low carb

Iristxo

Just wondering about this low-carb stuff, the staying away from the carbs is it only because of the insulin spikes or is it something else as well? Are blueberries low GI or high GI? I love blueberries...

columok

Really depends on the theory.

Paleo diet reckons that grains are toxic and valueless filler crops and so you should get your carbohydrate sources through veggies and some fruits.

Sources i'd recommend would be robbwolf.com and thepaleodiet.com.

Try it and you'll feel better. Even if you aren't 100% strict you're subtracting a less nutrition heavy bread/rice/pasta for a more nutritious salad/asparagus/broccoli etc. And then plenty of meat and fish.

EDIT: To answer your question: it is because of insulin spikes. You want your body to run on fat as a primary source of energy rather than carbohydrates. Most fruit and berries, in moderation (with the possible exception of bananas) are much more preferable to grains etc. If you were realliy trying to cut weight then you shoudl focus on veggies (minus potatoes) as your source of carbs and ease off on the fruit. (though still eating a few pieces across the day)

Darkginger

A fairly recent book that explains the advantages of low carb (whilst actually looking at why we've been told to eat low fat to lose weight for so many years), is 'Good Calories, Bad Calories' by Gary Taubes. He started without an agenda as such, and looked at diet studies to see where the current recommendations came from.

It's a very heavy read, but you can read it summary here. I found it illuminating, as it explains the results I've had from low carbing, as opposed to my previous decades of attempting to eat low fat

Blueberries are a good low carb fruit! So are strawberries, blackberries, raspberries,... well, you get the idea.

Iristxo

Hmmmm... I have not researched it thoroughly but there's a few things I am not convinced on. Like I can see how most grains (specially refined ones) are not good for us, same with sugar of course... but fruit. I keep coming back to that one, I can not give up my mango, or my banana, I really can't. And I don't want to! Plus I do not see the need... same goes for porridge...

columok

Don't think anybody said give up fruit. I had a big ginormous bowl of fruit salad after training last night.

Bananas are a very quick acting sugar and not so great. If you cut out the sugar and grains you're 90% there!

EileenG

Low carb (except in the very strict induction stage) tends to exclude processed food, and include fresh food, including fruit.

Most grains are extremely processed. Believe me, you do not go out into a field and start picking and eating grains. You need a couple of factories and a mill to make most grains into something that humans can eat.

The control of insulin is a big factor, as insulin surges and swoops are now considered to be a factor in a lot of modern conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, even cancer. But also, cutting out processed junk tends to ensure that what you do eat has a lot more nutrition. I never ate so much green veg before I went low carb. On the food pyramid diet, I ate a lot of rice and pasta and bread, and perhaps 1-2 portions of greens a day. Now I'm eating double or triple that.

Pembily

EileenG wrote: »

Low carb (except in the very strict induction stage) tends to exclude processed food, and include fresh food, including fruit.

Most grains are extremely processed. Believe me, you do not go out into a field and start picking and eating grains. You need a couple of factories and a mill to make most grains into something that humans can eat.

The control of insulin is a big factor, as insulin surges and swoops are now considered to be a factor in a lot of modern conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, even cancer. But also, cutting out processed junk tends to ensure that what you do eat has a lot more nutrition. I never ate so much green veg before I went low carb. On the food pyramid diet, I ate a lot of rice and pasta and bread, and perhaps 1-2 portions of greens a day. Now I'm eating double or triple that.

K I am stupid about this thing I have been told by accupuncturest to eat more green veg - are green veg the ones that are green coloured?!?!?! Sorry I am blonde and brain is full of college cr@p!:o

EileenG

Yep. Green veg generally includes anything leafy or green or salady.

That means things like asparagus, avocado, aubergine, broccoli, bokchoy, brussel sprouts, beet greens, cabbage, courgette, cauliflower, chard, celery, cucumber, dandelion, endive, fennel, green beans, garlic, kale, leeks, lettuce (the darker in colour the better), mushrooms, mangetout, pumpkin, rhubarb, peppers, baby sweetcorn, spinach, spring greens, salad greens, scallions, turnip tops, watercress.

There's a lot more, that's just the stuff I like to eat.

Pembily

EileenG wrote: »

Yep. Green veg generally includes anything leafy or green or salady.

