Low carb options?

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RedVelvetCurls
RedVelvetCurls Posts: 304 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I've just custom set my MFP to have 40% carbs per day (total of 120g a day), and I'm finding it a little difficult to keep within this limit. Does anyone have any tips for a low-carb diet?
I do eat a lot of pasta and rice, are there any low-carb alternatives?

Replies

  • SteveTries
    SteveTries Posts: 723 Member
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    do you mean 40% of your cals to come from carbs? or have you reduced your current carb level by 40%? In the case of the latter what is overall % now?

    With carb restricted diets I believe little and often is the key. No big spikes. low-moderate carbs per meal and in the low-medium GI range. I find wholemeal pitta's pretty tasty and filling. Beans are good and I also like the soy and linseed bread. I avoid pasta and rice - I tried with wholemeal pasta which is pretty tasty but you end up with such a small portion when targetting 30g of carbs a meal that it wasn't filling. I tried brown rice, nearly threw up and have never been back :)
  • RedVelvetCurls
    RedVelvetCurls Posts: 304 Member
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    Oh, pardon me, haha, I meant that I'm um... having 120g carbs a day, so I'm having 40% carbs a day. I'll edit my first post.
  • kimmy985
    kimmy985 Posts: 8 Member
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    Dreamfields pastas are pretty good and low in carbs. I also look for alternatives like quinoa, barley and brown rice.
  • SteveTries
    SteveTries Posts: 723 Member
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    OK 120g carbs a day. So something like

    Breakfast
    porridge with whole milk - 26g carbs

    Mid Morning
    Apple - 15 g carbs

    Lunch
    chicken sandwich on wholemeal pitta - 30g carbs

    Mid afternoon
    Apple or orange - 15g carbs

    Dinner
    wholemeal pasta (with whatever protein source you fancy) - 30g carbs

    Supper
    low cal hot chocolate - 5 grams of carbs


    Something like that should be plenty filling and hit your targets and also keep you in fat burning mode all day
  • SteveTries
    SteveTries Posts: 723 Member
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    OK 120g carbs a day. So something like

    Breakfast
    porridge with whole milk - 26g carbs

    Mid Morning
    Apple - 15 g carbs

    Lunch
    chicken sandwich on wholemeal pitta - 30g carbs

    Mid afternoon
    Apple or orange - 15g carbs

    Dinner
    wholemeal pasta (with whatever protein source you fancy) - 30g carbs

    Supper
    low cal hot chocolate - 5 grams of carbs


    Something like that should be plenty filling and hit your targets and also keep you in fat burning mode all day

    just to clarify, I'm not suggesting that is the entire food intake for the day, am just looking at the carb sources :-)
  • sonjaken
    sonjaken Posts: 2
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    I watch carbs a lot and trim back carbs before anything else. So, with that in mind, I too enjoy pastas and LOVE spaghetti and sauce. I've started using the whole wheat spaghetti, and instead of using as much noodles, I use half the noodles and tossed a good portion of steamed veggies over the noodles, top with a low fat cheese and top with the sauce. It's actually very good. I know someone who uses the spaghetti squash in place of noodles. I made a lasagna using eggplant slices, which my family enjoyed better than the noodles, and there are some carb free noodles on the net you can purchase... Yes, a little pricey, but they are there.
  • agentscully514
    agentscully514 Posts: 616 Member
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    Honestly there are TONS of books and websites about going low carb.
    If you really want to reduce carbs, you will pretty much have to eliminate most rice and pasta.
    low carb alternatives: You can replace some of it with whole wheat pasta, as others have said. But it would be easier to switch to vegetables and proteins without the starch.

    In other words, think in terms of vegetables + protein. I eat lots of salads with added protein. Or I eat a protein (fish, chicken, or meat) with vegetables on the side, and NO rice or potatoes. it's not really hard once you get used to it. It is harder IMO to come up with a pasta/rice replacement.
  • sweetsarahj
    sweetsarahj Posts: 701 Member
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    More veggies, more protein. Less starch, no sugar, less fruit. I'm aiming at keeping my carbs below 100 g which (as you know) is a challenge. Add me if you'd like to see my diary. I'm on a paleo diet, which BTW has worked amazingly well for me.
  • sweetsarahj
    sweetsarahj Posts: 701 Member
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    Honestly there are TONS of books and websites about going low carb.
    If you really want to reduce carbs, you will pretty much have to eliminate most rice and pasta.
    low carb alternatives: You can replace some of it with whole wheat pasta, as others have said. But it would be easier to switch to vegetables and proteins without the starch.

    In other words, think in terms of vegetables + protein. I eat lots of salads with added protein. Or I eat a protein (fish, chicken, or meat) with vegetables on the side, and NO rice or potatoes. it's not really hard once you get used to it. It is harder IMO to come up with a pasta/rice replacement.

    When I want rice, like with a curry for example, I make 'cauliflower rice." It's just bascially steamed cauliflower, chopped finely and then roasted in the oven to dry it out a bit. I put a little bit of olive oil and soem spices on it before roasted. It's got a nice texture :)
  • agentscully514
    agentscully514 Posts: 616 Member
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    OK 120g carbs a day. So something like

    Breakfast
    porridge with whole milk - 26g carbs

    Mid Morning
    Apple - 15 g carbs

    Lunch
    chicken sandwich on wholemeal pitta - 30g carbs

    Mid afternoon
    Apple or orange - 15g carbs

    Dinner
    wholemeal pasta (with whatever protein source you fancy) - 30g carbs

    Supper
    low cal hot chocolate - 5 grams of carbs


    Something like that should be plenty filling and hit your targets and also keep you in fat burning mode all day

    just to clarify, I'm not suggesting that is the entire food intake for the day, am just looking at the carb sources :-)

    This is a great start. Keep in mind that your other food will also have carbs in it. ALL pastas sauces do. And for low carb diets, porridge in the morning doesn't really work. From years and years of experience, you need to start with high protein to keep your sugar balanced for the day. Also, you really need high-protein snacks. Just a piece of fruit will not do it and will raise your sugar. You really don't need much fruit for nutrition. You can get just about all of your nutrients and fiber from vegetables and a few low-sugar fruit llike berries.

    So with this in mind, I would suggest:

    Breakfast - cottage cheese and berries

    Snack - handful of almonds

    Lunch - green salad with chicken and a low-sugar dressing

    Snack - a few pieces of cheese

    Dinner - Salmon with steamed vegetables

    Dessert -well, I never eat that. :)
  • SteveTries
    SteveTries Posts: 723 Member
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    Breakfast - cottage cheese and berries

    Snack - handful of almonds

    Lunch - green salad with chicken and a low-sugar dressing

    Snack - a few pieces of cheese

    Dinner - Salmon with steamed vegetables

    Dessert -well, I never eat that. :)

    :-) I don't think there is a single thing on that list that I could stomach the taste of - well except the berries. It sure sounds healthy though :-)
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    Substitute spaghetti squash for the pasta and quinoa for the rice.
  • RedVelvetCurls
    RedVelvetCurls Posts: 304 Member
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    Ah, thanks so much guys! :D

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