Three Month Plan

[snldistrict]

Well, I'm ready to start atkins after over a year of delaying and I had a question.
My jaw is currently wired shut from a recent jaw operation and will be for about 1-2 more weeks but once I get unwired, I plan on starting atkins.
Anyways...
I plan on being on Atkins for about three months and then plan to switch off to a diet with more carbs (for building muscle) and I was just curious, since I weigh about 200lbs now and plan on dieting for 3 months, what was the average weight loss for people for three months of atkins + excersize.
My first goal weight is 160 and I'm thinking about whether or not 40lbs is reasonable for three months of atkins.

Any input?

[Rick]

Well, I'm in danger of feeling bad here, but I'm wondering why you're wanting to do Atkins for just 3 months? It's a Way Of Life (WOL), not a get rich quick scheme. You can certainly build muscle by doing Atkins. I'm a good example, even though it's just been a month. I'm down about 25 lbs now, and have built a substantial ammount of muscle and reduced the fat, just by following Dr. A's advice, and learning from the veterans of this board.

There is no quick fix. If you lose weight by doing Atkins, then switch to a high carb/low fat diet, then you're undoing what you've done here. Just my humble opinion. You can certainly lose weight by going low fat and getting a lot of exercise, but can you maintain it? I think that it's a whole lot easier to maintain a weight loss if you can eat healthy fat/protein rich foods and get exercise, than having to watch every single thing you eat to stay low fat/high carb. I've done it the other way, and I find this way of living much easier to maintain for life. I'm absolutely loving my meals these days.

Best to you however you chose....

Rick

[Piasabird]

You can do Atkins and build muscle. You can do Atkins and move up the carb ladder and have more carbs as time goes by.

Or maybe you would like to check out our sister board and look into some other weight loss plans.
Here's the link.


Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

[Elizellen]

AS has been said, there is no reason to switch from Atkins in order to build muscle.

Take a trip down the forums list to the exercise forum and see what others are achieving on this WOE.

[jsj0305]

First off, welcome to ADBB. As the others have mentioned, their are all kinda of great stuff here. I'm sure you will find tons of info that will help you.

Snldistrict, I think you've been given great advice. Atkins is a WOE/WOL (way of eating/life). It isn't a quick fix. Atkins has other phases in it other than Induction. You slowly reintroduce carbs back into your diet.

Do you own Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution? The 2002 version. I think you should read it before making any decisions. I would hate to see all the hard work you put into Atkins, be reversed, and often worse, by switching to a low fat/high carb diet. The book breaks EVERYTHING down and really helps you to understand the 4 phases, in detail. You understand not only what you have to do, but why and what that does for your body.

This diet is 65%fat/30%protein/5%carbs. That is perfect for losing weight and combined with exercise and weight training, would be ideal for gaining muscle mass.

I hope we have been helpful and you make the best decision for YOU. I wish you luck in what ever you decide to do.

PS I am sorry to hear about your jaw being wired. I hope everything is okay and continues to get better.

[Kiasmama]

What are you planning to build muscle for? A competition? Or just to be leaner? A lot of people think of Atkins as just a protein diet, however as you progress on the rungs,you'll be adding the good carbs to your diet...which in turn will help you bulld the muscle you want. As been said...get the book or at least read the stickies...and you'll see this WOL will fit your goals.

[Momtofour]

If you want to see what kind of muscle you can build, just check out some of the runners on this site. Some people on here run marathons while eating low carb.

[snldistrict]

I just want to gain some simple muscle to be more fit and was under the impression that I couldn't build muslce on atkins.
I understand that it is a way of life but I know myself and I will eventually slip back into the carb lifestyle, (gradually) but I have always had atkins as a sucessful way of weight loss.

[2big4mysize]

did you do Atkins plan or just induction last time? Atkins is a 4 phase plan induction for a quick detox of your body and into ketosis laying the foundation for your house of Atkins, OWL the great food experiment timbers testing for the framing of your house, premaintnenace the trusees for the roofing and shingles, and finally you move in and do the finishing work. the exercise part of the program is the landscaping.

You will grow additional tissue in your muscle eating Atkins and doing the exercise part of the plan too. READ DR ATKINS NEW DIET REVOLUTION 2002 edition and you will learn about why the limited carbs, the protein and the fats you have on Atkins will assist you with everything you think you can't do on Atkins