can you live without carbs?
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SuperSizeMeNot
Posts: 365 Member
is it possible to live a healthy live without carbs?
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Yes, but it's more work.0
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You can live without food. There was a big fasting fad in the 1960's. One guy is famous for going over a year -- look for the story of "Mr A B."0
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Yes, but it's more work.
Define "work." Pretty much everyone who has gone zero carb enjoys it in part for its simplicity. It's actually less work to be carnivore entirely than it is to be keto/LCHF with a 20-30g limit.talecia2014 wrote: »is it possible to live a healthy live without carbs?
Humans, in general, don't need plants in order to survive and be healthy. There are several on here who have been helping their health issues with what's known as a "zero carb" diet. Technically, it's not possible to not consume any carbs at all, even meat has trace amounts, but for all intents and purposes, the way of eating is as close as you can get. Unlike protein and fat, there is no minimum required amount of carbohydrates for the human body.
There are several discussions on the topic if you want more specific. Odds are, there are posts in them that will answer any questions you have about it.You can live without food. There was a big fasting fad in the 1960's. One guy is famous for going over a year -- look for the story of "Mr A B."
I'd be careful with that kind of assertion. There's a difference between undergoing a supervised therapeutic fast and just deciding to not eat. Additionally, there's a difference between "living" and having a healthy life. Not eating at all for prolonged periods of time, without medical supervision, is possible, but arguably not healthy.0 -
Dragonwolf wrote: »Yes, but it's more work.
Define "work." Pretty much everyone who has gone zero carb enjoys it in part for its simplicity. It's actually less work to be carnivore entirely than it is to be keto/LCHF with a 20-30g limit.talecia2014 wrote: »is it possible to live a healthy live without carbs?
Humans, in general, don't need plants in order to survive and be healthy. There are several on here who have been helping their health issues with what's known as a "zero carb" diet. Technically, it's not possible to not consume any carbs at all, even meat has trace amounts, but for all intents and purposes, the way of eating is as close as you can get.
There are several discussions on the topic if you want more specific. Odds are, there are posts in them that will answer any questions you have about it.You can live without food. There was a big fasting fad in the 1960's. One guy is famous for going over a year -- look for the story of "Mr A B."
I'd be careful with that kind of assertion. There's a difference between undergoing a supervised therapeutic fast and just deciding to not eat. Additionally, there's a difference between "living" and having a healthy life. Not eating at all for prolonged periods of time, without medical supervision, is possible, but arguably not healthy.
You have to learn what has carbs in it before you can go zero carb. You also have to learn what your micronutrient needs are and how to meet them without vegetables. You put all that work in before going zero. For a brand new to LC person to take on zero carb immediately would require a lot more homework on their part, because they don't have the transition period to learn little things like eggs have carbs, IHOP puts pancake batter in their eggs, or that 0 on the label doens't always mean 0 in fact.0 -
You have to learn what has carbs in it before you can go zero carb. You also have to learn what your micronutrient needs are and how to meet them without vegetables. You put all that work in before going zero. For a brand new to LC person to take on zero carb immediately would require a lot more homework on their part, because they don't have the transition period to learn little things like eggs have carbs, IHOP puts pancake batter in their eggs, or that 0 on the label doens't always mean 0 in fact.
You're making it more work than it is. Animal foods are good, carbs from them don't count. The only type that could even be an issue would be dairy. If someone sticks to meat, there's no worries.
Micronutrient needs? Muscle meat alone meets all of those. No need to do anything special except eat meat.
IHOP also says that they do it on their menu. Still, I don't trust any scrambled eggs when I am out. But, unless every meal is IHOP, it is simply a misstep and not the end of the world.
There is literally nothing more to understand than "eat meat, maybe some eggs and high fat dairy, and drink water or unsweetened coffee/tea." All the rest takes care of itself.
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Dragonwolf wrote: »I'd be careful with that kind of assertion. There's a difference between undergoing a supervised therapeutic fast and just deciding to not eat. Additionally, there's a difference between "living" and having a healthy life. Not eating at all for prolonged periods of time, without medical supervision, is possible, but arguably not healthy.
The physiology of fasting is VERY similar to the physiology of zero-carb, so it's worth being careful in both cases.
The main difference, of course, is that you're getting more nutrition with zero-carb. Thus the term *nutritional* ketosis.
FWIW, the fasting fad probably died out because a few people literally dropped dead. Mostly due to loss of electrolytes and associated heart problems, I think.
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Breaking my carb addiction was the hard part in my case. Not eating carbs requires some forethought for sure.0
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your body needs some carbs to be healthy. where the cutoff for you is, I don't know and I think every person needs to research and experiment and find that out for yourself.0
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Any carbs your body needs it can make from the protein you consume. Fat is a more efficient form of energy for the body, once keto-adapted.
I do eat veggies, because they make my tummy feel good. But they are not necessary for weight loss or health, if you go zero-carb or meativore. The Innu in the North have done it for centuries/millennia, since plants do not grow well in the cold and snow.0 -
You're making it more work than it is. Animal foods are good, carbs from them don't count. The only type that could even be an issue would be dairy. If someone sticks to meat, there's no worries.
Micronutrient needs? Muscle meat alone meets all of those. No need to do anything special except eat meat.
IHOP also says that they do it on their menu. Still, I don't trust any scrambled eggs when I am out. But, unless every meal is IHOP, it is simply a misstep and not the end of the world.
There is literally nothing more to understand than "eat meat, maybe some eggs and high fat dairy, and drink water or unsweetened coffee/tea." All the rest takes care of itself.
