Why does low carb work better then just eating whatever?
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That's what works for me also. Plenty of people will say calories in/calories out. I'm not going to argue with them about it, I know what works for me. Everyone is different.
no, everyone is not different. The laws of thermodynamics and math apply to all of us. There are no special snowflakes that can eat more than they burn and lose weight.
Again, if low carb helps you create a calorie deficit, great…but don't go around saying that it is not calories in vs calories out bc that is wrong and confuses people.
You beat me to it.... ^^^0 -
It doesn't0
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I love how people keep talking about the laws of Thermodynamics and use only the first law to apply it to humans.. The first law says that work, heat and changes in chemical composition will be constant. People are not like that. You have to use the second law which is a dissipation law which takes into account chemical reactions, changes in Gibbs free energy, ΔG, whose sign predicts the direction of reaction, and whose magnitude indicates the maximum amount of work realizable from the reaction.
Basically different things you eat are burned differently do to chemical composition and the way your body processes it. It will never be as simple as calories in/calories out no mater how many times people chant about it on here.
That being said.. you still need a calorie deficit to lose weight..
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A caloric deficit is easier with low carb as protein is more filling, and you have less choice of foods. On top of that the first week or tow you will lose more as your glycogen stores get depleted, and glycogen retains water, so you lose more "weight" on low carb the first couple of weeks, but that extra weight loss is just water weight.
But if you eat "normal" amount of carbs for a day or two your glycogen will build up and you will retain water showing a huge gain in the scale, even though it is only water.0 -
I love how people keep talking about the laws of Thermodynamics and use only the first law to apply it to humans.. The first law says that work, heat and changes in chemical composition will be constant. People are not like that. You have to use the second law which is a dissipation law which takes into account chemical reactions, changes in Gibbs free energy, ΔG, whose sign predicts the direction of reaction, and whose magnitude indicates the maximum amount of work realizable from the reaction.
Basically different things you eat are burned differently do to chemical composition and the way your body processes it. It will never be as simple as calories in/calories out no mater how many times people chant about it on here.
That being said.. you still need a calorie deficit to lose weight..
It is all about cals in or out if you need a deficit to lose. the issue is the calculation for calories in and out, with out being much more variable and next to impossible to get it exact.0 -
Something else to consider, if you are doing much exercising along with your diet, carbs are the body's main fuel source. Of course the basic priciple of fat loss is to be in an energy deficit so the body uses stored fat for fuel, but your body still need carbs for energy. If you are not worried about retaining muscle while you diet then this is probably not an issue but if you want to hang onto your LBM then you don't want to go low carb. While on a low carb diet your body will use whatever it has to for it's energy source. Since there are less carbs to use for energy it doesn't care if you want to hang onto your muscle, the body is not picky, it's going to use muscle along with fat for energy.0
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It's not really "artificial" -it's just not fat loss. Not to mention, it only really occurs during the first week or so of a LCHF diet anyways, and has little do with the long-term. As for exercise, it really depends on what you do. If you're a sprinter, you will want some carbs, while endurance activities tend to be fine on a LCHF diet. I know some guys that will preload their lifting with some carbs (TKD), while others feel fine lifting on a standard LCHF diet.
As for why it works for some people, the main advantage of such diets is that you're simply satiated most of the time, even when eating at an aggressive caloric deficit. There are posts daily on this forum about people going to bed hungry, not getting enough to eat, etc. because they set too aggressive of a caloric deficit, and usually they're given the right answer of upping their calories a bit and taking things more slowly. On the other hand, those same people could likely get by just fine on their aggressive caloric deficit if eating a LCHF diet, as it's much less likely they'd go hungry on a daily basis. Of course, the downside is you have to give up certain foods, and some people prefer the freedom to eat whatever they want over being satiated or following a more aggressive caloric deficit. It's certainly not for everyone.
Or a LCHP diet.
