Low Carb Dieters

i have just started i am clueless to the process and how to maintain my energy i had a head ache the last 2 days and caved and ate
pretzels i would love some advice or else we can figure it out together as we go....

during the change-over to a low carb diet, your gonna feel like crap for a couple days. your body is switching from buring carbs to burning fat so your gonna get flu-like symptomes and feeling kinda spaced out or out of it. its a normal process. it doesn't happen to everybody but i know i went through it when i started it.

Your body NEEDS carbs. The difference is the good carbs vs the not-so-good carbs. Don't deprive yourself, just know when to eat them. I can have salads, but I need that crunch of something, so I add a few croutons. The key is to balance out the carbs with a veggie or protein, don't eat the carb by itself as this will spike your blood sugar. Also, eat the carbs after exercising, this way your body burns it FAST.

i have just started i am clueless to the process and how to maintain my energy i had a head ache the last 2 days and caved and ate
pretzels i would love some advice or else we can figure it out together as we go....

The withdrawl will go away after about 2-3 days (at least for me) and your body will use the other food you eat for quick energy. Sugar and carbs are the go to for your brain so it's no surprise it freaks out at first. Try stepping down gradually or doing a lower carb diet rather than the 50g or less low carb I am pretty consistantly between 150 and 200 and I don't get the super horrible bread/cake/cookie cravings I used to get.

I've been following a low carb diet for the past 10 days. Ive also managed to switch from drinking 2-4litres of diet coke to that same amount in water & herbal tea.
Dont get me wrong, it hasnt been easy, but i can see the difference around my tummy already, so much flatter. I would say I have lost around 6lbs already.
Breakfast is the hardest meal for me as im not a morning person and find I have little time to prepare anything, but when I do have time, I fully enjoy crispy fried bacon, eggs & mushrooms.
For Lunch I enjoy a salad, try the peppery leaves like rocket & spinach as opposed to boring iceberg, it has more fibre too, I then throw in more crispy bacon, fried chicken, crumbled boiled egg, grated cheese a dollop of full fat mayo.
For dinner I am enjoying pretty much everything I normally would, with the exception of potatoes, rice & pasta. The other day I made a really yummy curry and substituted the rice for grated cauliflower fried in a small amount of butter.
I will add, im feeling very full and dont suffer from hunger pangs at all like I used to when I was eating a high carb diet. I will of course start indroducing carbs back in to my diet, 1 type at a time to find out what my body doesnt necessarily digest well.

If you want to add me for some motivation, feel free

Keep up the good work :-D

Try gradually going low carb. Over the course of a week or two I went from eating 100 a day to 20-30. Now I'm eating around 30 net carbs a day (usually around 50 before I subtract my fiber). When I would feel sick in the beginning, I'd eat berries. Berries are fairly low carb, low in sugar and high in fiber. Blackberries are my favorite. They're enough to give you a little bit of sugar without throwing off your diet. You also want to be sure you are getting enough fat and protein, which are what help keep you satisfied.

I eat 20-25 NET carbs a day.

For ME carbs ARE evil.

I get so sick of people trying to tell others that carbs are OK.
For some people they aren't. Some people cant have them. Some people dont like them. And some people just cant metabolize them.

No bread, pasta, rice, cereal, wheat, grains, legumes, starchy vegetables or sugar (with the exception of the natural sugar in a few pieces of fruit I eat). Meaning I dont eat beans, corn, and things of that nature.

It is a personal choice. And I see a lot of the "advice" given here is actually a personal opinion.

I think ANYONE who is curious about what foods they should or should not eat should seek out a qualified medical person to help them.

Not to mention, most diabetics eat low-carb. So if it is so bad, why is it so good? Makes no sense to me that so many people follow low carb no matter what disease they battle or dont and do so well with it.

I have PCOS which causes me to be insulin resistant. For me carbs are evil. I can't lose weight if my diet is too high in them.

Since adopting low-carb I have HIGHER energy, clarity and focus. I sleep better and I am a long time sufferer of insomnia. I have been treated for clinical mental problems in the past and I am now off all my medications. I am also now off all of my medications for my PCOS. Low carb helped me with that. I feel better overall. No more IBS, no more GERD. And plenty of other things that are positives since going low carb.

