LOW CARB DIET /New approach old is not working!

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gijimenez5
gijimenez5 Posts: 15
in Introduce Yourself
I was on here several years ago. I had a baby in 2006 and was motivated to lose weight because of a cosmetic procedure. I lost the weight and maintained it off. I was exercising very moderately, if I gained a pound or two back I would watch my calories for a few days. Now last summer all of a sudden I started gaining weight, slowly and I was aware of it. I would watch what I eat, exercise and keep 1200 calories (which always worked) but this time it didn't, I ended up gaining 12 pounds. After that I decided that maybe I had to exercise more to lose the weight with also still keeping my calories at 1200. I joined the gym, and did both cardio and muscle training (which is new to me, before I would only do cardio). Still nothing! I was not able to lose one pound but I was able to maintain. I did not gain any more weight. Now I have decided to try a Low Carb diet. Even though I was maintaining a low calorie, low fat diet this time around I did not feel good, I felt hungry, bloated, etc.

I just started Low Carb on Monday. Trying to keep it at 30grams of carbs a day. I have been finding it hard to eat 1200 calories and hope I am not going into starvation mode. I am really hoping this works, I feel that age has changed the way my body burns food, etc. Looking for friends who are also on low carbs, so that we can motivate each other, and just learn from your experiences. Also does anyone know if we can log net carbs?
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Replies

  • VCanadapt
    VCanadapt Posts: 142 Member
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    I am also new to the low carb way. Feel free to add me.
  • Julettashane
    Julettashane Posts: 723 Member
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    you need to eat more then 1200 calories especially when working out. if you eat 1200 then burn 300 its like you only ate 900 calories that day and thats not enough. you can find a calorie calculator online that can help
    edited to say i just started back on this fit journey i eat 1500
  • Fit_Mama84
    Fit_Mama84 Posts: 234 Member
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    I'm not strictly low carb, but I am low processed foods. Alot of my meals can be tweeked to be low carb so if you'd like ideas you can friend me and take a look at my food diary. I've also done atkins a couple times before so if you'd need someone to tak to abou it, you can always PM me. Good luck.
  • WeaponOfMassInstruction
    WeaponOfMassInstruction Posts: 65 Member
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    I did the low carb thing and NEVER counted calories. In two months I dropped 60 lbs but I kept it under 21 carbs a day. Good luck. When you stall, eat carbs to spike the metabolism and your body will work harder to burn calories.
  • ladymiseryali
    ladymiseryali Posts: 2,555 Member
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    If you need to bulk up your calories, add more fat to your eating plan. When you go low carb, you need to compensate for the lack of carbs with fats or protein. I prefer fats. Cook your eggs in bacon grease. Add cheese and sour cream to your eggs. Smother your veggies in butter.

    I must warn you though. The mention of low carb brings nay-sayers and criticizers out of the wood-work to tell you that your eating plan is wrong or stupid. Ignore them and join one of the low carb groups.
  • Julettashane
    Julettashane Posts: 723 Member
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    If you need to bulk up your calories, add more fat to your eating plan. When you go low carb, you need to compensate for the lack of carbs with fats or protein. I prefer fats. Cook your eggs in bacon grease. Add cheese and sour cream to your eggs. Smother your veggies in butter.

    I must warn you though. The mention of low carb brings nay-sayers and criticizers out of the wood-work to tell you that your eating plan is wrong or stupid. Ignore them and join one of the low carb groups.

    this.....ignore nay-sayers if it works for you then do it.....my mom dropped 40lbs in like 3months on low carb.
  • kickassketo
    kickassketo Posts: 42 Member
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    I've been doing under 20g of carbs per day for seven months and at the beginning, and sporadically through out, there have been days when there is NO WAY I can eat all the calories that I'm 'supposed to'. I'm not hungry, my body doesn't want it, so I don't force it. There are also rare days when I am more hungry and I go over by a few hundred calories, and I don't worry about that either. AS long as you are keeping your macros roughly in the right proportions, you're doing alright. The concept of starvation mode is a myth, so you are doing no harm as long as this isn't a pattern for you, and you don't have ED issues. This way of eating has allowed me, for the first time in my life, to actually feel hunger and respond appropriately. It's an amazing benefit of very low carb eating.

