low carbs high protein

owngoal64

Interesting thread....always a controversial subject on these boards. My experience has been similar to many others - low carb definitely seems to be the fastest way to weight loss. I started South Beach Diet a few years ago and took off 20 pounds in 5 weeks (and it is not as low carb as Atkins). Biggest issue to me was I couldn't exercise effectively while on a low carb diet - kept crashing due to lack of energy. Also I gained 5 lbs back immediately when I started eating them again.

I think the 35 / 35 / 30 distribution seems to be a good compromise - it allows me to exercise and still lose weight (although slower than before). Good luck everyone!!!

owngoal64

There is no magic, although higher protein diets tend to blunt hunger some in many people, and that can be it's own boost in the ability to stick to a caloric deficit.

Bingo. For me low carb really suppressed my appetite. Protein is filling, and many carbs aren't. This is why many find low carb easier than low fat - you tend to not be hungry when on low carb.

schifdy

My husband and I did the "Ideal Protein Plan" and you have to do it through a doctor (my heart doctor for us) we both lost 20 lbs.

LovelyLibra79

Question..so when you are restricting carbs...should you watch calories too or no?
With Atkins...they advise not to count the calories

Dahavol

There is no magic, although higher protein diets tend to blunt hunger some in many people, and that can be it's own boost in the ability to stick to a caloric deficit.

Bingo. For me low carb really suppressed my appetite. Protein is filling, and many carbs aren't. This is why many find low carb easier than low fat - you tend to not be hungry when on low carb.

Although there are also disadvantages to higher protein diets. For example, constipation is a common side effect. There is no one size fits all solution. All diets have good aspects and bad aspects. Some people find some of the drawbacks of one to be intolerable, while others find it to be a minor inconveinance. Its all about what you want, and what you are willing to live with to get it.

atjays

I did the no carb (atkins diet) fad a couple years ago, I wouldn't really recommend it. You generally will lose about the same amount of weight from your muscle tissue as you do actual fat loss. The initial sugar withdrawls basically crippled me for the first two weeks, I was miserable. After that though, it was easier. I lost like 10-15 lbs quick just like everyone does but that's about where it stopped. Cheating on this diet is absolutely 10x worse than any other diet, your body will take every bit of carbs that enter your body and store them as fat.

It may be a way to drop a few pounds quickly, but the adverse effects it has on your health are equal to some of the dangerous diet supplements out there in the long term. I would visit your doctor before starting it just to get a baseline on your overall health.

I realize some people in this thread have had great success with it, but you can't argue that it is superior or faster than doing it the right way.

Dahavol

Question..so when you are restricting carbs...should you watch calories too or no?
With Atkins...they advise not to count the calories

This is absolutely incorrect. Atkins says don't count calories not as a way to help weight loss but as a way to sell people on the program. Most people that switch from eating 50% or more of their calories from carbs to eating far more protein and fat find themselves fuller on less food. Protein and fats tend to be more filling, protein especially. Therefore the recent atkins convert eats "as many calories as they want" while still eating less than they used to. Eventually people turn to high fat foods like bacon to blunt the craving for carbs, and volia, weight loss slows or stops. At the end of the day there really is only one rule to dieting the law of thermodynamics. When energy, calories, is consumed at a greater rate than it is expelled there is a surplus to store(as fat). There are various compentents to how that energy is expelled including hormonal effects, and different thermogenic effects of nutrients. However, at the end of the day its calories in v. calories out.

LovelyLibra79

Question..so when you are restricting carbs...should you watch calories too or no?
With Atkins...they advise not to count the calories

This is absolutely incorrect. Atkins says don't count calories not as a way to help weight loss but as a way to sell people on the program. Most people that switch from eating 50% or more of their calories from carbs to eating far more protein and fat find themselves fuller on less food. Protein and fats tend to be more filling, protein especially. Therefore the recent atkins convert eats "as many calories as they want" while still eating less than they used to. Eventually people turn to high fat foods like bacon to blunt the craving for carbs, and volia, weight loss slows or stops. At the end of the day there really is only one rule to dieting the law of thermodynamics. When energy, calories, is consumed at a greater rate than it is expelled there is a surplus to store(as fat). There are various compentents to how that energy is expelled including hormonal effects, and different thermogenic effects of nutrients. However, at the end of the day its calories in v. calories out.

Thanks very helpful information

bigbeardiver

Mine is set at 5/50/45 carb/protein/fat. works for me I LOVE low carb.

