Another question about no carb/low carb diet

[Cheswick2.0]

I am doing the first two weeks thing. I am eating only meet, eggs, cheese.

I have a couple of questions.

Are water chestnuts carbohydrate or nuts or what?
Is milk okay?
Does anyone on this diet have a cheat day?

This strict diet part is hard because I crave carbs really bad. I would be happy with one freaking piece of toast or some pasta. However it is easy in a way because I know what I can have. What I worry about is when I can start modifying it a little. Carbs just set me off on binges, I worry that adding back fruit and bread is going to kill the whole thing.

[laconicsax]

1. I've been doing a low carb diet for a while

The cravings sort of go away. I just try to limit myself to 60 of fewer grams per day--from any source.

I don't count fruits or vegetables in the carb counting--just breads, potatos, pasta, etc.

You shouldn't have to worry about nuts--just don't go overboard.

Milk is ok for some, not ok for others.

[Cheswick2.0]

11. Yes I think I will be fine with fruit and veggies after awhile

the breads, pasta and potatoes I will need to avoid for the duration. I do think I will have desert one day a week after a while.

[pippin]

2. carbohydrate blockers

a number of people I know who have been on the atkins now eat carbs but take carbohydrate blockers. carb blockers phase 2 have an enzyme made from white beans. carbs are not absorbed when these pills are taken but pass through you.
the clinical evidence of actual weight losses is incoconclusive but the people I know swear by the . worth a look see I suppose:

http://www.greenville-health.com/faq.html

[Dogmudgeon]

30. Starch Blocker notes

They work, but they don't block all carbohydrate.

First, they don't block sugars at all.

Second, they can only block about 40% of the starch you eat, tops. And if you pig out on pasta, for example, you might only get 5-10% blocking, even if you take three or four.

The good news is that they seem to block small amounts of starch well enough to not knock you out of ketosis if you're doing low-carb; and they also help a lot with reflux and heartburn problems for some people.

But don't get to used to them; it's only a matter of time before Nader and Wolfe decide to ask the FDA to ban them, like everything else (except veganism) that works for obesity.

--bkl

[supernova]

3. If you're gonna eat nuts

the first couple of weeks, it's best to stick with almonds, macadamia nuts, sunflower seeds, and pecans. I don't know about water chestnuts, I did a quickie check in the Atkins book. I'm getting ready for Will's talk tonight.

I usually wind up eating a handful of nuts during the course of the day. That little handful is very filling to me. :D I also eat fruit and veggies during the day.

Congrats to you CatWoman on your low-carb journey. :thumbsup:

edit: incomplete thought. I did a quickie check in the Atkins book and w. chestnuts aren't in there. So, I guess that means they are not appropriate for the beginning of atkins.

And I agree with the other posters, your carb cravings will subside. I no longer have any desire whatsoever for pasta. Though I do find it hard to pass up freshly made bread. :9 And I have gone back to eating sushi (sushi rice, you know). I save them as sometime treats, like chocolate.

edit2: Note to self, this is Cheswick's thread, not Catwoman's. Sorry. :crazy:

[Cheswick2.0]

10. LOL, no prob, you can call me anyone you like

I am eating sunflower seeds, but I guess I will cut them out for the next week. I will add them back when I add fruit. I think I will avoid all but WASA bread for as long as I am on the diet.

[LynneSin]

4. I've done it and it'll almost kill you those first 2 weeks

Not literally!

When you start adding carbs back in, save them for nighttime or at least later in the day. I found if I start my day off with carbs then I'll crave them all day.

Milk has carbs in them. Some nuts are fine - I ate a few almonds when I had cravings. Other things that are ok for low carbs are beef jerky and pork rinds (which I absolutely hated). But I'd snack on a beef jerky whenever I needed something to chews. Check the labels though - some jerky can be high in sodium and certain flavored ones can have carbs in them from the suguars.

I'm starting Atkins again on Monday (I just got my test results back and I can't blame my thyroid), but I'm kinda easing myself into my start date. I eat a hard-boiled egg. If I have time I'll make some canadian bacon or sausage plus I'll have a cup of Soy Milk (which has tons of carbs unfortunately). If I can't get the meat in my breakfast I can usually run down stairs to the cafeteria and buy a few pieces from the breakfast bar. (I'm weird about eating eggs in a buffett line - especially scrambled).

