After spending the four weeks in the Induction Phase of the Atkins diet, I decided it was time to move on. Phase Two is called OWL, which stands for “Ongoing Weight Loss”. I’ve heard that people who are in this phase will see their weight loss slow down. How would OWL work for me?
The first Phase of the Atkins diet is called “Induction”. It must last for two weeks, minimum. You can, however, choose to extend the Induction phase for a longer period of time if you want to. Eventually, though, you will reach a point where you must make a decision. Should you stay in Induction another week, or should you move on up to OWL?
There are several ways you can make this decision. One simple way is to use the BMI calculator on the Atkins website. You can find it under the “Free Tools” section. I believe that you have to make a profile on the website before you can use the calculator, or the other free tools. It doesn’t take long to make a profile.
The BMI calculator will ask you to enter your height, and your current weight. This will bring up a chart that shows where you fall on the BMI scale. If you enter in your goal weight, the calculator will automatically point out which phase of the Atkins diet you should be in. If it says OWL, then this might be a good enough reason for you to switch to Phase Two of the Atkins diet.
Another reason to switch is if you are really tired of the very restricted food choices that a person is allowed to eat while he or she is in the Induction Phase. In OWL you get 25 carbs to play with, (instead of 20), and a few more food choices. This comes with a tradeoff, however. You will have more food choices available, but you also will start losing weight at a slower pace. Which one is more important to you right now?
There is another thing to look out for when you switch to OWL. You won’t be able to find a handy, pre-made, menu plan that goes along with this phase. There is also the possibility that you will miscalculate the amount of carbs that are in the fruits or nuts that you eat. You are basically on your own at this point.
I started doing the OWL phase in my fifth week of the Atkins diet. To be honest, I didn’t really focus very hard on staying under the amount of carbs I was supposed to. I ate walnuts, and cashews, and blueberries. After so many weeks without them, these felt like wonderful treats! There were also some days when my allergies were horrible, and I resorted to eating gluten-free crackers in order to settle my stomach.
Despite this, I lost weight. I went from weighing 172 pounds at the end of week four, to weighing 171 pounds at the end of week five. I’m starting to wonder if my weight loss has more to do with eating gluten-free than it does with the Atkins diet.
Image by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service- Northeast Region on Flickr