Eating the Low-Carb Way: your place to share

Uncle_Bob wrote:...Triglycerides 149...

Most low-carbers would say this indicates you are eating more carbs than your body can process and might indicate insulin resistance exists (Tri=<100 is the goal). Congrats on the high HDL!

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secret agent girl wrote: How do I figure out which of these body types matches mine?

I think it is trial and error. Plus for women there is menopause when you start all over again.
What worked for me when I was young and skinny stopped working as soon as I hit menopause.
Probably hormones and menstrual cycles (or lack there off) have a lot to do with it.

I know before menopause I would get these incredible cravings for carbs right before my periods plus I could eat a bag of potato chips with dip happily for 3 days without a gram of weight change. Not so much now.

First of all, I agree with Paul56 that low-carb should be a lifestyle and not a diet. If I ever do get this weight off, I will continue to eat very low carb in general, but deliberately introduce just enough carbs to keep me out of ketosis.

If you are doing a low or very low carb (I aim for <30 grams a day), your goal is to stay in ketosis. In a state of ketosis, you body if forced to use your fat to generate the little carbohydrate it needs (for brain and blood-- all other tissues can burn fat directly). Most of the dietary fat cannot be stored. An interesting side effect is your carb cravings go away. This is the state where you lose weight the fastest. Felines eat this diet exclusively, as they are obligate carnivores.

Once you have lost the weight you need, you start eating enough carbs to keep your body out of ketosis, but not enough that your liver can fully replenish its glycogen reserves. In this area (which does not have to be a narrow range), you can maintain your weight, and have the energy benefits of dietary carbs. You can eat a much wider range of foods, and perhaps some higher carb foods in moderation. Unfortunately, your carb cravings come back, and have to be controlled through willpower. This is where the lifestyle change comes in.

The really low carb foods are virtually any animal product (milk is the notable exception), green non-starchy vegetables, and many nuts. In my case, I really do not like the vegetables and have to really force myself to eat a little. I am now looking at the low carb breads as I am now having problems with constipation I did not have before xPAP began.

xPAP therapy boosted my metabolic rate. This increased my carb ceiling for ketosis, giving me a little more freedom in maintaining ketosis. Weight loss is faster. These benefits remain even though I am still having some issues with tiredness.

For the body types, this is from a book I highly recommend, called 'The Metabolic Typing Diet'. This book goes through all the different body types, from the 'protein type' through the 'carb type'. In the process, it validates a lot of 'fringe diets' and why they are effective for some people. There is a test in the book that helps you figure out your 'type', and dietary guides for each type. Other books I can recommend are the Dr. Atkins books, as well as any books by the Eades. "Protein Power' is especially good.

Kiralynx, I am with you. I have been told (but am not sure) I am type A. But, I have a profile much more like a type O, with the penchant for meat like a type B.

timbalionguy wrote:...having problems with constipation...

Try increased water and increased sat fat...might help. Yoga breathing helps too.

Muse-inc, thanks for the advice. I try and drink a lot of water, which is harder now that they have placed all our warer fountains with these boutique things designed to fill small cups.

Yoga breathing???
I do plan to start doing some walking as soon as my weight is down to a point that it will not stress legs and feet too much. Had to stop several years back due to gout damage. That is all healed now, since the gout is well-controlled. (No significant attack since 2003!)

Eating more saturated fat is easier. More beef! (licks chops) Just wish it wasn't so darned expensive! I have noticed that if I eat a lot of beef, I do have looser stools.

timbalionguy wrote:...Yoga breathing???

Every one but the one I'm thinking of comes up in google, I have no idea what it's called. It's a technic with full deep breaths in, forceful exhalations using the lower diaphragm & belly muscles, arms down with forearms extended to the front and parallel to the ground turned so that loose fists facing upwards, slightly bent knees...maybe someone will recognize that technique. Frankly, I can't remember much more but there was a rhythm and pattern to it (so noisy we heard it all over the neighborhood . I was like 8 or 9 when my mom's best friend in reaction to her husband's latest binge had a yoga teacher in to teach her and my mom that and some of the asanas (positions) and other stuff I can't remember to improve health...after seeing the bill her husband behaved himself for a looooog time .

timbalionguy wrote:Eating more saturated fat is easier. More beef! (licks chops) Just wish it wasn't so darned expensive! I have noticed that if I eat a lot of beef, I do have looser stools.

Make your own mayonnaise, and replace half the oil used with melted coconut oil -- I use an expeller-pressed which is still high quality, and save my extra-virgin oil for when I want a coconut flavor to something.

