Low Carb Diets

Question: When will people realize that low carb diets are not the answer to peoples weight problems? Low carb diets are intended for the athlete who has to lose significant amounts of weight in short periods of time: wrestlers, MMA fighters, boxers, body builders, etc. They are not meant to be a lifestyle choice. Suggesting these diets to the average person looking to lose a couple of pounds makes no sense as nearly all the weight lost in such a diet will be gained back ( I just fought saturday, weighed in at 185, and weigh close to 200 today). These are dead end diets. Look to balance your intake with strenuous exercise. Exercise and balanced nutrition is the key, not fad dieting.

Answer: You hit the nail on the head. Fat loss is more about calories than about what exactly one eats. For health reasons, a person should eat a balanced diet that is low in calories and lower in fats than carbs and proteins.

Question: Can low carb diets make you feel nauseated? Been on low carb for quite some time about a month. My appetite has slowly gone away to the point where I am not really hungry, except now the past few days I feel terribly nauseated. Stomach growling, but nothing sounds good. I had to make myself throw up just to feel better. I think I'll go eat a bowl of spaghetti despite the carbs since that sounds comforting. Would a low carb diet have this effect?

Answer: Low carb eating is actually the diet the human body prefers. Our ancestors millions of years ago did not eat grains, sugars, or bowls of spaghetti and they were lean and healthy. You may find that you are eating the same things over and over which gets really old. Get some new recipes and try eating a wider variety of healthy, low carb foods.

Question: How come people lose so much weight from low carb diets when calories make us fat? I don't understand, I always thought it was calories that make us fat. And my friend went on a low carb diet, I haven't seen him till yesterday and he lost like 50 freaking pounds. wtf? I thought it was calories that made us fat? now im starting not to believe everything people tell me about food.

Answer: Carbs are the bodies main source of energy, take away them and your body has to turn to stored energy. However, low carb diets such as atkins are really unhealthy . Carbs aren't the enemy and lots more people lose weight while still eating them.

Question: are high protein low carb diets good for competitive cyclists trying to lose weight? Ive been reading this book on how high protein and moderate fat diets are alot better than low fat high complex carb ones. It says it controls your insulin levels much better and thus not store fat. On the other hand if I limit carbs with the amount of training I do daily Im afraid I will bonk out. Im 6'1 and weight about 171 lbs, and I can lose body fat and get leaner

Answer: You reading the Abs Diet by David Zinczenko? That one seems to have some good scientific backing, and while I'm no nutrition expert, it seems to be an effective, healthy way to lose fat (not just weight, which could include muscle). I say this is a good way for everyone to go. I think you could modify the diet for your purposes though, and add in more carbs, but complex carbs. Good luck with your training!

Question: Do people really still think low carb diets are good for you? Its nothing but fat and protein with almost 0 fiber to push it through your liver. Not to mention what its doing to your heart and veins. I would rather smoke a pack of smokes a day than follow a low carb diet. JUST STOP EATING SO MANY CALORIES!!! Good day to you

Answer: yes they do! i totally agree w/ u

Question: How do Low-Carb diets cause weight-loss? From my understanding, the only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you consume - a.k.a. caloric deficit. And if you don't use that extra food energy, it is stored as fat. Seems simple enough. How, then, is it that low-carb diets can cause weight loss without a caloric deficit? What secret metabolic process do low-carb diets access that enable people to burn fat while consuming far more calories than they actually use? Where does all that extra food energy go then?

Answer: there are only a small number of people who actually can do a low carb diet without reducing their calorie intake and still lose weight like you stated. and it's only a temporary thing too,usually associated with water loss from the body. people can't overeat for long on a low carb diet and still lose weight. it's more important to know how carbs cause fat storage. about 25% of people won't have much problems with excess carbs. the other 75% will have differing degrees of carb sensitivity and have difficultly losing stored fat without eating low carb. below is a 3min. animated video about how too many carbs screw people up. and so if people change to low carbs then it stops or at least slows down the problem

Question: Do low carb diets really work, what foods should i eat? Im going to eat 30 grams of carbs a day for 2 weeks, Will i go into ketosis? And will i lose weight slower because i am not as big, im 5'3 and 131 pounds. What foods are carb free or very low? Any experiences with low carb diets?!?

