Low Carb Diet

[Dave2512]

Carbs get a bad rap for the wrong reason. Typically when you see a diet promoting low carbs they're steering you away from processed carbs, which are also high in calories in very small doses, usually due to the fat content. It's not carb magic when you lose weight because you cut the calorie condensed Ritz Crackers and snack size tortillas out of your diet. I've never seen or heard of a low carb diet that promotes not eating veggies, which are carbs. The reason is two-fold in that veggies are obviously good for you but it's also tough to consume too many calories eating something like broccoli. Two cups of it amounts to the roughly the same calorie content as 20 M&M;'s. In modern times "diets" are as much about marketing than science. You can wrap it up anyway you want but if you look close you'll see that it comes down to calories. Even the high protein diets are tricking you into eating less calories. Few tell you the lean 10 oz of top sirloin they want you to eat is just 500 cal. Toss in a few cups of veggies and you've eaten a massive plate of food and that's about the same calories as just the fries in a fast food combo meal. It just seems like we eat less on low cal diets because when you do eat the meal is substantial enough to satisfy.

[saevel25]

Umm.. Processed carbs have the same amount of calorie per carb.

Well one big problem is labels like, "LOW-FAT", to me this automatically means "HIGH-SUGAR"

Carb's arn't the problem, its the presentation and how they are packaged to us that's the problem. Especially when your able to just keep sticking your hand in a bag of chips over and over again, its tough to stop eating them. That, they are not very filling at all. I could down a half a bag of tortitos and not be full. But you get me some healthy food options, some with a bit more fat in it, i wont eat nearly as much.

Really a lot of its psychological, and the companies know this. Dorito's put MSG in there chips because it makes you want to keep eating.

But, if you compare eating a breakfast that consists of eggs, potato (hash or baked), fruit with that of a bowl of cereal and milk, you might get the same calories, but the first will keep you more full for longer and is more nutrient dense.

Quote:

he reason is two-fold in that veggies are obviously good for you but it's also tough to consume too many calories eating something like broccoli.

I don't know about that, properly cooked Broccoli is just awesome, give me a good cheese sauce to dip, talk about a snack i would eat all day long :p

The problem is, its easier to pack in a ton of carbs into a small portion size, and then everyone eats more because there not full. I honestly think people don't know what full is. There so use to stuffing there faces, they don't realize they were full half a serving ago. Protein and fat is expensive, carbs are cheap, and in a society that is based around making a profit, make cheap, sell high = more money. Simple as that, people can't not be sustained on carbs a lone. I think if people learned to cook more often, they appreciate what goes into there food, and how good cooked meals taste so much better, that they would think twice before bopping down to the local drive thru.

[x129]

Atkins has you avoiding a ton of veggies for periods of time.  Other than that I agree with pretty much the rest. I am sure there are 1 or 2 veggies that you don't want to overeat but in general you can eat as much of the leafy green ones as you want. Try eating like 500 calories of lettuce, broccoli, carrots, or aspargus. Even most of the fruit (much higher in sugars) make it hard to really rack up the calories.

Originally Posted by Dave2512

Carbs get a bad rap for the wrong reason. Typically when you see a diet promoting low carbs they're steering you away from processed carbs, which are also high in calories in very small doses, usually due to the fat content. It's not carb magic when you lose weight because you cut the calorie condensed Ritz Crackers and snack size tortillas out of your diet. I've never seen or heard of a low carb diet that promotes not eating veggies, which are carbs. The reason is two-fold in that veggies are obviously good for you but it's also tough to consume too many calories eating something like broccoli. Two cups of it amounts to the roughly the same calorie content as 20 M&M;'s. In modern times "diets" are as much about marketing than science. You can wrap it up anyway you want but if you look close you'll see that it comes down to calories. Even the high protein diets are tricking you into eating less calories. Few tell you the lean 10 oz of top sirloin they want you to eat is just 500 cal. Toss in a few cups of veggies and you've eaten a massive plate of food and that's about the same calories as just the fries in a fast food combo meal. It just seems like we eat less on low cal diets because when you do eat the meal is substantial enough to satisfy.

