2 Weeks of Low Carbs - PLEASE HELP

pattyproulx

Eggs, meat and veggies. Mix it up with different spices.

If you're looking to drop weight, I'd keep the cheese low. Dairy, even when low in carbs, produces large insulin spikes and contains growth hormones which can negatively impact weight loss.

Not saying to completely ditch it, but if you're looking to lose as much as possible in 2 weeks, then you may want to avoid it.

Also, if you go back to eating a regular diet 150g+ of carbs after your two weeks, you are likely to gain your weight back nearly instantly. Though low-carb is great to lose weight quickly, a large part of the initial loss (first two to three weeks) is water weight, which will jump right back on.

For a grab and go snack, beef jerky, sardines, boiled eggs (takes 15 minutes to boil a dozen), or a handful of nuts are good. If you eat big enough meals though you shouldn't really be very hungry until your next meal.

SueInAz

I'm more interested in grab and go snacks (that do not need to be cooked). If anyone has any recommendations on that it would be great.

Hard boiled eggs
Almonds
Macadamia nuts
celery with almond or macadamia butter
if all else fails, Atkins makes some great low carb bars which actually taste pretty good and can be found almost anywhere

gcineas

bump

Kassielin13

Low/No Carb Foods (suggested by South Beach Diet): Boneless skinless chicken breast, tuna, lean beef ( eye of round, extra lean ground, sirloin, tenderloin, top loin, and top round), Pork (boiled ham, Canadian bacon, loin, tenderloin), Veggies (green beans, cucumbers, lettuce, okra, onion, peppers, dill pickles, squash and tomatoes), Fats (olive oil, canola oil and corn oil), Extras (avacado whole, guacamole, low fat mayo, low sugar salad dressing, hot sauce, salsa, soy sauce, steak sauce, sugar free hard candy and gum)
Hope this helps. When I followed this list I stayed under 30 carbs a day!

Zeromilediet

I'm more interested in grab and go snacks (that do not need to be cooked). If anyone has any recommendations on that it would be great.

Hard boiled eggs
Almonds
Macadamia nuts
celery with almond or macadamia butter
if all else fails, Atkins makes some great low carb bars which actually taste pretty good and can be found almost anywhere

These are good snacks ... remember if you're eating low carb to eat lots of good fats or you're likely to get dizzy.

beernutz

Eggs, meat and veggies. Mix it up with different spices.

If you're looking to drop weight, I'd keep the cheese low. Dairy, even when low in carbs, produces large insulin spikes and contains growth hormones which can negatively impact weight loss.

Not saying to completely ditch it, but if you're looking to lose as much as possible in 2 weeks, then you may want to avoid it.

Also, if you go back to eating a regular diet 150g+ of carbs after your two weeks, you are likely to gain your weight back nearly instantly. Though low-carb is great to lose weight quickly, a large part of the initial loss (first two to three weeks) is water weight, which will jump right back on.

For a grab and go snack, beef jerky, sardines, boiled eggs (takes 15 minutes to boil a dozen), or a handful of nuts are good. If you eat big enough meals though you shouldn't really be very hungry until your next meal.

Quoted for truth. Low carb really isn't a good way to do a two week reduction, rather it is, in my opinion, a lifetime lifestyle change. You will lose some fat as well as water in those two weeks but your chance of gaining them back when you resume your previous diet is very high.

6ftbeauty

Thanks everyone for the feedback. There have been some really good snacks/meals mentioned that hadn't even crossed my mind.

I'm relatively slim, but I just could afford to lose a few inches around my waist. I don't plan on going back to eating 200+ carbs a day as I was before. I love sweet tea, pastas and bread too much to maintain 20 carbs a day, but I surely don't need to be eating 200+ a day. I'm just trying to get down to a reasonable waste size.

My waste is currently a 35 and for my body type it looks horrible.

I'll keep you all posted!

e1izab3th2

I did low carb for about 10 days before my wedding. I lost about 10lbs. I ate lots of fresh peppers, cucumbers, broccoli (hummus as dip), olive oil, cheese (babybel was my fav), the frozen brocolli with low fat cheese from the freezer section, all meats (mostly lower fat but I did have a brat and turkey jerky), guacamole, nuts, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, greek plain yogurt, coke zero, diet green tea, eggs, canadian bacon.... it ended up getting old eating the same thing over and over again but it was only 10 days.

e1izab3th2

oh yeah, I forgot about dessert. SF Jello Cups, SF fudgcicles, SF lifesavers hard candy. I was following the SB diet plan and only could have 70 cal of treats.

