Have any other 'twitchers besides myself used the Atkins diet to reduce their weight and body fat?
My wife is my inspiration for many things in my life, including getting me started in running and triathlon. When she said she was going to start the Atkins diet, I said “me too.” I was incredibly anxious about it due to the potential loss of performance due to the lack of carbohydrates. However, after 2+ months I have reduced my body weight to 177, body fat to 15%, set a PR in my 8K run and had the best blood lipid profile screening ever!
I’ve always wanted to be disciplined enough to really watch my diet to help my training and Atkins seemed like a good start to get me leaner (I’m a binge eating junk-food maniac who will regularly eat a litre of ice cream or a whole bag of cookies). I used it for about a week a few months ago and found that no carbs destroyed my training. On a weekend where I did 4.5 hours of training on Saturday and then tried to do a 1 hour bike, 2 hour run on Sunday, I was reduced to a shuffle on the run with a very strong desire for some energy food. That said, I still use a modified version of Atkins where I typically eat carbs in the mornings only (or when I’m doing really long bike rides/runs) and restrict the intake of carbs for lunch and dinner and snacks like Atkins prescribes. Experimenting with limiting the carbs to only what I need to keep training hard has worked well. As a result, I’ve lost 23 pounds since February and I’m racing at a weight 3-5 pounds lighter than I’ve been in around 7 years which seems to be working really well.
I went on a low carb hi Protein diet 9 months ago, lots of vegis’ and whey protein drinks with some lean chicken at dinner a few times a week. I dropped 50 pounds and I’m really enjoying racing this year. got 3rd in my age group last Sunday so I guess it works for me
I used it for about a week a few months ago and found that no carbs destroyed my training.
When you first try going low-carb, your body has a very hard time. It’s used to burning carbs primarily for fuel. Take that away, and you feel like crap. However, if you give it some time to get through the adaptation period, your body becomes MUCH more efficient at burning fat for fuel. For anyone interested in trying it, I don’t really recommend it in the middle of the season–it’ll kill your performance for a while. Start changing your diet in the off season.
I find this topic so fascinating, that I walked away from my lucrative computer career to go back to school full time to study nutrition. And that’s what I’m doing now.
About two years ago, at the beginning of the season, after having no miles in and having had an off-season of over-indulgence, I had a few pounds to lose. About 20 or so. At that point I cared far more about losing the weight than I did about performance on the bike. So I went low-carb. I also cranked up the training a lot at that point. At first I felt absolutely horrible on the bike. I could barely turn the pedals I had so little energy. I didn’t care–I wanted to lose the weight. I wasn’t starving myself at all. I was still eating sufficient calories, I just wasn’t eating many carbs (30ish per day). I ate lots of protein and good fat. Slowly things, to my surprise, completely turned around. By about the 3rd month or so, I was feeling incredible. I felt faster than I ever had (including 9 long years of dedicated racing and training). Unfortunately, I ran out of time during the season to see how it would have continued. But I did learn, if nothing else, that high carb diets aren’t necessarily the best answer for everyone.
Now, obviously there are a lot of unanswered questions with my experience, and no doubt the results would have been different for different people, but at the very least I think more light needs to be shed on the subject. Do I believe there is far more information out there than I have? Absolutely. But, I also believe there is far more about this that is still unknown.
The other posts are pretty much spot on–during the first phase you’ll feel awful, however this only lasts a couple of weeks. I’ve found that you have to have incredible discipline to stay on this type of a diet–it is much to easy to justify eating carbs in preparation for a hard group ride. If losing weight is your goal, and you have the time, then Atkins + Z1 type base training is the ticket. I’ve done 6.5 hour rides at Z1-2+ with nutrition consisting of water, pork rinds, slim jims & peanuts. Your body will adapt, and become incredibly efficient at burning fat. You can drop a ton of weight–I’m back on it after a horrible on-again/off-again/injured/sick season & my goal is to lose a total of 70lbs by 2/1/04. The #1 obstacle is the same as any other eating program: making good choices. I find that I am starving beyond belief after 2-4 hours training on Atkins & really have to control the urge to down carbs. However, in my experience this is not a program you can stick to if your training is anaerobic based–slow & steady is the key.
