To be fed up with ppl trying to convince me Atkins/keto only way

[rainawf]

I tried it and when younger did work but now tried it again recently and I can’t stand it. I’m going back to old fashioned calorie counting next week and everyone keeps saying how bad it is and only keto/low carb is sure way to lose weight. What are your thoughts?

I would agree.

I thought the keto dirt that reversed diabetes was very strict, something like 800 calories a day for 12 weeks and is nothing like what people call keto which does seem to be eating a lot of meat and fat.

YANBU, low carb makes me feel foggy and constipated

I like the strictness of Keto and the fact you’re never hungry. I also think it’s really healthy. I monitor my blood sugar and it’s always perfect if I’m in a Keto phase.

But if calorie counting suits people, it’s no-one else’s business.

My sil has tried every diet known to human kind and they all worked at first and then failed.

About 5 years ago she announced , proudly, that she'd lost 60+ pounds. How? ' I eat whatever tf I like - just less of it!'

Sounds good to me.

So so many studies consistently show that any diet works as long as you stick to it.

They also consistently show that only a tiny proportion of people can/do stick to it. Because food and eating is hugely complex.

There is also evidence that yo-yo dieting is worse for you than being consistently fat.

This is often said, as a criticism of a low carb diet.

But as I said before, a low carb diet doesn't cut out a whole food group - you're getting your carbs from veg, salad and (some) fruit.

... and funnily enough, those espousing a low fat diet never say that about their diet, when they're out and about buying 0% fat yoghurts and the like!

The three macronutrients (carbohydrate, protein and fat) are all important in our diets, it's the proportion of them that a low carb diet changes. So instead of being carbs/protein/fat, it becomes fat/protein/carbs.

I do still eat a sandwich but I buy low carb bread. Obviously it's not as lovely as a sourdough or tiger bread, but it's a good replacement for a supermarket sliced loaf.
I think to stick to it long term, you have to find shortcuts that you can incorporate into your normal life. I don't think I do low carb quite as strictly as bootcamp rules say is optimal, but I'm certainly eating a better diet than before (am a total carb fiend and could live off jacket spurs and cake).

Yes agreed, which is why what works for one will not necessarily work for another one. The best diets are one where you actually know you'll enjoy the food/ experience enough that you can stick to it long enough.
Going really low carb isn't going to work if you're craving chips all the time. Good ol calorie restriction might though.

And o also think there's a lot we are only just starting to understand about how our bodies process different foods. In the 70s/80s I remember my mum's diets and her view that you could eat whatever you wanted just as long as you stuck to 1,000 calories . She said it could be 1,000 calories of dairy milk and you'd still lose weight, which might technically be true but would cause sugar spikes and cravings. Having read the Chris van Tulleken book on UPF I think there is something in the view that low fat, artificial sugar heavy diets might not be the best way to go , even if you do lose weight on it. Of course, you can do low calorie and cook properly but I think that most people will use the 'cheat' foods if they are available and allowed on a specific diet. I kind of like that most of this is off limits to me now so I don't think about them as much.

There's a lot to be said for personalisation of medicine (including diet), and Tim Spector's work on Zoe is exploring just this. I definitely think it's true that some diets suit some people better than others. Even on low carb, it's very clear from all the Bootcamps I've run that some people can tolerate more carbs on a daily basis than others.

Back in the day, I was a 100% card-carrying calorie counter. It's actually much easier to follow a low calorie diet because so much of our foods are based around that promise - even if not explicitly about calorie reduction, lower/no fat foods are so widely available, which helps to keep the calories down. And, of course, there's the whole 'Lite' business - cup-a-soup and Muller Lites are the backbone of many a low calorie diet! Which, of course, takes us straight into UPF territority.

@LadyBird1973 I feel like that about the fact I now have to eat gluten free- it's easy to reach for the pasty , sandwich, or biscuits or sausage roll- especially if out. It's much harder to 'snack' or eat easily grabbable crap so I tend to make better choices. I eat more eggs, hummus, tinned fish etc , so I naturally eat less carbs anyway (around 65- 85g on average a day)

People can have healthy low carb and healthy low fat diet, or the opposite for both extremes.
Most didn't get fat eating lentils or rice stuffed capsicum, so blaming the "carbs" is a bit quick.
The point of this discussion however is the zealots who preach one diet being superior to others, usually thanks to new data, new discoveries you have been lied to, or whatnot nonsense that goes on the fringe of dangerous, such as high cholesterol is not bad for you, eat as many saturated fats as you want.

Any diet that restrict somehow calories intake will work. The one you can stick with is the best for you. You can restrict calories in many ways, reducing a macro (carb) is one of them. When calories and proteins are matched, there isn't much difference between low carb or low fat.

My mother has no idea what a carb is. Happily eats croissant every weekend and baguette every day and is still as slim as she was on her wedding day 50 years ago. You will never however see her taking a bite or drink whilst walking, in a car, on the beach, at the park, anywhere. She doesn't carry food in her bag. She doesn't have a junk drawer. She eats 3 times a day, always seated at a perfectly put table. My kids are never allowed any snacks when visiting. You don't eat between meals is a big mantra in French culture. You eat good food, fresh food, and avoid the cochonneries . In French there isn't a word nor verb for snack. There are a few words with similar sense, but you will never hear a child say I want an " en-cas. ".

One of my son's friend called us " an ingredient family" because we didn't have any ready-to-eat food. Everything required mixing ingredients. There wasn't anything to grab and eat.
When you restrict a macro, you have to become an ingredient household, and maybe this is where the dietary success comes from. Unless you start buying keto bread, keto ice-cream, keto crisps . Or the low-fat equivalent . Grab and eat.

Food quality matters, whatever diet you are on. It is what ends up in your mouth that matters, not what you avoid.

In French there isn't a word nor verb for snack.

There is, actually. A gouter, an after school snack for children, before their evening meal. But I take your point about the French way of eating in general.

Calorie count, in that you eat less and don't over eat.
But within that, try to limit carbs to the level that you find sustainable. This will help keep calories down and make you feel full longer as you won't be spiking .

If you’re interested in research I’d recommend Ben Carpenter’s book
fat loss the definitive guide
Highly, highly researched and full of citations.Fat Loss: The Definitive No Bullsh*t Guide Here

Food and diet are complicated.