[LadyTrinity]

Hi everyone i'm new here I'm currently on Atkins, but i'm already finding it difficult to stick with due to the lack of variety. I need something with a little more variety where I can at least eat fruits, also I like meat but I can do without it. I heard about this diet in First Magazine and it seems pretty healthy. Here is a sample of a typcial days menu:

Breakfast:

Strawberry-bannana smothie
(in blender 8oz apple juice
2 bannas, 1/2 cup sliced strawberries
blend until smooth)

Lunch:

Large green salad topped with red, yellow, and orange bell pepper slices and 1/2 cup raw slivered almonds then drizzled with olive oil and vinegar


Dinner:

Grilled veggie burger topped with lettuce, tomato, onion and salsa or guacomole; along with a Greek salad side sprinkled with goat cheese


They say you can snack on fresh fruit,popcorn (popped in coconut oil) baked corn chips with guacomole and nuts throughout the day. And for beverages water ( your body weight divided by 4, for how much ounces) herbal teas, and vegetable juice. Only 2 slices of bread should be eaten a day and it should be whole grain bread.

Meals can be rounded off with brown rice, sweet potatoes, or baked yams.You can eat any type of raw vegetables.

They stress that it is not a diet but a lifestyle and not to count calories but eat until your full.

They aslo say you don't have to go completely raw, just go for about 80% and that the enzymes in the raw food is what causes you to lose weight and feel engergized.


Do you think this is a healthy diet?

[MrsJim]

Well...what concerns me right off the bat is that it is almost devoid of protein. After all these years, I've found that protein is a MAJOR element of healthy weight-loss...it doesn't necessarily have to be meat...but 'raw' protein - other than soy protein powder - is hard to find, ya know...some people can eat raw tofu but I am definitely not one of those peeps.

I'm speaking from personal experience...but without protein in your diet, you will most likely lose lean muscle...and trust me, you DON'T want to lose muscle - you want to lose fat, right?

All that stuff about 'enzymes in raw food causing you to lose weight' sounds like a bunch of hooey to me...

I'm a fan of a balanced diet myself - i.e. a balance of healthy clean foods containing complex carbs, protein and fat. IMO, this ain't it - sounds more like one of those 'cleansing' type of regimens...just my two cents.

[scoutruns]

I think MrsJim is on to something on the protein aspect.

I will say this, though. The more you stick to eating foods in their "natural state", the better off you probably are. That means less additives, less preservatives, less freaky chemicals, no added sugars, you get the picture.

This just might be a little to the extreme side of it, but certainly nothing to run away from screaming. Throw a grilled chicken breast on the veggie burger bun, and there you go!

[Jello]

Lady, listen to Mrs. Jim. She's usually right! Mrs. Jim, I'm always impressed by your knowledge and research you've done. Anyone can tell by your photo that you know what you're talking about!

Anyway, the thing that hit me about her post was that you should have a balanced diet. Any diet that cuts out a particular food or zeroes in on a particular food can't be right. Sounds like a "cleansing" or temporary thing to me too.

Lady, I'm not a red meat eater. Well, I do eat it occasionally but, like you, I can live without it. But I do get my protein from other sources. Meat for protein, veggies for fiber and certain vitamins, milk for calcium, etc. etc. etc. Just the right quantities of the right foods.

Now finding the right quantities ... well, if I did that perfectly, I wouldn't have this weight problem! Good luck with your weight loss efforts.

[LadyTrinity]

Thanks all for responding

Mrs Jim, I wasn't even thinking about the lack of protein. The whole enzyme thing i've heard people say lately that it's supposed to help renew your cells etc..etc.. But I really haven't seen any researches on that to back it up. Now that I think of it does sound kind of like a fast that maybe you do for 3 days at the most. The last thing I want is to lose muscle. I've heard of BFL is it hard to follow?

Scoutruns I agree with you I do think that eating raw vegetables is more healthy and I know I definetly do not eat enough vegetables, fruits are no problem. It think i'm going to just follow their advice of eating the veggies in their raw state, but like you said just add more food groups.

Jello I completely relate to what you're saying, finding the right quantities/portions is the hard part. I don't eat junk food, but I know my portions tend to be bigger than they should be, plus not getting enough exercise is the reason I have been the same weight for the past 3 years. No gain, no loss. Thanks for the luck, i'll need it! Goodluck to you aslo. One thing I know for sure is that i'm done with atkins.