Does low-carb really work?

j_bark

Great, you are eating low carb. It is one way to do it. What you didn't say is how many calories you eat in a day. Are you running a caloric deficit? Or just the same amount of calories but low carb?

I would see if you could get a body fat analysis done. You may not enough protein and fat in your diet to go with the low carb side of things.

And yes...2 lbs per week? That is what you should be doing. And don't weigh yourself everyday, weigh yourself once a week.

LaurenC619

In my personal experience and opinion -- yes.
I was trying to lose weight for a year without much luck at all (a couple pounds). I was eating at a deficit. I switched to low carb (around 60-110 carbs a day) and lost nearly 20 lbs so far. I am ALSO eating at a calorie deficit -- I eat a net calorie intake of between 1280 and 1400 a day. This calorie amount and carb amount is not right for every one so each person needs to determine what levels are best for their body.

Disclaimer: I will also say I cut out gluten (I have an autoimmune disease and gluten avoidance is recommended), and cut out MOST grain consumption. However, I have recently been eating more carbs than usual and my weight loss has been stuck. So I do think the low carb diet is extremely helpful.

I do plan on maintaining this way of eating for the long term, adding in a bit more carbs once I reach my goal weight but not as much as I was prior to this diet.

TheSatinPumpkin

Its works if followed. I am following Atkins (DANDR 2002) WOE in addition to logging on MFP and cronometer. Started @ 432lbs and the ticker shows my progress in 13 months. Welcome and best wishes on your WOE.

psuLemon

Does low carb work - yes if you are following it as it's designed. Is it necessary, maybe/maybe not. Do you have any medical conditions? Do you tend to binge on certain foods? Are you insulin resistant or have diabetes?

In any case, you need to adhere to a calorie deficit to lose weight, but low carb is a technique to do that. Personally, i struggle when I eliminate foods I enjoy from my diet and it causes me to binge. For some, if they don't follow low carb, they struggle with adhering to their calories. So there are a few factors you want to take into consideration.

What I wouldn't suggest is doing low carb if you see it as an approach to lose weight because thate generally means once you are doing losing, you will end up reverting back to your old ways. But if you see that as something you can/will sustain long term, there are no adverse effects from going low carb.

conniehgtv

for me calorie and carb control. I think cutting out processed foods,white flour and bread are my keys. I am losing 2 lb a week. slow and steady is boring but effective.I also eat tons of veg to feel full. Bean sprouts and Kale are edible!!!LOL

gmstarr1

Yes! Low carb does work! I've lost 40 pounds since January (to be fair I only did low carb since the beginning of February)

On these boards a lot of people say 'oh it's not necessary, you just have to be in a calorie deficit'. Well, for me to stay in a calorie deficit, the low carb was necessary. It's been the only way that I've been able to lose weight and keep it off. For 15 years, I've tried to lose weight. I always started a diet in January of almost every year (just eating at a deficit whatever I wanted type diet), and then I would be done with it by April. This is the first time I've lost the weight and kept to it. Always before...sugar and bread and pasta...it seems like if I keep eating those things, I want more and more until I give in...and then give in a little bit more...until I get to the point of giving up. It was easier for me to knock out the sugar and the pasta and the bread than to eat them in moderation. And now I don't even want a lot of that stuff. A lot of it is too sweet for me now.

And yes, I plan on eating this way from now on. With a little bit of work, I found substitutes for most things, and the other things I just don't miss all that much. Does that mean I'm never going to have a piece of pizza again? No, sometimes I indulge, but the next day I go right back to the low carb lifestyle.

My advice: Read and research. I read a lot about low carb before I started actually doing it. Research what you can and can't eat. I wouldn't actually cheat on this diet until the cravings are gone. Eventually I stopped thinking 'omg, I want a pizza and a coke.' But eventually the cravings do go away, and it becomes a lot easier to stay in a deficit.

Good luck!

sljohnson1207

If you are really going to try low carb, you need to do it correctly. Chips, yogurt, etc. are not low carb foods. You cannot do low carb and low fat at the same time without causing issues. Very low carb diets are actually Low Car, High Fat, Moderate Protein or Ketogenic diets. You probably will still need to count calories after induction which produces ketosis. You cannot cheat on these diets without resetting your ketosis clock. But, once you are fully keto adapted (using fat for energy), you will lose fat at a good clip.

If you are going to do lower carb, then you will still lose weight if you are in a calorie deficit, but increase your fats and proteins to compensate.

baconslave

Low carb works but you aren't really there yet. You need to read about how to do it correctly. Yogurt, tortilla chips, oatmeal are not a good place to start. There are many books available, the most common are those by Dr Atkins or South Beach. They are most likely in your public library if you don't want to buy them. If you are going to do it, do it right.

Atkins has their phase "allowed foods" lists online.
http://www.atkins.com/Program/Overview.aspx

You can get to the phase lists from that page. Atkins is a bit restrictive for me. But it works well for those who need the guidance and structure.

