Greetings!

Hi Zerlina, I've never tried this type of diet - I love my carbs too much!  I've only known a few people who have tried it, and while it worked great for them while they were on it, once they went off it seemed they gained all their weight back.  But my guess is that is the same no matter what kind of an eating plan you follow.

Whatever you decide to try I wish you much success.

Hope, peace, joy, love . . .

You have to be very, very careful with these diets.  They may offer short-term weight loss, but at the cost of fruits and whole grains, which are also important for your body.  Often these diets (especialy Atkins) are high-fat, which can do long-term damage to your heart, arteries, etc.

Keeping a low to normal amount of carbs helps alot in weight loss.  WE all eat way too much carbs.

but high protein is very hard on your body/kidneys.

Balacned long term slow weight loss is the key, learning new eating habits that last.

High protein, low/no carb diets have been linked to a lot of health problems. Just like most fad diets the problem is forcing the body to use the wrong things for the wrong purposes. The body can adjust for awhile, but long term side effects will happen.

Cholesterol, high blood pressure, clogged artteries, dehydration and ketone poisoning are some of the very serious side effects of the Atkins type diets.

We are Omnivores. We are designed to eat a wide variety of foods from a wide variety of sources. A balanced diet, in moderation, with exercise is the best way to maintain health and a healthy weight.

Fad diets kill people, usually after they fail, which they inevitably do.

I would say we eat way too much of the wrong kinds of carbs. Simple carbohydrates, especially mixed with processed fats, are the real culprit.

Complex carbohydrates, I mean really complex, unprocessed, carbs packaged in nothing but plant cells with cellulose ribbons to tie them up, are some of the best food we can eat.

In my experience, low-carb diets like Atkins don't really work. While cutting out carbs may help you lose weight for a while, chances are you'll find it difficult to keep up long term. If you do keep it up long-term on a high-protein diet, it can be very damaging to your health. I tried Atkins for awhile, but found it difficult to stick to. I like my carbs way too much to give them up.

Instead, I think the key is everything in moderation. Eat some meat, loads of veggies and limit the carbs. There's good carbs and bad carbs. Rice and white flour are deadly. If I eat bread, it's always whole-grain brown (and actually I just don't eat very much bread any more). I love pasta, but only eat whole wheat.

Yes Witch , I agree, we eat the wrong kind of carbs alot.

In my family had to work to stop serving things like pasta with crusty bread.  Such a bad choice and yet a common dinner, especially in restaurants.

Eating foods that you prepare form scratch, not out of a box , goes a long way to eating better.  But time is a big factor in preparing dinner.

Cultures like Italy and France put much more emphasis on the meal as an experience.  We seem to think of a meal as a way to get jump started.

Getting your protein through natural aliments is always best

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Phenocal | Zylotrim
 

A healthy well balanced food plan with lots of vegetables, fish, chicken and lean meat, whole grains and fruit - a limited fats and sugars - is probably the best long term plan.

Welcome to WonderCafe Maria

 I could never figure out a diet that made you account for every apple, but allowed you to eat half a cow.

 Im what I now term part of my crazy thinking years I did the protein power diet years ago. Basically the same thing as atkins. Sticking to it wasn't a problem, though it's more expensive in terms of $$$.  I did lose weight, quite quickly which was cool of course. I did experience all the things it claims to do short term.  I smelled though. Seriously, it wasn't pleasant.  The smell is by product of getting your body into a state of keotosis. My $$$ for breath mints, minty gum increased substantially.   My boyfriend at the time noticed the difference. Oh and before I never had a problem with underarm odor to the point where I barely used deordorant. Had to start using that everyday too.

 Here's some info on keotosis

  This quote basically covers what I found out about this metobolic state when I looked into why I stank.  Pretty much cinched it for me. Basically I was purposely putting my body into a state of 'emergency' full time. Like people who don't have enough food and eventually starve to death.  The protein people will argue that this means that it's 'completely natural state' and therefore safe. My common sense kicked in, plus I was finding that even though I was skinnier and had more energy I caught colds more frequently and developed skin rashes (alergic reactions) to things that I hadn't before. I also found the I went to the bathroom way more frequently and had some bouts with constipation,  also something that had never been a issue before. Oh and that part all smelled more too. (sorry to be blunt)

Being skinner wasn't worth it so I stopped. I then proceeded to gain all the weight back, almost as quickly as well as some extra. Fun times.

