low carb diet questions

tanyanie11
tanyanie11 Posts: 44 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
how many carbs do you eat a day? and how much protein and fat? are you losing weight? has it been hard? do you exercise? how much do you weigh and how long have you been on a diet? how much have you lost already? how many calories do you usually burn per day?

i'm curious haha
«1

Replies

  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    how many carbs do you eat a day?

    Close to none

    and how much protein and fat?

    Not sure anymore. Probably 25% protein.

    are you losing weight? has it been hard?

    I'm about at maintenance but I'm still losing slowly. Not hard for me if carbs are very low.

    do you exercise?

    Not consistently.

    how much do you weigh and how long have you been on a diet?

    Around 157. I'm 5'8" I'm a size 10/12. I started very low carb about 3.5 years ago. Only had about 30-40 lbs to lose. Lost that in the first 5 months

    how much have you lost already?

    I was a bit lighter at one point. Maybe 150. I regained some about a year ago when I let my carbs go up (I get hungrier and feel worse). I'm still slowly re-losing it.

    how many calories do you usually burn per day? i'm curious haha

    Not sure. I started losing on 1500 a day. I seem to be able to eat 1800-2500 without gaining when carbs are low.

  • FlyingMolly
    FlyingMolly Posts: 490 Member
    tanyanie11 wrote: »
    how many carbs do you eat a day? and how much protein and fat? are you losing weight? has it been hard? do you exercise? how much do you weigh and how long have you been on a diet? how much have you lost already? how many calories do you usually burn per day?

    i'm curious haha

    My carbs are in the 60s or 70s most days, but I try to get a lot of those from fiber so that my net carbs are usually 45 or less.

    Protein and fat make up the rest of my calories.

    I’m at maintenance now, toying around with the idea of losing 5-10 vanity pounds, but I haven’t gotten serious about those.

    I exercise a lot. I teach fitness classs and lead an active lifestyle, and I set aside an afternoon a week to lift seriously, the way I don’t get to do in classes. I did NOT exercise almost at all during my first month or so of low-carb. Work was really slow, and I went from three crazy plyo workouts a week to basically just walking. I felt like I could walk forever, but the idea of lifting or jumping was absolutely repellant for a long time. It took weeks for my body to adapt to low-carb, but now that it has I feel great, and I’m working out way more than before.

    I went from 153 to 125 in five months. I’ve been holding pretty steady for the last five since then, although I’m very slowly inching down toward 120 to see if I like it there. I like being athletic, and don’t want to sacrifice muscle just for the sake of a smaller number on the scale.

    2100 calories is a pretty standard day for me. Sometimes I hit 2300, but on more relaxed days it’s a lot lower, so I use a fitness tracker to help me keep perspective.
  • youngmomtaz
    youngmomtaz Posts: 1,075 Member
    The “normal”way or I assume you mean high carb way of using energy is not a myth. The myth is that low carb athletes have no energy and cannot function
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
    nvmomketo wrote: »
    OldAssDude wrote: »
    nvmomketo wrote: »
    OldAssDude wrote: »
    nvmomketo wrote: »
    OldAssDude wrote: »
    tanyanie11 wrote: »
    how many carbs do you eat a day?
    • a lot
    and how much protein and fat?
    • a lot
    are you losing weight?
    • maintaining
    has it been hard?
    • no really the eating part, but getting into the habit of daily exercise was pretty hard
    do you exercise?
    • 7 days a week
    how much do you weigh?
    • 185
    how long have you been on a diet?
    • never really went on a diet per say, but i did monitor my intake to learn how to eat better
    how much have you lost already?
    • 50 to 60 lbs.
    how many calories do you usually burn per day?
    • 500 to 1000 active calories (exercise), plus my regular calories about 2000. So about 2500 to 3500 total.
    i'm curious haha

    As far as the subject line "Low Carb Diet" goes, if you exercise, you need more carbs because that is mainly what you burn when exercising.

    This is actually a myth. The body can use carbs or fat. When switching to fats, there is an adaptation time which can last a few weeks to a few months where you might feel your performance is affected a bit. After that, it is pretty equal to carbs. Possibly slightly better for endurance events and possibly slightly worse for explosive events like sprinting or power lifting.

