The Atkins diet is not a new phenomenon. The diet first appeared in the late 1970s and has grown popularity in recent years in response to the low-fat diet craze. As dieters had trouble with low-fat plans, they searched for a new solution and Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution book found a new audience.

A lot of people have jumped on the Atkins bandwagon and there has been a lot of hype as a result. But what are the basic principles of the Atkins diet?

The Atkins diet is based on a theory of why we get fat. According to Dr. Atkins, the over-consumption of carbohydrates and simple sugars leads to weight gain. The way your body processes the carbohydrates you eat have more to do with your waistline than the amount of fat or calories that you consume. In his book, Atkins outlines a phenomenon called insulin resistance. He theorizes that many overweight people have cells that do not work correctly.

When you eat excess carbohydrates and sugar, your body notices that sugar levels are elevated. Insulin is released from the pancreas in order to store sugar as glycogen in the liver and muscle cells for extra energy later on. However, your body can only store so much glycogen at once. As soon as your body reaches its limit for glycogen storage, the excess carbohydrates are stored as fat. This happens to everyone who eats too many carbohydrates.

However, insulin resistant individuals have an even harder time of using and storing excess carbohydrates. The more insulin that your body is exposed to, the more resistant it becomes. Overtime, the pancreas releases more insulin and cells become insulin resistant. The cells are trying to protect themselves from the toxic effects of high insulin. They create less glycogen and more fat.

As a result, insulin resistant individuals gain extra weight. The carbohydrates get converted into fat instead of energy. Other side effects include fatigue, brain fog (the inability to focus, poor memory, loss of creativity), low blood sugar (which can leads to hypoglycemia), intestinal bloating, sleepiness, depression and increased blood sugar. There is much more than weight at stake when you are insulin resistant.

The remedy for people who are insulin resistant is a diet restricted in carbohydrates. The crux of the Atkins diet is a limitation of carbohydrates in all of its forms. The foods restricted on the Atkins plan include simple sugars (like cookies, sodas and sweets) and complex carbohydrates (like bread, rice and grains). Even carbohydrates that are considered healthy, such as oatmeal, brown rice and whole wheat bread, are restricted on the program.

The diet has you restrict your carbohydrate intake to less than 40 grams a day. This will put your body in a state of ketosis. While in ketosis, your body will burn fat as fuel. According to Dr. Atkins research, the ketosis state will also affect insulin production and it will prevent more fat from being formed. Your body will begin using your stored fat as an efficient form of fuel, and youll lose weight.
Another benefit of the Atkins plan is that ketosis will end your cravings for carbohydrates. If youve been living on a carb-heavy diet, you may have found that you simply cannot get enough carbohydrates. With carbohydrate restriction and ketosis comes a reduction in carbohydrate cravings. People who have been on the Atkins diet for some time report that they do not crave carbohydrates as they once did.

Although the initial phases of the Atkins diet are rather strict, the program teaches you to restore balance to your diet in the long run. People who use the diet slowly reintroduce minimal amounts of carbohydrate into their eating until they find a comfortable balance between their health and carbohydrate use.

The basic principles of the Atkins diet have been adapted to many other low-carb diet plans. However, Atkins popularity still remains strong as one of the most effective low-carbohydrate solutions for those who are insulin resistant.

Tags: Atkins Diet, Atkins New Diet Revolution;, bloating;, Brain Fog, depression;, Diet Atkins, Diet Basics, Diet Craze, Dr Atkins New Diet Revolution, energy;, Excess Carbohydrates, Extra Energy, fatigue;, Glycogen, Harder Time, High Insulin, hypoglycemia;, Insulin resistance;, intestinal bloating, ketosis;, Low Blood Sugar, Low Carb Diet, Low Fat Diet, low-carbohydrate solutions;, Memory Loss, Muscle Cells, New Solution, Poor Memory, Simple Sugars, Waistline —

There are so many ways to loose weight you might get a little confused and not know where to start. The first thing you should remember is to not get all caught up in the hype of the latest fad diet out there. While you may actually lose some weight with these diets, they are not the types of diets that you can sustain for any length of time and when you stop the likelihood you will put all the weight back on is strong.

The truth is there is no magic potion or pill that will do all the work for you. You have to be an active participant. And I do mean active. You can’t lose weight sitting on your backside in front of the TV and eating anything you want. To effectively lose the weight you want to lose you need to change things up and get regular exercise and eat healthier.

Start by making small changes first. Do not try to do it all at once. If you make small changes then you will not get too overwhelmed and the weight loss will be more effective in the long run. Be smart with the ways to loose weight.

One of the ways to lose weight is to wake up your metabolism. If you have tried to lose weight in the past and you were largely unsuccessful then you probably did not have your metabolism working for you. Wake it up by eating five or six small meals a day. By small, I mean 300 calories or under. Eat lots of lean protein and greens. Stay away from processed carbs and bread for at least the first two weeks then add them back in sparingly. Your waistline will thank you.

In the beginning of your weight loss, anything made with white flour and white sugar are your enemies. You will need to steer clear of anything made with these products. If you make it through the week then you can give yourself a little treat to reward yourself for being good. Just do not over do it. No sense in undoing the great week you just had.

Products made with the white products are referred to as simple carbs and are immediately converted to simple sugars in your body. The weight you have gained happened because of these simple sugars. If you do not burn these sugars off and use them as energy as soon as they are available then your insulin will convert them to fat and place them right around your middle. This is why you have the belly fat that you do.

Here is the old standby, drink a lot of water throughout your day. This will help cleanse your body of toxins and keep you hydrated. Just like with food the more you drink the better your body will work and the more weight you will lose. Try these ways to loose weight and see if they can work for you, too.

