Read This Before Going On The Atkins Diet

As the world adapts to more health-conscious lifestyles, many alternative diet options have cropped up, such as the Atkins diet and the ketogenic diet. You can also choose to keep track of your macronutrients and calories through fitness-focused apps. To that end, it's understandable that with so many options out there, it's natural to feel slightly overwhelmed while figuring out what diet works best for your needs. 

One of the diets that's been popular for years is the Atkins diet, which basically focuses on low-carb eating and has been vouched for celebrities such as Kim Kardashian (via Delish). The diet was originally started in 1972 by a physician named Dr. Robert Atkins. The premise is very simple: avoid carbs in your diet so that your body can focus on burning fat instead of turning to carbs for fuel. This, in turn, can contribute to weight loss. Of course, like any other diet, the Atkins diet comes with its fair share of pros and cons.

As illustrated by Delish, it's crucial to educate yourself about the Atkins diet before you decide to dive in. For instance, while the diet is focused on controlling your carb intake, it doesn't tell you to restrict calories. Additionally, you can choose to try the Atkins 20 or Atkins 40; they're exactly what they sound like. While the former lets you eat 20 grams of carbs daily, the latter requires you to stick to 40 grams of carbs or less every day. On the bright side, the diet is inclusive and makes room for meat eaters, vegetarians, and even vegans.

Unfortunately, the Atkins diet can be super expensive. It's estimated that it can cost as much $100 every week, which is 84.6 percent higher than what most Americans are spending on their pantry per week. Whew. Also, while the Atkins diet can certainly help you get leaner, it's unclear whether this food plan has any other health perks.

A Redditor shared their thoughts on the Atkins diet, explaining that it helped them become more self-aware. "I feel it made me learn how my body works with carbs," they wrote. "I used to be high carb then low carb. Now, I appreciate carbs but try to stay around medium carbs. That's what makes me feel the best." Another Reddit user pointed out that they found the diet to be too unsustainable to follow for a prolonged period.