    I suggest you check out the reddit keto page. They have a FAQ that is awesome and lots of good links. Also, if you're looking for more support, there's a private facebook group called reddit keto that has great people. It has probably helped me more than anything else with this way of eating.
  • kickassketo
    kickassketo Posts: 42 Member
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    Oh, and feel free to friend me!
  • gijimenez5
    gijimenez5 Posts: 15
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    @ladymiseryali, thanks for the tip. I am so use to cooking with PAM that it's hard for me to turn to the butter. Today I made my eggs with butter and felt free to add on the Mayo (which use to be restricted to me) for extra calories. I really do not want to go below 1200 calories so I have to definitely work on that. I am four days in and I am just praying for the best.

    @julettashane I have already seen posts were low carb dieters were criticized for following low carbs. I have very thick skin and I know my weight struggles so I will not let them change my mind. I have tried everything to lose these pounds. it's insane to do the same thing over and over and expect different results!
  • gijimenez5
    gijimenez5 Posts: 15
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    Thanks @kickassketo! Your post is motivation for me! You are right I do not feel hungry at all! Last night I forced myself to eat strawberries and Cream Cheese for extra calories! I have heard that Starvation Mode is a myth, but then so many say that it's true! In fact the first two days I thought I went over my calories, I was afraid to log it down, but then once I was done I was like holy moly I need to eat more! I will check the reddit page and friend you. Thank you so much!
  • castlerobber
    castlerobber Posts: 528 Member
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    I just started Low Carb on Monday. Trying to keep it at 30grams of carbs a day. I have been finding it hard to eat 1200 calories and hope I am not going into starvation mode. I am really hoping this works, I feel that age has changed the way my body burns food, etc. Looking for friends who are also on low carbs, so that we can motivate each other, and just learn from your experiences. Also does anyone know if we can log net carbs?

    Age and menopause have definitely changed how my body burns food.

    You will not go into starvation mode. Your body will burn mostly fat once it's adapted to not getting a huge carb fix every day. Don't be afraid to eat fat, and plenty of protein and non-starchy vegetables; skip the processed low-carb stuff except as an occasional treat. Once you get near your goal weight, start slowly adding back some starchy veggies--you'll have to experiment to find out which ones, and how much, you can handle.

    Mark's Daily Apple is a good source of encouragement, articles on all sorts of Primal/paleo stuff, and low-carb recipes.

    Good luck!
  • ercarroll311
    ercarroll311 Posts: 295 Member
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    I'm not probably considered "low carb" but have been trying lower carb than I was before the last 3 weeks, finally saw the scale drop! Feel free to add me!
  • kennie2
    kennie2 Posts: 1,171 Member
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    why oh why
  • rondaj05
    rondaj05 Posts: 497 Member
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    If you need to bulk up your calories, add more fat to your eating plan. When you go low carb, you need to compensate for the lack of carbs with fats or protein. I prefer fats. Cook your eggs in bacon grease. Add cheese and sour cream to your eggs. Smother your veggies in butter.

    I must warn you though. The mention of low carb brings nay-sayers and criticizers out of the wood-work to tell you that your eating plan is wrong or stupid. Ignore them and join one of the low carb groups.

    +1
  • skypies
    skypies Posts: 6
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    I've been on low carb for about 2.5 months and my story sounded almost exactly like yours (other than the baby thing). I couldn't lose even though I was watching what I ate and exercising more. Then I started gaining like crazy ~ 10lbs in a couple months. I switched to low carb and have lost ~10lbs having gone through Thanksgiving, multiple Christmases, and a vacation to Las Vegas. So far I LOVE low carb, moderate protein, and high fat. I rarely feel hungry or crave carbs. When I first started I could barely make 900 cal/ day for a couple days then I'd have a REALLY high day but I averaged in about 1350 cal/day. After awhile the not being hungry will pass so don't worry too much.

