Should I do LCHF?
MissDeeDee2
Posts: 8 Member
I have about 30 lbs I want to lose. I'm motivated to stay on track but I'm the kind of person that loves to snack and I love fruit.
I keep hearing about how successful LCHF diets are. How do you give up fruit? I can give up bread and starchy veggies with no issue but the lack of fruit seems impossible to me.
What do you find works for you? Cutting calories and eating a balance of everything or cutting down on carbs?
Feel free to add me as a friend. I can use motivated positive peeps.
I keep hearing about how successful LCHF diets are. How do you give up fruit? I can give up bread and starchy veggies with no issue but the lack of fruit seems impossible to me.
What do you find works for you? Cutting calories and eating a balance of everything or cutting down on carbs?
Feel free to add me as a friend. I can use motivated positive peeps.
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So heres the deal for me...
I did Atkins (LCHF) years ago and it works, I lost weight and I felt more energy BUT I couldn't stick to it to maintain my weight.
So my advice is if you think you can stick to it to maintain your weight loss then go for it. I couldn't.1 -
So heres the deal for me...
I did Atkins (LCHF) years ago and it works, I lost weight and I felt more energy BUT I couldn't stick to it to maintain my weight.
So my advice is if you think you can stick to it to maintain your weight loss then go for it. I couldn't.
What did you find difficult?0 -
I love carbs and I would often go over the amount I could have. Which would kick me out of ketosis.1
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Im.just starting my low carb lifestyle ive got an open diary aswell feel free to add me. Im hoping to not feel as hungry2
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Any diet/weight loss plan will work if it 1) provides a calorie deficit, 2) you can and will stick to it, and 3) you stick to it.
The "success" of LCHF is part increased initial water weight loss, part satiety/ease of adherence for those who prefer to eat that way. Oh, and part hype. It's not a magic fat burning diet. It's not for everybody.
If you need to be motivated to stick to your diet, you aren't going to make it, I'm afraid. Find a way of eating and living that you enjoy, that also is leads to good health, including normal weight. It's not that difficult, but you will have to "forget" a lot of what you "know", and relearn, while being critical and openminded (yes, both at the same time) and curious.2 -
So heres the deal for me...
I did Atkins (LCHF) years ago and it works, I lost weight and I felt more energy BUT I couldn't stick to it to maintain my weight.
So my advice is if you think you can stick to it to maintain your weight loss then go for it. I couldn't.
This^
I've tried low carb "for weight loss." It works "for weight loss", but so do other methods of calorie restriction.
The hard part for me would have been the forever part (I never considered forever and gained the weight back). I'm not giving up bread, pasta, rice, fruit....forever. So a diet that helps me lose weight AND helps me keep it off is a better choice.
Losing weight should help you figure out what changes you need to make to keep the weight from creeping back up.3 -
I did Atkins. Felt really malnourished, but I guess I could have been doing it wrong...0
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Any diet that helps you eat the right number of calories will work, including LCHF. So if LCHF seems like a pleasant and easy way for you to eat, try it!
I personally focus on eating a nutrient-dense healthful diet all the time, and cutting calories when I want to lose. LCHF doesn't fit well with my idea of what a healthful diet it (although LCHF can be done in a healthful manner) or how I like to eat (or what makes me feel good), and my aspirations are actually to move somewhat farther away from one than closer to it, but that's me.1 -
Whatever you do, can you do it for the rest of your life? I choose to lose weight slowly, so my body can adjust, so I can learn proper proportions, and create healthy meals that I can make most days.
Yes it's easy to lose weight, but it's much harder to keep it off.2 -
LCHF isconsidered to be below 150 or 100g of carbs per day. Depending on your calories count, that could be as high as 40% of your daily intake, which is still lower than most diets.
Try it. Cut sugars and grains first - all the ultra refined and processed foods - and you will have LOTS of room for fruit and veggies.
I eat less than 30g of carbs per day and manage a few servings of veggies no problem. And that's a ketogenic diet. Someone eating closer to 150g per day could eat 5 times as much carbs as me and still be low carb.3 -
There are pros and cons of LCHF here, as well as interesting tangents and cat gifs: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10426373/low-carb-does-work/p12
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Definitely some pro's and con's to LCHF diet.
I'm was on one for a while and I did enjoy it, however, as a hyper-active, type A personality, we've been known to struggle a bit more with LCHF diets. So, if you tend to have a naturally higher metabolism, I'd suggest against it.
