Sick and Tired of Hearing About This Adkins/No-Carb Craze

[lucky_bunni]

Anyone else???

Everything being advertised in "low carb", "no carbs", and my favorite, Arby's "no carbies". Frankly, I'm sick of hearing the slang "carb" and all of it's perversions. I'm sick of seeing all this crap with the Adkins logo and "low-carbs" in the grocery. Not to mention that this is an absolutely unhealthy diet whose creator died of diesese caused by being overweight. Why can't people just learn how to eat a balanced diet without unnaturally cutting things out?

I should back this up by saying that my mom is currently going to Weight Watchers, a wonderful, healthy program in my opinion. She's lost over 20 lbs. in the 8 weeks she's been going -and- she's learning how to eat right. I'm so proud of her, and happy that my father has also benefited, losing 30 lbs. since she's started, because her cooking patterns have changed.

 

[Dan Murphy]

That is great, l_b, good to hear your mom and dad are doing so well. Pass on my best wishes to them both.

 

[lucky_bunni]

Thanks for your support. My mom, she's around 45, said that she knew that she needed to get control of her weight so that she can be healthier as she ages. It's so fun to go shopping with her know, and will be even more when she get down to her goal weight, because she can wear things she couldn't before.

 

[Planogirl]

The Atkins diet is only unhealthy during the first few weeks and thereafter if the dieter chooses to make it so. There is nothing wrong with salads and veggies and some lean meat which is what I eat when I choose to avoid sweets.

Dr Atkins was a bit overweight (195 lbs) when he became ill but he was quite active and busy even though he was 72. The Dr's personal physician said "I was his attending cardiologist at that time. And I made the statement… When we did his angiogram, I mean, the doctor who performed it, said it's pristine for someone that eats his kind of diet… Pristine, meaning these are very clean arteries. I didn't want people to think that his diet caused his heart muscle – it was definitely a documented viral infection.” The doctor also said "“The man slipped on the ice and had a head injury, so he died. Don't blame his diet.”

Unless you believe that his doctor is lying then I don't see any indication that the diet led to Dr Atkins death. I get a bit tired of hearing about various diets too but I think that it's great that we can all choose to follow the food lifestyle that works best for us.

By the way, good for your parents for doing so well. That is great news.

 

[MScott1851]

Me too. I can't get anyone at work to order out anymore...I'm the Lone Ranger making my midnight runs to Wendy's, dipping my french fries into my Frosty while they eat their pepperoni and cheese cubes and drool over my food. I further tick them off by eating Snickers while drinking Mt. Dew.

I'm not trying to be mean, I just REALLY love food and am a carb addict.

 

[N.Bailey]

I like my carbs too. I can't imagine living without them. No more pasta, no more bread, no more soda, chips, sugars LOL. I also love fruits and veggies way to much to cut them back. For me, it would be easier to become a vegetarian.

I'm glad to hear your mom and dad have lost so much weight on WW. That's great!

 

[shortbun]

I'm overweight but not embracing the low carb lifestyle. I
do use certain things that have come out because of it, like
wraps. Love wraps!

 

[Aurora63]

I think it is at it's peak and we'll slowly be hearing less of it. At least this is my hope. Personally, it is obvious it works, but how long can one be expected to keep it up? If people don't develop healthy, realistic eating habits along with exercise, the weight will just come right back.

 

[Donalds_best_pal]

Same Here!

I am sick of all the weird diets. I also hate how people blam resturaunts for them being obbessed. That annoys me a lot. I understand people need to diet but how about somthing normal like weight watchers thats healthy. My mom does that has had success. W/E People can do what they want
Matt

 

[Ellen aka Snow White]

I'm sick of hearing about it too. I know so many people who are doing the Atkins diet but aren't losing any weight! Of course, they are not exercising or really sticking to the diet all the time either - but don't understand why they don't lose the weight! I have suggested Weight Watchers many times. I have seen many success stories from them. I don't need to lose weight, but I have considered checking out WW so that I can cook healthier for my family.

 

[Virgo10]

I hear ya. I've been on a regular diet since April and have lost 9 pounds so far . But as bored as I am hearing about Carb this and that, I have to say that it works. My son started Atkins long before it became this trendy. He went from 250 to his current weight which is around 190. He's 6'5". He's been on an Atkins like diet since 1994.

It just seems like there's so many food types missing. I hope they don't find out 20 years from now that the people who have done this are having problems.

Roberta

 

[CamColt]

While I do believe it can work and Ive seen proof of it, I get aggravated when people make it out to be the only way to lose weight. Im a firm believer in everything in moderation and I dont feel Im going to pot if I eat a piece of bread, or a danish, or pasta.... In fact I probably eat more than my fair share of carbs, and I think Im doing ok.
I dont mind all the new low carb products and advertising as long as they dont stop making the low fat low cal stuff.

 

[Nancy]

My only problem with all the low carb stuff is that people will think "low carb" (like in cookies) and eat lots of them..not realizing how much calories there are in them.

I do WW (lost almost 45 pounds so far) I do try to watch carbs...but I am not going to stay under 20 a day for 2 weeks. I like WW, you can eat everything, it is based on portion control and healthy eating. My whole family has lost weight since I started.

