Veggies, fats, and exercise- HELP!

[legnerk]

I need some serious help with this!

My dad's girlfriend did Atkins before but avoided veggies during induction and swore off of eggs, meats, cheese, and fats (like oil and mayo).

Do veggies stall weight loss?

Also, am I more likely to lose weight at a faster pace if I just avoid fats like mayonaise all together? It seems like mayo of all things would stall a person...

ONE more question.... What about exercise?

I've seen sites where people say to only walk and avoid vigorous exercise on Atkins. Would it be bad to jog a few times? How often should I exercise during indiction and for how long each time?

I really want to get the absolute most I can out of induction, so an advice would be much appreciated!

Thanks so much for the support and advice!!

[mizski]

What did she eat? She wasn't doing Atkins (Stillman perhaps?) as even in the 1972 version you still had meats, eggs & fats. In 1972, Induction did not have veggies but that changed with DADR and the DANDR 2002 that we follow on this site here.

You need your veggies. Dr. Atkins thought so and they are an integral part of Induction and the other phases. They do not stall weight loss and are required eating.

Fats are also required eating. Atkins is a high fat, medium protein, low carb diet. There are many fats to choose from.

Exercise is also required. There are no limitations however, during the first few days of Induction you may not feel like heavy workouts.

You need to get a copy of DANDR 2002 for complete instructions on how to follow Atkins correctly. In the meantime, you can read the stickies here in the Induction FAQ (Atkins Diet Induction FAQs).

ETA: I hit submit too soon and forgot to say, Welcome to

[not2late]

From what you've written, your dad's girlfriend wasn't on Atkins because she did everything that is anti-Atkins.

The best advice I can give you is to read Dr. ATkins New Diet Revolution, 2002 edition, so you will know how to do the Diet properly and safely.

[Georgiana]

Originally Posted by legnerk

My dad's girlfriend did Atkins before but avoided veggies during induction and swore off of eggs, meats, cheese, and fats (like oil and mayo).

As Megs said, your dad's girlfriend didn't follow Atkins, because Atkins has always been a high fat diet.

Do veggies stall weight loss?

No, if you eat them in the amounts required in each phase (here, 3 cups, since we are talking about the Induction phase). Most people will get the most out of their Induction (both in terms of weight loss and health) by eating 3 cups of vegetables and keeping their net carbs (total carbs minus dietary fiber) below 20 g. Vegetables come packed with micronutrients and dietary fiber, all of which are good for your health. Moreover, certain vitamin and mineral deficiencies can slow down or stall weight loss, so veggies might actually improve your weight loss rate. This could be a reason why some Atkineers stall if they stay longer than necessary in Induction, and their weight loss restarts once they move to the OWL phase and add more vegetables. So don't be afraid of veggies. Choose your three cups (3 cups of salad, or 2 cups of salad and 1 cup of "other" veggies) wisely, so that you get a variety of vitamins and minerals from them. This means not eating only lettuce, to lower your carbs, but rather choosing a variety of nutritious vegetables.

Also, over half of your daily net carbs should come from vegetables. So, if you are eating, let's say, 7 g net carbs of veggies, then you will only eat 6 g net carbs from other foods, such as eggs, cheese, cream, spices, etc.

Also, am I more likely to lose weight at a faster pace if I just avoid fats like mayonaise all together? It seems like mayo of all things would stall a person...

No, that would actually work against you. The trick on Atkins is that it puts us into a state of ketosis, meaning that our body is deriving its energy primarily from fats. These are both body fats and dietary fats. However, the ratio of dietary fat to carbohydrate is more important to get into ketosis and stay there (it has to be high) than the ratio of protein to carbohydrate, because some of the protein can be converted to glucose. This is why on Atkins we keep our fats up (65% of the total calories, during Induction), our protein constant (30%), while the rest of our calories come from carbs.

Fat has also an important role in your general health, so eating fat is not bad for you and, as long as you are controlling your carbohydrate intake (as you do on Atkins), it will not cause you to gain weight. On the contrary --- it will help you lose.

ONE more question.... What about exercise?

I've seen sites where people say to only walk and avoid vigorous exercise on Atkins. Would it be bad to jog a few times? How often should I exercise during indiction and for how long each time?

The Atkins Police is probably not patrolling on the sites you visited. Exercise is a mandatory part of Atkins and Dr. Atkins wrote that, if we don't exercise, we are not following his plan. Exercise as much as you want/can, as long as you want/can, and however you want. Your energy levels might be a bit low during the first week, while your body is transitioning from burning mainly glucose to using primarily fats for fuel. But after the first week, it should all be okay.

I really want to get the absolute most I can out of induction, so an advice would be much appreciated!

As Mizski and Megs wrote, read the book. And then re-read it from time to time. Follow the plan as Dr. Atkins wrote it and then you will get the results Dr. Atkins promised.

And if you have questions, ask.