Weight Loss Diets Examined

Fad Diets & Dieting Fads: Do they work?

The Lo Carbohydrate Lifestyle

Since the 1990's we've heard the buzz of “living the low carb life”. Thousands of people lose weight each year thanks to the low carb movement. The most popular of course being either the Atkins Diet or the South Beach Diet. Both of these diets became so popular that you can now go into any supermarket and see products specifically designed for them. Which one is right for you? Although these diets are similar, they are also very different.

For starters they both consist of three phases. There's a strict induction phase, in which no carbs are allowed. Then there's the second phase in which carbs are gradually introduced. Then the third and final phase is where you maintain your new figure.

Phase one or the induction phase should only last for two weeks. Because most carbs are forbidden, you should lose a lot of weight in those first two weeks. This rapid weight loss is what tempts dieters to want to stay on the diet for longer than the recommended two weeks. This is risky and not advisable.

In both plans, phase 2 reintroduces carbs into your life. You'll stay on this phase until you've lost all the weight you want to be rid of.

Phase 3, the last stage is the maintenance stage. Once you've reached your desired weight, you'll follow this phase indefinitely.

Both diets subscribe to the good carbs / bad carbs school of thought. South Beach is more emphatic on this than Atkins. However, both protest against using refined carbs like sugar and white flour. Now here's where it gets interesting and the differences arise.

Atkins has a carb index that tells you when to add certain foods to your diet based on glycemic load. South Beach uses the glycemic index to show you what a good carb is and what a bad carb is.

Another big difference between the two diets is the fat in them. If you can not live without butter, South Beach Diet might not be for you since butter is not recommended. What you can have is olive oil and canola oil. While on Atkins you can have butter but not corn oil.

Another difference is the foods that you're allowed, especially during the induction phase. A typical breakfast on Atkins could consist of eggs and bacon, or eggs and sausage, while a breakfast on South Beach would be a spinach omelet with Canadian bacon or turkey sausage.

While South Beach allows fruit during their strict phase, Atkins does not. Both diets have the same motive and that is to help fat people lose weight and get healthy. Both diets work. You have to decide which one is for you. You'll probably find one of them easier to follow than the other.