Does anyone else find the idea of low carbing depressing?

[losenotloose]

I'm sure it's probably effective but the thought of no bread, rice, pulses etc makes life seem miserable! For me food is obviously more than nutrition and I know I couldn't do it long term. Also, if carbs are the enemy, how come countries like Italy are known for good health?!

This isn't meant to dig at anyone who finds it suits them btw.

[MothershipG]

I have a love/hate relationship with low carbing, I used it successfully on here following a boot camp and lost a couple of stone. It also really helps with my IBS. I think it worked for me because fat & protein are very satiating so I wasn't hungry. I also think I have a sugar addiction so was better off with a strict none at all rule.

But I am still left trying to battle my sweet tooth despite everyone saying it would go and the million and one other reasons I eat which have nothing to do with hunger. I think it has also made my eating a little disordered as when I give myself a break on holidays or similar I overdo it and feel a bit out of control.

I really miss toast 😭

[Aquifolium]

they are too lazy to actually lost weight the healthy way AND give equal effort and attention to health, strength and fitness.

Just a tad judgemental of people (a lot of people) who struggle with weight loss the healthy way

[Fantail]

I’m a T1 diabetic.

A LCHF (low carb/High & healthy fat) gives me the best control of my blood sugar levels. I eat an average 40g carbs a day. There isn’t actually a definition of low carb, Keto yes, but low carb can be anything under 120g depending on what you are reading.

The trick is that if you are cutting carbs you have to replace it with some good quality fat and protein.

Low carb works brilliantly for people with conditions that point to insulin resistance (T2, PCOS etc). If you aren’t eating large quantities of carbs your body doesn’t need to produce much insulin.

It’s the carb/insulin reaction, especially if you are insulin resistance that can make it hard to lose weight.

Exercise helps with insulin resistance too. As does keeping stress under control and making sure you get enough sleep.

[Camomila]

Everyone's different. No need to do low carb if its not for you.

I'm Italian and I love carbs, too much protein (especially meat) gives me a tummy ache.

I think its the rest of the diet thats important as well. If I think of my nonna she has lots of carbs (usually pasta for lunch and then some kind of minestrone or rice soup at dinner) but the only actively unhealthy foods she eats are a couple of biscuits with her afternoon tea. I can't imagine her ever eating a burger, or a takeaway, or fizzy drinks...(all of which I eat )

[tootstastic]

Sorry @Desmondo2016 but you don't know what you're talking about. I eat a low-carb, high fat diet and I'm managing 4 Bodypump classes, a HIIT class, 3 Bodybalance classes, a yoga class and a treadmill run every week without 'carbs for fuel' and I'm not dead yet

For those wondering, the reason most people who low carb find it suits them is because the fat and protein fill you up and the sugar cravings, that usually lead people to cheat on diets, disappear.

I have literally tried every diet under the sun (at least twice each!) and I ended up bigger than I've ever been. Low carb is the only diet I can sustain long term. And when I say low carb, like other LCers have mentioned, I don't mean no carb. So, I am in no way cutting out 'whole food groups' as someone mentioned up thread. It's just that most carbs I eat are healthy whole foods and not processed crap.

Oh and I've lost nearly 5 stones in 7 months, with the odd holiday and weekend off. I have almost as much again left to lose, so for me it has to be a way of life.

If it's not for you, don't do it, but don't believe all the bullshit you hear about it either.

[managedmis]

People seem to have a problem with the term 'low carb', but not with 'clean eating' or 'paleo' when they are essentially really similar.

Or the grandma diet, as I call it - eggs for breakfast, lentil soup and cheese for lunch, meat and two veg for supper! Lots of water in between.

[losenotloose]

But is it the processed crap carbs that has caused the massive rise in obesity, diabetes etc rather than rice, potatoes etc? Many diet related illnesses have increased recently and we've been eating potatoes, rice and bread way before this increase. I'm not goading anybody just interested in this kind of thing.

[Crunchymum]

Depends how seriously you want to take low carbing?

For me I've never done it more seriously than strict portion control / cut carbs out of evening meal. Can't do without them altogether.

[Babysharkdoodoodoodo]

I also eat LCHF and reversed my diabetes T2 back to a normal range. Still have some weight loss to go but joined a gym to boost the loss and battle the insulin resistance. I feel fine. IBS has gone as has the exhaustion. My carbs (very few) come from green veg, nuts and berries. I don't snack as much now, just a handful of seeds and nuts, pork scratching or strawberries.
I sometimes miss crisps and chocolate but I know that if I have a treat then it'll start the cravings again so I make myself an egg custard with stevia instead. Loads of recipes out there and I am now very inventive with almond and coconut flour instead. And I eat lots of bacon!

[caranx]

Random musings on low-carb...

I think it helps to start off low-carbing gradually, replace half your portion of rice with veg until you get used to that and then decrease slowly..

Its worth spending time thinking which is your favourite carb e.g mine is bread so I have a slice of bread at breakfast and one at lunch. No potatoes, rice or pasta day-to-day.

As an experiment, eat your normal portion of plain rice, potatoes or pasta (with no sauce/oil/salt!). Work out if its something you really like, or its just a vehicle for sauce. If its a vehicle for sauce, there's lots of veg that are good carb substitutes and will hold a sauce - sweetheart cabbage/spinach/cauliflower/courgetti/kale etc. Just pick the ones that you like!

[Gamorasgran]

My face goes numb and it's the only thing that made me faint. I do lose weight and it makes my pmt disappear though.

So I reduce my carbs (rarely have them for breakfast, often don't fit lunch or only small amounts). But I do have them for dinner.

