Low carb weight loss rates vs high carb

There might be some scientific studies linked in this other thread: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10324021/interesting-studies-probably-low-carb-related-in-one-way-or-another#latest

My personal experience is that I lose almost 5 times (4.7 times) faster with low carb at the same calorie levels. I haven't reviewed and recalculated recently, but that was over the first 7 months.... way beyond the initial glycogen loss.

No difference in FAT loss. Low carb will initially cause WATER weight loss due to glycogen depletion. That's it. Look up the NUSI study last year by Dr Kevin Hall which debunked the idea that low carb is better in any way for fat loss.

xfc1 wrote: »

Years ago, I came across a paper in Google Scholar that showed how people who were on a low carb diet lost more weight than another group who were having a high carb diet, for the same energy intake.

Very few of those studies actually hold calories even. The Kevin Hall (NuSI) ones do.

Here is a discussion of studies where IR people do better with low carb, IS people do better with low fat. http://caloriesproper.com/insulin-resistance-is-a-spectrum/

Here's one where it didn't seem to matter: http://caloriesproper.com/the-dietfits-study/

A few notes about the studies. Two things that probably affect them (in my mind): (1) increasing protein tends to increase satiety; and (2) a greater change of diet beyond just cutting calories will probably lead to a bigger loss in the short term (as you need to adjust to a new diet and you are cutting out things you used to eat). Both of those have a short term effect that favors the low carb plan in most studies, and that's what seems to happen, as low carb performs better in the short term (in part because of the water loss) and they even out in the long term.

One just discussed on another thread compared focusing on carbs (and a very low carb diet) vs. focusing on calories only in a pretty standard macro diet. Both groups (who were 35+ BMI and IR) didn't lose all that much, but the low carb group did better (as I would have predicted), losses of about 2 lb/month vs. 4 total over 6 months. Part of that difference would be water.

Before one decides from that that clearly low carb has an advantage (or that it makes no difference), I'd note that lots of people on MFP have had much better results than that, which suggests to me that individual differences, and particularly individual commitment to compliance and finding a diet that makes compliance easy for you is really the key. I like somewhat lower carbs (and am currently experimenting with LCHF) because of what seems to help me with compliance, but I know I lost just as well on higher carbs also.