Low carb/low calorie weight loss issue

mallory5385 · May 2015

so I've been doing low carb and low calorie dieting for about 3-4 weeks. I've lost about 15 pounds. But I'm slowing gaining weight back. I just started exercising on Thursday but have been eating 2 protein shakes a day, almonds, a cup of strawberries, and red meat. Is this the reason why I'm gaining? Look at my food diary and let me know what u think. Help!!!!!

Chrysalid2014 · May 2015

Your diary is closed...

mallory5385 · May 2015

Ok try now

GoPerfectHealth · May 2015

Hi,

When you start exercising your muscles might retain extra water. Your weight will naturally fluctuate several pounds in either direction depending on a number of factors. Even varying your carbohydrate intake by 50 grams can cause fluctuations due to the relationship between carbohydrate intake and water retention.

If you are eating at a calorie deficit every day, it is unlikely you are regaining weight. If you weigh yourself every day and you have logged your food carefully and are maintaining a calorie deficit, an increase in your weight is due to normal fluctuations.

Your body will shed a lot of water weight at the beginning of a low carb diet. Later in that first or second month it might seem like you are stalling, but you are probably still losing fat as your body adjusts to low carb. You just have to wait it out.

ladymiseryali · May 2015

If you started working out, then you're retaining water. It's not real weight gain. Just up the water and be patient.

mallory5385 · May 2015

Thank u everyone makes me feel a lot better about it

callsitlikeiseeit · May 2015

you also will not sustain that level of weight loss. it is all water weight at that level.

make sure you WEIGH (not measure with cups unless its liquid) and log ALL your food

Chrysalid2014 · May 2015

callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »

you also will not sustain that level of weight loss. it is all water weight at that level.

make sure you WEIGH (not measure with cups unless its liquid) and log ALL your food

It's not all water weight. Some of it is. I asked a similar question on the low carb forum recently and the answer I got was: you'll gain and lose water weight all the time throughout the month, whether you're on low carb or not. Doing low carb might give you a couple of extra pounds of water weight over not low carb, but not 15 pounds worth.

If you'd like to join the low carb group it's here:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/394-low-carber-daily-forum-the-lcd-group

mwebster01 · May 2015

15 pounds in 1 month is way too fast to lose weight.a safe and reasonable weight loss goal is 1-2 pounds a week.u will keep it off.
your body will fight against a drastic weight loss by going into starvation mode,and u will gain it back,maybe more.
in your diary u r not eating leafy greens like spinach and collards,nor fresh fruit like apples and bananas.u should eat them for good nutrition.I only went back three days.

malibu927 · May 2015

mwebster11 wrote: »

15 pounds in 1 month is way too fast to lose weight.a safe and reasonable weight loss goal is 1-2 pounds a week.u will keep it off.
your body will fight against a drastic weight loss by going into starvation mode,and u will gain it back,maybe more.
in your diary u r not eating leafy greens like spinach and collards,nor fresh fruit like apples and bananas.u should eat them for good nutrition.I only went back three days.

It is very common to lose a bunch of water weight when you first start out, especially doing low carb. As to the second part, no.

OP, weight loss is not linear. New/increased exercise is one of several factors that can cause water retention.

mallory5385 · May 2015

I'm doing low carb because my doctor said I had to be on a low carb low calorie diet because my blood work results were in the low pre diabetic range. I've just lost that much doing what the doctor told me to do. I'm trying to incorporate more veggies I know I've been bad on that. Thank you everyone for all your help!

SnuggleSmacks · May 2015

mwebster11 wrote: »

15 pounds in 1 month is way too fast to lose weight.a safe and reasonable weight loss goal is 1-2 pounds a week.u will keep it off.
your body will fight against a drastic weight loss by going into starvation mode,and u will gain it back,maybe more.
in your diary u r not eating leafy greens like spinach and collards,nor fresh fruit like apples and bananas.u should eat them for good nutrition.I only went back three days.

I'm afraid you're working with some outdated information, as "starvation mode" has been proven to be a myth.

SherryTeach · May 2015

That doesn't sound like a very sustainable food plan for the long haul.

JPW1990 · May 2015

SherryTeach wrote: »

That doesn't sound like a very sustainable food plan for the long haul.

You know better than her doctor?

IsaackGMOON · May 2015

SherryTeach wrote: »

That doesn't sound like a very sustainable food plan for the long haul.

Sorry; I forgot you're a certified doctor.

LOL WHO SAID LOW CARBING CAN'T BE LONG TERM

IsaackGMOON · May 2015

mwebster11 wrote: »

15 pounds in 1 month is way too fast to lose weight.a safe and reasonable weight loss goal is 1-2 pounds a week.u will keep it off.
your body will fight against a drastic weight loss by going into starvation mode,and u will gain it back,maybe more.
in your diary u r not eating leafy greens like spinach and collards,nor fresh fruit like apples and bananas.u should eat them for good nutrition.I only went back three days.

Well if you had any sort of sense, you'd know that low carbing makes you drop water weight fast. The first 15lb's which dropped aren't all fat... she'd have to have a HUGE deficit for that.

Btw stop spewing your misinformed information around the forums - starvation mode doesn't exist.

ladymiseryali · May 2015

SherryTeach wrote: »

That doesn't sound like a very sustainable food plan for the long haul.

Maybe not the low calorie part, but low carb can be and is sustainable. I've been on it for almost two years now.

Emilia777 · May 2015

ladymiseryali wrote: »

SherryTeach wrote: »

That doesn't sound like a very sustainable food plan for the long haul.

