I NEED grains...can I still lose?

Absolutely you can. Make sure you get your minimums for fat and protein, but otherwise, go nuts. I love me some carbs, and I've lost 20 percentage points of body fat in the last two years.

Sadly, physics has proven that grains cause gainz. Due to the truth/rhyme coefficient, the closer something is to truth, the more it will rhyme. The ironic thing, is that this coefficient doesn't actually rhyme. /broscience

I'm just ****ting ya. So long as you are in a calorie deficit, you will lose weight. That's the most important thing. Other things (like eating fruits and veggies, exercising, or dietary choices like cutting out grains) may make you lose weight faster, or make it easier for you to lose weight, but that's not the important thing is. So long as calories in < calories out, you will lose weight. Fact.

Am I the only person who can not function without grains? And can I still lose on grains? Why do people have such luck on low carb but I feel like death on it?

Everyone I talk to has given up grains. I have tried in the past and failed miserable. I just never got full off of meat, fruits/veggies, and fats and hated eating all that meat and fat. Id even gain a bit after a while bc I was eating too many cals. After a week of Paleo I had dark circles under my eyes, swollen hands (weird), I didnt have belly hungery but I was very low energy and dizzy all the time.

What I have done lately is limited my flourproducts & gluten (I find it increases my appetite & constipates me), but I do incorporate brown and purple rice daily- it gives me great energy and fills me up. I eat a lot of sashimi like salmon and tuna, fresh avacado. NO SOY (water retention) but a bit of spicy mayo (1tbsp max) and seaweed. When I eat this type of food I feel fantastic. Top it off with a small fat free frozen yogurt and I feel worlds better than red meat (makes me ill).

:noway: If it doesn't work for you, don't do it! :laugh:
Lots of different things work for different people. I for one, wish I had *your* problem:ohwell:
Do what works :drinker:

You can still lose if you eat at calorie deficit.

QFT. There should be a banner at the top of the site saying this!!

Of course... grains can be good for you. @__@

LISTEN TO YOUR BODY!! You obviously need the grains in your diet if you are getting sick without them.

Eat at a calorie deficit and you'll be fine.

Carbs are not the enemy! Good luck!

I haven't given up grains. I've lost 112 pounds. So yes, you can eat grains and still lose.

grains is fine - but how about mixing them up - and use 'whole' rather than refined. For carbs they are part of a _good__ balanced_ diet - what we all need as lifestyle not fad dieting, and they provide other than 'just' carbs eg. fibre, vitamins, minerals and help feeling satiated. The total calorie count is much more important. :drinker:

There's nothing inherently evil about grains. A lot of the big, fast weight loss you see with low carb is simply water and glycogen...when you cut carbs, you retain less water and glycogen stores deplete.

And then as soon as you do a carb-refeed, ALL the glycogen stores are refilled, and each gram of glycogen brings 3 grams of water to the party. So if you gain a pound of glycogen, congratulations! You gain 4 pounds. Happened to me every. single. refeed.

Now I don't do that carb cycling crap anymore. My body loves very well-balanced meals at every single meal, and so that's what I give it: a little grains or potatoes, fruits and vegetables, and LOTS of protein. And I need to have my calorie limit at least 1800 calories per day with ~40% protein, 35% carbs, 25% fat to be able to stick with it. I've been able to do that since the last week of June, and I've lost an average of 3/4 lb. a week. I can live with that rate of progress. I'm not killing myself with exercise (though I do get quite a lot), and I'm eating in a way that is very sustainable for me.

What works for you will likely be something else entirely, but please take it from me, you can drive yourself crazy if you compare what works for you with what works for everybody else and get uptight because they don't match up! They don't have to live with the results; you do, so you get to make the call. :laugh: Best of luck to ya!