Sure, but I would almost consider that more restrictive than a LCHF diet where you are still hitting your protein macro daily. At some point, you may get tired of chicken breast and shrimp as your main source of energy. :laugh:0 -
It's all very confusing! Everyone seems to have a different fund of knowledge when it comes to weight loss. It definitely is a matter of calories in/calories out but it also seems to be different for everyone in regards to how they make that happen. What it really comes down to is what can you live with? Yes, losing weight for your health and to look and feel good and doing it in the quickest way possible for you is great. But what about the long term? Can you give up those carbs forever? Because it's all about changing your lifestyle forever. You may go on a low carb diet and exercise daily for 2 hours but is that something you can sustain forever? I know that when I cut down on carbs and calories I lose weight. But I also know that I would miss those carbs if I told myself I could never eat them again. And what happens when I lose all the weight I want to lose and then go back to eating my carbs that I have missed? I gain weight. So, for me, it's about finding the lifestyle that I can live with forever. It's a long time, I know. I am still looking for the one I can live with. I'm working on it.
Good luck to you! :happy:
I really like this one :flowerforyou:0 -
It's not really "artificial" -it's just not fat loss. Not to mention, it only really occurs during the first week or so of a LCHF diet anyways, and has little do with the long-term. As for exercise, it really depends on what you do. If you're a sprinter, you will want some carbs, while endurance activities tend to be fine on a LCHF diet. I know some guys that will preload their lifting with some carbs (TKD), while others feel fine lifting on a standard LCHF diet.
As for why it works for some people, the main advantage of such diets is that you're simply satiated most of the time, even when eating at an aggressive caloric deficit. There are posts daily on this forum about people going to bed hungry, not getting enough to eat, etc. because they set too aggressive of a caloric deficit, and usually they're given the right answer of upping their calories a bit and taking things more slowly. On the other hand, those same people could likely get by just fine on their aggressive caloric deficit if eating a LCHF diet, as it's much less likely they'd go hungry on a daily basis. Of course, the downside is you have to give up certain foods, and some people prefer the freedom to eat whatever they want over being satiated or following a more aggressive caloric deficit. It's certainly not for everyone.
Or a LCHP diet.
Sure, but I would almost consider that more restrictive than a LCHF diet where you are still hitting your protein macro daily. At some point, you may get tired of chicken breast and shrimp as your main source of energy. :laugh:
Most certainly. (Are you reading my mind?)0 -
As a general rule, eating low carb can make it easier to eat lower calorie just by accident. For instance, if you eat mostly lean meats, fish, and large portions of veggies (these things are good ideas in general anyways) you'll probably find yourself at a deficit. If you start bacon wrapping hotdogs, eating cheese by the block, and woofing down a 24oz steak for dinner every night then maybe not. What's sad is some of the benefits of eating lower carb do get lost in bogus science and twisted by people who want it to be a "magic" diet.0
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Something else to consider, if you are doing much exercising along with your diet, carbs are the body's main fuel source. Of course the basic priciple of fat loss is to be in an energy deficit so the body uses stored fat for fuel, but your body still need carbs for energy. If you are not worried about retaining muscle while you diet then this is probably not an issue but if you want to hang onto your LBM then you don't want to go low carb. While on a low carb diet your body will use whatever it has to for it's energy source. Since there are less carbs to use for energy it doesn't care if you want to hang onto your muscle, the body is not picky, it's going to use muscle along with fat for energy.
No offense, but I don't think you understand how the body works. Your body doesn't look to carbs to rebuild your muscles; it breaks protein down to create amino acids. If you consume adequate protein and preferably do resistance training, your body will tend to spare your LBM. Your intake of carbohydrates is irrelevant to this process. Once you're adapted to a LCHF diet and a state of ketosis, your body is accustomed to burning fat for energy instead of carbs, and many people find they have ample energy for endurance activities, as their body can tap into its own fat stores for energy.
