My dad on Atkins

My dad, 53 years old, is on the atkins diet and I think he's taking the easy way out. I keep telling him its not an excuse to watch tv and ignore excersise. Naturally he gets mad at me and we start to argue. I've noticed he's lost a lot of muscle mass to the point where he looks "flat". The worst part is, he is still over weight. He lost 40 something pounds, then put back 10. Subtract his muscle loss and he probably only lost 15lbs of fat. He doesnt think about what he eats, just as long as it doesnt have carbohydrates in it (lots of ground beef, saussage and other processed meats. Hardly any good fats what so ever). He has no energy to do anything, and he's moody as hell. He thinks that atkins is absolutely wonderful, but I think he's just a really good marketer. How do I help my dad see that what he is doing is not healthy?

(Something Inspirational)!!!

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Have you checked out this editorial about Low Carb Stupidity?

All carbs are not bad.

There is no good reason to eat saturated fats.

If you dad likes the Atkins diet and refuses to change. And you are worried about him. Then the good news is, Atkins came out with a retraction about fats. The saturated fats.

If you cannot convince him with simple nutritional facts, BFFM, this editorial, this forum.. then at least buy him the latest Atkins book which has some of the old methodology removed, such as the saturated fats. That stuff is a nice little source of heart disease in large amounts.

I hear you bro.. and sometimes trying to change somebody's mind just makes them mad. So your best bet is to educate yourself on this, show him a few pieces of info here and there, learn about nutrition yourself and then buy him the latest book.

I saw another article a bit back that said low carb diets are making people moody. Well yeah.

Best of luck

Marc C. David - NGA CPT
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding
www.nobullbodybuilding.com

I hear you bro.. and sometimes trying to change somebody's mind just makes them mad. So your best bet is to educate yourself on this, show him a few pieces of info here and there, learn about nutrition yourself and then buy him the latest book.

Well I bought him the atkins book around 1 year ago so it could be the latest version. Had I known then what I know now, I would have bought him something that promotes more of a healthy lifestyle than atkins. Maybe the zone diet or something. It seems like all I do is show him a few pieces of info here and there. Maybe I'm not subtle enough about it, but he does the same thing everytime. Starts complaining about me complaining about his diet. Uuuuhhhh duuuhhhhh... Its not exactly what I'd feed my kids when I'm older. His sodium intake has to be through the roof.

The absolute worst part is, he has our refrigerator packed with garbage. I stuggle to find clean sourses of protein, so I don't know how he gets them.

On top of this, he is setting the absolute worst example for my brother. He happens to be 2 years older than me, but he acts like a fat kid at McDonalds when it comes to eating. He happens to be an insulin dependant diabetic as well, so being over weight is 20 times worse than normal. He's about 6'4 and has been close to 300lbs for nearly 4 years. The sad fact is, he continues to get bigger. He has joined a gym infrequently and attends even more infrequently. I worry about him all the time, but he's adopted my dads attitude regarding critism. My mom used to take good care of him, but he no longer responds to her either. I really do think he is digging an early grave.

It seems like my mother and I are the only 2 people who actually participate in anything active beyond the call of everyday life. Well, usually curiosity kills the cat. In this case its quite the opposite. Stubborness closes one's mind off to outside influence. Unfortunately, some of the best advice I have ever heard was not dreamed up by my own mind, it was offered to me by some of the great people I have had the opportunity to encounter in my life.

(Something Inspirational)!!!

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Does he go in for a regular check-up? Have the blood pressured tested, cholesterol and such?

Marc C. David - NGA CPT
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding
www.nobullbodybuilding.com

I make reference to your question in another thread about "Old Man" pride. Well, this is possibly the negative side of this situation. Those more senior to us sometimes believe we are ****y know-it-alls that persist in telling them how to live their lives, etc.

I have this same situation with my parents and two younger brothers.

All I can say is explain in terms of what they deserve not what they need to do. ** You know Dad, you work hard and you deserve to relax. Hey Dad, I've found that eating 5 to 6 smaller meals makes a difference in my energy and physical comfort. Nothing like have energy throughout the day!**

Four ideas:

(1) Be a role model and when the opportunity comes help them move forward with honest excitement. Be there as long as it takes.

(2) Think in terms of lifestyle change. Replacing the sofa with easy talking and walking then slowlu improve from that point.

(3) When it comes to food, think taste and presentation!!! Expensive restaurants charge ungodly sums of money because the make the food look and taste great!!

(4) Gather / develop great recipes! I purchased Eating for Life because it provides a great baseline of recipes that are nutritious. My wife and I have invited friends and family over to eat using some of our favorite recipes. When they learn that nutrition can look and taste great they open their minds. Two of the six have begun to exercise and eat better.

Good Luck!!