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You may have seen news about this on our Forums and Facebook page, but a new
study in the journal of Obesity shows that people who have certain forms
of the CD36 gene may like high-fat foods more than those with other forms of
this gene. If you have this gene, this explains why you may have struggled on
low-fat diets in the past, and why you have success with Atkins’ higher fat,
low-carbohydrate plan. “Fat is universally palatable to humans,” says Kathleen
Keller, assistant professor of nutritional sciences, Penn State. “Yet we have
demonstrated for the first time that people who have particular forms of CD36
gene tend to like higher fat foods more and may be at greater risk for obesity
compared to those who do not have this form of the gene. In animals, CD36 is a
necessary gene for the ability to both detect and develop preference for fat.
Our study is the first to show this relationship in humans.”
As you may know, there are over 80 peer-reviewed studies showing the efficacy
of Atkins, especially if you are carb intolerant and have Metabolic Syndrome, pre-diabetes
or are insulin resistant. With this latest study, we now have a test that can
help people identify their tendency to like higher fat foods and who may be at
a greater risk of obesity. Just think... instead of struggling with diet after
diet without success, if you were able to know that you have certain forms of
this gene, you could help prevent your chances of obesity by following a higher
fat plan like Atkins even before the pounds start piling on. The team of
researchers for this study also has future plans to expand the population they
examine to children. “By the time we are adults it is very hard for us to
change eating behaviors,” says Keller. “So if we can determine which children
have forms of the CD36 gene, as well as other genes that are associated with a
greater liking of fats, we can help them develop healthier eating behaviors at a
young age.”
Bottom line? If you have this gene, following a diet like Atkins could be a
very effective preventive measure. With this being said, it’s also important to
note that even if you don’t have this gene, research shows that Atkins is quite
effective for so many other reasons.
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Sweet Nothings
Do you think sugar is as dangerous as alcohol and tobacco? According to a just-released report in the research journal Nature, added sugars in processed foods and drinks are responsible for so many cases of chronic disease and premature deaths that they recommend their use should be regulated, just like alcohol and tobacco. This finding matches what Atkins has proclaimed for 30 years. Americans consume 156 pounds of added sugar each year on a per capita basis, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Imagine it: 31 five-pound bags for each of us. Just to be clear, added sugar is, as the name implies, a caloric sweetener added to a process or prepared food. The classic added sugar, of course, is the table sugar most people add to their tea, coffee, cereal--you name it. Natural sugars in fruit, vegetables, dairy products and other whole foods are integral--meaning not added. The easiest way to banish added sugars is to follow the Atkins Diet. At its heart, Atkins is a low-sugar diet and a no-added sugar diet.
The Atkins Diet, which is backed by more than 80 peer-reviewed and independent studies, is the only program of its kind that empowers you to avoid sugar. With Atkins, you are encouraged to consume whole foods; many of you report that you stop craving foods with added sugar. Instead, vegetables, berries and other fruits, nuts/ seeds , Greek Yogurt, as well as a variety of protein sources and olive oil and other healthy, natural fats leave us satisfied and in control of our appetites. And because the sugar intake is low, we will be more likely to burn body fat for energy.
Further, a 1999 article in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (vol. 69, p. 445) found that the rate of growth of Body Mass Index (roughly speaking, how fat we all are) since 1968 more or less paralleled, year by year, the increasing number of new condiments, candies, snacks and bakery foods introduced in the United States? So our rising level of obesity equals not fat consumption, but junk food carbohydrate consumption. And most of those foods—including supposedly healthy low-fat breakfast cereals—are now sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup just as soda is. Big doses of corn syrup are just what the human metabolism doesn’t need. And all this new press that vilifies added sugar (plus new research to support it) backs up what we’ve known all along. Atkins is not just effective for weight loss; it’s also a prescription for good health.
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I’ve discussed plateaus many times before, and I’ve always encouraged you to have patience and follow Atkins exactly how it is written, with the idea that soon you will start to lose weight again. But, there comes a time when you feel you’ve done everything exactly right, and the weeks (and maybe even months) continue to pass without any noticeable weight loss. At times like these you need to remember that your body is not a machine. Nor is it a duplicate of anyone else's body. It has its own system, its own agenda and it own timetable. In the long run, it nearly always responds to sensible management by the person in charge - you.