South Beach has some stuff on their site as well.

And yes, read up! Used book stores always have lots of different copies of different diet books, too. Reading up on it makes everything easier to understand and to follow.

husseycd

My opinion... Simple carbs, like breads and pastas, tend to have a lot of calories but not a lot of potential to fill you up, so they're really easy to overeat. Especially for me. By cutting them out, people tend to replace them with veggies, meat, and fruit, which is harder to overeat (fruit maybe not so much).

That's where I think the magic lies. Carbs (from the bread, etc) tend to make me crave more carbs, so by avoiding them, it's a lot easier to control my intake and still feel satisfied.

BTW, I've been thin on a high carb diet and I've been thin on a lower carb diet. The main difference is I'm much less hungry and get to eat a ton more food on the lower carb diet. Which is why I have no plan to start eating bread or pasta any time soon. Cut them out nearly a year and a half ago and now only eat them on occasion...

baconslave

Been to a doctor and he's the one who told me to do low carb.....

Don't listen to the naysayers. It is the standard knee-jerk response for many people to just say "Don't do low-carb" to answer your question. UNHELPFUL. Especially in your case where a doc has prescribed. Did he say what level he wanted your carbs to be?
That's the most important piece of info we need to give you tailored advice. My mom is diabetic and they have her at 120g/daily. At that level, you really need to limit the grains, starches, fruits, and yogurt. They have the highest counts. Pick meats, fats, low-carb dairy, and veggies 80-85% of the time. Then if you have carbs left in your budget you can add starches, grains, and fruits that are low on the glycemic index. It's very hard to keep to your limits when you overdo it on grains and starches, though. And saying that makes people mad, but for a medical low-carb diet, it is essential to know your limits and keep those grains, starches, and fruit to a minimum.

I'd like to add that while pregnant with my youngest, I too was on a reduced carb diet. At first you will probably crave all the things you need to keep away from but the cravings do go away. Currently I am doing a lower-carb diet that puts me in ketosis. Not all low-carb diets use ketosis. So unless your doc, tells you otherwise, I wouldn't worry over that too much.

What were doc's instructions?

harmar21

Ill chime in since I just started low carb (keto diet) 2 weeks ago. and by low carb I mean extremely low carb.. like <20 net carbs. Check you /r/keto for ideas. First 2 weeks I was aiming for <20 net carbs a day, however I now upped it to 30 net carbs, I found it allows a lot of extra variety and still keep me in keto.

I had diarrhea from 3rd day until 6th day a couple times a day dumping all my excess water weight. I went down approx 8lbs in first week just from water weight (i know it says I only lost 5, I set my starting weight after my first week, I guess my actual starting weight was 340-345ish) with starting weight on here set to 332 after first week

The first couple days were REALLY hard, I was starving, and cravings were going haywire. I just suffered through it, and by the 5th day cavings were completely gone, and my appetite went WAYYY down.

The common misconception about low carb is that you have to eat crappy foods. Nothing is father from the truth -- you can have fantastic meals on low carb. I have either bacon or sausage for breakfast, with scrambled eggs, and a flaxseed muffin with cream cheese.
For lunch I'll have a salad with cheese and blue cheese dressing (ok admittedly this is boring, trying to find more interesting lunches for work)
For dinner I'll have an awesome protein like a steak, or last night a chicken parmesan (make 'breading' out of parmesan cheese) loaded with mozzerella cheese and a little bit of tomato sauce with a side of fried vegetables or a side of steamed green beans slathered in butter.
Essentially I eat ~70% of my calories from fats, 25% from protein, 5% from carbs

Another misconception about low carb is that you don't need to count calories. You do. It is just harder to go over your calorie limit on low carb.

Low carb is the ONLY thing that worked for me. I tried many others, purely calorie counting was hard as I was hungry all the time since I was still eating the pastas within my limit, but just made me more hungry. I had to elimiated starches and sugar as it was easier to do that then eat in in moderation... It would be like telling a chain smoker to just have 1 or 2 cigarettes a day.. probably harder than just going cold turkey.
Before keto I would eat a salad and be like ok that was an ok appetizer now where is my main course and dessert? In keto after eating a salad I am full.

I had one strawberry the other day and OMG it tasted super sweet, seemed like it was literally covered in sugar.

BKing0804

This what happened with my outcomes after following a Ketosis Diet (Low Carb) since early May 2014.

SW = 214 lbs
GW = 155 lbs
CURRENTLY = 150.5 lbs
BMI = 24.1 from 36.5

== HAPPY AND HEALTHY CHIC RIGHT HERE! I'M SO EXCITED! I FEEL GREAT!

rprussell2004

It is just harder to go over your calorie limit on low carb.

You, sir, have clearly not sat with a bag of macadamia nuts next to you during a movie.

Yowza.

My most notable dietary change is that I cook far, far more stuff for myself now, and out of real foods. I think the quality of what generally eat went way up since I started having to pay more attention to the macros on the nutrition labels.

WIN.

ladymiseryali

I'll chime in, since this thread is now starting to fill up with those of us who are eating low carb, rather than the typical naysayers.

For a while I was doing the whole "eat in moderation" thing. It wasn't working. I was 165 and not getting anywhere. It was uber frustrating. Last July, my husband mentioned that someone he knew online did keto and lost weight. I researched and decided to give it a shot. What was there to lose? Well, my first couple of weeks I lost 10 lbs. Then ten turned into twenty. Right now however, I'm gaining and losing the same 5ish lbs. I'm close to my goal, so it is to be expected. But I went from 165 to between 135 and 139 atm. My starting weight wasn't a lot, so for those who say it only works fast for those with a lot to lose, are inaccurate.

If you want to try keto, then this link can help you with the approved foods for this WOE.

http://www.mydreamshape.com/ketogenic-diet-food-list/

And this link will help you with calories and macros.

http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/

Good luck!

baconslave

This what happened with my outcomes after following a Ketosis Diet (Low Carb) since early May 2014.

SW = 214 lbs
GW = 155 lbs
CURRENTLY = 150.5 lbs
BMI = 24.1 from 36.5

== HAPPY AND HEALTHY CHIC RIGHT HERE! I'M SO EXCITED! I FEEL GREAT!

Good for you.

Here's mine:

SW:255
CW:210

-45 since June 1st.

I did ketosis. But when I was on a low-carb diet with a higher limit, I didn't lose as fast at all.

But we do what is best for us and sustainable for us. Every diet requires sacrifice. But I can live with mine. I'm happy, fitter and healthier every day. Winning.

rprussell2004

Right now however, I'm gaining and losing the same 5ish lbs. I'm close to my goal, so it is to be expected. But I went from 165 to between 135 and 139 atm. My starting weight wasn't a lot, so for those who say it only works fast for those with a lot to lose, are inaccurate.

Yeah, I bobbled four pounds or so for about 4 months, I think?

Then I realized that I'd dropped enough weight that I needed to recalc my daily calorie needs, and since doing that it's been another ten and counting.

KCKO.

BekaBooluvsu

Been to a doctor and he's the one who told me to do low carb.....

.
My husband and I have done low carb for almost a year now. I've lost 89# and he has lost 117#. Like everyone already said, it isn't for everyone. I'm T2 diabetic and my doctor recommended low carb as well. Low carb isn't that bad though. My husband eats 50-70g carbs and I have been eating 150g carbs. You don't have to be miserable, you can still eat good things you just have to adjust your day accordingly similar to the IIFYM approach. Low carb is between 50-150g of carbs per day.

La5Vega5Girl

my husband does a low-carb almost no-carb diet. you can't eat green beans, oatmeal, etc. research and find what foods are "safe" to eat. you really need to be very close to zero carbs at first for the weight to fall off. my husband lost 17 lbs almost immediately and has thus far lost about 20. good luck
PS you also have to have a calorie deficit. he does eat bacon, etc. but doesn't gorge on it.

baconslave

I'll chime in, since this thread is now starting to fill up with those of us who are eating low carb, rather than the typical naysayers.

For a while I was doing the whole "eat in moderation" thing. It wasn't working. I was 165 and not getting anywhere. It was uber frustrating. Last July, my husband mentioned that someone he knew online did keto and lost weight. I researched and decided to give it a shot. What was there to lose? Well, my first couple of weeks I lost 10 lbs. Then ten turned into twenty. Right now however, I'm gaining and losing the same 5ish lbs. I'm close to my goal, so it is to be expected. But I went from 165 to between 135 and 139 atm. My starting weight wasn't a lot, so for those who say it only works fast for those with a lot to lose, are inaccurate.

If you want to try keto, then this link can help you with the approved foods for this WOE.

http://www.mydreamshape.com/ketogenic-diet-food-list/

And this link will help you with calories and macros.

http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/

Good luck!

I do have to say, and then I will go away and shut up for awhile I promise, that the difference for me between the medical low-carb and the keto low-carb diets has been the disappearing of the terrible cravings, the shrinking of the appetite, and the mastering of my twisted relationship with food with keto. I regained everything on the reg low-carb, because the cravings were still there. Not a problem with keto.

I'll check back later to see what OP has to say.

harmar21

It is just harder to go over your calorie limit on low carb.

You, sir, have clearly not sat with a bag of macadamia nuts next to you during a movie.

Yowza.

My most notable dietary change is that I cook far, far more stuff for myself now, and out of real foods. I think the quality of what generally eat went way up since I started having to pay more attention to the macros on the nutrition labels.

WIN.

True, I think I will try to stay away from nuts at least in a non-portioned context as WAYYY too easy to over indulge on them!