THE NEW ATKINS FOR A NEW YOU
Page 8
Interestingly, no matter which natural fats you eat, when you have the Atkins Edge, your body has its way with them. When body fat from people of all ethnic and geographic groups is analyzed, it tends to be primarily MUFA. This means that your body picks and chooses from what you give it to obtain its preferred mix for storage as body fat.
DOUBLE-TALK ABOUT TRANS FATS
In the last decade, researchers have found that an increased intake of trans fats is associated with an increased heart attack risk.7 More recently, trans fats have been shown to increase the body’s level of inflammation.8 (For more on trans fats and inflammation, see chapter 13.) Since 2006, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has mandated that the Nutrition Facts panel indicate the amount and percentage of trans fats in all packaged foods. Though the FDA did not ban trans fats outright, leaving it to the consumer to be vigilant, the result was that many manufacturers reduced the amount in their products or eliminated them altogether. Among the numerous products that recently were or may still be made with trans fats are fried foods, baked goods, cookies, crackers, candies, snack foods, icings, and vegetable shortenings. Most margarine products have been reformulated, but as long as a product contains less than 0.5 gram of trans fat per serving, a manufacturer can claim that it’s free of trans fats. To be sure that there are no trans fats in a product, also check the list of ingredients, where trans fats are listed as “shortening” or “hydrogenated vegetable oil” or “partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.” If you see any of these words in the ingredient list, just say no. Also, avoid deep-fried foods in fast-food and other restaurants.
ESSENTIAL FATS
The essential fatty acids (EFAs) are two families of compounds among dietary fats that your body cannot produce on its own. Both omega-3 and omega-6 EFAs are polyunsaturated fats essential to your health and well-being. The former start their way up the food chain as the leaves of green plants and green algae and wind up in the fat of shellfish and cold-water fish. Omega-6 fats are found primarily in seeds and grains, as well as in chickens and pigs, which pass along to us much of these essential fats from the feed they ate. Unless you’re following a very-low-fat diet, you’re likely to get much more than the recommended amount of omega-6s—far in excess of what your ancestors or even your grandparents did. The latest recommendation from the American Heart Association is that 5 to 10 percent of your daily calories should be made up of omega-6s. That intake is associated with a reduced risk for cardiovascular disease.9
Both omega-6 and omega-3 EFAs are needed for human cell membranes to function; however, the two compete with each other to get into membranes, so keeping their intake in balance is important. In the current American diet, which relies heavily on products made from soy, corn, and their oils, omega-6s dominate. In addition, the meat of animals fattened on soy and corn is full of omega-6 fats. As a result, the ideal dietary ratio of 1 to 1 between omega-6 and omega-3 EFAs has been disrupted. For example, soybean oil has an omega-6 to omega-3 ratio of 10 to 1 and corn oil a ratio of 100 to 1! Perfect balance is difficult to achieve, so 2 to 1 or 3 to 1 omega-6 to omega-3 is a more realistic goal. To achieve a desirable ratio:
• Emphasize olive, canola, high-oleic safflower, and other high-MUFA oils for dressing foods and cooking.
• Eat foods or take supplements rich in omega-3s, such as cold-water ocean fish or fish oil. (See the sidebar “Where to Get Your Omega-3s.”)
• Avoid corn, soybean, sunflower, cottonseed, and peanut oils, which are all high in omega-6s.
WHERE TO GET YOUR OMEGA-3S
Salmon and such other cold-water fish such as tuna, sardines, herring, and anchovies are superb sources of omega-3s. Why these fish and not their tropical counterparts? The colder the water, the more omega-3 fat fish need to survive. Farmed salmon now has omega-3 levels that come close to those of wild-caught salmon. Even 2 to 3 ounces of water-packed canned tuna provide one day’s requirement of omega-3s. If you don’t like the taste of fish or fish oil capsules, an alternative is fish oil with lemon or orange oil to mask the fish taste. Nonfish sources-flaxseed, almonds, walnuts, and canola oil-are generally not as concentrated as fish oil and contain a form of omega-3 that your body must process extensively to convert to usable omega-3. A new product that may appeal to vegetarians or others who prefer not to use fish oil is a DHA supplement extracted from microalgae. It’s about as close as you can get to what fish low on the food chain eat. The American Heart Association recently increased its dietary recommendation from two to three portions of fatty fish a week, or 1 gram of omega-3s a day.