Do you eat meat? Being a vegetarian on a LCHF diet isn't impossible, but it does make it more difficult in my experience.
Lyle McDonald (quite the genius on LCHF diets) analyzes a scientific study on whether a LCHF diet is better than just reducing calories. Read the study, then read his analysis. http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/reduced-fat-reduced-carbohydrate-diets.html/
Good luck
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I don't know if I qualify for calling myself LCHF, but I do like the way I feel when I keep my carbs to 150g per day. I stay satiated and don't have too many issues with hunger cravings or low energy levels. When I make sure to eat adequate protein, fat, and fiber, I really don't have to mindfully avoid carbs, they just kind of stay low all by themselves. The only things I think to restrict are sugary foods. I don't eat much bread or pasta anyway because I am sensitive to wheat. I do have to mindfully make sure I eat fat -- I usually have to add some nuts or some guacamole to some meals. I second @nvmomketo 's suggestion to just try it... adjust your macros to increase fat and fiber and make sure you eat the recommended 0.8 - 1g of protein/kg body weight. See how you do.1
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CorneliusPhoton wrote: »I don't know if I qualify for calling myself LCHF, but I do like the way I feel when I keep my carbs to 150g per day. I stay satiated and don't have too many issues with hunger cravings or low energy levels. When I make sure to eat adequate protein, fat, and fiber, I really don't have to mindfully avoid carbs, they just kind of stay low all by themselves. The only things I think to restrict are sugary foods. I don't eat much bread or pasta anyway because I am sensitive to wheat. I do have to mindfully make sure I eat fat -- I usually have to add some nuts or some guacamole to some meals. I second @nvmomketo 's suggestion to just try it... adjust your macros to increase fat and fiber and make sure you eat the recommended 0.8 - 1g of protein/kg body weight. See how you do.
You're definitely at a lower carb intake than most, but if we are to assume LCHF diet means being in ketosis, generally 100g of carbs or less is required for ketosis.
But 150g of carbs a day is good!1 -
Thank you everyone for your feedback. I think I'm going to aim for 90g of carbs a day and see how my body reacts. This is day one of my weight loss journey and I'm determined to reach my goal.2
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I would recommend doing your research..your body, how many calories you need per day based on your height/weight/age/ activity level.
for me..Counting calories and exercising works.
Simply burn more calories per day than you consume..and you will lose weight. No special diet needed..no need to watch how many carbs you eat.
Keep it simple. I have lost 74+ pounds since march 1st.
Good luck on your journey.1 -
MissDeeDee2 wrote: »Thank you everyone for your feedback. I think I'm going to aim for 90g of carbs a day and see how my body reacts. This is day one of my weight loss journey and I'm determined to reach my goal.
Good idea have you heard of Ketostix? There are these little sticks that you pee on to see if you're in ketosis or not. Not the most reliable things but they help you see if you're on the right track. Keep in mind if you but them though that their threshold for detecting ketones is 50g of carbs or less. 0 -
TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »I don't know if I qualify for calling myself LCHF, but I do like the way I feel when I keep my carbs to 150g per day. I stay satiated and don't have too many issues with hunger cravings or low energy levels. When I make sure to eat adequate protein, fat, and fiber, I really don't have to mindfully avoid carbs, they just kind of stay low all by themselves. The only things I think to restrict are sugary foods. I don't eat much bread or pasta anyway because I am sensitive to wheat. I do have to mindfully make sure I eat fat -- I usually have to add some nuts or some guacamole to some meals. I second @nvmomketo 's suggestion to just try it... adjust your macros to increase fat and fiber and make sure you eat the recommended 0.8 - 1g of protein/kg body weight. See how you do.
You're definitely at a lower carb intake than most, but if we are to assume LCHF diet means being in ketosis, generally 100g of carbs or less is required for ketosis.
But 150g of carbs a day is good!
Does that mean that LCHF diet is synonymous with Keto diet? I thought keto required something more like 50g of carbs per day. Also, I was going off of what nvmomketo said about below 150.0 -
CorneliusPhoton wrote: »TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »I don't know if I qualify for calling myself LCHF, but I do like the way I feel when I keep my carbs to 150g per day. I stay satiated and don't have too many issues with hunger cravings or low energy levels. When I make sure to eat adequate protein, fat, and fiber, I really don't have to mindfully avoid carbs, they just kind of stay low all by themselves. The only things I think to restrict are sugary foods. I don't eat much bread or pasta anyway because I am sensitive to wheat. I do have to mindfully make sure I eat fat -- I usually have to add some nuts or some guacamole to some meals. I second @nvmomketo 's suggestion to just try it... adjust your macros to increase fat and fiber and make sure you eat the recommended 0.8 - 1g of protein/kg body weight. See how you do.
