Low Carbs Diet

First I want to thank the other mamas who posted that no-carbs is a bad idea!. I thought i was the only one who saw through these diets. Has anyone actually looked at a food pyramid lately! grains and breads are on the bottom holding up the rest of the pyramid. Why? because they give you energy you need them! in fact studies have actually shown that eating good complex carbs like oatmeal, or brown rice actually helps you loose weight. You need 6-8 servings of these a day. The problem with most americans today is they dont know what a serving looks like.

I didn't lose any weight on the diet of low carbs. ( actually 3 lbs in 3 months)
I learned later that is was a diet that was out of balance.
Then I found a diet that was balanced, easy to do and I was never hungry.
I followed it because it had research to support it as well as a guarantee.
I lost 14 lbs and 17 inches in 4 months and I have continued to lose fat and gain muscle in the maintenace program.
I learned the name of the game is Balance.

You haven't lost weight because you are on a low/no carb diet.

Your body needs and prefers carbs for energy. When it doesn't get the carbs it needs, it will slow your metabolism way down because the brain recognizes that it isn't getting the proper type of energy so it slows body systems in an effort to preserve the energy you do have.

Eat carbs. But eat *good* carbs like complex carbohydrates with dietary fiber. Eat small meals or snacks every 3 hours. All your meals and snacks should have carbs, fats, and proteins. Add in some exercise, even in the form of walking, to boost fat burning in the body.

Unless you have diabetes, you can pretty much throw out the concept of GLI (glycemic load index). Fruits and vegetables get a bad rap from this, because although they do have sugar, they are also chock full of great things your body needs and wants for healthy functioning: dietary fiber, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants. Take for example the carrot - it is higher on the GLI so it should be bad right? Wrong! It is low in calories, is an oustanding source of vitamin C, folate, potassium, dietary fiber, vitamin A, vitamin K, and others. One serving of carrots has ONE GRAM of sugar! That's it! But since it is high on the GLI, many people think it is a 'bad food' when it is actually a nutritional goldmine.

But ditch the low/no carb diet. Any diet that A) cannot or should not be sustained as a lifestyle change or B) eliminates or severely restricts one of the essential nutrients should be ignored because it is not a healthy way to lose weight.

5 days is a small amount of time to see sudden results. the general rule is if the weight comes off quickly it is more likely to come back on. low carb can work, but at some point you will have to eat some carbs. do your research and don't expect a miracle.

The best eating style I ever experienced was the Gestational Diabetes regimen I was on for my last trimester. It was low carb balanced with eating a certain way (proteins/fats/veggies at every meal, plus small snacks between meals - snacks were protein/carb or fat/carb mix - NEVER carbs alone).

No carbs at all is not good for you. Our bodies need carbs for energy. A balanced diet and small portions is the best way. And everyone's bodies are different. If you're not exercising, that could be part of it as well, and if you're eating larger portions of the other foods you're not cutting back. Talk to your doctor about finding a healthy eating routine and don't bother with fad diets. They just make you feel crappy when they don't work.

any minute now you should start seeing the results. 2 weeks from now you will be happy.

I saw the best results of any diet I have ever been on going low carb. I also still ate some fruit ( more than was recommended anyway despite knowing how many carbs are in fruit)

We ( My SO and I) are getting ready to tackle a slow carb diet again this summer...it sounds really exciting, it is called the 4 hour body. It is supposed to have amazing results as well.

By cutting back on sugar I saw an immediate result, but then again before I began low carb I was in serious need of some major lifestyle changes. I was a big soda drinker. As soon as I switched to diet...no joke I lost 10 lbs in two weeks...that is NOT typical...it kind of shows how much I needed to lose the weight and also how much bad stuff I was ingesting that I did not need. Everyone is different. I am not one for "dieting" as much anymore but more into making changes that I can carry over into my day to day so that I replace the bad habits with healthy ones.

The best things I took away were not drinking calories, choosing whole grains, and cutting back on carbs in general.

Lots of luck to you! I would expect that in another week or two at the most you will begin to see results. Be sure you are consuming enough calories. If you aren't then your body goes into this mode where it thinks you are "starving" and will convert calories into fat which is obviously counter productive.

Drink more water...it really does help.

well, fruits have natural sugar. but that's not a bad thing.
rather than count carbs, try eliminating all simple sugars and only eat complex carbs. i did atkins for a while and it did work really well.
but it's not healthy. any diet that wants you to avoid something as natural and healthy as fruit is suspect.
khairete
S.