When your body burns fat for energy, both omega-3 and omega-6 fats are metabolized along with monounsaturated and saturated fat. In fact, the omega-3 fats are actually burned off faster than the others.10 As a result, after significant weight loss, a person tends to have reduced stores of this EFA, making it all the more important to consume omega-3s both during weight loss and for some time afterward. (See the sidebar “Where to Get Your Omega-3S.”) On the other hand, one of the benefits of carbohydrate restriction is that it allows your body to make better use of the EFAs it does have in order to construct good membranes.11 This means that the combination of cutting back on carbs and adding omega-3 fats to your diet is an excellent way to improve your cell membrane function.
If you’re confused about the difference between dietary fat and essential fats, a helpful analogy is gasoline and motor oil. Both gasoline and motor oil are derived from the stuff that gushes from oil wells, but the former goes into your car’s gas tank and the latter into the crankcase. Gasoline is burned for energy, while motor oil lubricates the machinery so that it runs without friction, reducing wear and tear. Dietary fats differ from each other in many ways, but most contain a mixture of nonessential fats, the saturates and monounsaturates; and essential fats, the omega-6s and omega-3s that are in the polyunsaturated group. Think of the nonessential fats as fuel and the essential fats as metabolic lubricators.
THE REBALANCING ACT
You now understand that to effectively reboot your metabolism, you’ll have to change the ratio of carbohydrate, fat, and protein in your diet. If your first reaction is “Yuck. I don’t want to eat lots of fat,” please take a careful look at the Phase 1, Induction, meal plans in part III. You’ll see that in a typical day, you’ll be eating a cornucopia of vegetables along with ample muscle-building protein. To enhance those foods, you’ll add your favorite acceptable salad dressings, sauces, and oils. If you’re at a loss for ideas, our recipe section, also in part III, focuses on such sauces, dressings, and condiments.
SAVOR, DON’T SMOTHER
It’s essential that you eat enough natural fats to provide satiety, the satisfying sense of fullness, keep your fat metabolism humming along, and make foods tasty. But that doesn’t mean you should eat so much that you wind up with a calorie bomb. For most of us on Atkins, our natural appetite response gives us good guidance as to how much fat to eat. But here are some tips. Use enough oil when sauté-ing food to keep it from sticking to the pan. Use about a tablespoon of oil (plus lemon juice or vinegar) to dress a small salad. These are general guidelines. Petite women may need less, and tall men may be able to have more. Feel free to swap out one fat source for another. For example, if you don’t use cream in your coffee, you can have a bit more cheese. If you have two salads a day and need more olive oil for dressing, forgo a pat of butter. You get the picture. A typical day’s intake of fat might include the following:
• 2 tablespoons oil for dressing salads and cooking
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 ounce cream
• 2 ounces cheese
• 2–3 eggs
• 2–3 servings of meat, poultry, fish, or shellfish
• 10 olives and/or ½ Haas avocado
• 2 ounces nuts or seeds (after the first two weeks of Induction)
REVIEW POINTS
• Dietary fat is essential to good health and plays a key role in weight control.
• In
the context of a low-carb diet, natural fats pose no health risk; rather, it is the combination of fat and a high intake of carbohydrates that is linked to heart disease and other serious conditions.
• As long as you’re eating a high-carb diet, you won’t burn your own body fat for energy. But reduce carb intake enough, and you will burn both dietary and body fat.
• A low-fat version of Atkins is unnecessary and inadvisable.
• Your body uses three kinds of fat for fuel: monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and saturated.
