Going low carb after zero weight loss from exercise

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  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,404 MFP Moderator
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    I don't believe I have insulin resistance, or at least I didn't a couple of years ago when I was testing my own blood glucose levels every day. In fact, I think it was on the low side. It's possible I have thyroid issues. I was slightly hypo a number of years ago but haven't been tested in awhile. Guess I'll get that all checked out next time I see a doc.

    Wow, I'm so excited about this! I just feel so confident I'm going to be 20 lbs lighter in a few months and it's going to be easy peasy...I hope :) However I do need to conquer a mini vacation next week. What happens when you "hiatus" from low carb for 3-4 days? Balloon back up or just not continue to lose? Not going to go crazy with calories, but low carb is going to be difficult being at the hotel.

    editing to add:
    I was exercising daily, mostly cardio. Fitbit says I was burning300-400 but the machines at the gym would say more like 450-600. Total daily calorie burn was usually somewhere between 1900-2200. Calorie intake was usually between 1100-1400 with a couple 1800-2100 cheat days. Almost all days I was under my calorie goal. Some might say I didn't eat enough. I guess I'm ready to stop expecting exercise to help me lose weight at this point and switch to something I know will work. I was planning to be in smaller jeans weeks ago! :D

    So in a given week, what is your average calories (meaning how many cheat days)? Can you open your diary to public. Also, how much weight do you have to lose?
  • desiv2
    desiv2 Posts: 651 Member
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    I went low carb, and I feel so much more satisfied. I actually eat less food, but since it's more fat and some protein than carbs It lasts me so much longer. I don't even miss carbs! (Note: Less food but still around the same calories, though I could easily eat less calories and not miss it, when I ate really high carb I got hungry an hour to two hours later, and I always ended up snacking after I finished logging and feeling bad about it, that problem has been solved!)

    Feel free to friend me, I'm still learning low carb as well and we can help each other. :)
  • smallsfgirl
    smallsfgirl Posts: 14
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    So interesting! And I'm so impressed with everyone's knowledge about this stuff. I should get checked at the doctor's. But I never had an unexplained sudden weight gain. It's just that I have an extremely stubborn set point! I also don't feel like I have to snack all day. With a higher protein + coffee diet lately I can go long periods without eating much.

    At this point I'm on the high end of my set point weight, which has been pretty stable for 12 years, minus two pregnancies. However, I am about 25-30 lbs heavier than I was in college (~20 years ago). If I lose 20-25 lbs, I'll be thrilled. That would probably put me in about a size 8 pants. Right now I'm a clear 12. Mid-November, I was down to a larger 10 and then the holidays + bad weather did me in. I actually joined the gym because I was getting kinda depressed, not being able to go outside for walks, no sun. We moved to the East Coast from California a year ago and this weather takes some getting used to! So I'm not depressed any more, and I don't want to sit around and eat all day, so that's good. But I'm not going to expect it to drop some pounds for me any more.
  • GenesisandEden
    GenesisandEden Posts: 338 Member
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    I am low carb because of diabetes and after almost a year my A1c and cholestol numbers are fab! Off most meds Plus I have lost a little weight =)
    Good Luck and keep us posted
  • Danger2OneSelf
    Danger2OneSelf Posts: 883 Member
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    When I'm cutting I usually do my own variation of a low carb diet, and I love it. I don't know if it's got more to do with the total calorie deficit or the actual source of my calories but it works for me every time. My body is always really quick to respond to the carb shock. This week I've lost 5lbs just from eating about 1600 cals all protein and little fat. I do the low carb thing just because it's easier to get more protein sources in there If I'm avoiding all that starch. Everybody's body is different though, you gotta play around with different diets and routines before you can really find what works well for you. Best of luck I hope you find what will work for you!
  • sallyaj
    sallyaj Posts: 207 Member
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    I am low carb because of diabetes and after almost a year my A1c and cholestol numbers are fab! Off most meds Plus I have lost a little weight =)
    Good Luck and keep us posted

    That is awesome!
  • sallyaj
    sallyaj Posts: 207 Member
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    Everybody's body is different though, you gotta play around with different diets and routines before you can really find what works well for you. Best of luck I hope you find what will work for you!

    Amen to that!
  • lovelylittlegiggles
    lovelylittlegiggles Posts: 117 Member
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    If you were really spot-on with calories and exercise and didn't lose anything, you may want to have blood tests done for thyroid issues and/or insulin resistance. It never hurts to rule that out. I have IR, and I don't lose weight unless I eat low-carb and exercise. The second I go back to just counting calories, the weight loss stops for weeks on end.

    agree
  • vwpyland
    vwpyland Posts: 6 Member
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    For those of you eating 1600 or 1800 cals a day, what are you eating, might I ask? I am eating low carb, but seem to often end up hovering between 1200-1400. I'm not really hungry, though. Wondering if I should pad what I am eating a bit more, but if so, with what.
  • lovelylittlegiggles
    lovelylittlegiggles Posts: 117 Member
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    I do believe that Low Carb works. It seems that when I eat green veggies, strawberries, blueberries, lean proteins (when I eat meat)... stuff like that... I am not bloated, nor do I crave carbs. AND I lose a pound or two.