You should begin seeing results VERY soon. But I caution you to be careful with the "small fruits" you are consuming. You didn't say what they were, so i can't say whether that is affecting your results so far or not.. but look up exactly how many carbs are in those items. Depending on what they are you might be surprised.

1 cup of apple slices =55 carbs
1 6" banana= 90 carbs
5 oz of black/raspberries = 60-70 carbs
1 2.5 oz clementine = 35 carbs
1 cup of honeydew = 60 carbs
1/2 grapefruit = 55 carbs
1 cup of grapes = 105 carbs
1 medium kiwi = 45 carbs
1/2 cup Mango = 55 carbs
1 lrg black olive = 6 carbs (so if you had 5 it is 30 carbs)
1 medium peach = 45 carbs
1 small pear = 75 carbs
3 oz pineapple = 40 carbs
2 TB raisins = 85 carbs

ALL of those are more than your daily carb allowance if you are in the beginning stages of a low-carb diet (you are supposed to stay at 30 or less).

There ARE fruits that are better than others: one or two strawberries w/whipped cream are low in carbs. ANY of the 'berries' will be better than other choices. Particularly blueberries... 20 of them have 15 carbs.
So, perhaps if you could provide some details about those small fruit choices you are making... ?
The primo nut for snacking is the walnut. (You can subtract the fiber content from the carb content, making it virtually 0 carbs; and it is one of the most healthful of the nuts).

hth

I would think you would see some results very soon. Is it close to your period? You may have some weight gain from water retention is why I ask.

My FIL does the low carb diet and his cholesterol dropped from over 300 to below 200 in just a few months. His Triglycerides dropped too. His Cardiologist told him to plan his funeral when he talked to him about doing it. But now the cardiologist is putting other patients on it. Even though it has massive amounts of meats and other seemingly unhealthy food. It works in some bodies very well.

You have gotten a lot of good advice. Exercise, drink water and eat healthy. ABOVE ALL ONLY WEIGH YOURSELF ONLY ONCE A WEEK. It is only a scale, but us dieters give it too much control on how we feel about ourselves.

All the best!

J.

To see results in the form of weight loss it will take weeks. After 5 days you should be feeling better, though, if you have truly eliminated sugar and processed carbs. If you stick with it and add exercise to your daily routine you should be able to drop pounds quite easily in the next few weeks. Good Luck!

Adding to what Sarah says, yes carbs are very important, and you also need to make sure they are the right carbs; there are so many carbs out there that are processed. the ones she mentioned are healthy and should not be ignored. also if you really want to lose weight, throw the exercise in there - it's so good for you and it feels so good once you get yourself to do it consistently. You may have to make yourself do it at first but I guarantee you will be happy with the results if you stick with it. there is no shortcut here, sorry to say - exercise is key! even if you stick to the no carb thing (which is very difficult), once you start eating them again, you'll be right back where you started.

Totally agree with Vicotria....the small fruits could be doing you in. There are actually a ton of carbs in fruit. Because the weight loss aspect of low carb diet is very scientific you could be throwing of the whole concept by having those fruits. You are instantly making those carbs readily available in your system rather than pushing your body to use fat reserves for energy. Ifyou haven't already I would look at South Beach Supercharged. The first 2 weeks are a little hard but after that you can add your carbs in-but always as a side portion. Also-berries are the most acceptable fruit if your are low carbing. If you don't want to do that you might just try limiting yourself to 60 carbs a day...that is how some go about it to lose weight. Keeo with it though-the science is really there for this kind of diet and lifestyle. Theory is really going the way of it is NOT just purely calories in vs calorie expended.

I follow The Primal Blueprint and have lost 10 lbs in a month. It is a low-carb diet. You mainly eat plants, animals, fruits, nuts and seeds. I still eat 1 serving of grain a day. Like tonight, we're having spaghetti and meatballs. I make whole grain spaghetti and measure out one serving for myself (1 cup).

Even though you are on a low-carb diet, you still may be eating too much. check your portions and you should be exercising (walking is preferred).

Good luck!

From what I can remember, you are to avoid eating fruits for the first 2 weeks. you can go to Aitkins website & check it out, they offer tips too. drink lots of water also. good luck.