Can You Drink Wine on the Atkins Diet?

The question we will be answering in today's blog is - can you drink wine on the Atkins diet? The Atkins diet is a type of diet plan that has been around for years -and like with many diet plans, the rules on drinking alcohol can be unclear.

We will discuss in this blog what the Atkins diet is in detail, including the various stages of the plan and how to enjoy wine alongside this famous way of dieting - so please read on to find out more now.

What is The Atkins Diet?

The Atkins diet is a diet fad that restricts the carbohydrate intake in your diet. It follows a high-protein and high-fat diet with carbohydrates being severely restricted.

It came about by Robert Atkins in the 1970s and was marketed in a way that would be considered controversial in today's society - by claiming that carbohydrate restriction is crucial to weight loss, and that the diet offers a high-calorie way to stay thin forever.

Is Atkins a Good Diet Strategy?

In the short term yes, the Atkins diet works those that follow an Atkins diet may lose weight - but studies show that a low-carb diet such as the Atkins diet is no more effective for weight loss than standard weight-loss diets.

It is actually just the reduced number of calories that allows people to drop weight and so following the Atkins diet successfully - and limiting the carbs you consume will result in the likelihood of you reducing your calorie intake and therefore losing weight.

The key to weight loss involves burning off more calories than you consume - that's it, it's that simple.

Why Follow The Atkins Diet?

You may choose to follow the Atkins Diet for a number of reasons, the obvious reason for choosing this diet is to help you lose weight for personal goals or maybe it is for medical reasons or you might want to change your overall eating style.

Always check with your GP before you decide to start any kind of restrictive diet plan, especially if you have any existing health conditions.

If you enjoy your wine and are thinking of following the Atkins diet then you may need to adjust your wine-drinking habits slightly to meet the goals of the diet. The good news is that wine isn’t always bad.

The Different Stages of the Atkins Diet and What it Means

There are several different stages to The Atkins diet. Depending on your weight loss goals you can actually start at any of the phases. To learn more about the different stages when partaking in an Atkins diet then keep reading for more.

Stage One - The Induction

This is the strictest part of the Atkins diet, the part where you cut out almost all carbohydrates from your diet and you eat just 20g of net carbs a day, with the aim of them being mainly from vegetables.

In this phase, you eat protein like fish, poultry, meat, eggs and cheese - you should do this for every meal. You don’t need to limit oils and fats, but you can’t have most fruits, sugary baked goods, bread, pasta, grains, nuts or alcohol.

You should also drink at least eight glasses of water a day at this stage for at least two weeks, depending on your weight loss.

Stage Two - Balancing

Stage two is about balancing out your diet whilst keeping carbs to a minimum. You should also keep avoiding the food with added sugar, but you can start to increase the carbs slightly - but only those with high nutrients such as vegetables, berries, nuts and seeds. You can increase these carbs as you begin to lose weight.

Stage Three - Pre-maintenance

Luckily in stage three, you can slowly start increasing the range and the number of foods you eat - including fruits, starchy vegetables and whole grains. You can add about 10g of carbs to your diet each week, making sure you cut back if your weight loss stops - you can stay in this phase until you reach your goal weight.

Stage Four - Maintenance

Stage four is about lifetime maintenance, you should move into this phase only when you reach your goal weight. To maintain your goal weight you are supposed to stick to this style of eating.

Can You Drink Wine on the Atkins Diet?

At stage one of the Atkins diet, drinking wine is a no-go. This stage of the diet plan is super strict and so there is no room for the extra calories from wine, not to mention the extra sugar content too. As sugar is a carbohydrate, known as a simple carbohydrate.

A simple carbohydrate is carb that are broken down quickly by the body and used as energy. Simple carbohydrates are found naturally in foods such as fruits, milk, and dairy products. They are also found in processed and refined sugars like sugary snacks and drinks. The Atkins diet is aimed to vastly reduce the number of carbohydrates in your diet, these simple carbohydrates should be avoided at all costs.

Due to the very limited number of carbohydrates that you aim to take in on an Atkins diet, particularly in stage one, it means that wine should not be consumed - even if you find a low-carb wine. You should not drink wine in the induction stages of stage one if you want to see results.

Most wine does have a very low carb count but this is not the excuse to be able to drink it on the Atkins diet. Due to the content of wine, it can cause your blood sugar to spike and when your blood sugar spikes the body tends to crave more sugar in excess and this can be a difficult habit to break. Cravings cause you to eat more than necessary and therefore, removing wine from your diet in the first place can minimise the risk of craving and therefore consuming too much food.

How to Successfully Drink Wine on The Atkins Diet

It is not impossible to enjoy wine on the Atkins diet and it is important to enjoy yourself in life and enjoy the things you like in moderation. Here are some tips on enjoying your favourite wines on the Atkins diet.

Tips on Enjoying Wine on The Atkins Diet

Atkins diet recommends drinking no more than 3 ½ ounces of wine, which contains around 4.3 grams of carbohydrates also the carbohydrates in alcohol generally will not stop you from burning fat, which is unlike carbs found in sugar.

The different phases of the Atkins diet allow you to increase your carb intake as you move through the stages - so drinking wine in this instance is fine. A good tip is to limit yourself to drinking no more than one glass of wine per day whenever possible.

ThinK Wine Is Low Sugar and Low Carb

If you are following the Atkins diet and want to still enjoy your wine as you move through the stages, then ThinK Wine is a great option to go as ThinK Wine is low sugar, low calories and low carb and never comprising on taste.

You can enjoy your wine as guilt free as possible and all whilst sticking to your Atkins plan. Not to mention all of our ThinK Wine Sparkling Rosé and ThinK Wine Prosecco are vegan, organic and sustainably sourced.