What is with the low carb fad?

_Kitten_Kate

Low carb diet = higher risk for major heart disease issues

not true

DITTO!
That is FALSE!!!!

_Kitten_Kate

I agree with you... But i would rather do low fat, and tons of fruit and veggies and lean meat and pasta!!! lol I lost 70 pounds doing this when i was younger and i did keep it off this way for years. It wasnt until recently that i was taking care of mymom that i put on the weight well half of it back because i couldnt exercise and i went back to eating foods that were high in fat because it was available. I was so busy with her i really had to put aside those things for a while.. now im hoping to get back into it..

That's a shame you ate foods high in fat and got fat....... I bet the foods you ate were also higher in carbs and cals.........

And possibly sugar filled...
Good Fat doesn't make you fat.
Sugar, BAD fat and carbs makes you fat.

Acg67

I agree with you... But i would rather do low fat, and tons of fruit and veggies and lean meat and pasta!!! lol I lost 70 pounds doing this when i was younger and i did keep it off this way for years. It wasnt until recently that i was taking care of mymom that i put on the weight well half of it back because i couldnt exercise and i went back to eating foods that were high in fat because it was available. I was so busy with her i really had to put aside those things for a while.. now im hoping to get back into it..

That's a shame you ate foods high in fat and got fat....... I bet the foods you ate were also higher in carbs and cals.........

And possibly sugar filled...
Good Fat doesn't make you fat.
Sugar, BAD fat and carbs makes you fat.

A surplus of calories makes you fat, doesn't matter if they are all good fats or not

GrokOn

Because I feel better when I eat low carb... I dont eat processed foods that are high in calories and low in vitamins and minerals. It makes sense to me eat whole foods that come frome natural sources. Many fruits and veggies have health benenfits and protien is essential for building muscle. I see no problems with eating just meat veggies and fruits. You can get all the nutrients you need ths way. There are people that eat processed junk on all diets, but I will never condone it. Everyone responds differently to different food low carb makes me feel better and keeps binging and cravings at bay. That is why I do it.

dinosnopro

I agree with you... But i would rather do low fat, and tons of fruit and veggies and lean meat and pasta!!! lol I lost 70 pounds doing this when i was younger and i did keep it off this way for years. It wasnt until recently that i was taking care of mymom that i put on the weight well half of it back because i couldnt exercise and i went back to eating foods that were high in fat because it was available. I was so busy with her i really had to put aside those things for a while.. now im hoping to get back into it..

That's a shame you ate foods high in fat and got fat....... I bet the foods you ate were also higher in carbs and cals.........

And possibly sugar filled...
Good Fat doesn't make you fat.
Sugar, BAD fat and carbs makes you fat.

Or eating more than you burn


EDIT: acg, you beat me to it

taem

I believe only YOU get you fat, not carbs, fat, or protein. Excess amounts of anything (calories) will get you overweight and eventually sick.

Please stop blaming macro nutrients instead of your hands and mouth!

_Kitten_Kate

I agree with you... But i would rather do low fat, and tons of fruit and veggies and lean meat and pasta!!! lol I lost 70 pounds doing this when i was younger and i did keep it off this way for years. It wasnt until recently that i was taking care of mymom that i put on the weight well half of it back because i couldnt exercise and i went back to eating foods that were high in fat because it was available. I was so busy with her i really had to put aside those things for a while.. now im hoping to get back into it..

That's a shame you ate foods high in fat and got fat....... I bet the foods you ate were also higher in carbs and cals.........

And possibly sugar filled...
Good Fat doesn't make you fat.
Sugar, BAD fat and carbs makes you fat.

A surplus of calories makes you fat, doesn't matter if they are all good fats or not

Well, that's really a given isn't it? Being that we are on a "Diet" website...
If I were to have a surplus...I'd rather it be healthy foods....GOOD fats... than processed crappy foods and bad fats.
Personal choices I suppose.

reneegee23

Four years ago, I did Atkins for 6 months and lost a lot weight which I have not gained back. But I also felt like *kitten* during that time, lost tons of hair and got majorly depressed. My cholesterol numbers were super high as well for some time after that. I feel like I did a lot of harm to my body.

