Low carb diets?
Replies
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As for psychological effects, you don't have to "believe it." Do some research, carbs help regulate serotonin levels and other mood hormones, people on low carb diets are consistently found to be more depressed than people who eat higher carb in study after study. Low carb also leads to increased cortisol, as cortisol is one of the regulators of gluconeogenesis, and high cortisol leads to less fat burning and more lean mass loss.
Not always. Cortisol is catabolic. It breaks down tissues, fat included.
It can be a good thing.
Yes, it can, and cortisol definitely raises when people are losing weight and upping fitness... but cortisol is a very surprisingly delicate hormone. People undergoing extra stresses from illness, anxiety, disorders, etc. have generally higher consistent levels of cortisol.
With cortisol, the higher it is over a period of time, it WILL add weight to the body. That's part of it's evolutionary function.0 -
I eat low carb the first 4 months I lost 70 pounds. The last four months NOTHING. I have tried carb cycling and many different variations however i am convinced short term it is great long term does not agree with me0
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Cortisol is also linked to shift work/abnormal sleep patterns.0
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Why ask for an opinion on something, and then argue with everyone that gives an opinion you don't agree with? There was no point in asking.
My opinion (based on years of attempting low-carb diets and similar) is that anything that requires you to cut out something either completely or a lot is not going to work in the long term, because it is not a realistic way of eating that you can stick to for the rest of your life. If I want chocolate or pasta or bread, I eat it, but I make room for it in my calorie allowance.
I'm not arguing with everyone that disagrees with me. I'm asking them where they got their information from if they're going to make ignorant statements. And I asked for personal experiences. I have thanked numerous people that have commented on here and given me real information and opinions. And I completely agree with you on it about the long term thing. That's why I was wondering what other people have experienced. Like, can you eat low carb (and by low I don't mean 20 and under and anything drastic... just low), lose weight, and then slowly up your intake to maintain? That's what I plan on doing but I wanted to know what worked for other people. From my personal experiences, calories and exercise alone do not work. I was running miles a day during practice in high school and had weight training for an hour a day, plus games on the weekend, and was only eating around 1800 calories a day, and I still wasn't at the weight I wanted. Lowering my carbs seem to be the only thing that works but I've only been trying it out for about a month now.0 -
So how do you expect to eat low carb and low fat? It sounds like you're looking for an impossible diet. Carbohydrates and fat are the body's main sources of energy, if you aren't eating one, you need to be eating the other."Ok, but what about the dietary fat you eat in place of the carbs that your body burns instead of the stored fat? Or the protein that you eat that gets converted to glucose via gluconeogenesis to make up for the lack of carbs? You're seriously over simplifying the way the body utilizes energy. And of course, that also completely ignores the hormonal effects of cutting carbs, like the reduction in growth hormone, loss of lean tissue, and possible psychological effects as well.
Also, what do you mean by "how many of us are going to burn 2300 calories?" 2000 calories is what the average person burns in a day, I'm usually around 3000-3500 per day. You do burn calories even when you aren't exercising, after all... What science are you actually studying? "
I'm not really sure how to reply specifically to your quote, but you I don't really eat foods high in fat no matter what. And yeah, it will inevitably get converted to glucose... you need glucose to stay alive. But that conversion requires energy. There have been studies done showing that it does on rats and they lose more weight. I can try to find the specific studies if you'd like. And I don't believe cutting out carbs has "psychological effects". People don't need pasta and bread and processed food to function. I eat plenty of vegetables and fruits, which provides some carbs, but not as many as a full plate of pasta. And yes, I know you burn calories not doing anything. I think the last time I calculated the amount I burn not doing anything, it was about 1200. That means I'd have to burn an additional 1100 to be at the number the other guy was mentioning. And I'm studying biology for my undergrad... what are youuuu actually studying?
As for psychological effects, you don't have to "believe it." Do some research, carbs help regulate serotonin levels and other mood hormones, people on low carb diets are consistently found to be more depressed than people who eat higher carb in study after study. Low carb also leads to increased cortisol, as cortisol is one of the regulators of gluconeogenesis, and high cortisol leads to less fat burning and more lean mass loss.
Hahahah you need protein for serotonin production as well. You don't need 300g of carbs for that. By low carb, I don't mean 20g of less. Maybe I should have specified. Just low. 50-100 maybe. And you never answered, what if your degree in, oh wise one0 -
And you never answered, what if your degree in, oh wise one
Seriously, why be so rude? People have taken time to talk to you, debate with you.
