carb free meal ideas?

katiepie111

hi all..ive decided im eating too many carbs - today was 200g worth. all through wholemeal and veges, fruits, crackers, but still may explain why im feeling so sluggish and heavy. any ideas? thanks in advance

RoanneRed

Scrap the crackers (they're processed), try to keep fruit to 2 serves a day, reduce grains (bread, oats, rice) and keep plenty of leafy green vege/salads/sweet potato.

RAFValentina

Who says that's too much?!! I eat in excess of 200 a day... it's fuel for my body! I have about 65-70% carbs a week, ~15% fat and ~20% protein.

What makes you want to change?

There's carbs in most things, fruit and veg especially. So you're excluding A LOT of foods!

machiavelli29

It's about as hard to find food without carbs as it is to find things NOT made in China! I agree with RoanneRed that you should scrap the crackers because they are processed and don't give you the nutritional value that veges and fruits would. Fruits are also beneficial because of the natural sugars which should give you some additional quick energy so you won't want to sit back and relax on the couch.
I also think you should trying eating several small meals which would keep you from feeling bloated and also keep your metabolism high so your body will be able to burn fat and carbs faster.

snookumss

Eat more protein

katcena

last night I had chicken breast with basil pesto and 1 cup of broccoli. It was awesome...low carb and high protein.
I needed it last night to fill in the gaps in my fat and protein intake for the day. I don't stay away from carbs....I love them and when I don't have enough then I don't have any energy. Maybe you actually think your sluggishness is from too many carbs...but in fact you don't have enough? And it depends on the carbs...complex carbs and those from fruits and veggies will affect you differently than those from processed foods and "white" or simple carbs.

Vanessahogan03

Try looking at the atkins website in the phase one. They have so many carb free recipes. When I was on a low carb diet, my dinner would consist of skinless chicken breast=0 carbs, 1 cup of brocolli=2 carbs, maybe like salad with some ceasar=0

ksizzle911

I've been on a low carb diet for about 23 days now. I don't eat any complex carbs, just simple ones that are found naturally in fruits and veggies. I've never felt better! I have so much more energy than I've ever thought. Not to say that you can't have ANY carbs at all. Focus on whole grains and whole wheat and stay away from processed foods of all kinds of you can help it. Another good tip if you want to boost your energy level, is to drink 8-16 oz of water with fresh squeezed lemon juice in it (1/2 lemon for 8oz, full lemon for 16 oz). I have completely cut out caffeinated beverages for 3 weeks and have been using the hot lemon water technique and it works as a GREAT substitute. In fact, I read some articles recently which says that lemon water is the best known natural energy booster out there. And it's way better for your body than caffeine is.

veggievixen79

Try the Dukan Diet Recipe Book if you like cooking--I would never be able to follow the Dukan diet as it's way too restrictive but a there are a lot of good no-carb / no-fat recipes. I think it's about £6 on Amazon.

MouseFood

You can never eat too much fruit! Those are GOOD carbs.
The bad carbs come in processed foods, refined white flour, pasta, etc.

Switch to wholewheat pastas?

Also, go high in protein. If you'r vegetarian, add nuts to your salads or make a tofu stew/soup ...

Lowfat dairy (like cheese or yogurt) is also a great way to help lose weight. Those who consume dairy products actually pass more fat through their systems.

Kymmu

Feel free to add me and have a look back through my diaries.

Shredded2011

Chicken breast ( i put chili sauce on mine in oven) and salad - really easy

Its funny how many times you can eat this meal and never tire of it XX

shakybabe

most people when they say they are dropping crabs they mean the processed stuff and mostly wheat which makes some people bloat and store loads of water (does me)

For me I found big difference just cutting wheat based cereal, bread and pasta. I don't bother checking all ingredients for tiny traces but replace flour products with gluten free version ie bread, choc brownies! If you on low calories be aware Gluten free bread often has higher cals than regular bread per slice.. I allow it 1-2 a week and exercise on the days I eat it.

I allow Rice Krispies for breakfast or Oats, have rice once every few weeks with dinner but most of time replace it with cauliflower rice for meals (until my cauli runs out anyway! )

I cut down white potatoes, I love sweet potato chips anyway but occasionally have regular chips I save it for my PMT week when I got cravings bad and my metabolism is slightly higher anyway,, I work out every day that week and even eating more carbs and choc (that week only) I still manage to lose about 3lbs + the water that went on from TOTM.

