Ketogenic Diet vs Atkins Diet Which is Better?

If you compare the popularity of keto and the Atkins diet, a keto diet is way more popular and steadily rising.

An Atkins diet plan was super popular in the 1990s and early 2000s, but people are slowly starting to lose interest in its appeal.

People tended to eat anything high in protein, disregarding the long-term harmful effects of eating processed foods.

Also, those who lost weight gained the weight back over the years.

However, many people still look for info on the Atkins and LCHF diets.

Sometimes even thinking they are the same thing or a similar method of eating. Of course, they are not!

Here we will discuss the differences between Atkins vs. Keto.

Lunch In Five Meal Plans
Lunch In Five 30 Low Carb Lunches

The Atkins Diet

The Atkins Diet is often known as a high protein high-fat diet.

You basically eat as much protein, fat, and vegetables as you want while avoiding high-carb foods.

It works for many people for the main reason of keeping people full for longer. The Atkins diet consists of 4 different phases including:

An Induction Phase
Induction proceeds for 2 weeks. Its beginning period is where rapid weight loss happens and is mostly water weight.

You drastically limit carbs to help get you into ketosis as quick as possible.

Balancing Your Diet
The second phase is the balancing phase, and it’s all about finding the correct amount of carbs to eat while still losing weight.

There are plenty of options when reintroducing carbs with snack bars and meal replacement drinks.

Eating More Carbs
The third phase is gradually increasing net carbs and fine-tuning your diet while maintaining weight loss.

It allows you to reintroduce your favorite high carb fruits, veggies, whole grains, etc.

Staying the Same Weight
The final phase is maintenance, where complex carbs and high-carb foods are allowed providing weight does not increase.

Breakfast In Five Meal Plans
Breakfast In Five 30 Low Carb Breakfasts

Pros and Cons of an Atkins Diet

The mainly positive of an Atkins Diet is the ability to lose weight quickly.

Sometimes you just need to lose a few pounds in the short-term for a special occasion or making weight for a competition.

The foods you can eat on a low carb diet are plentiful, and the options can sometimes overwhelm people.

You can enjoy the foods you love the most and burn fat at the same time. It’s a pretty good deal.

It can help reduce bad cholesterol, blood pressure, and other symptoms provided the foods you eat come from healthy natural sources.

Some cons following this diet is it can certainly cause constipation.

By eating so much protein, meat, poultry, and not enough veggies, the body cannot flush the food out.

To reduce the risk of constipation, make sure water intake is sky-high. Eat as many fibrous vegetables as you can eat along with the main meals.

Studies also show a high protein diet produces the risk of developing kidney stones.

It also reduces the body’s capacity to absorb calcium after only six weeks.(1)

Additionally, an Atkins nutrition plan restricts healthy fruits and vegetables denying dieters of required fiber for digestion. Not consuming sufficient fiber may lead to colon cancer.(2)

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What to eat on a low carb carnivore diet
What to eat on a low carb carnivore diet

The Ketogenic Diet

Keto dieting is different from other types of low carb diets for several reasons.

The primary goal is to get your body into ketosis and burn switch fuel sources to ketones. The ketones are stored triglyceride and broken down into fatty acids used for energy.

Shifting into ketosis helps mental clarity, keep you satiated, lose weight, clear up brain fog and have prolonged energy.

The ketogenic diet allows you to eat a specific portion of macronutrients as follows.

Healthy fats consisting of 75% of daily calories, moderate protein 20%, and low carbs 5%.

Eating high-fat foods forces the body to burn ketone bodies for energy.

Your body, all its organs, and cells can handle ketones for energy.

When short on glucose, your body has no problem switching to ketones for required fuel to save muscle wasting.

A Ketogenic Diet has been proven in studies to help treat Alzheimer’s Disease, epilepsy in young children, neurological disorders and more.(3)(4)

Keto in Five Weekly Meal Plans
Keto in Five 120 Low Carb Recipes

Pros and Cons of a Ketogenic Diet

There are numerous ways a ketogenic diet can support health, nutrition, and the lifestyle of anyone following it.