Tags: Atkins, Backside, Calories, Carbs, Eating Habits, Fad Diet, Flour, Greens, Healthy Diet, Hype, Latest Fad, Lean Protein, Length Of Time, Likelihood, Losing Weight, Magic Potion, Metabolism, Simple Sugars, Small Changes, Waistline, Ways To Loose Weight, Ways To Lose Weight, Weight Diets, White Sugar —

Obesity is on the rise and the number of people with too much body fat is higher than ever. A human body consists of fat, water, carbohydrates, protein, vitamins and minerals. When the amount of fat is too high then you are at higher risk of serious medical problems like heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.

When you have excess fat in your body it raises your cholesterol and triglyceride levels. It can also raise your blood pressure and increase your risk of diabetes. The risk of heart disease is significantly higher when you are obese. In fact a person that is obese may have double the risk of having a major heart attack or a stroke.

When a person consumes more calories than they burn then those calories turn into stored fat. This causes a person to become overweight and may lead to obesity. When there is too many calories consumed that contain a lot of cholesterol and saturated fats the cholesterol levels in the blood increase. This increase of cholesterol will increase the risk of heart disease.

How do you know if you are obese?

Body fat is measure by both body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference. If your waistline is more than 35 inches for women and more than 40 inches for men then you are at a high risk of becoming obese.

The BMI is the body weight in comparison to the persons height. This is calculated by taking the body weight (in pounds) and dividing it by the height (in inches) squared then multiply this by 703.

Here are the levels of body mass index calculations:

18.5 or less is considered as being underweight

18.5 to 24.9 is considered a healthy weight range

25.0 to 29.9 is considered as being overweight

30.0 or higher is considered as being obese

40.0 or higher is considered as extreme obesity.

How to reduce or prevent obesity:

1. Add some exercise into your daily routine, even if you start out with something simple such as walking for 30 minutes a day. If you can’t exercise every day then try to exercise at least three to four times a week.

2. Reduce the amount of time you spend doing activities sitting down, such as watching TV or time on the computer.

3. Make fitter choices, such as taking the stairs instead of the lift.

4. Eat a healthy, nutritious diet that is low in fat. Include lots of fruit and vegetables in your diet.

5. Reduce the amount of food consumed each day by making your proportions smaller.

It is easiest to prevent obesity but if you are already obese it isn’t too late to get back to a healthy weight range. To live longer and have a healthier and more active life, try the above tips to get yourself to a healthy weight and stay at a healthy weight. Having a healthy weight range is the best choice for avoiding those serious conditions, such as heart disease and stroke, which you are at higher risk at by being overweight.

Tags: Atkins, Body Fat, Body Mass Index, Body Mass Index Bmi, Body Mass Index Calculations, Calories, Cholesterol Levels, Daily Routine, Fruits And Vegetables, Healthy Diet, heart attack;, heart disease;, Heart Stroke, high blood pressure;, High Cholesterol, High Risk, Losing Weight, Medical Problems, Risk Of Heart Disease, Saturated Fats, Triglyceride Levels, Vitamins And Minerals, Vitamins Minerals, Waist Circumference, Waistline —

If you live in a part of the world where the winters are cold, then chances are good that you look forward to summer every year. The warm weather, being outside, picnics…and going swimming. Wait! That all sounds good except for the swimming. Sure, you enjoy summer, but let’s just say you’re not quite ready to reveal to much at the beach. To put it another way, you are concerned about summer weight loss. If so, you should know that you are not alone. Perhaps millions of people go through this exact same struggle, year after year.

Of course winter has its strong points, too. You can stay indoors all you like and nobody questions it, you can sit by the fireplace and read good books, or just watch television. Throw in a few big holidays…and big eating, and it’s easy to see how your waistline could increase during the colder months. But no matter, summer is coming sooner than you would like and now you have to lose some weight.

If you have found yourself facing this dilemma in years past, then you know how difficult it can be to lose enough weight in time for summer. Perhaps you have tried DVDs, gym memberships, fad diets, diet pills or starving yourself to get rid of a few pounds. But summer weight loss doesn’t mean you have to do drastic things to look good in swimwear. The real secret is to make better food choices and to get yourself moving.

One of the great things about spring and summer is that the grocery stores start getting in fresher produce. That means you can stock up on some of the tastiest foods from nature. And eating lots of fresh fruits and vegetables is one of the keys to losing weight without taking too much effort. These foods are low in calories and packed with essential vitamins and nutrients that help you to stay healthy.

Another benefit of fruits and vegetables is that they tend to be high in fiber. Fiber helps keep things moving along in your digestive system, but it also makes you feel more full. Speaking of which, most people will heavier, more rich foods when it’s colder outside. So, the foods you eat in summer may already be lighter to begin with. There are exceptions, of course, such as thick burgers made on the grill. But you don’t have to give those up. Just aim for a smaller portion and load up on the foods that are lower in calories.

Summer weight loss may seem like an impossible task, but there are a lot of advantages working in your favor. You have more access to fresher, healthier foods. You will most likely eat foods that are lighter. Plus, because it’s summer you will probably be a lot more active than you were during the winter. Either way, the choice is yours. You can either keep doing what you’re doing now and be embarrassed all summer long, or you can take action and actually do something about it.

Tags: Calories, Course Winter, Diet Pills, Digestive System, Dilemma, Eating Habits, Fad Diets, food choices;, Fresh Fruits And Vegetables, Fruits And Vegetables, Going Swimming, Good Books, Grocery Stores, Gym Memberships, Healthy Diet, Healthy Eating, Losing Weight, Nutrients, Picnics, Spring And Summer, Strong Points, Vitamins And Minerals, Waistline, Warm Weather —