    No it's not a myth.

    The body burns mostly carbs and some fat during exercise. Lower intensity exercise will burn a higher percentage of fat then higher intensity, but still mostly carbs.

    I'm afraid that it is still a myth, The science is not widely known yet so many people have not yet seen the information behind it.

    I've been ketogenic a few years. For the last 6 months I have been close to eating as a carnivore; I doubt I eat more than 50g of carbs a week. I find there is no difference in my energy supply for exercise. If anything I feel like my energy is better. Last week I played a 30 minute game of basketball with the teen boys I coach. No problem. And I'm what I would call a weekend warrior who does not train consistently.

    A sweeping statement that you need more carbs because that is what you burn when exercising is not right. You burn what is available and get good at burning what your body is adapted to.

    If you look at Phinney and Volek's FASTER study (between endurance athletes that use carbs or fats for fuel) you can see that the amount of carbs and fats used depends only on what they are eating and used to eating.

    The F.A.S.T.E.R. study from 2015
    https://www.metabolismjournal.com/article/S0026-0495(15)00334-0/fulltext

    An article discussing it:
    http://www.vespapower.com/the-emerging-science-on-fat-adaptation/

    Just did a quick search and found a couple things...

    The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, adequate-protein, low-carbohydrate diet that in medicine is used primarily to treat difficult-to-control (refractory) epilepsy in children. The diet forces the body to burn fats rather than carbohydrates.

    Ketosis is a normal metabolic process, something your body does to keep working. When it doesn't have enough carbohydrates from food for your cells to burn for energy, it burns fat instead. ... Ketosis can become dangerous when ketones build up. High levels lead to dehydration and change the chemical balance of your blood.


    Seriously?

    Forcing your body to do something that it does not normally do (over a couple million years of evolution) is a good thing?

    And your posting this as though it is good?

    And other folks may think it's a good thing and wind up having some type of negative affects from it?

    And saying that the normal way a body uses energy is a myth?

    HOLY COW!!!

    Carbs tend to be used by the body first, possibly because there is such a narrow window of BG control needed for health - about a teaspoon of glucose in the blood. When carbs are in low supply, the body uses fats and ketones. I don't think I'd say it was "forced". The body does it automatically and naturally.

    The body also uses glucose for fuel ... naturally. Although those who are fat adapted will find that the body starts to use fat more readily than glucose (unless someone eats a bunch of carbs that the body is "forced" to manage ;) ).

    A medically needed ketogenic diet for epileptics is quite different than used by most people who eat keto, and hugely different than what someone who eats a LCHF would.

    Many use low carb to help with other health issues though. I use it for managing insulin resistance, autoimmune diseases, migraines, low BP and reactive hypoglycemia, and pain.

    Ketones only build up to dangerous levels when a Type 1 diabetic does not take insulin and their blood glucose is dangerously high too. That's called diabetic ketoacidosis. It does not happen to people without T1D, with a rare exception for uncontrolled, serious alcoholics who are not eating.

    There is a lot of (more accurate) information out there on low carb, and ketosis, if you are interested.

    ETA Low carb is typically thought to be under 100-150g of carbs a day. Keto is thought to be under about 50g of carbs a day. Here is an image to give you an idea of what that looks like.

    6v8jgkhqvrjs.png

    actually ketones can build up to a dangerous level in those with type 2,although rare and its usually those who arent treating their type 2 adequately it can happen. I posted a link in another post about it,it is not just in alcoholics who dont treat theirs https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2842543/
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    nvmomketo wrote: »
    OldAssDude wrote: »
    nvmomketo wrote: »
    OldAssDude wrote: »
    nvmomketo wrote: »
    OldAssDude wrote: »
    tanyanie11 wrote: »
    how many carbs do you eat a day?
    • a lot
    and how much protein and fat?
    • a lot
    are you losing weight?
    • maintaining
    has it been hard?
    • no really the eating part, but getting into the habit of daily exercise was pretty hard
    do you exercise?
    • 7 days a week
    how much do you weigh?
    • 185
    how long have you been on a diet?
    • never really went on a diet per say, but i did monitor my intake to learn how to eat better
    how much have you lost already?
    • 50 to 60 lbs.
    how many calories do you usually burn per day?
    • 500 to 1000 active calories (exercise), plus my regular calories about 2000. So about 2500 to 3500 total.
    i'm curious haha

    As far as the subject line "Low Carb Diet" goes, if you exercise, you need more carbs because that is mainly what you burn when exercising.

