Low Carbohydrate Diet! Is It A Good Way to Lose Weight? -

Low Carbohydrate Diet! Is It A Good Way To Lose Weight?

carbohydrate

Losing Weight, And Low Carbohydrate Diet:

Staying fit is all the rave these days. Especially, since there are more widespread campaigns, more than ever before, towards obesity awareness and its adverse effects. Low carb diets have been part of dietary plans for a very long time and most people who go on a diet choose to cut their carb intake first amongst all the other food groups because carbs are one of the biggest culprits in weight gain.

So,

if you are thinking about getting fit and losing some of the excess pounds and are highly considering a low carb diet, you might as well check in with the effects of cutting down your carb intake. Although you will most likely shed some pounds since your carb intake will be lessened, it’s also important that you consult your doctor about this new endeavor. Especially if you’re undertaking medications that may be affected by cutting down your sugar level.

Low Carbohydrate Diet:

You hear a lot about Low Carbohydrate Diets. They seem to be the rage. But, are they all they’re cracked up to be? Any diet program is going to have its fans and its detractors. Also, many diet plans may have good points and bad points, and the low carbohydrate diet is no exception.

First of all,

You are going to hear a lot of things called “low carbohydrate”, the most famous of which is the Atkins diet. Other programs that do not claim to be low carb, such as the Nutri-system weight loss program, and the South Beach diet may find themselves dumped into the “low carb” category.

because their eating plans either control carb intake or concentrate on “good” carbs. that is, carbohydrates that in essence not only fuel the body, thus providing energy, but also are less likely to wind up as fat deposits in the body.

Basically,

A low carbohydrate diet is basically cutting back or eliminating any foods which contain starches and carbohydrates and instead of eating foods high in protein. For those who are curious about a low carb diet, you need to make sure it’s right for you – your current health status, personal habits, and lifestyle, and your ultimate goals.

As a Rule and as their name implies,

Low carbohydrate diets generally recommend a higher consumption of protein and fat, with decreases in consumption of carbohydrates. As a rule, these eating plans are going to recommend as much as 70% of daily calorie intake coming from fat, with only 5% to 10% coming from carbohydrates. Additionally, most will recommend eating until you are full, as long as you avoid the high carb foods.

Let’s Take A Look At The Pros And Cons Of Low Carb Diet:

With trying anything new, there are pros and cons to consider. And when it comes to dieting, you must be aware of all the issues related to your weight-loss and any weight-loss diet. The following gives you the “skinny” on the pros and cons in regards to low carbohydrate diets:

Pros:

Because a low carbohydrate diet is all about eliminating carbs and not actual food, you can usually eat to your heart’s content.
Since low carb diets are so popular, you can find information about them quickly and easily.
By eliminating foods high in carbs, you lose weight more quickly.
It’s easy to follow a low carb diet – the variety of foods can keep you satisfied.
Low carb diets will get your cravings under control.
You will see faster weight loss when you eat low to no carbohydrate foods all the time.
A low carb diet is very effective for weight loss.
Your immune system will improve with a low carbohydrate diet.
You learn to eat healthier by ridding your body of carbs.
You will get high protein and can still enjoy eating the meats you love.

Cons:

Because you have to restrict yourself to certain foods – it can get monotonous.
There is so much information about low carb diets it can get confusing and you still may not know everything you need to know before starting a low carb diet.
When you eliminate certain food types, you also eliminate certain nutrients your body needs for optimal health.
The foods you need to eat on a low carbohydrate diet can get expensive.
You will go through withdrawals eating no or low carb foods only.
Low carb diets are harder to follow during special events, holidays and occasions when there are only high carb foods available.
To succeed on a low carbohydrate diet, you must have strong willpower.
Too many saturated fats are bad for the health of your heart.
Some carbs are not bad – complex carbs have nutritional value.
People who are vegetarian will have trouble getting all the nutrition they need since they don’t eat meat.

How Much Carbohydrate Does Your Body Need?

Your carbohydrate needs can be based on your caloric intake. If you know how many calories you need each day, you can figure out how many grams of carbs you need.

