The Atkins diet restricts the intake of carbs to no more than 20 grams in a day. You will be able to reach ketosis if you follow the Atkins diet keenly.
Being in ketosis depends on the number of carbs you eat in a meal. The proteins you eat can also influence ketosis, too much protein can kick you out of ketosis.
As compared to other diets, the Atkins diet is very simple and easy to follow. However, this doesn’t mean you can eat large amounts of fats and steak daily.
The Atkins diet itself originated from Robert Atkins, a cardiologist in the 1970s. He designed the diet to completely focus on eating; some proteins, a lot of fats, and low carbs. Since he believed that eating carbohydrates with no fats was to be blamed for weight gain and many health problems being experienced.
This diet mainly focuses on changing your body’s metabolism to burn stored fats for energy rather than carbs. It works by restricting the number of carbs you eat on a daily basis.
In this diet, you will use net carbs, which is a tracking method used to check the average amount of carbs minus its total fiber content measured in grams.
The body normally obtains its energy by burning carbs for fuel, when you avoid carbohydrates in your diet, your body will be forced to utilize the stored fats in the body which are broken down by the liver to produce ketones.
The ketones are then used by your body and brain for energy. In fact, studies have proven that ketones are a much more efficient and cleaner source of fuel as compared to glucose. People on the keto diet have reported increased focus, reduced hunger, less fatigue, and generally need less sleep.
Benefits of the Atkins diet.
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It helps to manage blood sugar levels
In diabetic people, the Atkins diet can help control blood sugar levels since the diet restricts the intake of carbohydrates to low amounts.
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Cut calorie intake
If you cut down on the intake of carbs, in return you are removing foods that are unhealthy from your diet. Some of this food include processed white bread, sugar, and fried foods. Most people take foods that have high carbohydrates and if they reduce their portions, they will lose a great amount of weight as a result of eating fewer calories.
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Reduced hunger
Taking fats and proteins into your diet helps with satiety and suppresses appetite. This can be of great help to people who feel hungry all the time as they will be able to feel fuller for longer.
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You will lose fewer muscles
Ketones have the potential to spare muscle tissues by lowering your glucose needs. Several tissue cells that would run on glucose can successfully run on ketones.
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You will burn more fats
While on this diet, you will be able to have lean mass, increase insulin, and have a drop in overall body fats.
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Normalcy in Insulin
Being on this diet will reduce your insulin load and normalize it. The low-carb diet has the potential to be an antidote to high levels of elevated insulin. Limiting carbohydrate intake will automatically reduce insulin levels.
Risks of taking Atkins
The Atkins diet can be of great help for people who need to lose weight. However, it has its risks which include;
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The diet has its side effects:
The low-carb diet can lead to an imbalance in electrolytes, kidney problems, low blood sugar levels (which is very dangerous), and constipation.
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The diet allows the intake of processed meat:
Most people love processed meat like bacon but this might expose you to heart disease problems and some types of cancer.
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The diet excludes healthy foods:
To ensure that you stay under the carb limit, some people limit the intake of fruits and vegetables which are very important to the body. The two contain very important nutrients and minerals like vitamins, potassium, magnesium, sodium, calcium, fiber, and disease-fighting phytochemicals.
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The diet allows processed food:
The Atkins diet promotes Atkins shakes, Atkins bars, and ready-to-eat meals which helps people to finish the plan to the end. These foods are not good when it comes to weight loss as they contain artificial sweeteners, high saturated fats, ingredients that are processed, and sodium which can affect your health.
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It has questionable long-term benefits:
There is no evidence to show that the Atkins diet is a reliable long-term weight loss strategy. since most of the studies show how it impacts your health for less than a year or two.
if you need to know whether you are in Ketosis while on the Atkins diet. This might be shown by both positive and negative signs which include;
- Experiencing bad breath.
- Experiencing weight loss
- Increased focus and energy.
- Experiencing short-term periods of fatigue.
- Having suppressed appetite.
- Having increased levels of ketones in the urine, breath, and blood.
- Experiencing a short-term reduction in performance.
This diet still has many people debating on it as it utilizes fatty foods and goes low on carbs. Some people view it as being unhealthy due to its high saturated fat content. These days, the high saturated fats in foods affect our health and one may develop heart diseases.
It will take you about 2-4 weeks to get into ketosis while on Atkins. Some people may take a bit longer to get into ketosis on Atkins and this depends on their level of exercise, age, intake of fats, metabolism, proteins, and current daily carb intake.
CAN YOU COMBINE INTERMITTENT FASTING WITH THE ATKINS DIET?
Intermittent fasting involves interchanging periods of fasting and eating. The period of fasting is referred to as the fasting window as you force your body to use energy from burning the stored fats to get fuel.
When the stored fats are burnt for energy, the body will stabilize its blood sugar, lose weight and improve the metabolism of your body. Intermittent fasting as seen can be a very important tool to lose weight maximumly.
The Atkins diet offers almost the same interests as intermittent fasting if done alone. If your body is very much adapted to the Atkins diet which is a low-carb diet, then your body is already adapted to burning fats for fuel. Intermittent fasting can give a helping hand to stabilize and maintain the levels of your blood sugar.
On intermittent fasting, someone might find out that they have created a great calorie effect, and their metabolism might be slowed which might derail their journey to losing weight. You must eat sufficient proteins when in the intermittent fasting feeding window to maintain and even build muscles.
To increase your intake of proteins while on the intermittent fasting and Atkins diet, an Atkins shake
or Atkins bar can be of great help, ensure you take them before beginning your fast.
How do I combine intermittent fasting with Atkin’sdiet?
As much as some research does not recommend combining the two, if you need to combine the two, then you should begin on low carb for the first 2-3 weeks before going on intermittent fasting. This gives your body time to safely adapt to the diets and be able to easily attain your goal.
When you combine intermittent fasting with the Atkins 100 type it gives you room to have few carbohydrates rich in fiber daily. This combination will help you reduce the stress levels that accompany the strict low-carb diet.
Related post: CAN YOU COMBINE PALEO AND KETO ?
SUMMARY
Before you begin the intermittent fasting combined with the Atkins diet to Keto and Atkins diet, ensure that you read and research more on the diets so that you will be able to follow them perfectly to get results.
The Atkins diet is not recommended to be used by everyone despite it being a very effecient way to lose weight.
Also, it may be too expensive for some people to afford and access some foods recommended for this diet like fresh produce and high-quality meat. The diets are restrictive as one has to forgo some foods which the body might need. This might lead to some bodily complication or eating disorders.
When the diets are combined, people at risk of heart disease or have a heart condition and high cholesterol problem, should ensure they closely monitor their levels of cholesterol and negative changes in their bodies.
If you have a condition like diabetes, consult a doctor and or a nutritionist so that you have clarity on whether to be on the diet or not.
The Atkins diet is not recommended for pregnant women and people with kidney issues. Also, consult a doctor or a nutritionist who is registered and certified if you have any health complications before beginning the weight loss journey. This will greatly help you to know if it is good for your health condition and the right diet to be on.
Therefore, you need to fully research and understand what diet they are getting into before you start it.
Related post: IS OMAD BETTER THAN KETO?