Answer: You possibly will go into ketosis at 30grams to guarantee it, I'd suggest no carb for 3 days, then add 5grams a day of carbs every 2 days til you are up to 30grams per day, then add 5grams every week til you gain weight (then subtract 10 grams) Keep your carbs at less than 9grams per hour to control insulin from being released. You will lose weight slower because you are near goal, but twice as fast as any other way. I thought I had a healthy diet, low fat, high carb, adequate protein & kept getting sicker and fatter. I started Atkins over 5 years ago just to get my appetite under control. I am disabled and can't exercise & I didn't think it was possible to LOSE weight without exercise (which was how I always controlled my weight before I was disabled, I never believed in low calorie diets) I started Atkins (didn't weigh first) & I shrunk fast. I have never tried to lose weight and I still lost weight without trying, just making different choices. I can't worry about my weight until my health is better, but with low carb balancing my hormones, I am starting to heal. My cholesterol & triglycerides are now perfect. The core of the Atkins program is converting your body from glycolysis (burning glucose as fuel) to ketosis (burning fat as fuel). You need to keep your fat levels at >65% of your calories, if you don't your body will still remain in glycolysis by converting 58% of excess protein into glucose (via gluconeogenesis). You can have several cups a day of (mostly) lettuce and celery, cucumbers, radishes, mushrooms, peppers the first 2 weeks and more variety of vegetables thereafter add 5 grams per day additional (20 grams day first 2 weeks, 25grams 3rd week, 30grams 4th week etc) Keep your carbs at less than 9grams per hour to control insulin. It takes minimum of 3 days to convert your body to ketosis, (but only one bite to convert back to glycosis) you will probably feel sluggish the first week but most people feel better than ever thereafter. Ground flax seed (2-3 Tbsp) 1/4 cup of water, cinnamon, artificial sweetener, mix in a raw egg - let sit 10 min to absorb liquid, put some cream cheese in the middle and nuke for 1.5 min. for hot cereal or 2 min. for more of a muffin type thing. Great low carb, high fiber treat. Faux tapioca - 2 cups of water, 5 scoops of low carb whey protein powder, stir together & add cup of chia seeds, after they have started to absorb the water, add in 2 cans of coconut milk (substitute a cup of cream and another cup or 2 of water for induction) & artificial sweetener if you like and mix it all in. Can be eaten after an hour but will be better tomorrow. --------------------------------------… I recommend the new plan but you have to follow it specifically read the book or the website. This is closer to the original (1972) plan, but its very simplistic: You will lose more body fat eating protein and fat (don't eat protein alone) than not eating AT ALL. To lose weight fast eat all you want but nothing but meat, eggs, healthy oils, mayo, butter and half an avocado a day (you'll need added potassium). Keep the calories high and the fat percentage high, at least 65% of calories. Adding in green vegetables & some cheese will continue weight loss but at a slower pace. Your body won't release fat stores if you lower calories below what it needs. It will slow your metabolism to compensate and store every spare ounce as fat. If you continue lowering your calories, it will continue lowering that set point, til you can survive off nothing and store fat on anything. The body will only release it's fat stores if it knows there is plenty of food. Simple carbohydrates (sugar, flour, bread, cereal, pasta, potatoes, rice) triggers insulin which can store the calories you eat into fat. The more protein you eat the more the fat burning hormone glucagon is released. The more carbohydrate you eat the more the fat storage hormone insulin is released. Simple carbs are addictive and can be disastrous to our health. The best way to break the addiction is NO carbs for 3 days. Make a huge batch of deviled eggs and eat one every time you want "something" have huge omelets for breakfast, with bacon, a lil onion, peppers, mushrooms & cheese. Pork chops for lunch. Get pork rinds and eat them with tuna salad. Steak for dinner. Make a huge sugar free cheese cake for dessert. Eat so much you won't feel deprived of anything. By the fourth day, your addiction will be gone and you can start making healthy choices. High insulin levels promote inflammation, weight gain, hunger and unbalance other hormones. Controlling your insulin level will balance out other hormones & allow human growth hormone (HGH) to be produced naturally so you will gain lean muscle even without exercise. Any exercise will greatly increase your muscle mass with high HGH levels. Once you get near your goal, you start adding 5 carbs every week til you gain weight, then you subtract 10 carbs. That would give you your personal carb level (everyone is different and it depends on how active you are.) As long as you remain <9 carbs per hour, you will maintain insulin control, and shouldn't gain weight. Many people gain weight on high carb, then switch to low carb to lose weight & then are shocked when they return to high carb that they gain weight. Many people can return to moderate carb levels but very few can really eat all they want of sugar and maintain weight or health. Dr.Atkins was a cardiologist, low carb was a health plan easier sold as a "diet" Read any of his books for easily understandable science. Lutz "Life without Bread" & Taubes "Good calorie, bad calorie" are excellent books that dispel all the nutrition myths. Reducing body fat and increasing muscle mass will have you in awesome shape in no time. Good luck!

Question: Do low carb diets decrease need for sleep? I've been following a low carb diet for a few weeks. I have definitely lost weight; but I notice that i'm sleeping less. After 5 hours I wake up fully refreshed. Is this a normal rxn to low carb eating?

Answer: most definetly. carbs are tranquilizers. that is why depressed people eat more.

