I have been on a fitness kick for the last 6 months after I got sick of comparing myself to my always ripped lifeguard brother. (Now down 40lbs—beer gut to six pack!) I’m sort of in health nazi mode right now and I love to talk about this stuff so forgive me if I keep posting on these diet threads. I eat a very simple whole-food oriented high protein, relatively low carb diet and never felt or looked better. It’s definitely the way to go.
Certainly agreed. People who can’t get a handle on their weight usually have a psychological addiction to carbs/junk and a deluded concept of how many calories they really eat/burn.
When I was in the Air Force, I gained a little weight. They put me on the fat-boy program which was a low-fat, carb rich diet. I didn't lose more than a pound or two. I was doing mandatory aerobics thrice-weekly and playing full-court basketball with a lot of my buddies almost daily. That lack of weight loss with all the exercise I was doing really made me think about what was going on.
Now, I'm way too fat (nobody's fault but mine), and I'm looking to Atkins as a solution. It's amazing how much crap is in packaged food these days.
After I lose the weight, I'll be likely going on a whole/real food for life plan. Basically, it's "eat food, not too much, mostly plants."