Do low carb fanatics drive you crazy?

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Hi There,

My highest weight was 308 lbs. I lost over 100 lbs by counting calories and exercise. I recently had a baby so am back on it losing again. I've lost 15lbs in 32 days and I eat plenty of carbs. I eat bread, pasta, rice and potatoes. I don't eat much red meat because I don't like it.
I find that people seem to think that low carb is the only way to go. I tried it once and I felt like fainting all the time and my breath STANK!
I think that everyone has to do what works for them but personally, no one will ever convince me that eating all that meat, cheese and butter is good for you. Bring on the fruit and vegies....yum :)
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Replies

  • evilbanks
    evilbanks Posts: 166
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    I'm not a low carb kinda guy but my motto is "if it works for you, use it"
  • sovannac
    sovannac Posts: 445 Member
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    I'm not a low carb kinda guy but my motto is "if it works for you, use it"

    I completely agree! I'm on the low carb thing right now and it's working out just fine. I say that if you're being healthy and you aren't starving yourself then however a person diets, shouldn't matter to everyone else.
  • slbeutler
    slbeutler Posts: 205
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    Weight loss really comes down to calories in and calories out, but different types of diets can have different results on your body. If you goal is just to lose weight than counting calories is fine. Some people want a more ripped, flat stomach look and to get that you really do have to monitor your carbs. Everyone needs some carbs, it is really the type and the amount.
  • change_happens
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    Not all low-carbers have smelly breaths... lol! There are different low carb diets. Everyone is different when it comes to their diet. I don't see why it would bother anyone that someone is not eating the way that they eat. Just makes no sense. We are all individuals and have to choose the journey that is best for each of us.
  • inotnew
    inotnew Posts: 218 Member
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    I think the only time you should remove real foods from your eating plan is when you are alergic to them or it affects your health.
  • Kelly_Wilson1990
    Kelly_Wilson1990 Posts: 3,245 Member
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    I eat carbs but whole grains and high fiber. I make my carbs count.
  • Erin_26
    Erin_26 Posts: 97 Member
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    Low carb doesn't have to mean high-fat, of course.

    I would never discourage someone to stop doing what works for them, so I'm glad you've found a way that works for you.

    I do not eat bread, potatoes, rice, cheese and limited fruit. I stick to fish, seafood, egg whites and vegetables (which naturally have some carbs) most of the time. It is working wonderfully for me and I have lost 10 lbs in 1 month.

    I keep to myself unless someone asks me about my diet, but I do promote a low-carb lifestyle because I am proof it works.
  • ibbray04
    ibbray04 Posts: 227 Member
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    I think the only time you should remove real foods from your eating plan is when you are alergic to them or it affects your health.

    AMEN to what she said!
  • Montco_cancel
    Montco_cancel Posts: 74 Member
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    I don't concern myself with what others do. If it works for them, then great!

    I just need to focus on what I need to do to lose the weight...
  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
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    If it changed your breath, you were doing it far too extreme and probably in ketosis. This is not something you can sustain long term now would it be healthy. (in my healthy)

    When I say "low carb" -- I still get 60-100g of carbs a day, but I DON'T get them from the crap that made me fat in the first place. Donuts, deep fried anything, waffles, pancakes, white bread, cake, cupcakes, cookies, potato chips, frieds... you get the points.

    Most of my carbs now are "good" carbs.... fruits/veggies, greek yogurt, quinoa, whole grains etc....

    It is still a low glycemic/low carb lifestyle. You don't have to go overboard --- just watch where your carbs and sugar come from.
  • Artemis_Acorn
    Artemis_Acorn Posts: 836 Member
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    I'm not a fanatic, but as someone with PCOS / Insulin Resistance, I recognise the value of the lower carb ratios in managing those conditions.

    As with anything, it can't be good when done to the extreme. Balance and moderation are key,
  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
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    Any "fanatic" annoys me, as just that word (to me) implies an overzealous person in a negative sense. I don't mind people doing whatever works for them, but don't push what you do on me or anyone else. This goes for low carb fanatics, religious fanatics, etc.
  • AnaBananaChan
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    Lol, what is it people keep saying on this website, much less off?

    "Do what works for you," as long as you don't starve and do ridiculous things. Best of luck people!
  • PoeRaven
    PoeRaven Posts: 433 Member
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    I agree to a certain degree...

