LOW CARB - How much "low" is supposed to be ?
Untilproud11
Posts: 297 Member
Hello
Just started low carb due to pcos ... So still learning
could anyone plz inform r me of how many grams of carbs is helping you and your stats plz ... Im kinda confused I never tracked my macros before...
28 yo female
153lbs
5'2
Sedentary
Goal weight 130lbs
1400 cals
Also plz Give me an opinion by looking at my stats
Thx a bunch
Just started low carb due to pcos ... So still learning
could anyone plz inform r me of how many grams of carbs is helping you and your stats plz ... Im kinda confused I never tracked my macros before...
28 yo female
153lbs
5'2
Sedentary
Goal weight 130lbs
1400 cals
Also plz Give me an opinion by looking at my stats
Thx a bunch
0
Replies
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The Atkins low carb diet target is about 15% of total calories, while other diet regimes target about 30% of total calories.0
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I am lower carb because I find "low" carb to be too low (under 30g) and I am eating less than 90g a day. I find it sustainable and allows for a few carbs here and there.0
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I can only lose weight at a normal pace (2 lbs a week) if I stay with low carb. It can get difficult. I tend to get to a point where I just do not want to eat at all. I try to stay between 30-40 carbs per day. I lose best if under 30. I can tell you one thing that is vitally important. You MUST eat some carbs with every meal. If you do not; you run the risk of bottoming out your blood sugar to a very dangerous level. This can actually cause death. Also if following a low carb diet be aware of the fact that if you start to feel light headed, sweaty, shaky etc, you need to get some carbs fast. I am a nurse of 20+ years and have seen this happen way to often since the Atkins craze. Low carb can be successful way to lose weight, we just need to be careful and mindful of how the body works with food.0
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Could you give sources for this - I've never seen this caution anywhereI can only lose weight at a normal pace (2 lbs a week) if I stay with low carb. It can get difficult. I tend to get to a point where I just do not want to eat at all. I try to stay between 30-40 carbs per day. I lose best if under 30. I can tell you one thing that is vitally important. You MUST eat some carbs with every meal. If you do not; you run the risk of bottoming out your blood sugar to a very dangerous level. This can actually cause death. Also if following a low carb diet be aware of the fact that if you start to feel light headed, sweaty, shaky etc, you need to get some carbs fast. I am a nurse of 20+ years and have seen this happen way to often since the Atkins craze. Low carb can be successful way to lose weight, we just need to be careful and mindful of how the body works with food.
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Could you give sources for this - I've never seen this caution anywhereI can only lose weight at a normal pace (2 lbs a week) if I stay with low carb. It can get difficult. I tend to get to a point where I just do not want to eat at all. I try to stay between 30-40 carbs per day. I lose best if under 30. I can tell you one thing that is vitally important. You MUST eat some carbs with every meal. If you do not; you run the risk of bottoming out your blood sugar to a very dangerous level. This can actually cause death. Also if following a low carb diet be aware of the fact that if you start to feel light headed, sweaty, shaky etc, you need to get some carbs fast. I am a nurse of 20+ years and have seen this happen way to often since the Atkins craze. Low carb can be successful way to lose weight, we just need to be careful and mindful of how the body works with food.
Really? It's definitely true.0 -
Experiment and try different carb levels. Give it a few weeks before changing levels though. Fwiw, I have pcos and lose fine eating 100-150 grams per day. Other women with pcos need less/more.0
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I realize that's not a source I'm just too exhausted right now0
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UCould you give sources for this - I've never seen this caution anywhereI can only lose weight at a normal pace (2 lbs a week) if I stay with low carb. It can get difficult. I tend to get to a point where I just do not want to eat at all. I try to stay between 30-40 carbs per day. I lose best if under 30. I can tell you one thing that is vitally important. You MUST eat some carbs with every meal. If you do not; you run the risk of bottoming out your blood sugar to a very dangerous level. This can actually cause death. Also if following a low carb diet be aware of the fact that if you start to feel light headed, sweaty, shaky etc, you need to get some carbs fast. I am a nurse of 20+ years and have seen this happen way to often since the Atkins craze. Low carb can be successful way to lose weight, we just need to be careful and mindful of how the body works with food.
Really? It's definitely true.