[tootstastic]

@losenotloose I think you might find this article about the possible causes of obesity interesting.

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/15/age-of-obesity-shaming-overweight-people

[Fantail]

@losenotloose yes, you are probably right. But we were also eating a lot less of those carbs. We are also less active in our day to day lives, which I think makes a huge difference. I know that some forms if exercise mean that I need way less insulin for carbs over the course of a whole day - if I am swimming for example.

We also live longer. Perhaps previously we didn’t live long enough to develop diabetes.

I think the thing is heavily processed carbs also have a lot of fat. Fat slows down the rate that carbs are broken down and require your body to produce insulin in larger quantities and over a longer period, it is this that process that lays down fat in your body.

Fat doesn’t make you fat, in fact fat doesn’t require an insulin response, excess carbs make you fat - especially if you have a predisposition to bring insulin resistance. If you have a T1 diabetic friend who is well managed ask them to tell you about the pizza effect.

[DontPressSendTooSoon]

I use substitutes. Cauli rice for rice, celeriac for chips, soya flour bread for bread.

Everything low carb seems very expensive though!

[Fantail]

I think that if you are struggling with weight loss and always have done so, and have a history of metabolic disorders in your family, then it really isn’t as simple as calories in/calories out. Your body chemistry may need more sorting out a bit more than others who can drop a few pounds by just cutting out a few glasses of wine a week or going to the gym one more time.

Also, don’t discount how important food is in our culture. How we celebrate and commemorate events often centres around eating food together. It is really tough if suddenly you can’t participate. I went through this when I was diagnosed as T1. It takes a while. If this is affecting you then I also suggest some counselling to support you.

(Sorry for the long posts, I’m just really passionate about this stuff).

[orangeshoebox]

Fat doesn’t make you fat,

it does. if you eat enough calories from it.

fat and protein in high amounts can cause other health issues, like fatty liver, gout, kidney issues.

[wherehavealltheflowersgone]

I did LCHF for 10 weeks on the boot camp on MN a few years back. I lost a stone BUT it really messed my hormones up, triggered early menopause (diagnosed by blood tests) and depression and left me too weak to do exercise for any length of time.

I went back to eating 50% of my diet as whole grain carbs and reversed the early menopause and found my happiness and stamina again.

Now I just work on keeping a calorie deficit of 500 cals a week and I've maintained a steady 1lb a week loss.

I'm glad if it works for you, it didn't for me.

[P1nkHeartLovesCake]

I see it works for some and that’s great but I won’t ever low carb, for me personally just watching portion size of whatever I fancy is enough to drop a few pounds if I want/need to.

[MythicalBiologicalFennel]

Low carbing is the only way I lost my baby weight and kept it off. It was so easy - I wish I'd discovered earlier. Losing weight quickly, keeping it off and never being hungry! Oh and the cravings disappear.

It has meant I eat a lot less processed food and more fibre - many more vegetables, fruit and nuts. I still eat bread, crisps, rice etc but a lot less and a lot less often. I see it as a liberation and not a restriction - opening your life to lots of delicious, healthy, nutritious food instead of having large amounts of the same 3-4 staples every day. I can't see much wrong with that but you have to do what works for you.

[CakeNinja]

I do a very low key relaxed form of low carbing which works well for me.
Basically I don’t as a rule eat carbs but then every now and then I think fuck it and have a bag of crisps
I eat what I want when I go out, sometimes that means carb free, sometimes that means a steak sandwich. Depends on how I feel.
Basically I just take a more balanced approach to my overall diet - I was eating bread or carb heavy at all my meals - toast for breakfast, sandwich for lunch and then something with potatoes for dinner aswell as bread to mop up sauce sometimes.
I still occasionally eat pasta, I just have a much much smaller helping and have a veggie side dish instead of making the pasta my entire meal.
Definitely a healthier option for me.
In the past I have done a month on and a month off and I was maintaining my weight but realistically I needed to shift 2 stone and it wasn’t really going anywhere.
Now I’ve lost one and half of those stone and I’m not bothered if I ever lost that remaining half but eating what I fancy every so often means I’m not depriving myself and miserable. I ate out on Monday night and had noodles, had crisps on Saturday. Not missing out at all, just not eating like a teenager anymore!! And by that, I mean eating treats all day every day

[Aquifolium]

the processed crap carbs that has caused the massive rise in obesity, diabetes etc rather than rice, potatoes etc?

Probably, but your blood sugar control system can’t tell the difference. It’s all sugars. If you are hooked on a carb fix, your cravings are there which means you are likely to overeat the rice and whole grain just as much as you would if was processed crap.

[Ravingstarfish]

I’ve just been diagnosed with coeliac disease and pcos, I’m already vegan so now have a very restrictive diet and it’s already driving me nuts

[Fantail]

@orangeshoebox - perhaps I should have said, fat in itself won’t make you fat. But fat gives you a quicker feeling satiety, which for some people is an important factor for losing weight.

[Aquifolium]

Raving starfish:
A vegan coeliac friend told me many years ago that gluten problems can frequently emerge in vegans due to high wheat content in vegan diets. She showed me a couple of vegan recipe books, and I was shocked to that hardly any of the recipes didn’t contain wheat in one form or another.

I hope you manage to find a diet that suits you. Personally I am interested in vegetarian/vegan diet for ecological reasons, but feel that it would be better if as a population we reduced our meat/ animal products intake rather than having a virtuous vegan/ methane meat eating dichotomy. It’s interesting how one loses the taste for meat once you do reduce though.