That means things like asparagus, avocado, aubergine, broccoli, bokchoy, brussel sprouts, beet greens, cabbage, courgette, cauliflower, chard, celery, cucumber, dandelion, endive, fennel, green beans, garlic, kale, leeks, lettuce (the darker in colour the better), mushrooms, mangetout, pumpkin, rhubarb, peppers, baby sweetcorn, spinach, spring greens, salad greens, scallions, turnip tops, watercress.

There's a lot more, that's just the stuff I like to eat.

Oh and I will eat all of it bar mushrooms and cauliflower!!! I love the way you alphabetised the list!!!

Thanks a million!!!

EileenG

If you learn to tolerate it, mashed cauliflower is a great substitute for things like rice and potatoes. Throw in some cheese and it tastes a lot better.

Iristxo

columok wrote: »

If you cut out the sugar and grains you're 90% there!

More or less my aim these days, as I have since coming to this forum realized that I have a problem with sugar, I am totally addicted to the stuff. But just wondering in that cutting out the sugar would I also have to watch out for high-sugar fruits (well you already answered my question about bananas) how about mangoes? Are you supposed to give up oats too? Are oats that heavily processed? I buy wholegrain organic ones in the health store, and soak them overnight in water and a dollop of yogurt just like Temple said

I eat about two pieces of fruit a day, some berries and some mangoes, easy-peelers, apples, pears and kiwis, 2 or 3 bananas a week and mostly stay away from grapes and pineapple. I use xylitol twice daily for my oats (I can't stomach them otherwise) and for my kefir.

What about sweet potato? We eat very few spuds.

columok

Iristxo wrote:

More or less my aim these days, as I have since coming to this forum realized that I have a problem with sugar, I am totally addicted to the stuff. But just wondering in that cutting out the sugar would I also have to watch out for high-sugar fruits (well you already answered my question about bananas) how about mangoes? Are you supposed to give up oats too? Are oats that heavily processed? I buy wholegrain organic ones in the health store, and soak them overnight in water and a dollop of yogurt just like Temple said

I eat about two pieces of fruit a day, some berries and some mangoes, easy-peelers, apples, pears and kiwis, 2 or 3 bananas a week and mostly stay away from grapes and pineapple. I use xylitol twice daily for my oats (I can't stomach them otherwise) and for my kefir.

What about sweet potato? We eat very few spuds.

Sweet potato is great. My gf loves it but i'm not a fan.
I'd eat 2-4 pieces of a fruit a day depending on activity levels.

I'd skip the oats because i think i can get better sources of carbohydrates from vegetables. I also avoid yoghurt because i find it makes me feel unwell.

I wouldn't sweat grapes or pineapples or anything really apart from excessive bananas. If you're eating clean unprocessed food and plenty of meat, fish and veggies then your fruit and nut levels aren't really an issue.

As i say the only real reason to aggresively restrict fruit is if you're trying to cut body fat by controlling your insulin!

Iristxo

columok wrote: »

As i say the only real reason to aggresively restrict fruit is if you're trying to cut body fat by controlling your insulin!

Oh, I see! I hadn't gotten that. Is it the same for root vegetables? I am trying to shed my own (and my children's) addiction to sugar but I certainly have no weight problems, neither do the children. I am 1.60 and weight 53 kilos, not sure what BMI that is but I'm not concerned.

I'll go easy on the bananas though

With regards to dairy, I don't know which way to go. I don't drink a lot of milk, only in my kefir and some in my porridge and we don't eat yogurt. The kids drink some milk (for calcium) but I used to give them soya milk. Now I have recently heard bad things about soya but I have always heard about the bad effects of casein in the body... so don't know what to do, specially for the kids. We eat mozarella cheese: is that supposed to be good, bad? I use it sometimes to "substitute" some meat cos I don't want to go overboard with the meat, and the cheese helps with the protein to keep us full. In this board, some people seem to be ok with cheese, some others aren't...

Thanks for your time

EileenG

I'm generally okay with proper cheeses, I just try to avoid all the cheese products with the long lists of ingredients.

If you are not worried about weight, then root vegetables are fine, as long as they are cooked simply. There is a huge difference between french fries and boiled new potatoes.

