Paleo vs. Dukan vs. Low Carb

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KymberlyAtwell
KymberlyAtwell Posts: 4
in Food and Nutrition
Good Afternoon,

Anyone that's come a long way, I'm curious what your thoughts are. I need a total overhaul for 2013. I lost 40 pounds in 2012, the healthy way, then gained 65 back. I deserve better than this, my sweet husband deserves a hot wife, and I basically am tired of feeling like crap. I know how to gain and lose weight pretty well, but want to try something different so I can break this cycle.

Have any of you tried the Paleo, Dukan, or an overall basic Low Carb Diet? I'm doing some research between the three, but wanted some feedback if anyone has actually done them and had success with them.

Let me know! Interested in your feedback.

I wish you all the HAPPIEST New Year! :)

Kymberly
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Replies

  • pkw58
    pkw58 Posts: 2,038 Member
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    A year ago today, i started the Dukan diet...indid the on line coaching. It was extremely easy for me to follow. I lost 45 pounds (which was 10 pounds more than dukan calculated) and have maintained for 2 months now. The dukan diet also includes uping your activity .. We have a group here on mfp. The dukan diet says you dont have to count calories but i did and still do. Highky recommend the book and on line coaching
  • KateRepine
    KateRepine Posts: 60 Member
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    Doing the Paleo diet right now, it's working great, lost 4 pounds this week. Also, not as hungry! This is a first for me :)
  • KymberlyAtwell
    KymberlyAtwell Posts: 4
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    Thank you SO very much! I saw a couple things online and read a little about the online coaching option. I was considering getting the book, as I didn't see the FULL plan laid out online, just bits and pieces here and there. It sounds REALLY smart, which is what I want. I'm looking for more of a lifestyle change, and a new way of eating, rather than just a short term fad. Thanks for your input! Definitely going to look into it. :wink:
  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    Good Afternoon,

    Anyone that's come a long way, I'm curious what your thoughts are. I need a total overhaul for 2013. I lost 40 pounds in 2012, the healthy way, then gained 65 back. I deserve better than this, my sweet husband deserves a hot wife, and I basically am tired of feeling like crap. I know how to gain and lose weight pretty well, but want to try something different so I can break this cycle.

    Have any of you tried the Paleo, Dukan, or an overall basic Low Carb Diet? I'm doing some research between the three, but wanted some feedback if anyone has actually done them and had success with them.

    Let me know! Interested in your feedback.

    I wish you all the HAPPIEST New Year! :)

    Kymberly

    I live the Paleo / Primal lifestyle. I was on the Atkins lifestyle for years, lost 100 pounds..........got in a really bad car accident and gained about 45 pounds back. I switched to the paleo lifestyle to clean up my way of eating because eating whole foods makes me feel better and makes me a healthier person.

    I suffer from depression, so there is no way I could adhere to the Dukan plan due to the low fat. Higher fat intake alleviates most of the depression symptoms.
  • Eat2Live2Run
    Eat2Live2Run Posts: 137 Member
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    I would encourage you to read the book It Starts with Food.
  • gofatty26
    gofatty26 Posts: 1
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    I started experimenting with the paleo way of life nearly a year ago. It has made a big difference in my life, not just the obvious weight loss and looking leaner, but it helped me with digestions issues, moods, and also not feeling like i had inflamation. I always felt "puffy" until eating paleo. It does require a lot of prep work. But it SO worth it!! The meals will surprise you with how fresh and tasty they are. I love the using the cookbooks i downloaded on my ipad, i have a very handy tool with me in the kitchen now and it also travels with me easily. Just my prespective......but i do believe it has made a huge difference in overall feeling well.
  • Amcolecchi
    Amcolecchi Posts: 260 Member
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    I am interested in the Paleo diet too but I am not sure what it all entails. Is there a group on here or a website that says what it's all about?
  • zaph0d
    zaph0d Posts: 1,172 Member
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    Skip the dorky diets and just learn how to eat right.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    The method is FAR less important than the commitment you make to it. Find something you can stick with long term and do it. A program, regardless of how "good" it is only works if you can stick to it.
  • Tilran
    Tilran Posts: 626 Member
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    Good Afternoon,

    Anyone that's come a long way, I'm curious what your thoughts are. I need a total overhaul for 2013. I lost 40 pounds in 2012, the healthy way, then gained 65 back. I deserve better than this, my sweet husband deserves a hot wife, and I basically am tired of feeling like crap. I know how to gain and lose weight pretty well, but want to try something different so I can break this cycle.

    Have any of you tried the Paleo, Dukan, or an overall basic Low Carb Diet? I'm doing some research between the three, but wanted some feedback if anyone has actually done them and had success with them.

    Let me know! Interested in your feedback.

    I wish you all the HAPPIEST New Year! :)

    Kymberly

    You mention you know how to lose/gain weight, yet you droped 40 pounds then gained 65...sounds more like a yo-yo diet to me. Maybe you should tell us how you lost the 40 in the first place...what you did, how long it took you and why you gained the 65 pounds back.

    Doing it "correctly" is staying in a slight defecit and aiming for an average of 1 pound a week loss. If you want 65 pounds gone, you should make your goal 65 weeks from now. You may see some faster movement at first, but it should average out in the end to about 65 weeks as the weight loss slows.

    Anyway, I had to say something because it sounds like you THINK you know what you are doing, but then coming here asking for help because it isn't working.

    Wish you the best.
  • DrBorkBork
    DrBorkBork Posts: 4,099 Member
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    Paleo is NOT low carb. It can be, by all means, but you can still have carbs in the form of fruit & veggies. I think the confusion comes in because it tends to be lower carb than other ways of eating, because you eliminate processed foods (bread, pasta, etc)
  • _VoV
    _VoV Posts: 1,494 Member
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    I've tried a lot of diets, but by far, I've enjoyed the freedom MFP gives me. I try to eat at at a deficit, try to eat lots of things I know are good for me--fruits and veggies, for instance, and save myself $30 by not buying the latest diet book.

