I'm wondering if anyone here has ever successfully lost on Atkins and MAINTAINED their weight. I know they say you have to make a life long commitment, but a life long commitment of low carbs seems difficult. I'm on a similar diet right now (QWLC) and this is the only thing I'm afraid of. I don't want to cut bread out of my diet forever. I was thinking that after I get to my goal weight I would just work out regularly and maintain a healthy diet with fruits, veggies, etc, but not really count carbs. Does anyone know if this will work?

Hello,

I can't speak for everyone but I can tell you that I've tried Atkins diet and know of several individuals who have tried it and succeeded with the program but ended up gaining back all the weight and then some. After speaking with a Health Coach to better learn about what was happening, I learned that the body went into shock as we began introducing new foods back into our diet. I was also warned that the Atkins diet may be hard on your organs - such as your liver and kidneys - although there is no specific data to support the statement that was made. After much research and talking with a variety of dotors, nutritionists and Health Coaches, I found a program that is similar to the Atkins program BUT it doesn't put the body into a heavy state of keytosis or fat burning. The program places you in a fat burning mode so that you're losing on average 3-5 pounds a week but it is protecting your organs and preserving your muscle. In addition, there is a tremendous amount of education as you're losing the weight. The education is key so that you 1) know what's happening to your body as you are losing the weight and 2) know how to properly transition into a maintenance plan that slowly introduces foods back into your diet. I'd be happy to share more details with you but I would not recommend the Atkins diet. It works on the front end but you're hard pressed to keep the weight off.

I know people who have kept the weight off after Atkins, but only because they made a commitment to a low-carb lifestyle. It worked for them ... but I think for most people it's not a long term sustainable choice.

I know I lost weight on Atkins, but I couldn't keep up with the restrictions, so I quit and gained back what I'd lost.

Hi
you can make low carb breads etc so you wouldnt have to cut out bread there are tons of recipes for bread, cakes biscuits etc.
I am currently on the atkins diet and feel great i do not miss carbs at all (at the mo) but i have bought a few cookbooks and one of them is called "the low carb baking and dessert cookbook" that will have low carb ingrediants for what you are looking for and the things you think you will miss
hope this helps