I agree with Isabelle 100%. I think far too much is made of the 10x guideline. For a lot of people it doesn't work. As Isabelle said, Dr. Atkins suggests 1800 calories, and I think the Dr. should know. If fact, he also states that if you stick to a 1,000 calorie diet while doing "Atkins" the weight will come off that much faster. He also states over and over that doing Atkins is not a licence to overeat. So don't be so hard on someone who is just stating the facts. There are others who don't agree with the 10X guideline.