The New Atkins Made Easy (7 page)

• Splenda (sucralose)

• Truvia or SweetLeaf (natural products made from stevia)

• Sweet'n Low (saccharin)

• Xylitol (available in health food stores and some supermarkets)

All Atkins products are coded for appropriate phases. Bars and shakes acceptable for this phase contain no more than 3 grams of Net Carbs. Because they are meal substitutes, the Atkins frozen meals, which contain from 4–7 grams of Net Carbs, are all acceptable for Induction. (Some of the frozen meals contain less than 3 grams of Net Carbs from a small amount of Atkins Cuisine Penne Pasta.) In this phase, you can also have:

• Atkins Advantage Snack Bars with 2 or 3 grams of Net Carbs

• All Atkins Advantage Meal Bars

• All Atkins Advantage Ready-to-Drink Shakes

• Atkins Day Break Bars with 2 or 3 grams of Net Carbs

• All Atkins Endulge Bars (if your carb allotment allows)

You can also eat certain other low-carb foods so long as they contain no more than 3 grams of Net Carbs per serving.

What if cooking from scratch is not your thing or you rarely have the time? Not to worry. This book is all about making Atkins easy. In addition to the delectable Atkins meals, some of which are suitable for breakfast and others for lunch or dinner, and other products, consider these options:

• Mine the frozen-foods section for products such as burgers in single servings, chicken tenders, and lots of different veggies. Some come in their own steaming bags that you can puncture and pop in the microwave oven. No pots to wash!

• Look in the same section for fish fillets (the unbreaded kind), scallops, and shrimp in parchment packets for super-quick meals.

• Visit the deli section for precooked roasted or grilled chicken and turkey that comes in chunks or slices. They're great for tossing together a stir-fry, a main-dish salad, or another no-cook or easy-cook meal in no time.

• You can even find cooked hard-boiled eggs in the dairy department of the supermarket.

We'll explore these options in greater detail, along with lots more ideas, in
Chapter 9
.

No matter how eager you are to start paring pounds, starting today or tomorrow might not be the best idea. Why wait? If you work outside the home, you might be better off waiting for the weekend, when you have more control of your time and when and what you eat. Or spend the weekend getting ready and turn a new page on Monday morning. You also don't want any added stressors occurring simultaneously. So if it's exam week, crunch time at the office, or the first week of a new job, or if your kid is sick with the flu, hold off. Likewise, if you're leaving on vacation or celebrating the holidays, when temptation is everywhere, you may want to wait until you can focus on your new way of eating.

That said, don't fall into the trap of always finding an excuse to put off starting until tomorrow or next week. There will always be social and work situations to navigate and temptation wherever you turn. Pick a date and stick to it. You'll be proud of your resolve. Get used to that feeling!

If you're taking certain prescription drugs, check with your physician
before
starting Atkins. Insulin, some antidepressants, steroids, and beta-blockers can interfere with weight loss. He or she may be able to change the dosage or substitute another drug. If you're taking diuretic medications for high blood pressure, losing water weight and then fat may necessitate a reduced dosage. Check your blood pressure regularly and report any change immediately. Finally, your blood sugar level will begin to self-regulate on Atkins, so if you're taking insulin, you'll have to reduce your dosage to avoid your blood sugar dropping too low. Test your blood sugar level regularly and work closely with your physician.

Q.
How do I incorporate Atkins products into my eating plan?

A.
Atkins products can make all the difference in being able to stay with the program regardless of where you are at mealtime or snack time. But convenience foods shouldn't replace foundation vegetables and other whole foods. Make sure to consume at least 12 and preferably 15 of your allotted 20 daily Net Carb grams in the form of foundation vegetables, some of which can be in the frozen meals.

Q.
Do I have to take vitamin supplements on Atkins?

A.
You'll be eating foods full of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, but it's still difficult to ensure you're getting all the nutrients you need on a daily basis, so it is just a good insurance policy to take a few supplements. In addition to a daily multivitamin-mineral supplement (without iron unless you're anemic), I advise taking additional vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids (unless you're having two or more servings of fatty fish a week). Significant weight loss reduces your stores of omega-3s. Your body makes vitamin D after exposure to sunlight, but levels can diminish in winter or during overcast periods.

Q.
What is weight averaging?

A.
Your weight naturally fluctuates from day to day, which is why I recommend weighing in once a week. If you must weigh yourself daily, add that number to those from the two previous days, then divide by three to get your average weight. You can even do this on your cell phone. A running three-day average gives you a better sense of your progress than your weight on any single day.

Q.
Which sugar substitutes are suitable for beverages and which for cooking?

A.
Packets and liquid dispensers are handy for sweetening beverages. The granular forms of sucralose and xylitol sold in a bag or box can be used for cooking.

•  •  •

Now let's move on to Part II, “It's Easy to Become the New You,” where we'll examine each of the four phases of the Atkins Diet, starting with Phase 1, which kick-starts weight loss, so you can see results pronto! But first, take a few minutes to be inspired by Charity W., who lost 135 pounds on Atkins, enduring two extended periods when the scale wouldn't budge. In her determination to reach her goal, Charity would begin each day repeating, “I can do this.” And so she did.

I
.   We recommend nitrate-free products whenever possible.

II
.   Mayonnaise contains a minute amount of carbs. Choose a brand made with canola or high-oleic safflower oil, not soybean or vegetable oil, whenever possible.

N
ow that you understand how the program works and the kinds of foods you'll be eating, I have a few questions for you:

• Are you ready to have the body you've always dreamed of?

• Are you ready to eat three yummy meals and two satisfying snacks a day, and still shed pounds?

• Are you ready to actually get your appetite under control once and for all?

• Are you ready to reinvent yourself?

If your answer to all four questions is yes—and of course it is—congratulations on taking this important first step toward turning your dreams into reality! And welcome to your first week on Atkins. The purpose of the first phase of the program, known as Induction, is to kick-start weight loss. Although it takes a few days to actually start losing fat pounds—water pounds come off first—you'll almost certainly see real results by the end of the week. Some people lose as much as a pound a day.

You'll achieve this amazing feat by dropping your carbohydrate intake to a level at which almost anyone starts burning primarily fat for energy after a few days. Then, like magic, those excess pounds begin to vanish. Even if you have just a little weight to lose or you've decided to begin in a later phase of Atkins, understanding how this first phase works gives you a solid grounding in the whole program. Doing Atkins right from the beginning will bring faster and more impressive results. My job is to make that as easy as possible for you.

In this chapter you'll find a couple of meal plans for Week 1 (see pages
62
and
64
), one with a companion shopping list (
page 66
) incorporating foods suitable for Phase 1 (the first rung on the Carb Ladder—see
page 16
), as well as more advice on what to eat and how to prepare it. We'll also go into greater detail about why you should be eating certain foods and passing on others. Finally, we'll discuss some small changes that can spell the difference between immediate success and a frustrating delay.