Cutting carbs = increasing fat? =/

TaraFTMVA

So I have decided to cut out most carbs for this week and possibly next week as a part of the induction phase into Atkins. I am not trying to do full on Atkins as I will be eating more vegetables then the alotted amount, but I started with my breakfast and only had 5 carbs (according to the site) but had only 3 according to packages, anyways. I had 41g of fat, and daily I am only allowed 58, so I have 17g left and still have 2 meals to get through today. Is that generally how it goes? Low carb food means a higher fat content? Or is it just what I ate this morning? Which was 2 scrambled eggs with 2 slices American cheese and 14 slices of Hormel pepperoni.

lockef

Yes, you're pretty much replacing carbs for fat. Don't be scared of fat. It's good for you.

You say you "had only 3 according to packages". What are you referring to?

Edit: BTW, you can change the way your macro goals are set up on MFP. 65f/30p/5c is a good starting point.

TaraFTMVA

Well on my American cheese package it says 0 carb, but on here they count each slice as 1 carb, its no biggie, I am not worried about it. And ty for your response . I was worried bc I don't want to go over on my fat if I can cut carbs and keep fat low too. This approach is new to me, and I have done some research, but I figured the responses on here would make it easier!

EDIT: So if I change my f,p,c, how does that help me? I guess so I am not going over my fat everyday? Just dont want to mess anything up...lol

SassyStef

I dont know much about Atkins but I do eat a low carb high fat diet. I eat about 60% fat for the day that is usually about 140g or so and I also eat high protein, 1g per body weight. I try and keep my carbs at 50 or lower, so days its higher, I think it comes out to be about 10%.

Your fat sounds pretty low for the day tho, what percent are you working with?

Generally when you lessen the number of one you have to up the other, so if you gonna low carb it then raise your fat and protein more.

I hope that helps lol

katemiddletonisawesome

Stick with the leaner meats if you wanna drop the carbs. Ex. Egg whites instead of whole eggs, chicken breast instead of beef, tuna with little to no mayo (or light mayo), grilled salmon, lean beef, turkey bacon and chicken/apple sausage. Just remember, in order to make up for the loss of flavor, when food companies remove something from a product, they need to add something to replace it.

Nomomush

I carb cycle and I do not replace my low carb days with fat. I replace it with lean protein...egg whites, tuna, chicken, turkey, etc.

SassyStef

Yes, you're pretty much replacing carbs for fat. Don't be scared of fat. It's good for you.

You say you "had only 3 according to packages". What are you referring to?

Edit: BTW, you can change the way your macro goals are set up on MFP. 65f/30p/5c is a good starting point.

Amen to that...Dont be scared of the FAT!!! Does a body and brain good

kapeluza

Don't do it!!! lol.

I did he whole cutting carbs completely and ate the high fat diet...... yeah.... no bueno..... ended up with gallstones. :grumble:

dawnm92

Most lower carb diets will explain that you will be replacing a lot of your carbs with fat. If you didn't, you would simply not be getting enough calories. For example, if you ate 100 grams of protein in a day, that is only 400 calories because protein has 4 calories per gram. Fat has 9 calories per gram so if you only ate 53 grams of fat, you would be getting an additional 477 calories. Without carbs, that is only 877 calories in your day.

Carbs have 4 calories per gram so if you eat 20 carbs in Induction, that is only 80 more calories. You will still be needing several hundred additional calories in order to get up to the 1200 calorie minimum per day for women. Then if you exercise and eat back your exercise calories you will need even more calories in your day.

The only way to go low-carb and get enough calories is to increase your protein and fat intake beyond what you see on MFP's recommendations.

If you want to, you can change your MFP goals and customize them to decrease your carbs and increase your protein and fat so that your food diary will more accurately reflect your daily food goals.

sarahsmart88

Elimination diets may help you lose weight fast, but that weightloss usually isn't long term. A healthy diet has carbs, fat, and protein. Don't be scared of fat or carbs, your body needs them.

Carbs should be 45%-65% or your total calories.
Protein should be 10%-35% of your total calories.
Fat should be 20%-35% of your total calories.

For carbs, stick to whole grains. And make sure your fats do not include trans fats. Hope that helps!