That said, I do agree that many carbs should be eaten in moderation and any processed carbs avoided completely. We should be eating mostly whole, plant based diets anyway, with a bit of meat, a bit of sugar and a bit of fat.

Michael Pollan's 'The Omnivore's Dilemma" is a good read about eating balanced, whole foods.

llaurenmarie

I believe only YOU get you fat, not carbs, fat, or protein. Excess amounts of anything (calories) will get you overweight and eventually sick.

Please stop blaming macro nutrients instead of your hands and mouth!

(:

Acg67

I agree with you... But i would rather do low fat, and tons of fruit and veggies and lean meat and pasta!!! lol I lost 70 pounds doing this when i was younger and i did keep it off this way for years. It wasnt until recently that i was taking care of mymom that i put on the weight well half of it back because i couldnt exercise and i went back to eating foods that were high in fat because it was available. I was so busy with her i really had to put aside those things for a while.. now im hoping to get back into it..

That's a shame you ate foods high in fat and got fat....... I bet the foods you ate were also higher in carbs and cals.........

And possibly sugar filled...
Good Fat doesn't make you fat.
Sugar, BAD fat and carbs makes you fat.

A surplus of calories makes you fat, doesn't matter if they are all good fats or not

Well, that's really a given isn't it? Being that we are on a "Diet" website...
If I were to have a surplus...I'd rather it be healthy foods....GOOD fats... than processed crappy foods and bad fats.
Personal choices I suppose.

And yet you said "good fat doesn't make you fat" so either can or cannot make you fat, which is it?

mzfitns

Eating less than 20 grams of carbs per meal and 4-5 meals a day helps to regulate your blood sugar. This is not low carb by any means, because you end up with about 80-100 grams daily. But for those dealing with cravings, versus hunger this is the route to go. Calories might be created equal, but cravings are not. Hope this helps. I no longer crave any sugar, sweets or fatty foods.

theflyingartist

Someone has probably said something about this already, but I believe I speak for a lot of people when I say,
Carbs are highly processed these days, and by avoiding carbohydrates it allows your meals extra space for nutritious and mineral containing components like proteins (meats, beans) phytochemicals and fiber (greens, vegetables).

Low carb today is not the Atkins of yesterday. We are not just focused on macros-- grams of protein vs. grams of carbs-- anymore. It's about the quality of your diet and what meals shape your daily intake. For example, grilling a chicken breast with lemon is a low carb meal these days. A Big Mac with no bun was a low carb meal 10 years ago.

I see no issue with low carb diets, and find that they are extremely beneficial for the body and our biochemistry.

Chood5

Someone has probably said something about this already, but I believe I speak for a lot of people when I say,
Carbs are highly processed these days, and by avoiding carbohydrates it allows your meals extra space for nutritious and mineral containing components like proteins (meats, beans) phytochemicals and fiber (greens, vegetables).

Low carb today is not the Atkins of yesterday. We are not just focused on macros-- grams of protein vs. grams of carbs-- anymore. It's about the quality of your diet and what meals shape your daily intake. For example, grilling a chicken breast with lemon is a low carb meal these days. A Big Mac with no bun was a low carb meal 10 years ago.

I see no issue with low carb diets, and find that they are extremely beneficial for the body and our biochemistry.

Well said.

SalishSea

Maintaining my carbs and eating higher protein was an epiphany for me. I have never felt so good in my whole life than when it finally clicked for me that carbs make me feel sick. I am not talking about the carbs in vegetables but the carbs in bread, etc. Carbs made me feel SICK. Plus I needed to eat every two hours. I will never go back to the carby life I used to live. Never.

The flour, sugar, butter combination (carbs) was slowly killing me. Never again.

SpydrMnky27

Low carb makes me feel better, sleep better, wake up happy, gets rid of sugar cravings, and the weight loss is great too.

CDeguc

Primal. Do a little research (www.marksdailyapple.com) and it all starts to make sense.

sleepytexan

I believe only YOU get you fat, not carbs, fat, or protein. Excess amounts of anything (calories) will get you overweight and eventually sick.