Personally, I'd rather drink milk than soy.

While cheese has its place, you are probably better eating the meat, Or eating fish instead. It's great to add interest to a meal, but I try not to make a meal out of cheese.

El_Dangeroso

I agree, unless you have gastric issues with dairy, there is no evidence to say it is harmful in moderate quantities, as Eileen says, use it to complement your existing diet, not as your main protein.

I'm fairly low carb (~100g a day but I don't really count) and I eat fruit almost every day. Fruit is only excluded at the very start of strict very low carb plans. If you're not trying to lose weight there's no point in eliminating it.

shootermacg

I split it to 40protein/40carbs/20fat.

Breakfast
egg / brown wholegrain toast.
or a bowl of porridge + dried fruit.
Remember you have been fasting during the night so carbs in moderation are good.

Dinner & Lunch
This would be chicken breast, tuna etc(lean meat)/1/2 cup brown rice/olive oil to fry breast + a lot of veg.
Use whatever spices you want, current fav is chilli flakes + thai 7 spice.

I tend to lay off the carbs after 8 unless it's a workout day in which case I add some glucose(simple carbs) to my shake post workout(this is when carbs are good), maybe a banana + 40g whey pre workout (I workout at around 7:30/8:30pm) for as long as it takes to do Doug's 4day split.

I have meat + green veg some nights if I feel wasted.

I've lost 3 stone and kept good lean muscle during this period.

Good Carbs should have their place in any cal controlled diet IMO.

Iristxo

EileenG wrote: »

I'm generally okay with proper cheeses, I just try to avoid all the cheese products with the long lists of ingredients.

If you are not worried about weight, then root vegetables are fine, as long as they are cooked simply. There is a huge difference between french fries and boiled new potatoes.

Personally, I'd rather drink milk than soy.

While cheese has its place, you are probably better eating the meat, Or eating fish instead. It's great to add interest to a meal, but I try not to make a meal out of cheese.

We only eat mozzarella cheese, I do not like the other ones. There's no added ingredients, not in the brand that I buy. For reasons that I have stated before and contrary to what most people think in this forum I do not like to go overboard on the meat. So some meals are: loads of veg, an egg for each one of us and to add protein to it we just eat some mozzarella cheese. This is not everyday: we always do the veg and the egg and we alternate between: prosciuto ham, smoked salmon and mozzarella cheese for source of protein. So we only eat it like once every 3 days or so. For dinner we do have proper cooked fish but I am very very busy and I can't "cook" twice a day. Plus we'd get bored of the fish eventually, I reckon... As i write I am just thinking that I might start buying organic free-range chicken breasts once or twice a week or so.

The "dinner veggies" we do roasted. Is this good? I add a small amount of oil of course. Which one is best? Extra virgin olive?

EileenG

Roasted veg is fine. Olive oil is good, but EVOO doesn't tolerate very high heat, so just watch that.

Personally, I find fish very easy to cook. Either throw a piece on the pan, or chuck it in the oven for ten minutes.

corkcomp

shootermacg wrote: »

I split it to 40protein/40carbs/20fat.

Breakfast
egg / brown wholegrain toast.
or a bowl of porridge + dried fruit.
Remember you have been fasting during the night so carbs in moderation are good.

Dinner & Lunch
This would be chicken breast, tuna etc(lean meat)/1/2 cup brown rice/olive oil to fry breast + a lot of veg.
Use whatever spices you want, current fav is chilli flakes + thai 7 spice.

I tend to lay off the carbs after 8 unless it's a workout day in which case I add some glucose(simple carbs) to my shake post workout(this is when carbs are good), maybe a banana + 40g whey pre workout (I workout at around 7:30/8:30pm) for as long as it takes to do Doug's 4day split.

I have meat + green veg some nights if I feel wasted.

I've lost 3 stone and kept good lean muscle during this period.

Good Carbs should have their place in any cal controlled diet IMO.

what he said.

in fact, i tend not to eat anything at all after 8pm, i go to bed by 11 so no need really and i workout in the am

timetogetfit

columok wrote: »

Bananas are a very quick acting sugar and not so great. If you cut out the sugar and grains you're 90% there!

