The New Atkins Made Easy (3 page)

• Dairy products also contain some carbs, in the form of milk sugars.

• Carbs show up in a few shellfish as well, although not in finned fish. (See
page 35
for more on shellfish.)

It's important to understand that Atkins is not about eliminating all carbs. But there are
some
carb foods you'll avoid and others you'll eliminate initially. Early in the program, you'll focus on certain foods, which will continue to be the core of the New Atkins Diet as you increase and broaden your carb intake over time. The quality of the carbs you eat is as important as the quantity. Initially, you'll significantly lower your carb intake and you'll eat primarily whole-food carbohydrates, including as many non-starchy vegetables as possible. You can also have most Atkins snacks, shakes, and treats, as well as the new line of Atkins frozen meals. As you get closer to your goal weight, you'll reintroduce other high-fiber carbs, in a certain order, following the Carb Ladder (
page 14
).

Protein contains the amino acids that are the building blocks from which your body preserves existing (and forms new) muscle tissue, flesh, and nerves. Among the other functions enabled by this protein powerhouse are:

• Keeping warm

• Blood clotting

• Healthy brain function

• Manufacturing hormones, enzymes, and antibodies

• Maintaining an alkali/acid balance

Eating an optimal amount of protein (and fat) while cutting down on carbs accomplishes a number of things, including:

• Satiating you, so you feel pleasantly full

• Moderating your blood sugar level, helping tame your appetite for several hours

• Protecting muscle, so you shed only fat pounds once you've eliminated excess fluid in the first few days of the program

In no way is Atkins a high-protein diet. Guidelines call for 4–6 ounces (cooked weight) of protein foods at each meal. A petite, desk-bound woman might be satisfied with 4 ounces, while an active guy might aim for 6 ounces. (A very big guy might even want 8 ounces.) But you won't have to weigh protein servings. Just compare them to certain common objects and pretty soon you'll be able to eyeball protein and other food portions accurately. (See “Portion Control” on page 58.) Your daily intake of protein foods will range between 12 and 18 ounces (cooked weight) a day.

That leaves us with the third, last, and most (unfairly) maligned macronutrient: fat, which often comes packaged with protein in foods. Okay, I know what you're thinking: “Why can't I just eat no fat or very little fat and burn only my body fat?” There are several reasons this approach won't work:

• Eating adequate fat (at least healthy fats) is essential for life.

• Dietary fats allow your body to absorb the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K, plus other micronutrients in vegetables.

• Consuming fat stimulates the burning of body fat.

• Without dietary fat, you'd have to rely on carbs and protein for energy, but if you take in more than a certain amount of carbs, you'll remain on a primarily sugar metabolism, and if you rely on too much protein, you won't feel as well.

Bottom line: there's no other way to get the calories (energy) you need and to switch to a primarily fat metabolism without dietary fat.

An all-too-common misconception is that the first phase of Atkins, known as Induction, is the whole program. That's undoubtedly where many people get the idea that on Atkins you eat only a small amount of carbs and omit major food groups from your diet. Well, nothing could be further from the truth. Just as you don't go directly from preschool to third grade, or from seventh grade to high school, each of the four phases has a distinct purpose. And just as with your education, each progressively less restrictive phase builds upon the prior one as it stakes out new territory.

Okay, listen up. Essential to success on Atkins is the process of finding the maximum number of grams of carbs you can consume while continuing to lose weight, keep your appetite under control, and stay alert and energized. This number represents your personal carb balance, which is different for each individual. It also typically increases as you lose weight. To find it, you'll gradually increase both the amount and variety of carbohydrate foods you eat. Learning how to balance your carb intake with continued weight loss is what makes Atkins unique. Then, once you've reached your goal weight, you'll find the maximum number of grams of carbs you can consume while maintaining that weight, staying on top of cravings, and feeling good. This number represents your personal carb tolerance.

In Part II, I'll explain in detail how to do each phase and offer ways to simplify the program. There you'll also learn how to segue naturally from one phase to the next and finally to embark on your new permanent way of eating. But for now let's take a quick snapshot of each of the four phases of the New Atkins Diet.

• Phase 1: Induction (Kick-Start)

How long:
A minimum of two weeks, but you may safely follow it for much longer if you have a lot of excess weight to lose
or prefer to lose most of your excess pounds relatively quickly, using the Fast Track (
page 101
). In this case, you'll stay in this phase until you're 15 pounds from goal weight.