You theoretically don't need carbs with every meal so long as you don't have diabetes or other medical conditions and can manage your glucose effectively. Your liver and muscle cells store energy in the form of glycogen that it can convert to glucose ("sugar") for short term use while your body digests the proteins and fats and converts them to sugars which takes a bit longer than your standard carb.0 -
To clarify, this allows you to regulate your blood sugar and keep it normalized between meals despite not eating classic carbohydrates...assuming you are not fasting and do not have any other medical problems involving glycogen storage or glucose/insulin regulation0
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Referring to the general too low carb + shaky, etc = dangerous basically0
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I personally chose not to do low carb because I couldn't figure out how to get enough calories without od'ing on the fat. Low carb for me was 50-60 and it was too difficult, but i was able to lose weight before low carb anyway. It made meal planning and cooking a bit of a challenge and after logging and experimenting with foods, I said forget it.0
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Hey I have PCOS too and am down about 12kg since I was diagnosed.
You don't need to worry about carbs, you just need to keep your sugar in check. PCOS affects your body's ability regulate insulin, which can make losing weight hard but it's not impossible. Read up about Insulin Resistance if you like. The muscle:fat ratio in your body has an effect on this, so once you start losing weight, you already improve your ratio and tackle insulin resistance, and then it gets even easier! So once you start you will see big changes and it gets easier over time.
In general, to lose weight the principle is simple, you need to eat less calories than your body uses. MFP will have done this calculation for you, so you just have to eat within your calorie limits (you say 1400 cals). Eating lower carb and higher protein may help you to stay fuller for longer, but you don't need to eliminate carbohydrates altogether. Try getting enough protein and fats, and then fill the rest with carbohydrates but you do not need to eliminate them! Stay away from anything with too much sugar or processed (chocolate, sugary drinks, overly processed foods, white bread, white rice, flavoured yoghurts, jars of sauces, all these kind of things) and try and eat fresh and unprocessed foods as much as possible, this will help eliminate hidden sugars.
If you look at the nutritional information on a packet of food, you will see "Carbohydrates" and then "of which sugars". You might see that per 100g, chocolate has 50g of carbohydrates (45g of which sugars), and oats have 60g carbohydrates and just 1g of sugars. The chocolate will wreak havoc with your insulin, the oats will cause very little to happen. So don't be afraid of a bowl of oats, it's low calorie (150 cals for 40g made with water), low sugar, and I add some unsweetened almond milk and vanilla protein powder (after cooking, adds about 80 cals but my goal is higher and this keeps me fuller longer) and it's a delicious bowl with very little sugars. Carbs you can eat without too much fear are Oats, Wholewheat Pasta (try a portion of 60-70g and see how you get on), Brown Rice, Quinoa, Sweet Potato (ok this has a bit of sugar but I love it!). Rice Cakes and Wholegrain Melba Toast are also alright as carby snacks. Just don't go adding sugar, tons of fruits, jam etc. to your healthy foods. If you are using things like Peanut Butter, make sure it's 100% Peanut Butter and nothing else. It should be fairly fluid in the jar, not buttery.
Look at the sugar content of everything you buy!!! I cannot stress this enough, it is THE MOST important thing with PCOS, while staying within your calorie goals. You do not need to worry about carbohydrates themselves.
You could try something like 110g protein, 60g fat, and 110g carbohydrates to start with and see how you get on? (My own is about 35% protein, 30% fat 35% carbohydrate but changes every day. Everyone's goals are different and you need to find what works for you.. MFP default is about 50% carbs but I work out a lot so need more protein in my diet than you might, so adjust this for you! Send me a message if you want ideas of what I eat). Just find what works for you, that is quite a high protein goal and you could easily replace it with more carbs if you wanted, if you find you're still losing weight. If you are eating lean cuts of meat/poultry, fish, eggs, nuts etc., you'll find your meal is mostly protein and you hardly need the carbs anyway. Keep those carb portions small, weighing everything and keeping an eye on the totals for each meal so you can see where all your calories for the day came from. Healthy fats are found in plant fats like coconut oil, avocado, nuts and nut butters, also eggs etc. I love 0% fat greek yoghurt but you'll see it also has a few grams of carbs, I don't care because it's yummy and not sugary. Incorporate the foods you like and try and reach your protein and fat goals, make sure you are eating enough vegetables and getting plenty of nourishment, and then worry about that carb goal.
Be mindful also that MFP will count all your carbs from all your vegetables, and don't get caught up in this. If you use mushrooms, onions, tomatoes etc, it might count an awful lot of carbs from those but they're really not worth worrying about, so don't stress. Carbs from green vegetables are mainly from fibre so these have no effect on your insulin resistance and are like "free carbs". Eat as much veg as you want. I try to limit my fruit intake as I think fructose+PCOS isn't a great combo if you are trying to lose fat. I eat soooo many vegetables and salads every day, and have a piece of fruit about once a fortnight, if even. It really has a poor effect on my energy, I can feel the energy spike and dip and as I've eliminated sugar as much as I can, fruit now seems super sweet and is more like a treat for me. If you are serious about losing fat with PCOS, I would swap fruit for vegetables. This might be hard to do, I know fruit is delicious, low in calories and full of nutrients, but so are vegetables and they have much less sugar in general.
