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Are you a ticking time bomb? I was - high blood sugar, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, overweight, and a smoker. I hated the idea of having a heart attack, stroke, or diabetes (just for starters) but, do you know what I REALLY hated? I hated the idea of attending one more family gathering, office Christmas party, or high school class reunion and seeing those looks of disgust and disapproval for being so fat. You know what I'm talking about. I'd tried to lose weight dozens of times and I'll bet you have, too. The diet "experts" tell us to give up every scrap of food that tastes good and we enjoy and to be happy losing 1-2 pounds per week. Yeah...right. Double that to 4-5 pounds a week and I'll consider it. If I'm going to diet and feel deprived (and make no mistake about it, I DO feel deprived) the weight loss has to be fast enough to make someone sit up and say, "Hey, you've lost weight!" The Atkins Diet is the only one that worked for me. I lost 55 pounds in four months and, even better, I've kept it off over a year now.

The whole concept of The Atkins Diet is controlling the amount of carbohydrates we eat. Commonly known as a low carb or high protein diet, the Atkins plan works by eliminating the excess starch and sugar in our daily diet that our bodies can metabolize into stored fat that spare tire and double chin. Carbohydrates (starches and sugar) are a main component in foods like: bread, pasta, rice, cereal, dry beans, and of course, every delicious sweet thing made with sugar or honey (my personal favorites). But then, you probably knew that. Anyone with a weight problem knows that these foods tend to make us fat. And, that's why and we feel guilty every time we have that big spaghetti dinner with French bread and spumoni ice cream for dessert.

What I didn't know before reading and following the Atkins diet book, and what you may not know, was just how I was sabotaging all my efforts on previous diets through the hidden carbs in fruits and vegetables and dairy. Some diet du jour would tell me to eat whole grains, drink skim milk, and eat all the fruits and vegetables I could hold, and I would lose weight...guaranteed. Wrong! A breakfast of Raisin Bran with skim milk and Splenda, whole wheat toast, 6 oz. orange juice, and coffee with non-dairy creamer adds up to a walloping 75 grams of carbohydrates. According to Dr. Atkins' advice, that's just about the total recommended carb intake for the entire day (not 1 meal) for a reasonably active person

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