My healthy version of fish and chips is fish cooked in bag (no batter/breadcrumbs) just a little garlic butter or a tomato based sauce, sweet potato chips or parsnip chips and green beans instead of mushy peas! ..I also do a chilli with cauliflower as rice, mince and veg in low fat chilli sauce (you could use quorn or something to lower cals further.. I allow red meat once a week.. I love lamb) and a soft corn tortilla instead of wheat one.

Puddings.. you can do fruit crumble with oats on top instead of pastry crumbs? (if you're wanting to avoid wheat in particular)

Rice noodles could be used instead of wheat ones for stir fry's, I use them sometimes and if you miss your pasta too much you can also get gluten free pasta.

Most of my dinners are chicken/turkey or white fish cooked in oven with roasted vegetables or salad especially rest days when not doing additional exercise as only on 1200cals... occasionally a stew/chunky soup type meal in winter.

Quiing

Here's a typical low carb day for me

Breakfast:
2 large scrambled eggs
3 slices of turkey bacon
1 tbsp of EVOO

Lunch:
1 can of tuna
3 cups of baby spinach
3 tbsp of italian dressing

Dinner:
1 salmon burger (from Sam's/Costco)
1 cup of cooked asparagus


All of that is under 30g of carbs (may even be under 15g of carbs after you subtract fiber) in a day and is about 1200 calories!

Kymmu

Some good info on this page!

ashnm88

Carbs are meant to give you energy. Try and make sure your getting enough protein.




So, which type of carbohydrates should we eat?
Carbohydrates are an essential part of a healthy diet and should make up 50% of our daily calorie intake. The majority should come from complex carbohydrates, preferably the wholemeal varieties, as well as a large intake of fruit and vegetables.

Simple carbohydrates of the refined kind, including refined sugar (sucrose) should be limited. They have no nutritional value and are generally high in sugars and fats.

To make it really simple:

"Good" carbohydrates are:

Bran, wheat germ, wholemeal bread, brown rice, potatoes, all forms of pasta but especially wholemeal pasta, barley, oats, lentils, chickpeas, beans, peas, corn, sweet potatoes, wholegrain cereals such as Weetabix, muesli, All bran, brown breads, root vegetables such as carrots, turnips, leeks and radishes.

"Bad" carbohydrates are:

Sweets, sugary breakfast cereals, cakes, pastries, syrup, table sugar (sucrose), fizzy drinks, biscuits, chocolate.

Source: http://www.helpwithcooking.com/nutrition-information/carbohydrates.html

AH2013

I made this decision yesterday and have started today eating lots of protein, veg, nuts and some fruit. Add me as a friend if you like, we can start this together!

Look at www.nerdfitness.com for some good no-nonsense info about cutting out a good chunk of carbs. This is what made me shift my butt yesterday!!

fatcitizen

I try to avoid all "dough"......pretzels, pizza dough, bread, etc......I find that I can eat "single ingredient" things like potatoes but not pasta.....everyone is different. You may want to try some of the above ideas for a week or two and see how it affects you.... Just because something works for me does not mean it will work for you....listen to your body, if you add a food back into your meals and feel "sluggish" or "bloated" the next day, eliminate it for a couple weeks and try in again, you may find it is a combination of foods, eaten together, that make you feel bad.

kbean33

bump

mjbrenner

There is constant debate on just how necessary carbs are for energy. One of the best things you can do, if your insurance covers it, is to get a full blood panel and have it explained to you by your doctor. Eating healthy became much easier for me when I learned that my body burns fat with fewer problems than it burns carbs. I was dumbfounded when my doctor told me to eat less rice and more steak, but it really works for me.

Feel free to check out my food diary for meal ideas that are lower in carbs, but are not strictly "low carb". Beans make a wonderful addition to any meal as a way of getting a very limited amount of slow-digesting carbs.

Keep in mind that switching to a lower-carb diet can make you feel just plain awful for a week. Drinking lots of water can help, but there is no shame in sucking on a few raisins or drinking a half cup of juice if it prevents you from breaking down and quitting the transition.

AmandaJoi25

The only thing carb free is meat.