It took me about four and a half months to lose the 25 pounds to reach my goal. I did not follow the Atkins recommended stages, however-- I stayed rather strict the whole time. Once I discovered for myself that I could actually control my weight, I was pretty relentless until it was gone. I think a lot depends on how much you want it -- do you want it enough to do whatever is necessary to get it, including making fundamental changes in the way you eat and passing up immediate satisfactions for long term rewards. And yes, I did exercise -- jogging and some weights.