Here is the most recent skinny about the Atkin’s diet from the medical community.
For al long time the big beef with the atkins diet was that putting your body into ketosis would cause damage to your kidneys. However research has born out that there has never been a case of renal failure directly casued by ketosis. Ketosis has the additional effect of lowering appettite which is good for keeping the weight off…
Here are the draw backs though. As with all diets as soon as you go off of a diet you are most lkikely going to gain the weight back. But more importantly there is a definate definate increased reisk for cancers if you eat the things on the atkin’s diet. Especially GI/Colon adn other cancers. Which is definately not something you wan to increase your risk for.
The biggest problem about the debate about the atkin’s diet i that there has not been enough reseach looking into it yet so there is no good data about the safety. There is very very good anecdotal evidence that it is good for weight loss but who knows what other risks are out there.
So my two cents are that if you have serious problems with your weight. consider the diet. If you have family history of cancers you should think twice about staying on the diet for the long term.
And with everything in training better to experiment when you don’t have an important race coming up soon
I did feel like crap for a few days, especially the first two, but now I feel great and have no need/desire to return to the high carb diet. I’m never as hungry now as I was when I ate high carbs (37 years). How come some of you only do it for a time, then revert to something else? I know diet is totally personal, but isn’t the science behind Atkins a lifestyle change, not just a quick fix for weight loss? Most weight loss is followed by weight gain after leaving any loss program. Our nieghbor who was doing it with us bailed out after the two week induction period. She had the beginnings of success, but couldn’t stand not having any carbs. Now she’s a voracious carbaholic and it shows as flabby legs. She used to have bacon and eggs for breakfast when we would pass and now she can’t stand the stuff. I’ve modified my regimen a bit to include some Hammer products and low carb items on training/racing days. It sems to work for me, but really not necessary. I just really like the Hammer Sustained Energy flavored with Hammer Gel as a pre-race meal. As for efficiency, I’ve become faster just by dropping the weight PLUS now I burn fat as fuel efficiently. Does it stand to reason that if a person burns fat as fuel effieciently that they will be less likely to “bonk” than a person who runs out of glycogen then has to convert to fatburning on the fly? I’m no speed demon, as most MOPpers aren’t, and this seems to be a very good way to avoid the dreaded bonk on a marathon or longer triathlon. I have two marathons and a Wildflower Olympic tri under my belt as a high carb eater. This is the year of low carbs and it’s looking very good. Perhaps my experience is unique, but for now I’m going for it. Slow and steady wins the race of life.
I’m really surprised this hasn’t generated a firestorm of naysayers. I really thought this type of dietary thinking would get blasted by carbo-loaders. I guess that shows that there really is much about the human body we don’t yet know.
"Unfortunately, these athletes should be concentrating on carbohydrate, not fat, since recent research shows that higher fat intakes are actually associated with reduced gains in endurance during strenuous training.
At the August Krogh Institute at the University of Copenhagen, 10 male subjects trained on exercise cycles for seven weeks while consuming a high-fat diet (63 per cent of calories from fat, 20 per cent from carbohydrate, and 17 per cent from protein), while 10 other individuals trained in a similar manner while ingesting high-carbohydrate fare (65-per cent carbohydrate, 18-per cent fat, and 17-per cent protein). At the end of the seven-week period, all 20 athletes attempted to pedal as long as possible at an intensity of 76% V02max (about 85 per cent of maximal heart rate).
Although V02max rose by 11 per cent in both groups after the seven-week training period, high-carb group members improved their endurance time by 191 per cent (!), while high-fat athletes upgraded performance by only’ 86 percent."
I don’t understand why most people refer to the Atkins diet as “low carb”. Atkins himself did not call the diet “low carb”, but “modified carb”. At first, many carbs are eliminated from the diet, but you’re still supposed to eat veggies (which are carbs). As you go though the Atkins stages, you keep adding carbs with higher glycemic value to the diet. Starchy veggies (carrots and potatoes) are the last items added. In the end, the only thing you’re not eating is junk food and processed food - which isn’t a “low carb” diet at all, but simply health eating.
