Low carb?

marymiller82
marymiller82 Posts: 2 Member
edited November 22 in Health and Weight Loss
Hello. I have 100 pounds to lose. I've tried every diet out there. I know I have a problem with sugar and processed foods. Do you think low carb is a good way to go? Will it wreck my health?

Replies

  • TracyC1974
    TracyC1974 Posts: 1 Member
    Low carb is definitely the way to go. It's awesome. I've been on it for a month now and feel great. Good luck
  • marymiller82
    marymiller82 Posts: 2 Member
    Do you follow a plan likeep atkins etc?
  • dontgiveup2319
    dontgiveup2319 Posts: 145 Member
    Depends on how low you go. If you do low carbs don't do it too fast. Did you figure out your calorie deficit? You will lose weight if you know that and eat less than you burn. I would try eating 100-150 carbs a day for awhile and see if that helps. If not go lower. I find it very hard to eat under 50g a day. I get between 65-150g of carbs a day and I'm losing weight still.

    You need to weigh everything you eat and drink! Get a food scale and use it on everything you put in your mouth, but for liquids you measure with cups. It'll help knowing exactly how much you eat. You need to figure out your BMR and TDEE too.
  • Debmal77
    Debmal77 Posts: 4,770 Member
    No "diet" will work unless you are in a calorie deficit. Put your stats into MFP. Get a food scale and weigh and log everything you eat. Eat the foods you love. Just stay in the deficit MFP gives you and you will lose weight.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    marymiller82 wrote: »
    Hello. I have 100 pounds to lose. I've tried every diet out there. I know I have a problem with sugar and processed foods. Do you think low carb is a good way to go? Will it wreck my health?

    It depends on what your problems with sugar and processed foods are, and what your definitions of sugar and processed foods are; and what you mean by trying - any diet will work if you follow it correctly. Low carb is ok for health if you make sure you get all the nutrients you need, but it isn't necessary for weight loss. Low carb may make it easier to stick to the calorie deficit you need to lose weight, but it isn't necessary for weight loss.
  • Azexas
    Azexas Posts: 4,334 Member
    I don't think going Low-Carb will wreck your heath. Low-Carb one tool that helps some people reach a calorie deficit.

    I don't do low carb so I don't really know what % qualifies to be considered low carb. But I will echo Debmal77's suggestion to invest in a food scale and weigh everything.
  • MoiAussi93
    MoiAussi93 Posts: 1,948 Member
    First of all, there is no risk to your health from reducing carbs, so there is no reason not to at least give it a try and see if it works for you. It will not wreck your health. In fact, we don't actually need to eat any carbs at all, though that would be an extreme approach.

    Low carb works extremely well for me...I've lost 100 pounds doing that. I would recommend experimenting to find what level of carbs works best for you. I reduced gradually. I started out by just cutting out added sugar and bread and pasta. Then I focused on not eating more than 150 grams of carbs a day. Now I usually stay under 100. At some point when I'm ready I will experiment with going lower.

    When you first reduce carbs, you may get a lot of cravings for the first week or two. But then it gets much easier. The cravings pretty much disappear, and the extra fat and protein keeps me very full on less calories.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    edited August 2015
    Debmal77 wrote: »
    No "diet" will work unless you are in a calorie deficit. Put your stats into MFP. Get a food scale and weigh and log everything you eat. Eat the foods you love. Just stay in the deficit MFP gives you and you will lose weight.

    This^

    Do you see incorporating low carb into your future lifestyle (as in forever)? OR do you perceive....I've lost the weight doing low carb, now how do I keep it off?

    People who have medical issues are low carb for health reasons (big incentive for lifestyle change). If you don't have medical reasons....learn about the foods you currently eat. I'm fat because my portions are too big and I snack too much.....not because of carbs.
  • pedidiva
    pedidiva Posts: 199 Member
    Low carb will help to decrease your insulin levels. many people have to go to 25-50 Grams carb/day. I go gor <25 grams of carb/day. you may want to check out dietdoctor.com for ideas. Sweden has adopted a LOw carb High Fat food plan for its citizens. You may want to watch Tim Noakes on youtube.com
  • Upstate_Dunadan
    Upstate_Dunadan Posts: 435 Member
    I was able to lose the weight I wanted to without going low carb. I just made sure I hit my macros whenever possible and didn't go too much over any of them. By default I think MFP underestimates the amount of protein you need and overestimates carbs. Besides that, I mixed up my carb intake, but also included rice and potatoes as a staple (since I was also at the gym 5-6 days a week). Not counting folks with medical conditions, I don't think carbs are the enemy many people say they are. Neither is fat. Lots of good articles on the Internet on the topic.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    edited August 2015
    I've had good luck with simply reducing simple carbs. The less I eat the less I crave. Experiment and find your sweet spot.

