[OpusatFR]

"There's never been any denying that low-carbohydrate, high-protein diets such as Atkins do, absolutely, cause weight loss," she said. "But do they hold up over time and can you stay on them over time?"

Yup. Been on a low carb (100 grams per day) for a long time. I exercise and do lots of gardening so 100 grams is permissible. No blood sugar spikes. No blood lipid problems. No cravings.

What's so unnatural about a diet rich in eggs, cheese, natural and animal fats, meat, veggies, fruit, and soy based baked goods.

What's so natural about a diet loaded in refined sugars, sodas, refined flours, and artificial low fat deserts that taste like industrial waste with all the additives? Ever check the ingredients list of these products. Scarey...

[Maven]

What's so unnatural about a diet rich in eggs, cheese, natural and animal fats, meat, veggies, fruit, and soy based baked goods.

Nothing unnatural about that at all!

Well, except for the soy-based stuff. That's just nasty tasting. Soy flour is Satan's flour, I always say.

Try using nut flours instead - baked goods come out a lot tastier. Here's one of my recipes for a basic coffee cake (or muffins):

MYRA'S BASIC COFFEE CAKE/MUFFINS

2 cups almond flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 butter, melted
1 cup of Splenda
5 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon flavored extract of your choice (orange, lemon, etc.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8x8 baking pan. For muffins, grease a 12-muffin pan.

Combine baking powder and almond flour, mixing well; set aside. Mix together the butter and splenda, and let cool for a bit. Add the eggs, one at a time, to the butter/splenda mixture, mixing well after each addition. Add the vanilla and other extracts. Mix in the flour mixture, blending well. Pour into the baking pan, and bake for about 1 hour or until the top is light to medium brown. For muffins, bake for about 30 minutes.

Makes 16 servings of coffee cake, about 2 grams of carb per serving. For muffins, makes 12 servings, about 3 grams carb per serving.

NOTE: Almond flour can be purchased in some supermarkets, health food stores or online (I prefer almondsonline.com). Or, you can easily make your own - grind or process blanched almonds until they form a fine meal. Be careful not to overdo it, or you'll wind up with almond butter. Four ounces of almonds makes about 1 cup of almond flour.

OPTIONAL: You can add 2 tablespoons of chopped dried, unsweetened cranberries or blueberries. I've found that orange-cranberry and lemon-blueberry are great combinations. Adds less than half a carb per serving.

Maven