I know it says you are sedentary but if you could incorporate a little bit of exercise, this might help that muscle:fat ratio. If you could incorporate a little bit of strength training, strengthening your muscles will make your body cope even better with insulin resistance from PCOS. It's a wonderful circle that the more fat you lose and the more muscle you train, the better your body regulates insulin so your PCOS will start to sort itself out after a few months/years. I went from 6 months between cycles to about 4-5 weeks now, and it's just your body regulating its own hormones, it's fascinating! So you can help by keeping that insulin in check, eating well and exercising when possible.
Don't worry about carbohydrates, concentrate on having WAY less sugar. Eat within your 1400cals, try and get a good mix of vegetables, protein, fats and low-sugar carbs, weigh and track everything for at least a fortnight to see how it works for you, it's all a big experiment until you see what works. Take some walks or other form of exercise if possible, and down the line if you could join a gym or get some dumbells for at home, you'll surprise yourself again with the effect exercise has on your pcos. It's not a complicated condition and it is not an excuse for weight loss. You haven't said it but I see many people here saying "oohhh I have PCOS it's hard for me". It's really, really, really not. Just eat less, move more, cut out sugar and you can lose that fat! Good luck!0 -
You MUST eat some carbs with every meal. If you do not; you run the risk of bottoming out your blood sugar to a very dangerous level. This can actually cause death. .
This is rubbish.
Blood sugar homeostasis works fine in the absence of carbs or indeed food as long as some nurse doesn't inject you with insulin (see "Angel of Death, Grantham, UK).
You will not have a hypoglycaemic problem if you don't eat carbohydrates at every meal.
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Hey I have PCOS too and am down about 12kg since I was diagnosed.
You don't need to worry about carbs, you just need to keep your sugar in check. PCOS affects your body's ability regulate insulin, which can make losing weight hard but it's not impossible. Read up about Insulin Resistance if you like. The muscle:fat ratio in your body has an effect on this, so once you start losing weight, you already improve your ratio and tackle insulin resistance, and then it gets even easier! So once you start you will see big changes and it gets easier over time.
In general, to lose weight the principle is simple, you need to eat less calories than your body uses. MFP will have done this calculation for you, so you just have to eat within your calorie limits (you say 1400 cals). Eating lower carb and higher protein may help you to stay fuller for longer, but you don't need to eliminate carbohydrates altogether. Try getting enough protein and fats, and then fill the rest with carbohydrates but you do not need to eliminate them! Stay away from anything with too much sugar or processed (chocolate, sugary drinks, overly processed foods, white bread, white rice, flavoured yoghurts, jars of sauces, all these kind of things) and try and eat fresh and unprocessed foods as much as possible, this will help eliminate hidden sugars.
If you look at the nutritional information on a packet of food, you will see "Carbohydrates" and then "of which sugars". You might see that per 100g, chocolate has 50g of carbohydrates (45g of which sugars), and oats have 60g carbohydrates and just 1g of sugars. The chocolate will wreak havoc with your insulin, the oats will cause very little to happen. So don't be afraid of a bowl of oats, it's low calorie (150 cals for 40g made with water), low sugar, and I add some unsweetened almond milk and vanilla protein powder (after cooking, adds about 80 cals but my goal is higher and this keeps me fuller longer) and it's a delicious bowl with very little sugars. Carbs you can eat without too much fear are Oats, Wholewheat Pasta (try a portion of 60-70g and see how you get on), Brown Rice, Quinoa, Sweet Potato (ok this has a bit of sugar but I love it!). Rice Cakes and Wholegrain Melba Toast are also alright as carby snacks. Just don't go adding sugar, tons of fruits, jam etc. to your healthy foods. If you are using things like Peanut Butter, make sure it's 100% Peanut Butter and nothing else. It should be fairly fluid in the jar, not buttery.
Look at the sugar content of everything you buy!!! I cannot stress this enough, it is THE MOST important thing with PCOS, while staying within your calorie goals. You do not need to worry about carbohydrates themselves.