You're definitely at a lower carb intake than most, but if we are to assume LCHF diet means being in ketosis, generally 100g of carbs or less is required for ketosis.
But 150g of carbs a day is good!
Does that mean that LCHF diet is synonymous with Keto diet? I was going off of what nvmomketo said.
Not necessarily synonymous but one eats a LCHF diet to get into ketosis, generally. If you say "low carb-high fat" in the science community they'll assume you mean a version of the keto diet.0 -
TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »I don't know if I qualify for calling myself LCHF, but I do like the way I feel when I keep my carbs to 150g per day. I stay satiated and don't have too many issues with hunger cravings or low energy levels. When I make sure to eat adequate protein, fat, and fiber, I really don't have to mindfully avoid carbs, they just kind of stay low all by themselves. The only things I think to restrict are sugary foods. I don't eat much bread or pasta anyway because I am sensitive to wheat. I do have to mindfully make sure I eat fat -- I usually have to add some nuts or some guacamole to some meals. I second @nvmomketo 's suggestion to just try it... adjust your macros to increase fat and fiber and make sure you eat the recommended 0.8 - 1g of protein/kg body weight. See how you do.
You're definitely at a lower carb intake than most, but if we are to assume LCHF diet means being in ketosis, generally 100g of carbs or less is required for ketosis.
But 150g of carbs a day is good!
Does that mean that LCHF diet is synonymous with Keto diet? I was going off of what nvmomketo said.
Not necessarily synonymous but one eats a LCHF diet to get into ketosis, generally. If you say "low carb-high fat" in the science community they'll assume you mean a version of the keto diet.
I usually just say that I eat a "lower carb" diet. I will continue to do just that. 1 -
Do you WANT to go low carb? Then try it. It's not necessary, it's not better than any other way. If you like it and can stick to it it will work just as well as any other as long as you create a deficit.1
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If it works for you and if you're going to eat like that forever - sure, it's a valid approach.
For an individual person, you might find it easier (or harder) to stick to your calorie goals on LCHF. I personally found it far too restrictive and hated it, others clearly are doing well on it.
Overall, it's no more or less successful than any other approach, it's mostly just personal preference with a bit of personal biology on top.0 -
MissDeeDee2 wrote: »Thank you everyone for your feedback. I think I'm going to aim for 90g of carbs a day and see how my body reacts. This is day one of my weight loss journey and I'm determined to reach my goal.
Make sure you increase your sodium. With lower carbs you will lose water and along with that electrolytes. Increasing sodium to 3000+ mg per day will prevent this. If you get the "low carb flu" aka low electrolytes, you'll know that you need more salt. If you leave it too long you will eventually need more potassium and magnesium too.
Good luck.CorneliusPhoton wrote: »TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »I don't know if I qualify for calling myself LCHF, but I do like the way I feel when I keep my carbs to 150g per day. I stay satiated and don't have too many issues with hunger cravings or low energy levels. When I make sure to eat adequate protein, fat, and fiber, I really don't have to mindfully avoid carbs, they just kind of stay low all by themselves. The only things I think to restrict are sugary foods. I don't eat much bread or pasta anyway because I am sensitive to wheat. I do have to mindfully make sure I eat fat -- I usually have to add some nuts or some guacamole to some meals. I second @nvmomketo 's suggestion to just try it... adjust your macros to increase fat and fiber and make sure you eat the recommended 0.8 - 1g of protein/kg body weight. See how you do.
You're definitely at a lower carb intake than most, but if we are to assume LCHF diet means being in ketosis, generally 100g of carbs or less is required for ketosis.
But 150g of carbs a day is good!
Does that mean that LCHF diet is synonymous with Keto diet? I thought keto required something more like 50g of carbs per day. Also, I was going off of what nvmomketo said about below 150.
