[Georgiana]

Originally Posted by Diver Down

I didn't come here to brag, I came here for technical answers as to why my weight loss has been so rapid during this latest induction.

I believe your question has already been answered. You would understand even better if you read the book, because everything is nicely explained there.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

I'm interested in communicating with rational people about the weight loss principles involved with Atkins as a means of understanding my own weight loss, not arguing with dogmatic fanatics. I believe it's important to question and understand why a given proposition is true or false, not just take it on faith because it appeared in a book somewhere.

The book explains quite well why most things concerning this diet are as they are -- it does not simply state facts. The Atkins diet website does state facts. Chapter 18 in DANDR does state facts. But if you read the whole book, you will see that it is not a collection of facts lacking any rational support.

What proposition from the book are you looking to understand? Maybe we can help if you tell us.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

Yes, thankfully...this place is dogmatic enough!

Well. If this place is so horrid, there is no one forcing you (or anyone for that matter) to hang around. We want every member of the Board to succeed on Atkins, to encounter as little obstacles as possible on their way to goal, to be healthy and to be able to maintain their goal weight without restarting Atkins over and over again. Our experience here tells us that this happens when members are following Atkins the way Dr. Atkins designed this way of eating, not their own "modified Atkins" plan. For these reasons, we are advising everyone to follow the Atkins rules laid down in the book. I'm sorry if, in your opinion, this classifies us as "dogmatic fanatics". Personally, I would classify those who advise others to follow the rules of Atkins as responsible and carrying members.

You wrote in another thread:

Originally Posted by Diver Down

I've also tried Atkins a couple times [...] my first attempt was six weeks, the second was three weeks...

Did you ever think that not following the Atkins diet the way Dr. Atkins wrote its rules could have contributed to your past failures?

Originally Posted by Diver Down

If I had wanted someone to give me an evaluation of my diet, I would have asked for it.

It is impossible to give you an explanation for the weight loss you've experienced without evaluating your diet. And, whether you like it or not, sometimes this evaluation will mean pointing out things you are doing wrong. We are not doing this in order to annoy you, but because we want you to succeed on Atkins this time around.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

On average, my carb count has been 0-5 grams per day, not including the day or two when I consumed a low carb bar or ice cream snack...so I'm a little confused what you mean. Even assuming net carbs are a complete fraud, the total for one of the ice cream bars I consumed was 9g of carbs with a net of 5g. But even at the full 9g, taking into account I had only eaten meat the rest of the day, I remained under 20g by a large margin.

A diet whose only rule is eating less than 20 g of net carbohydrates is a low carb diet, but it is not Atkins. Atkins has a few additional rules, which you will find in the book or in some sticky threads on the Board.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

I am aware that Dr. Atkins caved in to pressure to offer such products and does not endorse them, but that doesn't change the fact that at their most one of them is considered 5 net carbs (and 9 total).

Originally Posted by Diver Down

I just took offense at the notion I wasn't on Atkins as I sit here going through a difficult Induction phase. What other diet do they think I'm on?!

Again, just because you are eating under 20 net carbs it does not mean you are following Atkins. Not eating vegetables is not Atkins Induction. Otherwise we would be calling "Atkins Induction" diets like The Doctor's Quick Weight Loss Diet, and I'm sure Dr. Stillman would strongly disagree.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

I'll definitely be adding veggies over the next week or so, as I ramp up toward my next phase.

Vegetables are part of the first phase of Atkins as well, not only of OWL.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

Other diets prescribe what you eat, when, and in what portions.

The Induction phase of Atkins prescribes what foods you can eat and, for some of them (vegetables, cream, avocados, olives, etc.), in what portions. You'll find the list of foods acceptable during Induction somewhere around page 123 in the DANDR. Atkins also prescribes what foods you can eat during each of the OWL rungs and in what quantities. Same for Pre-Maintenance.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

I've eliminated breads, fruit, pastas, and the like, and basically subscribed to the fundamental principles of the diet.

We might be misunderstanding you... Could you please list the fundamental principles of Atkins you have subscribed to? Maybe then we can clear things up.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

Am I living according to every single word in the latest revision of the Atkins bible?

We do not use "the latest revision of the Atkins bible" here. What we do is go by the rules of the Atkins diet from Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution, 2002, which is not the latest edition of the book.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

I've eaten one or two carb bars over a period of several days, snacking in little bits, while I did have a net 5 carb ice cream snack the other night.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

And the net-carb products, Atkins sells them as safe during Induction so it's hard to throw stones at me for using them during emergencies.

I am really sorry you had so many emergencies in the past 6 days that you had to have bars and ice cream. Maybe you can pack a few veggies to snack on next time you're on the run? Add some fat to them (for e.g., butter, cream cheese, boiled eggs) and you'll have great substitutions for frankenfoods. Anyway, I am positive you will give up bars/ice cream after this hectic period you go through will have passed.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

Considering I'm primarily eating meat, I've got about 20 carbs to blow on whatever I feel like, ideally vegetables, but it's up to me to decide.

Actually, if you read the rules of Atkins, you will see that it is not up to you to decide whether you are eating vegetables or not. Well, at least not if you follow Atkins.

Originally Posted by Diver Down

I'm eating steadily, plenty of meats and cheeses, but maintaining a very low carb intake. I'm even drinking diet sodas with caffeine, sodium, and aspartame. Not to mention having some carb bars and low carb ice cream treats along the way. Why am I losing weight at this pace, even doing things which are known to slow weight loss?

Originally Posted by Diver Down

That kind of mentality will do far more to discourage newcomers to Atkins than any mention I make of drinking some Coke Zero during my induction.

If a newbie reads your post and sees that you've lost X lbs in Y days by not eating vegetables and consuming aspartame, he or she will do what you are doing, expecting the same results. Then they'll be disappointed for not losing weight or not losing as much as they had expected, and they'll give up "Atkins" ('cuz this darn diet is just BS and doesn't work) when in fact they were not doing Atkins in the first place.

Dr. Atkins worked with thousands of patients and his diet proved to give fantastic results in terms of weight loss and health. Dr. Atkins however did not tell his patients to skip vegetables or to drink diet drinks sweetened with aspartame, which is why not having veggies is not Atkins. Since we are doing Atkins here, we do not know what are the long term effects of the way of eating you are following. Hence, we will always advise members to do Atkins by the book, so that they increase their chances of success on Atkins.