Help! I am overwhelmed!
crystalsan726
Posts: 795 Member
I am brand new to this low carb stuff. I am a type 2 diabetic and I have never had nutrition training. I have always lost my weight by counting calories. I was informed by my doctor today that I needed to stop counting calories and aim for no more than 60 carbs a day. This has turned my world upside down. How do I set my fitness pal to only 60 carbs a day when it is in just percentages for the carbs? I am so used to counting calories I don't even know where to start. I have just started trying to eat more fruits and vegetables and whole wheats. Any advice on how to start slow with this? Thanks for helping this newbie! I really appreciate it!
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Ok, first, congrats on having a doctor who pays attention to the carb thing. Seriously, I've had doctors set the carbs way higher. To change your carb limit you go under goals and enter your calories in manually, then you can play with your macro percentages until carbs is set at 60. I would recommend finding a list of low carb foods and tape it to your fridge. Look up glycemic index, and google the diabetes association website. Give yourself time, though. Its hard to suddenly change the way you eat and you will find carbs EVERYWHERE. It takes time to get used to lowering the amount you eat. You might also check out bloodsugar101.com. There is some great info there. Feel free to friend me, but know that my diary often looks weird, sometime on purpose
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Thank you so much for your help and encouragement it means a lot.0
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First off, you'll be fine. Honestly, it's not as hard as it seems. As sugarbeat said, get a list of foods that contain carbs and make sure you limit those. As your doctor said, you don't need to track calories. You don't need to worry about stuff like steak, chicken, eggs, most cheeses, etc. So, base your meals around those foods.
Keep track of the carb containing foods. The veggies you want to focus on are the ones that are leafy, green, and grow above the ground. Forget the whole grains. They're just too hard to fit in. The veggies will be easier to eat and stay low. No corn, potatoes, rice, or anything like that. Peppers, onions, garlic, and other bright colored veggies are a bit of a middle ground. With a goal of 60g, you can probably include a moderate amount of them.
Just focus on meats and veggies. The rest will take care of itself. I would use MFP but only look at the total carb count. Ignore the calories, percents, and everything else. You know what your goal is.0 -
Welcome! There is a handy dandy calculator somewhere in here to figure out your macros, it will help you with figuring out your daily intake. I keep my carbs at 5% right now to lose more ponds. I'm ditching veggies as of today because they give me troubles, but if you can tolerate them that's great! Bring on the bacon!0
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Thank you all for your tips! I really appreciate them!0
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We tend to think bread, potatoes - carbs. I learned alot from looking at the Paleo lifestyle, as that is low carbs. I like to think of it as eating or looking at carbs in a different light. You may not choose to follow it, but you may start to get a better understanding of what a low carb 'lifestyle' is. Eating carbs but different carbs from what we are used to. Secondly you can look at low GI carbs, like sweet potato instead of potatoes. Keep in mind that ordinary vegetables have carbs as well, so daily it all adds up. .0
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FIT GOat has the right idea
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Ok, first, congrats on having a doctor who pays attention to the carb thing. Seriously, I've had doctors set the carbs way higher. To change your carb limit you go under goals and enter your calories in manually, then you can play with your macro percentages until carbs is set at 60. I would recommend finding a list of low carb foods and tape it to your fridge. Look up glycemic index, and google the diabetes association website. Give yourself time, though. Its hard to suddenly change the way you eat and you will find carbs EVERYWHERE. It takes time to get used to lowering the amount you eat. You might also check out bloodsugar101.com. There is some great info there. Feel free to friend me, but know that my diary often looks weird, sometime on purpose.
It's actually a lot simpler than that to figure out where your setting should be for carbs. Say that MFP's automatic setting has you at 50% which is 200 carbs. To figure out what 100% of carbs would be, you double it... So 400 carbs would be 100%. Then, to figure out what you percentage would be, you'd take your 60 and divide it by the 400 to get the percentage = 60/400 = 15%. So your carb setting should be 15%. If the number comes out to 12% or 27% or what have you, you just need to decide how you feel about seeing red on your page and how you feel about having your number as close as possible. Say your percent was 12%. If you're okay seeing red once in a while because you don't want your goal higher, then you'd choose 10% (MFP only uses increments of 5%). If you'd rather not see red when you're on target, choose 15%, and just remind yourself that number is still 60, regardless.