Their not exactly the same. Keto is taking a LCHF diet a bit further than most people will do. If you aren't looking for the health benefits of ketones, or find that you do better managing your calories on a very low carb diet, then ketosis is not needed.TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »I don't know if I qualify for calling myself LCHF, but I do like the way I feel when I keep my carbs to 150g per day. I stay satiated and don't have too many issues with hunger cravings or low energy levels. When I make sure to eat adequate protein, fat, and fiber, I really don't have to mindfully avoid carbs, they just kind of stay low all by themselves. The only things I think to restrict are sugary foods. I don't eat much bread or pasta anyway because I am sensitive to wheat. I do have to mindfully make sure I eat fat -- I usually have to add some nuts or some guacamole to some meals. I second @nvmomketo 's suggestion to just try it... adjust your macros to increase fat and fiber and make sure you eat the recommended 0.8 - 1g of protein/kg body weight. See how you do.
You're definitely at a lower carb intake than most, but if we are to assume LCHF diet means being in ketosis, generally 100g of carbs or less is required for ketosis.
But 150g of carbs a day is good!
Does that mean that LCHF diet is synonymous with Keto diet? I was going off of what nvmomketo said.
Not necessarily synonymous but one eats a LCHF diet to get into ketosis, generally. If you say "low carb-high fat" in the science community they'll assume you mean a version of the keto diet.
I don't think I agree with the bolded. I often get annoyed with "low carb" experiments because they are still at 200+g of carbs. I think most people and papers assume low carb is 150g or lower. Approximately.
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MissDeeDee2 wrote: »Thank you everyone for your feedback. I think I'm going to aim for 90g of carbs a day and see how my body reacts. This is day one of my weight loss journey and I'm determined to reach my goal.
Make sure you increase your sodium. With lower carbs you will lose water and along with that electrolytes. Increasing sodium to 3000+ mg per day will prevent this. If you get the "low carb flu" aka low electrolytes, you'll know that you need more salt. If you leave it too long you will eventually need more potassium and magnesium too.
Good luck.CorneliusPhoton wrote: »TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »I don't know if I qualify for calling myself LCHF, but I do like the way I feel when I keep my carbs to 150g per day. I stay satiated and don't have too many issues with hunger cravings or low energy levels. When I make sure to eat adequate protein, fat, and fiber, I really don't have to mindfully avoid carbs, they just kind of stay low all by themselves. The only things I think to restrict are sugary foods. I don't eat much bread or pasta anyway because I am sensitive to wheat. I do have to mindfully make sure I eat fat -- I usually have to add some nuts or some guacamole to some meals. I second @nvmomketo 's suggestion to just try it... adjust your macros to increase fat and fiber and make sure you eat the recommended 0.8 - 1g of protein/kg body weight. See how you do.
You're definitely at a lower carb intake than most, but if we are to assume LCHF diet means being in ketosis, generally 100g of carbs or less is required for ketosis.
But 150g of carbs a day is good!
Does that mean that LCHF diet is synonymous with Keto diet? I thought keto required something more like 50g of carbs per day. Also, I was going off of what nvmomketo said about below 150.
Their not exactly the same. Keto is taking a LCHF diet a bit further than most people will do. If you aren't looking for the health benefits of ketones, or find that you do better managing your calories on a very low carb diet, then ketosis is not needed.TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »TravisGM92 wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »I don't know if I qualify for calling myself LCHF, but I do like the way I feel when I keep my carbs to 150g per day. I stay satiated and don't have too many issues with hunger cravings or low energy levels. When I make sure to eat adequate protein, fat, and fiber, I really don't have to mindfully avoid carbs, they just kind of stay low all by themselves. The only things I think to restrict are sugary foods. I don't eat much bread or pasta anyway because I am sensitive to wheat. I do have to mindfully make sure I eat fat -- I usually have to add some nuts or some guacamole to some meals. I second @nvmomketo 's suggestion to just try it... adjust your macros to increase fat and fiber and make sure you eat the recommended 0.8 - 1g of protein/kg body weight. See how you do.
You're definitely at a lower carb intake than most, but if we are to assume LCHF diet means being in ketosis, generally 100g of carbs or less is required for ketosis.
But 150g of carbs a day is good!
Does that mean that LCHF diet is synonymous with Keto diet? I was going off of what nvmomketo said.
Not necessarily synonymous but one eats a LCHF diet to get into ketosis, generally. If you say "low carb-high fat" in the science community they'll assume you mean a version of the keto diet.
I don't think I agree with the bolded. I often get annoyed with "low carb" experiments because they are still at 200+g of carbs. I think most people and papers assume low carb is 150g or lower. Approximately.