But in the short run, your body may decide to go its own way, for its own reasons, which perhaps we don't understand. Don't get mad at it. Its a good body or it wouldn't have gotten you this far. Be patient; you can afford to outwait it and know that Sometimes we simply don’t know what’s going on, but there are a few things to consider.and explore.
After losing a certain amount of weight, sometimes your body decides it desperately needs to hold on to any remaining pounds you would love to lose. Why? Centuries ago, when you had to hunt for your food (or grow it), you might not always know when or where your next meal would be coming from. Your body ensured your survival by stubbornly holding on to any remaining fat stores so that you could stick it out until your next meal, whenever that was. Unfortunately, in our modern society, your next meal is as close as your refrigerator or fast-food drive-thru, but your body will still stubbornly hold on to your fat stores because it’s an age-old response that has been ingrained in us for centuries.
Insulin is another factor to consider. It took you years to gain this weight, and most likely your body became used to producing excess insulin (hyperinsulinism) or was unable to process insulin (insulin resistance) during this time. These factors make it very challenging to burn fat or lose weight. Even as you embrace Atkins and its low-carbohydrate approach (which has been proven to be effective at bringing your insulin levels back under control), keep in mind that since it did take years to put on this weight, losing the weight and changing how your body processes insulin will take time.
The inability to burn fat or lose weight—the phenomenon called metabolic resistance to weight loss—is not uncommon. The use of prescription drugs or hormones that inhibit weight loss, an underactive hormone and overgrowth of yeast, as well as excessive insulin and insulin resistance—usually accompanied by high triglycerides—is one of the four major categories of problems that contribute to metabolic resistance.
If you are experiencing what seems like a never-ending plateau due to any combination of these factors, having patience with the process is so important as your body resets itself and learns to burn fat for fuel instead of carbs. One of our Atkins Success Stories, John Smead, has first-hand knowledge of what it’s like to have your weight loss come to a complete halt for a lengthy period of time, but he is also a testament to the importance of sticking with the program. His reward for sticking it out? A total weight loss of 180 pounds:
“After about a year I had lost 85 pounds. But then, I just stopped losing altogether. Even though I wasn’t losing weight, I continued with the lifestyle throughout that time. Instead of giving up, I decided I really needed to do something to break the plateau I was on, so I started keeping a journal of everything I ate. The journal helped me to keep my carbohydrates, which enabled me to see where I could do better. It paid off and I have now lost over half my original body weight.”
The lesson we can learn from all of this is that consistency is the key to success. Don’t get frustrated and try changing too many things at once, or you will never know what is working or not working. Keep tracking your progress, and try recording everything you eat to ensure you aren’t unintentionally consuming too many carbs (or even too few).
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There are so many positive aspects to losing weight. Not only does dropping the pounds help improve your health, it gives you more energy and helps your clothes fit better. But it also brings up some deeper body image issues. It means accepting your new body, especially if you were used to hiding behind the relative comfort of layers of clothing and fat. It means coming to terms with yourself as “thin” person instead of a “fat” person and being comfortable with the positive comments people make about your weight loss. And it also means giving yourself the time necessary to learn to live in your new body. Losing the weight and changing a lifetime of unhealthy habits is no small task. And since losing weight (and keeping it off), is not something that happens overnight, you may not notice the gradual changes that come along with that. If you were always used to hiding behind baggy clothes, it may be an entirely new concept to be able to wear more form-fitting attire (and also learning to accept the newfound attention that comes with that). It may mean becoming comfortable doing activities that your weight may have made almost impossible in the past, such as running, skiing or dancing, or even just hitting the beach in a bathing suit instead of a loose tank dress. If you still have weight to lose, you may tend to focus on the changes you still need to make or imperfections that you perceive instead of the positive changes you’ve already made. Here are some of my suggestions for ways you can learn to improve your body image and embrace the changes you’ve made so far:
- A picture says a thousand words. Dig out some old photos of yourself. Take a new photo of yourself, and compare the difference. You may be surprised at how much you have changed!