Thats not true but is a very common misconception, bananas are actually quite low GI and offer numerous health benefits

shootermacg

timetogetfit wrote: »

Thats not true but is a very common misconception, bananas are actually quite low GI and offer numerous health benefits

That's exactly true! They weigh in at 100 to 130 cals a pop so don't think you can eat em all day! They, like most good carbs are fine as long as you allow for the cals.
Yes they have sugar, as do all fruits but I'd be more worried about my teeth than my diet ^ ^. Nothing beats a banana in a slice of wholemeal toast, with a bit of phili, nom nom nom ^ ^.

timetogetfit

shootermacg wrote: »

That's exactly true! They weigh in at 100 to 130 cals a pop so don't think you can eat em all day! They, like most good carbs are fine as long as you allow for the cals.
Yes they have sugar, as do all fruits but I'd be more worried about my teeth than my diet ^ ^. Nothing beats a banana in a slice of wholemeal toast, with a bit of phili, nom nom nom ^ ^.

my response was in opposition to what the previous poster said about bananas being a quick acting sugar, the proper term is high glycemic carb, and that is definitely not true,bananas are quite low to medium gi.

I know bananas have a high calorific value compared to most other fruits and you cant eat as many as you like, but I never claimed that in the first place

brianthebard

timetogetfit wrote: »

my response was in opposition to what the previous poster said about bananas being a quick acting sugar, the proper term is high glycemic carb, and that is definitely not true,bananas are quite low to medium gi.

They're 50-ish in the gi scale they aren't low.

El_Dangeroso

timetogetfit wrote: »

my response was in opposition to what the previous poster said about bananas being a quick acting sugar, the proper term is high glycemic carb, and that is definitely not true,bananas are quite low to medium gi.

I wouldn't put much faith in the GI index as individual blood sugar responses vary wildly in different people. What could be low GI for you, could be very high GI for me.

It all depends on how insulin sensitive you are. If you have a big belly (dead giveaway for insulin resistance) then a banana is probably going to send your BG skyrocketing. If your a young active guy with a 6-pack, it will barely disturb your blood sugar at all.

Iristxo

They ARE very nutritious thought. I remember reading that insufficient ingestion of potassium for example can be a big problem for health. I wouldn't go eating like 10 a day or anything but I think one a day can do nothing but benefit most people, sugar or no sugar.

Sapsorrow

For people who like to keep their sugar consumption (or weight) on the lower side you can get potassium from plenty of other sources too like tomatos, squash, potato, spinach and some nuts and seeds. I don't know that bananas offer anything unique that can't be gotten from a diet rich in fresh veggies in general? We did a lab in college before where we calculated rough estimates of our nutrient intakes using a one week food diary and my potassium intake was through the roof, so much so that the supervisor/lecturer came over and checked he was reading it right before he logged it in

Iristxo

khrystyna100 wrote: »

For people who like to keep their sugar consumption (or weight) on the lower side you can get potassium from plenty of other sources too like tomatos, squash, potato, spinach and some nuts and seeds. I don't know that bananas offer anything unique that can't be gotten from a diet rich in fresh veggies in general? We did a lab in college before where we calculated rough estimates of our nutrient intakes using a one week food diary and my potassium intake was through the roof, so much so that the supervisor/lecturer came over and checked he was reading it right before he logged it in

Again I think we're talking DEGREES here (IMO). The average person does not consume inordinate amounts of veg (we do) and for that people, a banana is going to be better than a lot of what they eat anyway. For the healthiest of the healthiest then yes, you can go for healthier fruit or veg. But a banana is still better than 80% of the food you find in your average supermarket.

double d

HI THERE, CAN ANYONE HELP ME FIND LIVE KEFIR GRAINS. I HAVE LEFT MY DETAILS ON THE KEFIR SHARING SITE BUT TO NO AVAIL. I LIVE IN SOUTH DUBLIN AND MY NUMBER IS 086.1929627.:P

Sapsorrow

Anyone come across these guys before?: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/03/13/richard-johnson-interview.aspx

Iristxo

khrystyna100 wrote: »

Anyone come across these guys before?: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/03/13/richard-johnson-interview.aspx

Are we supposed to take this guys seriously? My word one cup of blueberries (which I thought were good) consumes "over half" of you daily "fruit allowance"



Well that's off mangoes for me anyway

StinkySocs

Gosh I'm reallly hunger after reading this, I'm goin to go to tesco and get loads of fresh fruit, thanks for the tips!