I guess I should've added "that's what it's been in my experience". When I say LCHF keto in other forums I'm in, it's mostly assumed that the two are one in the same, but I guess they have their technical differences0 -
If you like steak, poultry, fish, eggs, some dairy, blueberries and whipped cream, nuts, avocados, and green veggies, and won't miss refined sugar, grains (pasta, pizza, bagels, rice), potatoes, and some other stuff, by all means go for it.0
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Keto is not effective at keeping weight off and can be counterproductive. Keto is a fad diet.
http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/healthy-eating/do-low-carb-diets-work?page=1Studies show that for every person who succeeds on a low carbohydrate regimen, there are three or four more who do not. In fact, the majority of studies indicate that low-carb diets are no more or less effective than other diet approaches.
http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/trends-fads/carbs-or-fat-which-is-the-bodys-preferred-fuel-source?page=1Athletes who follow low carb diets for an extended period of time become less able to utilize carbohydrates as fuel. This is usually not to their benefit. Losing your metabolic flexibility can also increase your risk of Type 2 diabetes.0 -
Keto is not effective at keeping weight off and can be counterproductive. Keto is a fad diet.
http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/healthy-eating/do-low-carb-diets-work?page=1Studies show that for every person who succeeds on a low carbohydrate regimen, there are three or four more who do not. In fact, the majority of studies indicate that low-carb diets are no more or less effective than other diet approaches.
http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/trends-fads/carbs-or-fat-which-is-the-bodys-preferred-fuel-source?page=1Athletes who follow low carb diets for an extended period of time become less able to utilize carbohydrates as fuel. This is usually not to their benefit. Losing your metabolic flexibility can also increase your risk of Type 2 diabetes.
Thank you for your comment, whether well meaning or not, they got me to read the rest of what was said in the links you shared. (I kind of think you did it on purpose). I took your statements as a rather stern, negative opinion towards low carb, high fat. Yet the links you shared, in my opinion, were rather positive towards trying it to see what this does to your body. The fact (if it really is a fact) that (keto, lchf, ketosis, etc), works for 1 out of 4 is cool! Because, I am definitely the "1" in 1 out of 4 that it works for. I do not intend to stay with it as strictly as I am at the moment but I have learned in a super clear way what "easy" carbs do to me. (Something I should have learned long ago but sugar is so sweet and tempting.) So now I will be on a journey to figure out what kinds of carbs my body handles well. I'm just glad I tried it and am learning more what my body does and does not do well with.2 -
bradcfairchild wrote: »Keto is not effective at keeping weight off and can be counterproductive. Keto is a fad diet.
http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/healthy-eating/do-low-carb-diets-work?page=1Studies show that for every person who succeeds on a low carbohydrate regimen, there are three or four more who do not. In fact, the majority of studies indicate that low-carb diets are no more or less effective than other diet approaches.
http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/trends-fads/carbs-or-fat-which-is-the-bodys-preferred-fuel-source?page=1Athletes who follow low carb diets for an extended period of time become less able to utilize carbohydrates as fuel. This is usually not to their benefit. Losing your metabolic flexibility can also increase your risk of Type 2 diabetes.
Thank you for your comment, whether well meaning or not, they got me to read the rest of what was said in the links you shared. (I kind of think you did it on purpose). I took your statements as a rather stern, negative opinion towards low carb, high fat. Yet the links you shared, in my opinion, were rather positive towards trying it to see what this does to your body. The fact (if it really is a fact) that (keto, lchf, ketosis, etc), works for 1 out of 4 is cool! Because, I am definitely the "1" in 1 out of 4 that it works for. I do not intend to stay with it as strictly as I am at the moment but I have learned in a supper clear way what "easy" carbs do to me. (Something I should have learned long ago but sugar is so sweet and tempting.) So now I will be on a journey to figure out what kinds of carbs my body handles well. I'm just glad I tried it and am learning more what my body does and does not do well with.
Yeah, I don't like the keto diet, but I do like when people take control of their diet and eat healthy and become, and stay, a healthy weight. That is the goal and why I like those links.1 -
"Athletes who follow low carb diets for an extended period of time become less able to utilize carbohydrates as fuel. This is usually not to their benefit. Losing your metabolic flexibility can also increase your risk of Type 2 diabetes."
Tell that to Lebron James. The flabby/fat James of 2014 went LCHF, and look at him now. But the poor guy. He won't be able to utilize carbs as fuel. Get that man some Italian bread, Fettucine Alfredo, and a slice of cheesecake before he wastes away.
And the notion by remaining slim and fit, and minimizing sugars and grains, increases your risk of Type 2, does not pass the smell test. Being obese and sitting on your rear end all day increases your risk of Type 2 diabetes.
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