Question for those who cut carbs

atay18

I am considering cutting carbs to get past a plateau, but have noticed that things like apples and bananas have a lot of carbs in them! Do you cut these 'good' foods out too, or just mainly those foods that are typically thought of as carbs? Thanks!

sexforjaffacakes

Yeah you cut out all carbs, even the good ones xD take vitamins instead to make up for lost fruit!

c0untingsheep

I think people cut down on things like bread and rice when cutting carbs but I'm not sure. I'd love to know the answer to this question too.

adamcf

don't cut fruits and veggies. cut all bread, pasta, rice, and refined sugars. anything that's already been prepared to some degree, is the bad carbs. fresh fruits and veggies are still ok. don't get fruit juices that are packaged. get a juicer and make green smoothies.

Heatherbelle_87

that depends on how you want to approach it. A good jump starter for me to is greatly reduce my processed carbs and focus on raw fruits raw or lightly steamed veggies lean meat and brown rice. This also eliminates alot of sodium and preservatives in your diet as well, and is a good cleaner for the lower digestive tract. Your diary isnt open so we cant really see what you have been doing to offer full advice as to foods to try

♥_Ellybean_♥

I minimize them but do not cut them, I will eat a half of banana with strawberries (which are generally low). What I do cut out is all pasta and most starches ( I chose sweet potato over a regular potato)>

krystonite

Even the sugar in fruits will kill a weight loss, especially if you've hit a plateau. I alternate carbs and non-carb days, mostly because I don't feel it's entirely healthy to cut out anything for a long duration of time. So sometimes I will do very high protein, low carb; other days I will most certainly eat my damn oatmeal in the morning with sliced bananas in it.

cjstrong

Do you want to completely cut carbs out
OR
Do you want to LOWER your existing carb intake?

Based on how you answer then we can provide better help

Heatherbelle_87

Atkins diet, the original low carb, did cut out fruits. Most find that un sustainable though. I would die without my fruits personally

keeponkickin

I was on a plateau for about 5 weeks. I tried everything!!! Finally started The 4 Hour Body diet and I am down 3.5 pounds in less than a week. Basic slow carbing 6 days a week with the 7th day being a calorie spike "shock day." Working well so far.

Good luck. Plateaus are frustrating.

eveunderground

don't cut fruits and veggies. cut all bread, pasta, rice, and refined sugars. anything that's already been prepared to some degree, is the bad carbs. fresh fruits and veggies are still ok. don't get fruit juices that are packaged. get a juicer and make green smoothies.

I agree with this. Fresh fruit contains a lot of nutrients and fiber, there's no need to cut them out completely, just limit to 1-2 per day. It's really all the refined/processed carbs that should be avoided.

kimmerroze

I think you should FIRST read the link in my signature titled HOW TO BUST THROUGH A PLATEAU... this will help you figure out if you are doing something wrong on the basic levels of diet/cardio/strength training.

once you correct those, then you can focus more deeply on your diet, and THEN decided if you want to go low carb.

eviltwinkie

Actually, I think most moderate low carb plans don't eliminate fruit completely. Even Atkins. Yeah, they do for the first two weeks, but you're not suppose to stay on that phase longer.

If you google Atkins and SouthBeach, you'll see they both go in phases. The induction first two weeks is pretty strict, but after that some fruits are allowed in.

I'm trying southbeach right now, as it seemed pretty easy to shop for / maintain. Almost at the end of week 2, feel pretty good, but will be glad when I can reintroduce oatmeal and apples back into the diet next week. HOWEVER it's been awesome to make me realize how 'carby' my diet had become. Looking at my menu was one thing... having to actually adjust my eating and especially snacks rather significantly made it hit home how I need to refine my cooking and snack repetoire.

AdAstra47

Just depends on what you want. You can set yourself a carb goal and eat anything you want as long as it's under that limit, the way some people do with calories. In which case fruits & veggies would be fine in small portions.

Or, if it's easier to go by a set of rules rather than having to count carbs all the time, you can just cut out all sugars & grains (wheat, rice, oats, etc). Or go one step further and cut out fruits as well. And be careful which veggies you choose, too. Some "vegetables" are really grains (corn) and other "vegetables" are really fruits (tomatoes) and some vegetables just have way too much sugar & starch (carrots, peas, potatoes, sweet potatoes).

Personally, my diet is very restrictive. On my doctor's orders, I have cut out all sugars, grains and fruits, and the veggies mentioned above. I stick to proteins, dairy & leafy greens (spinach, kale, asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower etc.). I've been eating this way for over four months now and I'm finding it very easy & sustainable. I plan to eat this way for the rest of my life. But then again, I have health issues so my only other choice is a bunch of prescription drugs. That's good motivation!

Just figure out what's right for you. Best of luck!

Qarol

Yep. Very few fruits and veggies are low enough in carbs to be allowed. But those that are, I eat. Berries are relatively low in carbs. And green veggies like broccoli. Nothing starchy.

But if you're just considering lowering your carbs, you don't have to cut out fruits. I have a friend who's on a lowER carb diet because she's insulin resistant. She aims for 100g per day. I, on the other hand, am at 30g.

TheBraveryLover

Yes, I have cut my fruit intake a lot since I started lowering my carbs (100g or less) a few months ago. I now have no more than 1 serving of fruit unless it's berries. Many days I go without fruit but I have a much higher amount of green vegetables in my diet than I did pre-carb watch.