Easy tips for a low carb diet such as Atkins.

Image via WikipediaThe Atkins diet has been around for sometime now and has had many successful results. The difference with this diet is it's not really a diet as such but more a change in eating habits. Of course most diets suggest this is the case, however I believe this to be true with low carb diets such as the Atkins diet.
For those who aren't quite sure how the Atkins diet works, I will explain it in fairly simple terms.
By limiting your amount of carb intake, your body switches to using the fat in your body to burn fuel instead of burning the fuel which is taken in, in the form of carbohydrates. Such foods that are high in carbs include pasta, bread, potatoes and rice. This process is known as Ketotis.
Ketotis usually kicks in after approx 3 days on the Atkins diet, although it can take up to two weeks. During the first two weeks on this diet you are limited to 20 carbs per day. This is when you will lose the most weight if the program is followed correctly. There are various stages that come with the Atkins diet and gradually your carb intake will increase with each stage, however if you are planning to do this as a permanent change to your eating habits, things such as white pasta, white bread will more than likely be permanently off the menu.

What can I eat on a low carb diet?

A low carb diet has benefits that most other diets don't have. You can still eat some of your favourite foods including meats such as chicken, beef, bacon and pork. You can also eat cheese, eggs, cream and mayo. So with that said a full fry up is still on the cards, minus the toast and fried bread of course.
By eating meats, cheese and eggs, your body will be taking in a high amount of protein and fibre which is needed to help your muscles stay strong and prevents your body burning muscle fuel instead of body fat.

Suggestions of what to eat on a low carb diet:

• Bacon
• Chicken
• Turkey
• Cheese
• Cream
• Jelly/Jello
• Eggs including scrambled, fried, poached and boiled.
• Beefburgers
• Salami
• Pepperoni
• Lettuce
• Cucumber
• Fish

Of course it is always best to check labels to see how many carbs are actually in as some brands may have more carbs than others. Things such as chicken can sometimes have things added to them if they are not 100% chicken, which can add to the carbs.
A few tips:
Iceland have their own beefburgers which are almost 0 carbs per burger.
Mattessons smoked sausage including the garlic flavour have next to 0 carbs.
Asda and Tesco do some good quality sausages such as pork and chorizo, that have almost 0 carbs.
If you are really missing something sweet, jelly is a good fix with 2 tablespoons of cream.
You could also whip some cream up and add a small low carb sachet of hot chocolate, (flavoured hot chocolate for a bit of variety). You can then add this to some small ice cube trays and either freeze them or put them in the fridge. This will give you a low carb treat when you have a craving for something sweet.
Another good idea, if you require a bread substitute is to either order some low carb bread online.... there are a few places that do this. Or you could make flax seed bread. This is simply 2 tablespoons of flax seed powder, 1 egg, half a teaspoon of baking powder and one tablespoon of melted butter. ( You can also add extra things such as cinnamon for flavour). Put this in a small microwavable bowl and into the microwave for 2 minutes on full power. You will then have two servings of flax seed bread. Of course, it isn't nearly as good as the real thing, however it does pass as a tolerable substitute to bread.