There is no reason to this way.0 -
You should read a book called Wheat Belly... it is a total eye opener regarding bread and wheat
It's so well written! 0 -
You should read a book called Wheat Belly... it is a total eye opener regarding bread and wheat It's so well written!
I am GF so i dont eat wheat, bread or many grains but i certainly eat many carbohydrates and am not at all on a 'low carb' diet.
people seem to confuse the two a lot.0 -
And you never answered, what if your degree in, oh wise one
Seriously, why be so rude? People have taken time to talk to you, debate with you.
There is no reason to this way.
It was in reference to the condescending comment he made regarding what I'm studying, so I think it's completely in line....0 -
Keep it simple - lean meats, lots of egg whites, lots of fibrous veg (broccoli, spinach, etc), avoid refined carbs (white flour, sugar, etc). The thing about those foods is that none of them are calorie-dense which means that you can eat tons of food and never be hungry. You can't get fat eating broccoli - it's impossible, there are no calories in it. I ate a pound of chicken breast at lunch. Plus broccoli, and I'm still stuffed. I had 6 eggs for breakfast. With a slice of cheese. It was like 350 calories - nothing. So if you focus on the lean things, (organic is bogus btw) and try to hit your calorie targets, just by the nature of it you will be eating a low fat, low carb diet. I view it as a byproduct of retaining muscle and not just simply the goal of eating "low carb" because that is supposed to be the Holy Grail.
What this person said! I am on low carb diet (dukan diet), it is the only way I lose weight! I don't train seriously, but I do exercise for 30 minutes a day, I try and stick to protein and veg only. Remember, there are good carbs and bad carbs... Good carbs = veggies (yes, carbs in veg, not a lot, but still there) carbs in fruit, carbs in nuts etc. Bad carbs = refined, white, starchy rice, bread, pasta etc. I don't follow paleo but what they say makes a lot of sense when it comes to low carbs: If it is from an animal or came out of the ground, its probably good for you. And that includes potatoes, limited, but they aren't all that bad for you!0 -
You should read a book called Wheat Belly... it is a total eye opener regarding bread and wheat It's so well written!
I am GF so i dont eat wheat, bread or many grains but i certainly eat many carbohydrates and am not at all on a 'low carb' diet.
people seem to confuse the two a lot.
where do most of your carbs come from? and do you feel like they help you maintain/lose weight or do you look at calories more?0 -
Keep it simple - lean meats, lots of egg whites, lots of fibrous veg (broccoli, spinach, etc), avoid refined carbs (white flour, sugar, etc). The thing about those foods is that none of them are calorie-dense which means that you can eat tons of food and never be hungry. You can't get fat eating broccoli - it's impossible, there are no calories in it. I ate a pound of chicken breast at lunch. Plus broccoli, and I'm still stuffed. I had 6 eggs for breakfast. With a slice of cheese. It was like 350 calories - nothing. So if you focus on the lean things, (organic is bogus btw) and try to hit your calorie targets, just by the nature of it you will be eating a low fat, low carb diet. I view it as a byproduct of retaining muscle and not just simply the goal of eating "low carb" because that is supposed to be the Holy Grail.
What this person said! I am on low carb diet (dukan diet), it is the only way I lose weight! I don't train seriously, but I do exercise for 30 minutes a day, I try and stick to protein and veg only. Remember, there are good carbs and bad carbs... Good carbs = veggies (yes, carbs in veg, not a lot, but still there) carbs in fruit, carbs in nuts etc. Bad carbs = refined, white, starchy rice, bread, pasta etc. I don't follow paleo but what they say makes a lot of sense when it comes to low carbs: If it is from an animal or came out of the ground, its probably good for you. And that includes potatoes, limited, but they aren't all that bad for you!
Are you going to continue eating like that after you reach your goal weight, or are you going to start adding whole grains and things like that back into your diet after?0 -
Low carb diets are an unsustainable fad. There is no magic bullet. If your calories out are higher than your calories in, you will lose weight. Make the calories in healthy ones. Do your best to eat whole, mostly unprocessed foods but don't be fanatical about it. Log your meals every day, good or bad. Lean on your MFP friends for support. It will take time and effort to achieve your goals. The great thing about MFP is that it doesn't tell you what to eat, it just tells you what you are eating. Trust the process, it works.0
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http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/index.html
I agree with this. Mostly everyone on here only focuses on cal in/out but i do think the type of calories matters in fat loss also. Would you still lose weight eating 2000 calories of chocolate a day if you also burn 2000 calories a day? (just talking about losing weight, not nutritional value).Explain? I'm a science major, and I don't believe that is true. What I'm interested in is how it plays a role in thermodynamincs
I'm an engineer, so I share your curiosity to expand beyond Cal in/out, and I believe that the body works in far more complex ways than that. I've only been on this site for a day and it seems that the tribal knowledge here discounts cellular response to different types of stimuli and refers to calorie counting as the only factor in losing weight. I think there should be a clear distinction in losing weight versus losing fat, as I'm not concerned about the scale but more so what the calipers say.