Don't take this the wrong day but running 2 miles a day (and your walking) doesn't  burn a lot calories (200-300 above the normal count for being alive would be a decent approximation).  Your protein shake snack probably has almost that many calories. Similiarly walking the course might burn another 300-500 or so calories (compared to the ones you burn just being alive). Drink a couple of beers and you are about back to even. To lose weight through exercise you need a lot of it (45+ mins/day) at decent intensity (i.e. more than walking. The slow stuff burns more fat but it takes forever to rack up the calories). Light exercise doesn't hurt (well it make some hungry) but you have to be realistic about what you can get out of it. The health benefits (better heart, bones, and muscles) are still there even if you don't lose a pound.

The other tricky part with diet is that if you are taking in 3000 calories, dropping to 2800 isn't likely to cause you to lose weight. That is probably just enough to get you to the point where you stop gaining it while to lose it would require a drop to 2500. And you don't want to drop the volume of food either.

Originally Posted by Elmer

I am no expert on any of this. However I know for me and only me. It has taken more than calorie in Vs calorie burned. I am only 5'6" and weight 220. I have always been pudgy. Even when I was playing lacrosse and running alot when I was 15 to 18, I still have a gut and chubby cheeks. Now that I am in my late, late 30's I have become much more conscience about my health and I am trying to get in shape. I began eating healthy breakfest-lean protein shake snack-yogurt lunch-salad w/ 2 eggs & bannan snack-apple w/almonds dinner-chicken & some veggies late night snack-rice cake w/hummas I bought a tread mill and started running 2 miles a day During my lunch break I walk for 1/2hour and also walk on my 15 minute break. And all this led to me gaining weight, up 10 lbs. I was 210 during the golf leauge (april to aug). even thought I was drinking alot more beer on golf nights, I guess it was countered by my walking the course (which is hilly). I have a hard time believing that my eating healthy and running (which at the end of my run I am soaked) has led to NO results. So I dont think a simple "diet plan" works the same for everyone. or I could be a medical anomoly. But I am going to try alot of the advice I see here. Hopefully I can get down to 200 by the start of the next golf season!

[Dave2512]

Originally Posted by saevel25

Umm.. Processed carbs have the same amount of calorie per carb.

Actually it's per gram but yes but it's the weight of the food that makes the difference, which you alluded to later in your post. Hold a bag of lettuce in one hand similar sized bag of crackers in the other and it's obvious which weighs more. Along with the condensed processed carbs is usually condensed fat as a binder, which as you know is double calories compared to protein and carbs. There's more nasty stuff in what is considered processed carbs than just about anything. It's just bad all the way around. Definitely more reason to avoid the bag of chips than the carbs.

[saevel25]

But cool ranch Dorito's are amazing, especially when you put them on a sandwich :p

Yeah i know, that's why my lifestyle is trying to maintain 95% homemade meals. I mean i might buy some pre-cooked stuff. Like i found these fully cooked chicken meatballs from trader joes, there pretty tasty, but i only eat those like once a week. So its not like i put TV dinner after TV dinner in the oven.

Though i could probably make Salsbury steak 100 times better than a TV

Also, you'd be surprised how much you save money cooking your meals, especially for a larger family. If you learn how to use a crock pot you can feed an army cheap. People think eating healthy is more expensive, its not really.

[jorober5]

The low carb thing works for me when I mainly go with lean meats and veggies.  I know veggies have carbs, but that seems to be the ticket for me!

[Yukari]

I started adding a lot more fresh veggies.  I think it helps stay with the diet because as Saevel25 (I think) has stated somewhere previously, it fill you up (lot of bulk) without the calories.

Since I started eliminating bread and other high carb foods, my body fat went from 18% to 13%!!!  Everyone on the gym (especially girls!!!) have commented how great my body is.  I always had a good athletic body, but now it is much leaner and more defined!

Originally Posted by jorober5

The low carb thing works for me when I mainly go with lean meats and veggies.  I know veggies have carbs, but that seems to be the ticket for me!