• The standard American diet is tilted toward polyunsaturated fat. To restore the proper balance, use olive and other monounsaturated oils for cooking and dressing vegetables.
• When you control your carb intake, there is no health risk in eating foods high in saturated fats.
• Eating fatty fish several times a week or taking an omega-3 supplement can remedy the imbalance between omega-6 and omega-3 essential fatty acids.
• Your cholesterol levels are primarily a factor of your genetics, not your diet.
Now let’s move on to part II, where you’ll learn how to personalize Atkins to meet your needs and food preferences and embark on your healthy new lifestyle. But first, meet Sara Carter, who after losing about 100 pounds quit her job and started her own business.
SUCCESS STORY 5
NEW BODY, NEW CAREER
After Sara Carter trimmed 100 pounds from her frame, she got motivated to quit her desk job and start her own business. Eight years later, she’s still slim and her business is thriving.
VITAL STATISTICS
Current phase: Lifetime Maintenance
Daily Net Carb intake:50–60 grams
Age: 46
Height: 5 feet, 9 inches
Before weight: 235 pounds
Current weight: 135 pounds
Weight lost: 100 pounds
Former blood sugar: 163 mg/dL
Current blood sugar: 80 mg/dL
Current HDL cholesterol: 50 mg/dL
Current LDL cholesterol: 111 mg/dL
Former total cholesterol: 235 mg/dL
Current total cholesterol: 175 mg/dL
Current triglycerides: 66 mg/dL
Has your weight always been an issue?
I was heavyset for years. I carried most of my weight below my waist and when I was wearing stretch pants and standing with my legs together, I looked like a double scoop on a sugar cone. My weight would fluctuate, depending upon what diet my mother had me on, but I was always hungry, cranky, and sneaking food.
What motivated you to try Atkins?
My mother was diagnosed with diabetes about eight years ago and told to lose weight or else. Her weight just started coming off. Well, I was not about to have my mother be thinner than me! So I started Atkins too, and wow! I lost 8 pounds the first day and 70 pounds in three months. This was the only diet that felt natural to me. Every other diet was a fight, like “die” with a “t.” Eating the Atkins way was how I always wanted to eat but was told was wrong.
How long did it take you to lose the 100 pounds?
I stayed in Induction for two weeks to get rid of my carb cravings, then moved to OWL, where I lost most of the weight. I lost weight every single day. When I got close to my goal weight, I started adding carbs until I got to between 50 and 60 grams a day. All in all, it took me six months to go from a size 24 to a size 6. Later, when I would grocery shop, I would pick up a fifty-pound bag of dog food and heft it over my shoulder just to see what it felt like; I would be amazed that I’d lugged around the equivalent of two bags for years.
Did you see any health benefits?
After three months, my total cholesterol went from 235—interestingly, the same number as my start weight—to 175, all the while I was eating a four-egg omelet with cheese for breakfast every day. My blood sugar went from about 163 to 80. Once I was taking many pills for depression and pain from fibromyalgia and sometimes had to walk with a cane because my knees were starting to buckle. Now that I watch my carb and gluten intake, I only need to take ibuprofen sometimes. My mother is doing well too. She lost 60 pounds and doesn’t need any diabetes medications at this time. And my dad is doing Atkins too.
How did losing weight change other things in your life?
For twenty years I sat in a chair working as a secretary until I decided to start my own business. I clean up foreclosed properties, which means that I’m lifting things, mowing lawns, and hauling trash all day. I’m not an exercise person, but I’m so active now that I don’t need to be.
After eight years, do you watch what you eat?
It’s still a battle but I keep a tight rein on myself. I can eat pretty much what I want because I’m so active, but I weigh myself every other day. It’s become a habit not to put sugar in my coffee. It shoots through me like a rocket. And eating bread makes me feel tired and sick. It’s difficult to stay away from certain foods, but I know how I’ll feel if I eat them and ask myself whether the price is worth paying. Usually, it isn’t.
What advice can you offer other people?
