Atkins or Primal Blueprint?

DarkBlonde

I am sick and tired of trying out diets and not sticking to them. I was on ww for a few months and lost 10lbs but its just not for me. I'm sick of pointing everything and being told in class that exercise will not help you lose weight that its the food intake that makes the weight loss. Now I know that 80% of it is diet but exercise is also good for general health and surely if your moving more and using more calories than you take in the result will be a weight loss??

Anyway I gave up on the ww a few weeks ago and I would like to try a low carb diet. Whenever I try my own version of low carb it works wonders. And on the plus side I love eggs, tuna, meat etc.

I'm hoping someone can give me some information here on the primal blueprint diet. I am thinking of buying the book but I want to be sure first. Like what kind of results can I expect.

I already have the atkins book and cookbook but I never got around to starting it. I know all about the rules of atkins and I feel it may be a bit too strict for me but I am open to giving it a try.

I am female 5'6 and weigh 11 stone 2 lbs. My usual attitude to "dieting" is to put everything in to it for the first few weeks and have great results and then just sabotage my progress by eating the high carb foods I crave and also drinking wine which in turn also makes me make poor food choices and then Im back to square one ready to start all over again. I am looking for a lifestyle change something that will stop me craving bad food. I hope someone on here could point me in the right direction.

(Oh ya and I have a certain dress I would like to look great in in four months time but I don't want to be one of the many woman who shed a load of weight for a special occasion only to pile it all back on after the event.)

So please any advice I can get would be greatly appreciated.

Roger Marbles

DarkBlonde wrote: »

I'm hoping someone can give me some information here on the primal blueprint diet. I am thinking of buying the book but I want to be sure first. Like what kind of results can I expect.

His blog is here: www.marksdailyapple.com There should be links to his success stories on one of the tabs at the top of the blog page.

Rovi

I've 'done' both Atkins (years ago) and Primal (currently, and for the last 2 years or so), and I find the Primal to be much more rounded and sustainable in the real world.
It's more than simply a 'diet' though, there's a lot of lifestyle stuff involved too: proper sleep, adequate exercise, etc.
It even encouraged (forced!) me to do much of my own food shopping and cooking; at my age, THAT is very much a 'lifestyle' change!

At the risk of sounding like an evangelist, I heartily recommend it to all and sundry.
I've been known to buy the books (the Primal Blueprint AND the Primal cookbooks) and give them to friends who've shown a serious interest. :rolleyes:

Here's where I get my copies, best price I've found to date:
http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/Primal-Blueprint-Mark-Sisson/9780982207703

Darkginger

Can you explain what the Primal Blueprint entails? Just been to the website and was put off by the immediate 'buy this supplement' stuff on the front page, and (obviously optional) 30 day packages costing almost $200! I couldn't find info on what exactly one eats when doing this without signing up for the newsletter - can you summarize?

Although Atkins has similar 'buy it now' stuff on its front page, it also has links that explain exactly what to eat in each stage, without handing over any cash. I admit to extreme bias, since I've been successful losing weight and maintaining the loss using Atkins (maintained for 3 years until I got complacent and slipped off, back on track since March, loving it!).

Despite my bias, I'm always keen to read about other ways of eating that might be even better than Atkins, so I really would like to know what the Primal Blueprint is all about.

Transform

primal FTW by millllles

largerox

Have a read here
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/primal-blueprint-101/

BrendanCro

The advice I evcr read on here (or anywhere for that matter) was simply "eat food that are ingredients rather than food that have ingredients". Combining this principle with cutting out grains/breads worked wonders for me and I know I will never put back on the weight I lost. After cutting grains I find I'm not hungry all the time like I used to be.

Give it 3 weeks where all you eat only natural non-processed food focusing on meat, fish, veg, nuts, fruit, berries, eggs (i say only but this covers an awful lot of types of food!) and you will feel so much better you won't go back. If ye want to speed up weight loss reduce the levels of nuts and fruit to reduce calories.

This is what worked for me anyways so hope it helps. Best of luck.

DarkBlonde

Rovi wrote: »

I've 'done' both Atkins (years ago) and Primal (currently, and for the last 2 years or so), and I find the Primal to be much more rounded and sustainable in the real world.
It's more than simply a 'diet' though, there's a lot of lifestyle stuff involved too: proper sleep, adequate exercise, etc.
It even encouraged (forced!) me to do much of my own food shopping and cooking; at my age, THAT is very much a 'lifestyle' change!

