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Finding it extremely difficult to go low carb...

mrsmitchell0510

I have read (pretty much everywhere) that low carb, high fat is a good option for those of us with PCOS.
I have tried. And I am struggling.
How in the world do people stay below 100g of carbs per day. And 100g is actually high for some people. But, I am really struggling with it. One of my main issues is limiting fruit. Just one to two servings of fruit can jack up your carbs to close to the daily limit.

Another (unrelated) question... I have been setting my calorie intake goal based on my TDEE and a 20% deficit. But, several other sources have stated that those of us with PCOS may have lower TDEE and BMR than the online calculators give us. How can I know what is an appropriate calorie goal for me? My weight loss has been extremely slow (and frustrating)... I have been stuck around the same weight for over a month. I'll lose a couple of pounds, then it'll go right back up to that same ole number.

I need help!

Any pointers or suggestions?

Replies

MysteriousMerlin

Be picky about type of fruit. Choose fruits (and veggies) that are lower in carbs.
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/whattoeat/a/whatfruit.htm - fruits
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/whattoeat/a/whatveg.htm - veggies

I don't particularly care for fruit; I have my favorites, of course.

I try keep my carbs at around 122g now, it's 35% of my daily calories (1390). Even when I was eating more carbs (140-150g), my A1C was 5.3.

I usually aim for a couple of eggs in the morning, along with yogurt (Yoplait Greek 100 usually has around 10-11g carbs), or I'll go with breakfast sausage or bacon.

Lunch is usually protein with a veggie or potato side.

Carb-y snack, like a protein bar or fruit.

Dinner is up in the air. It all depends on what I have left over for the day.

I have a weakness for bread, so I go for higher fiber offerings, and keep it to a single serving.

Just start small! Trying to do too much at once can be frustrating. Ease into it, and it will gradually become easier to handle.

getfitsara

Hi! It's tough at first to get under the carb goal. When I first went low carb, I felt like I had low energy, was grumpy and upset, etc. However, after about two weeks it gets much easier. As far as fruit goes, I treat it as a dessert. I limit my fruit to berries or stone fruit 1-2 servings a day.

Dragonwolf

Be picky about type of fruit. Choose fruits (and veggies) that are lower in carbs.
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/whattoeat/a/whatfruit.htm - fruits
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/whattoeat/a/whatveg.htm - veggies

I don't particularly care for fruit; I have my favorites, of course.

I try keep my carbs at around 122g now, it's 35% of my daily calories (1390). Even when I was eating more carbs (140-150g), my A1C was 5.3.

I usually aim for a couple of eggs in the morning, along with yogurt (Yoplait Greek 100 usually has around 10-11g carbs), or I'll go with breakfast sausage or bacon.

Lunch is usually protein with a veggie or potato side.

Carb-y snack, like a protein bar or fruit.

Dinner is up in the air. It all depends on what I have left over for the day.

I have a weakness for bread, so I go for higher fiber offerings, and keep it to a single serving.

Just start small! Trying to do too much at once can be frustrating. Ease into it, and it will gradually become easier to handle.

I agree with most of this.

I don't entirely agree with the "start small," because that doesn't work for everyone (and that's okay!). If you're the type that can't do the "baby steps" thing when it comes to getting your carbs down, then this might work for you:

Cut out all grains at least for a while.

The biggest issue that I had was that I had been basing my meals around grain-based stuff, and grains are packed with carbs. Sandwiches, pastas, etc. By cutting them out, it forced me to rethink what I used as the foundation of my meals.

Whether you bring them back is up to you. A lot of people find they do better without them, and some people prefer to keep them in. If you choose to bring them back, I suggest doing so deliberately and with great prejudice -- go for the higher quality stuff, and don't just default to the heavily refined stuff you may have been eating before. Try sprouted grain and alternative grain (quinoa, ancient grains, etc) stuff. That way, you're more likely to find things that are satisfying without blowing your carb goal out of the water. From there, treat it as a side dish or complement, not the foundation of the meal.

In general, the big thing is to shift what you use as the foundation of your meal. That's going to be the key. If you're like me, you probably grew up with the old food pyramid, with carbs filling the first two tiers (grains, fruits, vegetables), and everything else relegated to the smaller parts.

