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Low Carb Dieting


jesskuhmarie
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Hey everyone!

 

I'm currently trying somewhat of a low carb diet (I just can't seem to give up all the fruit!), but I haven't ate any bread, starches, or added sugars in about 2 weeks. I really want to do a pure ketogenic LCHF diet, but it's hard when my job forces me to eat out daily (if not multiple times a day when I'm out of town!) I've lost 15 pounds since the beginning of February, and hoping to lose another 30 before my cruise in May! I have a total of around 60 more to lose.

 

I'm also not really exercising at the moment due to my work schedule (I'm a CPA smack in the middle of busy season). I'm trying to add more activity throughout my day and doing sets of 10 squats when I think of it haha! But I plan to definitely get back in the gym regular at the beginning of April when my crazy hours slow down.

 

First, I'd love to hear from anyone else who has done a low carb diet. In the past I've always just counted calories, have lost up to 40 lbs a few time before, but always gained it back as it seemed like I had to drastically cut calories to the point I was miserable to lose weight or even maintain.

 

Also, I hope someone has some experience with doing a low carb diet, and then going on a cruise and treating yourself to non diet things :) I have had absolutely no bread or starches for the past two weeks and want to continue this for at least a month, at which point I will probably start allowing myself to have them one day a week. But on the cruise, while I plan to be more sensible that I would have been in the past, I really want to enjoy myself and try all the yummy foods I love (the idea of pizza, blue cantina, and guy's burgers on a ship has me drooling - I've only cruised once before and it was a small Norwegian ship with basically just a buffet and dining room)

 

So my question is, am I going to feel miserable or have an upset stomach if I eat bread and other carbs daily that week?

 

Thanks everyone! I look forward to participating here over the next few months.

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Hey everyone!

 

I'm currently trying somewhat of a low carb diet (I just can't seem to give up all the fruit!), but I haven't ate any bread, starches, or added sugars in about 2 weeks. I really want to do a pure ketogenic LCHF diet, but it's hard when my job forces me to eat out daily (if not multiple times a day when I'm out of town!) I've lost 15 pounds since the beginning of February, and hoping to lose another 30 before my cruise in May! I have a total of around 60 more to lose.

 

I'm also not really exercising at the moment due to my work schedule (I'm a CPA smack in the middle of busy season). I'm trying to add more activity throughout my day and doing sets of 10 squats when I think of it haha! But I plan to definitely get back in the gym regular at the beginning of April when my crazy hours slow down.

 

First, I'd love to hear from anyone else who has done a low carb diet. In the past I've always just counted calories, have lost up to 40 lbs a few time before, but always gained it back as it seemed like I had to drastically cut calories to the point I was miserable to lose weight or even maintain.

 

Also, I hope someone has some experience with doing a low carb diet, and then going on a cruise and treating yourself to non diet things :) I have had absolutely no bread or starches for the past two weeks and want to continue this for at least a month, at which point I will probably start allowing myself to have them one day a week. But on the cruise, while I plan to be more sensible that I would have been in the past, I really want to enjoy myself and try all the yummy foods I love (the idea of pizza, blue cantina, and guy's burgers on a ship has me drooling - I've only cruised once before and it was a small Norwegian ship with basically just a buffet and dining room)

 

So my question is, am I going to feel miserable or have an upset stomach if I eat bread and other carbs daily that week?

 

Thanks everyone! I look forward to participating here over the next few months.

 

 

Hi!

 

I have been doing low-carb for about 10 years (on and off) mostly on, since I have diabetes. To answer your question about feeling miserable or having an upset stomach, I would say no. The only time I feel bad is if I eat something overly sugary on an empty stomach. If I were to wake up and eat a donut and drink some juice, that would be bad. However, when I go on vacation, I tend to overdo it with bread, pasta, and desserts with no problem.

