Deon van der Merwe is a changed man today because of low-carb living

Although you may not hear about very many low-carb weight loss success stories in the media, I’m here to tell you they are happening in the lives of real people every single day all across the globe. Livin’ la vida low-carb has become such a permanent way of life for so many people who finally realize the low-fat lie (it’s a lie because proponents of it claim it is the ONLY way to lose weight and be healthy–HOGWASH!) just wasn’t gonna cut it for them anymore. There had to be something better and more effective that would not just produce weight loss but also a dramatic positive turnaround in health. And they’ve found it in low-carb living.

I’m honored to know quite a few people who have lost extraordinary amounts of weight just like I did following a carbohydrate-restricted lifestyle change, like Kelly Keener, Christine Young, Karen Kimball, Jo Heeley, Kent Altena, Colleen Awalt, Darlene Smith, Shayne Sherbert, Jimmy Dorsett, Mary Smith, Manuel Uribe, Jennette Fulda, Valerie Liberty, and Dr. Kalvin Chinyere who have all experienced HUGE weight loss results thanks to the healthy low-carb way of life. And today I’m honored to share yet another name to add to that ever-growing list and he hails all the way from South Africa. His name is Deon van der Merwe.

Click here to be inspired by Deon’s remarkable low-carb weight loss success journey that took him from pushing 400 pounds to just under 200 pounds today.

Atkins weight loss success Kent Altena creates LIVE video show

When you lose a significant, life-changing amount of weight following a healthy nutritional approach like Atkins low-carb, it’s almost impossible to keep silent about it. Just ask anybody who’s lost over 100 pounds–there’s a certain spring in your step, a little more pedal to the metal in your passion, and a willingness to share the good news you’ve discovered with EVERYONE you know. That’s one of the reasons why I spend so much time chronicling my own low-carb experiences in various writing outlets, record interesting podcast interviews with leaders in the low-carb and health community, and create fun YouTube videos with my wife Christine to continue to educate, encourage, and inspire others to take this journey for themselves.

But I’m not the only guy who has lost well over 100 pounds on the Atkins diet who is working hard to spread the word about livin’ la vida low-carb. Blogging buddy and friend Kent Altena has made his presence known over the past few years after his stunning weight loss success. I’ve blogged about all the things Kent has been doing to put the Atkins diet back on the map again, including his awesome YouTube video series which came back last year after a little prodding. You’ll want to subscribe to Kent’s videos and watch them all. His are much more instructive than my YouTube videos as he presents the information in a straightforward format.

You could sense during my podcast interview with Kent in June 2008 that he wanted to do more to reach people with the positive Atkins low-carb message and that’s precisely what he is doing with a brand new idea that has now become a reality.

Check it out–a LIVE Atkins Diet TV show: CLICK HERE!

Kent will be hosting a LIVE Atkins Diet TV show online every Thursday night at 9pm CST/10pm EST to host a Q & A session as well as topic-based discussions on various issues involving livin’ la vida low-carb and the Atkins diet.

“I want everyone to be as successful as I have been,” Kent writes about his new show. “Who knows? In a few weeks I will probably be in the kitchen cooking my favorite low-carb treat or meal of the moment.”

This won’t be replacing his awesome YouTube videos, but simply serving as a better means of interacting with Kent to answer the burning questions people have for him about Atkins low-carb. As a 200+ pound Atkins weight loss success, he certainly has plenty of wisdom to share and I hope you take advantage of this unique opportunity to glean from his experience.

BOOKMARK THIS STREAMING VIDEO PAGE and start following this LIVE show each week. I’ll be trying to make it on the show from time to time answering questions people may have about the low-carb lifestyle. Now if we could only get a show like this on network or cable television!

There are two ends of the spectrum when people start talking about being on the “Atkins diet”–either they are simply cutting back on their carbohydrates and consuming whatever amounts of meat, cheese, eggs, and bacon they choose to eat or they are following the plan that was written and promoted by the late great Dr. Robert C. Atkins in his various books, most notably Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution.

It’s amazing how people can get away with describing both of these as the “Atkins diet” when only those people who have educated themselves about this way of eating in the latter group can honestly say that. Even worse, we’ve got people who try to debate the Atkins diet without ever seeing what Dr. Atkins wrote. Come on, that’s just plain ignorant if you ask me. So I’m ready to help do something about this lack of understanding about the Atkins diet starting right here and right now.

Learn more about the Atkins Diet Startup Kit in today’s video:

Click here to get your own piece of this exclusive limited 6-item Atkins Diet Startup Kit that is now available for purchase for only $25 which includes FREE PRIORITY MAIL SHIPPING! If you ever wanted to know more about the Atkins diet, then here’s your golden opportunity to hear from and read materials written by Dr. Robert C. Atkins himself.