If you're looking to do some research, check into John Kiefer. His works cited is always worth checking out and he backs everything up with scientifically reviewed publications.
You'd maintain
but if you are eating all chocolate calories, there is not a difference if you would eat all protein calories? i just find this strange.
Twinkie diet. He ate one can of vegetables, one protein shake, a multivitamin, and filled the rest if his daily calories with snack cakes, potato chips, sugary cereals, cookies, pastries, and other sugary foods. He stuck to a consistent calorie goal, and lost 27 pounds, and all of his health markers improved considerably.
It really is all about calories. Low carb is just another form of calorie restriction, that's really what makes it successful. Everything else is just smoke and mirrors.0 -
It seems like you have already formed an opinion on low carb diets, so I'm not sure why you are asking anyone else.
If you want low carb food ideas or recipes, check out this blog:
www.peaceloveandlowcarb.com
I think eating a balanced healthy diet is a better approach than cutting out a single group.
Questioning what you think you know is the essence of science :bigsmile:
Agreed for the balanced diet. Have tried low-carb, and it doesn't work in the long run! :sad:0 -
Wheat, rice, and sugarcane all come out of the ground. Just thought you'd like to know. There's no such thing as a "good" or "bad" carb, that's just mythical marketing that the diet industry uses to make money.
Keep it simple - lean meats, lots of egg whites, lots of fibrous veg (broccoli, spinach, etc), avoid refined carbs (white flour, sugar, etc). The thing about those foods is that none of them are calorie-dense which means that you can eat tons of food and never be hungry. You can't get fat eating broccoli - it's impossible, there are no calories in it. I ate a pound of chicken breast at lunch. Plus broccoli, and I'm still stuffed. I had 6 eggs for breakfast. With a slice of cheese. It was like 350 calories - nothing. So if you focus on the lean things, (organic is bogus btw) and try to hit your calorie targets, just by the nature of it you will be eating a low fat, low carb diet. I view it as a byproduct of retaining muscle and not just simply the goal of eating "low carb" because that is supposed to be the Holy Grail.
What this person said! I am on low carb diet (dukan diet), it is the only way I lose weight! I don't train seriously, but I do exercise for 30 minutes a day, I try and stick to protein and veg only. Remember, there are good carbs and bad carbs... Good carbs = veggies (yes, carbs in veg, not a lot, but still there) carbs in fruit, carbs in nuts etc. Bad carbs = refined, white, starchy rice, bread, pasta etc. I don't follow paleo but what they say makes a lot of sense when it comes to low carbs: If it is from an animal or came out of the ground, its probably good for you. And that includes potatoes, limited, but they aren't all that bad for you!0 -
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/index.html
I agree with this. Mostly everyone on here only focuses on cal in/out but i do think the type of calories matters in fat loss also. Would you still lose weight eating 2000 calories of chocolate a day if you also burn 2000 calories a day? (just talking about losing weight, not nutritional value).Explain? I'm a science major, and I don't believe that is true. What I'm interested in is how it plays a role in thermodynamincs
I'm an engineer, so I share your curiosity to expand beyond Cal in/out, and I believe that the body works in far more complex ways than that. I've only been on this site for a day and it seems that the tribal knowledge here discounts cellular response to different types of stimuli and refers to calorie counting as the only factor in losing weight. I think there should be a clear distinction in losing weight versus losing fat, as I'm not concerned about the scale but more so what the calipers say.
If you're looking to do some research, check into John Kiefer. His works cited is always worth checking out and he backs everything up with scientifically reviewed publications.
You'd maintain
but if you are eating all chocolate calories, there is not a difference if you would eat all protein calories? i just find this strange.
Twinkie diet. He ate one can of vegetables, one protein shake, a multivitamin, and filled the rest if his daily calories with snack cakes, potato chips, sugary cereals, cookies, pastries, and other sugary foods. He stuck to a consistent calorie goal, and lost 27 pounds, and all of his health markers improved considerably.
It really is all about calories. Low carb is just another form of calorie restriction, that's really what makes it successful. Everything else is just smoke and mirrors.
Interesting! Thanks for a link.... I like to actually read them for myself0 -
I've been on LCHF for 11 months now and about to cross the 100 lbs loss mark. Keto saved me from a fate worse than death: disabilities due to obesity.
