increasing protein/ reducing carbs on a low carb diet

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sparkleywoo
sparkleywoo Posts: 9
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all,

I need some advice.

I have read several places that when trying to loose fat its best to increase your Protein intake and reduce your carbs so that the body gets used to using protein - fat - as your source of energy.

Does any one know if its same to do this within a calorie reduced diet? I was wondering if I could just substitue some of the carbs I have in my nutritional allowance for protein instead?

Thanks
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Replies

  • pascale485
    pascale485 Posts: 173 Member
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    bump!
  • TranceGirl
    TranceGirl Posts: 121 Member
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    Good morning!

    I know everyone's body is different but I have absolutely found that when I reduce processed carbs and up my lean protein and natural carbs, I lose weight. I am an avid calorie tracker and I have realized that on my "lower carb" days (~100grams), I am lower on my calories as well. I think processed carbs just get digested so quickly in my body and I get hungry sooner after eating a high processed carb meal as opposed to a lean protein meal mixed with natural carbs.

    Also, I have a HUGE sweet tooth and I have found that I crave sweets less when I cut out processed carbs. Although, I cannot cut them out completely. Today I had a spinach, feta, egg white wrap from Starbucks and that has processed carbs.. but what can you do? I try my best to stick with the natural carbs as much as possible.

    Good luck!
  • waldenfam2
    waldenfam2 Posts: 203 Member
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    Good morning!

    I know everyone's body is different but I have absolutely found that when I reduce processed carbs and up my lean protein and natural carbs, I lose weight. I am an avid calorie tracker and I have realized that on my "lower carb" days (~100grams), I am lower on my calories as well. I think processed carbs just get digested so quickly in my body and I get hungry sooner after eating a high processed carb meal as opposed to a lean protein meal mixed with natural carbs.

    Also, I have a HUGE sweet tooth and I have found that I crave sweets less when I cut out processed carbs. Although, I cannot cut them out completely. Today I had a spinach, feta, egg white wrap from Starbucks and that has processed carbs.. but what can you do? I try my best to stick with the natural carbs as much as possible.

    Good luck!

    I'm the exact same way. The less carbs I have the less I crave them, and boy to they have a lot of calories! I used to never be able to resist a nutty butty bar or something like that in the middle of the day. It was a really weird and awful compulsion. Now, I don't even bat an eye at them (we have them in the house for my husband's lunches, the guy needs the calories).

    I don't know about it helping with weight loss, but from my own experience, the more carbs I eat, the slower I lose weight. But I'm not talking about fruit and high fiber carbs, more the noodle and Stromboli carbs :)
  • stephaniekneld
    stephaniekneld Posts: 43
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    Increasing protein will require much more water intake to assist with the kidneys. I know this sounds crazy, but when I did the Atkins plan as it was supposed to be done, I lost 50 pounds in 8 weeks. I ate meat, fats, and NO carbs. I should not say NO carbs, but the carbs I DID eat were from tomatoes, green beans, asparagus, lettuce, peppers.... that type of thing. Folks tell you that you cannot be healthy if you eat that way, but when I went in for my yearly physical, my doctor was nothing short of amazed. All my levels and readings were much better than they were 3 months earlier. And, yes, that did include my cholesterol levels as well. Using a caloric plan and eating less carbs is a great way to lose weight. However, you may get real hungry. Fat is the thing that keeps you satiated for the longest time. I wish you all the best in your journey towards a healthier you!!!
  • MonicaT1972
    MonicaT1972 Posts: 512
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    I have lost 50lbs in 4 months by removing all refined carbs from my diet and upping my protein huge.

    It's simple for me, in the places I'd normally have had refined carbs (bread, pasta etc) I just have more protein. I use proteing shakes and bars as well as good old fashioned meat, eggs, and dairy.
  • grinch031
    grinch031 Posts: 1,679
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    Most people with weight problems will inadvertently lower carb intake on a calorie reduced diet because most of the junk they are overeating has carbs in it. Now usually when someone starts thinking about the quality of their diet, they will end up inadvertently eating more protein because they recognize protein foods like fish, eggs, and chicken as healthy. But yeah, a good diet is one with adequate protein, keep the refined carbs low, and also the omega-6 fats (processed vegetable oils) low and you should do well.
  • ms_sparky
    ms_sparky Posts: 17 Member
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    I'm on a low carb lifestyle change as of this week. I'm not calling it a diet because for me, this has to be permanent. I already feel better, and my craving for carbs is not nearly as bad as it used to be when I ate them. I'm telling you this, because I was a carb freak! I am also a serious chocoholic, so for me to feel okay about not eating them, feels pretty incredible.

    Monica - what kind of protein shakes do you drink? I'm looking for options.
  • acman145acp
    acman145acp Posts: 76 Member
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    Im curious for those of u who have had succes with low carb.

    What do you keep your carbs limited to how many grams?

    Once you reach your goal weight do you still track calories or just carbs.

    Very interested as im near my goal weight and concentrating on lifting weights.
  • MjDavis1981
    MjDavis1981 Posts: 63 Member
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    Monica, I would love to see your diary to see your daily food. I was placed on a restricted carb plan because I am Insulin Resistant. I have been on this almost a year. I was down 28 lbs from June to October, then the holidays came around and the carbs came in and the weight came on. I am back on track, finally. And I have seen a drastic change in my weight. However, I have absolutely NO ENERGY. Is this something that will pass?
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    Im curious for those of u who have had succes with low carb.
    What do you keep your carbs limited to how many grams?

