I went to a business breakfast today and was seated by a very large woman. I ordered fresh fruit and oatmeal and was feeling quite proud of myself, considering the delicious sugary whipped creamy crepes they had. The woman next to me ordered this: 6 eggs, scrambled with cheddar and mozzerella cheese, 6 strips of bacon cooked soft, and 4 sausage patties. When the waiter asked if she wanted toast, the lady smiled very approvingly at herself and said, "No, I can't eat bread. I am on Atkins." It was all I could do to keep my jaw from dropping open. By my quick calculations, that had to be a 1500 calorie breakfast. True, she didn't eat a single carb, but how in the world can this be an effective weight loss plan? Does Atkins truly encourage a completely wanton mass consumption of meat and cheese and eggs and pay no regard to fat or calories? Or was this woman just a very mis-informed "self-taught" Atkins-esque dreamer who made up her own rules? I mean, in the end, isn't a calorie a calorie? If you are eating absolutely no carbs but you are still eating more calories than you burn, won't you still gain weight? I obviously know nothing about Atkins and I am not taking a negative position against it, I am just VERY curious to know what it's all about.

Nope! She needs to read the book.

The Atkins menu des NOT suggest 6 egss at a time . Their induction menu suggests 2.
I agree with Suzanne , read the book.

Actually the book says to eat as much eggs cheese and meats that you want in the first two weeks. then after that you start adding cards in 5 carbs a day the first week and then 5 more then next week until you figure out how many carbs you can eat to still lose weight and then how many carbs you can eat to maintain your weightloss and not lose anymore.

my husband did atkins for 3 months. LOST 40 pounds, his cholesterol and blood pressure were down to normal. but he started eating carbs again and he gained it all back plus some and his cholesterol and bp shot through the roof. NO ONE CAN EAT THAT WAY FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES... and once you start eating carbs again, I think it catches up with you.

Ohh boy. I don't know anything about atkins, but I can tell this new "lifestyle" thing is really setting in. Reading what she ordered made me feel a little queasy. Before I would have been envious, lol.
But! Congrats to YOU for eating healthy!

Really??? Seriously?? Eat as much as you want. No mention of reasonable limits or calories or anything?

Wow. I just don't understand.

I'm sorry, I have to disagree...It's not like you don't eat ANY carbs. It's recommended to eat certain vegetables that low in carbs, and salads, stuff like that, along with meats. You can have 3-4 oz of cheeses, and there are quite a few veggies on the approved list.

The way the plan is supposed to work is that you start out on 20 carbs a day, during induction and then add carbs back, seeing what carbs cause you not to lose weight and also find your right amount of carbs that you can have a day. I got a point where I was eating a few fruits along with tons of veggies. I had never eaten as many veggies as when I was on atkins.

No, you don't really have to watch the fat intake, though he does mention eating good fat. Atkins is severely misunderstood and of course if you are eating NO carbs and then start back, you're going to gain back weight. And anyone who just eats meat and cheese are NOT doing atkins.

By "very large," I'm guessing that she was significantly larger than you. It's very possible that even eating like this she will lose some weight. My guess is also that she is very early on in the Atkins program.

A lot of low-carb dieters are entranced by the idea of eating all of the fat and protein they want, at least at first. They almost try to "break" the system and prove that they can't lose weight on a low carb diet. Before my husband and I went on diabetes medications (and therefore had to eat more carbs), we were eating very low carb. Our first week of low carb was like this, and to my amazement (my husband much more so than I), but we both lost weight.

An astonishing thing happens on low carb diets for many people (definitely for my husband and I) - hunger starts to disappear. At the start of low carbing, we were still used to being hungry all of the time (like we were eating carbs), so we thought we had to eat a lot to be full. And while this was true for several days, as we contionued, we were less and less hungry, and began eating less and less. Fat actually lost it's appeal much more quickly for me than my husband, but eventually he reduced his dietary fats also.

I would feel like a total grease ball if I ate that much bacon and sausage. I did Atkins for almost 2 years. Although it was too hard for me to do for the rest of my life I do believe it works if done correctly. I felt great while I was on it. The problem I had was that I quickly returned to eating carbs and therefore quickly gained my weight plus more. I agree with Renee that Atkins really got me started on eating veggies. I ate tons of salad. I think the key for any food plan is moderation.

By the way - good for you for making a healthy choice!

First of all, PLEASE don't bash Atkins, Dek. I'm sorry that it wasn't the right thing for your husband, but that doesn't mean it's not sustainable for other people. We have a woman on this board who has sustained a 100+ pound weight loss on Atkins for over two years.

The book doesn't say to eat as much eggs, meat and cheese as you want, either. Cheese is limited to 3-4oz a day. Eggs DO have carbohydrate (.6 grams, to be exact) in them and the book suggests that each be counted as one carb to keep the math simple. Cheese is also to be counted as one carb per ounce (as cheese has some trace carbs in it). So in that sense, the amount of eggs you eat is definitely limited by the total amount of carbs you can eat in a day. Sausage is something I'd stay far away from unless I knew how it was cooked, as sausage can contain carbs (the book lists pork sausage links as having 2 carbs per 2 links).