The media missed the story, but Jo’s here to set ‘em straight!

If there’s one thing we can always count on almost automatically from most media coverage of people who have lost weight on the low-carb lifestyle is they’re just gonna get it wrong. The great Dr. Mike Eades blogged about this very subject just last week with a low-carb success story named Phill Novak appearing on CNN recently (they only gave a cursory mention to his diet and focused almost exclusively on his exercise–I interviewed Phill about his DIET for my podcast show today). It’s just a sad reality in mainstream media coverage these days that we have to come to terms with.

As a writer myself, I try to make sure the information I provide is as accurate as possible according to the research and knowledge I have about that subject. With that said, sometimes there is pertinent data missing from articles I have written and I respond accordingly. Such is the case with this December 2006 blog post about a low-carb weight loss success story named Jo Heeley. She lost a total of 84 pounds following a low-carb eating regimen and her story was featured in a popular British newspaper called The Sun.

Unfortunately, the author of that article (apparently no longer available online) took judicious liberty to make up and embellish the story to appear as if UK nutritionist Amanda Ursell had something to do with Jo’s success. Well, in a word–WRONG! I recently heard from Jo Heeley herself and she said the column was fraught with so many “errors” it wasn’t even funny.

Click here to read Jo Heeley’s incredible Atkins diet weight loss success story IN HER WORDS so there will be no doubt about the truth. It’s truly incredible!

You know what they say about a picture being worth a thousand words. Well, I came across a couple of pictures that speak volumes about what livin’ la vida low-carb is all about. The common argument people, including educated ones, use against low-carb plans like the Atkins diet is that it relies too much on meat consumption.

In fact, you’ll recall noted health expert Dr. Andrew Weil appeared on CNN’s “Larry King Live” last week to talk about the new Gary Taubes book Good Calories, Bad Calories and his primary criticism of the low-carb lifestyle was the description of it as a diet that is “mostly meat and no carbohydrate.” Dr. Weil, you should know better than that! You know good and well that neither the late great Dr. Robert C. Atkins or any of the other low-carb diet authors ever call for what you have described.

So, to dispel the myth that the Atkins low-carb diet is just meat, meat, and more meat, here are those pictures I promised.

This first one is a rather creative photograph that Dr. Atkins had made with his smiling face posing with all the wonderfully delicious foods you can eat on the Atkins diet. Hmmmm, what do you see more of in that picture than anything else? Is it meat? Nope! It’s veggies, baby, and that’s just the way Dr. Atkins liked it:

The second image I have to share with you is a food pyramid for people who are livin’ la vida low-carb. No, this is not the USDA-indoctrinated Food Pyramid that tells you to eat carbs, carbs, and more carbs with very little fat. Instead, you’ll notice the foods on the lower end of the pyramid are non-starchy, green leafy vegetables and delicious selections of fish, beef, and poultry. Above that is low-glycemic fruits and cheese followed in very small quantities by beans and whole grains as well as teeny tiny amounts of sugar at the very top. It’s quite illustrative of this way of eating:

Finally, I’d like to show you a picture of the food my wife Christine and I chose to eat on a recent trip to one of our favorite restaurants–Denny’s. You’ll notice my plate on the left has delicious portions of meat with their outstanding mixed vegetables side dish. I also had a side salad not shown in the photo. But look what my lovely darling, who recently hit her goal weight of 122 on the Atkins diet, decided to have for her meal. A fried chicken sandwich with seasoned fries! Say it ain’t so! Here’s the proof:

Christine was right in the middle of saying “Oh no you didn’t” as I was taking her picture stuffing her face with this high-carb food bonanza! LOL! Yes, she can get away with eat more carbohydrates than I can and she likes to rub it in my face sometimes. She probably lost another pound after eating that meal, too. Makes you sick, doesn’t it?

So the next time somebody tells you that livin’ la vida low-carb means you eat a no carb diet, remind them that the Atkins diet is so much more than meat. And now you have the visual proof to show them, too.

If you’re gonna do the “Atkins diet,” then you MUST read THIS book!

Christine and I are BACK from our quick little trip to Pigeon Forge in the Smoky Mountains for a bit of rest and relaxation and we’re excited to bring you yet another new video in our fun and exciting new “Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb On YouTube” series. The comments have been coming in with these videos and everyone is raving about how much they enjoy these sometimes quirky, but informative episodes about the healthy low-carb lifestyle. We cannot tell you how much fun we have making these videos (even better than blogging…er, almost!).