 

I have found that low-carb is such a great way to lose weight (and better for me health-wise) but after you do it for an extended period of time, eventually you HAVE to have bread/pasta/ chips/cup-cake every once in a while or you'll go crazy. I love to eat, and my doctor tells me it's OK to go crazy on holidays or vacation. My diabetes is borderline, and I am about 30 lbs overweight right now, and trying to lose for my cruise over spring break. When I get real serious about cutting out carbs, the pounds just fall off. I'm 45 and have been watching what I eat my whole life. It is funny to me how when I was in my 20's, it was all about no-fat. I wish I would have known then what I know now.

 

Whats great, too, is that now you can find a lot of low-carb products that didn't exist 10 years ago. Good luck to you, I can tell you when you really start seeing the pounds fall off, it is such a motivator! I have an event coming up at the end of April that I really want to look good for, an I am hoping that I can at least loose 15 lbs by then.

 

Oh, you mentioned fruit. I think there are certain ones that are better than others. If I am really craving fruit, I will eat some cantaloupe or strawberries. I always stay away from oranges and bananas. One thing I'll do is get the no sugar added canned fruit cocktail and eat just a little with cottage cheese and some splenda.

 

This is just my own experience, and I don't claim to be an expert. I think for me, the most important thing I do when I want to be really serious about it, and have gotten the best results, is to change my mind about food. I tell myself, food is not entertainment, it's fuel. The other great thing, is when you eat a lot of protein, your never hungry.

 

Hope this helps and good luck to us both!

 

Karen

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I do get a fairly upset stomach and am just generally "blah" if I have been good about avoiding breads and those types of carbs for a while - then suddenly eat too much one day.

 

And you'd think I'd learn my lesson someday, but apparently not because it still happens all to frequently for my taste.

 

Breads are my biggest nemesis now. Kicked the processed sugar, soda, and prepackaged foods - but if somebody brings rolls or pitas or stuff like that into the house, I crumble like dried out cookie...

 

I think a slice of pizza wouldn't be a problem for you. My issue is I'll wind up eating 3 and going overboard as my willpower disappears like a you-know-what in the wind.

 

Just my $0.02.

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Thank you guys for the feedback! I love hearing about other people's success! It seems whether or not my stomach will be able to handle going back to bread everyday for a week will be a toss up .. I will definitely have to test it out before the trip. Like one of you said I have major problems with self control with these things, I will not eat one piece of pizza probably 2 or 3. That's kind of what scares me about allowing myself to have bread once a week, is that I will just start back having it for every meal as soon as I have it again once. I'm kind of that way with soda, I've quit a few times before, but once I'm back to drinking it it goes straight back to everyday. But when I've quit and I'm in the zone (which I've quit both soda and bread right now - 3 weeks no soda and 2 1/2 weeks no bread except maybe a few croutons on a salad) When I'm on a roll I don't want to mess up my streak so I'm good at controlling myself, but if I have it once I find it hard to control.

 

It has definitely been easier than I though it would be, giving up bread seemed absolutely impossible to me before, as bread, noodles, rice, etc. are my weakness more than sweets. My number two to bread is probably cheese so at least I can snack on that when I'm craving something yummy.

 

If anyone has any websites with good low carb recipes please share! I haven't really stuck to any specific diet have just mainly been using pinterest to find info on low carb and LCHF diets and food and have generally stayed within that, although probably not completely low carb due to still eating fruit daily.

 

The weight loss has been decent but kind of strange with this kind of diet. I weigh myself every morning (bad I know) and some days I will gain weight for a day or two, then suddenly drop 3-4 pounds, even though my eating habits don't change much between those days. Not sure it that's normal for this or not, when restricting calories I would always drop 1/2 pound a day almost perfectly when I was being strict.

 

Anyways, I'm just rambling at this point, but thank you guys for sharing your stories and feedback!

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I have been doing LCHF for about a year now and you are welcome to follow me on Pinterest as a have some yummy recipes!