SarahRazaq

Just because you are doing lo-carb doesnt mean high fat. I did no carb for the past 10 months and lost 100 pounds so it really works! But if you dont watch your fat intake, you wont see very good results. When i was on lo-carb, I ate about 300 grams of protein a day and only had about 20 grams of fat. Its possible, try sticking to a veggie egg white omlet and unsweetend almond milk for breakfast.. Try eating only meat that is 98-99% fat free, no processed meats, and NO PORK. I would do turkey breast, boneless skinless chicken breasts, fish (salmon, trout, tilapia, tuna, halibut) shrimp, and 99% fat free roast beef from the deli... The processed american cheese has too many chemicals and fats in them, if you are a cheese lover, try a low fat part skim mozzerela. One egg yolk has more cholesterol in them than is recommended for the entire day.. If youre a pepperoni lover, there is a great alternative that is made with turkey, its a bit spicier but its only 2.5 grams of fat for 14 slices. :-)

labgirl3

Who says you're only allowed 53 g of fat? MFP? If you're doing low carb, you should not be doing low fat as well. It doesn't make sense, and there's gobs of evidence supporting a high protein, high fat, low carb diet. You can change your goals under the My Home > Goals - click change goals. I have mine set to 40% protein (145g), 40% fat (64g), and 20% carbs (75g) - for a 1450 cal / day diet. I usually go over on fat and under on carbs, but I don't worry about it a bit. Bloodwork is excellent.

This is a good intro book, if you're looking for basics, in easy-to-read language. It's slightly out of date, and most ketogenic diets recommend much higher protein than she does, but it's a good start: http://www.amazon.com/Gave-Low-Fat-Pounds-Revised-Expanded/dp/1592330401/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1314627285&sr=8-1

I do try to eat very little processed food. I'd personally drop the American cheese for some yummy cheddar - tastes 100 times better! And I'd forgo pepperoni for uncured bacon. I'd also add veggies, and lots of them. Breakfast for me usually involves 3-4 eggs, 1-2 pieces of bacon, and 2 cups of spinach or roasted asparagus or some other fibrous veggie. By simply avoiding flour and sugar, and starchy veggies (potatoes, corn), you should get to ketosis just fine. I don't really stress too much about the carbs in veggies...

Just a note - if you've been living on carbs (I've been there!), then you're probably going to feel crummy this week and possibly next. Hang in there - once you're over the "carb flu," you'll have gobs more energy, and your cravings will be practically gone!

Edited to address a few points above: you CAN of course go low fat and low carb, but why bother? There is no health benefit there, you'd be restricting your calories a great deal, and sticking to a low carb plan would be extremely difficult.

Also - this whole business of "if you go off of it, you'll gain it all back" drives me absolutely bonkers. If you go off ANY eating plan, you'll gain it all back! You have to go with a plan that you think you can sustain for life. You won't always be eating so few carbs - you'll add them back in until you stop losing weight, or once you're at your goal, until you start gaining weight. The idea behind low carb is to cut out the constant cravings - it's a plan that many people find much easier to stick to than the oh so popular "everything in moderation." That works great for some, but I was wanting to constantly binge on whatever I was supposed to be eating moderately. By eating low carb, I don't even want the cake / cookies / bread in the first place!

worldhurdler

Transitioning to a low-carb diet does mean that you do have to up your protein and fat content. Fat, protein, and carbs are the three main fuel sources available to us from food, and our body reacts and processes each differently. So, if you cut out/limit one, then you will have to increase your intake from the other two. However, I would strongly encourage you to get your fat and protein from healthy, unprocessed sources as much as possible. The closer it is to nature, the better!
I also highly recommonend reading this article by Mark Sisson: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-primal-carbohydrate-continuum/
It talks about the appropriate levels of carbs that we should be eating per day. I personally eat way less carbs and more fat/protein than the typical American, and feel fantastic! I am also at my lowest weight since high school (and only about 10lbs away from what I weighed at 18!) Mark's Daily Apple has tons of resources regarding the low carb lifestyle.
I encourage you to check it out, and best of luck!

NaomiLyn15

Fat is good for you, as long as it is good fat. Getting fat from pepperoni isn't ideal. But, remember that fat is what keeps your brain functioning. As long as the fat that you put in your body is good (natural) fat, then don't focus on it too much. Since you lowered your carb intake, you must increase both your fat and protein. Go into your settings and change the percentages for each or you will be constantly struggling to stay under the goals, and will getting less calories than you need.
I eat a low carb diet because my body is intolerant to processed carbs. So, I only eat about 75 a day with most of that in my fruits and veggies. But, to sustain this type of diet you have to give yourself fuel from other places, ie fat and protein. You will be exhausted at first, but once your body figures out how to burn the protein and fat, you will lose more weight. Your body has to work hard to burn protein and fat than to burn carbs. So, keep that in mind. Stay at your recommended calorie intake, and don't eat bad fat, and you will be all set. Don't let all the numbers scare you, just make good choices.

TaraFTMVA

How do I find my percent? Ive been looking and cannot seem to find it

SarahRazaq

i should add that I take a huge amount of omega 3... because with a low fat diet, you wont ever get enough and that the fatty acids in the omega 3 are essential for health.

Qarol

Well on my American cheese package it says 0 carb, but on here they count each slice as 1 carb

When a serving has less than 1g, the manufacturer is allowed to post zero. I hate this, but it's allowed. So be wary of something that says zero. There's almost no foods that have zero grams per serving. MFP will round up carbs if there's a partial gram.

