Almost everyone in America has now heard of the Atkins Diet, which promotes its ability to help you lose weight through the consumption of foods high in protein and low in arbohydrates, particularly simple carbs, such as sugar, white flour, white rice and potatoes.
However, many people ask themselves about the Atkins diet and why they cannot lose weight. Some researchers have a problem with the idea behind the Atkins Diet. That is, the notion that high-carbohydrate, low-fat diets cause obesity. Some nutritionists have noted that the traditional Japanese diet is very high in carbohydrates, low in protein, and very low in fat. But, before the introduction of high-fat and high-protein Western foods, obesity was uncommon in Japan. This is logical, because, ounce for ounce, carbs have less calories than proteins and fats. Some argue that simply taking in too many of any kinds of calories, and lack of exercise, lead to obesity.
One of the possible reasons that some people don’t lose weight on Atkins is that it may not work very well in the long term. When you first switch to Atkins, you may find a quick loss in weight will occur. This is common in the early induction phase. But then, the weight loss tends to fade for some people. Critics charge that the diet has a dramatic diuretic effect and much of that weight loss is water. After some time, the body gets the water back and the loss of weight decreases and some even gain weight back.
Another reason behind why some people don’t lose weight on the Atkins diet is that it can be very difficult to restrict one’s carb intake over the long-term the way that Atkins requires. A great many foods in today’s society contains simple carbohydrates. Most of the convenience foods on store shelves are stuffed with sugars, white flour, white pasta or white rice. As much as we want to avoid these foods, it can be very hard to maintain your discipline for months or years at a time. Many Atkins dieters may find themselves “cheating” more and more as time goes by.
Related to why some people don’t lose weight on the Atkins diet is the issue of health. Some feel that eating large amounts of saturated fat and cholesterol can be unhealthy for the heart and may even cause cancer. This can be a problem because there is a tendency to think that the Atkins diet allows you to eat as much fatty, high-protein food as you want without consequence, and this is not the case. Those foods contain a lot of calories, and if you overindulge, the result may be weight gain, not loss.