Next week I'll switch my juice to sugar-free V8 Splashers. They have a variety of juice blends and only 3 carbs. (http://www.v8juice.com/diet_v8_splash.asp) Next week is going to be my killer week, but if I do hard core Atkins for 2 weeks straight (actually 1 week 6 days, I'm taking a break when I attend RBNYC's birthday party - but just for a few drinks), then I can get on focus with my diet.

It worked before and I lost 40lbs, but I moved got frustrated with other things and gained back the 40lb plus extra. I don't blame the diet - I was going through depression from my move and depression led me to binge eating.

Good Luck - remember, we've got smokers who gave up their addictive habits here. Carbohydrate cravings are just as bad ESPECIALLY when they're the bad carbohydrates!!!

[Cheswick2.0]

6. good luck Lynne

I hope we both do well! Thank you for the tips too. I 9 days left before I can start adding fruit. Next week I am going to start walking.
One good thing is that I start student teaching on the 6th of Oct, so I will be in school all day. It is too easy to eat crap all day when you have a desk job.

[Chilly_Willy]

19. Snacking on the job...

You should eat, you should snack if you have too. (on atkins your supposed to eat every 6 hours, unless you are sleeping of course). If your body craves food there's a reason, there's vitamins you aren't getting or you are eating too much sugar that is causing you to crave more food. Eat more vegtables at all your meals, maybe you won't get cravings to snack??

[flamingyouth]

5. No water chestnuts

Nuts have carbs in them. Suzanne Somers, in her Atkins-spawned diet books, calls them "funky foods," i.e. they are a mixture of fats and carbs and should therefore be avoided.

[Cheswick2.0]

8. damn, no Chestnuts?

Thanks for the info. I need to know these things

[janekat]

23. they only have 9 grams of carb and no fat for 1/2 can

doesn't seem like too much harm in that. Better than a lot of stuff...

[Terran]

7. Eat your vegetables, dammit!

I don't know which diet you're on, but there is no reason for cutting out vegetables from your diet. As long as you're eating mostly leafy or fibrous green vegs, you'll be fine. You NEED those items in your diet to be healthy. Eating nothing but protein is bad for your kidneys.

I lost ten pounds this past July by low-carbing, and I ate plenty of vegetables, sugar-free desserts, all kinds of stuff beside meat and cheese and eggs.

And be sure to drink LOTS of water, or it won't work for you.

Dirk

[Cheswick2.0]

9. I am eating a limited amount Dirk

but very limited for two weeks. I will add fruit in another week. I am drinking tons of water. But thank you for reminding me.

[E Pluribus Unum]

12. I have been interested in diet & health

for almost 30 years. I believe a diet that is mostly from animal
foods is the cause of much sickness and disease. I have rid
myself of quite a few health problems by eating raw fruits and
vegetables for a period of 2 to 3 months.

[newyawker99]

18. Hi E Pluribus Unum!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[musiclawyer]

28. Damn Right--eat fruits and veggies-go blood type

Atkins works great (for eight loss) short term and takes years off your life long term. If your gonna do a diet, do the blood type--essentially a "healthy" Atkins type way of eating for the vast majority of people.

[chadm]

29. I agree with you

I'm not a low-carb fundamentalist...which has made it possible for me to stick to the diet for 5 years (lost 40 pounds originally and have since hovered around my ideal weight).

Like any "canned" philosophy, Atkins isn't the whole truth. It is a simple road-map for people to follow, but I've also read about the "negative-calorie" effects of certain fruits (supposedly, fruits like strawberry burn more calories to digest than they contain). So adding these negative-calorie fruits to a low-carb diet makes sense.

Here are some great resources to answer your questions:

http://www.locarbizi.com/user/Carb%20Counter%20-%20Locarbizi.htm

http://www.healthrecipes.com/negative_calorie_foods.htm

[nini]

13. I have a list I can send you if you want it

it's in .doc format.

PM me if you want me to email it to you.


It's what I follow and it lists all the vegetables you can have etc.. I make alot of salads from the list.

[Cheswick2.0]

14. thank you

check your inbox.

[nini]

15. I put it in text format and PM'd it to you

I forget to save it after changing it .. so if you want to post it here for others.. feel free to do so.

thanks

[DemExpat]

21. Could you PM this list to me, Cheswick? Or post it here....

Would be appreciated!