You could try something like 110g protein, 60g fat, and 110g carbohydrates to start with and see how you get on? (My own is about 35% protein, 30% fat 35% carbohydrate but changes every day. Everyone's goals are different and you need to find what works for you.. MFP default is about 50% carbs but I work out a lot so need more protein in my diet than you might, so adjust this for you! Send me a message if you want ideas of what I eat). Just find what works for you, that is quite a high protein goal and you could easily replace it with more carbs if you wanted, if you find you're still losing weight. If you are eating lean cuts of meat/poultry, fish, eggs, nuts etc., you'll find your meal is mostly protein and you hardly need the carbs anyway. Keep those carb portions small, weighing everything and keeping an eye on the totals for each meal so you can see where all your calories for the day came from. Healthy fats are found in plant fats like coconut oil, avocado, nuts and nut butters, also eggs etc. I love 0% fat greek yoghurt but you'll see it also has a few grams of carbs, I don't care because it's yummy and not sugary. Incorporate the foods you like and try and reach your protein and fat goals, make sure you are eating enough vegetables and getting plenty of nourishment, and then worry about that carb goal.
Be mindful also that MFP will count all your carbs from all your vegetables, and don't get caught up in this. If you use mushrooms, onions, tomatoes etc, it might count an awful lot of carbs from those but they're really not worth worrying about, so don't stress. Carbs from green vegetables are mainly from fibre so these have no effect on your insulin resistance and are like "free carbs". Eat as much veg as you want. I try to limit my fruit intake as I think fructose+PCOS isn't a great combo if you are trying to lose fat. I eat soooo many vegetables and salads every day, and have a piece of fruit about once a fortnight, if even. It really has a poor effect on my energy, I can feel the energy spike and dip and as I've eliminated sugar as much as I can, fruit now seems super sweet and is more like a treat for me. If you are serious about losing fat with PCOS, I would swap fruit for vegetables. This might be hard to do, I know fruit is delicious, low in calories and full of nutrients, but so are vegetables and they have much less sugar in general.
I know it says you are sedentary but if you could incorporate a little bit of exercise, this might help that muscle:fat ratio. If you could incorporate a little bit of strength training, strengthening your muscles will make your body cope even better with insulin resistance from PCOS. It's a wonderful circle that the more fat you lose and the more muscle you train, the better your body regulates insulin so your PCOS will start to sort itself out after a few months/years. I went from 6 months between cycles to about 4-5 weeks now, and it's just your body regulating its own hormones, it's fascinating! So you can help by keeping that insulin in check, eating well and exercising when possible.
Don't worry about carbohydrates, concentrate on having WAY less sugar. Eat within your 1400cals, try and get a good mix of vegetables, protein, fats and low-sugar carbs, weigh and track everything for at least a fortnight to see how it works for you, it's all a big experiment until you see what works. Take some walks or other form of exercise if possible, and down the line if you could join a gym or get some dumbells for at home, you'll surprise yourself again with the effect exercise has on your pcos. It's not a complicated condition and it is not an excuse for weight loss. You haven't said it but I see many people here saying "oohhh I have PCOS it's hard for me". It's really, really, really not. Just eat less, move more, cut out sugar and you can lose that fat! Good luck!
Thanks a lot for this helpful information!!!!
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Join this group:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/3070-p-c-o-sis0 -
@foiensoi impressive. Wow. Well done. Worth reading twice.0
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I can lose weight with PCOS as long as I eat less food consistently. Low carb, high carb, vegan, paleo, I've tried all the fad diets and lost on all of them. You know what really matters? Consistency. Whatever you can do to make eating less food consistently easy for you, do that, even with PCOS. Good luck!
Also add in exercise, not as much for weight loss but the health benefits for PCOS have been studied and verified for insulin and hormone regulation.0 -
I find I personally do best if I keep my carbs below around 60-70 grams per day. I did Atkins years ago with great success, but maintaining the low carb levels it calls for can be difficult, and although I almost always felt full...I still felt deprived! I think the biggest thing when doing a low carb way of eating though, is where your carbs come from..not necessarily how many you eat. Getting your carbs from leafy green veggies or other non starchy vegetables is the best you can do. Avoid the sugary and processed carbs as much as you can. Like someone else mentioned above, give it a few weeks before you adjust the level again to give it time to work. I would recommend starting at a lower number and adding in more carbs over time until you get to a level where you aren't losing (or losing as much as you want) to find what works for your body!0
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I can only lose weight at a normal pace (2 lbs a week) if I stay with low carb. It can get difficult. I tend to get to a point where I just do not want to eat at all. I try to stay between 30-40 carbs per day. I lose best if under 30. I can tell you one thing that is vitally important. You MUST eat some carbs with every meal. If you do not; you run the risk of bottoming out your blood sugar to a very dangerous level. This can actually cause death. Also if following a low carb diet be aware of the fact that if you start to feel light headed, sweaty, shaky etc, you need to get some carbs fast. I am a nurse of 20+ years and have seen this happen way to often since the Atkins craze. Low carb can be successful way to lose weight, we just need to be careful and mindful of how the body works with food.
