Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Low-carb diets

Share advice and experiences of following a low-carb diet.Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.

Original poster

DP thinks low carb is a fad diet - help please!

78 replies

Nowwhatsthis · 29/05/2017 10:02

I've got two DC, after the birth of both I've found myself overweight. Both times I've gone on to a low carb high fat diet and lost loads of weight.

I've tried a lot of diets in my life and LCHF is the only on that's worked for me.

A few years ago my marriage broke down, I was stressed out, didn't focus on what I was eating and gained a lot of weight.

After divorce etc I met my lovely DP, I was already overweight when I met him but the endless dating / wining / dining we've been enjoying have meant me not pulling my socks up and sorting my diet out.

Anyway, DP likes to eat "healthy" and going to the gym. He thinks that if I want to lose weight I should do this to, which I've tried but it doesn't work for me.

I've said I'm gonna do the LCHF and tried to explain that I've done this is the past and that it's worked for me but every time I mention it he starts mansplaining to me why LCHF is an unhealthy, fad diet that doesn't work.

I need some ammunition now to really get him on board. Please can somebody help me explain it to him? Maybe by using YouTube links.

His main concerns are:

  • Fat is bad for you
  • Carbs are an important part of diet and should be enjoyed in moderation
  • If you don't eat carbs you lose muscle and not fat
OP posts:
FurryDogMother · 29/05/2017 10:52

Hope those help to at least make him think a bit. I'm with you, OP - low carb is the best way for me to eat, I maintained a healthy weight for 3 years, decided to 'try eating more carbs, put weight back on as a result, now happily back on LCHF and staying there, confident that it's the right choice for me.

MoominFlaps · 29/05/2017 10:53

We are still here as a species and there was no cakes biscuits and bread in prehistory

I really don't understand this argument as (1) life expectancy is better now than it ever was before and (2) by that logic we also don't need vaccinations or medicine as they didn't have them in prehistoric times Confused

NoCureForLove · 29/05/2017 10:57

Post in the LC Boot Camp threads OP. You'll get informed help there.

Original poster
Nowwhatsthis · 29/05/2017 11:01

Thanks for those links, Furry!

Ciliated I do want to have the conversation with him though as I want him to understand the principles of the diet and not frown upon it quite as much.

I might just crack on with it though and let the results speak for themselves, as you say.

OP posts:
Hulder · 29/05/2017 11:09

I'd suggest you get your DP 'Fat Chance' by Robert Lustig.

Explains in great detail why sugar is the bad guy, fat (in sensible quantities) is not, avoiding carbs and sugar can make you lose masses of weight by resetting your hormones (insulin and leptin which drive your weight gain) and exercise keeps you healthy but except for HIT won't make you lose weight.

Also explains why mainstream science got the message so wrong and made us all believe fat was bad for so long.

It's also different for people who have never been fat to those of use who have - never fat people are naturally better at regulating their food intake due to a lucky mixture of genes and gut bacteria.

People who have been fat or are fat have different gut bacteria which affect your food choices (I know it's mindblowing that we don't just pick what we eat), different genes and are likely insulin resistant - so you have insulin telling you all the time 'eat more carbs, stay still and don't move, you are hungry and about to starve to death'. If you can break out of this and avoid all carbs, as you have done successfully before, eventually your insulin levels plummet and your energy levels rise, you feel normally hungry and stop craving carbs and sugar all the bloody time.

It's mysterious how on the Blood Sugar Diet I can feel more energetic and less hungry on 800 calories a day, than I used to on 3000 Blush a day. Because I no longer have insulin telling me I'm on the verge of starvation despite being several stone overweight

Basically, your DP knows nuffink about how the human body works.

Original poster
Nowwhatsthis · 29/05/2017 11:31

Thanks Hulder! That's some really good information. I'll look into getting that book, however I am not going to be able to get him to read an entire book unfortunately, but good for me!

I've read Dr Briffas 'The diet trap' which was a really good book. Unfortunately I lent it to a colleague years ago who never gave it back lol

OP posts:
FurryDogMother · 29/05/2017 11:39

Also, this might be of interest; talks about the findings of the PURE study on diet and cardiovascular disease. Eye-opening!

GoodyGoodyGumdrops · 29/05/2017 11:56

Here is a list of peer-reviewed studies comparing LC diets with LF diets. They consistently find that LC dieters lose more weight, lower their insulin, and improved their LDHD cholesterol ratios.
(Obviously the list is selective, but I haven't found any studies that contradict these findings.)

As with all diet schemes, the key is maintenance once you've reached your target. Returning to old habits will info it all. So saying "well, you put the weight back on again, so obviously that diet doesn't work" is nonsense.

Ultimately, LCHF is not severely restrictive, because you can eventually have the occasional sandwich or piece of cake - just very occasionally. It's the resultant insulin spike that makes you crave more.

AdalindSchade · 29/05/2017 12:00

Do you really need to justify your way of eating to him? Why don't you just crack on?
You can adapt most meals to include a carb for him if he wants it and if he wants low fat he can always cook for himself and you cook for yourself!
You know a low carb bootcamp has just started right? Lots of support there

WorknameJimEllis · 29/05/2017 12:05

I didn't say nothing works, just that when deciding what works you have to consider the long term - a lifetime change not a short term thing.