- Update your wardrobe. Are you still hiding in your clothes you wore before you lost the weight? Treat yourself to new clothes that actually fit. There really should be no need to hold on to those old “fat” clothes, since your goal is to never be able to fit into them again. Clean out your closet and donate your old clothes to a homeless shelter or charity.
- Hold on to one reminder. While you are in the process of purging your wardrobe, hold on to one piece of clothing that truly shows how far you’ve come. If you’re ever feeling discouraged or insecure, just pull out that piece of clothing to remind yourself of how much weight you’ve really lost.
- Hit the gym. You may have more energy now that you’ve lost weight. Put this extra energy to good use by adding some exercise into your routine. Lifting weights may help you firm up the excess skin you may have from the weight you lost, and a brisk walk or run will also help you tone up and feel great.
- Lift your weight. Have you lost 20 pounds? Or maybe even 50 pounds? Grab a dumbbell or similar weight to get a true understanding of how much excess weight you have lost. Think about how you used to feel when you were carrying around that excess weight on a daily basis.
- Start journaling. If you aren’t keeping a journal already, now is a great time to start. Use a journal to express your feelings about your weight loss. Write down how you feel now versus before you lost the weight. Make a list of all the new positive things in your life. This doesn’t have to be just about losing a few clothing sizes, but have you noticed you have more energy? Is it easy to keep up with your children? Are you sleeping better? Has your performance improved at work? Do you feel more confident? Seeing this on paper makes it easier to embrace and accept your new body and life.
The bottom line is that losing weight can be a life-changing experience that may take some time to get used to. Try some of the previous tips, and know that learning to embrace your new body image is just as crucial to your long-term success at weight loss as is counting net carbs. These are all important steps toward ensuring the changes you make are changes you can maintain for a lifetime.
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It’s January, So Let’s Talk Plateaus
Weight-loss plateaus: They are one of our most popular topics this time of the year, especially if you are new to Atkins. If you resolved that 2012 would be the year to lose the weight, you may be about two or three weeks into the process. I’ve been on the Community Forums, and have seen that quite a few of you are worried because your weight loss has stalled a little. First of all, it’s important to understand that weight loss is not a linear process. It happens in fits and starts, and is affected by a variety of factors. Let’s start by defining what a true plateau is:
To be a genuine plateau, the pause in weight loss must meet the following criteria:
• No weight loss or loss of inches for at least four weeks.
• You haven't altered your exercise regimen or made any other significant lifestyle change.
• You’re not taking any new medications (including hormone therapy) that may be interfering with weight loss.
• You can honestly say you’ve adhered to all aspects of the program.
So, to a certain extent, we shouldn’t even be having this plateau conversation until February. Right now your goal should be to follow Atkins exactly how it is described in the book The New Atkins for a New You. Be patient, and give the program the time to work.
With that being said, I will address a few reasons that could eventually cause a plateau so that you will be armed with the knowledge necessary to move past any stall with confidence.
1. Have you altered your activity level or made any other significant lifestyle change? Non-exercise activity is the not-so-secret ingredient in ongoing weight management. If you've decreased your activity level, you may have noticed your weight loss has stalled. Simple lifestyle changes are a great way to speed things up. Increasing your activity will jumpstart your metabolism and will also allow you to consume more carbs without gaining weight. Simple changes that include taking the stairs, avoiding moving platforms, parking far from your destination, pacing while talking on phone, fidgeting while sitting at your desk, and the utilization of exogenous weights, such as ankle and wrist weights, during activities of daily living will help you burn more calories.
2. Are you taking in more grams of net carbs than you’re aware of? Carbohydrates are a component of so many foods that it’s easy to surpass your recommended net carb level. Don’t forget to count artificial sweeteners (see No. 8 below). Be sure to read labels; salad dressings, condiments, sauces and other convenience items vary dramatically in carbohydrate content. Always select the lowest carb version of a food.
3. Are you consuming excess protein? Keep your portion sizes reasonable. You should feel satisfied, not stuffed after a meal. Try this: Don’t eat as much as you normally do at a meal or snack. After 30 minutes, if you’re no longer hungry, you’ll begin to recognize the difference between habit and real hunger. You’ll then be able to stop eating when you’re full, which promotes weight loss.
