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Home >> Diet Forums >> Very low carb diets?

Very low carb diets?

Heather said: "Low carb is almost like any other diet. As long as you stick to it, you'll lose weight. From my own personal experience I lost weight when I was following it, but as soon as I started adding carbs back in the weight all came back."

spectrachic311 said: "I've never done a VL carb diet, but I do know that it does indeed deplete your glycogen stores pretty well. The thing with glycogen is that it's great fuel and your muscles prefer to use it as fuel, but it is a big molecule that needs to be associated with several water molecules in order for it to be soluble and useable for your muscles. So when you do an Atkins-type diet, you use up all the glycogen and you also lose all the water weight with it. That's why bodybuilders don't eat carbs for a couple weeks before a show...they want to lose all their glycogen and get very good muscle definition. You will gain back a good 5-10 initial pounds if you suddenly go off your Atkins diet because eating carbs will cause you to retain the water with the new glycogen you just ate. Which is why, like everyone else said, YOU CAN'T CHEAT!! Oh, and one other thing: If you do decide to do very low carb, drink a ton of water because the breakdown of the proteins is pretty tough on your kidneys and if you don't drink enough, you could get a kidney infection. It's also not a good diet to do if you're prone to kidney problems already (like stones). I know I couldn't do one; I run way too much to function without glycogen. But it does work for a lot of people, you just have to be careful with it and make smart food choices (ie, eat fruits and veggies and lean proteins, try to avoid eating a TON of saturated fats and stuff.)"

xlilphishx said: "I do not follow Atkins strictly but I do follow a low carb high protein diet for the most part. I eat some carbs and I do cheat and never put on the pounds. (With the exception of Christmas time every year) The only carbs I eat is whole wheat and high fiber. Cereals I eat are organic high fiber and breads are whole wheat with 7 grams of fiber. The rest of my food includes salads, fruits and veggies (which have carbs but you need it) and tons of chicken and fish. I guess I don't follow a specific diet-I just don't eat a lot of crap. And, of course on the weekends, I splurge and Tuesdays I get my low fat ice cream with fresh berries from Cold Stone."

x-fatty-x said: "Hey everyone, I was wandering what all of you think about very low carb diets such as the atkins diet? Have any of you tried one, and if so did you have any success? Are there any downsides to consider? If somebody could explain in simple terms how it works that would be really appreciated! Its always confused me how you can eat so much fat and lose weight lol Thanks in advance :D"

x-fatty-x said: "Thanks for all of your replies, sorry i havent posted here sooner but ive been away for a couple of days. I havent actually started the diet yet because i wanted to ask for all of your opinions first as you guys always seem to give sound advice! I think its definately gotta be worth a shot though, especially as i love meats, cheese, eggs ect i shouldnt find it too difficult. Is it ok to eat prosessed meats such as chicken roll, luncheon meat ect or is it better to just stick to chicken and fish? Thanks again everyone, all replies are greatly appreciated!"

x-fatty-x said: "Thats great, thanks everyone for you help! I'll be sure to let you know how i get on :D"

help6363 said: "[QUOTE=x-fatty-x]Hey everyone, I was wandering what all of you think about very low carb diets such as the atkins diet? Have any of you tried one, and if so did you have any success? Are there any downsides to consider? If somebody could explain in simple terms how it works that would be really appreciated! Its always confused me how you can eat so much fat and lose weight lol Thanks in advance :D[/QUOTE] Hey :) I have known people to follow the low carb diet and it has worked wonders for them. In addition, they have loved it! From personal exprience, I could never stick to it because I am a carb piggy! I prefer calorie counting. I would suggest to find what works best for you and your body. I know it's pretty wish-washy advice .... sorry! Good luck and let us know how you are going!"