"However research has born out that there has never been a case of renal failure directly casued by ketosis. "
Research has what? There are innumerable cases of kidney failure caused by ketoacidosis. What may not be documented is failure directly and unequivocably attributed by the Atkins diet. The most interesting case of kidney failure from ketosis I recall was in a prison deep knee bend contest. The winner got so much muscle damage and subsequent ketosis that his kidneys failed. Now that’s determination.
The body can adapt to an unbelievable variety and intensity of odd ball activities and diets, but why bother? Just take in fewer calories than you burn and you will lose weight regardless of dietary content. I have lost 23 pounds since january and my diet has been 70% carb, 17% Pro, 13% fat, with healthy doses of candy bars and most every other food reputed to guarantee obesity. Maybe I should write a book backed by a bunch of anecdotal “research” and everyone will want to try my diet.
The most recent meta analysis of diet trials I saw concluded the same thing - you can lose weight with any diet as long as you run a caloric deficit (see Medscape endocrinology specialty page for the story - it was from a month or so ago). Therefore pick a diet you can stick to the rest of your life, otherwise you are just going to regain it all.
I am quite confident I can continue to consume $100,000 bars, strawberry pie, lasagne, chili, hot tamales, and Rold Gold honey mustard & onion pieces (for electrolytes) for the indefinite future
I’m sure taku can elaborate better than I, but there a couple of points worth addressing. Taku referred to ketosis, NOT ketoacidosis. The difference is significant:
“Dietary ketosis is among the most maligned and misunderstood concepts in nutrition because it is often confused with ketoacidosis, which is a life-threatening condition most often associated with uncontrolled insulin-deficient Type 1 diabetes. In the Type 1 diabetic, the absence of insulin leads to a toxic build-up of blood glucose and an extreme break-down of fat and muscle tissue. This condition doesn’t occur in individuals who have even a small amount of insulin, whether from natural production or artificially administered.”
Next, you’re absolutely right that one can lose weight on any kind of diet as long as you burn more calories than you consume. Simple enough. The difference lies in how much fat you lose relative to how much muscle. Atkins-style diets pruport to help people lose a greater proportion of fat relative to muscle than other diets.
This brings up an interesting subject. Are there any diabetic athletes out there who care to discuss your dietary habits and the impact it has on your performance/lifestyle?
As I’ve done more research since starting Atkins, the Atkins plan is a modification of a diabetic diet marketed as a weight-loss medium to gain a larger market share. Who would want to limit foods they LOVE if they didn’t have diabetes?
I happened to stumble onto this diet and it has been wonderful to reduce my overall cholesterol to 207 from 236, reduce my blood glucose from 100 to 90 and reduce my triglycerides from 261 to 98.
Bru, I agree with your assessment of modified carb diet. I think it’s marketed as such is because it really is low for people who don’t eat this way. Even a healthy diet can be very high in carbs though, and without the caloric deficit a person who eats a healthy diet will gain weight if they consume more calories than they burn.
The ketosis with atkins is not ketoacidosis seen with diabetes
DKA (diabetic ketoacidosis) happens when you are insulin deficient and become hyperglycemic, ketonemic, metabolically acisodic, and elecrolytically depleted.
Ketosis seen with atkins is acondition where you are carb depleted and have to go through extensive gluconeogeneisis throug the break down of glucogenic amino acids. The higher level of ketones will cause a decrease in hunger through an unknown mechanism.
It is true that it is possible or even probable that there may have been a case of renal failure from the atkins diet. However this is the biggest concern brought up by opponents of atkin’s diet. If this was such a likely thing to happen, considering the millions of people that have been on this diet, you would have thought that there would have been at least on reported case.
what happened to the prison person was tey probably went into renal failure becuase of rhabdomyolisis (massive muscle damage) leading to Acuterenal failure
There is no doubt that the end point with diets is that if calories out are greater than calories in then you will lose weight some other factors will make this easier.