This caused me to start studying diet and nutrition more in depth. What it came down to in the end is really about moderation as well as figuring out how your own body functions.  Some people react to carbs more then others (in terms of weight gain) if you do, lower them. Same with most everything else.  Our bodies need bits of everything to function properly.  My diet now consists of moderate amounts of protein, moderate carbs and lots of fruits and veggies.   The main thing I did was cut down on was sweets. I also moved to eat nutritionally dense whole foods, so whole wheat and whole grain instead of white flour and other highly processed food stuffs.  I also started trying to eat more seasonally.  I'm not skinny skinny but neither am I overweight. It took a while but everything just kind of balanced out eventually.  I lost weight without even worrying about losing it and without being on a strict diet. 

Oh yeah, that awful thing too. I exercise more. On the protein diet I barely exercised and still lost weight. That part was awesome! But exercise does more then just regulate weight gain. I might have been skinnier but it didn't mean I was in shape or healthy.

Anyways, that's my experience. Hope it helps some. 

 Good post, Jadespring.  Very informative  and balanced between  personal and researched  observations.

 As Witch had mentioned, eating the proper carbs is very important.  Simple sugars have a high "glycemic index" and are digested very quickly, complex carbohydrates have a low "glycemic index" and are digested slowly.  The fast dumping of sugar into the blood causes a sugar spike, followed by an insulin spike, followed by hypoglycemia; these insulin spikes are bad for for you and can eventually lead to type 2 diabetes.  The hypoglycemia causes an energy slump and hunger, it may also cause physical problems over time.

Another important thing is to watch portions.  I started Nutrisystem a few weeks ago, and it emphasises eating low glycemic food and watching portions.  I was wondering about the wisdom of eating prepared foods, I found that the biggest thing was that it it teaching me to watch portion sizes.  In the US, and I suspect in Canada, many people consider a serving of meat to be at about 4 ounces; it should actually be less than two ounces.  A serving of vegetables is 1/2 cup cooked, or one cup raw.  I used to consider a serving of meat to be between 4 and 8 ounces and a serving of cooked vegetables to be at least a cup.  

Eating a variety of foods is also important, both for heath and for satisfaction.  When I was on the Adkins diet, I would crave bread and other starches; it is OK to eat a slice of good whole wheat bread or some whole wheat spaghetti.  You can even have butter on the bread, just don't put more than a teaspoon of butter on it.  Going on a diet that makes you feel deprived is going to cause you to go off of that diet and then gain back what you lost, and then some.  Diets should be educational and set good habits, they should not just be something to live through.

idon'tmatter

 I totally have to agree with you on the whole portion issue. I did weight watchers for a while and the thing I got most from it was getting my portion sizes back in order or better the 'perception' about portions back in order.  I actually learned quite a bit about food in general from doing weight watchers including things like high glycemic and low glycemic foods.  

 I stopped doing weight watchers because of $$$ reasons but still use a lot of basic principles that I learned while doing it. For me it helped get things into better perspective with a system that was really easy to use.

 there are good carbs and bad carbs, just like there are good fats and bad fats. And everything in moderation. That is my basic theory.

High protein diets are usually associated with low carbohydrates, even though people who have high protein requirements, like professional body builders, are not advised to go on a low carb diet. Protein is one of the most important nutrients necessary for health.

Here is a link that might be useful: Protein Diet

Jadespring;  I have heard that Weight Watchers is very good and it was recommended by my doctor, I tried to find a Weight Watchers  group but there isn't one that is convenient to me.  

I am also lazy.  NutriSystem makes it easy for me because I just have to open a package and nuke it.  I  have to add fresh foods and the deli in the building I work in sells everything I need.

Hi

I did the Aitkins Diet and the weight dropped off, then after about three months my energy dropped off also.  Went to the doctor and had a MOT the results showed that my cholesterol was off the scale, and he did not want me to leave the surgery without starting a life long course of medication to reduce the imbalance. In his words, 'You have the equivalent of lard running through your veins' EAUGH! That scared me, I asked him to give me a reprieve before he started me on the medication, and he gave me six weeks to reduce my levels.  I then went on another diet....this time it was a cholesterol reducing diet consisting of pears, apples, walnuts, beetroot, and porridge. Very boring, though I did add some extra fruit veg white meat and fish.  The result was my levels dropped back to normal, my breath stopped stinking, and over a period of time my weight went back on. So for me it was a waste of time and dangerous.

Hope this helps anyone considering the regime to think again, and just stop eating so much, and get more exercise.

Blessings

xpat