Started Low-Carb Diet Today!

[FoBoT]

high fiber, eat more fiber
lots of fiber is good for you

 

[mrkun]

This is a copy of an e-mail I sent to a friend awhile back regarding fat loss:

Here you go.

I don't think the article illustrates this that well, but here's essentially how body weight works:


caloric intake - metabolic rate = w, w = {weight loss, w < 0; no change, w = 0; weight gain, w > 0}


Caloric intake is simply the number of calories you consume each day, and metabolic rate (metabolism) is the number of calories that you burn each day.
So, to lose weight you need to be at a caloric deficit (less than maintenance level). To gain weight, you eat at a caloric surplus (more than maintenance level). Because of this, you really can't build muscle and burn fat at the same time effectively.

Everything you eat has a different effect on your metabolism. When your body digests food, it produces an insulin response. Basically, the greater the insulin response, the more that your metabolism is slowed. At least that's the theory. There are two indices called the Glycemic Index (GI) and Insulin Index (ID) that track that response for certain foods. The GI is older and pretty well established, while the ID is fairly recent and only has a limited number of foods. They do have a general correlation, but the link isn't firmly established. Anyway, the idea is to focus on foods that have low to moderate ratings and to avoid foods that have high ratings.

Here are some links:

Information on GI and ID

Information and actual indices (they're listed under "Food")

The other way to boost your metabolism is through exercise, which is what the link I gave you at the beginning of the e-mail covers.

 

[mooglemania85]

Originally posted by: FoBoT
high fiber, eat more fiber
lots of fiber is good for you
lots of fiber helps you poo
high fiber, eat more fiber

/fixed

 

[DigitalWanksta]

I was on the Atkins diet for a while when I weighed 300lbs my Jr. year in high school. I'm now a sophomore in college, and I weight approx. 175.00lbs -- You do the math Needless to say, I had great results. In fact, I have provided you with two links below to show how hard work pays off-- a before and after photo.

Alex Before

Alex After


Good luck, and if you ever need help or advice, feel free to contact me!

 

[mrkun]

Originally posted by: DigitalWanksta
I was on the Atkins diet for a while when I weighed 300lbs my Jr. year in high school. I'm now a sophomore in college, and I weight approx. 175.00lbs -- You do the math Needless to say, I had great results. In fact, I have provided you with two links below to show how hard work pays off-- a before and after photo.

Alex Before

Alex After


Good luck, and if you ever need help or advice, feel free to contact me!

Have you considered perhaps growing some of your hair back? Congrats btw.

 

[MmmSkyscraper]

Facepalm.

 

[Firebot]

There's a reason why Aktins Nutritionals went bankrupt. The Atkins diet was a fad diet that people took on because they heard how you could get a Whopper without the bun, and you would be "dieting". A low carb diet is for people who want to lose weight, yet have no plan of working at all on it other then to say "Oh look I'm dieting!" while eating bacon. You lose weight, but for the wrong reasons. While it CAN work, it only does if you use it do introduce a new lifestyle change. That can be said of all diets though, and there are way healthier diets out there that won't cause liver and heart problems later on in your life. What usually ends up happening is people lost 50 lbs, cheer that the diet 'works', don't change their lifestyle, and gain it all back.

Get on the threadmill and follow a real diet, which should be kept as permanent routine. You'll lose weight in a natural and healthy way.

 

[FoBoT]

Originally posted by: mooglemania85

Originally posted by: FoBoT
high fiber, eat more fiber
lots of fiber is good for you
lots of fiber helps you poo
high fiber, eat more fiber

/fixed

:laugh:

yes, yes it does
:laugh:

 

[iamwiz82]

Maybe I am crazy but

prime rib, an omelete, and several pieces of bacon for brunch

does not sound like a weight loss menu that spells success. I lost 70lbs this year because I stopped eating so much. It really does wonders.

 

[Firebot]

I skipped this part in my last post, can't believe why I did.

Originally posted by: Jadow
Anyways, had a family brunch today (over 120 members of my extended family!) and had prime rib, an omelete, and several pieces of bacon for brunch. I skipped the cake, french toast, and all the carb stuff. That combined with about 8 cups of coffee, unsolicited bloody mary that my dad bought me, 2 red bulls, and a diet AMP energy drink (I drink a lot of energy drinks), and I'm feeling a little queezy right now, not too bad, just a little bit, and for some reason, very tired and relaxed.