    I tried the low carb/no carb diet years ago and as everyone knows, all that fat is definitely not good for you. My cholesterol levels went sky high...
    Now, I do limit carbs but still enjoy them. I opt for whole grain pastas and breads. I limit these to just one or two servings a day though. I generally try to keep my carb intake below 200 per day.
  • kathleennf
    kathleennf Posts: 606 Member
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    I agree with inotnew- I am trying as hard as I can to eat healthy but mostly normal food and a normal lifestyle. As far as I know the **only** diets that are DOCUMENTED by good studies to improve long term health are low fat, low calorie and low sugar diets.
  • Alissa_Sal
    Alissa_Sal Posts: 141
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    I think that it would only bother me if someone kept carping at ME to go low carb. Personally, I don't want to make ANY foods completely off limit (especially not my delicious, delicious carbs - *drools*) But if it works for someone else, more power to them. It worked for my dad - he lost about 30 lbs on Atkins and has kept the weight off for years and years (I'm guessing close to 10 years now). He doesn't care that much about carbs anyway (he mostly just loves meat) so that was easy for him and highly effective.
  • brit49
    brit49 Posts: 461 Member
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    If it changed your breath, you were doing it far too extreme and probably in ketosis. This is not something you can sustain long term now would it be healthy. (in my healthy)

    When I say "low carb" -- I still get 60-100g of carbs a day, but I DON'T get them from the crap that made me fat in the first place. Donuts, deep fried anything, waffles, pancakes, white bread, cake, cupcakes, cookies, potato chips, frieds... you get the points.

    Most of my carbs now are "good" carbs.... fruits/veggies, greek yogurt, quinoa, whole grains etc....

    It is still a low glycemic/low carb lifestyle. You don't have to go overboard --- just watch where your carbs and sugar come from.
    [/quot













    What you wrote, also why put down other people diet, you have to do what works for you, everyone is different. Dont let it drive you crazy!!!!
  • Dave351
    Dave351 Posts: 45 Member
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    "I tried it once and I felt like fainting all the time and my breath STANK!

    I think that everyone has to do what works for them but personally, no one will ever convince me that eating all that meat, cheese and butter is good for you. Bring on the fruit and vegies....yum :)"

    Faint, flu symptoms, stank breath...there all signs of Ketosis. Which isn't good. However, hovering just above that state can work well. There are a ton of diets out there. Some work and some are just nuckin futs!! The one time tested proven method is to eat a variety of clean healthy food and to be active. Find what works for you and stick with it!!
  • jackalope28
    jackalope28 Posts: 38 Member
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    What melsinct said!

    I do* get annoyed when people lose weight by munching on junk food and 100 calorie snack packs all day, or 20% of their calories come from a Frappucino, and and and...

    And then I realize that I'm being judgmental and that hey, that works for some people and they have success with it, because junk food or not it's still under their calorie limit and they're losing weight, and that we're all here with the same goal - to get to a healthy weight for us.

    Not one size fits all, and everyone has an opinion. So I try to take the viewpoint that everyone is here and has good intentions and is going through a similar thing, and we can all benefit from group support, whether high carb, low carb, cookie diets, vegetarian diets, meat-only diets, junk food diets.

    Whatever works for someone, good for them for taking a step in the right direction by getting to a healthier weight.
  • shabydonner
    shabydonner Posts: 69 Member
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    Its funny, being a heavy kid that didn't care for many veggies, hard as my mother tired to get me to like them, I thought about the low carb thing being my answer. I am much the carnivore and the idea of being able to eat a stake with butter and cheese which is probably my favorite food (and worst enemy at times) was very appealing. I never really went on it as I was young enough during the Atkins craze that I still pretty much ate what was prepared for me. Now that I'm older and fixing my own meals I can't imagine not including carb in my diet. I did the Diabetic Exchange diet a couple of years ago, which is a good well rounded diet that forced me to get more fruits and veggies and limit the protein and carbs to healthy levels. It was working but I just couldn't stand having to do the figuring of what counted as what. Did that piece of cheese count and a meat, a dairy and a fat or just one of those or what. This site has been so great for me. I actually enjoy plugging in what I have eaten and seeing, not in choices, but in actual grams what I have left for the day. It takes a ton of the guess work out of it and I can see sticking to this long term unlike anything else I have tried. I have know some people to do well with the Low carb thing but the second they fall off the wagon, even just a little, they start putting it right back on. To each his own but I will take the counting calories method any day.