Do I HAVE to Start With Atkins Induction?

Atkins Induction has you start out at 20 net carbs,
but how many carbs can you eat and still go into ketosis?

Since January is the time of year that many people begin, or return to, a ketogenic diet, I thought I’d tackle a question that comes up quite frequently in low-carb forums:

“Do I HAVE to start with Atkins Induction, or can I eat 25 to 35 grams of carbohydrates per day and still get into ketosis -- eventually?”

The answer to that question seems to depend on who you ask. Those who are hard-core Atkins devotees always say:

"Yes, you HAVE to start with Atkins Induction.”

But they miss the most important element of the question:

“Can I eat more than 20-net carbs per day and still get into ketosis?”

That is what newbies and those coming back to the Atkins Diet really want to know.

Most Atkins dieters can quote the benefits for drastically lowering carbs to 20 during the first two to four weeks of Induction. They also understand the general concept of individual carbohydrate sensitivity, but they seem to have difficulty transferring that understanding to Atkins Induction.

For some reason, most low-carb dieters insist that 20-net carbs and a high-fat intake is the ONLY way to do Atkins. In fact, their stance is so solid, that many will tell you that if you don’t do it that way, you are not doing Atkins.

However, that is not true.

So here's what is:

Is 20-Net Carbs Mandatory?

There isn’t anything magical about 20-net carbs.

There isn't even anything magical about getting into ketosis.

If there were, then the Protein Power Life Plan created by Dr. Eades, which allows you to eat up to 30-net carbs from the very first day, wouldn’t work.

The Protein Power Life Plan differs from Atkins Induction quite substantially, but both keto programs put you into the state of ketosis, and both programs work equally well.

Neither ketogenic program is better than the other.

[NOTE: When I first wrote this post in 2012, Atkins 40 -- which starts you off with 40-net carbs -- and Atkins 100 did not exist.]

The idea of using ketosis to benefit weight loss isn’t to strap yourself into one particular ketogenic diet program.

It is always a good idea to pick a plan you can easily live with and use that program as the foundation for your new keto lifestyle, but keep in mind that many people have the potential to go into ketosis at much higher levels than 20-net carbs.

I can easily get into ketosis eating 60.

Modern-day Atkins Induction plans begin at 20-net carbs because only the most severe insulin-resistant individual cannot go into ketosis at that extreme level of carbohydrate restriction.

And yes, 20-net carbs per day is considered to be quite extreme. 

It falls within the definition of a very low-carb diet (less than 50 grams a day), rather than a standard low-carb diet (50 to 150 grams a day).

This 20-carb level should only be used on a short-term basis. Long-term is only appropriate if your insulin resistance is quite severe.

Staying at 20-net carbs should never be used for faster weight loss. In fact, Atkins Nutritionals has a set of qualifications to stay on Induction more than a month.

Your body will adapt to whatever level of carbohydrate you eat long term. The practice of eating at extreme levels of restriction can potentially make it impossible to add additional carbohydrates back into your diet later on, without regaining.

I’ve seen this problem in quite a few dieters over the years.

In my experience, those who eat between 35 and 45-net carbs during the Ongoing Weight Loss Phase, now called Phase 2, were able to go up to around 60 to 100-net carbs per day, or even more at maintenance.

Those who chose to stay at 20-net carbs for the entire weight-loss phase, or less, because they wanted to get the weight off faster or because it was easier, couldn’t add back even 5 additional carbs once they hit goal.

Part of the problem was simply a fear of replacing glycogen and water, which happens when you first up your carbohydrate intake. The extra carbs will be converted into glycogen and used to replace the glycogen you lost during your very first week.

In addition, the body will store the water it needs to process that glycogen, so this is also going to replace the weight you originally lost the very first week.

In my experience, there is a direct relationship between the amount of carbohydrates you eat on a daily basis during the weight-loss phase and the amount of fat you can eat.

Many people, once they reach maintenance, want to hang onto their high fat intake. Eating very low-carb for the rest of your life is the cost for eating those extra fat calories. It's a choice, and the choice needs to be a conscious one.