I get my carbs from vegetables and very rarely some fruit. I eat meat from a butcher that processes from a local farm, my eggs are farm fresh. My produce comes from the farm behind me in season. I don't eat bad and all of my doctors tell me I am getting better every day.

I have osteoarthritis in my hips and degenerative disc disease in my back. It is painful. Going low carb helps with the inflammation which helps me get on the treadmill every day.

So, for some, certain carbs can be bad.
For some, the only way to find out is with the help of a medical professional.

Personally, I see no nutritional value in a bowl of spaghetti drowned in pasta sauce that is full of sugar despite the tomatoes. Not to mention, I dont like the crap feeling I get when I do eat them.

Carbs are a personal preference and members here shouldn't be told to give up their lifestyle choice.

ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL.

Low carber! Love it.

I dont think carbs are horrid. But for me they trigger cravings! The more time I go without, the easier and easier it is to eat and crave healthier foods. Now a days the pastrys just SMELL wayyy to sweet and am turned off by them.


Ill always be a lowcarber

There are a couple of Group Forums you might join, too. "Low Carber Daily Forum....The Group!!!" and "PCOS and Low Glycemic Eating" are two that I can think of to which I belong. Low-er carb is not impossible, but it does take doing some homework and just paying attention. I also have PCOS, so, for ME, processed sugars are the DEVIL!! I have a really hard time eliminating them. So, I don't try to, just try to moderate it. My diary is open to my friends if you want to swap ideas... Today was a poor example day, but I logged it and will move on... Every day I start fresh... Good luck!

Finding alternatives (love quinoa) has become a game. I give in to sweets a lot still, but I am still acknowledging it and just working at it every day.... I don't beat myself up if I slip; I just plan to do better next time.

Ha! I think of finding alternatives as a game also. I get excited when I find a simple substitution for a favorite like using cauliflower in place of potatoes to make scalloped cauliflower and ham or cauliflower soup. Sometimes it's the simplest little switch that makes all the difference.

A friend of mine told me that getting upset over a diet slip is like smashing your cell phone because you dropped it. Sometimes you just have to have that piece of chocolate or a burger with the bun and ketchup (sweet, sweet ketchup), but it's not the end of the world. You pick up the cell phone, recommit to your diet and the next meal is another chance.

That sugar withdrawal headache is the worst. Been there many times, but once you get past it, it all gets easier. For me, the low carb diet is the easiest to follow as I am not a big sweet eater to begin with. Make sure you plan your day, with a variety of approved food and snacks ready to go. Trouble brews when you are hungry and don't have any low carb food. Then cheating is very easy to do.

Regardless of what diet you choose to follow, I think limiting or eliminating sugar and artificial sweetners is absolutely essential if you want to lose fat. And yeah, those first few days stink.

it's also amazing when you start reading labels and realize that the huge majority of processed foods contain sugar, salt, and fat in large amounts. If if they claim to be "low" in one of the three, the other two are jacked up even higher to compensate.

Eating a low carb diet will alter your Leptin and Ghrelin levels which will effect your apatite in a bad way. Eat your carbs but pick the right ones, high in fiber and lots of nutrients.

You'll notice quite quickly that posts like this will be flooded by people pushing their 'wisdom' and demand that you eat according to their 'rules' because they know best. Some do, some don't so don't take everything you read too seriously.

lol yes. I love how people seem to think one particular diet or exercise approach is the one and only way for everyone to get the best results, and all the little clicks that form around that.

if someone is telling your thier way is the only way, or is otherwise a little insulting, i'd just skip to the next post because they probably don't have much intelligent to say lol

Good morning! I have been trying low carb with doctor supervision for 8 weeks, and have not begun to lose weight yet. I actually have gained 5 pounds overall. Now I need to lose 20 to get where I need to be. I just had to go buy new, bigger, clothes to feel comfortable. I am switching things up a bit now - going to try amping up on the low-carb Veg, and dialing back on the protein and the fat. I will see where this gets me.
I just found MFP, and I hope with some support and tools I can get on track.
I REALLY want low carb to work for me. It makes the most sense.
Thanks!