Hulder · 29/05/2017 12:07

Fat Chance is pretty heavy on the science but very good about how one scientist in a powerful position in the USA got the 'saturated fat bad' message stuck in our brains for generations - and left us with appalling food policy and rising obesity.

Michael Mosley's Blood Sugar Diet is much more accessible, mainly as he is a professional media doc rather than a researcher. Lustig got into is as he is a paediatric endocrinologist - when he was seeing obese babies and children he realised it couldn't be their 'fault' they were overweight in the way we commonly blame adults 'Oh you just eat too much, have no willpower and should go to the gym a bit more' as they were children. His book is great as it basically makes it clear that it isn't your fault you are fat - your body, hormones, 50 years of 'fat is bad carbs are good' and food policy make you fat.

Lustig also has a great lecture on Youtube which is also v science heavy - but he is a great communicator, he hasn't got 7 million views just from doctors and biochemists Grin

Original poster
Nowwhatsthis · 29/05/2017 12:19

Still not very constructive WorknameJimEllis

OP posts:
Loopytiles · 29/05/2017 12:21

I think it's U for you to want him to "understand" the principles behind the diet, and vice versa. Each to their own.

Might be easiest to eat separate meals for some of the time: many couples do this for all kinds of reasons, and it's fine.

Original poster
Nowwhatsthis · 29/05/2017 12:22

No, of course I don't need to justify anything to him AdalindSchade but as he is my life partner who I love very very much I do want him to have a better understanding of why I choose to eat this way.

OP posts:
Original poster
Nowwhatsthis · 29/05/2017 12:22

Why is that unreasonable Loopytiles?

OP posts:
Original poster
Nowwhatsthis · 29/05/2017 12:24

Thanks FurryDogMother, GoodyGoodyGumdrops and Hulder for the great info.

OP posts:
Loopytiles · 29/05/2017 12:29

Because what you put in your body is entirely your business. He doesn't need to think about it. It would be considerate of him, when he is cooking, not to serve you carbs if you prefer not to have them, but that's as far as it needs to go IMO. If he is unwilling to adjust what he serve then you can eat something else on those days.

Original poster
Nowwhatsthis · 29/05/2017 12:35

Loopytiles understood. However that is not how our relationship works. We eat together every night without fail and I have no issue about the logistics of eating slightly different meals.

He is also an intelligent man and fully capable of understanding science however I do need ideas of good sources of this info that's easily accessible.

Thirdly, he does actually care about me, my thoughts and ideas, I just need to find a good way of explaining it to him. It is not a chore to him to listen to me, I just haven't been able to explain it to him very well yet.

OP posts:
Original poster
Nowwhatsthis · 29/05/2017 12:37

And if he didn't care what he put into my body we wouldn't have this problem, I could just crack on.

However as he currently believe hat fat is harmful to me, he is trying to stop me from eating is because he cares.

OP posts:
FinallyHere · 29/05/2017 12:39

I would really encourage you to stop any conversations with anyone about what you are eating. Just get on with what works for you. If you are looking for support, come and join us on the low carb bootcamp threads. Work on your self esteem [here. I happened to catch up with her recent blog posts today and noticed that LCHF gets a good press here too.

You may find that his listening is different for what works for you, once you are obviously on top of what your body needs for good health. Don't waste your breath meanwhile.

glenthebattleostrich · 29/05/2017 12:44

There are loads of excellent blogs and research info on the spreadsheet on low carb boot camp.

There is nothing unhealthy about eating fish, meat, veg and salad with some full fat dairy and a few nuts. It's how our bodies are designed to feed.

Hulder · 29/05/2017 12:51

It's sweet he cares and you have joint meals.

I am doing low sugar, low carb sort of blood sugar diet-ish - one of the things I've found nicest about it is that DH and I can have the same evening meals. I just don't have the rice/potatoes/whatever and have a much smaller portion. And he has cake or biscuits if he wants them and I don't. Does mean we don't eat a lot of pasta anymore but it's been a lot more family friendly (and successful!) than previous diet attempts.

It's hard to overcome people's prejudices about diet, the message is so ingrained now. I told my mum and she said 'But you have to have some carbs!' She did change her mind when I lost a stone in a month though Grin

RunRabbitRunRabbit · 29/05/2017 13:02

You want YouTube? You could start here:

While it is lovely that he cares enough to want you to be healthy. It is not OK for him to refuse to accept your choice and to continue mansplaining. It implies he thinks you are stupid.

Presumably you've already told him repeatedly that low carb works for you. So he's being a dick if he keeps trying to tell you that your life experience is wrong. You have lived it, so why is it still debatable?

Why isn't he searching for YouTube's to discover what he is mistaken about given that your life experience says he might be wrong?

And even if he thinks you are a moron who misremembers her own life then why doesn't he just leave you to it and wait to see what happens?

RunRabbitRunRabbit · 29/05/2017 13:19

Here's a

Oliversmumsarmy · 29/05/2017 13:57

I have spent years watching what i ate what i drank trying to stick to low calorie daily allowance. no sweets,cakes etc I don't actually like them.

i have put weight on not lost it.

i came across the cracker test. I really have to be careful with carbs. With the results of that I have been doing the Low Carb Boot Camp. lost 4.25lbs and 2" off my stomach and i have been eating nearly 3000 calories per day.

For me it is the only way i can see me losing weight.