6ftbeauty

oh yeah, I forgot about dessert. SF Jello Cups, SF fudgcicles, SF lifesavers hard candy. I was following the SB diet plan and only could have 70 cal of treats.

Thank you! I really need sweets in my diet. I'm dying over here already. I bought a banana this morning to eat and before eating it found out I'd blow my entire low carb day eating 1 banana. I had to give it away! lol

AdAstra47

You should never do low carb as a short term "diet" just to lose around your mid section. If you are not prepared to eat lowish or moderate carb with clean foods such as meat, eggs, lots of veggies and moderate fruit intake - then you should not go down this path at all. You will end up being one of the people on this site that says low carb doesn't work. It works when it is a lifestyle and not a short term fix!

Depending on your metabolism, it could take your body that long to just adjust to getting its fuel from protein/fat rather than carbs. So if you only do it for two weeks, you may not see any difference at all.

I have been low-carb, high-protein (20-30g carbs & 350g protein a day) for over 4 months now and it works wonderfully *when* you treat it as a lifestyle change and not some fad diet.

That said...
choose foods that are high in protein. For snacks: hard-boiled eggs, beef jerky, peanuts or almonds, Laughing cow wedges, or chunks of hard cheeses (you can find these in all kinds of flavors, it's kind of fun to experiment). For meals: chicken, pork, beef, shrimp, fish, spinach & other leafy greens, broccoli & cauliflower. And watch your sauces, most have a lot of hidden carbs. Invest in spices that you can sprinkle on for flavor, instead of high-carb sauces & dressings.

mgmlap

turkey sausage is really low carb..

swiftfox82

fat and carbs kinda work like a see saw . If you want to lose weight and get good cholesterol I recommend going on a high fat low carb . Keep your carbs under 100mg and make sure to eat whole fat foods . I know most people will say i'm nuts, but fat is very key to losing weight I would refer to the movie fathead to all those who don't believe me. Carbs tell your body to store what you eat and fat is what your muscles and brain need to function. I hope this helps it works for me.

AdAstra47

fat and carbs kinda work like a see saw . If you want to lose weight and get good cholesterol I recommend going on a high fat low carb . Keep your carbs under 100mg and make sure to eat whole fat foods . I know most people will say i'm nuts, but fat is very key to losing weight I would refer to the movie fathead to all those who don't believe me. Carbs tell your body to store what you eat and fat is what your muscles and brain need to function. I hope this helps it works for me.

This is correct! And I second the recommendation of the movie "Fat Head," and also (if you can find it) the Canadian documentary "My Big Fat Diet."

But I will add what my doctor told me: the chemical reaction that burns fat to create energy ALSO requires protein. Figure three parts fat to one part protein. Now, it's fine if you're trying to lose weight and your body harvests your fat for energy. But you do NOT want your body harvesting the protein from your muscles! So make sure to eat plenty of protein. That's a key element. Take MFP's recommended percentages (40%carb, 10% protein) and reverse them (10%carb, 40% protein). That way you'll burn fat while *not* losing any muscle mass.

Last time I went to my doctor (after eating low-carb, high-protein, higher-fat for about 3 months), he did some tests and found I had lost 25 lbs of fat, 6 lbs of water (fat retains water), and *gained* a pound of muscle. That's what you want to do!

beernutz

fat and carbs kinda work like a see saw . If you want to lose weight and get good cholesterol I recommend going on a high fat low carb . Keep your carbs under 100mg and make sure to eat whole fat foods . I know most people will say i'm nuts, but fat is very key to losing weight I would refer to the movie fathead to all those who don't believe me. Carbs tell your body to store what you eat and fat is what your muscles and brain need to function. I hope this helps it works for me.

I don't think you're nuts (or nutz like me). You, AdAstra, and fufonzo are providing some of the best information in this thread. Watching carbs and fat levels are the key to this diet but like AdAstra pointed out you need to maintain adequate protein or you risk catabolizing muscle. The more muscle you have the better, as your body will burn more calories. Well done AdAstra on losing fat while gaining muscle--I know a lot of bodybuilders who would be extremely jealous of that feat.