And yes, you need more fat on a low(er) carb diet. But try not to overdo it. If you just consume massive amounts of fat, your body will just burn those fat grams, instead of the fat in your body, for fuel.

NaomiLyn15

Who says you're only allowed 53 g of fat? MFP? If you're doing low carb, you should not be doing low fat as well. It doesn't make sense, and there's gobs of evidence supporting a high protein, high fat, low carb diet. You can change your goals under the My Home > Goals - click change goals. I have mine set to 40% protein (145g), 40% fat (64g), and 20% carbs (75g) - for a 1450 cal / day diet. I usually go over on fat and under on carbs, but I don't worry about it a bit. Bloodwork is excellent.

This is a good intro book, if you're looking for basics, in easy-to-read language. It's slightly out of date, and most ketogenic diets recommend much higher protein than she does, but it's a good start: http://www.amazon.com/Gave-Low-Fat-Pounds-Revised-Expanded/dp/1592330401/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1314627285&sr=8-1

I do try to eat very little processed food. I'd personally drop the American cheese for some yummy cheddar - tastes 100 times better! And I'd forgo pepperoni for uncured bacon. I'd also add veggies, and lots of them. Breakfast for me usually involves 3-4 eggs, 1-2 pieces of bacon, and 2 cups of spinach or roasted asparagus or some other fibrous veggie. By simply avoiding flour and sugar, and starchy veggies (potatoes, corn), you should get to ketosis just fine. I don't really stress too much about the carbs in veggies...

Just a note - if you've been living on carbs (I've been there!), then you're probably going to feel crummy this week and possibly next. Hang in there - once you're over the "carb flu," you'll have gobs more energy, and your cravings will be practically gone!

Edited to address a few points above: you CAN of course go low fat and low carb, but why bother? There is no health benefit there, you'd be restricting your calories a great deal, and sticking to a low carb plan would be extremely difficult.

Also - this whole business of "if you go off of it, you'll gain it all back" drives me absolutely bonkers. If you go off ANY eating plan, you'll gain it all back! You have to go with a plan that you think you can sustain for life. You won't always be eating so few carbs - you'll add them back in until you stop losing weight, or once you're at your goal, until you start gaining weight. The idea behind low carb is to cut out the constant cravings - it's a plan that many people find much easier to stick to than the oh so popular "everything in moderation." That works great for some, but I was wanting to constantly binge on whatever I was supposed to be eating moderately. By eating low carb, I don't even want the cake / cookies / bread in the first place!

AGREED!!!

TaraFTMVA

Thank you all!!! I will definitely be doing some research, reading the articles posted, taking a piece of advise probably from each of you lol, and changing my goals! Much appreciated! =D

hpsnickers1

Transitioning to a low-carb diet does mean that you do have to up your protein and fat content. Fat, protein, and carbs are the three main fuel sources available to us from food, and our body reacts and processes each differently. So, if you cut out/limit one, then you will have to increase your intake from the other two. However, I would strongly encourage you to get your fat and protein from healthy, unprocessed sources as much as possible. The closer it is to nature, the better!
I also highly recommonend reading this article by Mark Sisson: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-primal-carbohydrate-continuum/
It talks about the appropriate levels of carbs that we should be eating per day. I personally eat way less carbs and more fat/protein than the typical American, and feel fantastic! I am also at my lowest weight since high school (and only about 10lbs away from what I weighed at 18!) Mark's Daily Apple has tons of resources regarding the low carb lifestyle.
I encourage you to check it out, and best of luck!

Same here. I get about 70% of my calories from fat - I think - I don't track fat or calories. I was 136lbs at 14 years old so I guess I can say I'm at the lowest weight since middle school. I did hit 120lb in my twenties but it was a very unhealthy 120. And I agree with Mark's Daily Apple. It's a great place for low-carb information (weight maintenance is considered moderate carb).

I refrain from low-carb processed foods. They are still full of chemicals which can wreak havoc on the body.

labgirl3

If you're looking for more science behind a low-carb diet, there is an excellent video here by Gary Taubes (talking at Google) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6vpFV6Wkl4

It's essentially his book, Why We Get Fat, in video form. The only thing that drives me crazy is the video editing - they don't show the Powerpoint slides while he's talking. So I open it up in 2 windows and pause on the slides.

I'd also second Mark's Daily Apple - excellent site, with tons of info, and Primal is closest to what I eat. I don't care so much about how we have evolved, and whether or not our ancestors ate grains or bread-like substances 10,000 years ago. I just know that eating this way has helped me lose 60 lbs, and I feel 100 times better when I do it.

As for low carb causing gall stones - I went vegan for a while, and after the first few months had to have my gall bladder removed. I'm pretty sure protein and fat weren't the issue. :huh: