Low Carbing it - Over 50 and Over 50 to lose!

AnneSoCal

I went wheat free on Jan 1 2012, lost 12 pounds in the first two weeks and a total of 36 pounds in the first 5 months. I was doing great, eating about 50g of carbs a day for a while. Then, in Oct of 2012, I had some pasta...then I had a doughnut, then a hamburger with the bun and fries, and, well, I'm sure you can guess what happened then! I've gained back 26 pounds, and have decided to make an effort to get back to where I was and then some.

So, I'm using MFP daily, got a Fitbit, am taking bootcamp classes 4x a week and am eating low carb/high fat. I'm feeling optomistic and look forward to losing the 69lbs I need to get to a weight that is comfortable for me. At 52 years old, the goal for me is to be as healthy as possible for the rest of my life. It isn't as much about how I look as how I feel. (Okay, it is a little bit about how I look, I can't lie!).

Please feel free to add me as a friend!

Anne in So. Calif.

AJ_G

You do not need to eat low carb, in terms of weight loss, a calorie is a calorie, plain and simple. It is probably actually worse if you deprive yourself of carbs as you will be prone to binging on carbs if you eat even a little bit of them and go off your diet. Eat a balanced diet with plenty of protein, fat, and carbs and hit your macros with foods that you enjoy to avoid binging, it isn't healthy.

AnneSoCal

Thanks for the comment and suggestion, however for me, eating a low carb/high fat diet is the way to go. Last year after eating this way for 6 months, I had a physical and compared to the previous year, my blood work improved, my weight went down and I felt the best I had in years. I only started gaining the weight back when I allowed refined grains, sugars and starches back into my diet. My husband eats the same way and his cholesterol went down as well. His doctor said, "I don't know what you're doing, but whatever it is, keep it up!"

So, although calorie restriction does work for some people, I prefer to stay away from grains, starches and sugars, even in limited amounts, - they're just not necessary and, in my opinion, are unhealthy for you as well. Besides, I get plenty of nutrients, fiber and yes, carbs, from vegetables.

But again, thanks for taking the time to respond to the post!

nancybuss

Welcome Ann !
bread carbs can certainly be harder on us women as we get close and into our 50's and above. Darn they like to stick around.

Good luck in your journey, I will send you a friend request.

Nancy

AnneSoCal

Thanks, Nancy!

romach79

I'm in the over 50 club too. Yes lowering carbs - especially refined carbs (sugars, white bread, pasta) helps with weight loss because: when you eat carbs (especially those mentioned above) it triggers insulin production which inhibits the burning of fat. Trust me I have a Type 1 diabetic daughter and I know a lot about what insulin does to the body. The idea is to eat foods that keep the insulin levels low - high protein, low carbs. Good luck.

erikkmcvay

Perhaps, it ought to be 'low simple carbs' because without complex carbs you will be hard pressed to get enough fiber (25g per day for women) and the energy and almost anti glucose benefits that come with whole grains (complex carbs).

Furthermore you story of gaining it back seems typical for diets that deprive an individual of one nutrient or another. This happens on low carb, low protein and low fat diets.

I'm at 50lbs of weight loss, in better shape then I have been in over a dozen years and eat 50-55% of my daily calories in carbs.

As for physicals, I learned that doesn't always tell the tale. For example my cholesterol was VERY low (bad was low good was high) so much so my doc decided to no longer check it during my physicals. My blood glucose levels were only slightly elevated (in the normal range) and all my other numbers were 'excellent' yet I was 282lbs, in terrible shape and on blood pressure meds.

Today I eat more carbs then ever, am 232lbs and off my BP meds.

But here is the difference:
You wrote:

some pasta...then I had a doughnut, then a hamburger with the bun and fries, and,

Whereas when I say 'carbs' I mean Rolled Oats, wheat berries, whole grain rice, quinoa etc.

The problem is processed foods (white bread, white bread donut, whate hamburger buns) and simple carbs (sugars, white potato flesh etc) and the deep frying of donuts and fry's just doesn't work.

Eating whole grains with olive oil and simple seasonings and limiting simple carbs/sugars won't cause you to go off the bandwagon and will give you more energy during the day. Keeping protein to a level that sustains lean body mass and fats to a level that keeps you alert etc and limiting fats to the good ones (olive oil, peanut butter etc) will make a difference.

And while I agree calories are calories white bread calories always seem to slow the weight loss down on me (really any bread seems to) whereas the same amount of calories in whole grains does not (I think because of how the body processes them).

Food for thought anyway.