4. Are you eating at least three meals a day? Skipping meals will cause your blood sugar level to drop and may slow your metabolism. You’ll be more apt to overeat at your next meal. One of the benefits of the Atkins program is its ability to stabilize blood sugar and control appetite. Don’t skip meals!
5. Are you drinking enough water each day? In addition to helping prevent constipation, water helps keep your body functioning properly in other ways. On any dietary regimen, a minimum of 64 ounces, or eight 8-ounce glasses, of water per day is the usual recommendation. Many people suffer from inadequate hydration, so it's important to be diligent about drinking throughout the day. Water consumption will also help flush toxins from your body and combat bad breath. You're also better able to discern true signs of hunger when you’re hydrated.
6. Are you constipated? Be sure that you’re taking in at least 12 to 15 grams of net carbs in the form of vegetables, and not using most of your carb allotment on other foods. After the first few days, your body should adjust and constipation shouldn’t be a problem. When you begin to add more carbohydrates as you advance through the phases, your first choices should be more vegetables, followed by seeds and nuts and then berries— all good sources of fiber.
7. Have you started new medication? Talk with your doctor to find out if any of your medications affect weight gain or make it more difficult to lose. Medications can alter appetite, metabolism and water retention. If this is the case, work with your doctor to find possible substitutions.
8. Are you over consuming artificial sweeteners? Try to limit your intake to three or fewer packets of sweeteners a day. Count each packet as 1 gram of net carbs. For some people, using artificial sweeteners makes it more difficult to break the carbohydrate addiction.
9. Is insulin the enemy? Insulin, as you know, is the fat-storing hormone and will cause you to store fat around your waist first. It will also retain sodium in your body, causing your body to retain water, which, as you learned, could account for weight gain. Instead of just relying on the scale, get a tape measure and measure your waist regularly; hopefully you are still losing inches even if the scale is slow to move.
10. Muscle vs. Fat. Fat and muscle have different densities, and therefore they vary in volume. In other words, fat takes up more space than an equal amount of muscle. That’s why two people who weigh the same can look very different depending on how much fat and muscle they have. This is also why you should evaluate your progress by inches lost, how your clothes fit, and which notch you use on your belt versus relying solely on the scale. It can also explain why weight loss might slow or stall if you start exercising on Atkins. If you add resistance training to Atkins, you might be accumulating muscle while losing body fat, which is great—but it could translate into a slower weight loss according to the scale, even as your clothes begin to fit better and you begin to reshape your body. You are losing fat and inches, since resistance training protects muscle but does not impede fat loss.
Now that you know what to look for when evaluating your progress (or lack thereof), there is no reason to give up and return to your old way of eating. And remember that weight loss is only one way of measuring success on this program. Are you feeling more energetic? Are you sleeping better? Are your clothes fitting better even if the scale is moving slowly? These are all signs that something good is happening to your body. Be patient, follow Atkins as it is written, and you will almost certainly see results before long. When in doubt, spend a little time on our Community Forums and reach out to some of our Atkins veterans. They’ve all been in your position at one point or another, and are a great source of motivation and encouragement. Good luck!
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If you spend any time on the web right now, you’ll see all sorts of stories devoted to New Year’s weight-loss resolutions. Why not us, why not now? Plus, this gives me an opportunity to shamelessly promote the new cook book.
Whether you are just starting Atkins for the first time, coming back after a hiatus or trying to re-energize your lifelong journey with the program, January is the perfect time to set some new goals and renew your motivation. I know I am!
Here’s how to get started:
Small changes lead to big results. When you try to change too many things at once, you may be sabotaging yourself. For example, instead of resolving to lose 50 pounds, set a more realistic goal of 10 pounds. This simple change sets you up for success instead of likely failure. Once you lost that first 10 pounds, set a new goal to lose another 10 or 15 pounds. In addition, if you are a diehard couch potato, resolving to work out seven days a week for hours at a time is unrealistic, and could lead to burnout or even injury. Start slowly to make exercise a part of your routine by walking a couple of miles five days a week. Once this becomes a pattern, and you start seeing results, add another activity (like weight training or yoga) or increase your distance or speed.