Where you see a drastic loss of LBM is when you run such a caloric deficit that your body cannot pull the energy it needs from its own fat stores, and thus looks to your LBM for the energy it needs. Likewise, if you underconsume on protein, your body may look to your LBM for the nutrients it cannot extract from your fat stores. But it's nonsense that your body is going to look to your LBM simply because it doesn't have tons of carbs to burn during exercise.0 -
It's because low carb diets offer many benefits such as poor gym performance and constipation.0
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^^^ if/when you are consuming enough protein to limit the loss effect in normal protein turnover.Something else to consider, if you are doing much exercising along with your diet, carbs are the body's main fuel source. Of course the basic priciple of fat loss is to be in an energy deficit so the body uses stored fat for fuel, but your body still need carbs for energy. If you are not worried about retaining muscle while you diet then this is probably not an issue but if you want to hang onto your LBM then you don't want to go low carb. While on a low carb diet your body will use whatever it has to for it's energy source. Since there are less carbs to use for energy it doesn't care if you want to hang onto your muscle, the body is not picky, it's going to use muscle along with fat for energy.
No offense, but I don't think you understand how the body works. Your body doesn't look to carbs to rebuild your muscles; it breaks protein down to create amino acids. If you consume adequate protein and preferably do resistance training, your body will tend to spare your LBM. Your intake of carbohydrates is irrelevant to this process. Once you're adapted to a LCHF diet and a state of ketosis, your body is accustomed to burning fat for energy instead of carbs, and many people find they have ample energy for endurance activities, as their body can tap into its own fat stores for energy.
Where you see a drastic loss of LBM is when you run such a caloric deficit that your body cannot pull the energy it needs from its own fat stores, and thus looks to your LBM for the energy it needs. Likewise, if you underconsume on protein, your body may look to your LBM for the nutrients it cannot extract from your fat stores. But it's nonsense that your body is going to look to your LBM simply because it doesn't have tons of carbs to burn during exercise.0 -
Satiety. Many people find this to be true and if it helps people to adhere to a diet, then that's a good thing. A caveat is that a very low carb diet is not the same thing as a low/lower carb diet.......basically your example is a ketogenic diet, which I feel is gilding the lilly because it doesn't make it more satiating and makes compliance very difficult for the general population, which translates to temporary.Hi ya,
I don't know if it's just all in my head but when i'm counting calories and eating what ever the hell I want I don't seem to lose no where near as much as I do if I'm counting calories and cutting carbs down...why is this? surely it's meant to be about calories in calories out? does anyone else watch their carb intake? at the moment I'm just trying to keep it below 50g a day but I don't mind where them 50 come from like if it's from chocolate or bread, just as long as i don't go over....would appreciate any help
cheers
Tina
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That's what works for me also. Plenty of people will say calories in/calories out. I'm not going to argue with them about it, I know what works for me. Everyone is different.
no, everyone is not different. The laws of thermodynamics and math apply to all of us. There are no special snowflakes that can eat more than they burn and lose weight.
Again, if low carb helps you create a calorie deficit, great…but don't go around saying that it is not calories in vs calories out bc that is wrong and confuses people.
Nowhere in my statement did I say it's "not calories in/calories out". I said I know what works for me.
And yes, everyone is different. In my case I had gestational diabetes and family history of type II diabetes at 40+ - which is exactly where I am. Reduced carb DOES work for me for those reasons. 0 -
I love how people keep talking about the laws of Thermodynamics and use only the first law to apply it to humans.. The first law says that work, heat and changes in chemical composition will be constant. People are not like that. You have to use the second law which is a dissipation law which takes into account chemical reactions, changes in Gibbs free energy, ΔG, whose sign predicts the direction of reaction, and whose magnitude indicates the maximum amount of work realizable from the reaction.
Basically different things you eat are burned differently do to chemical composition and the way your body processes it. It will never be as simple as calories in/calories out no mater how many times people chant about it on here.
That being said.. you still need a calorie deficit to lose weight..
contradict yourself much? You say it is not as simple as calories in vs calories out, and then you go on to say that you need a calorie deficit to lose weight. If it is about calorie deficit, then it is as simple as calories in vs calories out. Eat too much = gain; eat less = lose.