Maybe not the low calorie part, but low carb can be and is sustainable. I've been on it for almost two years now.

Out of curiosity, what IS “low” carb? Grams / percentage-wise?

I see nothing wrong at all with the OPs diet. Mine is about the same, except with more protein for my lifting. Why would that be unsustainable?

JPW1990 · May 2015

Emilia777 wrote: »

ladymiseryali wrote: »

SherryTeach wrote: »

That doesn't sound like a very sustainable food plan for the long haul.

Maybe not the low calorie part, but low carb can be and is sustainable. I've been on it for almost two years now.

Out of curiosity, what IS “low” carb? Grams / percentage-wise?

I see nothing wrong at all with the OPs diet. Mine is about the same, except with more protein for my lifting. Why would that be unsustainable?

Depends on who you ask. Some say below 150g, some below 100g. Keto ranges 20g-50ish, depending on individual tolerance. Anything above 50g is simply just a choice in balancing carbs and fats to fill out macros after protein. Keto has other implications beyond that.

mallory5385 · May 2015

Maybe I'm doing it wrong? I've been trying to stay as close as 100 grams of carbs per day and under 1500 calories a day. Am I doing it wrong?

mallory5385 · May 2015

My doctor was specific on totals I've just been researching the totals online. Some I read for Atkins diet I guess I'm supposed to be under 30 grams of carbs, but when I read up on pre diabetic diets it says under 150 grams of carbs.

JPW1990 · May 2015

mallory5385 wrote: »

Maybe I'm doing it wrong? I've been trying to stay as close as 100 grams of carbs per day and under 1500 calories a day. Am I doing it wrong?

Nope, you're not. More important, you're sticking to the numbers your doctor gave you, and it's your doctor who knows what other medical issues/prescriptions/etc you are working with. If you are already on medication, you should not try doing keto (Atkins induction) without consulting with them first.

Someone linked the LC group above, and I would really suggest reading through their launchpad section. There's more than one way to do LC, and no one size fits all rule to it, aside from basic things like stay hydrated, keep your protein up, etc.

Emilia777 · May 2015

JPW1990 wrote: »

Emilia777 wrote: »

ladymiseryali wrote: »

SherryTeach wrote: »

That doesn't sound like a very sustainable food plan for the long haul.

Maybe not the low calorie part, but low carb can be and is sustainable. I've been on it for almost two years now.

Out of curiosity, what IS “low” carb? Grams / percentage-wise?

I see nothing wrong at all with the OPs diet. Mine is about the same, except with more protein for my lifting. Why would that be unsustainable?

Depends on who you ask. Some say below 150g, some below 100g. Keto ranges 20g-50ish, depending on individual tolerance. Anything above 50g is simply just a choice in balancing carbs and fats to fill out macros after protein. Keto has other implications beyond that.

Thanks for the info! Huh. I guess I’m sort of low-carbing (though definitely not keto levels). Learn something new every day.

OP, I would ask your doctor for specifics - you’re off to a good start, so I wouldn’t worry too much!

Edit: Oops, if your doctor did give you some numbers, I’d stick to those over anything on the internet.

KristenMarie1181 · May 2015

Why is it that EVERYONE says its not healthy to lose a lot of weight in a month? People that weigh more burn a lot more calories then someone that weighs in there 100's.. Me for instance I am weighing in the 300's right now and I am losing lot more weight and burning more calories for someone in the 100's. So people gotta stop saying its not healthy to lose a lot in a month..

mallory5385 · May 2015

Thank u, u guys means a lot to me! I'm trying that's for sure. Again thank you for all your support and advice!

AlabasterVerve · May 2015

There doesn't seem to be an official definition of low carb. Here were some suggested definitions of low carb in Nutrition & Metabilism:

The ADA designates low carbohydrate diets as less than
130 g/d or 26% of a nominal 2000 kcal diet and we con-
sider this a reasonable cutoff for the definition of a
low carbohydrate diet. Carbohydrate consumption before the
epidemic of obesity averaged 43%, and we suggest 26% to
45% as the range for moderate-carbohydrate diets.

Low-carb ketogenic diet (LCKD): less than 50g carbs and 10% calories daily
Low-carb diet (LCD): 50-130g carbs daily and between 10-26% of calories
Moderate-carb diet (MCD): 130-225g carbs daily and between 26-45% of calories

Andreas Eenfeldt (popular LCHF Diet Doctor site) defines it as:

Strict LCHF <20 gram carbs per day
Moderate LCHF 20-50 grams per day
Liberal LCHF 50-100 grams per day

ETA: That's a bit useless now but I tried.

Liftng4Lis · May 2015

One drops a lot of water when they first start dieting. Then adds it when introducing exercise, as your muscles are holding water while they repair. Give it some more time and things should stable off.

MoiAussi93 · May 2015

I gained about 4 pounds of water weight when I started exercising. Some people gain more or less than that. It's normal, and not fat. Also, water weight fluctuations for any number of reasons are very common...don't get too hung up on what happens in a week or two.

kyrannosaurus · May 2015

You seem to be eating a lot of carbs for someone on a low carb diet. I suggest you contact your doctor and ask them to give you a specific target. You also need to look at your logging. One day you logged a "refried beans and cheese burrito" with zero carbs, zero protein, zero fat... I guarantee it had a significant amount of carbs. If you medically need to follow a low carb diet you need to make sure you use entries with the correct amount of carbs listed.