lakelady said: "Sleepy explained it pretty well. I maintained a 100 pound weight loss on very low carb for 6 years. I only went off when I was injured and in the hospital. She's right, when you go off expect to gain weight back FAST! That's what happened to me, that's why I joined here. For most people who like meat and cheese and eggs and cream, and nuts, and seafood this is an easy diet to stick to. You'll read that after 10 days or so, all your carb-cravings will go away. It only took six for me. You just don't want'em anymore. The good thing about the plan is that you can eat as much as you want, For people who suck at cal counting (such as yours truly) it's ideal. Ditto hard core snackers. But, she's right again, YOU CAN"T CHEAT. gatherings are the hardest. not too many parties have a low-carb buffet! Most DO have at least SOME things though. I lost the 30 pounds I gained when I went off low-carb with help from the people here, and so far, have kept it off with exercise and avoiding PROCESSED carbs, but the second my weight begins to creep up, I'm back on it! I actually kind of miss eating as much food as I want everyday. On the other hand, it's kind of nice not wrecking my whole diet for days with one little bag of chips. If you decide to try it, here's a good site. It's set up like this one and they have an awesome recipe section. Read some of those threds to get a feel for the low-carb lifestyle. It'll help you decide. [url]http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/index.php[/url] GOOD LUCK!"

lakelady said: "[QUOTE=dodger50]What's meant by Very low carb? Does that mean cutting out dairy, fruits and vegetables that all have high carbs?[/QUOTE] That's exactly what it means, but dodger, in dairy only milk and yogurt are high carb. Cheese, cream, 1/2 & 1/2, sour cream,...all either very low carb, or carb free."

lakelady said: "[QUOTE=x-fatty-x] Is it ok to eat prosessed meats such as chicken roll, luncheon meat ect or is it better to just stick to chicken and fish?[/QUOTE] It depends, some processed meats are kinda high in carbs, especially hotdogs and sausages, just check the carb count on the packages. Don't forget beef and pork in your meats. being able to have all the meat and cheese I wanted was the big draw for me, and also why I didn't get bored or gain an ounce in over 6 years!"

dodger50 said: "What's meant by Very low carb? Does that mean cutting out dairy, fruits and vegetables that all have high carbs?"

JosephX said: "I know several people who were on Atkins. All of them gained their weight back -- except one person, who quit about half way through achieving her goal and just started eating better. So I guess it worked for her, in that it got her off to a fast start."

sleepykitty said: "Hey - I've been on this type of diet before and had great results - at the time. The great part of the diet: fast weight loss, great for jump starting your diet. Bad part of the diet: doesn't teach you how to eat in the real world to prevent weight gain in the first place. Result: gained everything back. *sigh* Having said that, everything in the balance, I like the diet and will do it again (acutally just started), though this time I am wiser to its pitfalls. My advice: get a book on ketogenic diets (read: Atikins) and learn about what you're getting into. It is not the bacon fat free for all that it is sometimes portrayed as being. Biochemically, what you're doing to your body is inducing a state called ketogenesis. (NOT ketoacidosis - which is bad. Ketogenesis good, ketoacidosis bad). You basically drain your liver and muscle stores of glycogen (your body's storage form of glucose) so that your liver starts using fat in a process called ketogenesis to burn the fat to create glucose and ketone bodies that your body expells through its urine. (yum) Your organs and brain use the glucose (the only form of energy they can use) and meanwhile your muscles use the protein and fat you are eating as their primary energy source. To stay in this state of energy use, it is imperative that you are consuming less than 20g of carbohydrates or else your body will revert to its normal energy use state. And then it can take up to 48 hours to get your body back into ketosis - which is a huge pain (moral of that story: this is a diet that is not good for people who are prone to "cheating"). Hmm... now that I re-read that, it's not exactly the "simple terms" you asked for, but it's quick and important to know that anyway. In a nutshell: beg/borrow/steal a book on this type of diet and read about the induction and maintainance phases to learn how to actually do this plan. There are fabulous upsides to this way of dieting, but there are pitfalls as well. Good luck!"