Now you'll have to recalculate this anytime your calories are reset due to losing 10 pounds or more, but to me this is simple. if not, let me know and I'll see if I can figure out another way to explain it.0 -
I just started this 9 days ago, and I've found it much easier than expected to keep my carbs low. I'm actually finding that I have lots of wiggle room even with my carbs set at 40g per day. Really, for me, just avoiding bread/breading and sweets gets me below 100g pretty easily. I focus on meats, eggs, full fat dairy, and vegetables. I eat lots of vegetables. I will cook a head of cauliflower, throw some olive oil in there, melt cheese over the top, and eat half of it for dinner and the other half in my lunch the next day. Of I'll make stir fry with chicken and do the same--half for dinner and half for lunch the next day. I find it makes it easier to follow my plan during the day (I used to bring sandwiches, chips, and something sweet for lunch every day) if I do it that way, making double at dinner and boxing half of it up. Last night we had salads for dinner, so guess what I had for lunch today? For me I don't stress about vegetables (I'm keeping myself under 40 net carbs not total carbs, so I subtract the fiber, making it easier to eat a lot of veggies), but I am very strict on processed/refined carbs, which are the most detrimental to your blood sugar anyway as far as I know. I'm not concerned about calories except that I'm trying to get a MINIMUM of 1500 (because I'm breastfeeding).
As far as setting MFP to help you with the goals, like @Sugarbeat said, you can play with the percentages until you get close to 60. That's what I did. Then I found out about this cool add-on that allows you to set it based on grams, but really it only works on my work computer anyway, so most of the time I'm without it. This is the nifty calculator to figure out the percentages (and other info I found helpful): http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/
Best of luck! It's all a learning experience, I think. I've definitely found this group to be extremely helpful!!!0 -
CrystalSan-don't make yourself crazy with trying to learn everything at once. It takes time to learn about this, as well as it takes time to have your body adjust to the healthful changes that you are now making. You'll find yourself feeling better and having more energy...and the weight will start to come off and hopefully your blood sugar numbers will come down. There's a lot of explanatory info in this group (see the low carb guide info). The leaders of this group are especially good and help you see the difference between what is sound advice and what is 'out there.' Of course, your doctor will be your best guide, but you're on the right path here.0
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@crystalsan726 I am in the same boat as you. New to being Type 2 and new to Low carb. We can learn together!!0
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crystalsan726 wrote: »I am brand new to this low carb stuff. I am a type 2 diabetic and I have never had nutrition training. I have always lost my weight by counting calories. I was informed by my doctor today that I needed to stop counting calories and aim for no more than 60 carbs a day. This has turned my world upside down. How do I set my fitness pal to only 60 carbs a day when it is in just percentages for the carbs? I am so used to counting calories I don't even know where to start. I have just started trying to eat more fruits and vegetables and whole wheats. Any advice on how to start slow with this? Thanks for helping this newbie! I really appreciate it!
Crystal,
Are you using MFP on a smart phone app, i-Phone, iPad, desktop PC or ?
Dan the Man from Michigan
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crystalsan726 wrote: »I am brand new to this low carb stuff. I am a type 2 diabetic and I have never had nutrition training. I have always lost my weight by counting calories. I was informed by my doctor today that I needed to stop counting calories and aim for no more than 60 carbs a day. This has turned my world upside down. How do I set my fitness pal to only 60 carbs a day when it is in just percentages for the carbs? I am so used to counting calories I don't even know where to start. I have just started trying to eat more fruits and vegetables and whole wheats. Any advice on how to start slow with this? Thanks for helping this newbie! I really appreciate it!
Crystal,
Are you using MFP on a smart phone app, i-Phone, iPad, desktop PC or ?
Dan the Man from Michigan
The addon she's referring to is for the browser version, but the one for setting your macros is only necessary once in a while. It's nice, though, if you're comfortable installing it, because you can set the gram amounts directly.
You can find it, and installation instructions, here -- http://karoshiethos.com/2013/08/13/javascript-bookmarklet-for-enhanced-macro-goals-in-myfitnesspal/0 -
Sorry if any of this is repeated, I did not read all the replies. I used this website to figure out how many (the percentages) carbs, fat, cal, etc. to use for myfitnesspal. To get good wt loss I am only eating 20 carbs a day, but a lot of fat so I am never hungry- which is the ketogenic diet or low carb high fat (lchf). http://www.ruled.me/keto-calculator/ This website has really good recipes also!0
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crystalsan726 wrote: »I am brand new to this low carb stuff. I am a type 2 diabetic and I have never had nutrition training. I have always lost my weight by counting calories. I was informed by my doctor today that I needed to stop counting calories and aim for no more than 60 carbs a day. This has turned my world upside down. How do I set my fitness pal to only 60 carbs a day when it is in just percentages for the carbs? I am so used to counting calories I don't even know where to start. I have just started trying to eat more fruits and vegetables and whole wheats. Any advice on how to start slow with this? Thanks for helping this newbie! I really appreciate it!
Last fall I was where you are now. I was using MFP from October until late December before I wandered into this group. Even though I did attend nutrition training (which pointed me to MFP) I spent a lot of time learning to eat to my glucose meter and working out low carb on my own. The support you find here should give you a big head start.
