For weight loss, should I focus on carbs or calories?

panthra

I keep hearing different opinions on this and am really confused. Some people focus on low calories when other people focus on low carbs to lose weight. Which one works?

sdumma

A good mix of both I'd say. But there is such thing as good carbs as in complex carbs from whole grains which are essential to good health. But I am also interested to see what else people have to say...

sarahrbraun

it really depends on the person. *I* tried low calorie for 3 months and only lost 7 pounds I reduced my workout, and my carbs ( from ~250g per day to ~100g per day) and lost almost 18lbs in the next 3 months.

elisa123gal

I've been doing low carb... first started atkins induction and lost nothing ... zero... that landed me here where I've been doing 1200 cals a day at low carb....and I am losing...slow and steady.but I don't think any faster than if I were eating complex carbs. I am thinking about just eating overall healthy and sticking to my calories. I don't think for me low carb mattered.

conradhughes

Well, there's a number of things you should do but bear the following in mind- carbs and protein are 4cal/gram while fat is 9cal/gram. Avoid calorie dense foods like chocolate, butter, bread etc (you want to focus on macronutrients carbohydrate fat and protein when dieting and in general, really). Myfitnesspal seems to minimise the importance of protein while you're on a diet which is what you need a lot of (around 0.7 grams per pound of body weight). This is because a diet is not about losing weight: it's about losing fat.

So if you're losing weight I would suggest (and I am no expert but have read a lot of secondary information sourced from many different studies) 0.7 grams per pound of body weight protein- and then get the rest of your fat and protein from whole foods. Avoid bread. Avoid chocolate. Foods like non-starchy vegetables such as onions, broccoli, beets, cabbage, well- most vegetables really, eat as many as you like. Try to get 50 grams + of carbohydrate a day to keep your brain ticking over with glucose (and keeping away from ketosis, which can be a little unfun to go into and out of for some people), then get your fat from your protein sources, omega-3 supplements (either sesame or fish oil essentially, or portions of fish like salmon) and minimise the rest. If you want a sweet, make your own from low fat milk or have a no added sugar ice cream (ice cream can be quite easily made with cottage cheese and egg whites and it's high in protein).

If you follow those rules - high protein and fairly low carb and fat - you'll minimise muscle loss while maximising fat loss.

-oh and note, sugar is fine (carbohydrates essentially) but more than 50 grams in the liver at a time and anything over that tends to be partitioned straight to fat.

If anyone says 'don't eat carbs' or 'don't worry about carbs' or 'eat low fat' then they're missing the point of a diet. Different things work for different people. The only thing you should be careful of is crash dieting (if you do, you need to take breaks every few weeks in order to stop your metabolism from crashing too much) and basically jumping on any sort of bandwagon for losing.

It's horrible to say, but the only way you can lose weight is by burning more calories than you eat. Oh- and if you do go low carb, you'll drop between 5 and 15 pounds of water in a week for various reasons which *will* mostly go back on when you go back to regular carb.

mandypizzle

I think the main focus should be on healthy eating and portion sizes.

ZugTheMegasaurus

Calories are always important; low carb is one way of reducing your caloric intake. In order to lose weight, you must have a calorie deficit, meaning that you take in less than you burn off (through exercise, daily activity, and your body keeping itself alive). So in order to lose weight, caloric intake must be sufficiently low that you will take some of that needed energy from excess fat.

Think of low carb as a method of creating the deficit. Some people find that low carb diets make it easier for them to stick to this calorie reduction; other people don't do well with it. In the end, the "how" is not so important; find what will work for you, whether it's low carb or something else.

krazyforyou

You want to do a combination of both. You dont have to low carb it, like 20 or so but drop it to less than a 100 and get that mainly from fruit and veggies. Up your protein and your set.

GreenEyedLady1

Calories is much more important to weight loss. Eating the right amount, not just a low amount, is the key.

Obviously eating healthier is better for you in the long run, but you can still have carbs and lose weight as long as you are eating the right amount of calories.

Ke22yB

I need balance my calories are important and I try to stay under goal I eat about 2050 cals a day 1610 MFP goal and 500 or 600 exercise calories that I eat back most of I exercise most every day and to maintain fuel for workouts I consume 150 carbs almost all from fruit vegs clean carbs almonds yogurts and lean chicken and fish pork makes up protein to help muscle repair and growth.
So I guess my answer is balance your intake and eat reasonably healthy foods

jillebean60

I've done the no carb thing in many forms (Adkins, HCG, counting carbs) all because I told myself that eating carbs made me hungrier in the end. What actually works is to know in order to lose you need to hear and feel your stomach start to growl about an hour before you're due for a meal. You need to feel hungry some of the time, whether or not you eat carbs. I am now a vegetarian strictly for health and palate reasons, and I eat whole grains, whole wheat and am no hungrier or have increased cravings than when I ate no carbs.

LorinaLynn

Calories and a good balance of mostly healthy foods. If you have a medical issue that makes you sensitive to carbs, then you should limit them.

nxd10

I have been reading on this a lot but am not an expert.

For me, low calories and keep my carbs under 50% - and all complex, unprocessed carbs like whole grains/fruit/veggies/beans.

The low carb for me is to keep low steady levels of insulin. It also keeps me from getting hungry.

