot of weight, I noticed a big benefit psychologically, my mood is cool as a cucumber and I just feel happy most of the time and I don't panic nearly as easily as I did before (I have a mild anxiety disorder). I'm not sure if I want to stay on this diet forever though. The research does not suggest it's dangerous as long you eat lots of non-starchy vegetables, drink lots of water and perhaps take a multivitamin tablet everyday. There is a problem with constipation and I fixed that by taking a dose of fiber like Benefiber (since it has no carbohydrates) with every meal. Some days I have so little appetite I eat just two meals.
Overall I would recommend this diet if you want to lose weight, but when you reach your level ease back to normal eating and exercise to keep the weight the same and if that fails, eat less or exercise more. One hour per day should do it. This diet does limit your range to available foods, even though you can eat anything you want except for carbohydrates.

on 11/22/2005 Dr. Atkins' Four-Part Program is a great way to lose weight, but you cannot cheat during the first phase at all. Failure to stick to the less than 20 grams of carbohydrates per day may cause an increase in weight.

After my first 8 or 9 days on the diet, I woke up one day and was 4 pounds lighter. Then, for the rest of the time I was in the induction phase, I lost another 5 pounds. The results can be amazing if you are disciplined enough to follow the diet.