At the risk of sounding like an evangelist, I heartily recommend it to all and sundry.
I've been known to buy the books (the Primal Blueprint AND the Primal cookbooks) and give them to friends who've shown a serious interest. :rolleyes:

Here's where I get my copies, best price I've found to date:
http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/Primal-Blueprint-Mark-Sisson/9780982207703

Thanks Rovi sounds like a great plan. You have just twisted my arm to order the book and I also ordered the cook book.

Thanks also to everyone else who replied. I am going to stick to the atkins induction until my primal blueprint book arrives. Started off the day with a 2 egg omelet with mushrooms cheese and peppers yum

Heres hoping I can make the changes possible to change my eating habits.

Red Cortina

I would have to say the Primal Blueprint.

Mark Sisson focuses on food quality too which I don't think Atkins covers.

metamorphosis

Primal blueprint again here

Amtmann

I've never tried Atkins, but there's a lot of online help with the Primal Blueprint, as well as daily updates from Mark Sisson. You can plug into a dynamic community if you wish.

Also, Mark recommends strawberries and cream for desert (if you must have desert). What could be better than guilt-free eating, loads of tasty meat, cheese and eggs, berries and fruit, butter if desired, and strawberries and cream?

Go Primal would be my advice.

Bottle_of_Smoke

does primal blueprint work out expensive?(the diet itself)

Also is it essential to get the book or are there online sources?

Transform

The best work out there is not in a book IMO and its all on blogs.

Mark Sissons (primal blueprint) blog is excellent and his book is only an extension of a massive site and really well run also.

No need to wait for any book just focus on better food quality, cut out the junk and cut wayyyy back on the unsafe carbs (the first two points need to be done before you address the carbs IMO).

Amtmann

Bottle_of_Smoke wrote: »

does primal blueprint work out expensive?(the diet itself)

Well, it's not the cheapest.

The meat, veg and eggs form the mainstay for me, and are all quite cheap (depending on the meat you buy of course).

In terms of fruit, berries are his top recommendation and these do not come cheap. Strawberries and blackberries are particularly expensive. Pears and apples are also recommended, and in fairness, these are cheap.

I get nuts and seeds from the whole food aisle at Tesco. Seeds are cheap, nuts not so much. I get flax from Tesco too, and this is expensive, no two ways about it.

I'm still wrapping my head around it when it comes to the college canteen I will admit.

Also is it essential to get the book or are there online sources?

Not essential, but recommended because it provides a holistic template for primal living. I was disappointed by the dearth of recipes and suggested meals, but you can access forums and blogposts galore about this, for free, on marksdailyapple.com

DarkBlonde

Is there an induction phase like with Atkins? Also I am confused about how many calories to consume. Should I eat the recommend amount or is there another rule.

Amtmann

DarkBlonde wrote: »

Is there an induction phase like with Atkins? Also I am confused about how many calories to consume. Should I eat the recommend amount or is there another rule.

No induction phase whatsoever. In general you don't count calories BUT if you do need to lose weight, then it's recommended that you eat at a 500 calorie deficit per day.

DarkBlonde

Thanks for that Tremelo I had originally planned to wait for the book to arrive before I started it but I think I will just continue from what I started today with the Atkins. At least I will be allowed have some fruit. I have a nice punnet of strawberries in the fridge I may have some after dinner

One more question for you. What do you use to track your food. I have both a fitday and myfittnesspall profile. Which would be better I wonder?

Amtmann

DarkBlonde wrote: »

Thanks for that Tremelo I had originally planned to wait for the book to arrive before I started it but I think I will just continue from what I started today with the Atkins. At least I will be allowed have some fruit. I have a nice punnet of strawberries in the fridge I may have some after dinner

One more question for you. What do you use to track your food. I have both a fitday and myfittnesspall profile. Which would be better I wonder?

Fitday is excellent. I used that, plus it's one of the tracking sites recommended by Sisson if you are trying to lose weight.

DarkBlonde

Tremelo wrote: »

Fitday is excellent. I used that, plus it's one of the tracking sites recommended by Sisson if you are trying to lose weight.

Thanks for that. I'm having terrible trouble with fitday for some reason. Its so slow to log in today and then it keeps freezing :mad: I do prefer it though. Hopefully it will sort itself out soon.

Teferi

I just ordered the Primal Blueprint there. After reading through this forum for a few days I'm going to give it a shot.

ali.c

I have been eating paleo (e.g. primal blueprint) since January but I didnt bother with a book. There are a few different books out there but most have the same idea no grains, legumes or dairy. Robb Wolfs website (robbwolf.com) has quick start guides for shopping and getting started. His recommendation is 30 days with full compliance and then you can add in the odd un paleo meal and see how you react to it. I would say I am about 90% compliant and fully gluten free. I found it hard to get started, as I really had to work at finding foods that I could eat.

