Remember that crazy low-carb high-protein diet phase we went through a couple of years ago? All those people eating a pound of bacon (and nothing else) for supper? All the low-carb (low-taste) foods that suddenly appeared on the grocery store shelves?

What happened with that, anyway?

I recall having some heated discussions with people who were almost evangelical in their faith in that loony Atkins diet. I wonder if they're still worshipping at the altar?

Do any of you have anecdotes about this diet (were you on the diet yourself, or know others who tried it)? I'd be interested to hear them...

I used to work with a woman who was an Atkins freak. She was obviously 'not all there' mentally. But I have no way of knowing if the diet made her this way or if she chose the diet because she already was this way. Sort of a chicken versus egg thing (although I think only the chicken was allowed).

Years ago I used to listen to Atkins on the radio. A lot of what he said made sense when he explained it. The problem was not with the low card diet itself. The problem lied with the people who did it. They all decided I can eat all the bad food they wanted. The diet overall was good by cutting out the simple "bad" carbs. I tried it to see what it was like. Was on for about 6 months. Felt great and looked good. I had less headaches and slept better. My breath was horrible and I missed pizza too much.

Well... i used to be a big health freak... ate a high-protein diet for a while as i did powerlifting in high school.. and have been employed as a personal trainer so i see what goes on and have tried lots of stuff...

As for the "low carb" diet... the body NEEDS a certain amount of carbs to perform. There ARE "empty carbs".. which are mostly sugar and crap... so some carbs are definitely better than others. But going on virtually no carbohydrates is just asking for a tired, weak, lathargic body and performance. You might lose weight, but you sure won't feel very good.

Another problem with the "low carb" diet craze is staying true to it. Carbs are addictive in nature.. if you suddenly cut out 75% of your daily carb intake, after a few days of eating just chicken your body will CRAVE carbohydrates. In order to successfully lower your carb intake, it should be done in a step-by-step method... slowly lowering your carb intake over a few months. Most people who just plow into the diet end up being bombarded with cravings and either kill themselves to stay on the diet or end up eating the entire house.

Alas someone already mentioned that yes... some people take the "i can eat anything WITHOUT carbs" deal a bit too far.. and eat Bacon and solid Fat foods all the time.. making their cholesterol go through the roof and clogging their arteries by the plate-full.

The key to the Atkins diet... not that i have ever tried it to the "tee"... seems to be to eat lots of protein, but include a HEALTHY amount of fat. It is no secret that Fat gives your body the feeling of being "full".. Fat is something the body needs on a daily basis... and can actually "mask" or cover the effects of a carbohydrate craving. Its harder to crave a candybar if you are full from eating 2 slices of ham and 4 eggs...

So all in all the Atkins diet can work.. just don't go overboard on the fatty fatty foods... and take your time lowering your carbs.

I think Decka has a point that most people did not follow it correctly. They read a chapter or two of his book and put it down. Also most people can't differentiate between a complex carb and a simple carb. They also did not account for a carb equalling 4 calories and a fat gram equalling 9.

Now the big craze is no fat which is equally as bad for your body as woofing down a pound of bacon.

Our culture will remain fat and unhealthy till people learn balance.

Actually there is a lot of relavence to low carb eating to maintain your weight.Howerver,it is NOT necessary to eat high-fat.

The reason behind this is that if you eat high carbohydrates at night...say for dinner.Weather it be two plates of pasta,a lot of potatoes and rice,whatever you don't burn off is going to turn to fat if that isn't burned off altogether.And since we are all less active in the evening with bedtime right around the corner,it is best to not have any carbohydrates at all for dinner.Instead,have them in the morning or afternoon.That's exactly what I do and it works great.Also,the body burns fat before it burns sugar.That is the reason why eating both of them together are so dangerous in the way of weight-gain.If you aren't active enough to burn all of the carbs after the fat is burned off,the above will happen.

I am talking from experience as I lost 28 lbs. in 2.5 months and lost four inches off of my waist 1.5 years ago.I have maintained that ever since and owe it to my lifestyle change.

Alexander

I still follow a low carb diet though it is much more difficult now that the majority of the low carb products are no longer on store shelves.

Carbs turn to sugar and as a diabetic I don't want that.

I naturally have a decent eating habit so it's never a concern. But I hope that as technology advances diet should become obsolete. If it gets to the point where you can remove excess fat quickly and cheaply through some medical means widely tested and accessble, we will no longer need to be dieting. People will be able to eat what they please, and go to the clinic to eliminate fat once every two weeks. Obviously I am talking about even those cholestral that clog the arteries. It should be possible to have a simple laser procedure that gets rid of that stuff affordably and quickly. Surely not any time soon that'll happen, but should we reach that point, I think people will be able to indulge in eating like never dreamed of before in human history. It seems desirable. Any thoughts?

I can see that food demand might get out of control. So that's a negative.

Jeez, without carbs I'd die... I pretty much survive entirely on carbs, except for the occasional block of cheese, and I do eat meat sometimes. I think it's just that I don't eat much generally... For instance, it's now 2 pm and I've had half a can of Mr. Pibb. Granted, I just woke up an hour ago, but I probably won't be hungry until dinner time, around 5.