Have you had Low-Carb success?

I have PCOS and insulin resistance, so am on a low carb diet per my Endo. I am losing weight, slower than I'd like, but I'm also not perfect on my carb levels, although I'm trying! I tried calorie restricting and lost NO weight, actually gained, until I started Metformin (for PCOS). On Metformin, I lost some, but metformin plus low carb has been better and left me feeling more satisfied.

I have SO MUCH ENERGY. The first week was awful, yes, but the thing to me that tells me I'm eating the correct way for me is how energized I feel after meals now. I would go out to eat a carb-rich meal, and feel bloated, lethargic and irritated afterwards. Now, when I eat my steak, grilled asparagus and salad, I come home and am ENERGIZED. One date night when we came home I asked my husband if I could take a quick run around the neighbourhood before we watched the movie, because that's how good I felt!

For me, it's a way of life, and I do believe it's sustainable, and probably one of the easiest lifestyles if you eat out a lot. The only time I can't eat if I'm out somewhere is if it's someone's house and they have lasagna or a pasta heavy dish, but usually there's salad and I have string cheese and almonds at all times if I'm still hungry.

Ive done low carb dieting and done really well on the weight loss end of it. Weight loss came fairly quickly for me on it. However, the minute you add carbs back, it seems like your body just wants to hold on to them and you can gain weight back pretty quick. If you choose low carb temporarily just to lose weight, you need to make sure you SLOWLY add carbs back into your diet.

Yes, you can see how much I've lost in my ticker below, that's since June 2011. The main benefit however has been emotional; I feel better in myself than I have in years and years. Can't say for certain what the cause of that is- low sugar, low processed foods, more fat, a combination of those things- I just don't know. All I know is that the weight fell off me and I feel great (I'm still obese, by the way, I certainly don't put my happiness down to being a "normal" "healthy" BMI, I'm nowhere near that yet). I'm not diagnosed diabetic, PCOS, hypothyroid or insulin resistant, by the way.

Of course you'll gain the weight back if you stop managing your food intake. It's the same for low calorie diets and I can point to plenty of low-cal dieters who've done just that. I realise I will have to moderate my carb intake for life, and I'm quite happy to do so as I feel so much better without them- for me that IS "eating sensibly". How is it any worse/different than people who continue to weigh food and measure calorie intake for every meal for the rest of their lives? Does anyone really think that after dieting you just go back to how you ate before and the fat will magically stay gone?

i certainly don't ascribe to lowcarb dieting, however i think many of us eat too many carbs and i try to reduce my carb intake but not avoid.So i try to have only one of my main meals per day with carbs in it. So if i know i'm having pasta for dinner, then lunch will be salad based (brekkie is normally a banana for me) and vice versa

I've had good success using a Low-Carb / Carb-Cycling method, lost about 27lbs all in. Overall I've had more success (body comp improvement and weight lifting progress) eating a more balanced diet with clean carbs.

Thanks! Do you mind giving me an idea of what clean carbs you eat? I definitely want to know what carbs would be smartest to integrate into my diet if I have a craving or need an energy boost.

Here's what my guy has me eating:
- Oats
- Brown rice
- Red potatoes
- Sweet potatoes
- Berries (prefer Straw and Blue)
- Broccoli
- "Big *kitten* Salads" - Lettuce, lots of veggies with a Balsamic Vinegar
- Ezekiel bread (not frequently though)

Hi. I love the low carb diet I am on. (Atkin's) I have been on it for a week, and after the first four days, I lost seven pounds. Then I started eating those atkins bars and snacks and although they are supposed to be ok on the atkin's diet, they have sugar alcohols in them which others have said will stall weight loss. Sugar alcohol is present in artificial sweeteners like Truvia, stevia etc. So I went to the atkins site and read an article called "How to do the atkin's diet the right way" and it told me that the carbs I need (20 g per day) should come mostly from vegetables. 12 to 15 carbs per day should come from veggies. So, I cut out anything with aritificial sweeteners in it and started to eat more veggies and I am starting to lose again, rapidly. You just have to study the foods you can eat on the atkin's site and really stick with it. It works. Good luck!

Hi. I love the low carb diet I am on. (Atkin's) I have been on it for a week, and after the first four days, I lost seven pounds. Then I started eating those atkins bars and snacks and although they are supposed to be ok on the atkin's diet, they have sugar alcohols in them which others have said will stall weight loss. Sugar alcohol is present in artificial sweeteners like Truvia, stevia etc. So I went to the atkins site and read an article called "How to do the atkin's diet the right way" and it told me that the carbs I need (20 g per day) should come mostly from vegetables. 12 to 15 carbs per day should come from veggies. So, I cut out anything with aritificial sweeteners in it and started to eat more veggies and I am starting to lose again, rapidly. You just have to study the foods you can eat on the atkin's site and really stick with it. It works. Good luck!

Yeah be careful with those low-carb bars. A carb is a carb and you should count it. My progress really seemed to stall when I tried those things.

yes, I am a pasta/bread lover and that was always my downfall. Once the cravings stopped, I no longer want it.

Please read the book "Wheat Belly" --- it's eye opening!!!

Depends on what you mean by "Low-Carb" diet. My spouse lost roughly 40 lbs on the Atkins diet, and promptly gained it all back when he went off the diet.

Another friend, a hero of mine, was always a large teddy bear and he lost a lot of weight on Atkins. So much so, that he was in an advertisement for the Atkins diet. He gained it all back when he gave up the low-carb lifestyle. He has lost it again, and KEPT IT OFF, by eating sensibly and hitting the gym regularly. He looks great!

I am not a fan of any kind of "diet" but I think eating wisely can make a huge difference. I had another friend who was very, very skinny and she said she avoided anything "white"--- white bread, white flour, white sugar. I've been avoiding the white stuff too, but I won't cut it out of my diet entirely. To everything there is a season...

see thats the problem with atkins people see it as an easy way to loose weight quickly when its really a whole life plan, what did they think would happen if they stopped following the final step ? well ive lost x pounds on atkins so i can go back to the diet that caused the problem in the first place. kinda crazy logic haha

Not everyone one the Atkin's diet thinks this way. Yes, there are those who want a quick fix and when they get it, they gain the weight back by going off the diet. But on the atkin's site, you can see a bunch of success stories from people who have made atkin's a lifestyle change and kept the weight off. You really can never go back to eating as many carbs as before. You can slowly have a few here and there once you reach your goal, but you can't go back to eating everything in site, whether it's the Atkin's diet or any diet for that matter.