too few carbs?

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solodancer
solodancer Posts: 56 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi all I know I will get a range of responses to this but just wondering if from a weight loss perspective is there such a thing as too few carbs or too little sugar? I try to keep my carbs below 100g and my sugar below 45g, is this good for weight loss as it should use my fat stores for the extra energy needed.
Thanks

Replies

  • kerilong
    kerilong Posts: 9
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    If you are following a low carb diet, I think 100g is right on. Just make sure that you watch your net carbs. Make sure you are getting carbs high in fiber.
  • solodancer
    solodancer Posts: 56 Member
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    thanks, iv done so well to get it down that much!!!. I no nothing about net carbs but most of my carbs come from foods that arent massively high in carbs and if they r iv cut the portion down i.e. i only have half a portion of spaghetti now. For now i dont need to worry about bread and stuff because iv given up all bread products for lent. I just need to get my calories back up to 1200, theyve dropped because they all used to come from carbs.....massive learning curve for me
  • SergeantSunshine_reused
    SergeantSunshine_reused Posts: 5,382 Member
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    Personal preference. If you feel great doing that then don't stop
    But when it comes down to it, it will not have any advantage

    Try calorie dense foods like whole milk, cheese, avocado, nuts, nut butters, and such :]
  • PepeGreggerton
    PepeGreggerton Posts: 986 Member
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    Personal preference. If you feel great doing that then don't stop
    But when it comes down to it, it will not have any advantage

    Try calorie dense foods like whole milk, cheese, avocado, nuts, nut butters, and such :]

    mmmm calorie dense food
  • PepeGreggerton
    PepeGreggerton Posts: 986 Member
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    Carbs are not evil.

    I think the majority of people could focus less on macros and more on just developing well balanced eating habits.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    It's hard to say given so little context.

    If you keep your carbs low, are you increasing fat/protein in order to keep your total cals the same? Or by reducing carbs are you also reducing cals?
  • mrh1227
    mrh1227 Posts: 37
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    Carbs are probably one of the most debated things in health history. My personal experience is this: If you are weight challenged (overweight, obese) than low carbs is the way to go. If you are a healthy weight and are just wondering about them, then it becomes personal preference. If you are athletic and require lots of energy during the day, than intake a good portion of complex carbs each day.

    As for sugars, natural sugars are fine, though you benefit more from them early in the day. Additive sugars will depend more on your metabolism, but a "healthy" number varies depending on who you ask. AHA says 5 tsp for women, but if you're younger and fresher, these numbers aren't as important to those who aren't overweight or are diabetics.
  • Crimson_
    Crimson_ Posts: 60
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    the quality of carbs is the most important, stay away from white and processed carbs....imo
  • solodancer
    solodancer Posts: 56 Member
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    It's hard to say given so little context.

    If you keep your carbs low, are you increasing fat/protein in order to keep your total cals the same? Or by reducing carbs are you also reducing cals?

    Im also trying to increase my protein. At the moment my calories have dropped too low but I am workin on getting them back up with protein, my fat intake is quite low too, I will get my calories back up to 1200 as a minimum because i absolutely hate being lower than this
  • solodancer
    solodancer Posts: 56 Member
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    Carbs are probably one of the most debated things in health history. My personal experience is this: If you are weight challenged (overweight, obese) than low carbs is the way to go. If you are a healthy weight and are just wondering about them, then it becomes personal preference. If you are athletic and require lots of energy during the day, than intake a good portion of complex carbs each day.

    As for sugars, natural sugars are fine, though you benefit more from them early in the day. Additive sugars will depend more on your metabolism, but a "healthy" number varies depending on who you ask. AHA says 5 tsp for women, but if you're younger and fresher, these numbers aren't as important to those who aren't overweight or are diabetics.

    Im overweight and was slowly creepin to obese, got 60lb to lose in total. I don't mind having the sugars that are in fruit, not sure how people sit with the sugars in yogurts tho, im unsure about that myself. Iv replaced sugar with sweetener for most things, my general intake of sugar is about 30g then add on my dinner which always varies.

    I know people say its better to lose weight slowly but I want to lose my weight more quickly, and want to make sure im doin the right thing and im not just settin myself up for a fall later on i.e. lower metabolism or being more sensitive to carbs later on, i would never be able to cut carbs out of my life and i will bring them back in when iv lost my weight and maintain my weight with a balanced diet
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    All things considered, I think I'd worry a little less about the individual numbers and just worry about a good balance overall while hitting your daily calorie goal.

    I know you said you want to lose quickly, but it doesn't work that way (at least not in a natural, healthy way). Don't lose sight of the importance of establishing healthy habits that you can sustain long term. Most people can't do super low cals with super low carbs and super low fats long term - it's just too restrictive.
  • solodancer
    solodancer Posts: 56 Member
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    i think in general i do try and get a good balance and im not fussed if my calories go over my limit, im just not that hungry at the minute.
    i was just curious about whether having too few carbs can be damaging or counter productive, i wana make sure im being at least a little healthy lol. thanks for ur help
  • Sharonks
    Sharonks Posts: 884 Member
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    It sounds like you are consuming less than 1200 cals a day. That's not good. Compensate for the carbs with protein so you obtain the correct cals. Fat also will keep you full. About 100 carbs a day should be fine, due to my diabetes I do about 60 a day and still feel all right. When I'm down at 20 I feel like c**p.

    You probably didn't gain that 60 lbs in a month and you won't lose it in a month. You want to change your relationship with food for the rest of your life, not crash diet. When you crash diet you tend to gain weight back. I altered the way I ate about 15 years ago and was able to maintain that weight loss until I became bedridden from some other health issues, I'm now a lb away from being where I was 15 years ago.

    Probably the biggest changes I made were to eat more non starchy veggies, less junk food, drink more water and less juice and calorie laden drinks, and only eat until satisfied, not stuffed. I was very active back then which is one thing I'm working on now since health problems have slowed down my ability to exercise.

    Good luck and don't rush it too much.
  • solodancer
    solodancer Posts: 56 Member
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    thanks sharon.
    at the moment yes I am below 1200 but i dont like being under 1200, im not doing it to lose it quicker it just whats happened as a result of lowering carbs and finding it difficult to increase protein, iv ordered protein shakes which should be here pretty soon so my calories will be back up to over 1200 this week which i will feel more comfortable with.
    no ur right i didnt put the weight on in 1 month, but im not trying to lose in it one month either, i do have realistic expectations and dont expect to lose 60lb in an eye blink but i want to maximise my weight loss, i could never crash diet, this weekend almost everything iv eaten has been junk but iv still been under, (dont do it every weekend but was at the familys for a kids party).
    Thank you all for your support, and more than anything thank you for your answers, i often dont get replies to my posts and i appreciate you all taking the time to respond to my question :-D
  • 30yearssincebikini
    30yearssincebikini Posts: 261
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    If going low carb, watch all sugars, not just added sugars. A big misconception is that it's ok to consume natural sugars as in fruit. But sugar is sugar, and it's the same amount of carbs no matter whether it's natural or not. So if you are watching carbs, don't eat too many fruits, or anything with sugar, natural or not.
  • solodancer
    solodancer Posts: 56 Member
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    thanks hun, i do keep my sugars down as much as poss, 90% of the time i keep it below 50g but the majority of the time its even lower than that, around 35-40g, i used to eat a lot of natural low fat or fat free yogurt but it added too much to my sugar intake and i was never sure just how bad it was to have natural sugars so i just stopped eating it

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