Excellent presentation here:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eREuZEdMAVo[/youtube]

The peer reviewed paper is at:

http://gornbein.bol.ucla.edu/assn6-Atki ... 20Zone.pdf

The principal investigator is a vegetarian and was expecting the opposite result, which makes the results even more convincing.

Warren Dew wrote:Excellent presentation here:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eREuZEdMAVo[/youtube]

The peer reviewed paper is at:

http://gornbein.bol.ucla.edu/assn6-Atki ... 20Zone.pdf

The principal investigator is a vegetarian and was expecting the opposite result, which makes the results even more convincing.

It doesn't make them more or less convincing at all.

There's no doubt that the Atkins diet is very effective when it comes to losing weight - losing weight is very easy when you're dead.

Arcanyn wrote:There's no doubt that the Atkins diet is very effective when it comes to losing weight - losing weight is very easy when you're dead.

I'd think it would be kind of tough, since your metabolic rate drops to zero. You'd have to wait for dehydration or decomposition or something.

MedGen wrote:It doesn't make them more or less convincing at all.

It makes them more convincing to me. I'm always paranoid about confirmation bias.

Warren Dew wrote:

MedGen wrote:It doesn't make them more or less convincing at all.

It makes them more convincing to me. I'm always paranoid about confirmation bias.

So analyse their methodology, results and conclusions critically, don't rely on your own personal biases.

I tried the Atkins diet years ago. Of course cutting carbs will encourage weight loss but at what cost? I was totally lacking in energy, kept coming down with endless infections (colds/flu/tonsititis) and felt miserable.

The best thing I found was Slimming World. I lost 25lbs over 8 weeks. There was nothing I wasn't "allowed" but the system they use means you don't eat carbs and protien together. It worked really well for me, I never felt deprived or lacking in energy and while I stuck to the reigeme I lost a steady 2-3 lbs per week.

With "diets" it's horses for courses. What works well for one person doesn't necessarily work for the next. A lot of people with weight issues have emotional problems to deal with as well as changing their food intake.

I have used Atkins, to great effect. I agree, it is effective. It simply isn't sustainable in the long term. Effective, but fad.

Their is no magic bullet. Eat less. Move more.

The_Metatron wrote:
Their is no magic bullet. Eat less. Move more.

Exactly.

Warren Dew wrote:Excellent presentation here:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eREuZEdMAVo[/youtube]

The peer reviewed paper is at:

http://gornbein.bol.ucla.edu/assn6-Atki ... 20Zone.pdf

The principal investigator is a vegetarian and was expecting the opposite result, which makes the results even more convincing.

Because Atkins dieters die sooner?

Sorry, lame joke.

double post

MedGen wrote:So analyse their methodology, results and conclusions critically, don't rely on your own personal biases.

I did do that, and it seem quite sound.

However, I can't account for the confirmation bias effect of whether they decide to publish or not.

MedGen wrote:

The_Metatron wrote:
Their is no magic bullet. Eat less. Move more.

Exactly.

Any references showing that actually working in controlled trials?

You want evidence that exercise works in order to lose weight?

wiki wrote:Exercise also reduces levels of cortisol. Cortisol is a stress hormone that builds fat in the abdominal region, making weight loss difficult. [citation needed] Cortisol causes many health problems, both physical and mental.

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/ ... ekey=53304

I would imagine it helps to increase metabolism as well... along with many other things.

There was a British doco on the Atkins diet a few years ago. They took a novel approach, and actually looked at research instead of simply asking people for opinions. They developed a fairly convincing case that the Atkins diet's successes were primarily due to the high levels of protein, which meant dieters tended to feel "fuller" without consuming large quantities of carbs.

The doco also touched on some of the negatives and unknowns around the diet. Overall I thought it was rather good for a TV doco.

I persist in ascribing to that old fashioned notion that when calories in are less than calories out, one experiences weight loss. I suppose this makes me conservative.

I could never make a lifestyle out of Atkins. I LIKE vegetables and fruit and carbohydrates.

The VA has a weight loss and fitness program, and in the blunt manner of imparting instructions in the military, it is called simply, Move!

Since I'm going to be out at the Fort in two weeks for my annual, I'm thinking of joining Move! and showing those middle aged beer guts up. A bit of competition can be highly motivating.

Mantisdreamz wrote:You want evidence that exercise works in order to lose weight?

Yes.

Not evidence that it's associated with hormonal changes that may be associated with weight change - actual data showing that exercise programs are a practical way of losing weight.

All the data I've seen indicates that exercise programs normally result in an increase in caloric intake, resulting in no net weight loss. Certainly exercise seems to have health benefits, and some forms of exercise may result in replacement of fat weight with muscle weight, but I haven't seen anything indicating that exercise alone results in weight loss.

xrayzed wrote:There was a British doco on the Atkins diet a few years ago. They took a novel approach, and actually looked at research instead of simply asking people for opinions. They developed a fairly convincing case that the Atkins diet's successes were primarily due to the high levels of protein, which meant dieters tended to feel "fuller" without consuming large quantities of carbs.

The presentation in the original post does indeed show that those on Atkins showed slightly higher protein intake than those on the other diets. That might well be part of why people can stick to the Atkins diet better than they can to some other diets.

That said, the presentation also indicates that those on Atkins reduced their caloric intake by a comparable amount to those on the other diets - from about 2000 kcal/day to about 1500 kcal/day - so satiety doesn't appear to be the full story.

Gallstones wrote:I could never make a lifestyle out of Atkins. I LIKE vegetables and fruit and carbohydrates.

Atkins allows unlimited nonstarchy vegetables at all times, and unlimited fruit after the brief "induction" phase. It even allows bread during the "maintenance" phase, though in my opinion that's what keeps it from being more successful than it is.

If by "carbohydrates" you mean lots of refined sugar, though, you're out of luck with Atkins.

I've been using the low GI diet since I stopped being young and noticed that my tummy was starting to increase. It is not entirely dissimilar to Atkins but doesn't have the same health concerns (at least as far as I'm aware). I know that personal revelation counts for little, but it works great for me.

I successfully lost a butt load of weight with the Carbohydrate Addict's Diet. The basic idea is controlling insulin, which plays a role in fat storage and in turning hunger on and off. The most radical part of the diet, as I recall, was going carb free for the first week or so. After that, however, it's just low carb for 2 meals, and sensible 3rd. It's not a high-protein diet.

When I eat a carb-rich diet, I am ALWAYS hungry. I could eat an entire pizza and never feel sated, so this diet made sense for me. On the diet, an egg (that's it, an egg) would last me from 6:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m., when I would have a chef's salad or something. I cheated on the diet and went even lower carb than it allows, however, and would only eat meat-vegetable combinations for dinner, maybe with a wee bit of rice or potato.

NO sugar of any kind, which means most commercially prepared salad dressings and sauces. I summed up the book in a 5-page Word file if anyone wants it. PM me if interested.