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The Atkins Diet is a very popular "low carb" weight loss plan, but it is often greatly misrepresented! Popular, if slightly exaggerated depictions of the plan portray dieters devouring nothing but huge quantities of meat and fat. Although the diet is not quite that simple, many people under the plan have successfully lost weight and improved their health.

On this plan, dieters follow a very specific program based on cutting carbohydrate intake. The nutritional aspects of the diet are emphasized over exercise and other factors, although getting physical activity is encouraged. There are 4 stages in the Atkins diet:

Induction: During this two-week stage at the beginning of the diet program, dieters can only have up to 20 grams of carbohydrates per day. Dieters can eat high protein foods such as meat and poultry, fats such as butter and oils, and other food with little to no carbohydrates. Many foods with carbohydrates are not allowed at all, including alcoholic drinks.

This initial phase is intended to help the body switch from burning carbohydrates for energy, as it usually does, into burning stored up fat (the state called ketosis). Most dieters start to lose pounds during this stage.

Ongoing Weight Loss: During this phase, dieters gradually increase their carbohydrate consumption by adding 5 grams of carbohydrates into their diet each week. Dieters fine-tune their diet, continuing their weight loss to put themselves within 5-10 pounds of their target weight, before moving into the Pre-maintenance stage.

Pre-maintenance: Dieters use this phase to find out the maximum amount of carbohydrates they can consume without gaining weight. During this stage, dieters increase carb intake by 10 grams a week. Once dieters reach their target weight and can keep it stable for a month, they move into the Lifetime Maintenance stage.

Lifetime Maintenance: For lasting results, the Atkins program is designed to be maintained throughout the dieter's lifetime. Using the strategies that helped the dieter reach their target weight, the dieter maintains an eating and exercise plan to stay at their target weight. Individuals can revert to previous stages if their weight starts to rise again.

Dieters who can commit to the Atkins diet are typically successful in losing weight; unfortunately, many people are unable to follow the program and end up quitting early on in the difficult induction stage. In general, most diet plans fail because dieters cannot stay on the plan.

Many people struggle with dieting because they experience strong food cravings, have problems with compulsive overeating, can't regulate their appetites, or simply don't have motivation to lose weight. Getting over these mental obstacles is the hardest part of losing weight.

One reason why many people struggle to control their eating is because they are emotional eaters. Such individuals eat in response to their emotions, such as when they are bored or upset. However, this practice programs a "conditioned response" into the unconscious mind. This means that when people experience the same feelings that made them initially overeat, they will feel compelled to overeat again.

Hypnotherapy works by helping our unconscious minds disassociate our emotions from our eating habits. To extinguish the conditioned response to overeat, a hypnotherapy weight loss program is used to break the link developed in the unconscious mind between overeating and certain "trigger" situations.

For instance, if you tend to binge eat when you get bored, hypnosis can disassociate boredom from eating in your unconscious mind. Hypnotherapy techniques can then be used to replace the overeating response with another activity, such as exercising. This way, the next time you experience boredom, instead of going to eat, you will feel motivated to exercise.

Hypnosis is a powerful tool for stress relief as well, helping us cope with our stressful emotions and relieve tension without eating. As a relaxation tool, it calms the mind, helps you develop strategies to manage stress, and boosts your self confidence to motivate you to lose weight.

Hypnosis can also be used to eliminate the emotional stresses that keep you from losing weight. Many overweight people hide behind their weight for emotional protection. For instance, after a painful end to a relationship, people might find themselves becoming overweight so they can avoid relationships and avoid experiencing emotional pain again. Through hypnosis, we can think more positively and focus on improving our health instead of becoming overwhelmed by our worries.

Not only is hypnosis an ideal motivation tool, it relieves tension, eliminates conditioned responses that cause overeating, and can help you overcome many mental obstacles that prevent weight loss. Hypnotherapy techniques are exceptionally effective at helping people stick to a diet plan, such as the Atkins plan, and lose weight.

Alan B. Densky, CH has spent over 30 years specializing in weight loss. He offers several ways to lose weight, including weight loss CDs and NLP for weight loss DVD. Visit his CDs for self-help website for Free hypnosis videos, newsletters, and downloads.