Anyone here on low carb, how hard is it the first couple days, I'm only on day 1, but it doesn't seem hard at all right now.

What the hell man? Where's the low carb diet in that? Heck, where's the diet? Unless you drink your coffee black, you have enough carbs in your drinks alone for a day.

It doesn't seem hard at all, because you didn't DO anything. Heck you probably gained a pound or two with that type of 'brunch'.

 

[skace]

Everyone explaining "how the body works" are ignoring ketosis. For good reason, I'm sure, it can be very dangerous. But when your body enters Ketosis (which is caused by a lack of carbs) it handles food vastly differently. There are actual weight lifting plans built up around low carb ketogenic cycles, where people force their body into ketosis and then carb up like a runner would but for their weight lifting windows to counter-act the muscular break down of ketosis. I honestly don't know how well this works because anything I read on it was friggen complicated as hell, and I thought calorie counters were micro-managers.

The point is that it is much more complex than the whole "calorie in, calorie out" situation. That is simply a good guideline for someone who is more intent on burning their weight off with a high intensity workout than through dieting. Different philosophies.

There are a couple important things to remember:
- Weight loss is useless without muscle gain, muscle gain tightens your skin and adds definition. These things are important especially when you are losing weight.
- Sugar is a friggen carb.
- Make sure you are getting fiber somehow or you can really screw your system up. I think lots of low carb plans treat carbs gained through fiber differently than other carbs but I honestly don't recall.

One of the most important things you need to remember when dieting is not to starve yourself or burn muscle in any manner. You gain absolutely nothing from losing pounds via muscle loss. Infact, you are simply losing ground by doing this.

 

[Jeraden]

I did the low-carb/Atkins thing for 2+ years, lost the weight, and kept it off. I haven't been low-carbing for several years now, but I think the practices/will-power you gain while on Atkins helps you eat responsibly after you transition to another eating plan.

And yes, I frequently indulged in mass quantities of bacon and meat and all the things most people will say will kill me and clog my arteries. Yet, my cholesterol levels never went up, I never gained weight while on it no matter how much I "overate" (as long as I overate fat/protein and didn't start going carb-crazy). But of course, you lose weight a lot more effectively if you limit your calorie intake to a reasonable amount. This isn't really any different than any other diet. Though its a lot harder to over-eat protein than it is with carbs.

Even though I'm not on it now, I still stand by atkins/low-carb as a valid and successful diet. The hardest part is the willpower not to eat carbs - and you can't imagine the social pressure to go off the diet. Going out to eat, or birthday celebrations at work, or lots of other social events are frustrating because you get so tired of being heckled by other people who just don't understand. But once you get into the groove, it just becomes second nature and the thought of eating a donut or a piece of cake is just no longer a temptation.

 

[mrkun]

Originally posted by: Jeraden
Even though I'm not on it now, I still stand by atkins/low-carb as a valid and successful diet. The hardest part is the willpower not to eat carbs - and you can't imagine the social pressure to go off the diet. Going out to eat, or birthday celebrations at work, or lots of other social events are frustrating because you get so tired of being heckled by other people who just don't understand. But once you get into the groove, it just becomes second nature and the thought of eating a donut or a piece of cake is just no longer a temptation.

You do realize that occasionally eating something not on the diet isn't going to suddenly cause you to gain weight back, right?

 

[skace]

Originally posted by: mrkun
You do realize that occasionally eating something not on the diet isn't going to suddenly cause you to gain weight back, right?

But it brings back cravings. And it is a slippery slope.

 

[DigitalWanksta]

Originally posted by: mrkun

Originally posted by: DigitalWanksta
I was on the Atkins diet for a while when I weighed 300lbs my Jr. year in high school. I'm now a sophomore in college, and I weight approx. 175.00lbs -- You do the math Needless to say, I had great results. In fact, I have provided you with two links below to show how hard work pays off-- a before and after photo.

Alex Before

Alex After


Good luck, and if you ever need help or advice, feel free to contact me!

