Did you find it successful, askye? Because this book I'm reading right now is making a pretty damn compelling argument for cutting carbs and cranking up protein, and even fat. I think I'm going to start officially on Monday - I'd been thinking I'd go with the WeightWatchers plan, which is easy enough - but now I'm thinking Atkins may be the way to go. Although I'm a bit gutted about having to limit which fruit and veg are appropriate...still, I think it's worth a try.

On an entirely different note - anyone here ever done the Atkins diet/South Beach diet/otherwise high protein & low carb kinda diet?

I did.

I dropped a ton of weight.

But more importantly than that, I learned a LOT about how my blood sugar affects my behavior and mood. I became aware of what the things went into me did to me in a way I never had before.

I also discovered that when I'm not eating cheap white carbs I'm not a compulsive eater.

Which is amazing, imho. If there are more than occasional cheap whites in my diet I'll do all the classic compulsive things-- eat when I'm not hungry, eat out of sadness or boredom and (most noteably) eat as long as there is still food. When I am restricting them (particularly sugar) those behaviors GO. A. WAY. The first time I left the last slice of pizza to be thrown away I nearly teared up -- traditionally I'd have eaten that if I POSSIBLY could have.

And I learned how to occasionally indulge. If I have refined sugar it isn't by its self or at the end of the meal. If I have pasta I have to have as much or more protien too. It keeps my blood sugar from giving that little bounce that, once I learned to feel it, was distinctly uncomfortable.

The first three days, btw, are the hardest and gave me a headache. I now cut out sugar for a few days and THEN cut the other refined carbs and it makes the transition easier.

So, that's me. And I can't speak for anyone else -- but I would suggest doing the first two stages of Atkins (induction for two weeks and then the less restrictive form) for a month or six weeks if only to potentially learn a lot about what the food you eat does to you.

I did see a difference, of course at first there's a more dramatic weight loss, but even in the second portion I saw weight loss.

Also even though sometimes I really wanted cake or cookies I never felt hungry, there's always the option of eating something more if you are hungry. The desserts int eh book wrent' that great, I remember, that, but that was my only real complaint.

atkins/southbeach diets - what I learned.

The induction periods give me headaches. I can't really do - no carbs/low carbs can be really bad for some people ( and yes, for those of us with diabetes - it can still be bad). However, the induction periods can teach you a lot. As in there is a lot of good food you are skipping by choosing the easy to eat and easy to find carbs. Many people eat 60+% carbohydrates. On my good days I eat 40 - 50% carbs. 40 to 50 % carbs for most women is living at the low end of carbs on the food pyramid. Percentagewise this means my fat is closer to 40 % of my diet.

I have a friend that swear atkins is the only way she loses weight. However, she yo-yos a lot. There isn't any room in Atkins for holiday gatherings , eating at friends', birthdays , etc. So she always seems to be starting over.

I think the south beach plan makes more sense. It takes you off , then slowly adds the 'better' carbs. I think it educates you and your palate.

I'm not actually against any plan - It just needs to be something you can live with.

Well, for the past week I've been avoiding flour and sugar fairly consistently, and I've not even been tempted to indulge in the various offers of cookies, cakes, bread rolls etc. A few years ago I noticed a real change in my ability to cope with soft drinks with sugar (or, as I now realise, HFCS) - I simply can't drink them. By the time I'm approaching the end of the drink, I'm thirstier than I was when I started, and I feel like ass. These days I drink club soda most of the time, and maybe once every few weeks I have a diet coke out of vague curiosity. And I can absolutely believe what you're saying, Trudy.

Hmm. Right. I'm going to try this, and see where it takes me.

BTW, I did not lose a ton of weight, but I never lose weight fast. Never.

I suspect it is the diabetes, combined with the fact that I seem to gain muscle fast. I hate the scale, but the tape measure is my friend.

South Beach is WAY more sensible, Atkins is a recipe for liver damage and heart disease. Go South Beach! Eat vegetables!

Atkins is a recipe for liver damage and heart disease

Upon what do you base this? Not meaning to be arsey - Taubes' book is a bit of a mind-boggler, but from what he says (and it's pretty extensive with the citations) the research upon which the AMA based their whole 'dietary fat=heart disease' argument is pretty contradictory, even spurious.

I'm trying to not to take his book as gospel, despite the extensive and detailed references, but he does build a convincing case. Can you point me to somewhere that explains this Atkins = heart disease/liver damage? (No worries if not - I'll carry on googling!)

I think South Beach suggests usiing Splenda, which I can't eat at all. It makes me feel weird and lightheaded and awful.

At work they had Diet Cokewith Splenda in the machine and I drank one and thought I was going to faint.

I have only anecdotal evidence. My Dad had his heart attack on Atkins and Dad's cardiologist says, "Atkins built my summer home."