I have porraige in the mornings, the normal stuff, my friend said it was really good for you and that everyone should eat it, what do you think? Is it that good? Or would weatabix b just as good?

EileenG

Porridge is better, but if you are really stuck then weetabix would do in a pinch. I still think eggs make a brilliant breakfast. You can scramble eggs faster than you make coffee.

Dudess

Yeah I have eggs for breakfast.

I've pretty much cut out bread and pasta from my diet, and feel all the better for it - gone are the sugar crashes and insatiable cravings.

Spanish Eyes

Hi everyone. Great reading there!

I am not sure I really understand low GI, but having read up a bit, I have cut down on bread, spuds, rice and the like, and hiked up the veg and the proteins.

I eat a banana every second day, and strawberries in between. Not many, just enough to satisfy me.

I do eat wholemeal bread (4 slices a day, used to eat MUUUUCH more lol), and I have porridge or eggs for breakfast. I use frozen veg and steam them, and they turn out fabulous, much better than simmering in a pot. As a matter of fact, my steamer is my life saver. I do a cookout at the weekends, and freeze things like home made burgers, chicken strips. I buy fresh fish and freeze it, then defrost and cook it . All the cookout stuff is defrosted the night before and reheated in the steamer.

Anyone got an opinion on frozen veg? Tastes really fresh to me, and cooks great in the steamer.

So 4 weeks on, I have trimmed down a bit, not that I am overweight, but just want to change some bad habits.

Transform

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Hi everyone. Great reading there!

I am not sure I really understand low GI, but having read up a bit, I have cut down on bread, spuds, rice and the like, and hiked up the veg and the proteins.

I eat a banana every second day, and strawberries in between. Not many, just enough to satisfy me.

I do eat wholemeal bread (4 slices a day, used to eat MUUUUCH more lol), and I have porridge or eggs for breakfast. I use frozen veg and steam them, and they turn out fabulous, much better than simmering in a pot. As a matter of fact, my steamer is my life saver. I do a cookout at the weekends, and freeze things like home made burgers, chicken strips. I buy fresh fish and freeze it, then defrost and cook it . All the cookout stuff is defrosted the night before and reheated in the steamer.

Anyone got an opinion on frozen veg? Tastes really fresh to me, and cooks great in the steamer.

So 4 weeks on, I have trimmed down a bit, not that I am overweight, but just want to change some bad habits.

low gi help/explaination here is best i can do-

http://thetransformationcatalyst.wordpress.com/2010/01/31/the-gi-beginners-guide-to-getting-nutrition-on-track/

poconnor16

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Hi everyone. Great reading there!

I am not sure I really understand low GI, but having read up a bit, I have cut down on bread, spuds, rice and the like, and hiked up the veg and the proteins.

I eat a banana every second day, and strawberries in between. Not many, just enough to satisfy me.

I do eat wholemeal bread (4 slices a day, used to eat MUUUUCH more lol), and I have porridge or eggs for breakfast. I use frozen veg and steam them, and they turn out fabulous, much better than simmering in a pot. As a matter of fact, my steamer is my life saver. I do a cookout at the weekends, and freeze things like home made burgers, chicken strips. I buy fresh fish and freeze it, then defrost and cook it . All the cookout stuff is defrosted the night before and reheated in the steamer.

Anyone got an opinion on frozen veg? Tastes really fresh to me, and cooks great in the steamer.

So 4 weeks on, I have trimmed down a bit, not that I am overweight, but just want to change some bad habits.

Frozen veg is perfect - nothing at all wrong with it, my freezer is stocked. I think EileenG mentioned already about cooking cauliflower, then mashing it up with some butter - best substitute for potatoes ever!!

Sapsorrow

Woah just did a quick (and rough) carb count for my food intake today and managed to eat 16g of carbs from onions! :eek: I never would've thought onions would contribute so much sugar!! I read online today the typical american diet consists of ~300g of carbs, but I would consider today really low carb (and quite a low amount of veg) for me (apart from the pear) and it came in at 150g can that be right? never though a pear would contribute 23g either not gonna be eating them much anymore!

