Anyone had success with low carb diets?

[Carbaholic876]

The first week I did a very drastic keto diet, and since then I've reintroduced wholemeal bread and porridge.
Been doing it for just over 2 weeks, I was 62kg and have gone down to just over 60.
I wasn't overweight but the main issue was bloating. My stomach made me look pregnant and my entire body and face would swell up due to all the refined carbs.
I've lost all that bloating, don't have a perfectly flat stomach but I just feel better in my clothes and certainly slimmer.
Don't know if it's related but I've slept through every night more or less since starting, whereas before I'd sometimes wake up at 4am and not be able to get back to sleep.
My spots all disappeared, though I've had one or two return.
My diet before was horrendous. I would eat one of those large packets of sweets every couple of days. Could go the day without eating much fruit or veg, refined carbs every single day. Couldn't make it through the day without cakes or biscuits, addicted to white bread.

If i didn't eat every 3 hours I'd feel sick and dizzy.
In my 20s I could eat like this and remain a size 6 but now in 30s it started to catch up with me.

Just be interested to hear from others and their thoughts.
I'm having one day a week where I eat whatever I want, would you recommend this?
I buy protein shakes/bars and things like Lo dough, but they can be quite expensive. Do you find eating low carb more expensive overall?
Have you managed to stick to this long term?
I do feel that with the one day off a week it's something I could absolutely stick to long term

My mum lost 30kg on Keto… then she decided to relax for Christmas and became addicted to the carbs again and hasn’t been able to restart. She had such wonderful success not only losing weight, but she had much more energy and her body didn’t ache as much too.

30kg is fantastic well done to her. I hope she'll be able to get back on it.

I generally eat low carb because I'm type one diabetic and it's easier to manage. Other than that I see no reason for anyone to do it. So many nutrients in fruit and pulses/grains. Lots of people on mn are obsessed with low carb though. It sounds like your fatigue/spots etc was due to a generally poor diet rather than carbs.

My favourite low carb products are: Carbzone wraps, pasta and lasagne sheets and seriously low carb bread rolls. Oh and Quest tortilla chips £££££ but delicious! I'm not keen on lo dough.

Weight loss is all down to a calories deficit, I get why people find that easier to achieve by cutting carbs.

www.mumsnet.com/talk/low_carb_bootcamp/4554916-week-4-may-22-low-carb-bootcamp-the-end-of-the-first-half

Come and see.

I've lost 4.4kg in 4 weeks. Feel so much better - no shakes between meals.

Thanks for the replies and the thread I'll have a look now

@Blondebakingmumma I had the same experience as your Mum. Success until I "had Christmas off" and that was 18 months ago...I've yet to "get back on"!

I think any diet is great while your willpower remains strong, and there are lots of people who have had huge success with Keto for extended periods of time. I'm just not one of them.

If you're eating porridge and bread you wont be going near keto, so keeping it ultra low carb is a bit pointless so I'd avoid the 'no carb' foods and just make healthy choices. I managed to e.g. make pizzas at home with thin bases with normal flour that were only 20g of carbs for base plus sauce on half a pizza. The protein is probably only helpful if you're lifting in the gym, otherwise they just tend to be calories for no reason.

I've previously gone from a size 24 to an 8 on keto comfortably within six months, without ever cutting to 800 calories or whatever. But it's also super easy to not lose anything because it still comes down to calories in calories out and it's easy to eat a lot of high calorie cheese. A lot of low carb stuff on the internet is aimed at overweight men who can eat 2000 calories a day and still lose weight - I have to be more around 1200.

If you're 60kg though sounds like you want to do this for the health benefits not the weight benefits so it sounds like you're doing the right thing for you. I'd introduce some fruit back e.g. bananas for potassium since electrolytes can be big issue on low carb and make you feel a bit weak working out or give you leg cramps etc. Eggs are a nice cheap low carb option, omelette with some ham, though chicken is getting more expensive. Since I dont snack when I'm low carb I find the savings on buying sweets and stuff makes up for more expensive meat for dinners.

