Low carb?

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BaileyBoo13524
BaileyBoo13524 Posts: 593 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone I have been considering doing a more low carb, high fat and protein diet. However, I am deathly afraid if I give up my Kashi cereal, wheat bread, pasta, and bagels I am going to be super limited. Any suggestions on how to make this transition and what foods I can add to my diet? I've been talking to a co-worker who does no carbs at all so she even cuts fruit and things like potatoes? I don't think I quite agree. Any help with this or food suggestions would be appreciated!

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  • Mushygoo
    Mushygoo Posts: 2
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    Before replying I noticed it says you lost 67 pounds...if this is working for you why would you want to change anything?

    Anyway....I use My Fitness Pal while doing the South Beach Diet (SB). This plan starts with the first phase is 2 weeks of no carbs including potatoes, carrots and fruits. After that you move onto other phases where you incorporate certain carbs back into your diet. I am always dieting. I have maintained weight loss of 330 pounds for years but am still about 60 pounds overweight. When I start SB again, I lose about 9 pounds in the first week...especially belly fat....so I will do it more hardcore before a special event. However, since trying SB years ago...when I am being good I don't miss carbs. Instead of eating pasta with meat sauce.....I just have more meat sauce (which is allowed on the plan) with cheese on top. Once you take out rice and pasta and eat just the main part of an entree....you don't tend to miss them. The SB plan books do say that you do phase one to eliminate the desire to eat carbs and this is very important. Once you make it through that....it is true that you don't miss most carbs, however, if you don't really quit them you will always crave them. Also, to be fair I was never much of a potato person...so it was not that hard for me to give up. You mentioned Kashi....which you can eat after the first 2 weeks. Same goes for fruit. I eat Pepperidge farm lite bread which has very few carbs for 3 slices of bread.

    Good luck.
  • Athena98501
    Athena98501 Posts: 716 Member
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    I'm with her^, really. Why make a change that would be unpleasant without the need to. I wouldn't eat lower carb if I could lose as one should on normal macro recommendations. As it happens, I have PCOS, and don't lose much at all without reducing my carbs and sugar. It isn't easy or fun, and I don't recommend to people unless they can't seem to lose otherwise.

    If you still feel the need to go that route, I wouldn't make more than a minor shift in that direction. I didn't have to go to an extreme, even with my metabolic challenges. Taking your carbs routinely below 100g has some unhealthy side effects. You have lost just fine, and you need to keep what you do sustainable if you want to keep it off.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,017 Member
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    Do you have a legitimate reason to go that low in carbs. There are alternatives to the extremes, like a reduction in carbs if for example your carbs constitute a large percentage of your calorie allotment, which while dieting can work against you by not consuming enough protein.
  • ColoradoJojo
    ColoradoJojo Posts: 7
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    Lose the Gluten not the carbs. You cut out a crap load of work your liver needs to do, and you will lose weight naturally.
  • jjrichard83
    jjrichard83 Posts: 483 Member
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    I've done them all, but there are some risks associated with the low carb high protein diet. If you must, add more veggies- but looks like you don't need to change anything.

    http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/high-protein-low-carbohydrate-diets
  • purple_tux1
    purple_tux1 Posts: 250 Member
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    Why do you want to switch to low carb? Looks like your diet has gone very well.
  • sarski77
    sarski77 Posts: 79
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    If you really want to make a change, I would simply try and change the type of carbs that you eat so, for example, switching replacing white bread, rice etc. with whole grains. Like the others said, you have done so well already and there's no need to make any radical changes to lose more.
  • BaileyBoo13524
    BaileyBoo13524 Posts: 593 Member
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    I guess I should've been more specific. Yes I have successfully lost 67lbs with carbs. I am down to my last 10lbs or so which has been very difficult for me to have any success losing. I have switched from white to whole wheat everything. I guess I am just looking for a way to eat lower carb and higher protein. I don't believe in cutting out fruits or potatoes for that matter and don't want to go as extreme as the south beach diet. I am not looking to drastically change anything just to lose these last 10lbs and mainly get rid of my remaining belly fat and looking for some food options that will help me achieve this. Thanks everyone for your replies!
  • msliu7911
    msliu7911 Posts: 639 Member
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    Hi there, I try to follow a high"er" protein and low"er" carb diet most times. By that I mean its very rare that I treat myself to say... pasta and bread in the same meal. (I'm italian so I know how you feel!)

    How many grams of carbs do you normally get per day vs. protein & fat? I guess the right question would be what is the ratio? I have mine set for 40% protein/ 30% for carbs and fat each.

    Going low carb doesnt mean completely cutting out things like fruit and vegetables, and I know that people who go hardcore on Atkins, etc. even cut those. I try my best to mainly get carbs from fruit and vegetables and avoid any WHITE starches and sugars. With that I mean potatos, pasta, etc. IF i'm going to have pasta for dinner, I make sure to its whole grain/wheat and pair it with a ton of veggies and possibly some protein so that the carb isn't my main nutrient in the meal and I'm not filling up on carbs.

    Same with breakfast, IF I were going to have cereal or oatmeal (which I've actually somehow learned to stray away from over the years), I'll be sure to be moderate with my carb intake the rest of the day. Potatos are the big one I try to avoid and its REALLY helped me out. I used to get a baked potato for lunch every day... BAD idea. :( If I'm going to have potatos, I only do it when I go out for dinner or am at a pot luck... I never keep them in my house.

    Overall its really all about moderation, but I think you might just need to play around with your macros a little and that last 10lbs will go away. :) Congrats on the 67 lbs!

    If you'd like to add me maybe we can share ideas on meal ideas through seeing eachothers diaries. Again I'm not a hard core low carb dieter, but I try to follow it closely and its what has helped me the most so I have no prob sticking to it.

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