
Though some people are drawn to the discipline and guidance that the Atkins diet offers, there is little evidence that Atkins is the best way to lose weight. If you begin to gain any weight, the company recommends reducing your carbohydrate intake by 10 grams at a time.Ītkins is unlikely to be any better than simple calorie restriction Lifetime maintenance : Phase four should ideally last a lifetime and is all about having relatively few restrictions, but maintaining the tools to make healthy choices. This phase has more relaxed dietary restrictions and you can start to eat beans, starchy vegetables, and grains. If weight loss stalls, you should dial back your carb intake again. This is the fine-tuning stage of the diet and it is important to make sure you are keeping an eye on your goal weight. Pre-maintenance : During this phase, you can increase your carb intake by 10 grams a week (maxing out at an additional 100 grams per week) so that you can find your carb balance. If your goal is to lose 14 pounds or less, you can start here and skip the restrictive first phase.

In phase two, you can eat nuts, seeds, and berries. Your daily carbohydrate intake can go up by 5 grams a week (maxing out at an additional 40 grams per week) and you can begin to diversify your food options. On-going weight loss : In this phase, you can begin to gradually introduce more carbs back into your diet. In this phase, you will eat mainly proteins, fats, and low-carb vegetables like leafy greens. This phase forces your body into ketogenic metabolism - meaning that the extreme lack of carbs forces your body to burn fat for energy. In this phase, you are limited to 20 grams of carbohydrates a day. Introduction : This is the most restrictive phase of the diet and is meant to kickstart weight loss. The last phase is designed to help you develop the Atkins diet as a lifetime way of eating. Once you've chosen an eating plan, you'll go through four phases of the Atkins diet that will gradually reintroduce carbohydrates into your diet over time.
