Youve all heard the success stories, I lost 30 lbs in one month with Atkins or I lost 8 lbs in one week on a no-carb diet. Well, it is possible to lose weight on Atkins, and you can do it quickly. The problem is that you could be potentially denying your body of essential nutrients. You must understand that carbs are initial source of energy. So, if you cut carbs out of your diet completely, you will be a zombie. You might be a skinny zombie, but you will not have the energy to enjoy everyday activity and eventually your body will retaliate.

Another negative affect of Atkins is that as soon as you start to introduce carbs back into your diet, you will regain everything that you lost. Our bodies are set up to store essential nutrients, so by depriving your system of a food group you are essentially starving yourself. So, once your body has those nutrients again, it is going to store as much as possible in case of another bout of deprivation.

It is possible to be on a low-carb diet and still maintain a healthful balance of nutrients in your body. An everyday diet should consist of a ratio of foods. Protein should comprise anywhere from 20-40%, fat should make up 10-30%, and carbs should consist of 45-75% of your diet. As long as you are staying in that range, you can be sure that your diet is achieving a healthful balance.

Be aware that different bodies require different things. Some people have naturally higher metabolism than others so they can afford to consume a higher ratio of carbs and fats. For instance, my husband has a resting metabolic rate of around 3,000 calories a day. That means his body at rest is still going to burn around 3,000 calories a day just to function. I however have a resting metabolic rate of about 1,700 calories a day. For me it is best to limit my carbs so that I dont have calories being stored as fat at the end of the day.

Carbs provide your body with energy throughout the day. If you are burning a lot of calories, you can afford a higher ratio of carbs. The problem is that whatever carbs you dont burn will eventually turn to fat. If you have a slow metabolism, or are not very active, it is best to limit your carbs and fat and get most of your calories from protein and vegetables.

There are a few rules of thumb that will help you on a low carb diet. Start replacing any white foods (white bread, plain pasta, white rice) with brown foods (whole wheat bread, pasta, and brown rice). Oatmeal and sweet potatoes are also a good source of carbs. Also make sure you are getting plenty of vegetables. At meals fill your plate 2/3 with vegetables and 1/3 with lean protein (white meat chicken or turkey, and fish).

Just remember, in order to lose weight, on a low carb diet, just like with any diet, you must burn more calories than you consume. Being on a low carb diet still requires that you watch your calorie intake. The difference that you get with a low carb diet is that you can eat a larger volume of food. Carbs naturally carry a lot of calories per food weight. For example breads to vegetables, its not exactly the carb thats loading on the calories, but the food that its in is. A four ounce portion of bread may have up to 150 calories while a four ounce serving of vegetables will have around 15-30 calories. Limiting carbs will generally limit calories per ounce of food weight.