    I'm below 30g of carbohydrates (excluding fiber - that's "net carbs" if you're in the US) pretty well always, and frequently under 25 or 20.

    I'm not at maintenance, but expect to eat more fat when I get there to stabilise weight.
  • martinah4
    martinah4 Posts: 583 Member
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    I'm also still in Atkins Induction phase (20g net carbs a day), for almost a year. I'm down 67 pounds. My energy levels are through the roof (except this week because I've gone to bed late and am working on about 6 hours of sleep a night)!
  • sheri02r
    sheri02r Posts: 486 Member
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    I have a question about "net carb's" vs. carbs. What's the difference? I picked up an atkins protein bar yesterday and on the front package it said net carbs xx amount but on the nutrition list the carb count was way higher. Can someone explain that to me please? :)
  • allybeee
    allybeee Posts: 51 Member
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    Hi,

    i want to increase my protein and lower my carbs. i have my diary set at 40/30/30 currently but i overheard someone talking about a 3-2-1 ratio per meal, as in 30g of protein 20g of carbs 10g of fat. has anyone done this? do they known what is involved, i assume its per meal, i would have asked more but i was in a rush to leave, have to see if i see the same people again

    I am a veggie who has even started eating fish (which i hate the taste of) to try up the protein, find it impossible to keep my carbs low if i rely on beans and meat free subs, as these include carbs too. I don't want to rely too much on protein drinks etc.

    please help how do i get the carbs down?

    When i am busy at work carbs are the easiest thing to eat usually.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    I have a question about "net carb's" vs. carbs. What's the difference? I picked up an atkins protein bar yesterday and on the front package it said net carbs xx amount but on the nutrition list the carb count was way higher. Can someone explain that to me please? :)

    I'll try......

    In the USA your labels state Carbohydrates and of that a certain amount is Fiber. You can see that from the layout where the Fiber is indented. To take an extreme example Linseed / Flax meal might be 33g of carbohydrate per 100g of which 29g is fiber, so the net carbs are 33 - 29 = 4. The logic is that fiber isn't absorbed so doesn't affect your blood sugar. Of the net carbs (4g) some might be declared as Sugars, the rest will be starches etc.

    So net carbs are carbs excluding fiber, in general.

    The Atkins bar, and "Low Carb" products in general, use various substances to displace carbs - sugar alcohols for one - which are like fibre less absorbed or not absorbed at all. So some labels might subtract those substances, although this is controversial as maltitol for example is perhaps 50% absorbed while some other sugar alcohols are not.

    So the "impact carbs" claim on an Atkins product is their calculation / estimate of the blood sugar impact or glycemic load of the product. It might be Carbohydrates minus fiber minus sugar alcohols / polyols or it might be slightly different.

    Personally when I tested an Atkins product containing 19g of carbohydrate with a 3g claim on the front of the pack I measured the blood sugar impact at the equivalent of 9g. YMMV !
  • debzeeU2
    debzeeU2 Posts: 99 Member
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    *read later*
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    please help how do i get the carbs down?

    by getting the fats and oils up, maintaining protein and eating less carbs.

    30p/20c/10f is 120 / 80 / 90 in calories whereas a low carb diet would be more like 30p/20f/10c which is 120 / 180 / 40

    Almonds, hummus, avocado are three high fat/oil vegetarian things.
  • laddyboy
    laddyboy Posts: 1,565 Member
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    bump to read later.
  • losermomof3
    losermomof3 Posts: 386 Member
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    In my opinion....I think that you need certain carbs. These are carbs that I eat, and try really hard not to eat any other carbs...

    potato, oatmeal, banana, apples, and rice. I always eat them with a protein also. Thats just me though. That way I dont get tired. I might eat them every other day too.

    Just my two cents.
  • ayj72
    ayj72 Posts: 13 Member
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    I did the Atkins diet for almost a year. Initially I lost lots of weight and got down to goal but in the long term I found it was so restrictive that I felt deprived for much of the time, which meant that when I did decide to have a blow out I really went for it. Gradually my weight crept back up and I became stuck in a yo yo cycle of having a blow out then returning to induction to lose the weight I'd put on over the weekend. I also suffered from a drop in energy which for somebody who is used to doing a lot of exercise was hard.

    I've now swapped to a Mediterranean type eating plan, which I did 3 weeks ago and have lost 5 lbs. I am however limiting my starchy carbohydrates to just one portion a day (instead of every meal) and not using as much olive oil as advocated. I am replacing starchy carbohydrates with fruit, salad and vegatables instead. I'm eating mostly fish in terms of protein, chicken or red meat occasionally. I have lots of dairy in the form of yogurt but try to keep hard cheeses to a minimum.

    My husband is delighted I've made the swap, he had always expressed concern at the possible negative consequences of the Atkins diet in terms of cholesterol and the links with cancer that processed meats have.

    If you do choose to replace carboydrates with protein you may find that you do not in fact lose weight, the Atkins diet does warn against excessive consumption of protein. The other aspect to all this is that protein does not contain fibre and therefore the side effect of a high protein diet is difficulty with bowel movements. Do not under estimate how unpleasant this difficulty can be. :embarassed:
  • gomisskellygo
    gomisskellygo Posts: 635 Member
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    bump

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