    One thing that was really hard for me was to get over how much fat I should be eating and also that I can eat WAY more calories on low carb and lose compared to high carb. If I ate 1200cal high carb I would maybe lose a lb a month. I now eat 1350 - 1500cal/ day and lose ~ .5 - 1lb/ week. The thing that works best for me is to track my net carbs and eat when I'm truly hungry (I think if I want a piece of steak or an egg and if the answer is yes then I'm hungry even if that's not what I'm going to end up eating).

    Logging net carbs- the easiest way I've found to track your net carbs is to take you carb count and subtract your fiber in your head. It may not look like you want but it works out the same. Otherwise you can try to find foods that other people have tagged as net carbs or create your own.

    Good luck on your new approach to eating!
  • gijimenez5
    gijimenez5 Posts: 15
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    I'm not probably considered "low carb" but have been trying lower carb than I was before the last 3 weeks, finally saw the scale drop! Feel free to add me!


    I will add you! I don't know if I am doing this right, I don't want to go to Atkins, South Beach, I just know that before I was eating 1200 calories and 193 grams were carbs. Low fat but I was stuck! Hopefully we can help each other!
  • gijimenez5
    gijimenez5 Posts: 15
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    I've been on low carb for about 2.5 months and my story sounded almost exactly like yours (other than the baby thing). I couldn't lose even though I was watching what I ate and exercising more. Then I started gaining like crazy ~ 10lbs in a couple months. I switched to low carb and have lost ~10lbs having gone through Thanksgiving, multiple Christmases, and a vacation to Las Vegas. So far I LOVE low carb, moderate protein, and high fat. I rarely feel hungry or crave carbs. When I first started I could barely make 900 cal/ day for a couple days then I'd have a REALLY high day but I averaged in about 1350 cal/day. After awhile the not being hungry will pass so don't worry too much.

    One thing that was really hard for me was to get over how much fat I should be eating and also that I can eat WAY more calories on low carb and lose compared to high carb. If I ate 1200cal high carb I would maybe lose a lb a month. I now eat 1350 - 1500cal/ day and lose ~ .5 - 1lb/ week. The thing that works best for me is to track my net carbs and eat when I'm truly hungry (I think if I want a piece of steak or an egg and if the answer is yes then I'm hungry even if that's not what I'm going to end up eating).

    Logging net carbs- the easiest way I've found to track your net carbs is to take you carb count and subtract your fiber in your head. It may not look like you want but it works out the same. Otherwise you can try to find foods that other people have tagged as net carbs or create your own.

    Good luck on your new approach to eating!


    Seeing how much fat I eat is really hard for me! I am so use to keeps fats low that I makes me panic all the time! But then I say to myself watching your fat was not working! Wait until the first week is over at least and see if this worked! Fingers crossed! It's nice to see that you have had some success! Are you planning on following this forever, or just to lose weight. I am also concerned about how I will deal after I reach my goal weight. I eventually want to eat bread, cakes, pasta! What are your plans once you have achieved the weight loss?
  • Rocbola
    Rocbola Posts: 1,998 Member
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    I have tried everything to lose these pounds.
    Have you tried eating a whole foods, plant based diet with a focus on raw fresh fruits and vegetables?
  • Snow3y
    Snow3y Posts: 1,412 Member
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    I've been doing under 20g of carbs per day for seven months

    :huh:
  • FabFitMomma3
    FabFitMomma3 Posts: 8 Member
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    I have been thinking about going to low carbs. I have found when logging my food I eat way to much carbs and not enough protein. I have still been losing the weight but I think if i would cut out some carbs it would help me much more. Any suggestions?

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