Thank you so much for commenting! It’s really great to hear about your success, and particularly your 3 year weight maintenance.

Whilst I would not personally recommend an Atkins style diet at this time (due to lack of long-term scientific evidence), I really do commend you, and I do understand that this type of diet can help some people to lose weight.

I have lost from 265 down to 120 pounds and have maintained that weight for 3 years now.

You never completely remove all carbohydrates from your eating………..What you do remove is the JUNK. The white flour, white sugar and processed foods.

I have no more joint aches and pains, I exercise everyday, I enjoy all veggies (starchier veggies on a limited basis), all fruits, raw nuts, seeds, dairy and a few grains……..

I have more energy now than I have had in a long time.

Atkins teaches those who do not know how to eat healthfully to do so………..eliminate everything junky and eat only proteins and green veggies for the first too weeks (the veggie list is a long one) and drinks lots of water to flush the toxins out of your body……….

Then after the 2 weeks, you begin adding higher carb veggies and some fruits and nuts in one at a time to see how your body adjusts (this is mainly for checking for unknown food allergies you were never aware of)……….

As your weight loss continues, you keep adding in more veggies onto the starchier ones such as corn, carrots, peas, potatoes in small amounts……..and keep adding in more fruit all the while still checking on food allergies………

Then onto the grains and by then you should be almost at your goal and you are then learning to maintain your weight loss.

Maintaining for me is harder than losing the weight itself!!!

I have never felt deprived and my hubby and I eat out on a regular basis, I make informed decisions on what I am going to eat…………..mostly a salad, steak and steamed veggies!!

Thanks for commenting! I’m glad you’ve had such amazing success.

The approach you took sounds very interesting. What kind of meals do you have for breakfast, lunch and dinner?

So, for a healthier, more moderate, and most importantly more sustainable diet, I would recommend that you simply moderate WHAT you eat, WHEN you eat it, and (of course) exercise.

Thanks for commenting. Yes, I’ve heard about Gary’s book, and have read a little around it, however I would actually like to read the book itself, just to get a clearer idea of his views.

As with any book, magazine, or blog it is always subject to the authors bias. I really don’t think it’s possible to get an “unbiased review.” And I hold my hands up too when I say that for what I write here on Dietriffic.

I’m glad you found the article helpful!

Thanks for your comment! You are absolutely right, alarms bells should ring when a diet calls for exclusion, or part exclusion of a food group!