Her breakfast, if there were two slices of cheese used (with 6 eggs, it may have been more than that) could have been anywhere from 8-12 grams of carbs...which would have taken a HUGE chunk out of her total for the day. So...I think she needs to re-read the book. Atkins is NOT a no-carb diet, but it is a low-carb diet...and your breakfast companion might not be understanding how carb counts work.

I'm on Atkins--I count my carbs, but I also count my calories. It works for me. In the beginning, I had to actually make sure I was eating ENOUGH calories, because Atkins is a VERY filling diet and it almost eliminated hunger pangs for me. I eat meat--Chicken breast, pork loin and cube steak regularly (in 4-6oz portions), I eat vegetables (Spinach, Romaine-based Salad, Broccoli, etc) two or three times a day, and have nuts and berries a few times a week right now. I'm eating more vegetables than I ever have (I've never been a veggie person, but I'm learning!). I believe that a Low Carb way of eating IS sustainable over the long term, if you transition into maintenance slowly and the right way. Do I expect to eat Induction-level carbs the rest of my life? Absolutely not. It wouldn't be realistic for me. Do I think that I'm ever going to be able to eat the "Typical American" amount of carbs and maintain? No. I think the right spot will be somewhere in between for me, and it's my job to find it when the time comes.

I'm sorry I got off on a tangent here...Just sharing my experience.

Like, my favorite breakfast lately?:

Spinach, 1 Over-Medium Egg, 2 slices of Bacon, 1 slice of american cheese (like a bacon/egg/cheese sandwich on top of spinach): 280 calories and about 4 carbs. It keeps me satisfied and is delicious.

First of all I am not BASHING ATKINS!!!!!!!!!! I am just saying the with my experiences from seeing my husband and mother both "succeed" and fail with atkins that MOST people can not sustain eating that way as a lifestyle. it isnt a "diet" that you can just do when you feel like it. It isnt like couting calories or doing weight watchers. It takes a few days to get into ketosis and if you eat carbs then you have to start all over. I didnt say that you cant eat carbs. I SAID you can eat as much meat eggs and cheese you want and some veggies. THEN YOU START ADDING CARBS BACK IN!!!!!!!!

It is just like any lifestyle change. Atkins is for some people and ww is for some and counting calories is for some.

I know the book has more stuff in it. BUt that is the basics of Atkins... and yes I have read the book.....

wow that breakfast sounds awesome ~ i'm SO switching to Atkins! hahah just kidding

I won't bash it, because it can work for some -- it worked for me for about 3 months and 35 pounds !!! of course, then I ate a cookie and 45 pounds came screaming back on to me

Hmmm.... Well we always say that any diet only "works" for as long as you stick to it, Atkins is certainly no exception. What some find relatively easy to stick with, others find difficult. It's not always a matter of ease either, it's just a matter of what people are WILLING to stick with. Cause' let's face it, all the plans in the world are difficult to stick with at times. Oh brother, don't we all know THAT?

What I have found with Atkins is that my carb cravings went completely away, my binges are short and small and non-sugar, and I have gained the ability to go right back on plan after a slip. And I feel physically better than I have in years, my lipids, blood sugar, and bp have improved enormously in 4 mos, and my GP is thrilled with me and said WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU DOIJNG? I've never seen changes like these in this amount of time!

This is not effortless because I have to exercise a little -- gasp -- mindfulness and self restraint, but it is so far the easiest plan to stick to I have ever tried. During induction I ate like the lady you mentioned, and lost 12 pounds in 2 weeks. Remember, none of us start out on any diet, accustomed to eating reasonable portion sizes. Within the first month, my appetite had reduced to reasonable portion sizes. Now I cannot imagine being able to stuff down the sheer quantities that I used to eat. I am absolutely satisfied, and I do not feel at all deprived. This is the first diet in, say, 40 years during which I have not felt deprived. Like Azure, I have to pay attention and make sure I get enough calories. If I'm not paying attention, they fall too low, and as my body weight decreases I'd have no room to decrease cals.

I am confident that by the time I have transitioned to maintenance the way that is suggested, it will be completely normal to me and I will not really want to eat any other way. Even now he gooey sweet pseudo-food seems repulsive to me. I don't even like the smell of it anymore. My body has come to recognize and appreciate real food, not overprocessed chemical goo.

Atkins is the best thing I've ever done for myself. And as far as people not being able to stick to it goes, the vast (vast!) majority of people fail within a year no matter what they're doing. Remember, we here at 3FC are the exception. If other people's failures were grounds for ruling out a particular plan, we'd just have to say categorically that there isn't anything that works, and we know that just isn't true. We're surrounded by proof here at 3FC.

I could never eat all of that! Then again, I am not a huge "breakfast" type foods fan. I like my eggs deviled, and I suppose I could devour 6 of them if I was unchecked :P BUT ...