And since I found that processed carbs like bread and rice were the biggest source of calories in my diet, if I dropped carbs a little, my calories dropped too.

llmcconnell

If you follow those rules - high protein and fairly low carb and fat - you'll minimise muscle loss while maximising fat loss.

-oh and note, sugar is fine (carbohydrates essentially) but more than 50 grams in the liver at a time and anything over that tends to be partitioned straight to fat.

If anyone says 'don't eat carbs' or 'don't worry about carbs' or 'eat low fat' then they're missing the point of a diet. Different things work for different people. The only thing you should be careful of is crash dieting (if you do, you need to take breaks every few weeks in order to stop your metabolism from crashing too much) and basically jumping on any sort of bandwagon for losing.

It's horrible to say, but the only way you can lose weight is by burning more calories than you eat. Oh- and if you do go low carb, you'll drop between 5 and 15 pounds of water in a week for various reasons which *will* mostly go back on when you go back to regular carb.

Good advice..

jzaz903

I've done the no carb thing in many forms (Adkins, HCG, counting carbs) all because I told myself that eating carbs made me hungrier in the end. What actually works is to know in order to lose you need to hear and feel your stomach start to growl about an hour before you're due for a meal. You need to feel hungry some of the time, whether or not you eat carbs. I am now a vegetarian strictly for health and palate reasons, and I eat whole grains, whole wheat and am no hungrier or have increased cravings than when I ate no carbs.

There is no reason you should feel hungry before every meal. There's no reason you should feel hungry at all. Keep your stomach full and happy, and keep a moderate calorie deficit. Choose foods that make you feel full longer(protein and whole grains) and bulk up your plate with lower calorie things such as vegetables. You want bread? Have at it. Just make it fit in your calories and you'll be fine.

FitRican

There are 3 simple guides to loose weight and build muscle:

1. Consume one gram of protein per pound of desired weight (u wanna be 120# eat 120 gm protein daily. Every thing else you eat is up to you as long as you follow #2.
2. Consume about 500 calories less than your maintenance (Calories needed = 2200, eat 1700) daily.
3. Work out 3 times a week (prefer with weights) do all cardio you want.


Less important guides:
1. Many meals a day
2. Meal timing

apriltrainer

I cut out almost all carbs about a year ago. Lost all my babyweight. SO IT WORKS!

Went more than 10 lbs below my prepregger weight....and then binged hard. ON carbs.

Gained 30 lbs back.

Decided to add them back in but eat them in controlled amounts.

Once I was able to control my carbs, I then was able to get my calorie count under control.

Anyways that is what worked for me.

I think cutting carbs(especially the wrong kind) is a VERY good idea. I just took it too far. I even cut out the good carbs like fruit.(I ended up binging on bananas.)

I no longer cut out fruit. I eat plenty of veggies and eat things like breads and pastas and oatmeal in very controlled amounts. Not as much as in the past, but not taking them out of my diet either.

Sabine_Stroehm

I have been reading on this a lot but am not an expert.

For me, low calories and keep my carbs under 50% - and all complex, unprocessed carbs like whole grains/fruit/veggies/beans.

The low carb for me is to keep low steady levels of insulin. It also keeps me from getting hungry.

And since I found that processed carbs like bread and rice were the biggest source of calories in my diet, if I dropped carbs a little, my calories dropped too.

I call this slow carb. :-)

FitRican

I cut out almost all carbs about a year ago. Lost all my babyweight. SO IT WORKS!

Went more than 10 lbs below my prepregger weight....and then binged hard. ON carbs.

Gained 30 lbs back.

Decided to add them back in but eat them in controlled amounts.

Once I was able to control my carbs, I then was able to get my calorie count under control.

Anyways that is what worked for me.

I think cutting carbs(especially the wrong kind) is a VERY good idea. I just took it too far. I even cut out the good carbs like fruit.(I ended up binging on bananas.)

I no longer cut out fruit. I eat plenty of veggies and eat things like breads and pastas and oatmeal in very controlled amounts. Not as much as in the past, but not taking them out of my diet either.

No carbs, no energy. Dizzinesss.. ..

msstuard

If you follow those rules - high protein and fairly low carb and fat - you'll minimise muscle loss while maximising fat loss.

-oh and note, sugar is fine (carbohydrates essentially) but more than 50 grams in the liver at a time and anything over that tends to be partitioned straight to fat.

If anyone says 'don't eat carbs' or 'don't worry about carbs' or 'eat low fat' then they're missing the point of a diet. Different things work for different people. The only thing you should be careful of is crash dieting (if you do, you need to take breaks every few weeks in order to stop your metabolism from crashing too much) and basically jumping on any sort of bandwagon for losing.

It's horrible to say, but the only way you can lose weight is by burning more calories than you eat. Oh- and if you do go low carb, you'll drop between 5 and 15 pounds of water in a week for various reasons which *will* mostly go back on when you go back to regular carb.

Good advice..

I agree with this.

msstuard

I have been reading on this a lot but am not an expert.

For me, low calories and keep my carbs under 50% - and all complex, unprocessed carbs like whole grains/fruit/veggies/beans.

The low carb for me is to keep low steady levels of insulin. It also keeps me from getting hungry.

And since I found that processed carbs like bread and rice were the biggest source of calories in my diet, if I dropped carbs a little, my calories dropped too.

I call this slow carb. :-)

pretty much what I'm doing now after loosing a lot of weight on Adkins / south beach mix.