How many of you follow a low carb diet?

[Housewife2010]

I've just been looking at lowcarbotopia.blogspot.co.uk.
So many of the diet rules have changed since I was growing up, but I really don't think I could give up my potatoes & enjoy green vegetables. But, I would like to be thin.

i should've said, pasta too. I'm 41 and have more energy than when I was 21, even though on feet all day in a physical job.

I should say that despite my complete rudeness about low-carb, I do eat virtually none of the 'typical' carbs like pasta, bread, rice, lots of white bread products. It really does make me feel better, and I feel the bloat when I do have too much carby stuff now.

But i still eat cake most days, and plenty of the more starchy veg. I think there's a huge range of low-carbing, from Dukan/Atkins all the way up to clean eating.

I low carbed to lose weight and do my health good. It also fitted with me - after a lifetime of believing butter, cheese etc was bad it was great to finally give in to those feeling and live on protein and fat .

I keep cost down by buying meat in bulk and i find that you naturally eat less in time and don't need to 'bulk out' with carbs...that's exactly what carbs is, bulk. It's not proper fuel, just makes you crave more because it's burnt so quickly.

My addiction to sugar was making me feel awful and fat.

I don't follow a set diet but I try to avoid bread, pasta, rice and potatoes and I don't have much of a sweet tooth anyway. When I eat like this, with basically lots of fruit, veg, protein and dairy I find I rarely feel very hungry (after the first couple of days) and generally feel better, less stodged out and my body does seem to look better too.

I usually eat from basic ingredients rather than ready made stuff too. Snack a lot on eg cucumber sticks dipped in peanut butter, carrots and houmous, salad and olives, pistachios and sometimes ryvita.

Occasionally it all goes to pot but I find if I start eating bread and cakes and sweets etc I crave more but actually feel a lot better when I'm not eating them and lose the taste for them. Chopped fruit and Greek yoghurt seems like a sweet treat once tastebuds adjust.

I guess it's not really low carb as fruit and veg etc but it feels right for me although does require meal planning and more expensive than carb full.

Just read my message back and I know peanut butter and houmous aren't basic ingredients - I probably eat more ready made food than I realise!

Post not message.

I tried BWIW bootcamp too but felt terrible,depressed,obsessed with food and awfully constipated. I managed to follow it for over a week and lost nothing.
However the terrible restrictive nature made me appreciate my food far more and i now have lost weight eating smaller portions with lots more veg and the occasional small treat.I also realised that I could no longer kid myself that i could lose weight without exercise so i re joined the gym and am enjoying it.

I first started low carbing in 2002/3. It was a complete revelation. At last there was a way of eating that meant I could eat decent food, not be hungry any more - and therefore stop obsessing about food and calories.

I've been on it and off it - off it mainly because I go through phases of missing bread or pasta, and thinking that if I just eat 'sensible' portions then I will be OK - but no, the weight gradually piles back on again.

One of the first benefits I noticed though, apart from weight loss, was that my IBS cleared up. Thrush outbreaks have disappeared, and my skin is much better. I used to get a lot of dry, itchy skin on my upper arms and body, which has now gone.

More recently I've been reading more and more about the science (and the history) behind low carbing and it is totally . Essentially, there is no evidence that saturated fat causes heart disease - but plenty of evidence that has been ignored for decades that implicates carbohydrate not only in heart disease but also hypertension, diabetes, cancer and Alzheimers.

So I am a renewed convert. Initially because I am on a serious mission to lose weight as I race towards the menopause (it's harder to lose it afterwards, apparently), but from a long-term perspective because it's better for my health.

And the food is not dull! Have a look here at some of the recipes that we have shared

Im low carbing due to having gestational diabetes - it keeps my blood sugar low - I also feel fuller and look better - have lost weight and eat things I like - (although not sure about my fat intake - it does feel quite high!). I dont eat bread and pasta anyway due to intolerances - I also dont crave carbs now either.

Low carb diets are high fat diets, AmIPolly! That's a good thing.

I started trying to lose weight in January - I gradually reduced my carbs as the diet went on, went wheat free and then finally went the whole hog with BIWI's Bootcamp - more to maintain than anything else - because I could stop calorie counting, I could continue to drink wine and indulge in cheese, dark choc (which I've acquired a real taste for) and nuts. I still have a pud if I'm out for dinner and something really grabs me. Eating low carb means you need to change the way you put together a meal - it can be boring but if you work at it and are prepared to learn some new techniques, ingredients and recipes it can also be amazingly delicious. I have started going through all my cookbooks scouting for low carb recipes - there are plenty!

Problem with many of the recipes books for Low Carb is that they are written by chefs (or health nuts) employed by the Doctors who promote the diet as being a healthy solution to the obesity problem. Doctors may know something about health but they know bugger all about good food - they get a bit befuddled with the healthy eating crap. So my advice is to get hold of cookbooks that are written by chefs for you with no doctors involved - there aren't many in this category!