 

[floridafam]

I actually saw a commercial last night for low card vitamins.

A little extreme, I thought.

 

[liznboys]

I'm sick of it too!!!! BUT, I wouldn't say this to anyone but posting here. I mean the people who are following the no-carb thing are just trying to lose weight and get in shape..so good for them. My dh and I are fortunate that we can eat whatever we want and never gain weight...people hate us for that.

 

[Christine]

I'm not against the Atkins diet or South Beach, whatever. Not every diet works for every person and Atkins has certainly help many people. What I'm disgusted about is the glut of products that are now out there. These products WILL sabotage the best efforts of anyone on these low-carb diets. Most people will overuse them and gain their weight back.

What I do think has been a positive outcome is that many products have had their sugar content lowered. Now as long as the manufacturer hasn't added something in to make up for the loss of sweetness, that is a good thing. I think we had way too much sugar in things before. It is nice to be able to pick up a yogurt now that isn't loaded with sugar (and I don't like artificial sweeteners). So, I grit my teeth and by the "carb control" yogurt just so I can cut some sugar.

 

[Lisa F]

My biggest pet peeve is people who rant about things without first having their facts straight.

First of all, its Atkins, not Adkins. As many have pointed out, Atkins didn't die from his own diet. It's a nice little rumor and I'm sure people love a good irony but saying it more and more doesn't make it so.

About the low carb vitamins, it's not that the vitamins don't have carbs in them... it's that people who are in different phases of their life have different nutritional needs. If you think those are stupid then so are vitamins for women (with extra calcium and folic acid), vitamins for older people (with extra iron as older people tend to be anemic) etc.

About how unhealthy the lifestyle is, please, do some research into it before making that assessment. I'm doing South Beach, which is not strictly low carb, but please can someone tell me how eating lots of green veggies, lean protein, a bit of good for you fats, 2-3 servings of lowfat dairy (milk, yogurt, low fat cheeses), beans, with only the occasional whole grain and fruit is worse for you than eating french fries dipped in a frosty? Do I really need pasta and potatoes and corn to be healthy? Does the average american who eats these things truly eat a balanced diet? Can someone tell me what nutritional need french fries fill that I can't get from other sources?

The only thing I CAN agree on is that I think low carbing is a really good idea that is already misunderstood and will be further misunderstood by all of the low carb junk out there. People think that they can buy those products and they are eating healthy, when they should be getting the majority of their nutrition from WHOLE foods. The same thing happened with the low fat craze where people just lived on tons and tons of processed foods and just got fatter and fatter from it. Now low fat has a bad rap even though it works if you don't try to cheat by having your cake and eating it too (pun intended).

It's one thing to say, have a treat here and there that won't throw your hard earned body chemistry all out of whack but seeing as how popular these things are, I'm sure people are living on them. I know I would given the opportunity, but I won't give it to myself and am sticking to the whole foods idea.

 

[Pooh Girl 71]

I understand people's irritation with low carb products. People shouldn't rely on them (and low fat items either IMO) to make lifestyle changes.

Moderation maybe key for some people. Not for me. I am a carb addict. I cannot eat certain bad carbs because all it does is trigger a desire for more and more junk. It is an awful feeling and something that cannot be controlled except to completely cut it from my diet. Quite frankly, I think it would be easier to be a drug addict.

But, I don't buy the low carb stuff b/c most of it has too many carbs for me to eat.

 

[tastelikecandy]

Originally posted by MScott1851
Me too. I can't get anyone at work to order out anymore...I'm the Lone Ranger making my midnight runs to Wendy's, dipping my french fries into my Frosty while they eat their pepperoni and cheese cubes and drool over my food. I further tick them off by eating Snickers while drinking Mt. Dew.

Judging from your picture you are obviously one of those people with a very high metabolism who can eat mostly what you want without blowing up. For a lot of people low carb is the way to go. I am sort of tired of hearing about it too though because the owner of my gym has been preaching this long before Atkins ever came out. All the competitive body builders have been using this method for over 30 years and now all of a sudden as usual the media picks it up and bangs you over the head with it. I say whatever works for one may not work for the other. If you are over 20 lbs overweight than most any reduction in your diet and added exercise will reduce your weight, but if you are like most people struggling to lose that last 5-10 lbs quick than low carb is the way to go.

I'm not trying to be mean, I just REALLY love food and am a carb addict.

 

[stinkerbelle]

Originally posted by Pooh Girl 71
I understand people's irritation with low carb products. People shouldn't rely on them (and low fat items either IMO) to make lifestyle changes.

Bingo! ITA.

There is nothing wrong with adapting a low carb way of eating...getting your carbs from HEALTHY sources such as veggies, salads, lean meats, multi-grain breads, etc...

It sickens me all these new products that scream NO CARB!! LOW CARB! etc... It's all frakenfood to me...too highly processed.

You can adapt a healthy carb lifestyle by just doing 'perimeter shopping'...buying all your groceries from the 'preimeter' of the grocery store...fruits/veggies/meats/dairy/bread. All the bad stuff is down the aisles.