Here are some of the significant benefits.

Following a high-fat nutrition plan can help you decrease insulin resistance and insulin levels which is essential for successful long-term weight loss.

Increase satiety due to healthy fats and proteins taking longer to digest than carbohydrates.(5)

Improve mental clarity and brain function through the cleaner fuel sources of ketones.

A very low-carb ketogenic diet increases fat burning potential compared to a very low-fat diet.(6)

Some cons of a ketogenic diet are as follows:

To become keto-adapted, it requires an adaptation period lasting up to a few weeks.

Depending on the nutrition plan you have followed, going full keto may be challenging and ultimately fail.

It may take some getting used to by slowly cutting carbs over a period while increasing healthy fats.

It is a limited way of eating, and despite its health and weight loss benefits, some people may not enjoy the idea of living on fats.

Therefore, building up fat intake allows the body to get accustomed to a new fuel source and way of eating.

Dining in restaurants or social get-togethers requires control and discipline.

It’s best to have a meal plan in place and build knowledge of acceptable foods to eat on keto.

Compared to glucose, ketones are an excellent and cleaner source of energy.

However, ketones become harmful when too many are produced by people who have type 1 diabetes.

It’s known as diabetic ketoacidosis and is a potentially life-threatening condition if you have insulin-dependent diabetes.

low carb weekly meal plans
Low Carb Weekly Meal Plans, Shopping Lists, and Macros Included.

Which is Better – Keto or Atkins?

I followed an Atkins Diet many years ago and had considerable short-term success eating high protein meals such as chicken breast, broccoli, and protein shakes daily.

I currently follow a keto diet, and although I’m not looking to lose weight, being in ketosis benefits my health in more ways than one.

Both Atkins and keto diet use the same metabolic pathways, so following Atkins undoubtedly a steers you on the ketosis route.

Due to the diuretic effect of restricting carbs, both diet plans will kickstart your fat loss goals.

With the attention purely on protein and fats, satiety shouldn’t be any problem considering carbs digest faster.

The Atkins diet, however, carries some possible setback with all the different phases getting in the way of each other.

Dieting is hard enough without thinking about what you can eat, is it too many carbs or what phase am I in.

Dessert In Five Meal Plans
Dessert In Five 30 Low Carb Desserts

It is, of course, easy to grasp for the experienced dieter, but those new to a low carb lifestyle may find it daunting.

A keto diet requires you to make notable nutritional changes and combine those changes into your lifestyle permanently.

The other would be a less strict approach such as a targeted ketogenic diet.

You would consume high-carb foods or drink prior to exercise.

It works well if you struggle to workout at a high intensity such as running or weightlifting.

As far as which is the better diet, Atkins or Keto, everyone has there preferred choice.

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Intro to a Ketogenic Diet, What can I eat on Keto
What can I eat on a Ketogenic Diet? Intro to Keto Dieting

Conclusion

A high-fat keto diet appears to be a preferred way of eating a low carb diet.

Losing weight by being in ketosis is more comfortable to manage once you get over the hurdle of massive amounts of fats.

With its many other noted health benefits, it is my opinion keto is the better and preferred lifestyle to follow.

Whichever nutrition plan you choose, be sure to eat the healthiest and most natural food you can.

Limit processed junk foods, eat smart, and you will be on the journey to the best version of yourself.

We would love to hear your thoughts on a ketogenic diet vs. Atkins nutrition plan for health and weight loss.

What is your preferred type of diet plan, and what works best for your lifestyle?

What foods to eat on a low carb carnivore lifestyle
What foods to eat on a low carb carnivore lifestyle
 
What Can I Eat On A Low Carb Diet?
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8 thoughts on “Ketogenic Diet vs Atkins Diet Which is Better?”

  1. I did Atkins way back and successfully lost 40 lbs and also my gallbladder. Today, I love being in ketosis. (Down 35 lbs so far). There is a learning curve, for sure, and yes, I “fell off the wagon” for a time (long enough to gain a couple pounds back and feel hungry all the time and lethargic) but I am now back in ketosis & love the mental clarity, the energy, weightloss & best of all, not being hungry all the time!