    Speaking of sweets - fruits like strawberries taste very sweet but have surprisingly little calories and carbs. I'm eating much less baked goods and much more fruits and don't feel sweet-deprived.
  • faberallison
    faberallison Posts: 45 Member
    It's one tool, but certainly not the only one. Make sure you are in a caloric deficit. I eat <30 grams of carbs a day and get those carbs for veggies and some fruits. I love eating this way because I have terrible will power. I am going to transition to a higher carb count when I transition to maintenance. I want to stress that simply eating low carb doesn't make you lose weight, a deficit does.
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
    Debmal77 wrote: »
    No "diet" will work unless you are in a calorie deficit. Put your stats into MFP. Get a food scale and weigh and log everything you eat. Eat the foods you love. Just stay in the deficit MFP gives you and you will lose weight.

    +1
  • ki4eld
    ki4eld Posts: 1,213 Member
    faberallison wrote: »
    It's one tool, but certainly not the only one. Make sure you are in a caloric deficit. I eat <30 grams of carbs a day and get those carbs for veggies and some fruits. I love eating this way because I have terrible will power. I am going to transition to a higher carb count when I transition to maintenance. I want to stress that simply eating low carb doesn't make you lose weight, a deficit does.

    +1
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
    Debmal77 wrote: »
    No "diet" will work unless you are in a calorie deficit. Put your stats into MFP. Get a food scale and weigh and log everything you eat. Eat the foods you love. Just stay in the deficit MFP gives you and you will lose weight.

    This.

    Low carb likely won't hurt you, but if you have problems adhering to your calorie goal while eating low carb, it's not going to be a diet for you.

    Give it a try. Or dont. Regardless, put your stats in mfp, weigh your food, and log accurately. If you have problems adhering to your goal, swap out something you're eating with something you think will be more satiating. Give it 6 weeks, and then reassess.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    edited August 2015
    marymiller82 wrote: »
    Hello. I have 100 pounds to lose. I've tried every diet out there. I know I have a problem with sugar and processed foods. Do you think low carb is a good way to go? Will it wreck my health?

    Low carb high fat is a very healthy way to eat that is especially beneficial to those with insulin resistance, heart diease, PCOS, and dementia to name a few. I know it can be helpful in weightloss because after going very low carb (less than 50g of carbs per day) I lost ALL of my cravings for sugar and carbs and my appetite was reduced. Sure, I'd still love to have a cinnamon bun with a coke, but it isn't worth going out of ketosis, and getting my cravings back, and messing up my blood sugar for a sugary treat.

    Of course, for low carb to work, you will need to eat at a slight caloric deficit. I am using about a 500-700 calorie deficit and losing about 2-3 lbs per week.... And feeling healthier every day. :)

    Low carb will not wreck your health but you will need to increase your salt, magnesium and potassium, especially at first, or you won't feel well. Choose healthy food sources, make sure the veggies you eat are nutritious, and you shouldn't even need a multivitamin.

    Also, you may want to join the Low Carber Daily forum or Keto Forum for more support. On the main boards, you are likely to be challenged over your choices rather than offered supportive strategies - there aren't many low carb people around here.

    Good luck.
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,159 Member
    marymiller82 wrote: »
    Hello. I have 100 pounds to lose. I've tried every diet out there. I know I have a problem with sugar and processed foods. Do you think low carb is a good way to go? Will it wreck my health?

    @marymiller82 that sounds like my story. After trying to taper off last Aug and Sept can could not I went off most all carbs (still eat up to 50 grams daily) cold turkey. Thought I would die for two weeks then the carbs started losing their grip on my life.

    Only lost 30 pounds or so for the 10 months of living in a state of nutritional ketosis (very low carb/very high fat/medium protein). While carbs had wrecked my health over the years over the last 10 months of low carb it has started to recover slowly but I was very sick. The IBS is totally gone and the arthritis pain has dropped so much I need no meds now.

    This is just one old man's experience with LCHF who wishes he had made the change 40 years ago. Check out this way of eating for 90 days and go where your brain leads on the subject.
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