Seriously though, for someone who's obese, it really is worth a try. And besides weight loss, there are a host of other improvements to the body. I wish I would have known how effective it is 25 years ago.0 -
"[/quote]
Wheat, rice, and sugarcane all come out of the ground. Just thought you'd like to know. There's no such thing as a "good" or "bad" carb, that's just mythical marketing that the diet industry uses to make money.
[/quote]"
Am I wrong in thinking that whole foods (Good Carbs) (brown rice, brown pasta, rye bread) "better" that white bread, white rice and white bread? (bad cards)
I.e slower release energy, less sugar, more fiber and so on?0 -
My sister is a low carb fanatic, she does a low carb diet a couple times a year, she does that because she can never keep the weight off once she goes back to eating normally (actually over eating, not just introducing carbs back into her diet). As for myself, I'm not interested in a fast weight loss macro nutrient restricted diet plan, especially after seeing my sister fail at it time after time.0
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You should read a book called Wheat Belly... it is a total eye opener regarding bread and wheat It's so well written!
I am GF so i dont eat wheat, bread or many grains but i certainly eat many carbohydrates and am not at all on a 'low carb' diet.
people seem to confuse the two a lot.
where do most of your carbs come from? and do you feel like they help you maintain/lose weight or do you look at calories more?
Rice, potatoes (only have potatoes once a week though) beans, loads from apples, apple juice, bananas etc (would be more varied fruit in the summer but we simply cannot afford such things now) plus rice milk and I have a couple of nutty/dried fruity snack type bars a day because i am always on the go and cannot afford the time it takes to make another 2 gluten-dairy free meals lol
so yeah, i suppose i probably eat too much sugar (with the bars) but mostly from things like rice cakes and fruit.
And I am always around what MFP says i should eat on carbs, sometimes a bit over actually
I often wonder if i should be reducing it. 0 -
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/index.html
I agree with this. Mostly everyone on here only focuses on cal in/out but i do think the type of calories matters in fat loss also. Would you still lose weight eating 2000 calories of chocolate a day if you also burn 2000 calories a day? (just talking about losing weight, not nutritional value).Explain? I'm a science major, and I don't believe that is true. What I'm interested in is how it plays a role in thermodynamincs
I'm an engineer, so I share your curiosity to expand beyond Cal in/out, and I believe that the body works in far more complex ways than that. I've only been on this site for a day and it seems that the tribal knowledge here discounts cellular response to different types of stimuli and refers to calorie counting as the only factor in losing weight. I think there should be a clear distinction in losing weight versus losing fat, as I'm not concerned about the scale but more so what the calipers say.
If you're looking to do some research, check into John Kiefer. His works cited is always worth checking out and he backs everything up with scientifically reviewed publications.
You'd maintain
but if you are eating all chocolate calories, there is not a difference if you would eat all protein calories? i just find this strange.
Twinkie diet. He ate one can of vegetables, one protein shake, a multivitamin, and filled the rest if his daily calories with snack cakes, potato chips, sugary cereals, cookies, pastries, and other sugary foods. He stuck to a consistent calorie goal, and lost 27 pounds, and all of his health markers improved considerably.
It really is all about calories. Low carb is just another form of calorie restriction, that's really what makes it successful. Everything else is just smoke and mirrors.
Interesting! Thanks for a link.... I like to actually read them for myself
What I've always found most interesting about Professor Haub's experiment is that of the 27 lbs. he lost, 24 were from fat and just 3 were from lean mass; this, in spite of the fact that he appears to have had very little protein in his diet. A protein shake is maybe 26 grams and it's difficult to imagine that the rest of the stuff he ate added up to much more than another 26 grams.0 -
Wheat, rice, and sugarcane all come out of the ground. Just thought you'd like to know. There's no such thing as a "good" or "bad" carb, that's just mythical marketing that the diet industry uses to make money.
Keep it simple - lean meats, lots of egg whites, lots of fibrous veg (broccoli, spinach, etc), avoid refined carbs (white flour, sugar, etc). The thing about those foods is that none of them are calorie-dense which means that you can eat tons of food and never be hungry. You can't get fat eating broccoli - it's impossible, there are no calories in it. I ate a pound of chicken breast at lunch. Plus broccoli, and I'm still stuffed. I had 6 eggs for breakfast. With a slice of cheese. It was like 350 calories - nothing. So if you focus on the lean things, (organic is bogus btw) and try to hit your calorie targets, just by the nature of it you will be eating a low fat, low carb diet. I view it as a byproduct of retaining muscle and not just simply the goal of eating "low carb" because that is supposed to be the Holy Grail.