    In a nutshell, I eat eat way more vegetables on keto than I ever did on Atkins. #ketoftw

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  2. Keto diet saved me mentally, I thought I’d never get out of depression. Keto also saved me physically as well. I don’t have the extreme soreness or laziness. I would not go out for weeks, now I am out everyday. I was sick al the time but now I don’t feel like I am dying. I have so much HOPE now and look forward to everyday. It has affected me in a very positive way. Not to mention increasing my confidence. I am never hungry all the time. I love my way of eating and not having all the sugar and carbs in my body.

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  3. I’ve used the Atkins diet for almost 3 months now. Averaging 3/4 pounds a week loss. Never hungry and sometimes replace a meal with an Atkins shake (I make my own: One shake over ice, add 1/4 cup of heavy cream, one Splenda pack, stir and enjoy. Tastes like a milkshake! Carbs, 1 or 2. SECRET TO THE ATKINs DIET- YOU MUST drink your water! I also trim most of the fat off my meat and seldom eat bacon. Dairy – low/0 carb cheeses, mayo, some sour cream. I make wonderful veggie quiche (no crust) and a bread pudding quiche that everyone steals! Salad dressing is a breeze with mayo, mustard and Splenda. Zero carb (maybe 1/2 gram) & tastes like honey mustard. And, boy, if you could have one of my egg-batter, ham & cheese sandwiches. . .it’s to die for! I keep a bowl of steamed veggies in the fridge. Dipping in dressing makes a great snack. Atkin’s bars are a delicious way to get your sweets.I cut them up and nibble during the day. They also sell low carb breads now, very expensive, but the cost makes up for what I’m NOT buying to eat. Weight keeps dropping off, I feel great AND, every time I think of having a bowl of ice cream, I run to the closet and look at all the pretty clothes that soon I can wear again. Then I ‘strip’ and look in the mirror! Yikes! YOU TELL ME WHAT’S BETTER: being ‘fat’ or looking great? I was a model before gaining weight (due mostly to illness) and every pound I lose is totally worth it. I DON’T CARE WHAT ‘THEY’ SAY . . . ‘fat’ isn’t pretty, or acceptable. It’s your road to an early death and every organ in your body is suffering and struggling everyday. Lastly –
    the best thing about Atkin’s, you can actually eat all day long (if you must) and still lose weight. Unlike most ‘other’ diets, even NutriSystem, They don’t teach you how to eat right (brownies, burgers, etc.). And eating ‘right’ is the key to staying slim for ever!

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  4. Our highly processed and high fat with high carbs diets and sedentary ways are going to kill off many of our kids. A study just done says this generation will probably be less healthy and die earlier than their parents. I did Atkins years ago and did splendidly. I went back to my foolish habits and suffered. I’m on a ketogenic diet which has already reaped many benefits in this 65 year old body. Better mood, less joint pain, less fatigue, and more energy. Loving it.

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  5. I did the Atkins diet almost 20 years ago and lost weight like I had a disease! Since then I’ve put on all that was lost plus more. I’m suffering with high blood pressure (medicated control) and am at risk for diabetes. Being a truck driver lends itself to an unhealthy eating routine. I started the Keto diet a few weeks ago. Preparing my meals and reheating them in my truck. Losing weight slowly and bp is coming down nicely. I’ve noticed that these two diets look very familiar and is, to me, difficult to tell apart. Either work for weightloss and clear head. I’ve incorporated chia seeds into my routine and they help curb hunger through long boring miles. WATER WATER WATER Any high protein diet requires you to hypersaturate your system to aid your bodies flush of extra proteins.

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  6. I’ve been on WFPB diet for 8 months because of high chloresterol and it didn’t drop any, but my husband did the diet with me and his went way down. I have decided to try low carb diet for the next 3 months and do labs to see if it helps. Then I might try keto after that, but between doing WFPB and low carb, I like WFPB best! My doctor said my chloresterol might be “genes”! Loved reading about different diets! I may just need pills or have high chloresterol! Nancy

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