    This is actually a myth. The body can use carbs or fat. When switching to fats, there is an adaptation time which can last a few weeks to a few months where you might feel your performance is affected a bit. After that, it is pretty equal to carbs. Possibly slightly better for endurance events and possibly slightly worse for explosive events like sprinting or power lifting.

    No it's not a myth.

    The body burns mostly carbs and some fat during exercise. Lower intensity exercise will burn a higher percentage of fat then higher intensity, but still mostly carbs.

    I'm afraid that it is still a myth, The science is not widely known yet so many people have not yet seen the information behind it.

    I've been ketogenic a few years. For the last 6 months I have been close to eating as a carnivore; I doubt I eat more than 50g of carbs a week. I find there is no difference in my energy supply for exercise. If anything I feel like my energy is better. Last week I played a 30 minute game of basketball with the teen boys I coach. No problem. And I'm what I would call a weekend warrior who does not train consistently.

    A sweeping statement that you need more carbs because that is what you burn when exercising is not right. You burn what is available and get good at burning what your body is adapted to.

    If you look at Phinney and Volek's FASTER study (between endurance athletes that use carbs or fats for fuel) you can see that the amount of carbs and fats used depends only on what they are eating and used to eating.

    The F.A.S.T.E.R. study from 2015
    https://www.metabolismjournal.com/article/S0026-0495(15)00334-0/fulltext

    An article discussing it:
    http://www.vespapower.com/the-emerging-science-on-fat-adaptation/

    Just did a quick search and found a couple things...

    The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, adequate-protein, low-carbohydrate diet that in medicine is used primarily to treat difficult-to-control (refractory) epilepsy in children. The diet forces the body to burn fats rather than carbohydrates.

    Ketosis is a normal metabolic process, something your body does to keep working. When it doesn't have enough carbohydrates from food for your cells to burn for energy, it burns fat instead. ... Ketosis can become dangerous when ketones build up. High levels lead to dehydration and change the chemical balance of your blood.


    Seriously?

    Forcing your body to do something that it does not normally do (over a couple million years of evolution) is a good thing?

    And your posting this as though it is good?

    And other folks may think it's a good thing and wind up having some type of negative affects from it?

    And saying that the normal way a body uses energy is a myth?

    HOLY COW!!!

    Carbs tend to be used by the body first, possibly because there is such a narrow window of BG control needed for health - about a teaspoon of glucose in the blood. When carbs are in low supply, the body uses fats and ketones. I don't think I'd say it was "forced". The body does it automatically and naturally.

    The body also uses glucose for fuel ... naturally. Although those who are fat adapted will find that the body starts to use fat more readily than glucose (unless someone eats a bunch of carbs that the body is "forced" to manage ;) ).

    A medically needed ketogenic diet for epileptics is quite different than used by most people who eat keto, and hugely different than what someone who eats a LCHF would.

    Many use low carb to help with other health issues though. I use it for managing insulin resistance, autoimmune diseases, migraines, low BP and reactive hypoglycemia, and pain.

    Ketones only build up to dangerous levels when a Type 1 diabetic does not take insulin and their blood glucose is dangerously high too. That's called diabetic ketoacidosis. It does not happen to people without T1D, with a rare exception for uncontrolled, serious alcoholics who are not eating.

    There is a lot of (more accurate) information out there on low carb, and ketosis, if you are interested.

    ETA Low carb is typically thought to be under 100-150g of carbs a day. Keto is thought to be under about 50g of carbs a day. Here is an image to give you an idea of what that looks like.