DemEx

[Cheswick2.0]

25. Check your inbox

:hi:

[mkregel]

16. Splenda is your friend

Pick up some splenda and some soy flour....make carb-free cookies. Theyre not the greatest, but they work.

[Chilly_Willy]

17. If you do the Atkins diet...

If you are on the atkins diet you can eat water chestnuts it's under the foods of induction, "Other Vegtables" (first 2 weeks). I recommend anyone who is trying to do Atkins go on this forum and read up on the FAQ's of Atkins. All you need is the foods list and the 13 rules to do the first 2 weeks. Or get the 2003 3rd Ed and read chap 10 & 11.

Many questions are answered on this site, there's even a low carb part on the board :
http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com

Cheat day?? Well I think diets are no good if you don't get to cheat sometimes, but when you start eating low carbs then you realize that there are so many more foods in the grocery store. Good luck, I think you'll do ok if you do a little at a time, not everyone is ready to give up their eating lifestyle for a new one.

[DoYouEverWonder]

20. You can eat

Whole wheat bread, whole wheat pasta and brown rice.

There's also a diet called the Zone, where you eat smaller portions of everything but you can eat a carb as long as you eat it with a protein. No more bags of pretzels. But chicken and rice is okay. That sort of thing.

Anyway reducing carbs, especially from processed foods is probably a good idea.

[janekat]

22. They don't look too bad

only 9 carbs for 1/2 can of an 8 oz. can.

Zero fat and only 1 gram of protein - so I doubt that they are nuts.
They might be a vegetable or a starch.

It doesn't look too bad to me.

There's some crackers that I got from my diet dr. that are low carb (made with soy flour) and hi-protein that I'm allowed to have on my diet. They're very good.

found a site that you order them out on the web:
http://www.n101.com/Static/Products/protein_chips_chili_nacho_cheese_0091351548.html

some other sties that have low-carb products:

http://www.lowcarbmart.com/snacks.html
http://shop.store.yahoo.com/lowcarboutlet/
http://jamdynamixzshopping.com/lowcarbshop.html

These meal-replacement bars are also allowed on my diet and are very good:

http://www.fitnessfirstusa.com/details.asp?item=7898

[Fatima]

24. Why not just cut out the simple carbs

and use complex carbs like whole grains? There are some really good breads out there...I use whole grain pita bread. Someone else mentioned Splenda...that's a good sweetener. I also cut out soda and cut way back on dairy (but not totally eliminated it).

I tried Atkins and it wiped me out. I found that the best way to take off and keep off weight is to exercise and just cut back on simple sugars and the number of servings (no more second helpings or idle snacking).

My diet consists of mostly complex carbs and I can now bench press 150 pounds, leg press 200+, I have maxed out the back extension machine at 300lbs. I lift more weight than a lot of guys. I do weighted crunches at 60lbs. And I hit the treadmill or the sidewalk for a lot of walking. The muscle I am building is amazing.

I could not do this on Atkins. If that's what you want to do, cool, but do add exercise to the regimen because once people go off Atkins they tend to gain if there is no exercise plan established.

[Cheswick2.0]

26. I did a very low carb diet once before

It was not Adkins, it was diet center. I remember how great the results were when I started excercising and lifting. I was a lot younger then (about 15 years). I doubt I will every be that strong again, but I am planning on at least being healthier.

[Deja Q]

27. Eating a balanced diet with a slight cutback on carbs does better

for your health than cutting out all carbs. Creating an imbalance is fine if you do it slowly.

I still eat grains and veggies; because they're healthy and contain far more nutrients and fiber than succulent'n'delicious dead animal bits, which contain mostly protein.

Water chestnuts, especially the brands that claim a high percentage of fiber, are good food. Little carbs can be found in them and are very high in fiber.

Exercise and "metabolism enhancing pills" do a better job though be careful when starting popping pills to see how your body reacts.

Besides, some studies claim that people who do Atkins' diet regain their weight.

[Hubert Flottz]

31. I've been on mine for almost a month and it is like quitting........

smoking for the first week! I've been finding some pretty tasty food substitutes!(Diet Food) My heart doc put me on the Atkins diet! I like it better than the low fat diet! The low carb diet foods are better than the cardboard low fat stuff! The other night I did dream of a 5 inch round pair of chocolate chip cookies with that white icing in between and I woke up screaming and had to have a popsickle! Did you know you can have Pizza?