The first two weeks of the Atkins plan is called induction, because the purpose of following such a stringent regimen is to INDUCE ketosis, get your body into fat burning mode.

This is done by limiting carbohydrates, both simple and complex, natural and processed, because carbohydrates are quickly converted into glucose by your body.
When glucose is available, your body will use it as fuel.
When glucose is NOT available, your body turns to your stored fat and uses THAT for fuel instead.
Yippee! Let's hear it for ketosis!

THE RULES

1. Your diet must contain no more than 20 grams of carbohydrate a day. You should eat as close to 20 grams as possible without going over.
Most of these carbs should come from healthy vegetables, which provide both nutrient value and dietary fiber to keep your digestion regular. This allows for approximately 3 cups of salad or 2 cups of salad + 2/3 cup steamed vegetables in the below 10% category (See Food link below).
This is sufficient to induce ketosis in most people. Many people will reach ketosis within the first 5 days. You must continue to follow the induction rules for the full 14 days, however, regardless of how quickly you reach ketosis.

2. You are no longer on a quantitative diet. Therefore, adjust quantities to your appetite. When hungry, eat the amount that makes you feel satisfied but not stuffed. When not hungry, eat nothing or just a small protein snack to accompany your vitamins. Ketosis suppresses appetite, however, so be careful to eat a sufficient amount of food. You should not go below 1000 calories a day on a ketogenic diet.

3. You are, however, on a qualitative diet.
This means that if the food is not on your diet, you are to have absolutely none of it. A "just this one taste won't hurt" rationalization is the kiss of death on this diet. Anything with sugar or starch is absolutely NOT allowed.

4. Your induction diet will consist primarily of pure proteins (beef, pork, lamb, fish, fowl), pure fats (butter, olive oil) and a limited amount of healthy carbohydrates in the form of vegetables and dairy products. Protein and fat are the mainstays of your diet.

5. Use a carbohydrate gram counter to find combinations totalling less than 20 grams of carbohydrates per day. Include any of the items on the allowed foods lists.
Since everything other than pure fat and pure protein has carbohydrates, do not *assume* any food can be included in your meal plan, in whatever amount, just because it is on the list. You must measure foods and count all carbohydrate grams. (see Links page for online carb count resources).

Dr Atkins stresses that it is essential to follow the induction rules stringently for best results. A 'clean' induction is also essential to subsequent success during the OWL (Ongoing Weight Loss) phase.