carb percentage for "low carb" and smokin' abs!

EpiGaiaRepens
EpiGaiaRepens Posts: 824 Member
edited September 2024 in Food and Nutrition
I'm working on lowering my carb intake to try to plug away at my belly fat. I already do lots of exercise and calorie counting, but the belly isn't going anywhere! So after asking a million MFPers what to do, I basically learned "abs are made in the kitchen." Which, as far as I can tell, means clean eating and low carbs. I'm a vegetarian so that makes it a bit harder but here's the real question:

What percentage carb/protein/fat should I have my goals set to?

Rigth now I have 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30% fat. I have only actually followed this for like three days and it's pretty doable! Which makes me wonder if it's now low carb enough.

also, I read somewhere someone said that "low carb" means no more than 130 g's of carbs a day...which is within my guidelines at 1200 cals...but if I run 5 miles, my calories go up and then my carb allowance (which is a percentage of my total calories allowed) sometimes goes over 130. Should I not let it ever go over 130? Should I lower my percentage?

any thoughts???

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Replies

  • agleckle
    agleckle Posts: 235 Member
    Bump.

    Low carb can be hard. I've started out as a lowER carb diet with 100g carbs or less, eliminating breads and pastas and trying to stay away from white sugar as much as possible. Keeping it at 100g keeps me feeling good but still gives me enough room to enjoy some fruit in moderation.
  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
    I would personally switch your protein and carbs... I set mine to 45% protein, 25% carb, 30% fat

    I think more important is where you get your carbs... I usually get 80-100g of carbs, but they come from things like greek yogurt, protein shakes, quinoa, beans, whole grains ---- its the donuts/cake/pie/white bread that is the problem :)
  • Qarol
    Qarol Posts: 6,171 Member
    Low carb is becoming a more generic term and seems to vary by person, sometimes. I can't imagine a diet with more than 100g being considered low carb. Generally, I've seen low carb around 50g with lowER carb diets around 100g.
  • ak_in_ak
    ak_in_ak Posts: 657 Member
    I am in a similar position and I really things it takes some playing with. I know what you mean about earning more carbs and If you think about it you burned some off during your workout.
  • punkrockmama
    punkrockmama Posts: 142 Member
    Okay, first...you look awesome! Second...you are in better shape than I am so take this from someone who hasn't actually proven this first. BUT, I'm personally on the fence on low-carb diets. I believe that these diets are effective, but I'm not convinced that it's the only way. I have had HUGE success with low gi diets. I have lost inches off of my waist (if not lbs) since switching to low gi from 40carb/30protein/30fat and calorie counting. I eat the same amount, but make sure my foods are low gi and I have had a LOT of success. I've regulated my mood swings, and I've almost completely eliminated my headaches (which were several times a week). It was a little tricky to wrap my head around at first, but now it's easy peasy.
    With your dedication I KNOW you will have those killer abs SOON!!
  • brit49
    brit49 Posts: 461 Member
    bump
  • MrCake
    MrCake Posts: 53
    Did a low carb diet for the past two moths to cut fat. Worked pretty well. About 10lbs of body weight lost, little to no muscle lost.. Split was 50% protein, 40% fat, 10% carbs. Would only eat carbs around my workout, generally half of them half way through my workout and half right after in the form of simple carbs. These numbers were based on a 4000 calorie diet, so about 100g of carbs a day. Won't go any lower than that anymore (i've done so in the past with little success - 2-3% carb diet), but then again I'm a 200lb male, averaging 2.5 hours of exercise a day. I'll be back to a bulking diet in a couple of weeks, where I'll bump carbs back to around 300g per day.
  • agleckle
    agleckle Posts: 235 Member
    Okay, first...you look awesome! Second...you are in better shape than I am so take this from someone who hasn't actually proven this first. BUT, I'm personally on the fence on low-carb diets. I believe that these diets are effective, but I'm not convinced that it's the only way. I have had HUGE success with low gi diets. I have lost inches off of my waist (if not lbs) since switching to low gi from 40carb/30protein/30fat and calorie counting. I eat the same amount, but make sure my foods are low gi and I have had a LOT of success. I've regulated my mood swings, and I've almost completely eliminated my headaches (which were several times a week). It was a little tricky to wrap my head around at first, but now it's easy peasy.
    With your dedication I KNOW you will have those killer abs SOON!!


