Any other low carb people out there?

Hi!
I am doing low carb as well! I did low carb about 3 years ago and was in the best shape of my life at about 115 (my family and friends once referred to me as the low carb queen). Unfortunately I fell out of the healthy lifestyle because I started dating a guy who ate terribly, was not very active, and went out a lot more than I was used to (chalk it up to the infamous college relationship mistake). I ended up getting lazy and gaining about 50 pounds.

In the past year and a half since that relationship ended I have fluctuated 10 lbs here and there but have generally stayed the same. I have since met a wonderful guy who I want to be the best version of myself for. I have started changing my life for the better and am trying to get back into my low carb lifestyle. I would love some friends that are on the low carb train as well!

i'm mostly low-carbing lately. no wheat, grains, or sugar. most of my carbs come from vegetables, and the occasional greek yogurt. i try to stay between 30-50 carbs a day.

Congrats on going low carb. Not having cravings and losing weight is a great feeling. About a decade ago, I lost 54 pounds going low carb. For most of the past 12 years I've avoided bread, potatoes and rice. I had some stressful times and ate birthday cake and frosting and cases of candy bars but still no bread, potatoes or rice. I eventually gained the weight back and then some but have repeatedly lost and kept it off for long stretches.

Here are my biggest low carb tips:
* Eat Bell Peppers - you need your vitamin C
* Don't limit your veggies even if it puts you over the carb count.
* After the first 2 weeks and the cravings are gone, start adding Greek Yogurt to your diet for the calcium.
* Replace pasta with cauliflower or spaghetti squash.
* Unless you have high blood pressure, start adding a little salt to your foods if you are not reaching sodium goals.

More about me. I just finished a 6 month weight loss study for Northwestern University using a low-fat diet. I lost 20 pounds but it sucked. It was really slow and if I exceeded my fat grams but hadn't eaten enough calories, I'd eat some carbs and then crave more food and go over my calories. So when I needed more calories but couldn't have more fat, I started drinking wine. I was getting really anxious for the study to end so I could start eating fat and losing weight. I lost 7 pounds the first 2 weeks after the study ended. It took me 2 months to lose 7 pounds on the low-fat diet. The American Diabetes Assoc has finally acknowledged all the studies that say low-carb is better for you. One study showed that people eating low carb have a 300 calorie a day metabolic advantage. Several studies admit that low-fat is not sustainable and causes weight gain due to cravings.

Hi all. I am low carb. Also high protein and can be high fat, but actually the amount of fat is neither here nor there. I got this food plan from my doctor. He is a nutritional doctor. I am insulin resistant, so carbs and added sugars are out for me. And the plan has worked for me. No white flour, no processed foods. Whole fat dairy. Anyway, works for me. And it's something I can sustain after I reach my goal. I have no choice in the matter. I did go over on carbs today ... not sure what the heck happened here. But otherwise, my days I don't go over 50 carbs ever. I have an open food diary, probably for friends, so feel free to add me if anybody would like.

Just like any diet, how much you initially lose depends on start weight. Most of it is water anyway. Get your salt and potassium to avoid the Atkins flu and drink lots of water.
I wish I had done measurements when I started: even when the scale doesn't move, the inches seem to come off.
Good luck!

I have been on a low carb lifestyle (not diet) for 8 weeks, and I am losing an average of a kilo per week. Never feel hungry unlike other lifestyles of eating which I have tried. Also, never been bored with it and do not miss most foods I used to eat.

I tried weighing foods and recording all my foods on MFP in the past but it became a chore and I also found it hard to stick too by just cutting calories.

Instead of cutting calories, I now cut out refined sugars, breads, pastas, rices and potatoes. I now eat eggs, cheeses, above the ground veggies, fruits (apart from bananas), chicken, pork, 100% meat burgers, real bacon (not processed). Eat lots of salads too.

I always struggled to drink water but now found a solution in soda water (only carbonated water) and when cold it is so refreshing and fills you up.

I even have to force myself to eat sometimes as the low carb way of eating makes you a lot less hungry as it stops all the sugar cravings too which make you want to eat.

I am sure now, I found the right eating lifestyle for me now, of course it will not suit everyone but it works for me.

Watermage, there is no such thing as bad carbs, and rice and potatoes are more calorie heavy than bread and pasta. You've kind of got it backwards. But that's ok. Do the best you can.

I've been low carbing for over a year, in and out of ketosis, and my advice is that a 100 carbs a day is healthy. Unless you've got diabetes or bipolar disorder and need ketosis.

In my experience, if you eliminate all resistant starches, you risk getting SIBO. You've got to have a small amount of oats or other starch, to keep your stomach healthy. I learned that the hard way, and once getting SIBO, we'll, it's nearly impossible to cure.

So go for low carbing and enjoy it. But really, check out atkins' website and you'll see that he expected people to eventually go back to eating resistant starches, not stay in ketosis forever.

I realize many of you are just starting out, so all this might confuse you. Low carbing is good, but there are extremes, and you really don't need to go extreme to benefit from it. That's my point. And sometimes the extremes of low carbing create tummy problems, and even depression in some people.

Also, calories do count. Don't let LCHF propaganda convince you that you can eat all the food you want as long as it's low carb. It's simply not true. Calories count, totally.

It's also important to count calories while low carbing, because some people don't eat enough food, as a result of feeling satiated from the protein. As you get really good at finding low carb meals, it gets hard to not overeat.

I did a stretch of about 2 years of low-carbing ten or so years ago and it worked great. Then I fell off the wagon and my weight moved around a bit and I tried other eating programs (trying not to say diet) with more or less success. I joined FP in Jan. 2013 and counted calories and lost 15-18 pounds. It was great! And then I tried to maintain and just became RAVENOUS!

I was never not hungry for a minute. So the weight came back. I thought I better try low-carb again, because of an article I read about getting your insulin in line so you're not famished all the time....

Now I'm a week in, and nothing's happening. Zero. Nada. Zip. I'm sticking to it but I'm disappointed. I remember much quicker results in the past. But then, everything sucks more "as we get older," doesn't it?

Any older women trying this and getting results?

I'm so done with excuses. So I've been on the no carb diet for 2weeks. hasn't been easy! Pray this works. Need all the support, glad to share aswell.

After reading your OP, it sounds like you have Insulin Resistance since the majority of your weight is located around your waste. Have you ever been checked?

I'm on a low carb diet too. Although, with my diet I can have 120 grams (30 gs at meals and 15 at snacks) and I've managed to lose over 100 pounds. If you're working out, I wouldn't do a LOW LOW carb diet. You still need those complex carbs to keep up energy.

Feel free to add.