Always have food that can quell cravings handy. I precook chicken breasts and nuke them in the microwave when I’m in a hurry. I often have to leave the house without making breakfast, so I keep sliced pepperoni and roast beef in the fridge so I can grab them and go. I’m in the car a lot, so I always keep Atkins bars and a can of mixed nuts there for snack attacks. And I know where the convenience stores are so that if I get caught without a snack on me I can pull in.
Part II
WHAT TO EAT: How to Tailor Atkins to Your Needs and Goals
Chapter 6
ATKINS FOR YOU: MAKE IT PERSONAL
You can customize Atkins to your own metabolism, goals, and time frame, for example, choosing to start in OWL instead of Induction. Just as important, you can mold the program to your culinary preferences and dietary restrictions.
Now that you understand why and how Atkins works, let’s focus on the nitty-gritty of doing it. After covering the basics, we’ll show you how to tailor it to your needs, including deciding which path to pursue at several forks in the road. As long as you understand and adhere to the underlying principles of the program, this approach will provide you with lots of freedom as you give your body permission to burn primarily fat for energy, which, as you’ve learned, is the essence of the Atkins Edge. But first let’s review the principles underlying Atkins.
Atkins is based upon seven concepts that ensure optimal health and weight control. We introduced most of these principles in part I, but let’s review them quickly.
• Focus on Net Carbs. This means that you count only the grams of carbohydrate that impact your blood sugar level, not of total carbs, since fiber doesn’t sabotage your body’s use of fat.
• Eat adequate protein. In addition to building and fortifying all the cells in your body, protein helps you feel full and keeps your blood sugar and insulin levels on an even keel. Have a minimum of 4 to 6 ounces of protein with each meal. Taller guys may need closer to 8 ounces.
• Understand the power of fat. Fat carries flavor, making food satisfying and filling, working hand in glove with protein. Increase your intake of monounsaturated fats, while holding back on most polyunsaturated fats with the exception of omega-3s. Saturated fats are fine in the context of a low-carb diet.
• Get adequate fiber in food. In addition to its role in blood sugar management, fiber is filling, so it helps make you feel full, moderating your hunger.
• Avoid added sugar and refined carbs. Eliminating these empty carbs is essential to good health, appetite management, and weight control.
• Supplement your diet with vitamins, minerals, and other vital nutrients. Although Atkins is a whole foods diet, it’s hard to achieve optimal levels of some micronutrients, such as omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D, on any eating program.
• Explore and find enjoyable forms of physical activity to incorporate into your lifestyle, as your weight loss and improved energy lev
el allow.
WHAT YOU’LL EAT
You now know that your objective is to curb your carbs while eating more healthy fat, along with adequate protein. You’ll be getting your carbs primarily, at least in Induction, from the leafy greens and other nonstarchy vegetables known as foundation vegetables. You’ll find an extensive list of Acceptable Foods for Induction in the next chapter, along with foods to avoid in this phase. With each of the next two phases, we’ll provide similar lists of acceptable foods. (Foods for Lifetime Maintenance are the same as those for Pre-Maintenance.) Some people will be able to add back most or all of these foods; others will not. We’ll help you understand what works for you and what doesn’t. Unless you’re blessed with total recall, photocopy these lists. That way, you can have this crucial information—which will be the key to your success—with you at all times. Over time, of course, it will become second nature.
LEARN TO COUNT
Central to doing Atkins is lowering your carbohydrate intake enough to unlock the gate that blocks fat burning. The initial amount that works for just about everyone is 20 grams of Net Carbs a day. So for at least the first two weeks of Phase 1, Induction, your objective is to stay at or very close to that number. Counting grams of Net Carbs allows precision as long as your portions match those listed in the carb gram counter. (For most packaged foods, you’ll have to read the Nutrition Facts panel to find the carb count, subtracting fiber from total carbohydrate to calculate Net Carbs.) Our Induction-level meal plans in part III are designed to ensure that you eat about 20 grams of Net Carbs per day, of which 12 to 15 grams will come from foundation vegetables.