Question: Who thinks low carb and low carb diets is cool or a good idea? Low carb diets are so unhealthy! Does anyone actually still think they are cool or a good diet to go on?

Answer: Atkins is dead for a reason!

Question: Anybody experience Blood sugar drops on low carb diets? especially in the morning after breakfast, my blood sugar drops so much i start dozing asleep. this continues until 3 pm. whats wrong? plus i feel more hungry on low carb. is something wrong? what kind of fats r to b used in low carb diets? Thanks a lot.

Answer: Yesssssss... I experienced it. Because I would eat heavy carbs in the morning everyday. Pancakes, waffles, grits, toast you name it. But when i tried to adopt a low carb diet, I would try to exercise in the morning as I always do, and would experience a horrible blackout episode. I would begin to feel faint, clammy, which would make me panic, which made the symptoms worse. I was told later that my body was use to pumping out insulin in the morning because of my high carb breakfast every morning. So now the sudden change of low carbs for breakfast combined with exercising did not stop my body of doing its morning ritual of shooting out extra insulin, causing my blood sugar to drop to 40 or even 30. I would still recommend seeing a doctor to see if you are borderline diabetic.

Question: Are no carb diets better than low carb diets? I want to start an Atkins like diet but it is so hard finding fruits and vegetables with no carbs. On the other hand low carb diets offer fruit and veggies.

Answer: Atkins is a low carb plan and even in induction, you are allowed several cups a day of vegetables. After 2 weeks the vegetable allowance and list starts to expand. The core of the Atkins program is converting your body from glycolysis (burning glucose as fuel) to ketosis (burning fat as fuel). You need to keep your fat levels at >65% of your calories if you don't your body will still remain in glycolysis by converting 58% of excess protein into glucose (via gluconeogenesis). You can also have large omelets cooked in butter or oil with bacon, sausage, mushrooms, peppers & cheese or smother meats with mushrooms, peppers & cheese. You can have several cups a day of (mostly) lettuce and celery, cucumbers, radishes, mushrooms, peppers the first 2 weeks and more variety of vegetables thereafter add 5 grams per day additional (20 grams day first 2 weeks, 25grams 3rd week, 30grams 4th week etc) Keep your carbs at less than 9grams per hour to control insulin. It takes minimum of 3 days to convert your body to ketosis, (but only one bite to convert back to glycosis) you will probably feel sluggish the first week but most people feel better than ever thereafter. Ground flax seed (2-3 Tbsp) 1/4 cup of water, cinnamon, artificial sweetener, mix in a raw egg - let sit 10 min to absorb liquid, put some cream cheese in the middle and nuke for 1.5 min. for hot cereal or 2 min. for more of a muffin type thing. Great low carb, high fiber treat. Faux tapioca - 2 cups of water, 5 scoops of low carb whey protein powder, stir together & add cup of chia seeds, after they have started to absorb the water, add in 2 cans of coconut milk (substitute a cup of cream and another cup or 2 of water for induction) & artificial sweetener if you like and mix it all in. Can be eaten after an hour but will be better tomorrow. --------------------------------------… I recommend the new plan but you have to follow it specifically. This is closer to the original (1972) plan, but its very simplistic: You will lose more body fat eating protein and fat (don't eat protein alone) than not eating AT ALL. To lose weight fast eat all you want but nothing but meat, eggs, healthy oils, mayo, butter and half an avocado a day (you'll need added potassium). Keep the calories high and the fat percentage high, at least 65% of calories. Adding in green vegetables & some cheese will continue weight loss but at a slower pace. Your body won't release fat stores if you lower calories below what it needs. It will slow your metabolism to compensate and store every spare ounce as fat. If you continue lowering your calories, it will continue lowering that set point, til you can survive off nothing and store fat on anything. The body will only release it's fat stores if it knows there is plenty of food. Simple carbohydrates (sugar, flour, bread, cereal, pasta, potatoes, rice) triggers insulin which can store the calories you eat into fat. The more protein you eat the more the fat burning hormone glucagon is released. The more carbohydrate you eat the more the fat storage hormone insulin is released. Simple carbs are addictive and can be disastrous to our health. The best way to break the addiction is NO carbs for 3 days. Make a huge batch of deviled eggs and eat one every time you want "something" have huge omelets for breakfast, with bacon, a lil onion, peppers, mushrooms & cheese. Pork chops for lunch. Get pork rinds and eat them with tuna salad. Steak for dinner. Make a huge sugar free cheese cake for dessert. Eat so much you won't feel deprived of anything. By the fourth day, your addiction will be gone and you can start making healthy choices. High insulin levels promote inflammation, weight gain, hunger and unbalance other hormones. Controlling your insulin level will balance out other hormones & allow human growth hormone (HGH) to be produced naturally so you will gain lean muscle even without exercise. Any exercise will greatly increase your muscle mass with high HGH levels. Once you get near your goal, you start adding 5 carbs every week til you gain weight, then you subtract 10 carbs. That would give you your personal carb level (everyone is different and it depends on how active you are.) As long as you remain <9 carbs per hour, you will maintain insulin control, and shouldn't gain weight. Many people gain weight on high carb, then switch to low carb to lose weight & then are shocked when they return to high carb that they gain weight. Many people can return to moderate carb levels but very few can really eat all they want of sugar and maintain weight or health. Dr.Atkins was a cardiologist, low carb was a health plan easier sold as a "diet" Read any of his books for easily understandable science. Lutz "Life without Bread" & Taubes "Good calorie, bad calorie" are excellent books that dispel all the nutrition myths. Reducing body fat and increasing muscle mass will have you in awesome shape in no time. Good luck!