    Edit: corrected for syntax error.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    All methods require a prolonged caloric deficit. Every diet that has you losing weight, does it by this mechanism regardless of macronutrient ratios.

    This isn't to say that method isn't important, but instead of looking for "a new diet" I would suggest you look at reasons why you gained the weight back.
  • chobbler
    chobbler Posts: 14 Member
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    I'm now living a Paleo lifestyle. I went from 210lbs to 190lbs without even thinking about it. I feel Mentally and physically the best I've ever felt.

    It's more than a 'diet' in my opinion and it just seems to benefit your whole body overall.
  • nancycaregiver
    nancycaregiver Posts: 812 Member
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    I do low carb and it is working for me. I have yoyo dieted for years. I finally came to the truth that you can not just diet till you get to goal then stop. Especially with the low carb! So I know that I will have to do this the rest of my life. But I feel so good, that I know I can do this for the rest of my life!
    But as jacksonpt said, you have to be in the right frame of mind and find something doable for you!
    Good luck!

    Edited to add:
    I've lost 65 pounds so far since February.
  • iorahkwano
    iorahkwano Posts: 709 Member
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    Everyone's body, tastes or physical activity level is different so different ways of eating are good for different people.I prefer low-carb and by low-carb, I just mean that I cut out bread, cereal, pasta, rice, etc. I still eat fruit, veggies & one slice of whole wheat toast a day.

    I find I'm easily addicted to carbs and when I do eat them, I end up craving more and more until I've eaten 4 slices of brown bread & 3 bowls of all-bran cereal (In addition to other things). It ups my calories like nuts! And it slso causes me to crave sugar (Jam, nutella, maple syrup, chocolate, sugary frozen yogurt, etc). When I don't eat grains, I feel better. Less bloated, less tired and no grains forces me to fill up on fruit or veggies. Once I do eat those grains again, I pack on belly fat!

    That's just me, though! Some people can eat grains like perfectly normal beings amd not carb-addicts lol
  • AllTehBeers
    AllTehBeers Posts: 5,030 Member
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    You mention you know how to lose/gain weight, yet you droped 40 pounds then gained 65...sounds more like a yo-yo diet to me. Maybe you should tell us how you lost the 40 in the first place...what you did, how long it took you and why you gained the 65 pounds back.

    Doing it "correctly" is staying in a slight defecit and aiming for an average of 1 pound a week loss. If you want 65 pounds gone, you should make your goal 65 weeks from now. You may see some faster movement at first, but it should average out in the end to about 65 weeks as the weight loss slows.

    Anyway, I had to say something because it sounds like you THINK you know what you are doing, but then coming here asking for help because it isn't working.

    Wish you the best.

    This. It seems that you haven't found something that you can do long term. If you just follow Atkins or go paleo, what happens when you just want a cheeseburger and fries? Or some pizza? Or there's a dinner party? Or your kids want McDonalds?

    A "diet" isn't going to help anything if you don't find a way to incorporate everyday life into losing weight and getting healthier.
  • WhoTheHellIsBen
    WhoTheHellIsBen Posts: 1,238 Member
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    the difference is, one is dumb, one is stupid, and one is useless, in no particular order. None of these are long term sustainable plans, they are goofy fly by night gimmicks designed for people looking for the fast way out. If you truly want to lose weight and keep it off you need to re educate yourself on eating. Portion control, what's good, what's bad, calories in vs calories out will all help you here as well as a sensible exercise program. There's a reason why Diet and exercise hasn't been dis proven in the last 80 odd years, because it actually works. Also remember, you didn't put it on over night so you wont take it off overnight either
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    You mention you know how to lose/gain weight, yet you droped 40 pounds then gained 65...sounds more like a yo-yo diet to me. Maybe you should tell us how you lost the 40 in the first place...what you did, how long it took you and why you gained the 65 pounds back.

    Doing it "correctly" is staying in a slight defecit and aiming for an average of 1 pound a week loss. If you want 65 pounds gone, you should make your goal 65 weeks from now. You may see some faster movement at first, but it should average out in the end to about 65 weeks as the weight loss slows.

    Anyway, I had to say something because it sounds like you THINK you know what you are doing, but then coming here asking for help because it isn't working.

    Wish you the best.

    This. It seems that you haven't found something that you can do long term. If you just follow Atkins or go paleo, what happens when you just want a cheeseburger and fries? Or some pizza? Or there's a dinner party? Or your kids want McDonalds?

    A "diet" isn't going to help anything if you don't find a way to incorporate everyday life into losing weight and getting healthier.

    Agree 100%...if you don't make it a lifestyle, you will always yo-yo, so you have to pick something that you can stick with long term for sustained success. For me, all of those things are way too restrictive. I've simply chosen to make healthier eating choices most of the time, but I don't restrict myself from certain foods entirely. I eat at a deficit and I'm losing weight. This will be sustainable for me going forward because I've learned how to make healthier choices and portion control...when I go to maintenance, I will simply take these same eating habit and eat to maintenance.

    Everyone I know who's had success long term has made whatever they are doing a lifestyle...not something to be started and then stopped at some point.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
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    Paleo is NOT low carb. It can be, by all means, but you can still have carbs in the form of fruit & veggies. I think the confusion comes in because it tends to be lower carb than other ways of eating, because you eliminate processed foods (bread, pasta, etc)

    Except if the processed food happens to be something they want to consume like oils, butter, protein powder and numerous other things that are processed but paleo approved

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