 

@michelledeluca7

 

Or you can google some of my favorites

 

Mississippi Pot Roast

Lemon Butter Chicken

Crack Slaw

Blender Sherbert

Chili Cheese pork chops

Edited by chellebells
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Thank you guys for the feedback! I love hearing about other people's success! It seems whether or not my stomach will be able to handle going back to bread everyday for a week will be a toss up .. I will definitely have to test it out before the trip. Like one of you said I have major problems with self control with these things, I will not eat one piece of pizza probably 2 or 3. That's kind of what scares me about allowing myself to have bread once a week, is that I will just start back having it for every meal as soon as I have it again once. I'm kind of that way with soda, I've quit a few times before, but once I'm back to drinking it it goes straight back to everyday. But when I've quit and I'm in the zone (which I've quit both soda and bread right now - 3 weeks no soda and 2 1/2 weeks no bread except maybe a few croutons on a salad) When I'm on a roll I don't want to mess up my streak so I'm good at controlling myself, but if I have it once I find it hard to control.

 

It has definitely been easier than I though it would be, giving up bread seemed absolutely impossible to me before, as bread, noodles, rice, etc. are my weakness more than sweets. My number two to bread is probably cheese so at least I can snack on that when I'm craving something yummy.

 

If anyone has any websites with good low carb recipes please share! I haven't really stuck to any specific diet have just mainly been using pinterest to find info on low carb and LCHF diets and food and have generally stayed within that, although probably not completely low carb due to still eating fruit daily.

 

The weight loss has been decent but kind of strange with this kind of diet. I weigh myself every morning (bad I know) and some days I will gain weight for a day or two, then suddenly drop 3-4 pounds, even though my eating habits don't change much between those days. Not sure it that's normal for this or not, when restricting calories I would always drop 1/2 pound a day almost perfectly when I was being strict.

 

Anyways, I'm just rambling at this point, but thank you guys for sharing your stories and feedback!

 

I'm on a lifetime low carb eating style (prefer that to "diet") thanks to being diagnosed as a Type 2 diabetic a year and a half ago. I've lost 60 lbs. -- I've been plateaued for a few months (no surprise) but have switched up my exercise and I think that's helping. By the way-- you don't have to go "no carb." I eat carbs at every meal- I'm just careful about how many and what kind.

 

In that year and a half, I went on a Med cruise and did just fine. I didn't look at it as a time to go crazy and eat anything I wanted but instead allowed myself have a small treat each day. I also was careful to continue my daily low carb snacks in the morning, afternoon and evening so I wouldn't be frantically hungry at meals. And the nice thing about a cruise is you don't need to feel guilty if you don't eat everything on your plate-- and there's lots of choices that will work for someone looking for lower carb options!

 

Here are a few great low carb websites to look at- I don't have the URLs handy, but just Google the names:

 

I Breathe, I'm Hungry

Fluffy Chix

Nom Nom Paleo

 

I'm going on an Alaska cruise in June and am having fun planning my eating strategy! Good luck to you!

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I tried a low carb diet and lost weight but couldn't stay on it. Carbs are my weakness.

 

It's on a cruise that I have no problem. And if you've been doing well at home, you'll have absolutely no problem on a cruise.

 

I load up on veggies and protein at the buffet and dinner. If one of your dinner sides is some type of potato, you can ask for it to be left off and double up on the veggie. I don't normally eat desserts at dinner ... might ask for some fresh fruit.

 

We have traveled with a friend who wanted a big salad at dinner. Since we had traditional dining, he simply spoke with the matre d' and every night a large salad was ready for him filled with greens, carrots, tomatoes, olives, fresh peppers, etc etc.

 

I actually lose weight on a cruise and I think it is because it is so easy for me to stay off carbs with ALL the other options easily available.

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I lost a lot a weight about three years ago on WW. I noticed it started creeping back so last December I decided to devise a plan that I could live with so I could both take the weight off and keep it off without the up and down cycle that has been my life lol. I should also mention that I cannot exercise because of many back surgeries. I really need to take care.