How Many Carbs Can I Eat and Still Go Into Ketosis?

This is one of those tricky questions because many low-carb dieters also tend to believe that there is something magical about the state of ketosis.

Biologically, anything less than 100 grams of carbohydrates per day will put you into some degree of ketosis because when you eat less than the amount of glucose your brain needs to function daily, your liver has to use its carbohydrate stores (the glycogen stored in the liver) to keep your blood glucose level steady.

The brain requires a minimum of 120 grams of carbohydrates per day. Sometimes, more.

Using your glycogen stores and forcing the body to use body fat to make ketone bodies for the brain is the real definition of the state of ketosis.

The state of ketosis is not defined by the amount of ketones you have backed up in your bloodstream that the body hasn’t used yet. It also isn't defined by the amount of dietary fat you eat because ketosis is driven by carbohydrate restriction.

Ketosis has to do with supplying your brain with fuel.

Atkins 2002 raised the vegetable content of Induction
to 1 cup of cooked vegetables along with your 2-cup salad.

In Dr. Atkins personal experience, 60 grams of total carbohydrates per day (not net) was too high for most of his patients to get into the state of ketosis.

He also judged their depth of ketosis by the amount of ketones they were throwing off into their urine.

In the ‘90s, health insurance still didn’t pay for medical treatment associated with overweight or obesity. And according to low-carb forum members who were in direct contact with Dr. Atkins back then, many of his patients had gastrointestinal issues, such as irritable bowel or inflammatory bowel disease.

This is one of the reasons why the diet was originally designed to be so low in vegetables. Vegetables can be difficult to digest if you have intestinal issues, due to their high fiber content.

However, many of Dr. Atkins patients eventually disclosed that they had cheated on Atkins Induction and were actually eating 1/2 cup of steamed vegetables along with their 2 cups of salad.

Taking his patients' experience into consideration, Dr. Atkins changed his diet from 2 cups of loosely packed salad per day to 2 cups of salad plus 2/3 cup of cooked vegetables.

In 2002, he upped that amount again to 1 cup of cooked vegetables along with the 2-cup salad. This took Induction from less than 10 grams of total carbs per day, to less than 20.

The Atkins books are designed to help as many dieters as possible enter into the state of ketosis.

However, many people, including myself, can eat far more than 20-net carbs. 

You Don't Have to Start with Atkins Induction 

Fat loss is always about energy output being higher than energy input, so if you're willing to delay getting into ketosis by a few more days, you don't want to start with Atkins Induction if you don't have to. 

The KEY to fat loss on any low-carb diet is the amount of food you eat and the amount of energy you use.

So what most dieters really want to know is:

“How many carbs per day can I eat and still lose body fat?”

It is your:

• degree of insulin resistance
• hormonal imbalances
• basic cortisol level
• cravings for carbohydrates
• overall level of hunger
• medications

that set the amount of carbohydrates you can eat per day and still lose body fat comfortably. Carb restriction is designed to balance your hormonal state, making it easier for your body to access its fat stores.

I can get into ketosis on 60 grams of carbohydrates per day, but my protein intake must be adequate and my fat and calorie intake must be very low, or I will not lose body fat.

In fact, I will GAIN weight if I eat too much fat (too many calories), even if I'm solidly in the state of ketosis. I learned this lesson when I tried to do Jimmy Moore's version of Nutritional Ketosis in 2012.

Atkins Induction is a Great Plan 

Atkins Induction is set up to help you find your particular carbohydrate tolerance. It does that by pairing your carbohydrate intake down to ground zero, then has you slowly return carbs to your diet, so you can easily discover how many carbs are best for you.

Finding your personal level of carbohydrates isn’t the only factor involved in losing body fat.

The amount of:

• protein
• dietary fat
• and calories

you eat all play a significant role in the outcome, and those amounts won’t be the same for every one.

This is why weight management can be such a juggling act. It's a hit-and-miss adventure that requires you to find your own sweet spot for low-carb living.