My take on the Atkins diet

It seems like the Atkins diet is the latest fad nowadays even though it's been around for decades. I think I see the word 'carbs' more often than I see words like 'Xtreme'. I see the mention of carbs more than I see that damn 'Enzyte' commercial.

First off, I'm not an Atkins enthusiast. Heck, I barely even know what about the Atkins diet is. Therefore, you can use this as an excuse to dismiss my rant. Afterall, if I have no idea what the hell I'm talking about, then the things I point out should have no merit, especially with something so widespread as this Atkins diet.

Second, I like working out and believe it coupled with eating right to be the best way of losing weight and staying in shape. Therefore, already, I'm biased against this Atkins diet.

I know there is more to this Atkins diet and I'm sure people who swear by it will gladly point out my ignorance. Feel free to correct me since I'm barely in the know about this form of dieting. Heck, I can already see the first correction sent to me....people will point out that the Atkins diet isn't some 'fad' but a 'way of life' or some crap.

The Atkins diet's immediate appeal to people who want to lose weight is the belief that they can lose weight eating many of the things they want and love, losing as much weight as 10-30 pounds in the first month. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't ANYTHING that makes you lose more than 2 lbs a week unhealthy for you? The rate of which the body burns away fat can't really exceed that. Okay, so what about those people that lose more than 2 lbs a week? It's a good chance that you're not only losing fat but also muscle mass and water weight. Basically, that means you're losing calorie-burning muscles as well as dehydrating your body. Way to go, that's the way to lose weight. Man, the whole goal of your diet is to lose that excess FAT on your body. So, right off the bat, something seems to be wrong with this Atkins diet.

Another appeal to the Atkins diet is that it allows dieters to eat all the meat, cheese, eggs, and fats (ie: butter and oils) that they want. Hm, that sounds really appealing to me. Heck, that's basically what I eat on a daily basis. Maybe I'm already doing this Atkins diet and don't even realize it.

While you can eat these kinda foods, you're expected to limit your intake on carbs. Now, in case you're a goddamn moron, I assume you know what 'carbs' are. What's probably surprising is that a good majority of the people say this and that about 'carbs' yet they have no idea exactly what a 'carb' is in the first place.

Carbs is short for Carbohydrates. I'm sure you people who believe in the Atkins diet must know what I'm talking about, right? Right? If not, then why the fuck are you cutting 'carbs' from your diet when you don't even know what it is? Are you some kinda lemming that follows the flow of conformity simply because it seems cool at this point time? Gee, isn't that how smoking came about?

While there is evidence that the Atkins diet have helped people lose weight, no one really knows what the long-terms effects may be of such a diet. Hm, wasn't smoking seen as perfectly fine back in the day, before the long-term effects were determined? Whatever, I don't care. I neither smoke nor do I believe the Atkins diet so I guess I've got nothing to worry about

So, what are carbohydrates? The body basically uses them for energy. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't energy something you want? Doesn't the lack of energy make you tired? Anyway, carbs are needed to give the cells in your body the energy they need. The body converts those carbs into glucose which is the main source of energy for your body. Now, if you have excess glucose in your body, it gets saved for later use and is converted into glycogen.

Now, how is the removal of these energy producing carbs healthy for you? I'm sure Atkins fans will point out the error in my logic.

Here's something I find funny. The creator of the Atkins diet died clinically obese and had a history of heart disease. Now, I'm sure Atkins enthusiast will point out that Atkins didn't die of a heart attack. Man, if he did, that'd be hilarious. Of course, if that had been the case, one can surmise that his eating stuff like all meat, eggs, butters, and cheese all the time might've contributed to such a result. However, it seems like he died when he slipped on some ice and suffered a 'blunt impact injury to the head' to which he went into a coma for 9 days before finally dying.

People will say that Atkins was at a perfectly healthy weight when he was admitted into the hospital and that weight skyrocketed during the time he was in a coma. Therefore, it's right to dismiss the fact that he died obese.

Here's a question. If I was on the Atkins diet, does that mean my weight will skyrocket if I stop said diet? It seems like that's what happened to poor Dr. Atkins. Afterall, because Dr. Atkins was in a coma, he couldn't continue eating that 'low-carb' diet that he's so used to, right? Okay, so maybe most of the weight was from all the fluids injected into him while he was in a coma so I guess we should dismiss his obesity, right?

It was claimed that Atkins weighed around 185-190 lbs when he was admitted into the hospital after his fall. That's strange, he died at the weight of around 260 lbs. So, does that mean this guy gained around 70 lbs of liquid weight during the time of his 9-day coma? That's a fucking lot of weight to gain in such a short period of time! I've never heard of ANYONE ever gaining so much weight over such a short period of time....let alone someone who's considered as 'healthy' as Dr. Atkins.

This makes me wonder something. If you're a healthy person on the Atkins diet, how can you possibly blow up that much in weight? Can being in a coma really skyrocket your weight that greatly? How come I've never heard of this before? Why does it seem like Dr. Atkins is the only one to have suffered such a thing? I can understand gaining some weight when you're in a coma since you're not active so your body doesn't burn off any of the calories that's being taken in, but around 70 lbs?! That's a lot! Maybe someone can correct my sense of logic.

Some people like the Atkins diet because it's a good way to lose weight. Afterall, not everyone has the time to work out. That's usually the excuse they give, right? Hm, that sounds kinda bullshit too me. To me, it seems like acquiring a healthy body is low on their priority list that they don't wanna bother putting in the effort to get healthy.

I don't care about the Atkins diet. Does it work? I'm sure people would say yes. The thing about it that annoys me is that so many people seem to swear by it yet don't really understand everything about it. But whatever. I guess I'm old fashioned and prefer working out coupled with eating well. (ie: eating low fat)

Now, to all those people who wanna hate on me because it seems like I'm criticizing something I've never tried out before, let it be known that I HAVE tried it out. It's the engineer in me to think like that, to assess something and come to a conclusion. This rant happens to be my conclusion.

If you're wondering why I don't do the Atkins diet, I have a few reason explaining why I quit. First, I don't need to lose weight. Second, I prefer working out to stay fit. Third and foremost, I'm CHINESE!!!!!! That makes it's hard to cut carbs outta my diet. That's because, being CHINESE, I can't cut something out of my diet, something that has been ingrained into me since my early childhood....RICE!!!

That's my take on the Atkins diet.

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