How long have you been doing this? I've been trying this the last week and I"m at 20/40/35 most days carb/protein/fat most days. I've never felt better. I've been full of energy all week long. I thought I would run out during my workouts. I workout out daily 1 hour strength + 30 minutes cardio + hot tub/pool/steam room and I've noticed more energy not less. Just wondering how long I can keep this going.

steelersfamily6

I have actually been trying to do this but the hard thing about doing low carb and counting calories at the same time is that I wasn't getting enough calories in. I was so afraid to eat more calories bc I didn't want to eat more carbs and I couldn't just run out to get something at the store that was low carb. A friend of mine wrote out a couple of sheets for me to look at but it was a low carb, high protein but not a calorie count...

So right now I am just trying to keep my carbs anywhere between 50 - 80 carbs a day and yes somedays I will go over but I am really trying not to. I just started it this week and I was losing a pound a day, so not bad!


***Please remember one thing everyone, this is not supposed to be a DIET, it is supposed to be a LIFE CHANGE and if you are not in this for the long haul you might end up screwing up yourself and your body. Everyone has a right to do it the way they want just remember diets are temporary, a life change is forever!

Dahavol

. Cheating on this diet is absolutely 10x worse than any other diet, your body will take every bit of carbs that enter your body and store them as fat.

This is not really true as its written. Any carbs "cheated" will actually quickly find itself converted to glycogen and rushed to the muscles to replace the much more inefficient food of fatty acids. The fat that is already a large part of the diet will then be stored. The increase in muscle glycogen will lead to temporarily high water retention which can cause a scale jump, but not really a body fat jump. This means that while on atkins, a doughnut may lead to a 2 lb jump on the scale through a water regain, but that doughnut is not turning immeadiatly into fat. It is in fact very hard for the body to store carbs as fats, and with a ready supply of dietary fats, would never choose to do so.

ednabnana

Mine is set at 5/50/45 carb/protein/fat. works for me I LOVE low carb.

How does it work?

I am really struggling in losing the last 5lbs. Maybe, just maybe, this is what I need(?)

bigbeardiver

My biggest challenge is cutting carbs but getting enough calories. You can only eat so much bacon! Trust me.

I'm trying to hit 3000 calories but go as low carb as I can and it is a struggle. To get calories I need the carbs.

Also I learned a new term. Net Carbs = Carb count - Dietary Fiber. So if getting enough fiber with some actual carbs you are still lower carbs than you think.

mjbrenner

I did the no carb (atkins diet) fad a couple years ago, I wouldn't really recommend it. You generally will lose about the same amount of weight from your muscle tissue as you do actual fat loss. The initial sugar withdrawls basically crippled me for the first two weeks, I was miserable. After that though, it was easier. I lost like 10-15 lbs quick just like everyone does but that's about where it stopped. Cheating on this diet is absolutely 10x worse than any other diet, your body will take every bit of carbs that enter your body and store them as fat.

It may be a way to drop a few pounds quickly, but the adverse effects it has on your health are equal to some of the dangerous diet supplements out there in the long term. I would visit your doctor before starting it just to get a baseline on your overall health.

I realize some people in this thread have had great success with it, but you can't argue that it is superior or faster than doing it the right way.

I really dislike calling someone out like this, but this is pretty much 100% incorrect about a low carb lifestyle, at least for the average low carber. Losing muscle as well as fat comes from not exercising, not eating low carb. Most people find the sugar withdrawal annoying, not crippling (though there likely are some exceptions).

Most importantly, I know of no "no carb" diets. Atkins encourages you to get some carbs through vegetables, even in the induction phase, and you eventually can add in carbs from other sources as well. Low carb is no more inherently dangerous than any other diet strategy for most people, and to equate it with "dangerous diet supplements" is incredible misinformation.

You WILL gain weight if you cheat and binge on carbs while on a low carb diet, bit this is water weight gain, not fat in most instances. This said, if you cheat poorly enough you will need to go through the initial "carb flu" again, which is generally no fun.

A low carb lifestyle is not the "wrong" way, as implied by stating that people should diet the "right" way. Low carb dieting is not for everyone, but there is nothing inherently bad about it. There are pitfalls to avoid, but that is true for any eating strategy.

To the OP, make sure you read up on low carb lifestyles and find a plan that works for you. There is a huge variety to choose from, and it helps to have a baseline plan to work from. As you go forward, you will probably experiment and find the precise method that works for you. Just remember that you still need to maintain a caloric deficit to lose weight while eating low carb. There are arguments that the calories in and calories out are slightly modified on a low carb diet, but you are much safer and more likely to see results if you use MFP to ensure a caloric deficit.