Please stop blaming macro nutrients instead of your hands and mouth!

ding ding ding! we have a winner!

nanodot

I would love all you "macros don't matter and wheat is awesome" folks to try eating nothing but your BMR in bread for 60 days. That ought to wake you up. You probably wouldn't last 7.

Paleo is meat, veggies, fruits, nuts. Dairy if you want. It's hundreds of whole foods from the perimeter of the grocery store that nutritionists tell you to eat.

Why should grass seeds be the basis of our nutrition plan, instead of salmon, broccoli, and apples?

Jambe

I don't get any of these fads. Just use the god damn food pyramid and you'll be fine.

Hmm No sarcasm font.

In any case, low carb simplifies a lot of decisions for people so they don't have to think too much. And it's effective.

Just a simple, oh, that has a lot of carbs. I can't have that.

vs

Hmm. If I eat this with this and this with that dressing will I hit this magic number that's based on today's energy expenditure... yada yada.

dcmat

It all depends on what you do with those carbs - mine make up between 55%-65% of my diet, but are burnt up cycling 1200+ miles a month.

Joannie30

For some of us, its not a fad, its a necessity. I have PCOS and have to limit my carbs, not for vanity or anything else like that, but because I have to for my health.

Vegetablearian

I am not a low carb at all going by your stats on here but I eat usually between 1/3 and 3/4 of my carb goal that MFP sets me , mainly from my oats for breakfast, and a potato or two during the day and a few times a week I have white bread for lunch.

But I meet my protein daily and that is important to me and I feel better for meeting that than when I eat tonnes of carbs and miss the protein out

DreamersWifey

My mom eats about 22 carbs a day 0_0
She's dosent count calories only carbs!
she's been doing it since jan 1st and is down like 75 pounds

Chipmaniac

The anti-carb fad is largely due to the fact that foods high in carbs often have a high caloric density. For example, bread has a lot of calories for the volume of food. Pasta, on the other hand, has a pretty low caloric density. All carbs are not the same.

Some enterprising person came up with the bright idea that if they had people cut down on carbs, people would lose weight simply by virtue of the lower caloric density of their diet. A fad was born.

Personally, I simply moderate count calories and don't worry about carbs. I do avoid simple sugars as they are just empty calories, but I still eat pasta and potatoes often but avoid bread not because it has "evil carbs" but because they have too many calories for what you get. There are better choices that don't run up your calorie total as quickly.

HonkyTonks

I believe only YOU get you fat, not carbs, fat, or protein. Excess amounts of anything (calories) will get you overweight and eventually sick.

Please stop blaming macro nutrients instead of your hands and mouth!

ding ding ding! we have a winner!

Hear hear

Matt_Wild

Being that carbs are the only none essential food type, I would argue that why the carb fad? We aren't designed to eat carbs (and certainly the type of carbs we do) in the amounts we do.

LilyGrey

I personally avoid eating a lot of carbs because they make me feel so ill afterwards. This isn't just after I eat fatty things such as chips (fries to you Americans etc.!) but also after eating things like baked potatoes, wholegrain rice, etc. Even sweet potatoes leave me feeling clogged up, bloated and extremely ill.

Low carb. to me isn't really much of a choice; unless you consider it a choice between feeling awful and not feeling awful.

Hoosier_born

I have a strong family history of Diabetes. My gramma and her mom both ended up having their legs amputated because of Diabetes. My uncle who is barely older than me was recently diagnosed. My sister was diagnosed. During a couple of pregnancies I was diagnosed with gestational Diabetes.

I don't want to lose my legs.

Low carb and the treadmill are tools I use to keep them.

I am not on a low carb diet, but I understand why some people are, this is one reason, and the other reason is due to PCOS. I would never, ever question a person''s ability to lose weight, nor how they lose it.

stephen_jones

i just have low carbs(150 g) for 3 days then eat more carbs for 1 day(300 g)then get back on track,definately works

traceyjayne64

I do low carb (Atkins), been doing it for 7 weeks and easily lost 22lbs. I dont count calories, much to everyone elses dismay...i keep getting told off for my low calorie intake so i have stopped filling in my food diary.
I eat very well, im never hungry, and i feel great.