Question: Low carb diets (or foods) that are easy to do "on the go"? I did Atkins all summer, loved it, but stopped when school started because it was so hard to bring snacks and a lunch. I wanted to start again but don't know what to bring. I've been eating healthy and usually bring fruits, yogurt, nuts or like a fiber one or fruit bar to snack on, but don't really know what i could on Atkins. Are there any other low carb diets that allow for small, easier packaged foods?

Answer: Nuts and seeds are a great thing to bring as a snack. Combine them with a whole grain, high fiber cracker or super high fiber bread for a complete protein with low net carbs. Or bring a container of hummus with whole grain crackers for the same complete protein, and some carrots, peppers, or celery to dip too! Having succeeded on a low-carb diet, you may be ready to graduate to something more like South Beach, where you can have a controlled amount of carbs but you don't have to keep them nearly as low as Atkins. It is easier to keep the weight off if you learn sustainable relatively-low-carb eating patterns, and don't restrict yourself excessively. I don't eat a lot of refined sugar, but I do allow for natural sugars from fruits, veggies, and also agave nectar in my baking. I've seen and tried a few great raw food bars made from seeds, spirulina, and fruits. Check your local natural foods store to find them. Yogurt is great too - I have been making my own and bringing it with me to work. So yummy! Plain yogurt is extremely low in carbs, and a little fresh fruit makes it super yummy, and increases fiber without increasing net carbs too much. Hard boiled eggs travel really well too. It's easiest if you peel them at home then bring a few peeled eggs with you in a container. Great high protein snack! My sweetie is gluten intolerant, and recently we have been doing a lot of baking with coconut flour and with almond flour. Super low carb, high in fiber, easy to digest, and high in protein. You can make muffins or bars with very few net carbs and bring them with you to work and/or school. I carry an insulated lunch box with an ice pack in it, and bring all my foods. A salad made from brown rice, herbs, veggies, eggs or meat or seeds for protein, and a homemade vinaigrette will travel well and keep you full all day. Make sure you bring plenty of fresh fruits and veggies

Question: On low carb diets have you ever experience moodiness or depression? I have been horribly moody for days and snapping at everyone (it is not PMS)...Has anyone ever experienced this while doing a low carb diet? I am on Week 4 on the diet. Thanks so much for your input.

Answer: Yes. I am restrictive with carbs because I have diabetes and there are times when I get really testy. I think sometimes I feel like I am being deprived and I want to eat whatever I want. But I also think it is much more than that. Carbs provide the body with energy and the blah feeling may be from needing more of that necessary energy. I agree that most people need to decrease their sugar and carb intake, but don't over do it. You really need to make sure that you are eating a balanced diet and getting all the nutrients your body requires.

Question: How much weight have you lost on low-carb diets? I want to know peoples personal experience, and The weight the lost and how long it took them. I don't need to know that low carb is bad for you.

Answer: I lost about 25 pounds in 7 weeks but I didn't go "low carb" I went SLOW carb- that is, replacing white flour with whole wheat, eating low-sugar fruits, etc. Initially, I cut all carbs but I felt really rotten and couldn't sleep, so I added some brown rice, whole grain bread, citrus, etc.

Question: Do low carb diets work and what's a good one? I'm interested in learning about low carb diets and if they're safe and successful.

Answer: you can lose weight quickly with a low carb diet. But they make you very moody. And when you go off the diet (you will HAVE to eventually) you will gain weight much easier than before you ever starved yourself of carbs. Any carbs you consume will be stored directly as fat. Not a very good idea if you are just trying to lose weight. Try exercising- best thing to do. However, it's alright to LIMIT your carbs.

Question: Are low carb diets healthy for teenagers? What age should a person start a low carb diet? 16? 18? 21? Thanks! I am trying to lose weight.

Answer: well you need carbs to function, so i wouldn't recommend going on one at all. if you're trying to lose weight, just have smaller portions, eat healthier foods, and exercise.