I devised a combination of what I learned from WW with a low carb, high lean protein lifestyle. Let me tell you. I wish I had figured this out earlier in my life. Once I got over my sugar and bread addiction it has been great going. At the start, I did a lot of seafood for about a week. I still have one piece of Rye toast in the morning with a poached egg. I eat berries but a measure the fruits and limit those a little. I am not hungry with eating more protein. I watch my portions. I do have some frozen yougart if I'm craving a treat and I do have a mini cheat meal about every two weeks but nothing fried. I think I finally found something that I can live with. I cannot have even an extra ten pounds on me because my back is very sensitive to extra weight so that helps my motivation. This is the first time that I focused on low card and portions and have forgotten about the calories and it works!

Three months and a few weeks and back in my small clothes. Not going back. Feeling like a new me and I don't feel like I am even dieting. I can live with this and not feel like I Am missing out.

So for sure, for me anyway, low carb is the way to go!

Edited by qqwer123
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I've been on a high fat low carb diet for almost 5 years, if you really want to make it work it needs to be a permanent change.

 

I've seen many people say they are on low carb but really they aren't, most people still have too many carbs or too much protein and most people fail to add more fat to their diet, it should be high fat, moderate protein and low carb..

 

The best thing you can use is a blood sugar meter to measure your blood sugar after you eat a meal, one hour after then two hours after eating and track what your blood sugar does then you will get a very good understanding about what food does to YOUR blood sugar and modify your diet accordingly.

 

If you understand the biochemistry behind it, it will be a lot easier.

 

If you do get it right, you will feel like a new person, weight loss is effortless, energy levels will improve a lot and your health will improve greatly.

 

As for a cruise, your on vacation, enjoy it, don't go crazy and you'll know that any weight you put on will easily come back off when back home.:D

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I find it impossible to binge on a cruise. I am so used to my pattern now that if I over indulge it make me feel quite sick lol. I do not want to get into that yoyo pattern either. I know lots of people with lots of plans that works for them, low cal, WW, clean eating and they do quite well. The low carb and reasonable protein plan works for me! Its more a matter of the health of my back than anything.

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I have been LC since October-ish. I am down 20lbs. I have had a few fall off the wagon weekends but am happy with my progress. I do think a cheat meal is okay for me every 2 weeks but not with sweets. Usually pizza or a sub. One of my fav desserts on Carnival is the cheese plate, yes, I love the sweet ones too, but that cheese plate is sweet, savory and satisfying all at once for me. I still have about 50lbs to lose. If I feel sluggish or sickly then I usually up my veggies. My go to snacks are peanuts and p butter with a dollop of whipped cream. Those items are probably why I have lost 20 lbs and also why I have lost ONLY 20lbs if that makes sense. I need them to overcome cravings but they also save me from eating what I feel like.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I've been eating LCHF for 3.5 years now, though the past few months I have had some carb and calorie creep and gained back a few pounds (my recent cruise didn't help, even the sugar-free desserts are not low carb!). Still around 75 lbs. down from where I started but I have a lot more to go. Need to get back to a more strict/ketogenic version soon so I can get closer to my goal weight before my next cruise!

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  • 2 weeks later...
Check out Keto which is low/no carb and to see results and inspiration and even all kinds of information go to reddit.com/r/keto Tons of great info there!

 

Reddit.com/r/keto and reddit.com/r/xxketo (for the ladies) are my go to keto forums.

 

There are some great recipe sites out there. I love ruled.me, Ibreatheimhungry.com, and cavemanketo.com

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These are all great recommendations! It's all about trying and seeing what works best with your body.

 

I've found a low carb - high protein diet works well for me and I've been doing that for the last few months in preparation for my June cruise.

 

I love to treat myself on a cruise so I definitely indulge, within reason.

 

Here are a few things I try to do:

 

Every time I'm at the buffet, start with a big salad and then go for carb laden items.

 

Avoid the dinner rolls/bread at dinner.

 

Try to start out the day with a protein filled breakfast to keep me fuller through the day.

 

I will be packing my go to snack, raw almonds and cherry tomatoes, in small ziplock bags for my purse so I'll never get too hangry :)

 

Hope it goes great on your cruise! and Eat Well!

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I'm reading studies showing that foods like whey protein that are low carb, illicit an insulin response in the body. Considering the reason for me doing LCHF, is to lower the insulin my body produces, this is a big concern.

