Atkins = ? (should i start this again?)

Oh man... here I am again considering trying the Atkins diet.
Lol, years ago I got the newest version of the book, and I tried to do it. I
guess I did not have the willpower to get past that first real carb craving
week that the book said I would experience, and I crashed, ended up eating
pancakes on a Sunday morning, and said "Atkins sucks".

The second time I tried the diet, I was dumb and did it with too much high
carb/sugar foods in the house.
I crashed, and blamed the Atkins diet. In retrospect, it may have been the
fact that at the time I was working a strenuous job and not getting enough
sleep, and generally not taking care of myself. It was also in the middle of
a hard time for me when I was experiencing some self loathing and depression
(more than is usual for a negative type guy like me).

So I am considering it again.
I am not fat. I have weight I don't want, but am not a "large" person. I am
five foot 6 inches and weigh about 190 lbs, however alot of that is muscle I
suspect, because my waist is 36, which isn't HUGE, but isn't skinny.
I want to loose some weight, and get alot of the refined sugars out of my
diet, as I have been a sugar junkie so long, and I don't really feel like
developing type 2 diabetes in my life...

But there seem to be roadblocks.
The Atkins diet seems to me in some ways like a clever scheme to sell
specialized foods from their website, and now through GNC stores.
You need to cut SO MANY carbs out of the diet to go into ketosis, that it
seems to me that you will end up spending lots on the high fatty foods that
are required whilst in the first few weeks (or months) of the program.
Meats, cheese, eggs, these are all things which are actually more expensive
than the highly processed foods that we are used to eating as a society. I
guess that you have to ask yourself whether you can put a pricetag on your
health though, right?

Can I drink diet soda while on Atkins? For some reason, Atkins himself seems
to act as if aspartame is the devil, and will impede your weight loss.
I question why an additive developed for diabetics and people on diet's
would deter people from loosing weight.
Of course, Atkins also conveniently sells products with the Splenda type of
sweetener in them (cant recall the non brand name atm).

How much back to "normal" (breads and other carbs) will I get back to after
I have lost my initial weight? I have a goal to have flat abs, to be honest,
as well as feel more energetic and the like.
So yeah, I have lots of questions, and I would appreciate it very much of
someone could shed some light on my queries.

I have tried low calorie/low fat/lots of exercise diets in the past with
MARGINAL success. In total I lost about 15 lbs before I found I had to
increase my cardio workout substantially. I don't drive a car, I take
transit and walk all over the place.
Its not as if I am suffering from the suburbanite syndrome of driving
everywhere and anywhere.

Thanks.

"Steven C (Doktersteve)" wrote in message
news:Wbhrb.6788$jy.3697@clgrps13...
Oh man... here I am again considering trying the Atkins diet.

Or hey .. how about doing this ..

Eat sensibly. Exercise regularly. Burn more calories then you take in.

Why fall for the fad diet de jour?

"MadRedHatter" wrote in message
news:Ydhrb.346965$6C4.158687@pd7tw1no...

"Steven C (Doktersteve)" wrote in message
news:Wbhrb.6788$jy.3697@clgrps13...
Oh man... here I am again considering trying the Atkins diet.

Or hey .. how about doing this ..

Eat sensibly. Exercise regularly. Burn more calories then you take in.

Why fall for the fad diet de jour?



Why don't you go back to sucking your boyfriends dick and leave the diet
advice to the competent.

MadREd had a good post and one which made lots of sense. Exercise is
probably the most important in losing and controlling weight at a certain
age. Then eating right.

People have lost weight on fad diets, or the Jenny type of weight loss
programs. Many also regain it , and more, once they stop following the
ritual or routine, call it what you want.

Spend at least an hour each night or day doing something which requires some
activity. Hell, go have sex with your partner. It's proven it burns lots
of calories. Next, eat sensibly and guess what, you'll be at a clothing
store looking for new apparel.

I lost over 85 pounds since last year. I feel good and look good. Nothing
wrong with saying that at all. It will take time.