I wanted to share a very nice e-mail I received from one of our YouTube video fans who won a copy of my book just for leaving a comment a couple of episodes back. His name is Dan (aka SlimQuest) and he was extremely grateful for the blessing low-carb has been in his life. Check this out:

Hello Jimmy and Christine,

Dan

WOW, Dan! We DO have a lot in common…have weighed 400 pounds, the woman of our life had to have endometriosis surgery, concerned about having children, and BEST OF ALL–did the ATKINS diet! You keep at it, my friend, and you’ll have no choice but to succeed. I can’t wait to see it happen!

Speaking of doing the Atkins diet, that’s the subject matter of Episode 9 of “Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb On YouTube” because this is way too important for people to miss. Unfortunately, a lot of people in our society have made the “Atkins diet” synonymous with just eating meat, eggs, and cheese all day. But for those of us who have actually READ THE BOOK, you KNOW that’s not what the genuine Atkins diet is all about.

While you may do just fine eating that way, many people get frustrated at some point when they realize that something is missing about their diet. Uh, ya think? That’s where reading Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution at the cool discount price of a penny plus shipping at Amazon.com becomes invaluable as you sincerely learn what the Atkins diet is about.

Watch our latest video now for an analogy about why reading the instruction manual is so important when you are livin’ la vida low-carb:

There’s only one Atkins diet (well, actually, there are TWO if you count the ORIGINAL 1970s Atkins diet and then the updated one from the 1990s), so doing anything else just isn’t Atkins. Call it what you want, but, as we say in the South, it AIN’T Atkins! Read the book, absorb its message, and then do it EXACTLY as the late great Dr. Robert C. Atkins shared in his masterpiece. You can’t go wrong if you do that!

Please post your comments about Episode 9 at YouTube about today’s video and you could have a chance to win a special surprise prize that will be announced in our next episode. Click here and you’ll be taken to the YouTube page where you can leave a comment about this show.

Did you miss any of our other YouTube videos? Never fear, they’re all right here:

- Promo video–A half-minute promotion of the new video series
- Episode 1–Introduction of Jimmy & Christine Moore
- Episode 2–What kind of fruits can you have on a low-carb diet?
- Episode 3–What kind of veggies can you have on a low-carb diet?
- Episode 4–What does a low-carber do for something sweet?
- Episode 5–Why is fat so healthy for you on the low-carb lifestyle?
- Episode 6–Which restaurants can you go to on the low-carb lifestyle?
- Episode 7–What are the best new low-carb books you need to read?
- Episode 8–Why should you be eating a lot more eggs?

We now have well over 100 subscribers to our YouTube videos and I want to thank you for continuing to tell your friends, family, and anyone else who needs a boost of education, encouragement and inspiration in their low-carb lifestyle to check us out. Sure, we’re a bit silly at times and like to make you laugh with our videos. But the work we are doing is DEAD SERIOUS as the lives of real people are being positively changed because of it.

THANK YOU as always for watching our videos and please send us your feedback, suggestions for future show ideas, comments, and questions at livinlowcarbman@charter.net. We’ve got some REALLY good ideas for upcoming videos, so don’t miss a single video. CLICK HERE to subscribe NOW!

Courtesy of The Des Moines Register, this photo of Kent Altena speaks volumes

He baaaaaaaaack!

One of my favorite people in the entire world has been featured YET AGAIN in his local newspaper for being an example of a life that has been radically changed for the better because of the Atkins diet. His name is Kent Altena.

I first blogged about Kent’s remarkable 200-pound low-carb weight loss success shortly after starting my blog in 2005 and updated the progress of his story last year to show that he is keeping his weight off. He even got featured in his local Des Moines Register newspaper for his remarkable achievement last year.

Kent subsequently started making a series of YouTube videos about yummy recipes and how to do Atkins, including this highly inspiring one showing the amazing weight loss progress that both he and his beautiful wife have enjoyed while livin’ la vida low-carb! But Kent has gotten a little slack in his videos in 2007–with good reason!

For him, there’s no greater satisfaction than to continue proving to the whole world he is healthy and fit because of the Atkins diet. So he has taken up the fine art of marathon running. And lest you wonder if he is “carbing up,” think again! Check out this video from Kent about the fallacy of that archaic principle.

Last October, the Des Moines Register again featured Kent in a column about his half-marathon experience. Even then, Kent had his eyes on something bigger–his first full marathon. And this Sunday he will FINALLY have his chance.

For the third time in the past two years, Kent Altena has been given a weight loss platform in The Des Moines Register because of the Atkins diet now that they published this story about him today. The newspaper is highlighting people who have successfully lost over 30 pounds and kept the weight off for at least two years. It’s part of a new series of stories designed to inspire the nearly two-thirds of Iowans who are overweight or obese. I think EVERY state newspaper should do something like this to illustrate it IS possible.

