Should DH & I count calories or carbs for the next six weeks?

[Maskin]

DH & I could both do with shifting a couple of stones and we’ve decided we’d like to do something about it! We’re thinking of a six week kick start but the problem is that we have different ideas for how to go about it, yet both think we need to be doing the same thing for reasons of practicality.

I fancy counting calories; I love potatoes, rice, pasta and have a sweet tooth. The idea of having to give all these up even for six weeks horrifies me

DH thinks we should go low carb. He’s all about the cheese and cream, is happy enough with dark chocolate and doesn’t care much for potatoes etc.

Any advice?!

Calories. Eat less (move more works)

But youll find youll most likely get significantly less potatoes rice and pasta under either option!!

We have both been moving a bit more; DH is doing some home YouTube workouts and I’ve been doing Couch to 5k.

Decisions decisions!

Calorie counting is more sustainable I think. Every time I have done low carb I make myself sick of eggs and meat and I can't stick it longer than a month.

Tbh the eat less is way more important than the move more. Something like the my fitness pal app is hugely helpful essential

We've been calorie counting for a fortnight now. Its become surprisingly "normal" quite quickly.

It'll be very easy for dh to do calorie counting and low carb as there's so many calories in pasta and rice. He will likely also have a higher calorie allowance than you.

Sustainability is a huge thing for me, and practicality. It’s so quick and easy to make a spaghetti bolognese or have a sandwich for lunch. To me low carb means salads or eggs for lunch and cooking up various fiddly things for dinner.

Whereas DH thinks we can just substitute blocks of cheese for pasta/potatoes

@VolcanionSteamArtillery I have the MFP app downloaded and ready to go; the only question remaining is whether I set my targets to High Fat-Low Carb or limited calories?!

You could just each follow your own plans. Make a Bolognese and then he can add whatever additions he wants (cheese?) And you can have pasta.

I think you've got to do what's right for you so think you should both follow what you want to individually.

Can you turn it into a bit of a friendly competition? You count calories and him carbs and see who loses the biggest percentage (not actual weight as he will probably lose more and faster - men usually do ). Winner can pick a fun day out or activity for you both to do.

Or try low carb for the first three weeks so you both benefit for that super motivating quick initial weight loss and get used to no sugar so you don’t have those awful cravings. Then you can add in small portions of healthy carbs to see how you feel as a more sustainable long term approach.

If you want to do calorie counting then I urge you to join Team RH on Facebook. It’s a really sensible maintainable approach to calorie counting.

Limited calories. More choice in what you can eat.

Like Bernadette i dont find it too hard when im in the rhythm of it. I have blowns outs like holidays Christmas' and birthdays. Then get back to it again after.

I also found penis portions are a thing. When i was strictly losing weight i was a bit horrified to find my then DBf trousers were starting to fall down!! (And we werent even living together) I started dishing him twice as much as me which seemed to be about right. A bit depressing though

Oh in terms of sustainability i took about 6 stone off over 14months, 3-4 years ago, most of that was mfp. I wobble in the bottom stone of that depending on Christmas stress etc, but then i log again for a while and im all good. Im never going back to the weight i was. Even when im being strict I still eat the odd KFC, McDonald's fish and chips etc, (although what i pick has changed) and some restaurants do a fantastic low cal menu too (prezzo!!).So all in all it has been very sustainable (although admittedly lifetime) commitment for me.

I would suggest low carb rather than calorie counting. No sugar or carbs, high protein and good fats.

There's no point going low carb unless you plan to do it forever. Calorie counting is much easier to sustain long term.

@volcanian: what's a penis portion please [intrigued]

I've been calorie counting along with intermittent fasting, so I only eat 1200 calories between 10am and 6pm and the weight has been dropping off about half a kg a week and I soon got use to it I'm not hungry in the mornings or evenings anymore and I'm still eating what I want just smaller portions to keep the calories down

You both need to do what works for you and by the sounds of that is following different things.

Low carb is my idea of hell I wouldn’t do it. I do however eat a bit of whatever I fancy, watch portions and loosely count calories that works like a dream for me.

It’s not a one size fits all

There's a great Low Carb "bootcamp" support group on here that's been running for years. We're between bootcamps at the moment but a new one starts in a few weeks. You can start any time though. Lots of resources and advice, loads of successes!

ageingdisgracefully

Its a term i discovered on here used to describe the delightfully sexist practice of dishing out larger portions to men than women. (Except annoyingly it does actually have some basis in biological need especially if the man is taller than you, has a physical job and you're trying to lose weight )

Why not each do it your way & have a weight loss competition?
You'll need much longer than 6 weeks to lose 2 stone.

For me, it depends on whether I’d like a real, weight shifting, figure changing loss or to start to steadily lose weight for a longer term plan.
I carry weight mostly around my middle and find that low carb really helps to shift and change the shape of my waist. I can actually fit in a smaller size if I low carb for 30 days - 6 weeks.
I find calorie counting harder as I am often left feeling hungry. I’m used to oversizes portions and really dislike the hungry feeling! I find with low carb, that feeling changes after 5-7 days and feels empty but not growling hunger. I’ll still make a chilli with no rice or a homogenise with no spaghetti. I still have potatoes 1-2 evenings a week though as it’s a bit extreme otherwise!

How many calories were you planning on having? To lose weight I need to stick to 1000-1200 religiously. If I low carb I generally feel full and drop the weight. Obviously everyone is different though!

I've lost 20lbs by low carbing. Carbs spike your insulin and cause more hunger, so restricting calories feels uncomfortable and risks carb blow outs. Low carbing is the most efficient way to lose weight and you don't end up being permanently hungry.

The eat less, move more thing is too simplistic. You can't outrun cake and not all calories are equal so 200 calories of cake will affect your body totally differently to 200 calories of meat or full fat yoghurt. Carbs are designed to be converted to fat very efficiently once your body has taken the initial hit for immediate energy demands.

Honestly, think about low carbing and do some research around it.

Portion control works well for us. We eat what we want but in small amounts.