What is this data showing? No correlation between loss and carbs?
allunits
Posts: 95 Member
I have been a little bummed out about not losing anything in a few weeks, so I created a graph of the last 18 weeks to see if I can find any trends. It's actually really interesting, provided that I've been logging correctly. Wondering if others see any correlations because it looks to me like the carbs haven't really mattered to my weight loss. There are other reasons I eat LC (feel better, more full, the fat helps me keep my calories down, better skin, etc, etc) but I am so confused by this data because I can't see any significant trends: calories have stayed in the same range, lower intake seems to trigger some loss, but the carbs and the weight loss have both been going up pretty neck in neck.
I multiplied the lbs by 100 so that all the lines show together on the graph.
I multiplied the lbs by 100 so that all the lines show together on the graph.
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Have you been taking body measurements?1
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Yeah, no change lately...0
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Where are you measuring? At one time I had actually lost about 10 of my 30 pound goal and my clothes fit the same and I was measuring like 1/4" off my waist and hips which is of course the biggest concern.
Luckily I had measured other places too because I had lost a few inches from my rib cage area and 1/2" from my neck, calves and arms, forearms and dumb places like that. Places I wasn't really focused on and I only measured them in the first place because there was a spot for them on an app I had. If I had chosen points myself I know I would've skipped those places.
Anyway, you don't have to eat low carb to lose weight, but most of us do it because it makes eating less easier to do because of improved appetite control.4 -
Given your caloric intake, just about anyone with a properly functioning thyroid gland who isn't 100% bedridden would lose weight. Your data just further proves what the main board users harp all of the time: low-carb isn't necessary for weight loss, but a caloric deficit is, regardless of macronutrient composition.
Many here either use it for satiety reasons, or they have some form of metabolic disfunction that allows their body to function better in the absence of carbohydrate (T2D being the most common), but it's never 100% necessary.
Now, when I go into a cutting phase, carbs would be the first thing to go, because they make up roughly 50% of my energy intake when bulking. This isn't because "low-carb", it's because I have to create an energy deficit somehow, and since dropping protein is incredibly stupid, my fat intake is already at minimal levels, and the kcals have to go from somewhere.4 -
I agree. LC is sustainable for me as well because I grew up with a high fat diet and it is easiest for me to reduce calories by reducing carbs. I feel better all around eating LC and even with this slow loss, I still have lost 22lbs this year. I know that I will lose again if I stay with it.
Still, I am technically obese (5'3, 177) and do want to lose weight so that is a focus for me. Like you said, I should be losing with these numbers, which is why I'm trying to figure out the carbs/cal deficit that works for me and I'm surprised that I didn't get more of an obvious correlation from my data...
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I agree. LC is sustainable for me as well because I grew up with a high fat diet and it is easiest for me to reduce calories by reducing carbs. I feel better all around eating LC and even with this slow loss, I still have lost 22lbs this year. I know that I will lose again if I stay with it.
Still, I am technically obese (5'3, 177) and do want to lose weight so that is a focus for me. Like you said, I should be losing with these numbers, which is why I'm trying to figure out the carbs/cal deficit that works for me and I'm surprised that I didn't get more of an obvious correlation from my data...
How much of your total calories are from fat. How much protein are you getting.
Maybe those needs adjusting.
http://www.tuitnutrition.com/2015/11/why-not-losing-weight-1.html?m=12 -
water retention when you eat more carbs is going to throw that off anyway, shifting between lower and higher carb days/weeks always causes big swings in the scale for me7
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I'm more inclined to say carbs/proteins/fats need to be accurately measured versus "tweaked" to ensure one has the caloric deficit they think they have. @allunits are you weighing that intake?
When I switched to keto (2016) in maintenance...I bought a food scale. High fat foods are incredibly calorie dense. Picture 1 square inch of full fat cheese vs a mound of salad vegetables. Sad to the eye. Very, very sad to the eye.
The toughest part (initially) of eating keto for me (and I ate MTK so ate ALL the fat) was getting accustomed to the look of the food on the plate. Honestly, I ended up eating dinner out of a salad bowl or off a small plate without realizing it. I guess it was a subconscious thing. I didn't even realize it until my husband asked me one night at dinner if I wanted a bowl or a small plate.
A food scale was eye opening to me. There is no such thing as a 4 or 6 ounce chicken breast unless one buys a little organic bird. Chicken breasts are often 12 ounces. And the "palm of the hand" being a portion is not accurate. I have big hands and palm size isn't a measure of thickness of the chicken breast. A piece of steak the size of a deck of cards? Nah. I never buy steaks as thin as a deck of cards.
I didn't weigh foods during weight loss though I lost without issue. But I wasn't eating high fat keto during weight loss.3 -
It's be more useful to see the actual scale weight graphed over the 18 weeks. I think you're undereating.2
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Thanks, everyone. I weigh all my food and I shoot for at at least 90g of protein but I'm not consistent about macros at all. I'll focus on macros for a few weeks and see how it goes.0
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