It's pretty entrenched, but you basically need to invert it. Base your meals around fats and proteins, with healthy portions of non-starchy vegetables. Treat starches as sides and complements, and fruits as dessert. Additionally, pair proteins and carbs with fat.

So, what does that actually look like?

Here's my usual day:

Breakfast -- 4 whole eggs scrambled in ~2tbsp of butter, topped with ~2tbsp of shredded cheese

Dinner -- A meat (usually chicken, beef, pork, or bison, occasionally venison or lamb), generally grilled, sometimes baked or cooked in the crock pot, and non-starchy vegetables grilled or steamed, and tossed in butter, olive oil, or lard (depending on the vegetable), sometimes some kind of starch, usually potatoes, but occasionally rice

Lunch -- Generally leftovers from dinner the night before.

When I go out to eat, I tend to get things like steak and salad, or omelets. Unless it's Chipotle, then it's a steak bowl with only a little rice (usually about 1/3 to half what they normally put in a bowl), the mild salsa, cheese, sour cream, and a bunch of lettuce.

Occasionally, when I want something different or feel like I need to get more veggies in, I'll make a green smoothie. My favorite so far is a couple handfuls of spinach, 1/2 cup of heavy cream, 1/2-1 cup almond milk, ~6 strawberries, and 1tbsp of peanut butter. It tastes like a peanut butter milkshake. I don't do it often, though, because the amount of insoluble fiber in spinach doesn't play well with the Metformin.

Simplicity goes a long way in this, really.

MysteriousMerlin

I always suggest starting small, as from personal experience I can't stick with something if I feel overwhelmed with too many changes. But to each their own! :drinker:

teddiebare

In order to get through carb flu, I recommend going all in. For me, it was much easier for a total overhaul.

I have a protein shake every morning with almond milk, whey protein, macadamia oil, and 2c of spinach.

For lunch I have left overs.

Snacks are things like: nuts, string cheese, turkey pepperoni, deli chicken, hard boiled eggs, and fat bombs.

Dinner is generally a meat and a salad.

I eat a lot of chicken. Actually, I only eat fish and birds. I also eat a lot of tuna. The weirdest thing is getting used to eating things without a carb delivery system. Bowls of tuna instead of a tuna salad. Meat balls and sauce instead of spaghetti. Chicken breast instead of sandwiches. It was easy after that. I limit my fruit a lot, and I usually have a piece of dark chocolate every day. It gets easier, do some research on pinterest or the web. Ketogenic (or keto) diets have a lot of great ideas.

One thing I LOVE is that I can tolerate dairy so I get cheese and real whip cream in my coffee, and BACON. I eat turkey bacon, but I get bacon. Also, really real butter. Those alone make it soooo worth it. No more low fat tasteless crap for me!

aeb09

I live keto (lchf) and have cut out all fruits - don't need them, any nutritional benefits can be found in vegetables for much less sugar/carbs. Sometimes I miss a crisp apple or snappy grapes, but the benefits outweigh fruit so I'm happy to cut them out.

I eat under 20g total per day, sometimes going over by 2 or 3g but not worrying about it. I eat eggs, cheese, chicken, 2-3 pounds of baby spinach weekly, cucumbers, sausage, mushrooms, butter, avocado oil, asparagus, broccoli, avocado, ground chicken breasts, celery, peanut butter and almonds mostly. For me I really enjoy it and don't feel deprived or hungry or irritable. I have so much more energy and I sleep much better at night, so it's a win-win all around.

There are so many great low carb resources out there, especially on Pinterest. "I Breathe I'm Hungry," "Peace Love and Low Carb" and "All Day I Dream About Food" are my favorite blogs.

mrsmitchell0510

Thank you all for the info and suggestions!
I've had a friend in town the last several days and have kind of gone carb crazy. I have not felt great and I think it has to do with my carbo overloading. But, as soon as I have a chance to sit down and make out a grocery list and get to the store, I'm going to try going grain free for several weeks and see if it helps with how I feel and getting some of this weight off.
I have looked at I Breathe... I'm Hungry and love her website so far! She has some great looking recipes and meal plans!
Thank you ladies!