Atkins Diet works, but only temporarily

by Meg
(Columbus, Ohio, USA)

The Atkins diet sounds like a dream come true for many people: all the cheese and meat you want? And you lose weight? Sign me up!

Unfortunately, when I tried the Atkins diet, I found that it isn't all it's cracked up to be.

At first, it wasn't too bad. I could still eat a lot of my favorite foods. Yes, it was hard giving up cookies and crackers and bread, but at least I could fill up on eggs and sausage and cheddar cheese.

The real problem for me is the restriction of fruits; it just doesn't make sense. Fruit is important for your health.

Yes, fruit does contain carbs, but to cut it out of your diet completely just didn't feel healthy.

However, I did drop a few pounds very quickly that first week. Okay, I thought, I can stick with this.

After a while, though, I began to feel like my body just wasn't running as well on all of the meat and cheese I'd been consuming.

Not to mention the fact that I began dreaming of bread and muffins. I tried to hold out as long as I could, but after a week and a half, I finally caved and ate a biscuit at breakfast.

I've decided that, while Atkins does produce quick results, it just isn't practical for the long term.

And, as most doctors will tell you, the trouble with diets is that they don't last long term and you usually end up gaining back all the weight plus some.

I've found that more moderate approaches, for example Weight Watcher's, provide slower results (1 or 2 pound losses per week vs. the 5-10 lbs. you may drop your first week on the Atkins diet.)

However, because they allow you to eat pretty much anything, from any food group in moderation, they actually are sustainable for weeks or years at a time.

The end result is much more satisfying than the quick-fix of dieting on Atkins. And you can keep eating bread.