Your best chance of success at losing weight on a low-carb diet and living a low-carb lifestyle starts at the very beginning with these important tips:
- Set goals. These will help keep you focused during your weight-loss journey and beyond as you transition into a low-carb lifestyle that allows you to maintain the weight you lose. Make sure your goals are realistic, yet still challenging enough so that you are actually making progress and seeing changes. For example, if you have 50 or more pounds to lose, it might be easier to break up your overall weight-loss goal into 10-pound increments. Average weight loss is typically 2.5 pounds a week, but depending on a variety of factors, including your age, activity level, sex, medications you are taking and metabolism, you may lose weight at a faster or slower rate.
- Pick your Atkins plan. Now that you know what you goals you hope to accomplish, it’s time to figure out which Atkins plan will work best for you: Atkins 20 or Atkins 40. You can start by comparing each plan, and then you’ll be able to choose the plan that works best for you based on your goals.
- Review your Atkins plan. Once you’ve figured out which plan will help you accomplish your goals, it’s time to do your homework. Read up on Atkins 20 or Atkins 40, and you’ll learn exactly how each plan works, plus you’ll find detailed food lists for each plan.
- Clean out your kitchen and pantry. One of the most important things you can do in order to be successful on Atkins is to clean out your kitchen and purge your pantry of all the food not on the recommended food list. This includes chips, crackers, candy, sugary breakfast cereals, and other processed foods high in carbs and sugar. Without all these tempting treats, it will be much easier to focus on the delicious food you should be eating, such as fiber-rich vegetables, protein and healthy fats.
- Plan your meals and snacks. Review your plan’s recommended food lists and check out Atkins’ collection of low-carb recipes to plan your first week’s worth of low-carb meals and snacks. Also, don’t forget to download Atkins free tools, which include a handy app and carb counter guide.
- Hit the grocery store. Now it’s time to make a shopping list and head to the grocery store so you can stock your kitchen with all the naturally low-carb foods that will help you lose weight while boosting your energy and keeping your appetite in check. You’ll be amazed at the amount of fresh, colorful vegetables you’ll be filling your fridge with, plus the variety of proteins, such as poultry, beef, lamb, pork and fish, as well as eggs, cheese, and healthy fats such as avocados and olive oil.
Once you’ve done all this, it’s time to start your Atkins journey! Good luck!