Nonsense. I was far more prone to syncope from reactive hypoglycemia when I was eating a high carb, low fat diet. In the three years I've been eating hflc, I've had precisely one episode of syncope - after eating a high carb "cheat" meal. Hflc diets are far better at regulating blood glucose - no high highs means no low lows (assuming you aren't on insulin). Now that I don't eat more than 80g of carbs in a day hunger is not an emergency situation. I don't need to carry candy with me everywhere, I can delay or even skip a meal without that shakey lightheaded feeling setting in, and I'm not needing to snack/graze all day just to keep blood sugar normal. I feel a lot safer eating this way; I'm no longer worried about passing out while driving or some such...
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Low carb is usually thought to be below 100g to 150g. You can strive for zero carbs and be perfectly healthy.
I try to eat below 20g of carbs per day. I generally feel better the lower my carbs are, plus i avoid cravings then.
BTW, I am another who had reactive hypoglycaemia who has found it has resolved since cutting carbs.0 -
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Hello
Just started low carb due to pcos ... So still learning
could anyone plz inform r me of how many grams of carbs is helping you and your stats plz ... Im kinda confused I never tracked my macros before...
28 yo female
153lbs
5'2
Sedentary
Goal weight 130lbs
1400 cals
Also plz Give me an opinion by looking at my stats
Thx a bunch
I've seen a lot of recommendations of "lower" carb for PCOS. Many people don't want to go to the extremes of keto (what many of the recommendations above seem to be), and it's definitely not a requirement to lose weight, even with the PCOS. I'd say start around 150g, and then adjust after a few weeks depending on how you feel.0 -
I've been an RN for 29 years. I find a balanced approach safe and more sustainable for the long haul. Keto and Atkins can both be helpful for the person who is willing to be under the care and supervision of a doctor and follow that doctor's advice. Personally, I keep my carbs under 130 grams per day. I just had 38 for my lunch of quinoa, beans, greens, and butternut squash.0
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I've been an RN for 29 years. I find a balanced approach safe and more sustainable for the long haul. Keto and Atkins can both be helpful for the person who is willing to be under the care and supervision of a doctor and follow that doctor's advice. Personally, I keep my carbs under 130 grams per day. I just had 38 for my lunch of quinoa, beans, greens, and butternut squash.
I have never had a need to be under a doctor's care for a ketogenic diet. They are not dangerous.0 -
Old fashioned Atkins before the shakes and bars: induction levels were 20 grams total spread out through each meal. About 5grams of green vegetables with meals with the rest used for dairy or other. There wasn't artificial crap or fake sugar etc allowed. Only induction list foods
I think you need to
Experiment. If I eat my carbs as just green veggies I am less than 30 grams. If I add starchy vegetables I am above 50. If I eat fruit or yogurt I am closer to 100. Find the sweet spot for YOU! My sweet spot formula is between 60-80 grams
Losing + reducing cravings + fuel for a workout0 -
If you want to try low(er) carb, focus on foods that are mainly protein and fat-
Yogurt, eggs, breakfast meats of all kinds, low(er) carb protein shakes and bars, avocado, cheese, milk, butter, deli meats, wraps, salmon and all fish, chicken, ground turkey, steak, etc.
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Experiment and try different carb levels. Give it a few weeks before changing levels though. Fwiw, I have pcos and lose fine eating 100-150 grams per day. Other women with pcos need less/more.
Yep. The diabetic recommendation is approximately 30G per meal plus one snack, which would be about 120G/day. That is moderate carb. Usually low carb is defined as more like 30G for the whole day.
I have PCOS plus four other metabolic diseases. 75G/day is my magic number. I absolutely have to be under 100G or eat a VERY low number of calories if I do not want to gain.0 -
Nerdycurls wrote: »I personally chose not to do low carb because I couldn't figure out how to get enough calories without od'ing on the fat. Low carb for me was 50-60 and it was too difficult, but i was able to lose weight before low carb anyway. It made meal planning and cooking a bit of a challenge and after logging and experimenting with foods, I said forget it.
The point is to eat plenty of fat and little carbs. Fat isn't bad for you. By increasing the amount of fat in your diet you don't need to count calories or even worry that you aren't getting enough. Your body will know when you have enough. But it all depends on the person I guess. I find it easier to eat like this because I feel satisfied after every meal.0 -
If you pay close attention while you are changing carb levels, you may notice ranges where you feel better/worse. I do best at <150g.0
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