STOP THE PRESS
Need some input here. Family friend who is a certified trainer/nutritionist was by the house today visiting. I mentioned I was on Atkins and we got into a long talk. He told me Atkins is a bad idea. He tried it once in college, and while he lost a ton of weight on it, the problem is that it's an unnatural state for the body, and you cannot maintain once you eventually get off atkins (and you will get off atkins). So, his view is that whether it's unhealthy or not, it's a bad idea for weight loss. (Unless you're a bodybuilder and looking to fine tune before a competition, for example -- something short term).
He asked if I'd ever heard of paleo, and told me that's what he'd do. He sent me a link to a talk his buddy gave on the subject some time ago -- he said it's long, but a good eye opener:
LINK
We talked at length about paleo and the like. I mentioned MFP, and he believes in that very much as well. Said it's a great way to program yourself, even if you don't know it, about what foods have what calories, and how to make up for "cheats" or certain foods by being mindful of what you eat the rest of the day. He said the MFP can integrate with the Fitbit I've got.
So, two nights in a row now people have told me atkins is a bad idea. The first night by my wife and mom (who don't know what they're talking about), the second by a guy who definitely knows what he's talking about.
I wonder if I should transition to paleo instead? I don't know enough about it yet -- need to watch the link above still -- buy I'm thinking I might consider a paleo + MFP combination. (Staying under the MFP calorie limits but eating a paleo diet, and allowing for cheat days). I lost 20lbs at the beginning of last year using MFP, so I suppose I know it can work for me. And maybe with the diet change, and not just calorie counting, I can continue to break the dependency on sugars/processed foods/junk foods, and end up with a more sustainable diet.
Thoughts from you guys who are way smarter at this stuff than I am?