Lose weight together. You’re more apt to eat healthy and exercise if you have a friend, spouse or relative who joins forces with you. Knowing there is someone who is relying on you to meet him or her at the gym at a certain time or prepare an Atkins-friendly dinner makes it easier to stick to your weight-loss resolutions. You can also track your progress together and share your successes and challenges. You’ll see many threads on the Forums created by people who are looking for weight-loss buddies. Check these out, and don’t forget you can also create your own Group and invite fellow Community members to join.
Don’t sweat a slip-up. It happens to everyone at some point. Whether you lose your battle with the breadbasket or ate the French fries that came with your hamburger at lunch, don’t use these moments of weakness as excuses to indulge in a mountain of carbs and throw all your other resolutions out the window. Savor the bread or the French fries, and then get right back on track by making your next meal a low-carb one. If you’ve skipped a couple workouts, get back on the exercise bandwagon by going for a walk
Be prepared. Doing Atkins right is all about having the right food at hand. Your first step? Purge your kitchen of all the foods that may threaten to derail your progress. Hit the grocery and restock your pantry and refrigerator with Atkins-friendly foods so that you’ll always be able to put together a tasty low-carb meal or snack. Stock your fridge with cheese, eggs, tofu, rotisserie chicken, sliced roast beef, ham or turkey, hard salami and other cold cuts, salad fixings and cut-up vegetables for easy snacking. Make sure your freezer has frozen hamburger patties, lamb chops and/or pork chops, shrimp and chicken breasts or thighs in individual zip-top bags so that you can defrost them quickly. Pack your pantry with tuna or salmon in cans or vacuum bags, sardines, crabmeat and clams, Vienna sausages, marinated artichoke hearts, marinated roasted red peppers and olives. Once again, check out the Forums for some other great tips from fellow Community members.
Embrace your inner chef. Even if you didn’t cook a lot before, eating the Atkins way has just become even easier with the launch of my new book, The New Atkins for a New You Cookbook: 200 Simple and Delicious Low-Carb Recipes in 30 Minutes or Less. I don’t know about you, but with the chilly weather outside, I’ve been craving cozy comfort food dishes that are still low-carb yet delicious and satisfying. Here are two recipes from my book that I’ve really been enjoying lately:
Green Chile Pork Stew: http://www.tipsonhealthyliving.com/diet-and-fitness/new-atkins-recipe-green-chile-pork-stew
Peppery Spicy Baby Back Ribs: http://www.tipsonhealthyliving.com/diet-and-fitness/new-atkins-recipe-peppery-spicy-baby-back-ribs
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There has been a lot of coverage on carb cycling in the media lately. Most recently, a new study reported that just two days a week of low-carb eating was more effective at reducing weight and lowering blood levels of insulin, and helping to prevent breast cancer and other diseases, than a standard, daily calorie-restricted, Mediterranean diet. Although this study is valid, taking your body in and out of your optimal fat-burning zone (i.e. the Atkins Edge) is not the best choice for long-term weight loss or success on Atkins. By continuing to cycle on and off carbohydrates (and exceeding your carbohydrate tolerance on a regular basis), you will never have the control that staying right at or below your carbohydrate balance gives you.
You have heard me talk about carbs being the metabolic bully that wreaks all sorts of havoc within your body. Here’s why: In the simplest terms, the metabolic bully rears is ugly head when you exceed your tolerance for carbohydrates. Exactly why that happens and what the results are more complicated, but we’ll take it step by step.
As you know, our bodies run on two sources of energy: fat and carbohydrates. But our default fuel is always carbs. That’s because we have very limited storage space in our body for glucose (sugar), to which carbs quickly convert. Fat, which is actually a more efficient and even fuel, is our backup fuel, in part because we have an almost limitless ability to store fat. By the way, the two sources of fuel are Mother Nature’s ingenious way to protect humankind and other animals. (Polar bears live off their body fat while hibernating.) Body fat was our insurance policy during times of famine or seasonal food scarcity.