I used the USDA nutrient composition database and rounded off numbers so this is rough but does it seem right? In terms of atherosclerosis/insulin response is 150g a fairly safe figure in general for most people (I know some people are more sensitive than others)? Could you safely go higher?

Tofu (125grams) = 2.12g carbs
Sweetheart cabbage: 1 cup = 7.84g carbs
Pepper: 1 and ½ = 18g carbs
Leek: 1 = 9.45g carbs
Tomato: 1 and ½ medium = ~7.5g carbs
Tinned tomato: 1 cup = 9.6g
Carrot: 0.25 cup = 3.2g carbs
Onions (4 small) = 16g carbs
Cauliflower (3 florets) = 2.22g carbs
Kidney beans (1 cup) = 40g carbs
Pecans (1 and ½ oz) = ~6g carbs
2 medium eggs = ~1g carbs
Spinach (8 cups) = 8g carbs
1 small pear = 23 g carbs
Total: ~150g

Melia

Is the fibre counted in those numbers?

metamorphosis

Those numbers seem odd to me K

Sapsorrow

Melia wrote: »

Is the fibre counted in those numbers?

Nope was planning on working it out again with fibre included.

ULstudent wrote: »

Those numbers seem odd to me K

Really in what way? Ok glad I checked with ye now, I've never tried to work it out before. Is it too high or low? Like I said it's a fairly rough calculation, my portion sizes are probably a bit off and I rounded off some numbers but I wanted to get a general idea of where the carbs in my diet were coming from.

metamorphosis

im shocked at the actual amount of carbs in those figures. I neer would have thought. It made me go and tot up my own daily figures on calorie count.

today i went through 4 eggs,4 egg whites, 6 ryvita, 70gms oats, glass milk, glass soy milk, 100gms tuna, loads of spinach, beetroot, peppers, stirfry veg like bok shoi, cabbage, onions, 2 apples, 1 pear, some melon, 225gms cottage cheese, 350gms natural yogurt, some philidelphia cream cheese, plum.

Now i rounded figures up a little but it came well over 250gms carbs. Didn't really think i went through all that but the fruit i suppose and oats etc.

Sapsorrow

Ok I must have done it wrong or maybe the USDA data isn't reflective of european foods? I mean you seem to have eaten lots more carbs than me there and only got an extra 100grams in Where do you guys get your carb values from? I don't really have wrappers for fruit and veg to check so figured to USDA fwould be a good place to check!

metamorphosis

well having spent a few months studying over there all the fruits are much larger than here - in my opinion anyway. Its hard to tell with nutrition data for here vs. there but i really don't think that's tot up to 150gms carbs, could be wrong though. You seem to be doing well as you are a the time been so i wouldn't overly worry abut it. Maybe re think if you plateau for a bit but for now i think you are grand.

Sapsorrow

ULstudent wrote: »

well having spent a few months studying over there all the fruits are much larger than here - in my opinion anyway. Its hard to tell with nutrition data for here vs. there but i really don't think that's tot up to 150gms carbs, could be wrong though. You seem to be doing well as you are a the time been so i wouldn't overly worry abut it. Maybe re think if you plateau for a bit but for now i think you are grand.

Thanks thats bizarre that their fruit would be larger! I'm actually getting close to needing to stabilize my weight now I'm losing so quickly. I'm 5ft 10" so don't really want to go as low as a size 8 (I'm a ten at the minute), last time I was that size my granny said I looked like a junkie! I'm not sure how to do it and keep my carbs low though, I eat so much as it is and I use loads of coconut milk, olive oil and 2-3 oz of nuts a day minimum. I don't exercise much at all either!

Iristxo

khrystyna100 wrote: »

Thanks thats bizarre that their fruit would be larger! I'm actually getting close to needing to stabilize my weight now I'm losing so quickly. I'm 5ft 10" so don't really want to go as low as a size 8, last time I was that size my granny said I looked like a junkie! I'm not sure how to do it and keep my carbs low though, I eat so much as it is and I use loads of coconut milk, olive oil and 2-3 oz of nuts a day minimum. I don't exercise much at all either!

