Atkins Diet....

[rjensen11]

My dad needs to do something to lose weight, and I mean 100lbs would not be bad by any means. To those that have done the Atkins Diet, what are your opinions? I know that it's unhealthy to do it for an extended period of time(like 6 months) because your body needs SOME carbs and sugars, because once your body doesn't have any sugars to use, it starts to destroy your muscles and use those. And I know that when ending the diet, the only real effective way is to go off moderatly, or else the body will just go back to where it was before.

What are you experienced people's opinions?

 

[vat_man]

We're actually about a month into it at the moment - my body fat's come down about 2-3% and my weight's come down about 3.5 kg, so it's working a treat for me. My partner's lost about 4kg in that time so it's working for her as well.

Make sure your father gets a hold of the actual Atkins Diet book and reads - there are a LOT of misconceptions about the diet in the media and most of what you'll read and hear is wrong. I was very dubious about the diet until the family doctor recommended it for my partner (she has a bit of a battle with her weight) and I read through the book and did some research - conceptually it seems pretty sound - the idea is that the method your body uses to digest fat and protein is the same method it uses to burn its own fat, so if you run a calorie deficit (i.e. burn more than you eat) you'll burn your own fat rather than muscle.

The only thing I'm finding is I need some carbs before going on my longer runs - protein isn't a good longer term energy source.

 

[vat_man]

The official website is here: http://atkinscenter.com/

 

[Option2]

Originally posted by rjensen11
because your body needs SOME carbs and sugars, because once your body doesn't have any sugars to use, it starts to destroy your muscles and use those.

When you don't take in ANY carbs, you liver starts what's called "gluconeogenisis" where proteins are converted into glucose.

 

[hanker]

Wouldn't just excercising reguallarly and eating proper shed some pounds too. Or join like a workout circuit, that might help.

 

[vat_man]

Originally posted by hanker
Wouldn't just excercising reguallarly and eating proper shed some pounds too. Or join like a workout circuit, that might help.

Heh....

I run about 40-50km a week, do weights 3 times a week plus two other cardio sessions, and was reasonably careful about my diet (well, I probably drank too much). The weight was coming off, but quite slowly - the results since we've started have been pretty impressive, in terms of weight and body fat content reduction.

For some people, if they're SERIOUSLY overweight, exercise might not be an option either at all or early on in their weight loss, because it puts too much strain on the ol' ticker.

 

[Ax Battler]

In relation to your first point - the body will not use muscle tissue for energy - fat is THE greatest source of energy weighing in at 9 calories per gram - on the atkins diet your body has plenty of energy from the fats and proteins you are consuming - if you are eating regularly there would be no need for your body to use muscle tissue for energy.

 

[vat_man]

Originally posted by Ax Battler
In relation to your first point - the body will not use muscle tissue for energy - fat is THE greatest source of energy weighing in at 9 calories per gram - on the atkins diet your body has plenty of energy from the fats and proteins you are consuming - if you are eating regularly there would be no need for your body to use muscle tissue for energy.

It will if you run out of glycogen for your muscles and running too high a heart rate - the body will break down muscle to run in these circumstances. Heart rates are very important in working fat burning training.

 

[Ax Battler]

That's catabolism - assuming you are consuming enough protein regularly it would not be a problem, on the atkins diet your body has switched to fat as a fuel source - some people believe it is a superior fuel source to carbs.
What your basically saying is if you don't eat enough then your body will use protein for energy - well thats a given, only the release of cortisol would make a substantial impact to use of protein for energy - people who train smart avoid cortisol and being in a catabolic state.

 

[Option2]

Look up "Gluconeogenisis" fellas.

 

[Tom M]

Through my job I know around 2000 people fairly well and have heard several horror stories related to the atkins diet. Mostly because the body requires Carbohydrates to function properly. Most specifically your organs such as the Liver and Kidneys. Without carbs they don't properly filter out toxins in the body and the end result is that you slowly poison yourself.
Now I'm a person that likes to eat, but have always been pretty active so I kept my weight down... until last year. I broke a few bones in my hand and found myself unable to work out for quite a while and ballooned up to 280-290 Lbs. I was able to bring myself down to 220 (I'm a pretty big guy, and 220 is thin.)
I basically ate a power bar, 2 packets of instant oatmeal, 1 bottle of cranberry juice, raw carrots, and assorted vegetables and several pieces of fruit every day for 3 months, and was able to lose it all. (plus vitimin supplements and a protein shake so that my muscles would not atrophy.) (around 800-1000 calories daily, which sucks at first but you get used to it after 6-7 days.)
Now I eat the oatmeal, occasional power bars, rice, vegetables, grilled chicken, fish, and fruit etc. Nothing with high fat or cholesterol. (no mayonaise, margarine or other things like that which add useless calories. And stay away from goodies.)
I actually think of a thread when eating almost every day that Vat_man posted way back talking about how he struggled to lose weight and advised everyone not to let themselves get out of hand because reversing the damage was just too difficult.

 

[Option2]

In short......





........gluconeogenesis is the biosynthesis of new glucose, (i.e. not glucose from glycogen). The production of glucose from other metabolites is necessary for use as a fuel source by the brain, testes, erythrocytes and kidney medulla since glucose is the sole energy source for these organs. During starvation, however, the brain can derive energy from ketone bodies which are converted to acetyl-CoA.
Synthesis of glucose from three and four carbon precursors is essentially a reversal of glycolysis.

 

[rjensen11]

Originally posted by Option2
In short......





........gluconeogenesis is the biosynthesis of new glucose, (i.e. not glucose from glycogen). The production of glucose from other metabolites is necessary for use as a fuel source by the brain, testes, erythrocytes and kidney medulla since glucose is the sole energy source for these organs. During starvation, however, the brain can derive energy from ketone bodies which are converted to acetyl-CoA.
Synthesis of glucose from three and four carbon precursors is essentially a reversal of glycolysis.

Yay! Somebody used id est correctly!!!