Eating too many carbs blocks your body’s ability to burn fat, so as long as you eat this way (even if it’s just five days a week or every two days), you rarely tap into your body’s fat stores. Instead, they remain permanently attached to your hips, thighs, upper arms, butt and all the other well-upholstered parts of your body. The over consumption of carbs acts like a roadblock, standing in the way of fat burning, just as that schoolyard bully blocked your access to the swings or slide all those many years ago. And not only are you unable to lose weight without drastically cutting back on calories, (which leaves you perpetually hungry and vulnerable to falling of the wagon), you’re also plagued with a whole set of side effects from the blood sugar rollercoaster: the uneven energy level, feeling bloated, excessive hunger, cravings for carb foods and inability to concentrate.
But when you control your carb intake consistently every day, as you do on the Atkins Diet, you encourage your body to burn primarily fat for energy, and you can lose weight and ultimately maintain your healthy new weight—all while feeling pleasantly satisfied by your meals. Just as calling an over-reliance on carbs a metabolic bully makes it easier to understand, we have a term to refer to a primarily fat-burning metabolism: the Atkins Edge. It’s your ally against the metabolic bully, moderating your appetite, reducing or eliminating cravings and giving you a steady stream of energy—all day long. Constantly going on and off carbs, and pushing the limits of your carb balance on a weekly basis will never let you achieve the Atkins Edge. Sure, you may lose some weight along the way, but you will always be at risk of tipping the scales (literally) in the opposite direction of what you had hoped for.
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Congratulations! You’ve survived Thanksgiving, hopefully with your waistline relatively unscathed. Now the next challenge awaits you as we head into the next couple weeks devoted to parties and food, food, food. How can you avoid being labeled a party-pooper while staying true to Atkins? In fact, how can you do some entertaining yourself and serve foods your guests will appreciate as much as your waistline does? And finally, how can you still fit in time for your fitness regimen between holiday shopping, gift-wrapping and shipping, a busy social schedule and, oh, yes, a family and a job. I’m here to tell you it can be done. I’ve been living the Atkins lifestyle for 25 years, so I’ve developed some strategies that work for me, and I’m sure they’ll do the same for you. Let’s start with the culinary temptations. One of the great things about Atkins is that eating the low-carb way keeps your blood sugar on an even keel. That means that you aren’t craving sweets or ravenous at meal times—assuming, of course, that you’ve taken our advice to have a mid-morning and mid-afternoon snack in addition to three squares. Eating and Entertaining Eat before you eat. Before you hit a holiday lunch or dinner, a party or an office celebration, fortify yourself with a filling Atkins-friendly snack before you go. My favorite snacks are almonds and strawberries, cheddar cheese with some strips of red pepper or, of course, an Atkins Advantage bar or a shake. Or you could a have a small low-carb meal, such as a chef salad topped with grilled chicken. The combination of a small amount of carbs with either fat or protein will stabilize your blood sugar so you don’t arrive famished. That way, you’ll have the physical backup to your mental fortitude so you can pass up holiday foods that are not on your low-carb meal plan. Give it away. If you receive personal or business gifts that are high in carbs—think cookies, chocolate, fruitcake, flavored popcorn and the like—re-gift them to your child’s school or a homeless shelter. If such gifts arrive at your office, simply put them in a public area like the coffee break room. I guarantee they will disappear fast. Keep snacks on hand. If your workplace is awash in holiday goodies, it’s all the more important that you stick with your low-carb snacks to keep your appetite under control. If possible, avoid the parts of the office where bowls of candy and plates of cookies beckon. You might even want to talk to the office manager or whoever is responsible for this holiday custom and suggest some healthy alternatives like fresh fruit and nuts. Hold the booze. When alcoholic beverages are being served, confine yourself to a glass (or two at the most) of wine or one glass of spirits. That’s assuming that you are out of Induction, of course. Just be sure to have your spirits with water or a mixer made without sugar in any form. Master the buffet. Buffets are actually full of Atkins-friendly options. Stick to the roast turkey, ham, roast beef, salmon filet or other protein dishes, as well as tossed salads and “foundation vegetables.” If you’re in the later phases of Atkins, have modest portions of sweet potatoes, carrots, or other starchy veggies—or even some whole-grain bread. You may want to sneak in an Endulge bar for your dessert. At