Using the coconut oil does two things: adds sat-fat, and makes the mayo much thicker -- and it becomes quite firm when chilled.

This mayo can be used to make an amazing array of salad dressings and dips.

I also make my own ranch dressing out of homemade yogurt -- which is made with half & half. From pastured cows. Now there's a salad dressing and/or dip worth eating! (Goes great with pork rinds or almond flour crackers.)

I ate two eggs and three strips of bacon for breakfast. I'm not hungry. Normally I have either eaten part of my lunch by this time, or not eaten and just been upset about how long I "have to" wait until lunchtime to eat.

I am so unused to not being hungry. (What that means is I am totally used to being hungry.) I'm actually kind of in shock. I'm going to stop thinking about this as a "low-carb diet" or any kind of diet. I can't believe how good I feel. I suspect this way of eating will be as "big" for me as my OSA diagnosis and CPAP treatment.

What is going on for other people?

I am kind of stalled until I feel good enough to go out and buy some groceries. Living out of my cupboards.

I need one of those "Philly" man servants to clean my kitchen and get some groceries in.

My body runs much better on a low carb diet. I come from a long line of Type2 diabetics.

Typical Breakfast:
4 eggs scrambled with 1 oz (28g) of shredded cheddar

Typical Lunch:
Two grilled chicken breasts, one medium granny smith apple for dessert

Typical Afternoon Snack:
2 Mozerella Cheesesticks and a mouthful of cashews.

Typical Dinner:
Big 10 oz hamburger patty with 1 oz of cheese with a tablespoon of Schumann's ketchup (no sweeteners added)

Typical day ~1700 calories. My energy levels are high. My hunger is low. I've lost 35 pounds in the last 48 days. I am happy and healthy on <40g carbs/day.

As an ex-biochemist, there is no doubt in my mind that refined carbohydrates are a blight on civilization.

I will never again eat sweeteners (sugar, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, maple syrup, molasses, crystallized fructose, agave nectar, honey, or any other name they come up with for simple refined sugars).

I will never again eat refined grains (white flour, white rice, quick-cook oats, etc).

I will PROBABLY never again eat ANY grains (even 100% wheat flour, brown rice, steel-cut oats, corn, etc.)

In my opinion, the only controversy is the question of "how low" someone needs to cut their carbs to reach a homeostasis where they do not run up their fat stores and still have energy to live an active life. For me, that is pretty darn low.

I think Atkins hit the nail on the head when he suggested 2 weeks of very strict <40g carbs/day for a couple weeks of induction and then slowly add carbs back into your diet until you stop losing weight.


EDIT: If you want to see what that looks like, I am recording my weight loss on YouTube (user name: ProjectFortyTwo). Here is the introduction video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gOPjepRCtQ and here is my 6th week weigh in last Sunday: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RSqxHW14Qo.

TSSleepy - thank you SO much for sharing your info! I have really been wondering about what kind of weight loss I might expect. I think I too am going to keep some kind of fitness/health/fat loss journal. 35 lbs in 48 days is VERY encouraging!!! I'm going to check out your youtube video now.

Oh! Oh! Oh! TSSleepy, we can be buddies in this journey -- I turned 42 on December 28th and I was diagnosed with severe OSA in January 2009. Plus I'm a total SF geek...

Cool beans, TSSleepy, congrats on the very nice wt loss! Video the progress...great idea!

BlackSpinner wrote:I am kind of stalled until I feel good enough to go out and buy some groceries. Living out of my cupboards.

I need one of those "Philly" man servants to clean my kitchen and get some groceries in.

Stalls are normal. The body eventually adapts and learns to be efficient with new lifestyle. Change things up a bit to break stalls. Do a one day fast or spend one day doing real intense physical activity (not both on same day though) and on the following day pig out with healthy foods containing large amounts of quality fats and possibly up the carbs a little with small amount of potato or beans and lots of water. Then it is critical to go back to low-carb and easy low intensity exercise like walking. When weight loss stalss again, then mix things up again and again go back to low carb. So long as the monthly trend is always down, not worry about the periodic stalls.

My pantry and cupboards were emptied of foods and are now used for storing small counter appliances. I keep little to no foods in them now ... a few cans of tuna, spices, and olive/coconut oil. Over 95% of my food is stored in fridge freezer. I'm in the market for small high energy efficient freezer chest to buy and stock organic meats in bulk or when on sale.