Anybody out there doing low/no carb?

[stepcutgirl]

What do you eat? My dad has lost around 50-60lbs doing Adkins so it's certainly sparked my interest to give it a whirl. I'm getting married in 3 months and I've gained 12 lbs since I bought my wedding dress! I already needed to lose a few when I bought it so I'd love to hear from anyone who has done this or is doing this.

 

[TravelingGal]

They say doing low carb is actually healthy, but that doesn't mean burgers with no bread (although that apparently works). You can do leans meats and veggies (there's a list of what veggies I think you can eat...for instance, I believe corn isn't OK).

I've never done low carb. But I know plenty of people who have lost a lot of weight doing it. And all of them, and I mean EVERY one of them gained the weight back. Most people love carbs (breads! pasta!) and can't cut them out forever. The weight gain seems to come back with a vengeance once they are off the low carb diet, because most still haven't really learned portion control.

Anyway, long ago I bought the South Beach Diet book (never tried it though...I'm terrible at diets!) Looking at the book, it seems there are lots of good ideas for recipes and what not that are low carb. If you want to lose 12 pounds for a wedding, low carb might be for you. If you are thinking long haul, while many do adopt a low carb lifestyle, if you love carbs, maybe try calorie counting/portion control? I'm doing WWonline right now (which is just a tricky way of counting calories and it's fun) and it's definitely feasible to lose 12 lbs in 3-3.5 months. But probably not a lot more than that during that time period for the average woman.

 

[Dreamer_D]

I have not done it but like most restrictive diets I doubt it is sustainable long term, making it hard to keep the weight off.

 

[SuzyQZ]

My husband and I have been on low carbs for 6 or 7 years now.
It is a lifestyle choice, like being vegetarian, not a short term to lose weight diet.

I have read that if you lose weight low carbing and then go back to your old way of eating, you will actually gain more weight back.
Also, on low carb diets you should not go back and forth between fat burning and carb burning because your body's ability to switch back and forth is compromised as your body learns/adapts to the diet change and will resist it.
I'm not an expert by any means, so you should read up on it and, of course, discuss it with your doctor to see if it is the right thing for you and your health.

As far as my husband and I are concerned, we've maintained our same weight consistently now for the entire time we've changed our lifestyle to low carb. I don't miss bread, potatoes, pasta or sugar as much as you would think. I still eat chocolate (sugar free), ice cream (low carb) and use Splenda in my cooking and daily coffee. We eat lots of berries and green vegetables and, of course, fish, chicken, beef, pork, eggs and various cheeses. I am 5'4" and always weigh between 120 and 125 lbs. My husband is 6'2" and weighs between 205 and 210 lbs. I don't consider either one of us too skinny, more like trim. Every year we go in for the full blood work and cholesterol panels and we're very healthy.

It has worked well for my husband and I, but I never recommend this diet to anyone because everyone's health and lifestyle is different. FWIW (2cents), my opinion is, if you don't think you can stick with it, you shouldn't do it because you could alter your metabolism. On the other hand, if you are looking for a long term solution, this could be an option.

 

[stepcutgirl]

Thank you for the responses. I am looking more into to see if it is feasible for me to do this and to see if it is something I can stick with.

 

[steph72276]

I would go more the South Beach route. It is less restrictive than Atkins in the fact that you can add in whole grain breads and pastas after the first few weeks. I think SB is actually a very healthy way of eating in that lean meats and fish, low starch veggies, whole grains and berries are encouraged.

 

[stepcutgirl]

Thank you SDL! This is very helpful!

 

[oranges]

eating low carb is okay.... but eating no carb isn't very healthy. your body goes into ketosis and it's just not good for you--
I think that portion control and making good choices while not totally depriving yourself of treats is the most sensible way to do it.

 

[Iowa Lizzy]

I did low carb a few years ago. I initially lost a lot of weight. Fast. I dropped 20 pounds in just a few months.

When I stopped it? Wow. I gained 50 pounds in four months. I've been struggling for years to take all that weight back off.

So yes, it's definitely a lifestyle choice. It worked exceptionally well for me as almost a "crash" diet but the end result was soooo not worth it. Though I definitely miss fitting into all those size 0 and 2 clothes I bought when I got down to my skinniest....