Kim Kardashian Reaches A Milestone, But Did She Accomplish Her Goal In The Best Way?

Update: Ed. note: The original version of this article covered weight loss in a way that we simply don't do here at Refinery29. It's been revised to reflect our body-positive POV. We apologize for unintentionally contributing to the body-shaming, pressure-filled narrative the media all too often follows when it comes to women, pregnancy, and weight. Stay woke, baes.

This story was originally published on May 14 at 11:45 a.m.

As E! reported, Kim Kardashian took to her Snapchat to announce that she's lost the weight she gained during her pregnancy, apparently by following the Atkins diet. West has been open in the past about how uncomfortable she felt during pregnancy, and specifically mentioned weight gain as playing a major role in that discomfort — which may explain the enthusiastic "Yaaaassssss!!!!" she posted to Snapchat. That said, weight gain is a totally normal and healthy part of pregnancy — the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends that normal-weight women gain between 25 and 35 pounds and that overweight women gain between 15 and 25. Many women (upwards of 50% of moms-to-be) gain more. Losing that weight in a gentle way, without pushing yourself or adding to the considerable stress of new motherhood, may be better for you and — if you're breastfeeding — your little one.

But since Kardashian did use #Atkins with her Snap, it's worth looking closer at the low-carb diet, which was all the rage in 2003 and 2004, but has become a controversial way to lose weight in recent years. In 2013, the BBC reported that the diet made popular by the late Dr. Robert Atkins, which advised heavily cutting down on carbs, "advocated starving the body of carbs so it was forced to burn its fat stores to get energy — a process known as ketosis." The diet was considered controversial, because it went against the low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets that most nutritionists were recommending. While some have seen results, it's also been reported that the diet can cause kidney damage, heart disease, and could trigger diabetes in addition to putting you in a bad mood. Keeping that in mind, it's also worth asking whether or not Kardashian is being paid for her hashtag endorsement of the dieting plan. Kardashian has been known to use her likeness to promote weight-loss products in the past, including waist training and QuickTrim weight-loss pills. Kardashian's endorsement of the latter led to a class action lawsuit from users who claimed Kardashian made “unsubstantiated, false, and misleading claims” in ads, tweets, and interviews about the pills. That lawsuit was later thrown out. As People reported earlier this year, Kardashian signed up for the Atkins diet as a brand ambassador. Kardashian, who used Atkins after the birth of her first child, North, signed up for Atkins 40, which encourages its users to let up on some of the stricter rules of the original Atkins plan by having a more balanced diet. Atkins 40 promotes food options from each food group, including carbohydrates, protein, and fat, along with more servings of fruits and vegetables.

But Forbes may have summed up this discussion perfectly with its piece, "Kim Kardashian's Post-Pregnancy Weight Loss Is Not 'Reality.'" The tweets and snaps she sends out promoting the Atkins diet may not tell the whole story of how she lost weight post-baby. They also don't mean the results are common for most women. Women must work with their doctors to do what's right for their own individual bodies and not take a celebrity's word. "While losing weight quickly may seem nice, unless your career depends on your regaining a bikini body...why rush it?" Bruce Y. Lee wrote for Forbes. "Just because some people can do something easily does not mean you should also." So, when you see Kardashian snap a photo of pasta that has her getting mad at her bestie Jonathan Cheban, maybe don't immediately assume carbs are the devil and cut the food out of your life. Yes, she did use three knife emoji in that photo. And yes, we would, too, if we thought we couldn't have pasta. But here's to hoping Kim starts making carbs a healthy part of her diet soon — they aren't the enemy!