The Atkins diet is fairly simple to understand and reasonably easy to follow. Almost every diet that you go on is going to be restrictive in some way or another. The Atkins diet is restrictive because it limits the amount of carbohydrates that you eat. As an example, you are only allowed to eat about 20 g of carbohydrates per day. This is an extremely low amount and will not give your body the amount of sugar that it needs in order to keep it going regularly. This forces the body into a state that is known as ketosis in which you will begin to burn fat for fuel because of the lack of carbohydrates. It is a very efficient way to lose weight quickly, something that many people would really like to have happen.

Of course, there are a few downfalls to the Atkins diet. Typically, you end up having a headache during the first day or two of the diet because of withdrawal from carbohydrates. You may also have a difficult time acclimating back into eating carbohydrates whenever you have reached your weight loss goal. Other than that, the diet is not restrictive of anything as long as you do not eat too many carbohydrates. It’s relatively easy to go out and eat while you are on this plan. So, if you need to lose some weight in a hurry, the Atkins diet can certainly help you to reach this goal.

Before that question is answered it’s important to understand a little bit more about the Atkins diet.  The Atkins diet is probably one of the most controversial diets.  This diet was developed by a man named Dr. Robert Atkins.

He believed that the reason for major obesity in Western cultures was because we ate too many carbs and refined sugars.  The way our bodies work was working against us for our modern lifestyles.  We have to force our body to instead of store fat for future use, to use it now for fuel.

Many people believe that someone on the Atkins eats all the greasy, fried, meat they want and brick after brick of cheese to lose weight.  There is only a small grain of truth to this.  Dr.  Atkins himself numerous times has explained that his diet doesn’t give you permission to gorge yourself.  You are limited to how much cheese per day you eat as well.  The only true part about it is that in the first phase your diet consists mainly of protein.

The initial part of the Atkins diet, referred to as the induction phase, is when the dieter eats nothing but protein.  In fact, while on the induction phase of the Atkins diet you are only limited to 20 grams of carbs per day.  It is suggested that you only stay on this part of the diet for two weeks.  You may think that answers the question to “how long should you stay on the Atkins diet?” but it does not.

After the induction phase, healthy carbs are slowly added back into the diet.  This part of the Atkins diet is called OWL, or Ongoing Weight Loss.  This phase of the diet lasts until you are within 10 pounds of your goal weight.

The next phase of the Atkins diet is the Pre-maintenance phase.  In this phase of the diet carbs are again slowly increased.  This part of the diet is designed for you to find out what your maximum daily carb intake can be without gaining any weight.  You increase carbs while hoping to still lose those last 10 pounds.  If you start gaining, then you have to cut back on the carbs a little bit.

The last phase of the diet is referred to as lifetime maintenance.  This is achieved when you reach your ideal weight and you know what your maximum carb intake can be without gaining weight.  You are supposed to maintain this phase for the rest of your life, so that you don’t gain any weight.  If you happen to slip and gain weight, then it is suggested that you move back to a previous phase to lose it.

The answer to “How long should you stay on the Atkins diet” has two parts.  First of all, you can stay on the Atkins diet as long as your doctor tells you can be on it.  It is highly suggested that you be regularly monitored while on the Atkins diet.  So long as you’re okay medically to be on the Atkins diet, you should stay on it for as long as you want to maintain the weight you achieved while being on the diet.