Would Dr. Atkins approve of this “sweet sexy science” marketing campaign?
Have you seen some of the advertisements featuring the Atkins shakes and bars from Atkins Nutritionals lately? It’s RADICALLY different from what it has been in the past as you will quickly notice when you see it. I’m not saying it’s bad necessarily, but it’s certainly different. However, there have been some concerns that the company that the late great Dr. Robert C. Atkins founded is now bastardizing the high-fat, low-carb message he promoted for three decades. So I made contact with a friend within Atkins Nutritionals to ask her about these issues that so many of you have shared with me in recent months.
In Episode 167 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore,” we hear directly from Atkins Nutritionals spokeswoman and nutritionist Colette Heimowitz who has a whole lot of explaining to do with this new move toward “lean protein” and “healthy whole grains” in the new advertising for the company. And she explains why they decided to promote this version of Atkins which she says “hasn’t changed”–it’s only being better communicated now to overcome the myths that STILL persist today. Check it out and see for yourself whether you agree if this is an effective marketing strategy.
Click on the “LISTEN NOW” link below or download it to your iPod to hear Episode 167:
“The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore” Episode 167 [36:24m]: LISTEN NOW | Download
Colette Heimowitz has been at Atkins Nutritionals for a long time and even worked with Dr. Atkins at the Atkins Center for several years looking at the science behind the Atkins low-carb lifestyle. Through all the ups (like the tremendous sales success in 2003-04) and the downs (when the company filed for bankruptcy), Colette has always kept the focus on the science behind the Atkins Nutritional Approach even when the investors in the Atkins Nutritionals company were merely hanging on for dear life and feeling tempted to take the message off of low-carb and on to “healthy living” (check out my blog interview with Colette in October 2006). She discusses quite a bit of information about the changes that have been happening at the company over the past couple of years.
Much of the new marketing of the Atkins diet is communicated and promoted in the new book Colette co-wrote with Dr. Stuart Trager called The All-New Atkins Advantage: The 12-Week Low-Carb Program to Lose Weight, Achieve Peak Fitness and Health, and Maximize Your Willpower to Reach Life Goals. We hear from Colette in the interview explaining why there was a need for a new Atkins book after Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution has been out there for over a decade. There’s a lot of information shared in this interview with Colette Heimowitz that I’m sure will instigate quite a discussion. Don’t hold back!
Hear from company representatives like Colette Heimowitz anytime by:
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So how about what you heard from Colette Heimowitz at Atkins Nutritionals? Did she make a convincing argument for the latest marketing that is happening with the company or do you feel they are moving away from the original intent of the company that Dr. Atkins founded? Tell us what YOU think in the show notes section of Episode 167. Visit Atkins.com to see the newly updated Atkins Nutritionals web site and you can order Atkins Advantage Bars or the Atkins Advantage Caramel Bars if you’d like to stock up on these for your healthy low-carb lifestyle. Special THANKS to Colette for sharing time with me for this interview to answer your questions.
Coming up next week, we’ll have Becky Gandy, cruise director for The 2nd Annual Low-Carb Cruise To Mexico, on Monday talking about the biggest low-carb event of 2009 featuring special guests Dr. Jonny Bowden, Dr. Eric Westman, Jackie Eberstein, Dana Carpender, Judy Barnes Baker, Dr. James Carlson…and Christine and I will be there too! Find out all the details in this podcast. Then on Thursday you will hear from famous diabetes blogger David Mendosa who is now a big-time believer in the healthy low-carb lifestyle for managing and controlling his blood sugar and insulin levels. This is one amazing interview you WON’T want to miss!
I have to say when I looked at the “official” Atkins site and saw that sweet sexy science layout it was very discouraging. My first thought was “stop trying to sell me and give me the info I need!” Took me a LOT of clicking around to get what I wanted as far as induction info and so on and even then I didn’t get all the answers. After awhile I gave up and Googled for fifteen minutes and lo and behold, answers EVERYWHERE ELSE.
The Atkins site redesign needs a redesign.
I did notice it was a little hard to find stuff, but it is there. THANKS for sharing your opinions.
–Jimmy
Jimmy,
I don’t understand your comments about Atkins Nutritionals. just how has they “bastardizing” the Atkins Diet? In his books he never intended for people to only eat meat, poultry fish, cheese, bacon, sausage and salad. He not only encouraged people to eat vegetables, but in his chapters on ongoing weight loss and maintenance showed people how to climb the carbohydrate ladder. He also emphasized that everyone is an individual and while some may not go very far up that ladder, others might go high enough to eat whole grains. Its right there in DANDR. Perhaps you can comment specifically (point by point) about how Atkins Nutritionals is “bastardizing” the Atkins diet. Thanks.
THANKS! My point was that they are pushing a “lean” version of the Atkins diet and that’s not at all what Dr. Atkins promoted in his books. Sure, he promoted veggies, specifically non-starchy and green leafy ones during weight loss, but NEVER did you read in any of his books that he advocated eating “lean protein.” That was the purpose of my use of this term and it seems to fit very well.
Keep in mind I’m referring to the weight loss phase of DANDR. Just wait until you hear what noted low-carb practitioner Dr. Mary C. Vernon says about this “lean protein” and “healthy whole grains” nonsense in a podcast coming on August 25th. THANK YOU for your comment!
–Jimmy
Actions speak louder than words. Whatever company representatives SAY, what they do is produce a line of high-priced Frankenfoods with little true nutritional value. The lean protein thing is absolute nonsense, and the number of people who go high enough up the carb chain to eat grains on an Atkins-type diet is pretty small. This is just an attempt to compete with the South Beach Diet , as far as I can tell; it’s all marketing, and it’s sad.
True Dr. A never said “lean protein” in DANDR but he lists all of them as meats and fish to be consumed as well as the higher fat cuts. People forget that and I agree with her that many people go on atkins and think fish, chicken and veggies are bad. When I read the book I took from it a lot of variety. Over at http://www.adbb.com I see lots of long term maintainers who have moved up the rungs and eat a ton of variety to maintain. They are very strict about doing the diet the way it was written though. Personally, I eat both lean and fatty cuts. I eat lots of fish as well as fowl and land meats. That is was I hear from her when she talks about balance. I am also making a point of moving up the carbohydrate ladder and finding my reactions to various foods, one food at a time one ladder at a time. I find her explanations make since even if they need a new web designer and I don’t care what they use to get the word out. Sexy sells and the more people livin low carb the better IMO. Great interview Jimmy and thanks.