When I reach a low enough weight that i'll be happy with myself, i'll of course want to step myself off the diet and be able to eat 'normally' again. Now this does not mean eating whatever and whenever and packing the sweets and such. If when I get down to a weight i'm happy with, can I step off the diet and not gain weight? If I eat healthy, like a normal recommended amount of calories and carbs and fat grams a day, or less. I'd assume I wouldn't gain it back if I stepped off but ate healthy, with some snacking or some sweets here and there, such as maybe only holidays, but keeping the portions down to minimum. Does LC ruin my metabolism for life? I am worried about that. Although i'm only 16 years old, can Atkins affect my metabolism negatively and cause troubles later on? My metabolism has never seemed to be that 'rapid' as other teens... or maybe I just haven't considered maybe I was just eating too much food, and eating it at the wrong times where I wouldn't burn off the excess intake.

I'm on the diet for now, but just want to know what's what when I want to step off the diet.

Thanks!

Considering you're 16 years old, and as you say, your metabolism isn't as fast as a lot of others your age, Atkins is most likely the perfect type of way of eating for you. I have two teen-age daughters, both hypoglycemic. One has always been thinner, but lately she kept gaining weight. The younger has always been on the heavy side and was gaining weight, too. Of course, the older one has a more active metabolism than the younger one.

The reason I say this is a great way of eating is because it doesn't negatively affect metabolism. In fact, if anything, it helps to speed up otherwise sluggish metabolisms.

The goal with this way of life is to make it just that, a way of life. You take off the weight and during the process learn to eat healthily. This doesn't mean that you can't ever have something yummy again. If you haven't read "Atkins for Life" yet I highly recommend it. Once you read it, you will understand the path that is now before you.

Many, many people have followed Atkins long enough to lose weight, but haven't been committed with sticking with it. Once the weight is gone they revert back to their old eating habits, and the weight piles right back on. This doesn't only happen with Atkins, though--it happens with all diets. The thing about Atkins is, it is a very satisfying way of eating compared to low-fat, high-carb diets. The more carbs you eat, the hungrier you get, so you eat more carbs. With adequate fat and protein in our bodies (which low-fat high-carb shun) we don't tend to get hungry when we shouldn't, and so manage to avoid a lot of the pitfalls of other diets.

Hopefully that will help you. I don't know if I was clear enough--I'm kind of tired tonight and am having a hard time making my thoughts coherent.

I see you haven't read Dr Atkin's book - I suggest you do. Atkin's is not a diet, but a way of life. You gradually add carbs back into your life (good carbs) and generally learn to eat well, for life.

Atkin's doesn't end with Induction.

WTG Celestia.
AddicttoHM read the book. It is a way of life not a Diet.
eating LC will not ruin your metabolism. Do you exercise?
The reason people gain weight is because the eat too much and don't exercise enough. Any "diet" will work short term but
Atkins (LC) is a way of life. It is really easy to do if you have the right information.
BTW where did you hear that LC would ruin your metabolism?
Jag

You move from Induction to Ongoing Weight Loss (OWL), and then to Maintenance, adding back "healthy" carbs as you go along the journey.

You don't go back to eating whatever and whenever (junk foods, highly processed stuff, sugars), unless you wish to gain all the weight and associated health problems with it.

You don't stick with induction levels and restrictions the rest of your life - which means that you are going to be eating healthy, well balanced menus, full of the nutrition you will need to keep you healthy and at a moderate weight the rest of your life.

I was just curious after actually reading a thread on this forum about LC and metabolism, I never really got a clear answer though.

Why would you want to stop in your lifetime if you feel better? My son is also 16 and he decided it would be best for him to lose some weight too. He has been on it for 4 weeks and lost 20 so far, i'm so proud of him. I on the other hand have not lost that much yet . Just 18 but counting. I'm new here but have been reading for a while now. Thought a few times to respond but haven't done so til now. I garden so one of my favorite tomatoes are sweet100, hence my name Addict keep it up you"ll be happy you did in the long run.

If I had been eating this way when I was sixteen:

*I wouldn't have had any weight problems the last 28 years
*I wouldn't have had acne problems as a teenager
*I wouldn't have had self confidence problems over my weight
*I wouldn't have worried so much about diabetes in my family
*I wouldn't have been such a couch potato at times
*I wouldn't have screwed up job interviews because I didn't "look right" at various times
*I wouldn't have been so shy about dating
*I wouldn't have spent evenings with pizza and ice cream instead of being out having fun

I turned out okay. I'm happily married and have a good job and good friends. But there are better ways to build character than CREATING problems for yourself you have to solve.

If I could have avoided the hell of those teenage and young adult years...I would have.

5'7" and 130 lbs sounds great to me, you're lucky to already be at a healthy weight. You could probably just move right into maintenance now and not have to worry about ever gaining weight back if you kept this as your way of eating. Looks like you lost 15 lbs since april 9th, not a bad loss, so I'm not sure where you're getting the idea that you have a slow metabolism.
Sounds like you want to use atkins as a quick fix, then go on WW maintenance. It's never worked for anyone I know, but let us know your results. Good luck.