My Doctor Suggested Eating Low-Carb AND Low-Fat

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breeshabebe
breeshabebe Posts: 580
in Health and Weight Loss
Is that possible?
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  • Iknowsaur
    Iknowsaur Posts: 777 Member
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    You COULD do it, but I don't think you SHOULD do it /:
    Carbs are a good source of energy, and fat is part of the human diet.
    A calorie is a calorie is a calorie.
  • leannegray31
    leannegray31 Posts: 9
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    If your calories are low enough, and you try to have a very high protein intake, then yeah it can be done... but why? Sounds like a ticket for misery. Honestly I wouldn't try to eat either low carb or low fat. Eat a balanced diet, preferable consisting mostly of whole foods, at a calorie level that supports your goals. If you're eating a calorie restricted diet, then you're not likely to be "high" anything - by definition you're eating less than your body needs.
  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
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    Why did he suggest it? What sort of doctor is he? General practitioners have almost no training in nutrition
  • amblight
    amblight Posts: 350 Member
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    Depends on what he meant by it!

    The Standard American Diet is about 60% carbs, 10% protein, 30%fat. Maybe he want's you to do 45% 32.5% protein 22,5%fat (that's 25% less carb and fat than the Standard American Diet), which is certainly very possible.
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
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    Why did he suggest it? What sort of doctor is he? General practitioners have almost no training in nutrition

    I had the same questions. The only reason to reduce/eliminate a food group is for medical reasons, diabetes etc. Plus when you start using low fat options often times the fat removed is replaced with sugar. I'd rather have the fat, the body needs fats to function properly.
  • breeshabebe
    breeshabebe Posts: 580
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    He's just a regular doctor. I had told him that I had hit a plateu in my weight loss and that I just wanted to get bloodwork done to rule out any thyroid problems or deficiencies. Really I wasn't asking advice... just wanted to get some tests run and see how I checked out because I hadn't gotten bloodwork done in 10 years.

    He suggested a few pills for appetite suppressants, and he asked if I had tried low-carb. I am doing sort of low-carb... not purposefully.. just trying to hit my macros and fats and then carbs are irrelevant. But he said low-carb low-fat could work. I told him that I thought that might make me constipated... he suggested stool softeners....
  • KombuchaCat
    KombuchaCat Posts: 834 Member
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    You could but it would be tough. Maybe just aim to reduce both at first. I'm not really cool with the fact that many suggestions he made where drugs that I don't think will help you in the long run.
  • jillyrobb
    jillyrobb Posts: 36 Member
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    Your doctor is prescribing appetite suppressants? RUN.
  • fougamou
    fougamou Posts: 200 Member
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    He's just a regular doctor. I had told him that I had hit a plateu in my weight loss and that I just wanted to get bloodwork done to rule out any thyroid problems or deficiencies. Really I wasn't asking advice... just wanted to get some tests run and see how I checked out because I hadn't gotten bloodwork done in 10 years.

    He suggested a few pills for appetite suppressants, and he asked if I had tried low-carb. I am doing sort of low-carb... not purposefully.. just trying to hit my macros and fats and then carbs are irrelevant. But he said low-carb low-fat could work. I told him that I thought that might make me constipated... he suggested stool softeners....

    A pill for everything....
  • oiseau17
    oiseau17 Posts: 142 Member
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    That sounds like a one-way ticket to constipation land!
  • SoreTodayStrongTomorrow222
    SoreTodayStrongTomorrow222 Posts: 252 Member
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    Your doctor needs to go back to school for some nutrition courses....you cant do both. What is your brain gonna use for fuel? Seriously, if you do that you'll feel groggy, confused, mentally exhausted. You don't believe me - go do some research of your own :-)
  • EmmieBaby
    EmmieBaby Posts: 1,235 Member
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    He's just a regular doctor. I had told him that I had hit a plateu in my weight loss and that I just wanted to get bloodwork done to rule out any thyroid problems or deficiencies. Really I wasn't asking advice... just wanted to get some tests run and see how I checked out because I hadn't gotten bloodwork done in 10 years.

    He suggested a few pills for appetite suppressants, and he asked if I had tried low-carb. I am doing sort of low-carb... not purposefully.. just trying to hit my macros and fats and then carbs are irrelevant. But he said low-carb low-fat could work. I told him that I thought that might make me constipated... he suggested stool softeners....

