William Banting, author of Letter on Corpulence, Addressed to the Public in 1863, apparently found he was able to indulge in some carbs during maintenance after low-carb weight loss (p. 35, emphasis his):
I have … frequently indulged my fancy, experimentally, in using milk, sugar, butter, and potatoes—indeed, I may say all the forbidden articles except beer, in moderation, with impunity, but always as an exception, not as a rule. This deviation, however, convinces me that I hold the power of maintaining the happy medium in my own hands.
I found Banting’s comment interesting after reading Sanjeev’s comment at CarbSanity wondering if folks’ “first experience with Atkins worked so well they stay/stayed with it far, far past its ‘best before’ date.”
Many folks seem to do well on a ketogenic LC diet, but if that’s not you, at least you now know that the first famous LC dieter added some carbs back to his diet once he reached his goal weight.
Not only that, but it looks like Banting’s diet also included “safe” starch. From the appendix in the 3rd edition (p 48, emphasis mine):
I can now also state that eggs, if not hard boiled, are unexceptionable, that cheese, if sparingly used, and plain boiled rice seem harmless.
I plan on spending a little bit more time with Letter on Corpulence (thanks to Zoe Harcombe for the pointer). It’s an interesting historical essay and makes clear that obesity, while far more prevalent now, has its roots far before HFCS, seed oils, and the food pyramid.
Weight Maven is written by Beth Mazur. Beth believes that obesity is more symptom than cause and that the real problem is our Western diet -- especially sugar, refined grains, and industrial oils. Beth writes about nutrition, ancestral health & food policy. And cats! 
Reblogged this on Whitney's Weigh and commented:
Excellent Blog!
You know, the Atkins book says you should add back carbs in maintenance. This is a frequent misunderstanding - people don’t read the book. They stay on induction or nearly so forever.
The other belief you see on Atkins boards is that there’s some kind of “golden ticket” the first time you do induction. People claim they don’t lose as much weight if they fall of the wagon and go back.
I thought Jenny Ruhl’s comments on Jimmy Moore’s Low-Carb Experts podcast were pretty spot on as far as LC longer term. And I think your point is also a good one. The choice is not induction level carbs or SAD! But a bit more carb provides a lot of useful flexibility IMO.