As you move from one rung to the next, add carbohydrate foods back into your diet in the order that follows. Adhering to this order tends to minimize blood-sugar surges that could reactivate cravings. You will find that while fat and protein will continue to be the mainstays of your diet, you will eat less of them as you add carbohydrates.

As you choose foods from each rung on the ladder, you should choose most often from foods with a low Atkins Glycemic Ranking, or AGR. Foods with a low AGR will have the least impact on your blood sugar for each rung. The foods listed in each rung of the ladder below are examples of low AGR foods for their rung.

As you hit each rung, you can add up to 5 net carbohydrates from that rung. For each food group you add, you should eat from it no more than three times the first week and monitor your body for changes. You need to give it the entire week as a couple of days may not be enough to know how a food is affecting you. You can eat from daily same food group the second week, and continue to monitor your progress.

You should only skip a rung if you do not plan on eating from it. For example, someone may have dairy allergies, so they may skip the dairy rung #2.

If you do skip a rung, at Atkins Diet Bulletin Board we have found that it is best if you spend the time you normally would have spent for that rung before moving to the next one. This helps to give your body enough time to adjust before giving it the higher AGR foods. For example, if you normally spend three weeks on each rung, and you want to skip alcohol rung#5, then you should spend six weeks at berries rung #4 before proceeding to legumes rung #6. In the same example, if you normally spend two weeks on each rung, then you would only spend four weeks at the berries rung #4 before proceeding to the legumes rung #6.

Your ability to add all the food groups back depends upon your Atkins Carbohydrate Equilibrium, or ACE. For example, someone that does not exercise and has a low ACE would probably not be able to add legumes back during OWL, while someone who is young, works out regularly, and has a high ACE might have no problems climbing to the top.

Once you begin consuming alcohol on rung #5, be sure to count the carbohydrates and monitor your weight loss. Spirits have no carbohydrates, while white wine and red wine have 0.9 and 2.0 carbohydrates respectively. Alcohol will suspend weight loss as you do not burn fat while your body has alcohol to burn. If you find that you are stalled, discontinue your alcohol consumption.

When you get to the last three rungs of the ladder, you are eating foods with the highest AGR. Make sure you do not eat those foods alone. Eat them with foods high in fat and fiber to help minimize their impact on your blood sugar.

With fruits and vegetables, the more color they have, the more nutrition they have. If you have a choice between red grapes and white grapes, choose red. Also, be careful of dried fruit as it concentrates the natural sugar and could potentially make a small piece have as many carbohydrates as the entire fruit.

The OWL Carbohydrate Ladder

1. Vegetables
More salad and other vegetables on the acceptable foods list
2. Dairy
Fresh cheeses:
Cottage cheese
Farmer’s cheese
Ricotta cheese
Pot cheese

Keep portions small for:
Hard aged cheese
Cream, heavy and light
Half and half
Sour cream
Low-carb ice cream, yogurt, and milk
3. Seeds and Nuts
Macadamias
Almonds
Peanuts/Natural Peanut Butter
Coconut
Sunflower seeds
Sesame seeds
Walnuts
Pistachios
4. Berries
Eat frequently from:
Strawberries
Blueberries
Blackberries
Raspberries

Eat moderately from higher AGR melons:
Watermelon
Honeydew
Cantaloupe
5. Wine and other spirits low in carbs
Spirits
White Wine
Red Wine
Low-carbohydrate Beer
6. Legumes
Lentils
Kidney Beans
Pinto Beans
Black Beans
Hummus
Chickpeas
Tofu
Soybeans
Soy milk, unsweetened
7. Fruits other than Berries and Melons
Plums
Kiwis
Peaches
Apples
Grapefruit
Tangerines
8. Starchy Vegetables
Keep all portions small
Carrots
Green Peas
Pumpkin
Acorn squash
Butternut squash

Eat rarely:
Corn
Potatoes
Sweet potatoes
9. Whole Grains
Keep all portions small and focus on whole, unprocessed grains:
Old fashioned Oatmeal
Oat Bran
Wheat Bran
Low carb (soy) bread and muffins
All-bran
Barley, cooked