    For me, I had to go to doc and find out why exercise, eating properly, none of these things were working. Answer: Thyroid.

    So, go get checked out. And know that even if the panels come back ok... trust your body.

    I wish you all the best.
  • carryingon
    carryingon Posts: 609 Member
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    I was a nanny for a Nephrologist (a doctor of internal medicine with a specialization in kidney care and the treatment of kidney diseases/condition). for about 3 years. He told me I could thank the Low carb diets for my paycheck, because that was where the majority of his pay came from. Please consider seeing your doctor before making any changes.:flowerforyou:
  • taylorwaylor
    taylorwaylor Posts: 417 Member
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    Heavy lifting for exersize!! If you do full body lifts youd only have to go to the gym 2-3 days a week... And eat high in healthy fats if you go low carb!

    Best of luck! :)
  • mlserna1
    mlserna1 Posts: 2 Member
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    I actaully went months of exercising and counting my calories with no weight loss. I am working with a dietician and I still use my fitness pal to log my food . My dietician put me on a strict diet of low calories but I can not go over 60 carbs a day and only 50 fat. I have been doing this for 5 months now and I have actually lost 45 lbs currently.
  • 000WhiteRose000
    000WhiteRose000 Posts: 266 Member
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    I recommend cycling carbs so you don't stall
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,404 MFP Moderator
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    How many calories are you eating and how much do you exercise? Also, what are your stats. Going low carb alone will only make you lose some water weight, unless you end up having a insulin resistance or other medical issue. It is no uncommon for people to not lose weight because they eat too little. Or they just started a routine.

    Going low carb will only make you lose water weight? Umm, don't think so. Went low carb in 07/08...and lost 80+ lbs...wow...my body had a LOT of water in it!

    And I've lost 15 lbs since some time in January....also not just water. Yep....there is that initial woosh of the glycogen storage being depleted (which people often call water weight)...but to say you will only lose water weight and that it is not maintainable...is redonkulous.

    I don't want to high jack this thread, so i will say, there is ZERO benefit of going low carb in terms for fat loss. It's already been proven. Yes, you will store less glycogen and water, but after that stabilizing, then your fat loss will be from a calorie deficit. And that's great that you lost 15 lbs from January, but how much of that was actually fat? Do you track body composition with something besides a scale? Also, you will have an advantage since January as you just started. It is not uncommon for newbies to lose a lot of water weight initially... and then on top you do low carb...yea a lot of it will be water weight. I can bet you, that if you evaluate your body composition over time, you will average 1 ish pounds of week.

    And I have no issue with low carb if you have a medical condition, like my wife has. It's just annoying that people assume low carb is a more effective diet. It's not. From a psychological perspective, if going low carb helps prevents cravings and allows you to get more wholesome foods or prevents you from binging, that is awesome but it's not totally necessary. For the OP, it might be necessary. She showed small signed of Hypothyroidism, so going low carb could provide a benefit. But I bet you can't show me a study that was done over a year or two period comparing fat loss with the association of LCHF vs MDMF.
  • ellenkilpatrick
    ellenkilpatrick Posts: 67 Member
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    I would love some sample diets that are low carb that is working for some of you...diets that will not leave me drained and fatigued from lack of energy...
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
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    How many calories are you eating and how much do you exercise? Also, what are your stats. Going low carb alone will only make you lose some water weight, unless you end up having a insulin resistance or other medical issue. It is no uncommon for people to not lose weight because they eat too little. Or they just started a routine.

    Going low carb will only make you lose water weight? Umm, don't think so. Went low carb in 07/08...and lost 80+ lbs...wow...my body had a LOT of water in it!

    And I've lost 15 lbs since some time in January....also not just water. Yep....there is that initial woosh of the glycogen storage being depleted (which people often call water weight)...but to say you will only lose water weight and that it is not maintainable...is redonkulous.

    After the initial whoosh, "low carb" has no benefit over any other diet with the same calories
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,404 MFP Moderator
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    Lose weight whatever way you like....however, let's not pretend that low carb doesn't work or that it is just water weight because it's just not true.

    Keep in mind, I never said low carb was ineffective, but going low carb alone won't allow you to lose fat, it's the calorie deficit that causes fat loss. You can be low carb but if you eat at your TDEE, you will not lose fat. And Keto diets have NO fat loss advantage over conventional diets. So yes, while low carb diets can be effective for many people, it has no metabolic or fat loss advantage over a standard diet. Also, adequate protein and resistance training alone will allow for muscle retention.

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