It’s recommended:

That you consume 40-65% of daily calories from healthy carbs.
If you are trying to lose weight keep it at 40-50% and if you are gaining 50-65%.

Example:

Let’s say you are on a meal plan that allows for 2000 calories/day and you are not on an aggressive weight loss plan but you want to watch what you eat.

2000 X 0.45 = 900 calories a day from carbohydrates.

The Major Purpose,

of carbohydrates is to fuel the body. They provide the energy needed to make it through the day. For athletes, they are the fuel to make it through marathons, bicycle races, basketball games, and every other sort of athletic endeavor. Carbohydrates are also necessary for the proper function of some organs. However, there are “good” carbs and “bad” carbs.

Types of Carbohydrates Diet:

There are three main types of carbohydrates:

A. Sugar:

Sugar is the simplest form of carbohydrate and occurs naturally in some foods, including fruits, vegetables, milk, and milk products. Types of sugar include fruit sugar (fructose), table sugar (sucrose) and milk sugar (lactose).

B. Starch:

Starch is a complex carbohydrate, meaning it is made of many sugar units bonded together. Starch occurs naturally in vegetables, grains, and cooked dry beans and peas.

2. Fiber Fruits And Veggies:

Fiber also is a complex carbohydrate. It occurs naturally in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and cooked dry beans and peas. Fruits and veggies are the best carbohydrates you can eat. They contain special sugar molecules that cannot be digested by humans. This is very advantageous when you are dieting or looking for snacks.

Fruits offer sweet snacks and sides when other sugary goodness should be avoided. Veggies are great to eat as most diets consider them to be free foods due to their high fiber content.

While no carb is inherently evil, or “bad”, there are many which are not “good” for most of us.

1. Bad Carbs:

When We Talk About Bad Carbs, We are generally referring to things like high sugar, refined flour foods that are quickly digested and which can be quickly transferred into fat. This is because the glut of carbohydrates signals the body to increase the supply of insulin which in turn tells the body to store the carbs as fat. Sadly, your breakfast bagel and the bag of chips you had with your greasy burger are included in the “bad” carb category.

2. Good Carbs:

On the other hand tend to be more “nutrient-dense”, and demand more digestion and processing by the body.
Sweet potatoes, brown rice, grapefruit, fat-free milk, apples, and other fruits, vegetables, and whole grains cause the blood sugar levels to rise more slowly, thus avoiding the insulin “instructions” to store the calories as fat.
Instead, they are gradually used as energy.

Additionally,

These types of foods tend to have more nutritional value in terms of vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and fiber.
They also seem to be possibly indicated as being involved in better overall health and longevity as well as the avoidance, at least temporarily, of such debilitating conditions such as heart disease and some cancers.
While many diet plans and weight loss programs counsel in favor of using “good” carbs, there are still low carb diets which demand that all carbs are bad and should be avoided.

Drawbacks To a Low Carbohydrate Diet:

Probably the most evident drawback is that denying oneself an entire class of foods puts the dieter at risk of missing vital nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals, that may have been present in those food sources.

Additionally, “good” carbs tend to often be rich in fiber which has been shown to have its own value to health. Obviously, limiting all carbs could deprive the body of the fiber it might need to remain healthy.

Long-Term Effects of a Low Carbohydrate Diet:

One thing to remember is that each individual will react to their diet based on a range of factors.

Heredity,

Upbringing, social class, lifestyle, religious persuasion, ethnicity may all have an influence on how one reacts to dietary events or changes.

Just as a simple example:

The ice cream in the freezer is going to be of less consequence to someone who exercises regularly and is physically fit than it is to the average, sedentary, TV watching, potato chip munching member of our modern society.

While

The physically fit individual may down a huge bowl of ice cream with no obvious ill effects, his or her sedentary neighbor may simply be adding to the fat which has already accumulated on their body.

Since most low carbohydrate diets tend to advise large quantities of protein and fats, the dieter is going to be exposed to a greater risk of problems such as gout, or even kidney or heart disease. For this reason, low carb diets sometimes recommend that they only are used for a limited time period and that the dieter goes off them from time to time.

