Low carb diet and weight loss…?

6 responses so far ↓

• 1 itzthegudlyf // Mar 20, 2009

  ITS not the carbs that make u fat its the calories from the food. Ppl say to lose weight u should go on a high protein diet, this is bcuz protein makes u feel fuller for longer so u end up eating lesser calories. U jus need to cut down ur calories and u will lose that weight.

• 2 ???????????Melanie??????????? // Mar 20, 2009

  You need to work off more calories than you put in in a day. That's the key. You should eat fresh fruits, veggies and proteins for meals and very little carbs, yes.

• 3 baskeith@snet.net // Mar 20, 2009

  Step 1: Find out what your basal metabolic rate is. Go to: http://www.nowloss.com/how-to-lose-weight-keep-it-off-permanently.htm
  Ignore the advertisements there. This is the amount of calories you need to eat to maintain your current weight(The number is towards the bottom of the page).

  Step 2: Do you exercise? Do you exercise right? Exercising right means that you monitor your heart rate and make sure that you reach your target heart rate and maintain it for the longest period of time while exercising. You have two targets a fat burn zone and an cardiovascular zone. The fat burn is usually 60% of your maximum and is easier to achieve and maintain and if your goal is weight loss this is where you want to be. Just walking/excising is a good start but if you want to get the most out of your work out find out what your target range is. If you don't belong to a gym then I recommend the Polar Fitness F11 Heart Monitor Watch.

  Step 3: You need to decrease your caloric intake or increase the amount of calories your body uses in a day by 500 calories a day for a week to lose 1 pound. So you can decrease that basal number you got in step 1 by 500 calories and exercise very little(yes you still need to exercise). Or you can decrease it by 250 and exercise off 250 calories or any other combination. Remember that your basal number is the amount of calories you body needs to live. If your number were 2400 then your body burn 100 calories per hour. So if you walk for half an hour and burn 300, 50 of that is your basal.

  Step 4: Count your calories, it's not hard and you'll find out that you eat a lot of the same things on a daily basis so you won't have to research everything over and over again. Balance what you eat (equal parts carbs and protien whenever possible) . One of the best websites out there is one from the FDA. http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/
  This database has almost every food on the planet counted and weighed. (Hint: they do a lot of their weights based on 100grams. If you put 0.28 in the serving size this equals 1 ounce). Get a reliable food scale, preferably digital. Weigh everything that you put in your mouth that is not prepackaged. You need to know what you’re eating and how much you’re eating. The number one mistake is "eating healthy". Everyone thinks because it's "healthy" the portion isn't that important. A handful of peanuts is "healthy" and has nearly 250 calories! Eat enough calories and it won’t matter how "healthy" it is your going to gain weight. Great ideas for people on the go are: South Beach Cinnamon Raisin Cereal Bar(awesome snack, 150 calories, 10g of protein! 3g fiber you can not do better, also comes in Peanut Butter and Chocolate), Snickers Marathon Multi-Grain Crunch(Wal-Mart diet aid aisle), Snickers Marathon Protein Caramel Nut Rush(Wal-Mart diet aid aisle).

  Step 5: Balance! In what you eat. Make sure that you are eating Protein, Carbs, and Fiber in every meal. A great way to make sure you get the protein and fiber is Kelloggs Protein Water. It has only 30 calories but gives you 5g protein and 5g fiber for 20z. Go to Wal-mart they sell a 10 pack of the powder for ~$5.50. That way when you are eating a high carb food for a snack or meal you can still get the balance.

  Step 6: Smaller but more. Each smaller snacks more often instead of big meals. This really does work and will definately increase your metabolism. I eat a South Beach Cereal Bar every 2 hours all day then a good dinner. They keep me full and they taste pretty good. Caffiene is your friend. It is a natural appetite suppressant so have that cup of coffee!

  Step 7: Adjustments and Variety. If you are doing your best and losing weight but your starving, increase the amount of calories your giving yourself by 100-200 calories a day. Losing weight and starving are not good bedfellows. If you starve eventually you will crack and lose the battle. The more types of exercises you do the more weight you will lose. You will work more muscles and keep your body guessing.

  Step 8(optional): If you belong to a gym or have some free weights at home. Use them! Muscle takes up less space in your body than fat (pound for pound). A pound of fat sits around and does nothing all day, while a pound of muscle, even at rest burns calories(increasing your basal metabolic rate).

  Step 9: Sleep, Never underestimate the power of a goodnight sleep. Will power can crumble in a second if your going through your day tired. You end up with a diminished sense of self control and tend to “give in” to temptation.

  Step 10: Find a distraction. Read a book, Ride a bike, Play a game. Whatever takes your mind off of food, do it. You will need something that you can turn to in a moment of weakness. Something that will distract you for a half an hour so that your will can reassert itself and help you to make a rational decision.

• 4 Hannibal the Cannibal // Mar 20, 2009

  I hate the low-carb diet craze. While it's true that you shouldn't eat over-processed bullsh*t, you NEED carbs. You NEED them for energy, you NEED them to help you digest protein, you NEED them to keep you regular, and because all the natural foods with carbs are fruits/veggies/whole grains/beans, you NEED them because they're full of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals to keep your body functioning properly.

  No diet, low-carb included, will target any specific area of fat…and that's true for exercise. Fat is lost first where it was last gained, and finally where it was first gained. That's just how it works. That's why people's faces look thinner when they first start a diet…face fat is usually the last to be put on.

  Low-carb diets are a horrific gimmick that tricks people into thinking that they are healthy. But if we were supposed to eat in a low-carb fashion, then our bodies wouldn't require nutrition from carb-filled foods.

  Avoid the bullsh*t, the processed grains, the added sugars (including sweeteners), but if you're about to ditch healthy things like veggies, fruits, natural grains, and beans, just rethink it and ask yourself if that really sounds like a smart idea.

• 5 SA Writer // Mar 20, 2009

  Going on a no carb or low carb diet will help you lose weight. Whether Atkins or South Beach if you are true to the diet it will work. People have been trying to demean the diet since Atkins introduced the idea decades ago. But every study by medical schools and nutritionists have demonstrated that the diet works and it is healthy.

  Most people have fast and dramatic results. Admittedly, men have better results because they usually have much more weight to lose. You have a small amount of weight to lose so it may take a month or so.

  The good part about low carb is that you don't have to count calories, weigh portions, or starve yourself. That's not to say you can eat until you're sick but you won't go hungry. Good luck.

• 6 Layla B // Mar 20, 2009

  I had a load of unwanted fat in all the embarrassing places until I used acai berry, I know they say that pills don't work, but they sure worked for me, and they have been shown on CBS News too. There's a free trial happening currently at http://donurs.yatardirek.com , why not try it, why not?

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