Which Low-Carb Program Appeals to You, and Why?

Which low-carb eating plan is most appealing to you?  Have you been on that plan (or a different one) before, and found success?

What makes you want to try low-carb eating, just now?

I love Atkins, it's been around and is tried and true! Their website is full of everything you could want to know. Most of the others seem to use too many carbs to work for me, even South Beach is iffy for me. I gotta go way low on carbs!

I am off track with some holiday eating and have slowed my weight loss.  It seems that the bariatric diet is high protein/low carb.  Seems like my weight loss would speed up if I do this.  Many try to keep their carbs under 50.  Does that work for any of you?  Doesn't Atkins say under 25?  I did it years ago, but don't know how much it has changed.  I will try to get updated with the website.  Glad you started this thread. 

The high fat scares me, but I have known people who did well on the diet and their cholesterol numbers went down.  It seems that the trend now for all the successful dieting success is high protein and low carb-even WLS eating programs.  Would love to know what others think.

The truth is, if you lower carbs you MUST raise fat...so, essentially it becomes a high(er) fat diet. You can't eat too much protein as it can undergo gluconeogenesis and turn into sugar too (just like carbs). Fat doesn't do the same thing. Plus it's satiating.

Lipid numbers generally improve with low carb/higher fat diets. One reason is that carbs drive up triglycerides.

I, myself, have never tried Atkins, but it works for certain people and greatly improves lipid and glucose issues for many who try it.

My #1 is Paleo/Primal. I think it's hands-down the healthiest diet. It's essentially meats, poultry, fish, eggs, veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, and plenty of healthy fats. Paleo says NO dairy, while Primal (Mark Sisson, "Primal Blueprint") says some dairy is fine, especially grassfed butter. In general, it's hunter/gatherer diet. No grains or legumes. Although, they consider there is a spectrum of better grains to worse grains (rice usually better, gluten-containing grains definitely worst).

I think all lower carb approaches have definite merit because they get rid of a lot of inflammatory foods like grains and processed foods. I am just drawn to a paleo approach moreso because I have major food intolerances to grains and legumes.

Several blogs I REALLY like are:

Dr. Mike Eades of Protein Power
Mark's Daily Apple -- Mark Sisson
Robb Wolf  -- This guy is a character and his pod casts are great

I have been a low carber since surgery.  Since going to maintenance and lifting I tend to eat more ketogenic now.  Higher fats, moderate protein, lower carb.  (65%/30%/5%)

I did every diet known to man, except maybe the tapeworm diet or the wire your mouth closed diet :} and after being a veg*n (both cooked and raw) I realized, I just do better with meat eating.  :}

I have completed 2 and 1 half marathons being low carb, I think clearer, function better, have better labs, am less foggy - all around my body runs much better on this way of eating.  Sure its not for everyone and that is cool, but it definitely works for me. 

Before surgery I was just never *not* hungry and could eat volumes and volumes.  Now, after surgery, I COULD eat more than I DO eat, but my goal was that "some" could be enough and I would not be trying to find the elusive "full" all the time.  :} 

Also, eating this way, I do not try and FIND ways to finagle poorer nutritional carbs into my diet like I do when I am following a normal SAD diet model.  Its easier to have a free for all MEAL and then get back to eating the way my body prefers to run, and not lingering in the way my old habits prefer to run.  :}

Brandilynn,

65/30/5 might scare some people off, but I think it's great you are doing that. A lot of people are afraid of fat, but you are proof that it works!   High fat diets are healthy when they're low carb. And they're completely more satiating.

What's a typical day look like for your food intake? I have been warned by my doc to get on an anti-inflammatory diet now (like yesterday) because I have autoimmune disease (Hashimoto's) and he thinks it may be progressing to RA. I knew secondary and tertiary autoimmune conditions are common once you have one; I just didn't think it would strike in my early 30s.

I have another 100 pounds to lose. You are a huge inspiration to me. I have to only eat fish, meat, poultry, eggs, veg, fruit, walnuts, and olive oil. No dairy, no legumes, no seeds right now. He wants my joint inflammation at bay before reintroducing any of that. I'm scared because it seems so restrictive, but I know it's best. If you'd give me an idea of what you are eating, I'd really appreciate it.

Thanks,
Shannon

YOu know what's true for me?  When I follow this - then the carbs are SOOO MUCH LESS ATTRACTIVE.. because I KNOW how quickly they react in my body. 

I honestly eat a lot of the same stuff as my meal "skeleton."  I eat 5 to 6 times a day (this is not including the protein shakes, for whatever reason, after surgery (maybe a B vitamin issue - maybe an iron issue, maybe a fast gastric emptying issue? not sure) I do not absorb the dense proteins like I "oughta."  So, I still have 3 shakes a day, just to make sure my protein numbers (that I absorb!) are up there at baseline, ya know?