One item to note: Your doctor said 60 carbs. He may have been recommending 60 net carbs. The difference is that to get net carbs you need to subtract fiber from the total carbs number. It can be significant, for me it's about 50%. Unfortunately MFP reports gross carb not net. I don't mind mental arithmetic so it doesn't bother me.
Other suggestions: Go to the Launch Pad, there is a lot of good info there. "Friend" a few people and look at their food diaries to get some ideas on laying out a day's menu.
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Wow! Thank you all for all your support and advice and tips. I really appreciate it. I wish I had time to reply to you all! Thanks to my new friends that have let me take a peek at your food diaries it helps a lot! I really appreciate you all and I am so glad I found such a good support group!0
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I am loving what I learn from all of them too! Great group of people who care about others! What is the opinion on fresh fruit? I always have some protein too when I eat 1/4 cup of sliced strawberries or pineapple. In my nutrition class they said to be sure and have a protein with your carbs. Just curious.0
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I haven't eaten any fruit since going LCHF, then keto, this year, but strawberries would be okay eaten well, but on this way of eating, you want to pair them with a fat, not a protein. Protein will break down to sugar in the bloodstream too, with enough of it. Pairing it with a fat tells your body to process it differently. Strawberries with sour cream (amazingly good - a little vanilla and sweetener if needed) - it's called strawberries romanoff. Peaches with whipped heavy cream, etc. Suggest you stay away from pineapple, though, for the most part. Best fruits for LCHF are berries and stone fruits (those with a stone/pit in the center). They have the lowest impact. If you can eat them and still keep your carbs under control, awesome. I can't manage that yet, but I will eventually. I"m learning a new love affair with my green leafy veggies, though!0
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I am loving what I learn from all of them too! Great group of people who care about others! What is the opinion on fresh fruit? I always have some protein too when I eat 1/4 cup of sliced strawberries or pineapple. In my nutrition class they said to be sure and have a protein with your carbs. Just curious.
4-5 days a week I have 1/4 to 1/2 a cup of berries with heavy cream; heaven. I didn't do this until I was 6 weeks into LCHF.0 -
I am loving what I learn from all of them too! Great group of people who care about others! What is the opinion on fresh fruit? I always have some protein too when I eat 1/4 cup of sliced strawberries or pineapple. In my nutrition class they said to be sure and have a protein with your carbs. Just curious.
What always cracks me up is the usual example of "apple slices with peanut butter." Ever look at the nutritional breakdown of peanut butter? Hint - it's not a protein food, it's a fat food. 16g of fat, 8g of protein, so more than 4 times the number of calories come from fat than protein.
So, all this time, when they say "pair carbs with protein," they're usually actually saying "pair carbs with fat" (which is the better option, anyway, when you're trying to control insulin, because even not counting the protein-to-sugar conversion, protein prompts insulin secretion).0 -
This is strictly anecdotal, not a controlled experiment. I have blueberries and walnuts with yogurt 2-3 times per week. When I switched from no fat Greek yogurt to a blend of whole milk Greek yogurt and cream cheese it made a 15+ point reduction in my post meal blood glucose. The switch meant more calories & fat but fewer carbs and an overall better result for me. A bonus, I find the blend much creamier and more satisfying.0
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crystalsan726 wrote: »I am brand new to this low carb stuff. I am a type 2 diabetic and I have never had nutrition training. I have always lost my weight by counting calories. I was informed by my doctor today that I needed to stop counting calories and aim for no more than 60 carbs a day. This has turned my world upside down. How do I set my fitness pal to only 60 carbs a day when it is in just percentages for the carbs? I am so used to counting calories I don't even know where to start. I have just started trying to eat more fruits and vegetables and whole wheats. Any advice on how to start slow with this? Thanks for helping this newbie! I really appreciate it!
What Fit_Goat said. Also, if you like math: 1g carb = 4 cal, 1g protein = 4 calories, 1g fat = 9 calories. This means that 240 of your calories (60g carb x 4 cal) should come from carbohydrates. I know when I made the switch, and even still now, calories are still easier to count conceptually for me than a macro nutrient. However, basing meals around a meat/protein and a fat has helped me hit the macros.0 -
All of the advice you have received so far is excellent. You couldn't find a better group of people to help you with this.
Take a deep breath, you can do this.
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One more bit of advice I'd recommend: forget everything you think you know about nutrition. There are so many things that have been pounded into our heads (about whole grains and low fat) that just conflict with a low carb lifestyle. E.g., I know someone who has attempted Low Carb so many times, but can't get over a fear of fats, and each time they try, they fail because they just can't eat enough calories in the day and they are constantly hungry. It really helps to drop that old knowledge into the river with cement boots and read all the advice here with an open mind (and stay away from the other forum groups, LOL!)0
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