With that carb count and you do loose weight! Good to know. Another poster stated that over 40gr carbs a day and he/she starts to pile on the weight. My carb count would not be too far off yours. On a good day I would eat (less) veg than you and some would be root veg. So on a rough count I was thinking I would be ingesting about 150-200 carbs a day since I do eat more fruit than you and I eat oats. Was worried that I'd start to put on weight...

Iristxo

Just to clarify: I have been loosing weight for a while and I'm nearly at my ideal weight (well I could loose a couple of pounds and it would not be the end of the world but it's only a couple of pounds). But I was doing a lot of raw food back then and also breastfeeding my child, and I reckon I was consuming less calories than I needed anyway.

Sapsorrow

Iristxo wrote: »

With that carb count and you do loose weight! Good to know. Another poster stated that over 40gr carbs a day and he/she starts to pile on the weight. My carb count would not be too far off yours. On a good day I would eat (less) veg than you and some would be root veg. So on a rough count I was thinking I would be ingesting about 150-200 carbs a day since I do eat more fruit than you and I eat oats. Was worried that I'd start to put on weight...

Nah don't worry about putting on weight unless it actually starts happening! Yup and I've been losign since december when I was stil eating loads of root veg, a good bit of grain and dried fruit too!

metamorphosis

Yeah berries were pretty much same size but feck me the apples, oranges and bananas and pears were ginormous where we were - upstate new york.

I really do not think that there is 150gms there and you get through plenty of nice fats there too which always help re weight loss. I find anytime i eat lots of veg and some fruits and drop most of the grains the weight does fall of me a bit even if my carb content is up at that level and im a 68kg 5ft11 lad!!

If the weight is still coming off you fairly quickly maybe throw in some small changes like making your nut intake from brazils which are higher in cals than most if i remember correctly. Other than that im stumped unless you want to increase a little more fruit? its hard to tell as you eat so well as it is and there isnt any need to throw in carbs for the sake of it. Maybe throw in some nut butter too as an extra snack on top of what you are already eating. Maybe some celery and a tablespn of peanut butter before bed - extra 100cals there or more.

Iristxo

khrystyna100 wrote: »

Nah don't worry about putting on weight unless it actually starts happening! Yup and I've been losign since december when I was stil eating loads of root veg, a good bit of grain and dried fruit too!

Yes I know, if over 40gr carbs made you put on weight then the people who eat like 300-400 carbs a day or more (me a few years ago) what would they weight then? And I was not so heave then either! I was carrying some 5 kilos more than now, no more.

Sapsorrow

ULstudent wrote: »

If the weight is still coming off you fairly quickly maybe throw in some small changes like making your nut intake from brazils which are higher in cals than most if i remember correctly. Other than that im stumped unless you want to increase a little more fruit? its hard to tell as you eat so well as it is and there isnt any need to throw in carbs for the sake of it. Maybe throw in some nut butter too as an extra snack on top of what you are already eating. Maybe some celery and a tablespn of peanut butter before bed - extra 100cals there or more.

Excellent an excuse to eat peanut butter I can definately live with that! I can't go to mad on the fruit as I find it really aggravates tmy IBS, I've only been eating it lately as I need to go shopping and I don't have much else there thats as convenient. I can tolerate small bits thrown into salads better than eating them alone so maybe I can work on that a bit. I might try and get in the habit of having boiled eggs in the fridge for last minute snacks actually. Might aim for three a day instead of two.
I eat brazil nuts a good few days a week but I'll try upping them a bit now too I'd say cashews are probably higher fat than most they certainly have an extra creaminess about them, it's mad after years of being told eating too much fat is goign to make you fat I can't help but feel a little confused (despite knowing better) by losing so much whilst eating so much of the stuff! :rolleyes:

Sapsorrow

Iristxo wrote: »

Yes I know, if over 40gr carbs made you put on weight then the people who eat like 300-400 carbs a day or more (me a few years ago) what would they weight then? And I was not so heave then either! I was carrying some 5 kilos more than now, no more.

Ya I know what you mean alright, I think some people may be more sensitive than others to carbs though and age has quite a bit to do with it. I'm just grateful I'm getting away with such a relaxed diet, I enjoy eating this way so much I really look forward to every meal! I mean today was very low carb for me and I do prefer to eat more generally so if I can get away with it I'll be happy out