Low Carb Diets

[237SJ]

I thought I might go on a low carb diet for a month before my holiday. The last time I did Atkins it was about 10 years ago and it was quite extreme. No carbs at all including root veg, peas, no fruit (not a problem because I hardly eat any), no alcohol etc. I haven`t researched anything because I only decided to do it last night. Have low carb diets evolved since Atkins? I know everyone`s ripped off the Atkins diet but I was wondering if anyone can point me in the direction of an Atkins type diet that is do-able. Thanks

[Sqad]

I don't do "dieting" 237, but the recent "fad" which seems to be gaining in popularity is not so much a low CHO diet as a low calorie diet.

http://www.marieclaire.co.uk/blogs/suzannah-ramsdale/542291/5-2-diet-recipes-what-can-you-eat-on-the-fasting-days.html

Where are you going for your holiday?

[237SJ]

Antigua, Sqad. The trouble is, when I have 3 days off, that means I have to starve for two of them which isn`t much fun. The low carb diet is the easiest to do in my job. I wouldn`t want to do it for ever though. The thought of never having rice with curry, or a nice roast chicken dinner is horrible. That is why I thought I would kick start a diet with low carb then switch to something like Weightwatchers after the holiday. I`ll start tomorrow ....(not today as it`s my birthday and I`m going to drink shed loads of champagne later)

[Sqad]

LOL I understand, happy birthday 0'sexy one.

Antigua eh? Not my favourite spot but i suppose i chose the wrong hotel...Blue Seas or Blue Waters or Blue Bottle.......something like that ...it was crap.

[ummmm]

Happy Birthday, 237, it's my sons birthday today as well :-)

How big is your appetite? And how much weight do you want to lose?

[237SJ]

Blue Waters. It`s expensive as well. There isn`t a lot of choice in Antigua really. Most places are All Inclusive as well because you can`t get out and about to different restaurants like you can in Barbados. The Antigua has the most free seats though so that`s where I`m going on my freebie ticket.
Thanks for the birthday greeting. I`m off to bed now (working last night)

[237SJ]

BTW - I`m not staying at Blue Waters. I`m staying at CocoBay which is where that honeymoon couple were murdered.

[237SJ]

Thanks Ummm. It`s a bit sad though because it is my first birthday without my Mum. I share my birthday with Mick Jagger but I`m not as wrinkly as him.

[ummmm]

Days like this are always hard. The first time you don't receive a card or just a birthday wish from a parent. You take it for granted while they're here xx

[mikey4444]

237....DTC has recently been on a similar diet.......perhaps he could chip in here ?

[pastafreak]

Atkins gets a lot of bad press as all people can think of is what they supposedly can't have...the deprivation is over exaggerated. With Atkins induction,carbs are severely limited,yes. But they are gradually re-introduce...the idea being that you then find what "your" tolerance levels are. Some people do much better with very low carbs...and never really miss bread,rice,pasta etc. Others can eat more...its finding what works for you.You need to see it as a lifestyle change...not a diet.
I've been living low carb for several years now and enjoy what I eat immensely. I've learnt that wheat causes bloating,over night weight gain...and the craving of more and more wheat. So I stay away from it. I can eat higher starch veggies like sweet potatoes and still maintain my weight. There are various approaches to low carb,including Paleo( no dairy),Primal( allows dairy),Keto(very,very low carb),Atkins,south beach...and on and on.

[Jomlett]

I'm been on a low carb diet for the last 18 months and lost 32 kilos after banning bread, biscuits and booze. I also prohibited pastries, pies, pasta and potatoes. I lost 10 inches of my waist and really enjoy wearing smaller clothes and always amazed when a pair of 32 waist chinos fit me comfortably!

[DTCwordfan]

I've been on minimum carbs since Feb and have lost coming up to 3 stone and 6 inches around the waist. No bread, pasta, cakes, rice, spuds, anything rich in sugar....porridge allowed to counter the meat and dairy though, if a sweetener is needed, a splash of honey or maple syrup.

Ethanol as in dry wines or things like Riojas allowed, no beer, no cider or sweet wines.

Not hard to do, first week - there are headaches etc as the body detoxes, and a lot of evening fatigue for the first month or so.

The only thing that I have yearned for occasionally is pasta, maybe once a week but less so now, ironically that being a better carb to have as it is a slow release.

I have been supported by my doctor and that I would advise, just to make sure that you are not doing any damage to anything - I've had blood pressure tests and now my dosage has been halved -there's no guarantee that I can come off them all together when I lose another 1.5 stone but we hope so as I used to tick on at around 120/72...... He did a blood test not long ago to check on vitals like cholestrol etc - no issue there.