For the vegetarians try Celia Brooks Brown Low-carb Vegetarian - her recipes are full of flavour and will keep you interested and are definitely not boring! Idiot Proof Diet Cookbook is very good too. Low Carb Gourmet is another book worth looking at.

Last night I had Yotam Ottolenghi's Braised Salmon with tomato, cinnamon and mustard seeds it was delicious - dcs had rice with it and dh & I had broccoli & cauliflower "rice" - we ate till we had enough - no limit on calories or portions.

To lose weight and keep it off you are going to have to make some changes and they are going to limit your food choices, either by quantity, food group or ingredient - you just have to decide which thing you find easiest to do. Missing out on the rice, bread, pasta and of course sugar I find to be a compromise I can happily live with.

I have never been so slim or found a diet so easy to stick to, I just wish I'd discovered it years ago because it has cured my insomnia and my skin looks brighter too!

If i am trying to lose a few pounds as I am now, then i restrict my carbs to one serving a day.

That might be a piece of toast for breakfast, or porridge, and a couple of oat cakes during the day as a snack.

I am gluten free anyway, so I tend not to eat cakes and biscuits.

If I am having a gluten-free pasts meal then i will make that my carb allowance for the day.

If I eat stir fry then I'll do without the rice.

If we have meat/ fish and veg then I'll ditch the potatoes.

If I am happy with my weight- am currently trying to shift 5 lbs and have 3 to go- then I will eat carbs twice a day- but never 3 times.

I use it primarily for weight loss, but also for all the reasons postbellumbugsy states (bar IBS). It really does make me feel better and I don't crave food so much.

I have cream in my coffee as I just can't consume too much black. I follow a more Paleo style of eating - so veg is fine, just not legume types.

If I have a carbs blow-out now (e.g., tub of b&j) I tend to fall asleep afterwards such is the insulin dump!

If I was looking to loose, say about a stone with low carbing, could I still drink wine?

I have been low-carbing for two years, and I wouldn't go back to my old ways. I lost around 1.5 stone (I wasn't hugely overweight) and my podgy tum is no more. I am never hungry - when I used to eat a huge bowl of muesli for breakfast my stomach would be growling by 11am, but that never happens now.

I eat heaps of vegetables, meat, cheese, eggs etc. I cook for the family then just leave out/substitute the spuds/pasta/rice etc.

I do eat nuts (almonds) and have yogurt, fruit and nuts for breakfast, which the very strict low-carbers wouldn't have.

I relax a little at the weekends (the odd croissant!) so I don't feel deprived. I certainly haven't given up wine.

Calorie-counting never worked for me; I just felt bored/deprived all the time, and struggled to lose weight.

I've lost almost a stone and half since February, and have drunk wine every weekend.

If I started a low carb diet would I have to start with no carbs, or could I just cut down?
I've been doing slimming world for ages a while and not really seeing the results recently as i don't stick to it and fancy a change.

I don't really want to sign myself up to a Atkins like ketosis initial stage, as I'll probably blow it.

Come and join my Bootcamp - only 10 rules to follow, and no carb counting

Here is the original thread, setting out the rules

We're in week 5 but people are joining regularly. Next weigh-in will be Monday.

There are around 70 of us altogether, and in the first 4 weeks we've lost around 40 stones! (Collectively, obviously!)

Low carbing is exactly that - low carbing. You get your carbs from fresh vegetables and salad.

Whenever I try to low-carb, I just feel starving the whole time, and my stomach hurts. I find myself roaming the kitchen, looking for food, and then having a massive blowout and eating three croissants in a row. Do I just need to keep at it, until I get used to it, or what?

BIWI, i'm going to give it ago. The thought of eating cheese, butter and fat again is making my mouth water.

Going to read your thread now (i may be some time!)

herbaceous - that would indicate that you're not doing it properly. Either you're still eating too many carbs or you're not eating enough or you're not eating enough fat. Or a combination of all three!

Honestly.

One of the best things about low carbing is that you aren't hungry.

How have you been going about it/what were you eating?

Hurrah switch! Look forward to seeing you in Bootcamp.

Maybe I'm not eating enough, but I just never feel 'full'. I find protein and fat fills me up good and proper, but only when accompanied by some toast!

Herbs, you need some protein-rich snacks in your fridge. Posh cheese, or some sort of poncy prosciutto/salami are good ones for me - feels like a proper treat, and not some kind of rubbish cake-substitute.

Listen to BIWI; she is the Wise Woman of Low Carbing.....

I low(er) carb because my hormones seem to behave better (PCOS sometimes responds) but I've fallen off the wagon slightly recently.