Anyway - my skeleton is of the Popeye pie thing I mentioned in the breakfast thread, and a few servings of what I call "Mexican Mash" Which essentially is 2 ounces of meat (whatever my "calorie" budget can afford, am I low and need to do turkey? or is my budget higher and I use pork or burger, you get the picture) and a slice of cheese and a tablespoon of salsa.  To manipulate calories up, I use higher nutrient dense meats, and I also add a T or 1/2T of macadamia nut oil, or virgin coconut oil to my meals.  See, this way, I can manipulate the calorie volume without having to manipulate the TOTAL volume - since I was a serious volume eater before surgery, I have been working to teach my tum, not to look for full - but that SOME was enough.  Know what I mean? 

I use unsweetened almond milk (Almond Breeze) for my "milk" in my coffee, and shakes - or the Unsweetened Coconut Milk (prefer the taste of almond breeze, but the good fats are a little higher in the coconut milk, but also a little pricer, so - what the budget will bear is what I get).

For me - the more I mix meat WITH things, the hungrier I get faster.  So, I save my mixed meals for later in the day, when its soon for bed, or say like Zumba is at 5 - I just finished hiking the dogs, so I needed to not eat an hour, two hours before we hiked, but now I need to eat something that will not be sitting in my belly in 2 hours, so I will have a salad, because meat PLUS anything zooms through my stomach faster than just plain ol meat.

I know your stress from your PAing is not helping your inflammation at all either!!

OH!   Okay no seeds, so no flax?  Or is flax a something else? 

I cook in volume, I can show you my post about it, I pack up all my foods ready to go for the next day that helps me to not have to make CHOICES, I know what I have packed, I know its YUMMY, and I know it GIVES ME THE FREEDOM to, when we go OUT and about, have room to make less nutritional choices without attaching emotions to it, because I really have been clean eating 90% of the time. 

Also being at maintenance and sometimes needing to squeeze more calories in by the end of the day (because I do not need any more fat loss, I am at 18% which is groovy fine and more fat loss just gives me.. more flappy skin :}  No thanks!  I have a goodly serving :} ) I eat this thing (that would definitely be off limits for you, just with your dietary restrictions given, but maybe later? ?)

Anyway, its 2 Tbs Naturally more peanut butter, which has higher protein (from wheat germ and egg whites), higher fiber (from wheat germ and flax seeds) good omega 3s (from flax oil) and about equal net carbs to regular peanut butter.  Its also sweetened with cane sugar, but it does not set me off with the crazies, and honestly this little "burrito" alone is nearly perfect for the 65/30/5 macro nutrients.

Its 2 T of the NM peanut butter
1 T of Hershey DArk Cocoa unsweetened baking powder
1 Slice of Havarti Cheese (this is my FAVORITE!  depending on what the budget, Both caloric and monetary, will handle though, provolone *not smokey so much :} * and mozzarella are an okay stand in, but Havarti really works with "sweet" so beaUtifully!

Anyway, I mush the pnb and cocoa together and then roll it up in the cheese.

FOOD PORN!!  I had taken a picture to put on the lunch thing here - but I will share with you now.

This is 1.5 ounce turkey meat Mexican mash thing (salsa verde is my favorite, also covered with worchestershire pepper :} ) and my pnbcocoa thing.  The PNbcoacoa thing is not a "keep me full" thing - but its a something for my sweet tooth (that I swear I really did not have before surgery, not to say I would not demolish sweets, but only saying, I do not think I would have a daily hanker for them like I do now!!? ?) so that sweets are a part of my life, even with my nutrient macros, and so other delicious sweets are not as attractive, because I have something that meets my nutrient macros, is DELIGHTFUL in my mouth, and does not give me the crazy joneses..

I gues this Mexican mash is kind of like turkey enchaldas verdes without the corn tortilla! 



Do not waste your time being skurd gurlie. we can find nutritious delicious things and figure out ways you can fill your belly well and still fill your time with your busy, busy life!!

I am proud of you for coming back and poking around for help!  That's the best thing you could have done EVER!! 

*squeeze*

Be sweet to you!

Brandilynn,

Thank you so much! You have given me so much great info to think about. You are so positive. I'm glad that people who are successful stick around to share their knowledge with others. :)

Honestly, I stick around because this is recovery, for me.  I will not ever be "cured" of my past emotionally retarded way of using food for things it never ought to have been used for, but staying and sharing and learning?  This helps me be realistic, and optimistic about long-term recovery. :} 

I know you are seriously pressed for time in your busy life, but an EXCELLENT exercise is when you see folks saying Help, I am X time out and have gained X weight, go back in their latest posts.  You can see what happened, were they ever on a program, were they just "a little of whatever I want" eaters and it went awry, did life just get like life does and squeeze them and they never learned that they NEEDED different ways of dealing, not JUST to be abstinent?  And all of this is not gathered for judment on the people, its gathered because.. well

If you were going on a trip and you KNEW a bridge was out if you took X highway - WISDOM SAYS GO A DIFFERENT ROUTE, especially when you can see it far enough ahead to have multiple routes available to you!! Ya know? 

Most folks understand girlie!  They do. 

I am thankful to be able to share.  Yaay!