[Stretch]

The only major issue I have with carb restriction is (relative) lack of beer.

Have been shooting for as very moderate target of

[MLgolf]

Originally Posted by Stretch

The only major issue I have with carb restriction is (relative) lack of beer.

There are less carbs in beer then you think. Watch your calories and stick with low GI carbs

[Stretch]

There's more beer in me than you think.

[newtogolf]

Your body is a machine, food is it's fuel (glycogen).  If you take in more food than it needs, some of it is excreted as waste, the rest of it is stored.  If you take in less than it needs, you lose weight (muscle and fat).  If your body requires 2200 calories to get through the day and you take in 2200 calories you'll neither gain or lose any actual weight (water weight may fluctuate based on hydration) regardless of the source of calories.  It's all pretty simple.

Carbs have an impact on insulin and cortisol so they need to be managed more closely to maintain consistent blood sugar and cortisol levels.  People also tend to "cheat" the most in measuring the calories they take in from carbs versus fats and protein.

[Yukari]

That's why I switched to Michelob Ultra or other similar low carb beer.

Not as good as the regular beer, but it will do in a pinch.

Originally Posted by Stretch

The only major issue I have with carb restriction is (relative) lack of beer.

Have been shooting for as very moderate target of < 100g a day. Definitely feel better that way and, combined with a basic strength training program, things are going in the right direction.

[saevel25]

Here's the cool thing, if you cut your carbs down to the minimal you need per day, you don't have to feel guilty about having 1 or 2 beers :p

People just need to keep track of what they eat, there are so many tools available to keep track.

[Elmer]

ok dumb question, but what is the minimum amount of Carbs I need a day?

[saevel25]

No easy answer to that, depends on the person, but if you don't want to go into Ketosis, at least 50 grams of carbs per day.

There are endless debates on everything between normal carb intake and low carb intake. I've worked out during both, and i didn't find any difference in muscle gain or muscle loss. I was able to life progressively more weights under each lifestyle. I prefer lower carbs because i feel less bloated, i don't fluctuate blood sugar as much, and i don't have food cravings. But, some people are different.

For me, i don't pick a solid number, my range is anywere from 75 grams to 150 grams per day. It depends on how much activity you are doing. If you plan on working out multiple times a week, or work out very intensely, i would increase the carbs for that day. Specifically around the times you are working out. If you replenish the glycogen storage after you work out, your muscles will repair faster.

Depends on what your comfortable with. I would try to cut out all sugar as possible, because,

1) Sugar causes your brain to activate in the pleasure seeking areas, similar to cocaine. Meaning sugar is addictive. You can easily see why since the early 1800's the amount of added sugars in our diets have increased from 20 lbs per year to over 100 lbs per year. Sugar is cheap and it makes higher profits at the behest of our health. It makes food's which would not normally eat more palatable so we will eat it.

2) Sugar is highly inflammatory to your body, and sugar in the form of High Fructose Corn Syrup can cause liver damage as well, similar to alcohol.

But, first i would try to cut majority of the sugar out of your lifestyle. Then if you feel like you want to try more, give it a shot. There's no harm in trying something and if it doesn't work for you, then just find something else that does.

[Yukari]

Ok, I have a general question.

Can steel cut oats be part of a "low carb" diet?  I know it has a relative high carb content, compared to meat of course.  But it is suppose to also have a low glycemic index (GI) meaning the carbs are released slowly so it does not raise the blood sugar level too quickly.

Looking at various websites, it seems rolled oats and steel cut oats have a similar GI.  If that's true does it matter if it is rolled or steel cut?

[saevel25]

Low glycemic index isn't the same as low carb, though those who have issues with that stuff tend to go low or no carb.

Yes they be part of a low carb diet, if it doesn't go over what ever level of carbs per day you intake.

[Stretch]

I've been pretty strict on the low carb/high fat eating plan since after Christmas and have just passed 20 lbs lost, with maybe half that still to go. Don't find it hard to stick to and feel good, generally, so I'm sticking with it.