Good luck!

SmartWhatever

I am going out on Saturday and now I'm thinking about what I can drink that will still keep me below my daily carb intake. I think Michelob Ultra is low carb... anyone know any other alcoholic beverages that are low?

mjbrenner

Dry red wine is an excellent choice. Dry white wines are fine as well, but red has a few more health benefits.

zombilishious

As others have said, an extremely low carb diet drops weight, but is hard to maintain. As soon as you add carbs back in, you gain - I know from personal experience! It's also usually high in fat unless you are switching to a vegetarian lifestyle. Moderating your carbs and the type of carbs you eat is more beneficial and easier to maintain in the long run. Your body needs some carbs for fuel. I stick to 100-130 carbs a day and aim for 150g of protein daily from lean meats, beans, nuts, egg whites, etc. My carbs come primarily from whole grain foods. I also exercise for 60 minutes at least 4 times a week. My weight loss is consistent at 1.5lbs.

If you've hit a plateau in weight loss it's often due to metabolism slowing over time due to constant dieting. The best thing you can do is stop dieting for a couple of weeks and find your maintenance calories (around 2,000)- the number of calories you need to remain consistent. If you gain 3lbs or so, go down to 1200 for a couple of days, then go back to the maintenance calories. After 2-3 weeks of this, restart your diet program.

needlework

bump

ShilohMaier

I did the no carb (atkins diet) fad a couple years ago, I wouldn't really recommend it. You generally will lose about the same amount of weight from your muscle tissue as you do actual fat loss. The initial sugar withdrawls basically crippled me for the first two weeks, I was miserable. After that though, it was easier. I lost like 10-15 lbs quick just like everyone does but that's about where it stopped. Cheating on this diet is absolutely 10x worse than any other diet, your body will take every bit of carbs that enter your body and store them as fat.

It may be a way to drop a few pounds quickly, but the adverse effects it has on your health are equal to some of the dangerous diet supplements out there in the long term. I would visit your doctor before starting it just to get a baseline on your overall health.

I realize some people in this thread have had great success with it, but you can't argue that it is superior or faster than doing it the right way.

Wow, this is so wrong it's almost funny. Muscle loss? Then why is it that prior to competitions, body-builders switch to low-carb diets? Yes, to shred water, but if it was jeopardizing their muscles- the things they make their money with- they seriously wouldn't do it. And as to being a danger to your health, all of my blood work improved dramatically when I switched to a low-carb lifestyle. And I wasn't eating junk prior to that- I was following a standard low-fat/cal diet. Yeah, cheating is worse when you're body gets used to low-carb, because it recognizes the junk for what it is, and doesn't like it! Because your body has gotten used to being HEALTHY!!!!!

Marll

Question..so when you are restricting carbs...should you watch calories too or no?
With Atkins...they advise not to count the calories

This is absolutely incorrect. Atkins says don't count calories not as a way to help weight loss but as a way to sell people on the program. Most people that switch from eating 50% or more of their calories from carbs to eating far more protein and fat find themselves fuller on less food. Protein and fats tend to be more filling, protein especially. Therefore the recent atkins convert eats "as many calories as they want" while still eating less than they used to. Eventually people turn to high fat foods like bacon to blunt the craving for carbs, and volia, weight loss slows or stops. At the end of the day there really is only one rule to dieting the law of thermodynamics. When energy, calories, is consumed at a greater rate than it is expelled there is a surplus to store(as fat). There are various compentents to how that energy is expelled including hormonal effects, and different thermogenic effects of nutrients. However, at the end of the day its calories in v. calories out.

I had to laugh out loud at this. There really is no reason to count calories on Atkins if you are doing it the way that Dr. Atkins writes it out, in black and white, in his book "Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution". Once you get over the initial carb flu most people don't crave carbs that much and eating a ton of bacon certainly isn't going to stop your weight loss. Hell I could probably sit around all day eating sticks of butter wrapped in bacon and still loose weight if my carbs were low enough.

Of course I know that everyone that is not a fan of low carb always comes back with the calories in/calories out argument, and while people are different I can say for me when I did Atkins by the book I lived a highly sedendary life between work, school and home and literally did NO exercise and lost 105lbs in a year, I probably also consumed 10x my body weight that year in bacon.