    6v8jgkhqvrjs.png

    actually ketones can build up to a dangerous level in those with type 2,although rare and its usually those who arent treating their type 2 adequately it can happen. I posted a link in another post about it,it is not just in alcoholics who dont treat theirs https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2842543/

    An interesting and unusual (and unfortunate) case.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    edited October 2018
    OldAssDude wrote: »
    Ok. Now people are twisting my words.

    How does "more carbs" equate to "high carbs".

    I never once said that people who exercise regularly need to eat a "high carb diet". I just said "more carbs".

    too many carbs is probably just as bad as too much fat.

    People go from one extreme to the other instead of finding balance.

    More carbs than what? I assumed you meant more carbs than low carb (100-150g of carbs a day). That would be moderate to high carb.

    When I played basketball, I had not eaten more than 30g of carbs that week. I recently took a teen class on a hike in the mountains, on a multiday field trip where I had to stay with the leading 17 year olds. I stayed with them - powered only by fats and protein.

    I'm not sure where you think more carbs are needed. Carb loading? Moderate or high carb as part of a regular diet? Carb cycling? Again, none of these have been shown to be needed. Some athletes could benefit, or not, from those situations. It depends on the person and situation on how much they benefit. There is no need for carbs though.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    tanyanie11 wrote: »
    how many carbs do you eat a day? and how much protein and fat? are you losing weight? has it been hard? do you exercise? how much do you weigh and how long have you been on a diet? how much have you lost already? how many calories do you usually burn per day?

    i'm curious haha

    Number of carbs: on average about 155 g (35% of my total)
    Protein: 155 g (35% of my total)
    Fat: 60 g (30% of my total

    I am losing about 1.75 lb per week as an average since August

    No, it has been easy

    Yes, I exercise. I swim laps and take a water aerobics class 3 x a week

    I average a burn between 2600-2700 calories per day. Obviously workout days I burn more, non workout days I burn less.

    I am also T2Dm and maintain an A1c of between 5.0 and 5.5.
  • rsclause
    rsclause Posts: 3,103 Member
    psuLemon wrote: »
    OldAssDude wrote: »
    tanyanie11 wrote: »
    how many carbs do you eat a day?
    • a lot
    and how much protein and fat?
    • a lot
    are you losing weight?
    • maintaining
    has it been hard?
    • no really the eating part, but getting into the habit of daily exercise was pretty hard
    do you exercise?
    • 7 days a week
    how much do you weigh?
    • 185
    how long have you been on a diet?
    • never really went on a diet per say, but i did monitor my intake to learn how to eat better
    how much have you lost already?
    • 50 to 60 lbs.
    how many calories do you usually burn per day?
    • 500 to 1000 active calories (exercise), plus my regular calories about 2000. So about 2500 to 3500 total.
    i'm curious haha

    As far as the subject line "Low Carb Diet" goes, if you exercise, you need more carbs because that is mainly what you burn when exercising.


    I eat less than 50gm carbs /day usually under 30gm/day. Do chores on my hobby farm, run a household with 2 children and some dogs(oldest kid has moved off to college), manage to perform my job well every day, am improving weekly on the lifting I am doing again, can run a sub 8min mile, can easily hike 4mph for 15 plus miles in hilly terrain with a 40lb pack. None of these are amazing feats but all are possible with lowered carbohydrate intake. Promise.

    He isn't saying you can't, but if you are at an elite level or very high performinh level than carbs will increase performance, especially when its explosive. There are a few excepts, but its a fraction of a fraction of athletes. That is fact.

    I see it all the time with the people i train and train with. When they carb refeed after being on a keto diet, all of their lifts increase. And not by a few lbs. I have seen deadlifts increase as much as 30 lbs. Carbs increase ATP availability which increase energy out put.

    Now when you hage severe IR or another medical issue, then increasing carbs is a terrible ideal and not a noteworthy N=1 expirement. That person would feel terrible.