Crazy Insulin:

Some People who cut down their carb consumption have been known to get inverse effects that instead of getting lower insulin levels; the low carb diet rather ups the level of sugar in their blood as a side effect. If this happens to you, best talk to your doctor about how to adjust your insulin intake and other medications.

If you’re just starting with the low carb diet plan, you’ll,

Recognize that the first few weeks of adjustment are the hardest.
The side effect can range from dizziness to more cravings and lack of energy. You can always get by if you stay focused by keeping your goal in mind.
Other things you can do is substitute your unhealthy cravings with the healthy ones and by constantly drinking a lot of water, rest when you feel the need to and never let yourself starve.
If you feel like you need to munch on something, do so. Just keep everything in moderation.

Before,

You start cutting down on your carb intake it’s best to transition slowly. Start with easy changes so that your body can accommodate the changes and see if the plan actually works for you. You’ve probably done some form of dieting in the past and it’s a good way to look back on what worked for you.

“What will You have to give up if You want to pursue a low carb diet?

Cutting down on the carb by going on a low carb diet, will also lessen your consumption of other products that can be found in most carbohydrate-based foods. Generally, going on low carb diets will lessen your carbohydrate intake, sugar intake, and other oils and fats.

Just keep in mind that balance is the key to a healthy and well-designed diet. Once you cut down on your regular consumption of these products, your body will slowly adjust to it but if you feel weak or your energy levels are always low, better check back on that diet plan since something is obviously going wrong.

“Everything seems going awesome until side effects kicked in.”

Glucose intolerance or carb cravings highly affect people who are not accustomed to low carbohydrate diets. So, if you’re already starting your diet but feel cravings for carbohydrate-based foods, this can be a bad side effect of your low carb diet.

Always keep in mind that a good and healthy low carb diet starts with the question “How driven are you to be fit and healthy?” and “What are you willing to do to achieve that goal?” It’s also advisable that no matter what low carb diet plan you’re going to go through; be well informed.

The Best Weight Loss Program:

It has long been understood that the basic equation of weight loss and weight gain is: Take in more calories than you burn, you gain fat to burn more calories than you take in, you lose fat. Each individual is different, but there are some basic tips that will allow anyone to move towards better weight management.

If you have

A “weight problem” it is almost certain that you need to increase your activity level. It should not be necessary to become a championship athlete, and it may take a while to “train up” to the level of fitness which will help you burn the calories effectively, but increasing activity is almost certainly a step. If you have a “weight problem”, then you almost certainly have an eating problem also.

The goal,

however, it is NOT to quit eating or to cut huge chunks of food out of your diet. Rather, you should concentrate on getting a balance in your life, and cut out such empty high carbohydrate foods as sugar, refined flour bread, potato chips and the like. Snacking on “good” carbs can provide energy to get through the day while curbing the body’s desire for more carbs.

Eating MORE meals per day, as many as six, but stretching them over the entire day often helps. Heavy meals should be earlier in the day, with breakfast being of great importance.

Instead of The Low Carbohydrate Diet:

For good health,

Eat a balanced diet (supplemented with a multivitamin and mineral supplement if you have any doubt).
Increase your daily activity.
Get the rest you need (which really should include at least eight hours of sleep to avoid the effects of cortisol), and try to enjoy life more.
You are a good, lovable, worthwhile person no matter what your weight or outward appearance.
Start with that and you can’t go wrong.

The Bottom Line:

A low carbohydrate diet allows people to lose weight rapidly because of too limited food choices, and so, leading to eating less. Remember that weight loss is due to reduced food consumption and not because they’re avoiding carbohydrates. The sad part is that when a low carbohydrate diet is stopped, weight gain easily comes back.

So,

instead of cutting carbohydrate foods from your meal, try to reduce its portion or size and better choose high fiber complex carbohydrates like whole grains, veggies, fruits instead of refined carbs.

Weight loss shouldn’t be just about diet modification but adding exercise and engaging in physical activity is necessary.

If you find this article useful, don’t forget to share it with your friends and family, as you might help someone in need. Thanks.

Disclaimer: “Nothing in this article makes any claim to offer cures or treatment of any disease or illness. If you are sick please consult with your doctor.”