"but I'm still having trouble with the carbs (that's spelled candy)" -- haha, good one, Macho! That is funny!

A friend of mine eats like the Atkins Diet all the time. She is very skinny and does not need to lose weight, but she believes in eating that way. Her husband lost a ton of weight on the Atkins Diet at one time. I've heard it really works! Let us know how it goes for you!

I knew a few people on this diet and have a few of observations based on their experience:

1) Everybody I know that seriously followed the diet lost a lot of weight
2) Most of them did not look very healthy at the end
3) None of them could maintain a diet that was this extreme and ended up putting the weight back on.
4) My father tried this in his older age and ended up with a major Kidney problem (he was probably about 70 at the time

My final conclusion? I think you can do it in the short term but that you have to find a way to re-introduce healthy carbs into your diet at a later time. It's true that Americans eat way too many carbs, but the right kinds of carbs are good for you. If I'm not mistaken, the "South Beach" diet was a variation of the Atkins, which starts you off with almost no carbs, but gradually re-introduces them at a later point.

So make sure you have a fall back position if you can't maintain this type of diet forever,

From what I have been reading you gradually start adding carbs into your diet as you progress through the different stages of the diet. The first 2 weeks are the only time you cut almost all the carbs out of your diet. I'm also not seeing that it's a high fat diet either as I had thought it was. I do plan on moving back to a balanced diet in the future but right now I want to get this candy monkey off my back.

Give it a try! My friend is very health-conscious and very up on healthy eating. I doubt she would believe in it if it was unhealthy. And you're a smart guy -- you'll know when to tweak things if need be. Wow, can you believe it -- I just called you a smart guy!!!! lol

I have known a few people that tried it and lost a lot of weight just to put it back on again. It is not a sustainable eating plan. IMO diets do not work. You need to have sensible eating plan that has ALL food groups in moderation. I think the Mediterranean way of eating is best. lots of fresh fruits and veggies, fish and a little meat now and then.

Just quit the damned candy moocho!

Be nice to me Rick. I'm a smart guy. Just ask Deni who must also be very smart because she knows I'm smart. Actually I've been called smart by many people although they add the word a** behind it.

I don't plan on staying on this for good. I'm just trying to get this sugar thing under control.

Rick is obviously not as smart as us, Macho, and seems to be a little cranky this morning :) How dare he call you Moocho! Are you going to take that from him?! lol

when I stuck with it the South Beach diet (not as severe as Atkins) worked very well. Carbs are my biggest problem...both candy and breads.

Haha~~
Adkins wouldn't work for me! I don't eat meat or dairy!

The most important thing to remember about the Atkins diet - is to drink a LOT of water every single day. The very minimum that you should drink is 8 8oz. glasses of water. Otherwise you could end of up serious kidney issues.

Mando I once lost a lot of weight on a modified atkins allowing carbs with the dinner meal only. But it didn't last hence the GPS surgery.
It works and carbs are the enemy but it's hard to stick with long term

I remember driving around with a co-worker on this dies and he would make me stop at McDonalds and order a couple big hamburgers without the bun and woof them down in the car. It was then I knew this was not the eating plan for me.

mando- along the lines of our drinking, do you have a plan to transition into the real world of eating healthy?