    Isn't low GI the same thing as low carb? Low GI means you are eliminating sugars, fruits with high sugar, and breads/pastas/etc that are made with white flour that metabolize quickly into sugar and spike your insulin levels in favor of things that cause insulin to slowly release. With low carb you avoid things like certain fruits, bread, pastas, sugary things that have high and/or bad carbs (which quickly turn into sugars that spike your insulin levels) in favor of more green veggies, lean protein, lowest carb fruits, etc...

    So to me it seems like you are doing the same thing but since you are looking specifically at the GI instead of carbs you are saying it isnt a low carb diet...
  • punkrockmama
    punkrockmama Posts: 142 Member
    Okay, first...you look awesome! Second...you are in better shape than I am so take this from someone who hasn't actually proven this first. BUT, I'm personally on the fence on low-carb diets. I believe that these diets are effective, but I'm not convinced that it's the only way. I have had HUGE success with low gi diets. I have lost inches off of my waist (if not lbs) since switching to low gi from 40carb/30protein/30fat and calorie counting. I eat the same amount, but make sure my foods are low gi and I have had a LOT of success. I've regulated my mood swings, and I've almost completely eliminated my headaches (which were several times a week). It was a little tricky to wrap my head around at first, but now it's easy peasy.
    With your dedication I KNOW you will have those killer abs SOON!!


    Isn't low GI the same thing as low carb? Low GI means you are eliminating sugars, fruits with high sugar, and breads/pastas/etc that are made with white flour that metabolize quickly into sugar and spike your insulin levels in favor of things that cause insulin to slowly release. With low carb you avoid things like certain fruits, bread, pastas, sugary things that have high and/or bad carbs (which quickly turn into sugars that spike your insulin levels) in favor of more green veggies, lean protein, lowest carb fruits, etc...

    So to me it seems like you are doing the same thing but since you are looking specifically at the GI instead of carbs you are saying it isnt a low carb diet...

    No. Not at all. Foods low on the glycemic index are not necessarily foods with low carbs. It's actually based strictly on how your blood sugar rises when eating certain foods. So, for instance...a snickers bar is low gi, yet not low carb. Pasta is low gi, but not low carb. Even fattier ice-cream is still on the table, but not low carb. Most fruits are low gi, most vegetables, most nuts, seeds, and beans--the latter three would not be on the low-carb diet. (Btw, I of course do not recommend anyone eating a diet of snickers bars and ice-cream!)

    Also, usually low carb references eating under a certain amount of carbs, no matter what type. I aim to keep my blood sugar from spiking, but if I were to eat my carb allotment in the form of a banana or a potato (even if I stay below 100 carbs) it will cause a blood sugar spike...and consequently (for me) a myriad of side-effects including; headache, bloating, mood swings, and cravings.

    And I'll add that my aversion to "low-carb" comes from trying it...and having minimal results with all the side effects. And honestly I have trouble viewing it as a sustainable diet.
  • EpiGaiaRepens
    EpiGaiaRepens Posts: 824 Member
    punkrockmama- I see what you're saying...I think what I'm hopefully going to do is a combination between the two... I already took bananas and potatoes off the table because they were so high carb for the amount of food I would get. I think that the general rules I want to follow is (1) low carb (30%? of my daily intake for now); (2) mix my carbs with proteins when I do eat them (this regulates the release of sugar); and (3) more whole foods, less processed foods.

    I honestly don't really understand how to know what is low on the GI index.... but I think i'll look it up and see how it jives with what I"m already (hopefully) doing!

    Also, the idea of doing a 10% carb diet seems to me like it's incredibly unreaslistic for a vegetarian. I defnitely don't agree with the Atkins diet and would never go there- not even for a six pack. But I think somewhere between 40 and 25 may be doable for a couple of months!

    Thanks for all your comments every one!
  • sminneroo
    sminneroo Posts: 1
    I would highly recommend "The Blood Sugar Solution" by Dr. Hyman. It speaks to much of what this conversation has covered already and gives specific illustrations as well as loads of recipes. I've found it very helpful in my {early} journey toward a healthier lifestyle. My doctor recommended it quite highly and now I know why!
  • jimmmer
    jimmmer Posts: 3,515 Member
    Moderate calorie deficit + high protein + decent progressive lifting routine (be it for bodyweight exercises, dumbbells, kettlebells, sandbags or barbells) + time + patience = abs

    Just in case I was unclear: carbs are not the issue. It's perfectly possible to have a six-pack and eat pasta/rice/potatoes/etc.

    ETA: just seen this was a necro-bump, but left this here so peeps can get some decent info from this thread.
  • TonyStark30
    TonyStark30 Posts: 497 Member
    Yup basically the low carb part of the abs journey is to stop you bingeing on carbs because you were still eating carbs lol.
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