Atkins Diet Meal Plan – What you need to know
February 14, 2010 by admin
Filed under Atkins Diet
Many individuals think about the Atkins diet and picture the horror stories you hear, about tasteless bars and unexciting meals twice a day. Contrary to widespread belief, someone on an Atkins diet eats five times each day, and each dish can be made in a very healthy manner that’s still very appealing to individuals no matter what their preferences.
An Atkins diet meal plan consists of five meals including:
- Breakfast
- Morning tea
- Lunch
- Afternoon tea
- Dinner
The Atkins diet consists of 4 phases including;
- Induction
- Ongoing weight loss (OWL)
- Pre-Maintenance
- Lifetime Maintenance
Phase One – Induction: You cut carbohydrate intake to 2/3oz or 20g per day. This is the stage at which you lose the most weight (usually up to 15lbs in the initial two weeks… sometimes more). You stay in phase one for a minimum of two weeks but you may choose to remain at phase one for longer (particularly if you have a large amount of weight to lose). It should be noted that in this phase dizziness and fainting can be an issue. This is because when your body runs out of carbohydrates and has to switch to burning fat and the energy is not as instant so you may experience these symptoms while the switch over occurs.
Phase two – ongoing weight loss: You may increase your DAILY carbohydrate intake by 1/6oz or 5g and stay at that level for one to two weeks before increasing again. Weight loss slows slightly at this stage and therefore the side effects of dizziness and weakness reduce in frequency. During this stage you may begin to find your ‘carbohydrate level for losing’ or CLL. This is the quantity of carbohydrates you can consume and still lose weight. In phase two you typically increase your carbohydrates till you’re losing one pound per week. Then you remain at that level till you’re 10lbs from your goal weight at which point you progress to phase three.
Phase three – Pre-maintenance: You’ll increase your daily carbohydrate intake by 2/3oz or 10g and remain at that level for up to two weeks before increasing daily carbohydrates again by the same amount.
Phase four – lifetime maintenance: Begins once you have achieved your goal weight. At this time you will have discovered what your Atkins carbohydrate equilibrium (or ACE) is. Your ACE is the quantity of carbohydrates you’ll be able to consume without gaining OR losing weight. Imagine how powerful this is, if you ever reach a stage of wanting to lose more weight you’ll can simply cut back your daily net carbohydrates and begin losing weight again. This puts you in a good position to maintain a healthy weight.
After you eat as recommended above you’re more likely to get the nutrients you need for your day and to form a lot of energy throughout your entire day rather than having spurts of energy till you are hungry again. This also helps you limit yourself as a result of eating in smaller amounts more frequently. This means you tend to be less likely to gorge in one sitting and simply ensure that you receive the nutrition you need while feeling full and able to function and engage in your normal activities.
Many individuals feel they need caffeine to wake them up in the morning before work or beginning their daily activities. With this diet you should not feel these cravings for sugar or caffeine and can have plenty of energy on a regular basis as long as you follow the diet as it’s mapped out and maintain the correct eating schedule.
The Atkins diet meal plan was originally created by Dr. Robert Atkins to attempt and battle against obesity and help individuals to stay healthy so that they will be able to live longer, healthier lives. People do not have to be obese to go on this diet, you may simply want to improve your health and have more energy and be fitter. When a person craves caffeine it is sometimes because they feel a need for energy that they are lacking as a result of not having a healthy diet that provides them the nutrition they require.
In many ways the Atkins diet meal plan is easy compared to many traditional diets where you’re mainly trying to eat more nutritious foods to become healthier. Many individuals assume the Atkins diet is totally different than other diets when in many ways the only distinction is that it encourages you to reduce carbohydrate intake while still trying to stay you as healthy as possible. The Atkins diet is primarily making an attempt to help someone achieve their ideal weight and be as active as possible to stay healthy. With the delicious recipes that are available on the Atkins website for everyone to try, you are certain to be be able to achieve to your ideal weight while still eating things you enjoy.
One issue to keep in mind is that it is crucial to follow the Atkins diet to the letter. If you do not follow the Atkins diet correctly then you risk damaging yourself. It is important for you to visit the Atkins diet website. Don’t worry, it’s 100% FREE to join and you’ll be able to become a member of their community to get support from other members and receive more information on the four stages of the Atkins diet and recipes also. On thing is certain, if you follow the Atkins diet meal plan consistently then you will soon reach your weight loss goals.