I agree with this. Low carb doesn't need to be complicated. So often I read people on here stressing over a 1/2 a carb in this and 3/4 carbs in that and carrying on that these carbs add up. I'm not sure how many meals everyone else is eating but even 1 carb is not going to make or break your diet. Not unless you have it down to 49 calories = ketosis but 50 kicks you out. Which most of us don't really know down to the 1 carbohydrate. Yes 1/2 a carb in something could technically add up but come on! Even 5 unknown carbs aren't really going to make or break this diet. It really isn't a complicated diet unless you want to get into measuring ketones and understanding the science behind it. But then, any way of eating is complicated if understanding the science behind how your body and brain function is what you're after.
When someone says it is "work" the way I perceive that is that "work" = determination, drive, self-control.
That may not be what the poster meant. I've heard people say low carb is an easy diet. If that's true, you wouldn't hear so many people say "I could never." It isn't easy. There are a lot of delicious foods with carbs (and a lot without) but controlling oneself and having the determination and drive to remain low carb are necessary. Just like having the determination, drive and self-control to eat 1200 calories a day is what I would consider "work."0 -
I think people say "I could never" because they fear cutting their favorite unhealthy foods out of their diet. Or they think they couldn't afford steak for breakfast lunch and dinner. Or that they can't imagine their families reactions.
Or because as soon as they get to day three and they hit that induction-phase wall, they say "My body is telling me this is bad for me!" It's also much easier to just never try it than to face the idea of failure.
We can always come up with reasons why "we could never" but the fact is you can't succeed at what you don't even attempt.0 -
octobubbles wrote: »It's also much easier to just never try it than to face the idea of failure.
We can always come up with reasons why "we could never" but the fact is you can't succeed at what you don't even attempt.
I would like to give you my email and have you send these words to me every single day. I am about to go crazy on making this thread about me in an off topic way so prepare yourselves. This past weekend I went skydiving. My fiance wanted to go for his birthday but I had no interest in dying. I scheduled a time for him and his friend but when I woke up that morning I was all "I need to go. I need to do this." So I did it. On the way up, in the plane, I was more scared than I've ever been. I fell for maybe 5 seconds when I opened my eyes and thought "holy *kitten*, I'm not living my life. Up until right now I had no idea what it felt like to live. This isn't death, this is living!" When we got to the ground I told my fiance that it completely changed me. It changed me to the point where it felt almost like something happened to my brain. In reality, what occurred is that I took a risk. I hadn't taken an actual risk in so long because I was too afraid to face failure. You can't succeed at what you don't even attempt... damn right!0 -
I would like to give you my email and have you send these words to me every single day.
Ha! Print it out and put it where you'll see it when you open your eyes every morning!
That's awesome. I used to want to skydive. The feeling has faded over the years but now you've made me want to do it again!0 -
Do it. I strongly encourage it. The jump was less scary than the climb.
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I bet! Anticipation is always scarier than the action it precedes!0
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Being able to stay full even 'stuffed' and not gain weight is a new experience for me. If I was still eating carbs and eating this many calories it would be the death of me. Being free from food cravings is a new experience for me. Eating low carb was a snap when I stopped eating carbs.
Low carbing goes against convention healthcare training at most all levels is what makes doing it hard I think as one holding an earned OD degree from the mid 80's. We were not taught how to prevent cataracts and macular degeneration by developing a healthy eating lifestyle of example.
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octobubbles wrote: »I think people say "I could never" because they fear cutting their favorite unhealthy foods out of their diet. Or they think they couldn't afford steak for breakfast lunch and dinner. Or that they can't imagine their families reactions.
Or because as soon as they get to day three and they hit that induction-phase wall, they say "My body is telling me this is bad for me!" It's also much easier to just never try it than to face the idea of failure.
We can always come up with reasons why "we could never" but the fact is you can't succeed at what you don't even attempt.
Yeah, nearly all the people that I've seen saying "oh, I could never..." are people who haven't even given it an honest try. I think I recall even Dr. Oz saying something flippant like "oh, I tried it for a day and couldn't do it." It's like, really dude? You can't go a single day without whatever your most favorite carby food is? (Not that I watch Dr. Oz, but I think the description about it being a low carb one caught my eye, or it was on in a waiting room or something, and I had to see the train wreck.)
Occasionally, I see people who say they've done it for a month and had cravings or struggled the whole time. I hate being part of the "you're just doing it wrong" crowd, but at the same time, their complaints are usually common stuff that indicates that something just needs tweaked. In a lot of those cases, it's because they never increased their fats and so are living on almost nothing but protein, and triggering the physiological drive to seek out a fuel macro.0 -
Dragonwolf wrote: »Occasionally, I see people who say they've done it for a month and had cravings or struggled the whole time. I hate being part of the "you're just doing it wrong" crowd, but at the same time, their complaints are usually common stuff that indicates that something just needs tweaked. In a lot of those cases, it's because they never increased their fats and so are living on almost nothing but protein, and triggering the physiological drive to seek out a fuel macro.
Agreed! I hate to tell people that they're still doing it wrong because they're already so frustrated, but it almost physically pains me to watch people struggle with this.0 -
I thought I couldn't do low carb for a long time because I tried Weight Watchers and South Beach which both restricted my carbs to the danger zone. I had no idea about ketosis and what would make me successful at all of this.0
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I'm zero carb now, but I jumped in at about 100 a day and dropped it every few days as I felt I was learning the ropes. I don't know if I would have been successful jumping in at ZC. I am one where the overall benefits have been greater than the weight loss for me. Yes, I'm losing, but that has become a secondary focus for me. The changes that I, and my family, have seen are so great that I know I don't want to ever go back. So, there is no finish line for me but a series of celebrations that will be life long!
No, you don't have to have carbs to be healthy, but your body will tell you how much is good for you.0