Thanks for your reply, I suppose I wanted to just lose 2kg or so which I have done so it's about maintaining it now I guess.
I'll definitely take your points on board, I do some weights at the gym but definitely nothing extreme,. I have just been eating plums but I'll make sure I reintroduce more fruit

Look into Second Nature. It's an app & website. It's low carb, not no carb, so not keto. It goes into all the other reasons you might be eating, rather than just hunger & encourages you to tackle them at your own pace, but with up to date dietary advice based on research evidence.

Yes. I lost 3 stone in three months on a calorie restricted keto diet last year. I was eating around 800 every day - tons of fruit, veg and protein. The secret is no cheat days.

14 to an 8 even, 24 to an 8 in 6 months would be some sort of miracle loss!

Wrecktangled

'My favourite low carb products are: Carbzone wraps, pasta and lasagne sheets and seriously low carb bread rolls. Oh and Quest tortilla chips £££££ but delicious!*'
*
Where do you buy all of these?

I am currently having success on a low calorie, low carb (fruit and vegetables but no bread, photos, pasta) etc diet. The key for me is that the hunger is manageable after the first few days. I'm rubbish at hunger.

All online apart from the Carbzone products which you can also get from ocado

Photos= potatoes

Yes.
Feeling better and not bloated.
Reintroduced non processed carbs in SMALL quantities (a few roast tatties with dinner and a slice of sourdough).
Not eating crap from the packets is the clue (except frozen veg)

Thank you everyone.

Does no cheat days ever not get demoralising?

I’m not sure what ‘low’ is when it comes to carbs. I don’t count anything. For various reasons I rarely eat bread or rice or pasta or potato chips though. I discovered by accident I sleep better without them.

The trouble with 'cheat days' (which is a completely outdated and unhelpful term when it comes to changing your eating habits) is that you can easily eat back your whole week's deficit and more, not to mention the behavioural and adherence impact it has. It just encourages the whole restrict and binge cycle which is so unhelpful. Just incorporate what you like into your every day healthy diet.

… or sugar, except in fruit, veg.

Me.ive been doing low carb for 5 weeks and lost 8lb

I didn’t get on with keto, but my partner loves it and is in his sixth month. I prefer low glycaemic so complex carbs, red wine, dark chocolate, ice cream are all on my menu! No potato, no rice and a small handful of pasta once a week.

If you do come out of ketosis a 16 hour+ fast will put your body back into ketosis, it’s a lot quicker than just low carbing.

I've just gone back on it after 2 years 'off' - that's what a cheat day does for me! As soon as I have the carbs and sugar again it's an instant addiction. I've lost 7lb in about 2-3 weeks of low carbing, not full on keto.

I was super keto, had lost over a stone and was feeling toned and healthy just before lockdown hit. Then with issues with shopping and isolating etc that was my excuse to go back to pasta, bread etc and less fresh veg and meats as it was so hard getting regular fresh stuff. Kept intending to get back on it once restrictions ended, but the addiction was too strong in my brain. So I def cannot have cheat days. I try to see my cheats as Jude's low cal ice cream (only 50ml a time), strawberries, cream, a bit of dark chocolate. I have to stay very restricted to those specific things. I know if I let other treats in I'll be instantly addicted again.

I have a friend who does keto often. She loses a stack of weight then goes off the low carb diet, and puts even more back on. I don't see her often but each time I do she is either svelte or the biggest she's ever been.

My worry is that it's not sustainable.

I think to really manage your diet long term, you need to focus on healthy eating rather than restriction diets. So focus on eating 10 a day - not 5. Make most foods plant based and unprocessed. Add lean protein. Only eat refined carbs and sugar on special occasions - birthday cake, religious festivals, not everyday. Have several days off alcohol each week and never drink more than a couple of glasses. Reduce caffeine too. Don't cut stuff out entirely but have treats in moderation.

We all know this. It's just boring. We want quick fix dream diets to melt all the fat away forever.

Is that despite eating normal calorie intake or do you end up eating fewer calories because you are less hungry and not eating empty carbs?