I have lost about a stone and 2 jean sizes since January without counting calories, plus my health has improved dramatically

The weight loss levelled off for the first two months but I am back losing weight again. I have about 10 lbs or so to go before I am at the right weight for me.

El_Dangeroso

Primal blueprint all the way.

Atkins went way too far down the processed food route for my liking.

Primal blueprint is a little carbophobic, so I'd go with your own feeling on whether you want to base your diet on higher carbs or not. Some don't do well on high-fat and it's good to go with how you're feeling. Me, I cycle between low carb and low protein as my mood strikes me, fat stays constant at 40-50% of cals.

Here's a good graph explaining the differences:

DarkBlonde

Thanks for all the great information givien on this thread. I would just like to give an update.
I have been eating primal for one week now and I absolutely love it I never feel hungry and I'm substituting the carbs at dinner time with mashed cauliflower or turnip. The first few days were crap but now I am seeing the benefits. I have so much energy and my moods have been great for the past few days. I suffer with IBS symptoms and now my insides feel great. I can't believe that changing my eating habits could have such an amazing effect in just one week.
And on top of all these benefits I effortlessly managed to lose 4.5lb.
I'm so delighted with this new lifestyle that I have persuaded the other half to try it out for a week and see how he gets on.

Amtmann

Delighted for you! I persuaded my father to go primal too, and again, he effortlessly lost 1kg in the first week.

Rovi

DarkBlonde wrote: »

I have been eating primal for one week now and I absolutely love it

Excellent news, and welcome to the rest of your life

Gummy Panda

Darkblonde,

What's your daily food plan?

Also did you suffer headaches for the first few days?

DarkBlonde

Thanks lads. Iv spent the last 10 years always stressing about what I eat and for the past week it has been such a relief not to have that worry.

@gummy Panda I didn't get the headaches but my partner got headaches last night on day two for him so I suppose everybody is different.

My daily eating plan is something like this:

Breakfast - 2 or 3 eggs either scrambled, poached, fried or omelet,
mushrooms and tomato grilled or fried.

Lunch - Massive salad with either chicken/tuna maybe an egg thrown in
I dress this with evo and vinegar and cayenne pepper.
I made chicken soup during the week and had that with lunch

Dinner - Whatever meat is going plus side of veg e.g carrots and then
mashed cauliflower or turnip. I made a curry and had it with the
cauliflower as a rice substitute (was yum ) and last night I
made a spicy mince meat dish and had turnip it was really filling.

Snacks - Cheese, nuts, ham, boiled egg. 85% dark chocolate (few nibbles!)
Also one piece of fruit or berries but not every day as didn't need it.

Drinks - Plenty of water, sparkling water, green tea and occasional coffee
with a dollop of whipped cream.

Transform

El_Dangeroso wrote: »

Primal blueprint all the way.

Atkins went way too far down the processed food route for my liking.

Primal blueprint is a little carbophobic, so I'd go with your own feeling on whether you want to base your diet on higher carbs or not. Some don't do well on high-fat and it's good to go with how you're feeling. Me, I cycle between low carb and low protein as my mood strikes me, fat stays constant at 40-50% of cals.

Here's a good graph explaining the differences:

excllent graph and will be borrowing that for my site for sure!!

Gummy Panda

Sorry another question, what are fat/protein/carb ratios suppose to be like on primal?

Adelie

Gummy Panda wrote: »

Sorry another question, what are fat/protein/carb ratios suppose to be like on primal?

There isn't any ratio you should follow, the aim is all about eating natural nourishing foods. What exactly the foods are or their macronutrient ratio is up to you. Some people eat low carb (especially if they are trying to lose weight) and others eat quite a lot of carbs (e.g. from root vegetables).

Amtmann

Adelie wrote: »

There isn't any ratio you should follow, the aim is all about eating natural nourishing foods. What exactly the foods are or their macronutrient ratio is up to you. Some people eat low carb (especially if they are trying to lose weight) and others eat quite a lot of carbs (e.g. from root vegetables).

True - no fixed ratios. However, the primal blueprint effectively holds that you should get almost all carbs from fruits and vegetables, in which case carbs will definitely be at the bottom rung of the macronutrients consumed by many if not most primal blueprinters. Fats would always be the mainstay, followed by protein for many, or protein and carbs in roughly equal amounts.