Amy Dungan Reviews the New Atkins For A New You Book

The Atkins Diet is probably the most well known low-carb plan in existence. Dr. Robert Atkins devoted his life to teaching people about healthy living and weight loss. Despite his success with a myriad of patients, his efforts were scoffed at and deemed dangerous by so-called experts in the health field. Thankfully the medical community is starting to realize the benefits of low-carb living and are finally showing Dr. Atkins the respect he deserved while he was still alive.

Despite the astounding amount of research backing carb restricted lifestyles, people still have fat phobias that will take a good bit of time to overcome. Hopefully the latest books on the subject, such as The New Atkins for a New You, will help quell those fears by providing the latest studies and explaining the solid science behind it all.

You may be wondering why you would want a copy of the latest Atkins book. Maybe you already have the older editions, as I do, and wonder what could be so different about this latest version. A collaboration written by Dr. Eric Westman, Dr. Stephen D. Phinney and Dr. Jeff S. Volek, this latest rendition of the Atkins plan may surprise you. So who are these doctors writing about the Atkins plan anyway? Dr. Westman is an associate professor of medicine at the Duke University Health System, and director of the Duke Lifestyle Medicine Clinic. Dr. Phinney is professor of medicine emeritus at the University of California Davis School of Medicine. Dr. Volek is an associate professor and exercise and nutrition researcher in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of Connecticut. I believe it’s safe to say these three gentleman know a thing or two about healthy living.

So again you wonder what makes this version different. I’m pleased to say there certainly are some positive changes in this latest revision. Inside you’ll find the most up-to-date research backing the low-carb approach to controlling weight and regaining health. You’ll also find easy to understand explanations of how carbohydrate restriction increases fat loss and enhances your health. They’ve done a good job of keeping it on the lay-persons level – so you won’t have to haul out the medical dictionary to understand what they are saying. I believe the biggest draw with this book though are the explanations of how to personalize the plan to fit your lifestyle and preferences. So many times people believe they can’t try a low-carb diet because they are vegetarians, vegans or because they don’t like a certain food. The New Atkins for a New You includes suggestions for tweaking Atkins to fit your way of life.

As always, you’ll find food lists for each phase of the plan and recommended ways to enhance your Atkins experience. They include several suggestions for when you are eating outside the home, including which menu choices to consider or avoid when eating at places like Arbys, Chick-Fil-A, KFC, etc. In the back of the book you find several delicious looking recipes, as well as full menu plans for each phase and variation of the diet you are using. We can’t neglect to mention all those inspirational success stories they include that keeps us encouraged and excited about low-carb living as well.

The thing that impressed me the most about this version of the Atkins plan is the way the good doctors try to make it simple and adaptable so you can easily make this a permanent lifestyle change, instead of just a quick weight loss plan. Because when it comes down to it, the hard part isn’t so much the weight loss as it is the maintenance after the “new-size high” has worn off. In this fast-paced life we all live, we don’t have time for complicated calculations just so we can have lunch. The harder a diet plan is to implement, the less likely people are to stick with it for the long haul. Especially once you’ve reached your goal and are no longer seeing the physical changes that keep you inspired and excited about your choices. And while low-carb living isn’t all about weight loss, we have to be honest and say that despite the health benefits, weight loss is generally the main reason people give it a try.

I’m relieved to say my initial fears about this book being a politically correct version of Dr. Atkins work were unfounded. There was no shying away from fats, which is honestly what I was afraid I’d find. Instead they’ve embraced Dr. Atkins findings and taken them to an updated level. I think Dr. Atkins would be pleased – and so will the scores of people out there who will embrace this way of living, thus changing their lives forever.

Disclosure: I bought this item myself and my opinions were in no way influenced by outside sources.

© 2010 by Amy Dungan. Article and photograph used by kind permission of the author. Send Amy your comments to Amy Dungan.