Do I HAVE to Start With Atkins Induction?

Since January is the time of year that many people begin, or return to, a low-carb diet, I thought I’d tackle a question that tends to come up quite frequently in many low-carb forums:

“Do I HAVE to start with Atkins Induction, or can I eat 25 to 30 grams of carbohydrates per day and still get into ketosis eventually?”

The answer to that question seems to depend on who you ask. Those who are hard-sell Atkins devotees always say:

"Yes, you HAVE to start with Atkins Induction.”

But they miss the most important element of the question:

“Can I eat more than 20 net carbs and still get into ketosis?”

That's what newbies and those coming back to the Atkins Diet really want to know.

Although most Atkins dieters can quote the benefits for drastically lowering carbs to 20 during the first two to four weeks, and they understand the general concept of individual carbohydrate sensitivity, they seem to have difficulty transferring that understanding to Atkins Induction.

For some reason, most low-carb dieters insist that 20 net carbs and a high-fat intake is the ONLY way to do Atkins. In fact, their stance is so solid, that many will tell you that if you don’t do it that way, you’re not doing Atkins.

However, that is not true. Here's what is:

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