Despite the popularity of the Atkins Diet, it is often greatly misrepresented! Popular, but slightly exaggerated depictions of the program portray dieters wolfing down nothing but vast quantities of meat and fat. Although the diet itself may not be quite that simple, many people have used it to lose weight and improve their health.

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

Induction: During this two-week phase at the start of the diet program, dieters can only consume up to 20 grams of carbs per day. Dieters can ingest high protein foods such as meat and fish, fats such as butter and oils, and other foods with little to no carbohydrates. Many foods containing carbs are not permitted at all during this phase, including alcoholic drinks.

This early phase is supposed to help the body switch from burning carbs for energy, as it usually does, into burning stored up fat (the state known as ketosis). Most dieters begin to shed pounds during this phase.

Ongoing Weight Loss: During this stage, dieters gradually increase their intake of carbs by adding 5 grams of carbs into their diet every week. Dieters fine-tune their diet, losing weight to put themselves within 5-10 pounds of their target weight, before transitioning into the Pre-maintenance stage.

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

Lifetime Maintenance: For lasting results, the Atkins program is supposed to be maintained throughout the dieter's lifetime. Using the techniques that helped the dieter reach their target weight, the dieter maintains an eating and exercise plan to stay at their goal 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; however, many people are unable to maintain the program and end up quitting early on in the initial induction phase. 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, cannot regulate their appetites, or simply don't feel the motivation to lose weight. Getting over these mental obstacles is the most challenging aspect 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 individuals experience the same feelings that made them initially overeat, they will feel compelled to overeat once again.

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

For instance, if you tend to overeat when you feel bored, hypnosis can disassociate boredom from eating in your unconscious mind. Hypnosis can then be used to replace the urge to overeat with another activity, such as exercising. That way, the next time you experience boredom, instead of going to eat, you will feel motivated to exercise.

Hypnosis is an excellent stress relieving tool as well, helping us deal with our stressful emotions and relieve tension without eating. As a relaxation tool, it calms the mind, helps you use new strategies to cope with stress, and boosts your self confidence to promote natural weight loss.

Self hypnosis can also be used to end the emotional stresses that keep you from losing weight. Many overweight people use their weight for emotional protection. For instance, after a painful end to a relationship, people often find themselves becoming overweight so they can avoid new relationships and avoid having to endure emotional pain again. Through hypnosis, we can think more positively and focus on having better health instead of becoming overwhelmed by our thoughts.

Not only is hypnotherapy an ideal motivation tool, it relieves stress, extinguishes the conditioned responses that trigger overeating, and can help you overcome the mental obstacles that prevent weight loss. Hypnosis is really effective at helping people stay on a diet plan, such as the Atkins program, and lose weight.

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