    OP, i lost weight and kept it off for 6 years at 300g of carbs. My current lifts are 345 lb DL, 285 Squat, 215 Bench and 145 OHP. I only do 10-15 min of cardio since its cold. When it was warm, i was doing 2 hrs of tennis. But when i was keto cycling, it kills my heavy lifts and my tennis stamina. That might be from not being fat adapted since i carb refeedes weekly.

    The biggest key is protein. It should be 1.5-2.2g/kg od weight. Fats and carbs are personal preference.

    Not saying it couldn't happen with lifters but most of the success stories I read about athletes who increase performance on keto are typically runners or endurance type people. Even so they will often have a nip of carbs during the event.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,432 MFP Moderator
    rsclause wrote: »
    psuLemon wrote: »
    OldAssDude wrote: »
    tanyanie11 wrote: »
    how many carbs do you eat a day?
    • a lot
    and how much protein and fat?
    • a lot
    are you losing weight?
    • maintaining
    has it been hard?
    • no really the eating part, but getting into the habit of daily exercise was pretty hard
    do you exercise?
    • 7 days a week
    how much do you weigh?
    • 185
    how long have you been on a diet?
    • never really went on a diet per say, but i did monitor my intake to learn how to eat better
    how much have you lost already?
    • 50 to 60 lbs.
    how many calories do you usually burn per day?
    • 500 to 1000 active calories (exercise), plus my regular calories about 2000. So about 2500 to 3500 total.
    i'm curious haha

    As far as the subject line "Low Carb Diet" goes, if you exercise, you need more carbs because that is mainly what you burn when exercising.


    I eat less than 50gm carbs /day usually under 30gm/day. Do chores on my hobby farm, run a household with 2 children and some dogs(oldest kid has moved off to college), manage to perform my job well every day, am improving weekly on the lifting I am doing again, can run a sub 8min mile, can easily hike 4mph for 15 plus miles in hilly terrain with a 40lb pack. None of these are amazing feats but all are possible with lowered carbohydrate intake. Promise.

    He isn't saying you can't, but if you are at an elite level or very high performinh level than carbs will increase performance, especially when its explosive. There are a few excepts, but its a fraction of a fraction of athletes. That is fact.

    I see it all the time with the people i train and train with. When they carb refeed after being on a keto diet, all of their lifts increase. And not by a few lbs. I have seen deadlifts increase as much as 30 lbs. Carbs increase ATP availability which increase energy out put.

    Now when you hage severe IR or another medical issue, then increasing carbs is a terrible ideal and not a noteworthy N=1 expirement. That person would feel terrible.

    OP, i lost weight and kept it off for 6 years at 300g of carbs. My current lifts are 345 lb DL, 285 Squat, 215 Bench and 145 OHP. I only do 10-15 min of cardio since its cold. When it was warm, i was doing 2 hrs of tennis. But when i was keto cycling, it kills my heavy lifts and my tennis stamina. That might be from not being fat adapted since i carb refeedes weekly.

    The biggest key is protein. It should be 1.5-2.2g/kg od weight. Fats and carbs are personal preference.

    Not saying it couldn't happen with lifters but most of the success stories I read about athletes who increase performance on keto are typically runners or endurance type people. Even so they will often have a nip of carbs during the event.

    And even then, 99% of them have inferior to carb based althetes.
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    edited October 2018
    I actually carb cycle. So I have high carb days (300g+), moderate carb days (200g) and lower carb days (100g). This is an easy way for me to control my calorie intake and be able to have higher carbs when I need them (on lifting days and weekends.. so for both workout performance and adherence).
    My protein and fat stay around the same, protein is higher around 130-160g, fat is around 75-95g.

    I am losing some vanity lbs after a bulk (so a deliberate gaining cycle where I gained 15lbs) which has been going on for about 5 months. No.. not hard. I am very easy going about the whole thing. Slow and steady, barely feels like I am actually dieting. I lift weights 4-5x per week, cardio twice a week (intense intervals and steady state), also yoga some days.

    I've lost about 11lbs so far (this cycle). I am pretty much wrapping it up at this point. I don't track my calorie burns so I have no idea how much I burn, but I would say more than average since I am active day to day plus I exercise a lot.
This discussion has been closed.