    He isn't a nutritionist therefore what he is saying might or might not work based on the limited knowledge he has. If he is prescribing diet pills....I would ignore what he is saying and just stick to what you are doing now...pills are not the answer!, your plateau will eventually break...for me when I plateaued I would change up my workout regime to force my body to do something new.
  • breeshabebe
    breeshabebe Posts: 580
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    Last year I had tried doing something like this... I didn't adjust my mfp fats from the 15 % it gives you and I had put my protien way high. After a few weeks, I definitely was feeling terrible until I read that I needed to eat higher fats.
  • jlynnm70
    jlynnm70 Posts: 460 Member
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    I suppose it depends on WHY the doctor recommended that.

    I had to do that diet ONCE - while I was pregnant and had gestational diabetes (ie the carbs) and a gall bladder attack (ie low fat) Once I had both under control (and trust me it was a VERY BORING DIET, and I am married to a chef, who tried like heck to make it work for me) I was off - this was for a very short period of time (about a month) and then I was slowly adding things back in and once baby was born I was back to a normal diet.
  • kenzietate
    kenzietate Posts: 399 Member
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    He's just a regular doctor. I had told him that I had hit a plateu in my weight loss and that I just wanted to get bloodwork done to rule out any thyroid problems or deficiencies. Really I wasn't asking advice... just wanted to get some tests run and see how I checked out because I hadn't gotten bloodwork done in 10 years.

    He suggested a few pills for appetite suppressants, and he asked if I had tried low-carb. I am doing sort of low-carb... not purposefully.. just trying to hit my macros and fats and then carbs are irrelevant. But he said low-carb low-fat could work. I told him that I thought that might make me constipated... he suggested stool softeners....

    Yeah that sounds like a recipe for disaster. Carbs and fat are both fuel sources. Protein is much harder to turn into fuel. Personally I typically am on a low carb diet due to health issues so my fats are higher. With out my fat being high enough, I feel like crap. It sounds like you are doing what you need to do. Just keep plugging on hitting protein and fat macros.
  • sunnyside1213
    sunnyside1213 Posts: 1,205 Member
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    Atkins says you can do low carb, but not low fat. It's the only thing that works for me.
  • WhoIsAmber
    WhoIsAmber Posts: 161 Member
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    A family doctor? I wouldn't really take his advice, they have 0 training in food and nutrition. He's probably spouting off his personal opinions.

    Why exactly did he tell you to cut down on 2 fundamental macros? What's going on with your health or does he just want you to lose weight to be healthier?
  • toscarthearmada
    toscarthearmada Posts: 382 Member
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    I'm diabetic with PCOS. I'm low carb and LOWER fat. If you'd like to add me as a friend to get some meal ideas, you're more than welcome. Although, today isn't a good representation of that. lol
  • parkscs
    parkscs Posts: 1,639 Member
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    It's possible. For example, a protein-sparing modified fast is ample protein, low carb and low fat.

    That said, whether it's possible and whether it's a good idea are different questions. You need to look at the reasons you'd eat those macros to figure out if it's a good idea, and you should have some reason(s) in mind when deciding to go "low" anything. Are you going hungry? Upping your protein intake can potentially help with that. Are you simply hitting a plateau? Adjusting your calories can help with that.

    It also comes down to what he meant by "low." Some people say low carb is anything under 100 or even 150 grams per day, while others are talking about < 25g of net carbs per day. Without knowing more about what he meant, it's honestly impossible to really critique his advice.
  • lolosensan
    lolosensan Posts: 251
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    Woah, suggesting appetite suppressants, eating a diet that is sure to leave you nutrient deficient, and then suggesting stool softeners to make up for your body (naturally) saying NO? WTF? Why general MDs don't get trained in nutrition is beyond me. IMO, you should see a naturopath if you want dietary advice. How about a healthy-carb, healthy-fat diet?

    Instead of low-carb, eat all the fruits, veggies and brown rice that you want.
    Try to stay away from white carbs like white rice, white potatoes, bread & pasta.

    Instead of low-fat, eat: olive oil, avocado, eggs, nuts, fish, white meat.
    Limit fats from: chips, dairy, baked goods, processed and fast-food etc.

    Allow yourself some wiggle room for when you want to indulge in not so healthy carbs and fats and enjoy!

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