Atkins worked, but gained all of the weight back. South Beach next?

by Beth
(Connecticut)

I tried the Atkins diet several years ago. I was on it for about 4 months and lost 30 lbs (160 to 130).

However, I really didn't eat much (<1000 cal/day), as I found it hard to eat so much protein with no carbs.

It was a lot of work as I had to cook everything from scratch to avoid carbs. While you don't have to buy special prepared foods (which can cost a lot), it did require a lot of attention to grocery shopping.

I found a lot of helpful information and recipes on the web, so I didn't have to spend much on books.

I was hungry and found myself thinking a lot about food while I was on the Atkins diet. I really found it difficult (I love bread), and don't think I could sustain it in the long term.

I missed sweets, bread, rice, pizza, and so many other things. It was hard to eat out or to eat at other people's houses.

I don't think it is a healthy way to eat in the long term, and it definitely wasn't healthy for my husband (who was eating more meat and fat than normal without avoiding carbs). Once I stopped doing Atkins I gained all of the weight back within a year.

I think if I try another diet, I would try the South Beach diet. It has some of the benefits of Atkins, but seems much more sustainable in the long term. Nutritionally, it also seems to make more sense to me.

I do have a South Beach cook book, and there are some really good recipes, especially for soups.

Given how much I use the cookbook (even though I am not following the diet), I think I would find South Beach easier to follow.