This column is INCREDIBLE and I urge you to read it, be encouraged by it, and then share your personal comments about low-carb living for the other readers to see. We should seize on these rare opportunities in the media to present livin’ la vida low-carb in the positive light it deserves. I know Kent would be very appreciative for the support too!

With Kent being nervous about running in the Des Moines Marathon on Sunday, let’s encourage “bowulf” that he’ll be just fine. It’s an unbelievable accomplishment to even TRY to do something like this, but we are confident he WILL succeed. Visit Kent’s blog and send him a note of encouragement at bowulf@network-admin.net.

WE’RE ROOTIN’ FOR YA, KENT! You already make us VERY proud of you.

In Episode 79 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore,” let’s take a closer look at the Atkins diet and determine whether it gives you more energy than you ever thought possible or completely drains you. Which is it for you? Hear both sides of this topic by click on the “Play In Popup” link below:

When you go on the Induction phase of livin’ la vida low-carb, you could suffer from some of the symptoms of “Atkins flu.” Many mistake this TEMPORARY state of transformation going on inside of your body in the early days of your lifestyle change as what life is like for the duration of your low-carb experience. We all go through this, so NOPE! It gets MUCH better.

Make some low-carb music to your ears by:

1. Listening at the official web site
2. Going to iTunes
3. Calling (818) 688-2763 to listen via Podlinez
4. Subscribing to the RSS feed

The debate over whether the Atkins low-carb diet invigorates or deflates you presses on. What has been your experience? If you’ve only been on it for a few days, then you haven’t been low-carbing long enough. I want to hear from people who have been on low-carb for at least a month.

Share what life has been like for you on a low-carb diet. Are you more energized than you have ever been before or has your life come to a virtual standstill because of your low-carb diet? I really want to hear your feedback!

Tune in on Mondays and Thursdays for more episodes of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore” and check out the Past Episodes in case you missed them!

The legacy of Dr. Robert C. Atkins still being felt to this day

You know someone’s life has made a lasting impact on the world when their contributions to society are still being talked about many years after that person is gone. That’s precisely what has happened to the founder of the world’s most popular low-carb nutritional approach.

The late great Dr. Robert C. Atkins of Atkins diet fame was prematurely taken from us on April 17, 2003 after a tragic slip and fall accident on some ice in New York City which resulted in a massive head injury that he was unable to recover from at the age of 72. It was a sad day for the millions of people who were positively touched by this remarkable man.

Even still, there are some out there who are so threatened by this man who has been gone for four years and four months that they feel compelled to continue spreading lies, innuendo, and propaganda about how Dr. Atkins died claiming he was obese, had a heart attack, and that it was all because of his “unhealthy” diet.

This neverending drumbeat of personal vilification of Dr. Atkins goes on in 2007 and I’ll sometimes get an e-mail like the following one inquiring about the circumstances surrounding his death and whether it had anything to do with his diet:

Hello,

My questions for you: Is there any truth to the stories circulating a few years ago that Dr. Atkins had arteriosclerosis and other circulatory conditions? I know the family addressed his post-coma weight gain, but can’t find where they addressed these reports. Any info? If this is already answered on your blog I overlooked it, I’m sorry. Thanks for your time.

Click here to see how I responded to this reader with the facts shared by his widow Veronica Atkins and assured him of the truth free from all the outlandish propaganda and innuendo that comes from the anti-meat activists who seek to destroy all the good that Dr. Atkins stood for during his life.

In the midst of all the brouhaha over Kimkins in recent weeks, someone rather special in my life who I love very dearly has begun doing extremely well on a low-carb diet without really trying that hard. It’s the cute and precious woman I call my wife named Christine.

You’ll recall Christine FINALLY took my advice to start livin’ la vida low-carb in mid-May not to lose weight necessarily, but to get her triglycerides to drop. Although she’s on low-carb primarily as a means for improving her health (as so many people like this are discovering!), an interesting side effect has ensued for Christine–WEIGHT LOSS!

I told her that although she doesn’t have a lot of weight to lose, she’ll notice her clothes getting looser and the scale will move down. I’m not so sure she believed me at first, but she’s a BIG believer now!

Without even trying, Christine has now lost a total of 13 pounds and her dress size has gone from a size 14 down to a size 8 over the past five weeks on the Atkins diet. WOW!!!

We have a running bet now that I can get my weight within 75 pounds of hers (considering I used to weigh nearly 300 pounds MORE than Christine, it’s quite a feat!). As of today, I weigh 222 pounds and she weighs 144–78 pounds apart. So she’s ahead for now–BUT NOT FOR LONG!

Click here to learn more about what Christine is eating on her low-carb diet (it may just surprise you!!!), find out what was making her triglycerides soar, and discover how much the woman I married in 1995 weighed on our wedding day (let’s just say she didn’t need to diet!).