[SupplySider]

Question for the Atkins fans: If you don't follow the diet generally, will you gain less weight from pigging out in one meal if you stick to cheese and proteins and avoid carbs?

[kevkrom]

Question for the Atkins fans: If you don't follow the diet generally, will you gain less weight from pigging out in one meal if you stick to cheese and proteins and avoid carbs?

I'm not 100% sure I understand the question, but it seems like the answer would be no. Low-carb doesn't work like a switch, you can't just selectively use it. It will take a couple of days (minimum) for your body to purge the sugars already in your bloodstream when you start up, so you really can't just do Atkins occasionally.

Until your body gets into that mode, loading up on protein and fat probably would do more harm than good. On the other hand, it would be a very rare person who wouldn't benefit just from looking at lower-carb (net carbs, that is) alternatives at any time. The average person in the US eats about 300 carb grams a day, but could probably stand to cut that by a half to two-thirds.