What this person said! I am on low carb diet (dukan diet), it is the only way I lose weight! I don't train seriously, but I do exercise for 30 minutes a day, I try and stick to protein and veg only. Remember, there are good carbs and bad carbs... Good carbs = veggies (yes, carbs in veg, not a lot, but still there) carbs in fruit, carbs in nuts etc. Bad carbs = refined, white, starchy rice, bread, pasta etc. I don't follow paleo but what they say makes a lot of sense when it comes to low carbs: If it is from an animal or came out of the ground, its probably good for you. And that includes potatoes, limited, but they aren't all that bad for you!
Sugarcane gets processed, unless you add sugarcane to your coffee... same with wheat products and refined white rice. All things processed... Wouldn't you consider those being bad for you? No reason to be rude by the way, I was just stating my point of view, as most people do here...
And yes, I will eventually start adding certain carbs back to my diet once I have reached my goal weight, but again, carbs that are good for you (and no, good carb, bad carb in NOT a myth) good carbs like sweet potatoe, pumpkin etc.0 -
Everything is processed. Fruit, vegetables, cuts of meat. All processed by the farmer and prepped for market. There's really no difference between a butcher cutting steaks and a miller grinding wheat into flour, or grinding sugarcane into sugar. And no, I don't think staple crops that humans have lived on for thousands of years are bad for us. Without wheat, roughly two thirds of the world population wouldn't exist, as millions of people would've starved to death decades ago.0
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Yes, but as a lot of people's mission on this website is to lose weight, starvation isn't really an issue. And yes, everything is processed, but its still natural versus refined. I'd still go for natural. And seeing as I live in one of those deprived third world countries, I actually do know that most of the people here live off the land, and aren't that big into refined anything...0
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Wheat, rice, and sugarcane all come out of the ground. Just thought you'd like to know. There's no such thing as a "good" or "bad" carb, that's just mythical marketing that the diet industry uses to make money."
[/quote]"
Am I wrong in thinking that whole foods (Good Carbs) (brown rice, brown pasta, rye bread) "better" that white bread, white rice and white bread? (bad cards)
I.e slower release energy, less sugar, more fiber and so on?
[/quote]
No, you're right 0 -
Wheat, rice, and sugarcane all come out of the ground. Just thought you'd like to know. There's no such thing as a "good" or "bad" carb, that's just mythical marketing that the diet industry uses to make money."
[/quote]"
Am I wrong in thinking that whole foods (Good Carbs) (brown rice, brown pasta, rye bread) "better" that white bread, white rice and white bread? (bad cards)
I.e slower release energy, less sugar, more fiber and so on?
[/quote]
Yes0 -
I thought it was basically about how much work your body has to do to get the sugar from the food
so because in brown rice and brown bread the husk has been left on, the grain has not been rolled so fine, your body has more work to do in ITS process
therefore the sugar it gets from the product has already been used up a little bit in getting to the sugar.0 -
I love when people either do not know or just ignore the fact that people who eat low carb have a several hundred calorie advantage over lowfat high carb dieters. There are several different metabolic reasons for it.
It is also an effective treatment for type 2 diabetes.
But ignoring this, and several other good reasons to TRY a low carb diet, blindly bashing it is really cool on MFP. I have consistently lost weight when clearly not in a deficit when adhering to LC. 3000 calories a day. Bacon and eggs, ribeye steaks, chicken wings, lots of high fiber low GI veggies. Sometimes it's just hard to not want taters bread and pasta.
Any diet can work, and if you want to eat 10 twinkies a day or 4 big honkin steaks it does not matter. It's your choice and if it works for you do it.0 -
I thought it was basically about how much work your body has to do to get the sugar from the food
so because in brown rice and brown bread the husk has been left on, the grain has not been rolled so fine, your body has more work to do in ITS process
therefore the sugar it gets from the product has already been used up a little bit in getting to the sugar.
That's not it. It's fiber. Fiber slows digestion. That's all there is to it. Eat white rice with a high fiber vegetable and you get the same exact effect. The dirty secret that the "good carb bad carb" proponents always conveniently leave out is the simple fact that insulin responses, blood sugar increases, and all that only applies when you eat that single carb source by itself, and wait until your body digests it before eating anything else. Eat a piece of white bread, and you get a relatively quick influx of sugar. Put butter on that white bread, and you get a much lower blood sugar spike and insulin response. In other words, it's pretty much irrelevant when you consider the way people normally eat.0
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