Purpose:
Shift your body from burning primarily carbs to burning primarily fat, kick-starting weight loss.

Strategy:
Significantly drop your daily Net Carb intake to an average of 20 (no less than 18 and no more than 22) grams of Net Carbs, the level at which almost anyone begins to burn primarily fat.

• Phase 2: Ongoing Weight Loss (Balancing)

How long:
Typically until you're within 10 pounds of your goal weight, although you can transition to Phase 3 sooner if you're willing to slow the pace of weight loss.

Purpose:
Lose most of your excess pounds and find your personal carb balance.

Strategy:
Starting at 25 grams of Net Carbs daily, begin to increase overall carb intake in 5-gram increments. This means gradually reintroducing a broader array of carb foods as you step up the Carb Ladder, finding your personal carb balance. It could level off anywhere between 30 and 80 daily grams of Net Carbs or even higher. Your personal number is impacted by your age, gender, activity level, hormonal status, and other factors as you continue to lose weight.

• Phase 3: Pre-Maintenance (Fine-Tuning)

How long:
Until you've reached your goal weight and maintained it for a month.

Purpose:
Trim your final excess pounds, continuing to explore your personal carb balance. Then find your tolerance for carb intake while maintaining your new weight. This phase is a dress rehearsal for Lifetime Maintenance.

Strategy:
Gradually increase your daily Net Carb intake in 10-gram (or 5-gram, if you prefer) increments, continuing to
reintroduce new carb foods, as long as you continue to slowly lose weight and then to maintain that loss.

• Phase 4: Lifetime Maintenance

How long:
Ongoing.

Purpose:
Transition to a permanent way of eating that allows you to maintain your new weight.

Strategy:
Remain in control of your weight by adjusting your carb intake if your carb tolerance changes or you regain a few pounds.

You'll use a carb counter to track your daily carbohydrate intake. The downloadable Atkins Carb Counter is available in a printed version and online, as well as a phone app. You'll be counting grams of Net Carbs, rather than total carbs. How come? Although fiber is a form of carbohydrate, it has no impact on blood sugar levels, so grams of fiber can be subtracted from the total grams of carbs in a serving, leaving only those that impact blood sugar. In the case of low-carb products, sugar alcohols likewise have minimal impact on blood sugar, so they too get a free ride. Here's how it works. Say the total grams of carbs listed on a bar's Nutrition Facts panel is 20, but it contains 10 grams of fiber and 7 grams of sugar alcohols. The Net Carb count would be 3 grams.

The Carb Ladder (see
page 16
) offers a logical progression in which to reintroduce carbohydrate foods as you shed pounds. It also makes it easy to segue through the first three phases of the New Atkins Diet and then transition to a lifestyle that allows you to maintain your new weight. Even once you've added back certain foods, you'll eat those
on the lower rungs most frequently and those on the higher rungs less often. If you have a low carb tolerance, you may not be able to eat some of the foods on the top rungs, or you can have them only rarely. Atkins products are not listed below because they vary in carb impact; most are acceptable in Phase 1, but check the phase coding on the package to be sure.

The illustration entitled Carb Balancing—Steps to Weight Loss, which appears on
page 17
, shows how the rungs of the Carb Ladder fit within the three weight-loss phases. Important points to understand:

• On the far right, the daily range of Net Carb intake in grams ranges from 20–70, as indicated by the vertical arrow, corresponding to the rungs of the Carb Ladder.

• The ease with which each individual loses weight varies significantly, so the weight-loss numbers merely illustrate that as pounds melt away, you'll gradually reintroduce categories of carb foods in a certain order.

• The amount of weight you plan to lose may be more or less than the example shown.

• Likewise, the number of daily grams of Net Carbs you'll reach in Phases 2 and 3 may be greater or smaller.

• The horizontal arrows illustrate when to introduce food groups for both the Fast Track and the Slow and Steady path to weight loss.

Phase 1

Rung 1:
Foundation vegetables—leafy greens and other low-carb vegetables

Rung 2:
Dairy foods high in fat and low in carbs—cream, sour cream, and most cheeses

Phase 2

Rung 3:
Nuts and seeds
^I
(but not chestnuts)

Rung 4:
Berries, cherries, and melon (but not watermelon)