Trying not to eat carb.... am I doing the right thing?

rose_birch

Hi all...
Over the past year I’ve lost just under 2 stone, I used to do Herbalife but I went to a calorie based diet then cut out my carbs (pasta, rice, bread).

Since the lockdown, I’ve been walking 5k most days and doing a home workout for 30 mins. Should I be eating whole meal carbs, more calories?

Thanks all!!

KrissFlavored

How many calories are you eating now?

What are your stats? Are you happy with your current diet? Are your struggling with it?

TeaBea

You went to a CALORIE based diet. This is what you should be tracking. Protein has calories, fat has calories, and carbs have calories.

Get adequate calories, get adequate nutrition. Are you meeting protein and fat goals? I can't tell you if you should get more calories because you haven't said how many you are eating.

I don't cut things out because that teaches me nothing about portion control. I "allow" pasta, allow rice, allow bread BUT, I learn what portion sizes are. Pasta can be part of a meal, but it shouldn't take up the entire plate. This is a more balanced approach.

NovusDies

So first off congrats on losing the 2 stone. That is great.

Your question is a little confusing. Some people cut carbs to increase their satiety and by doing so it assists with getting them into a calorie deficit. Moderating my carbs did the same for me. When I became a lot more active I was able to keep my base diet the same and add more carbs back in to help fuel my activity. I am not especially picky on the source of carbs.

Cutting carbs is not required to lose weight. It is sometimes done for that reason but only a calorie deficit decides if a person is losing weight or not. In other words you could eat nothing but pasta, rice, and bread and still lose weight if the total calories eaten resulted in a deficit. It would not be advisable nutritionally though.

brenn24179

I cut my carbs. I eat 100 gr or less and it seems I am not as hungry. It worked for me. I log my calories and weigh daily. I lost 40 lbs.

Strudders67

Enter your stats into the MFP set up screen. Enter the rate at which you want to lose weight.* Log everything you eat and drink. Log your exercise. Eat the number of calories that MFP tells you to eat (including the exercise ones) each day.

What you choose to eat, within those calories, is entirely up to you. Some will make you feel fuller, some will be things that you like eating, some may even be both. Some people find protein more satiating, others say carbs are better. It's far easier to stick to your plan if you eat foods that you enjoy, even if you're having smaller portions.

*Do not set this too aggressively. You shouldn't be losing more than 1% of your weight, per week. Even if tempting, 2lb a week is too much to aim for if you don't have much to lose.

VeryKatie

Vegetables and fruits are carbs. I wouldnt recommend cutting those.

Diatonic12

There are no right or wrong, good or bad foods. Throw all of those dieting rules and regulations out with the bathwater. They are made-up rules.

Give yourself permission to do everything on your own terms. When you rid yourself of off-limit, wrong, bad and dirty foods then you're left with freedom. True freedom to choose.

This also jerks the rug right out from underneath that massive rationalization and excuses: I blew it today so I might as well start over again, tomorrow. Starting over and over and over again. Month after month and year after year.

Tiny steps for tiny feet. Little by little and day by day your changes will come. Edge your way down slowly. Start with 3 meals aday. If you're a snackity type of person, give yourself permission to have a couple of those, too.
Create your own food plan based on the foods you enjoy.

Take yourself back to your earliest memory of when you didn't have any food rules. A time when you didn't have to overthink food and every morsel. These were truly the good ol'days. It could've been when you were just a kid and your mother placed those meals on the table for you. Life was easy.

Then somewhere along the line we start reading magazine articles or books about dieting. Our effortless relationship with food goes right out the window. We begin to overthink food.

You're somewhere in the future and you feel much better than you do right now about your food choices. They're yours. All yours. No one is breathing down your neck telling you what do when you go out or what you're bringing home from the grocery store.

We can learn to moderate ourselves with food. All foods. It's going to take some focus and practice, practice, practice. Whatever you choose to do with food, there's only choices and consequences. Learning to moderate ourselves with all foods = long term weight stability. That's where the rubber meets the road.

This road is called the highway to heaven. Making peace with all foods is heaven on earth.

MaltedTea

I- I have so many questions...

What's wrong with carbs?
Who roped you into Herbalife?
What are your workouts consisting of exactly?

Also, everything we eat is calorie-based. So, every diet is a calorie-based eating regime.

The great part is that there's nowhere to go but up!

HeidiCooksSupper

Carbs are a necessary part of a healthy diet but most of the carbs one consumes should be fiber and/or nutrient rich. Sugar is carb heavy but nutrient poor. Carrots have more nutrients and fiber in an equal number of carbs. So, choose an apple over Oreos, oatmeal over saltines, beans over rice.

For those of us with diabetes, carbs are problematic. Sugary or starchy carbohydrates more readily spike blood sugar than complex carbohydrates like beans, veggies, etc.