Have you considered perhaps growing some of your hair back? Congrats btw.

Well, buzzing my head has been a recent change that was brought on by my brother. So I'm giving this new hair style a try. I'm in college, so it's def. easier to work with and cheaper to maintain as well. Hell, I actually shave my own head, FREE!

 

[DigitalWanksta]

Originally posted by: skace

Originally posted by: mrkun
You do realize that occasionally eating something not on the diet isn't going to suddenly cause you to gain weight back, right?

But it brings back cravings. And it is a slippery slope.

I couldn't agree with you more on this. People often ask why I'm so obsessed that I can't just eat ONE plate of pasta. They don't understand that carbs are an addiction, and giving in and "cheating" will unleash cravings all over again. Someone that's trying to quit smoking doesn't randomly have ONE smoke every so often..

 

[mrkun]

Originally posted by: DigitalWanksta

Originally posted by: skace

Originally posted by: mrkun
You do realize that occasionally eating something not on the diet isn't going to suddenly cause you to gain weight back, right?

But it brings back cravings. And it is a slippery slope.

I couldn't agree with you more on this. People often ask why I'm so obsessed that I can't just eat ONE plate of pasta. They don't understand that carbs are an addiction, and giving in and "cheating" will unleash cravings all over again. Someone that's trying to quit smoking doesn't randomly have ONE smoke every so often..

Lol. I didn't realize that some people were so strongly driven to eat certain foods. By the way, pasta and rice only have moderate GI values, so if you eat a bit it's really not that bad. Personally, "cheating" on occasion is what enables me to stay on the diet in the first place.

 

[slag]

Originally posted by: Jschmuck2

Originally posted by: Jadow
you're right, it is all about net calories in the end, but you know what. While I didn't exactly eat a balanced meal, I'm not hungry, have no cravings, and probably am done eating for the day. (might drink a bourbon on the rocks later).

At my weight, it takes 3200 calories to maintain, and I will definitely be under that today.

Maintain what? Fatness? Those fad diets do NOT work. Ever. Sure you may lose a couple of pounds in the beginning. But when your impulses kick back in, you'll gain it all back in a week. Get out there, get some exercise and eat better. That's the best diet you can subscribe to.

Atkins is not a fad diet. Its been around forever and has a great following, AND is proven to work. As with all diets, you have to stick with it.

When I was on Atkins, I lost 40 lbs and felt great. I went to the family doctor to get a blood test and my bad cholesterol was down and she said my bloodwork showed my body was in very good shape. The only thing she said negative was that I wasn't drinking enough water, but I never do. I cant drink water unless I'm extremely thirsty.

 

[Jadow]

Quick Update.

I've been on it since Sunday. Overall, doing well. I haven't been able to curb the alcohol like i wanted, but I'm eating less calories and losing weight. Drinking a lot of water. I did have a meltdown last night during the football game and snacked on junk food quite a bit, but overall, I probably didn't eat more than 3000 calories yesterday.

Started at 217 Sunday, weighed in at 214 today.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

2003 called they want their fad diet back

 

[purbeast0]

lol @ these diets.

these are nothing but temporary solutions. and sticking to the atkins diet for a long time is not even healthy.

 

[mrkun]

Originally posted by: purbeast0
lol @ these diets.

these are nothing but temporary solutions. and sticking to the atkins diet for a long time is not even healthy.

Yeah, but it's not intended to be long term. The low GI diet is basically a much more moderated form of Atkins (or Atkins is a really extreme form of the low GI diet) that's actually a healthy regular eating plan.

 

[Jadow]

Originally posted by: IcebergSlim
2003 called they want their fad diet back

Wow, I feel so blessed, even strip club guy reads my posts.

 

[mrkun]

Originally posted by: Jadow

Originally posted by: IcebergSlim
2003 called they want their fad diet back

Wow, I feel so blessed, even strip club guy reads my posts.

Haha, as you should be.

 

[Linux23]

Man, you better cut out the alcohol. Atkins does work, but you really shouldn't be drinking while on it. Don't let these fools try to deter you. There is no one plan for everyone. This didn't turn out well for me, but it may work for you.

Good luck.