Remember if it takes a few years to put on over 100 or more pounds, losing
it will not be an overnight process. Yup, I've heard of people losing
large amounts of weight. But like I said earlier, in most cases the
effort is short lived.

"JC Der Koenig" wrote in message
gy.com...

"MadRedHatter" wrote in message
news:Ydhrb.346965$6C4.158687@pd7tw1no...

"Steven C (Doktersteve)" wrote in message
news:Wbhrb.6788$jy.3697@clgrps13...
Oh man... here I am again considering trying the Atkins diet.

Or hey .. how about doing this ..

Eat sensibly. Exercise regularly. Burn more calories then you take in.

Why fall for the fad diet de jour?



Why don't you go back to sucking your boyfriends dick and leave the diet
advice to the competent.

Haha .. look at the funny bigot.

JC Der Koenig wrote:



why don't you go back to sucking your boyfriends dick and leave the diet
advice to the competent.



.....hark....an asshole speaketh......






--
Getting married for sex is like buying a 747 for the free peanuts
--Jeff Foxworthy

"Black Jacque Shellacque" wrote in message
news:4Yjrb.7564$jy.6471@clgrps13...
JC Der Koenig wrote:



why don't you go back to sucking your boyfriends dick and leave the diet
advice to the competent.



....hark....an asshole speaketh......


So speak up, asshole.

JC Der Koenig wrote:

"Black Jacque Shellacque" wrote in message
news:4Yjrb.7564$jy.6471@clgrps13...


JC Der Koenig wrote:



why don't you go back to sucking your boyfriends dick and leave the diet
advice to the competent.




....hark....an asshole speaketh......




So speak up, asshole.


Don't have to, you already did.







--
Getting married for sex is like buying a 747 for the free peanuts
--Jeff Foxworthy

"JC Der Koenig" wrote in message
gy.com...


Why don't you go back to sucking your boyfriends dick and leave the diet
advice to the competent.


If you think promoting Atkins makes you competent, you are wrong. Mad
hatter is correct. You MUST exercise, and you MUST have a proper diet. It
is that simple. People fail at these fad diets because they are just that,
fads. Your daily diet must be the right combo of carbs, EFA's, and protein.
Your daily eating habits must fit into your daily routine without you having
to think about it, so it must be part of your lifestyle. The initial weight
loss on Atkins is water weight as the Atkins book also states. Then, you
will eventually plateau, then when you become irritated with the diet, you
will quit and go back to the way you were before.

Akins maintains a Cult like following, so I am guessing my words will fall
on deaf ears.

If you think promoting Atkins makes you competent, you are wrong. Mad
hatter is correct. You MUST exercise, and you MUST have a proper diet. It
is that simple. People fail at these fad diets because they are just that,
fads.

Words of wisdom :-)

Akins maintains a Cult like following, so I am guessing my words will fall
on deaf ears.

That's true of any weight loss plan, really. We went to Weight
Watchers and lost a combined 70lbs. We reached and exceeded our 10%
goal and have kept the weight off for over a year. Some WW members
were pretty fanatical about keeping track of everything, but I don't
think it's a fault of the program. I guess it is easy to get obsessed
with what you eat. The group leader was a hoot and it was nice to get
out and chat with other people trying to lose weight. We don't go
anymore because we don't need the support so much. WW was really
eye-opening and it was mostly about changing behaviour - like finding
something to do if you're bored instead of eating, or find another way
to deal with a personal problem rather than drowning it in a bag of
chips. There are no bad foods on WW :-) It really teaches restraint
and moderation.

OTOH, a friend of ours keeps touting Atkins as the greatest thing
since apple pie. He was always putting down WW and said it was a waste
of money. He rallies on and on about ketosis, but, the fact of the
matter is, two years later, we met our weight loss goals and he hasn't
lost a pound. I think WW was money well spent. I'm not bashing Atkins,
but I think too many people fall into the rah! rah! rah! trap and then
are not able to follow or commit to their weight-loss plan at all. If
Atkins works for you, great :-) Different things work for different
folks.

Best,
Christine