How low is your Low Carb ?

thelastseneschal

my maximum carb intake is 20g per day and im averaging 7 grams or so. Really trying to get that up but im just not hungry, fatigued or anything and I havent just started this ive been doing it for 2 months. Im dropping a pound a day roughly, I expect when I get lower in weight Ill be needing more carbohydrates to prevent a bad plateu. but If im healthy and maintaining why change the system? basically Im staying on atkins induction for an extended period of time. My carbs only come from leafy greens and some other heavier vegetables. Im also consuming 60-80 grams of protein a day. But with this im trying to maintain my muscle levels from my obesity.

thelastseneschal

i know you're credible, but do you mind citing this?

while your brain CAN use ketone bodies, it prefers glucose.

First, as mentioned in another post, "preferred" from a biochemical standpoint simply means it will use that source FIRST if available, not that it's better for it in any way.

As for citations:

Metabolic Effects of very-low-carbohydrate diets: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2129159/#B13

Is dietary carbohydrate essential for human nutrition? http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/75/5/951.2.long

Lyle McDonald (who seems highly respected in the MFP community) also makes mention of this here: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/nutrition/how-many-carbohydrates-do-you-need.html

Lyle also states (and is quite correct) "Even the American Dietetic Association bible, the RDA Handbook, states that there is no requirement for dietary carbohydrates. Any decent nutrition or physiology book will state the same. "

There are endless sources confirming that there is NO dietary requirement for carbohydrate in humans.

Thank you! why are there so many know it alls that really know nothing. Ive been here a day and Ive already got messages about how im gonna have a stroke and how Dr. Atkins was morbidly obese when he died of 'heart' related illness. A simple google search would yield that Atkins was quite healthy and did not die of heart condition, He died from complications resulting from a slip on ice in new york. So tired of being told my weight loss is unhealthy even though I feel amazing.

highervibes

Thank you! why are there so many know it alls that really know nothing. Ive been here a day and Ive already got messages about how im gonna have a stroke and how Dr. Atkins was morbidly obese when he died of 'heart' related illness. A simple google search would yield that Atkins was quite healthy and did not die of heart condition, He died from complications resulting from a slip on ice in new york. So tired of being told my weight loss is unhealthy even though I feel amazing.

Take it from someone who has had a stroke, my neurologist is thrilled I'm not eating grains and stabilizing my blood glucose.

thelastseneschal

^^^

HappyElizabeth

OMG! This thread is an eye opener. I can't imagine eating anything close to under 100 g of carbs per day! I have been a very healthy, super-athletic vegetarian my whole life (only recently got fat due to injury that kept me from working out). I pretty much eat a diet of beans, quinoa, vegetables, seeds, nuts, a little soy and limited dairy. Not bashing you low carbers, but wow, just wow!

Hawaiian_Shirt_Day

I did 20g for over two years but now that I'm in maintenance it tends to range from 30g to 60g a day.

fantasticelastic

Bumping this up to see how everyone is doing ??

Paul_Collyer

35% of my 1800 net calories.....

Seems a nice balance, and a fair bit of that is from fresh fruit in the morning. But I don't often have a totally carb free meal either.