Edited by tommy2tone_1999
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I'm reading studies showing that foods like whey protein that are low carb, illicit an insulin response in the body. Considering the reason for me doing LCHF, is to lower the insulin my body produces, this is a big concern.

 

You might be interested in this video. He talks about insulin. I've been trying to eat in a more limited window during the day.

 

http://www.buttermakesyourpantsfalloff.com/fasting-and-fifty-percent-insulin-problem/

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Some great ideas here. I am back to going to WW again for the motivation, but I am doing my own thing-mainly low carb-eating fruit only once a day. My A1C is slightly elevated-5.9-prediabetic range. I am an RN, so this really bothers me- my Dr. suggested reducing my carbs. I have lost about 15 pounds, need to lose about 35 more. I have been freaking out about eating on my cruise next week, I don't want to gain my weight back! So I have decided not to pig out like I have always done on a cruise- and try to do the best I can. I am going to take my protein bars, nuts and other stuff with me. I love seafood, so I am looking forward to eating that.

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  • 2 months later...
I've been on a high fat low carb diet for almost 5 years, if you really want to make it work it needs to be a permanent change.

 

I couldn't agree with you more.....it does need to be a lifetime way of eating and not just a temporary diet to lose weight.

 

For me, it's for health as well as weight control. I had a stroke 5 years ago and was placed on Lipitor even though my cholesterol was in normal range. I was told the standard advice to eat low fat/low cholesterol. Silly medical industry, don't they know that's the precise reason why so many have health issues, because of 30 years of telling us to eat low fat (meaning high carb)?

Seriously, how many decades and how many millions of us must die before they stop handing out this terrible advice?

It's the carbs/sugars/industrilized veggie oils that are killing us, not fat.

Edited by roomba920
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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi all, I started a low carb diet in Feb after a year of calorie counting with no weight loss. So far on the low carb diet the doctor gave me i was finally able to start the scale moving in the right direction!Down 27lbs so far trying for 50 more. I am always looking for new ideas.

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I was so excited to see this board! I've been eating LC since Jan. I've ate LC off and on in the past years but I've always fallen off the wagon because I always looked at it as a diet, but now I have made this a lifestyle change!

 

I lost 25 lbs. since Jan. The summer has proved to be much harder for me to stay on track than I ever expected. I gained about 5 lbs back over this summer.However, it's Monday, and I am back on track today for a fresh start! I meal prepped all day yesterday so I am prepared for my 1st week!

 

I am cruising on the Magic 9/24 out of Port Canaveral. Anyone else on that cruise?? I really think LC on the cruise will be easier... all the bacon, meat and veggies you could want! My last cruise, I loved the cheese plate for dessert!

 

My goal is to loose 20 lbs. by my cruise!!

Any extra tips welcomed and/or meal planning idea welcomed!

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  • 5 weeks later...

As I posted in another thread I was having really good results with a low-carb program called Ideal Protein (IP) that was managed by the chiropractic office my daughter-in-law worked at. She had lost 70 lbs on it and our son 50 lbs. I lost 40 lbs in a few months and was averaging 10 lbs a month until it was interrupted by a job change and cross country move. Just contacted a local chiropractor's office and will be re-starting on phase one. High lean protein and lots of low-glycemic vegies.

 

Program requires food logs and weekly weigh-in and BMI measurement for accountability.

 

One of my favorites is a pouch of IP high protein (18g) chocolate milkshake powder, a cup of sliced zucchini, one cup of spinach leaves, two cups water and some ice in a blender. Sometimes a table spoon of sugar free Torani caramel syrup. Blended well. Very filling and full of good nutrients.

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Hey Y'all!

 

I'm keto, so I stay less than 40 carbs a day max (usually 10-20). I've lost 24 pounds in the last month and a half. I don't know what to do about my cruise... I want to eat all of the foods that I love and hardly ever get. I think I'll just enjoy myself, and catch up when I get back. I definitely want to jump back on my diet asap when I get back though!

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