Low carb didn't work for me

Low-carb was working for me, but not sustainable in my house. I liked it, but I have been successful just doing moderation so it wasn't a problem going back to what I was already doing. Good luck!

You're right, keto is not for all, maybe not for you.

1. The ketostix are unreliable for measuring ketones. So you don't really know if you were "in ketosis".
2. If you gained during 4 weeks it means you weren't in deficit. Keto is NOT a magic pill for weight loss. CICO are all estimates with lots of variables to miscalculate: TDEE, intake, exercise burn. Although you thought you were in deficit according to the numbers, it does not mean those numbers apply to YOUR body.
3. If you kept feeling crappy, it sounds like you never made the transition from being a sugarburner into becoming a fatburner. 4 weeks sounds like a lot, but for some people it might take longer.
4. Did you supply with enough electrolytes ? Usually too low on those and people feel like ****.
5. If you want to apply the diet correctly I recommend doing some more reading on reddit/keto

Good luck

Edit: If your body is in a very bad hormonal imbalance, that might explain your lack of weight loss despite heroic efforts to do everything "right".

rabbitjb wrote: »

low carb worked for me .. 3 times it worked for me .. until I twigged that actually it only works when you stick to it and there's no way I can stick to low carb for life

calorie counting and not cutting out any food works for me

it's down to the individual if you can stay LC for life then fine - me, I like my carbs

http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/82/1/222S.long

About 8/10 fail at maintaining their weight loss in general. Keeping the weight off is for life and is probably not about which diet plan a person chose originally. As stated MANY times on these boards: A successful dieting plan is the permanent lifestyle change you can stick to.

Good for you, you found your key

Edit: A phrasing.

If it didn't work for you, try something else. As @foamroller states, the lifestyle/diet/exercise routines which work for you are the ones you can stick with in the long term. Just because someone tells you to try a plan, or just because others are finding it works for them, doesn't mean it'll work for you, and it doesn't make you a failure, it just means you weren't suited to it.

Just low-carbing, without calorie restriction, didn't work for me. I lost water weight in the beginning (about 7 lbs. each time I tried it), then my weight completely halted until I also restricted calories.

The eating style wasn't sustainable for me (not saying that's true for all people) so I'd rebound and end up fatter each time.

Since it was all going to come down to a calorie deficit anyway, I went middle of the road, about 100g/day of carbs (which keeps my appetite more in check than higher-carb) but still eating the foods I enjoy, and maintaining a calorie deficit.

Yes, I am having an experience to yours. I have been low/no bad carb for 3 weeks now and although I only have 5-6 kg to lose I had hoped to see a small difference by now. My husband has eaten low carb for years with great success and maintence but I was always wary as for me a calorie is a calorie regardless of how it is packaged. When calorie restriction was not giving the results I was going for I started to do some reading on blood sugar and insulin levels. This convinced me to give a low carb lifestyle a try.

I did not experience any initial water weight loss despite carb and calorie restriction, and today I was also 500g above my start weight 3 weeks ago. I understand that the process takes time and that regardless of what one eats one still has to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight. I have experienced a healthy loss of apetite and no longer crave sugar every day as I used to, so low carb is in many ways working for me. I have not, however, experienced the typical symptoms and am somewhat disappointed that the process is not faster but I will stick with it.

Like some others have said, low carb worked for me but I found it impossible to stick to because of the restrictions. MFP and counting calories is so easy to track and enables me to enjoy all foods. The first few days were a little difficult while my body adjusted to the lower calorie intake but since then all has been great. Losing weight and still eating the foods I love.

I'm sure it's already been said, but there are no "one size fits all," diets.

Low carb works for me. And by works, I mean it makes me feel like a fish with no water, reduces my exercise performance, makes me look deflated, makes nutritional deficiencies more likely due to avoiding vast swaths of perfectly healthy food, and has absolutely no positive impact on fat loss versus a balanced diet. Yep. Works great.

Low carb works for me. I lost 30 kg and kept it off for 3 years down the track. It did not work at all for a friend of mine. As a challenge I offered to prepare all for so that we could compare. I lost a kilo that week while she gained one.
My theory is that it depends on your blood group Im O+ and thrive on low carb high protein. I don't eat any dairy products bread or milk.
Hope this is of use to someone! The art is to try a few options and find one that works for you. There are so many diets available to choose from.