sit-down meals, there’s no rule against simply not serving yourself a food you want to stay away from. If your hostess insists, take a small portion, have a tiny taste and leave it at that. No need to announce to the world that you’re doing Atkins and are more virtuous than everyone else! Staying Fit No matter how “good” you are when it comes to holiday temptations; the reality is that you’ll probably take in a few extra carbs. The best way to deal with that is to get up the next morning and get back on track. The worst thing you can do is wallow in guilt and decide that you’ve blown it and need to wait until after the holidays to get serious about your weight. There’s nothing like some hearty exercise to make you feel good about yourself and help you renew your commitment. Here are some tips for staying fit over the holidays: Involve the family. Instead of conking out in front of the TV after the holiday feast, take a walk with a family member. While you’re out working off some of the meal, hopefully someone else will take care of the dishes! Start an “active” tradition. After everyone has opened their presents and had breakfast, suggest a family walk, sledding or ice skating to blow off some steam and deal with the inevitable letdown after weeks of anticipation. Walk the walk. Take a walk around the neighborhood with a friend (or your dog). You can check out the decorations and get a quick cardio workout. Give the give of fitness. Wii Fit is lots of fun and keeps you and the kids active even when the weather won’t cooperate. The bottom line? Atkins is a lifestyle, not a diet. The holidays are a time to enjoy family and friends, and yes, some favorite foods. If there isn’t an Atkins-friendly alternative, enjoy a little bit of the real thing, and make sure your next meal or snack is low-carb. Don’t beat yourself up if you’re not continuing to lose weight during this time. A true sign of success is maintaining what you’ve already lost while still enjoying food, friends and family. This sets the stage for a healthy year of low-carb living in 2012. Share and Share Alike What Atkins-friendly tips do you have for making it through the holidays? I’d love to hear! Please share your thoughts with the Atkins Community and also let me know what you’d like to hear about in the future. Finally, to subscribe, just go to http://ow.ly/3GK2g. |
One of the reasons you tend to feel less hungry and more satisfied while still losing weight when you follow Atkins is that you are consuming a higher percentage of fat than you would on other diets. So how can fat make you thin? Along with protein, fat helps make you feel full. And because fat carries flavor, it makes food more satisfying. It takes twice as many calories from refined carbs than from fats to provide the same level of fullness, which makes fat a better choice if you want to lose weight. Dietary fat also slows the entry of glucose into the bloodstream. This keeps your blood sugar in check, which means you’re less likely to be as ravenously hungry after eating fat than you’d be after eating refined carbs. Bottom line: eat fat in place of carbs, and you’re less likely to overeat. And, we now have a fair amount of hard data to demonstrate that consuming as much as 60 percent of calories as fat on a low-carbohydrate diet is not hazardous to your health and in fact has a number of benefits. For example, in one study, HDL (good, protective) cholesterol increased twice the amount, resulting in a significantly improved cholesterol risk profile, and the subjects also experienced a large drop in triglycerides, leading to a superb triglyceride to HDL ratio. Research has shown that when triglycerides are high and HDL is low, this is a significant marker and predictor for cardiovascular disease, while the Atkins Induction phase has consistently corrected this. There are three main types of fat, and all three play a role in Atkins. Although most foods contain a mixture of fat—the three main classes are based on chemical structure—they’re typically categorized by their predominant fat. - Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) are found in olive oil, canola oil, peanut and most other nut oils, as well as avocados. MUFAs are usually liquid at room temperature.
- Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are always liquid at both room temperature and in the refrigerator. They’re mostly found in oils from vegetables seeds, and some nuts. Sunflower, safflower, flaxseed, soybean, corn, cottonseed, grape seed, and sesame oils are all high in PUFAs. So are the oils in fatty fish like sardines, herring, and salmon.
- Saturated fatty acids (SFA) tend to remain solid at room temperature. Butter, lard, suet, and palm and coconut oil are all relatively rich in saturated fats.
- Remember, most fatty foods contain more than one type of fat. For example, canola oil contains twice as much monounsaturated fat as polyunsaturated fat, so it’s considered a MUFA. And although most people assume all the fat in a steak is saturated, certain cuts of beef actually contain almost as much MUFA as SFA and even a small amount of PUFA.
