Replies

I agree. My dh and I tried Atkins and we felt terrible. There was little to no energy to exercise on this diet. We found we needed a certain amount of carbs to make exercise a reality(for energy). Worked out great for us. Together we lost about 90lbs on a reasonable diet including carbs. I have never tried it, but Weight Watchers imo seems like a reasonable diet that can be carried on for a lifetime. My best friend did this one and lost 75lbs and she's kept it off for nearly 10 years using the maintanence program now which is second nature at this point and includes a regular healthy variety of ALL foods!
I'm not saying that the diet doesn't work for some. I've seen successes on it as well, but my guess it really depends what is "making" you overweight. If it's a true insulin resistance than that diet is probably for you. If it's because you overeat and don't exercise, than a weight watchers diet and exercise will probably be just fine.

glory,

Loss of energy is pretty common in the initial phases of Atkins because A) the body is adjusting to the elimination of junk food and caffeine that has caused blood sugar spikes, and B) the body is switching its fuel source from glucose to stored body fat. Its like an alcoholic going through withdrawals.

What happens after this transition is an enormous surge of energy because the body heals after years of abuse of the blood sugar and pancreas. The brain actually operates much more efficiently on ketones than glucose. I am 45 and have more energy than I did when I was in my early 20's and ran a mile every day. I work out 4-5X a week now and have plenty of energy.

The thing that really bothers me about weight watchers is that they allow junk food and have a very low success rate [Prevention Magazine]. I'm sorry, but a diet that can include pizza, cake, junk carbs like rice and potatoes and beer is not very healthy.