Lastly, the weight may fall off you to start with but overall you shouldn't lose more than a kilo a week for health reasons (gall bladder for example). I now find that mine comes off in steps, a couple of weeks flat and then down we go, 1.5 pounds this week......

Good luck - and I certainly won't eat as many carbs as I did in the past. My one treat will be next week for a b-cake, I've asked for a Pavlova, no issue with the berries and cream but I love meringue! By the way, I have considerably upped my fruit and veg intake - braising chicory for example to replace potatoes and thank goodness for cherries, raspberries and Granny Smith apples.

[pastafreak]

I missed pasta also for a while. When I finally did *treat* myself to some,I didn't like it at all! Not the taste,and the texture was nasty to me. That's the thing with low carb...it can change your taste for certain things. So you may think you can't do without a food,but discover you can quite easily.
As a way of eating it really can't be bad because it encourages eating real food...not processed rubbish. Win,win.

[DTCwordfan]

Was this processed pasta, pastaf, or fresh?

[pastafreak]

Both I'm sad to say. I really should change my moniker on here...:-D

[Clanad]

I've mentioned it previously, but I think it bears repeating that investigating an eating plan (hate the word "diet") that firstly eliminates most of the processed sugars provides the results one expects as far as weight loss. However, that benefit is secondary.

I started a low sugar regimen in March following on Mrs. C, and am coming up on a goal mark of 30 pounds loss… but… but… the real news is how good I feel. Better nights sleep, more even temperament… What's amazing is that I'm rarely hungry… and that's coming from a ranch kid who has always eaten everything set before me.

I'd recommend investigating the Medical Weight Loss plan only because Mrs. C is the one that initiated the process. She found out that she was pre-diabetic and decided to take charge of her life. She found that the Medical Weight Loss programs helped immensely and was run by a medical doctor who thoroughly explained and administered the plan.

I won't go into the details, but it isn't complicated. At the risk of repeating myself from other threads… the key is noting the nutrition label required on almost all foods. There are 3 areas are crucial… total carbohydrates (in grams), total fibre and total sugars. Simply put, one subtracts the fibre grams from the carb grams and divide the remainer by 5. Then compare this number to the grams of sugar supposedly in the food. The difference is quite amazing a lot of the time.

An adult male is allowed 12 to 15 grams of sugar (one gram is equal to a volume amount of close to 1 teaspoonful) per day (female about 9 to 12) with the caveat of having zero grams of sugar until 4 to 5 hours after waking up in the morning.

I was pleasantly surprised at how relatively easy it was to adhere to the rules… and this from a person who had always used 3 or 4 teaspoons of sugar in my morning coffee.

Mrs. C. was also prescribed Metformin to control the blood sugar levels and now is greatly improved and has lost nearly 20 pounds (towards a goal of 30).

Anyway, the Medical Weight Loss (sometimes called Medi-Weight Loss) franchise works, is comparatively inexpensive and one doesn't have to buy "special" packaged foods from them.

[pastafreak]

The best method is to buy food that doesn't have/need a label ;-)

[Clanad]

Problem is Pasta, since 1994 nearly all foods (except those that have litle nutritional values such as coffee, spices and alcohol) are required to have the nutrition lable. Additonally, unpackaged, basic foods such as vegetables and fruits don not require the lable.

I find the lable helpful, especially since it requires providing the number of servings in the package... a small package of any snack frm a vending machine, for example may have 2 or 3 servings but have high fat and calorie content if the whole package is consumed but the buyer assumed it to be only one srving.

Intentional or not, the one value that seems to be subject to manipulation is the gram equivalent for sugar. Sometimes, here at least, the sugar content contains a small number of grams, say 3 for sugar, but the next line could be sugar alcohols, adding another fairly large number of gram equivalent. Sugar alcohols, often present in sugar free candies and such are carbs that are notroiously hard to digest as well... Nice to know those things whether one is trying to control them or not...

[237SJ]

DT - can you eat yoghurt? I didnt start my low carb diet yesterday because I had to dash off to work with no time to cook eggs etc so just grabbed a cereal bar. Today, I have limited choice from the hot counter in the supermarket across the road. From what I have seen there recently, the choice will be salad with chicken or chicken curry. I won't be able to have rice but they did have a pea and diced carrot mix that I could have on the side. Trouble is, peas and (I think carrots) were not allowed on Atkins.