It has been shown that all three types of fats are necessary and important to human health and should be incorporated into the diet in a balanced proportion. If you follow Atkins correctly, even saturated fat, particularly in the early phases of Atkins, when carbohydrate intake is very low, is not dangerous to human health, on the contrary, when balanced with mono- and polyunsaturated fats in a controlled carbohydrate dietary environment, saturated fat may actually have real and measurable benefits in a number of different arenas. The key to eating delicious fats while improving your health is to keep carb intake low. Carbs are the metabolic bully that stands in the way of fat burning. The very essence of Atkins is to switch your metabolism over to using predominately fat for fuel. So it is much more important to concentrate on the amount and types of carbohydrate to allow the body to burn fat. In other words, as long as you are controlling your carbs, the calories from fat are used directly for energy and are unlikely to be stored. With that being said, it’s essential that you eat enough natural fats to provide satiety, keep your fat metabolism humming along, and make foods tasty. But that doesn’t mean you should eat so much that you wind up with a calorie bomb. Use enough oil when sautéing food to keep it from sticking to the pan. Use about a tablespoon of oil (plus lemon juice or vinegar) to dress a salad. A typical day’s intake of fat might include the following:
• 2 Tbsp. oil dressing salads and for cooking
• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 2 Tbsp. cream
• 2 oz. cheese
• 2–3 eggs
• 2–3 servings of meat, poultry, fish, shellfish
• 10 olives and/or
• ½ Haas avocado
• 2 oz. nuts or seeds (after the first two weeks of Induction)
*Note: These are general guidelines. Petite women will may need less and tell men may be able to have more. You may swap out more cream, for example, if you cut back on say, cheese.
Dietary fat is a key source of energy and essential nutrients. It enables your body to absorb the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K, as well as certain other micronutrients. Fat-containing cells cushion your bones, organs and other body parts, and help insulate you from cold. Your brain cells contain specific essential fatty acids that are necessary for healthy brain function, enabling your nerves and hormonal system to send signals to the rest of your body, among other important functions. Quite simply, you can’t live without fat. Share And Share Alike Have you found you’re less hungry and more satisfied once you added more healthy fats to your diets? I’d love to hear! Please share your thoughts with the Atkins Community and also let me know what you’d like to hear about in the future. Finally, to subscribe, just go to http://ow.ly/3GK2g. |
In his new book Wheat Belly, cardiologist William Davis, MD, explains that eating wheat can not only provoke a fat-storing insulin response, but it also stimulates your appetite to eat more. His theory is that when traditional wheat was genetically altered in the last century, the genetic changes may be responsible for the rise in celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. He also theorizes that certain compounds (such as gluten) in wheat trigger hunger, sharper blood sugar spikes, behavioral disorders and inflammation. Although not all of his conclusions are based on research, he has seen thousands of his patients lose weight and improve their blood numbers simply by eliminating wheat from their diets. In fact, the term “wheat belly” comes from the bigger belly, which Dr. Davis considers a dead giveaway of too much wheat in the diet. According to him, a wheat belly represents the accumulation of fat that results from years of consuming foods that trigger insulin, the hormone of fat storage. Of course, I’ve discussed the topic of insulin many times before. As you probably know, too much insulin can promote fat storage, inflammation and plaque formation, leading to an increased risk of heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, etc. Numerous studies show that people with insulin resistance can benefit from a carbohydrate-restricted diet like Atkins, so it does make sense that Dr. Davis’ patients lost weight and improved their blood numbers by eliminating a carb like wheat (gluten) from their diets. If you do have the reduced ability to process carbohydrates—known as carb intolerance—even the carbs found in more complex carbs like whole-grain wheat could wreak havoc on your ability to process insulin, plus lead to a variety of other health woes. Especially if you’ve been shown to have a sensitivity to gluten. There are many active gluten-free discussions in the Forums, and It seems to me that a book like Wheat Belly could be an interesting complement to Atkins. Share and Share Alike What has been your experience eliminating gluten from your diet while following Atkins? Have you read Wheat Belly yet? I’d love to hear! Please share your thoughts with the Atkins Community and also let me know what you’d like to hear about in the future. Finally, to subscribe, just go to http://ow.ly/3GK2g. |
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