Jill, that’s a great link. As has been said, a very complex subject.
If anything, this has been what I needed to lose some fat and gain a physique looks good (don’t kid yourself, people notice) and that is more able to endure the rigors of training and competition.
How many times has it been said here that it’s easier to lose some body weight than try to drop a few grams on the bike by using carbon and titanium components?
My problem with that study is its duration. The study only lasted 7 weeks. In other words, there is no adaptation period for the high-carb group because they’ve been eating that way their whole lives (more or less). For the low-carb group, however, 7 weeks is simply not long enough to objectively measure the effects in an athletic context. Your body can’t adapt from something it’s been doing its whole life to such a major shock in a matter of 7 weeks. I know from my own experience that even after 3 months of training low-carb, I was still feeling better and better. I applaud them for their attempt, but it simply doesn’t mean much.
You’ve piqued my interest in The Ketogenic Diet. Care to share some points and why I might want to consider buying the book/trying it instead of staying with Atkins. I’m loyal, but I also like to gain as much info as possible.
Are you talking about the book by Lyle Mcdonald? Did I mention the book? scratching my head Anyway, if you mean that book, I don’t own it yet. Being a very poor student, I can’t seem to come up with the cash for it. Heheh. I think that book would be a good read for anyone interested in low-carb diets. Supposedly it’s the best, most in-depth, book available about how and why ketogenic diets work. To the best of my knowledge, it’s not a “diet” book per se. It’s just an in-depth look into how they work. When I say “they” I mean any low-carb diet–Atkins is a ketogenic diet, so reading the book will help you understand why it works. That’s about all I know about the book. I’ll buy it some day; hopefully we’ll use it in one of my classes. Then I’ll have to buy it.
One thing about Atkins. He didn’t hardly invent the diet. He just brought it into the public eye. Bodybuilders have been using ketogenic diets for many years to strip the fat to the levels they do. Atkins just brought it to the mainstream.
"However research has born out that there has never been a case of renal failure directly casued by ketosis. "
Research has what? There are innumerable cases of kidney failure caused by ketoacidosis. What may not be documented is failure directly and unequivocably attributed by the Atkins diet. The most interesting case of kidney failure from ketosis I recall was in a prison deep knee bend contest. The winner got so much muscle damage and subsequent ketosis that his kidneys failed. Now that’s determination.
Wow, where to start…
First of all, ketosis and ketoacidosis couldn’t be much more UNrelated. Ketosis is simply having ketones in the blood as the result of the body turning fat into fuel. Your body actually burns the ketones in place of glucose.
Ketoacidosis is something completely different. It’s what happens in a diabetic person when their blood sugar isn’t controlled. And somewhat ironically, I believe the risk of ketoacidosis would be somewhat reduced in a diabetic who was in ketosis because their blood sugar would be controlled by their diet.
Now, I have no idea what the heck deep knee bends have to do with ketosis. Ketosis is what happens when you run out of glycogen. Like when you bonk, for example. When you bonk your body starts burning fat (in the form of ketones) for fuel. I don’t know about you, but I’ve bonked quite a few times and I have yet to have kidney failure. And again, I have no idea what that has to do with deep knee bends. Please clarify.
EDITED: oops, sorry taku and ashayk, I see you already covered this.
Yes, the book by Lyle Mcdonald. It’s a link on your web site. I assumed you had read it because of the link and your experience with Ketogenic diets. My mistake.
Anyway, if you mean that book, I don’t own it yet. Being a very poor student, I can’t seem to come up with the cash for it. Heheh. I think that book would be a good read for anyone interested in low-carb diets. Supposedly it’s the best, most in-depth, book available about how and why ketogenic diets work. To the best of my knowledge, it’s not a “diet” book per se. It’s just an in-depth look into how they work. When I say “they” I mean any low-carb diet–Atkins is a ketogenic diet, so reading the book will help you understand why it works. That’s about all I know about the book. I’ll buy it some day; hopefully we’ll use it in one of my classes. Then I’ll have to buy it.