Does this sound like you? You’ve tried counting points, juicing, fasting, cabbage soup… everything! But, despite all your best efforts, those extra pounds refuse to budge. Meanwhile, everyone around you—maybe even your doctor—says the reason you’re overweight is because you eat too much. If only it were that simple!
What you may not know is that people who are significantly overweight may also have
metabolic disorders, which not only cause weight gain, but also make it very difficult to lose the weight. Many people may even have a metabolic resistance to weight loss. This means they may be eating healthy and/or dieting but not losing weight. Other lifestyle factors and common side effects of obesity (such as: the use of prescription drugs or hormones that inhibit weight loss; excessive insulin and insulin resistance; and/or high triglycerides) can factor in and—regardless of your new lifestyle—have you wondering, “Why am I not losing weight?”
Fortunately, numerous studies show that a low-carb diet can help overweight people with certain metabolic disorders (like hyperinsulinism or insulin resistance) lose weight, and decrease or even eliminate metabolic resistance to weight loss. Even if you’ve never lost weight on a 1,000-calorie-a-day low-fat diet, it’s quite possible you can lose weight with a 1,800- to 2,000-calorie-a-day plan—if you cut your carbs to 20 to 40 grams of net carbs a day.
Now, not everyone will lose weight this way, but there are still more options to figure out why your weight loss has stalled and how to fix it. Dr. Atkins and his practitioners discovered that certain vitanutrients could help break past the remaining barriers to weight loss. The leading nutrient in the final weight loss battle is L-carnitine, which is an amino acid that plays a role in fat metabolism—it helps convert fat to fuel. Another vital nutrient necessary for fat to convert to fuel
is co-enzyme Q10 (CoQ10). Both CoQ10 and carnitine are extremely valuable for other
reasons, such as preserving heart health. There are many other nutrients that might jumpstart slow weight loss, as well. To learn more, find a doctor who has experience with these vitanutrients, and can advise you on how to supplement with them while following Atkins20® or Atkins40®.
If you’ve been asking yourself “Why aren’t I losing weight?”, this might all sound familiar. If that’s the case, you may have a metabolic resistance to weight loss. It will take patience and time, but with Atkins’ low-carb diet plans—and possibly supplementing with vitanutrients that help convert fat to fuel—you may start to see positive results.