I have never found a person that defies the law of thermodynamics…have you?0 -
You missed the point.That's what works for me also. Plenty of people will say calories in/calories out. I'm not going to argue with them about it, I know what works for me. Everyone is different.
no, everyone is not different. The laws of thermodynamics and math apply to all of us. There are no special snowflakes that can eat more than they burn and lose weight.
Again, if low carb helps you create a calorie deficit, great…but don't go around saying that it is not calories in vs calories out bc that is wrong and confuses people.
Nowhere in my statement did I say it's "not calories in/calories out". I said I know what works for me.
And yes, everyone is different. In my case I had gestational diabetes and family history of type II diabetes at 40+ - which is exactly where I am. Reduced carb DOES work for me for those reasons.0 -
That's what works for me also. Plenty of people will say calories in/calories out. I'm not going to argue with them about it, I know what works for me. Everyone is different.
no, everyone is not different. The laws of thermodynamics and math apply to all of us. There are no special snowflakes that can eat more than they burn and lose weight.
Again, if low carb helps you create a calorie deficit, great…but don't go around saying that it is not calories in vs calories out bc that is wrong and confuses people.
Nowhere in my statement did I say it's "not calories in/calories out". I said I know what works for me.
And yes, everyone is different. In my case I had gestational diabetes and family history of type II diabetes at 40+ - which is exactly where I am. Reduced carb DOES work for me for those reasons.
so you eat more than you burn and still lose weight?
Even diabetics lose weight in a calorie deficit…so I do not understand what you are trying to say. Are you saying that eating more than you burn works for you and you lose weight?
And yes if you have a medical condition that makes you sensitive to carbs then cutting carbs would assist..
I guess I forgot my disclaimer which is that "this assumes no underlying medical condition"0 -
Something else to consider, if you are doing much exercising along with your diet, carbs are the body's main fuel source. Of course the basic priciple of fat loss is to be in an energy deficit so the body uses stored fat for fuel, but your body still need carbs for energy. If you are not worried about retaining muscle while you diet then this is probably not an issue but if you want to hang onto your LBM then you don't want to go low carb. While on a low carb diet your body will use whatever it has to for it's energy source. Since there are less carbs to use for energy it doesn't care if you want to hang onto your muscle, the body is not picky, it's going to use muscle along with fat for energy.
No offense, but I don't think you understand how the body works. Your body doesn't look to carbs to rebuild your muscles; it breaks protein down to create amino acids. If you consume adequate protein and preferably do resistance training, your body will tend to spare your LBM. Your intake of carbohydrates is irrelevant to this process. Once you're adapted to a LCHF diet and a state of ketosis, your body is accustomed to burning fat for energy instead of carbs, and many people find they have ample energy for endurance activities, as their body can tap into its own fat stores for energy.
Where you see a drastic loss of LBM is when you run such a caloric deficit that your body cannot pull the energy it needs from its own fat stores, and thus looks to your LBM for the energy it needs. Likewise, if you underconsume on protein, your body may look to your LBM for the nutrients it cannot extract from your fat stores. But it's nonsense that your body is going to look to your LBM simply because it doesn't have tons of carbs to burn during exercise.
Used DEXA, LC group also consumed more protein
http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/88/4/1617.long
"However, similar to body weight, fat mass and lean body mass decreased significantly more in the very low carbohydrate group compared with the low fat group at both 3 and 6 months"
Comparison of energy-restricted very low-carbohydrate and low-fat diets on weight loss and body composition in overweight men and women
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC538279/figure/F1/
And the fat adaption theory? That is a low carb myth, only supported by crappy designed Phinney studies0 -
I usually eat half or more of my daily amount in carbs. Quite honestly I need to feel full some days and things like bread and pasta help. That said, I do use healthier options such as flat out wraps, 100 calorie sandwich thins, brown rice, vegetable based pasta and I only eat the serving amount that the package says. When I've done this, combined with healthy diet (I eat fruit and veggies as much as I can) and exercise, I normally lose 2 lbs/week.0
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