Do you HAVE to follow a low carb diet?

[slimmingsteff 31]

Hello guys. Keto has never caught my attention. I've been able to lose weight eating healthy carbs. Anytime I did do carb cycling, where I would have to eat low carb, I just felt terrible. Now please don't take this as "oh wow she's unmotivated to change her lifestyle". Doing Keto literally contradicts all the knowledge I've gained on macronutrients all my life. (I also talk about this in reference of way after the 6 weeks. Maybe 6 months from post-op)

[PatientEleventyBillion 851]

What knowledge does it contradict?

[slimmingsteff 31]

What knowledge does it contradict?

That you're supposed to have balanced macronutrients for your body to run smoothly. Too much of any macro nutrient throws your body off balance. Carbs are needed for brain function and energy, etc. It contradicts a lot. I've had 3 personal trainers and nutritionist. I'm just worried. For example, all these "sugar free" stuff, I NEVER eat. They are loaded w crap. (Basically anything that says fat free, low ____ etc. are loaded with crap to compensate for the taste)

*Crap I mean processed, unnatural ingredients.

*My surgery is out of the country so I do not have an actual nutritionist to consult along the way. That's why I ask you guys to share your knowledge and what your doctor could have told you.

*Also high fat is terrible for gallstones - which is already common w losing weight too fast.

[Joann454 1,329]

When I'm off liquids I'm definitely doing low carb. I don't think you "have" to but for me it works best. I feel best on it. If you don't feel good on it and can lose not doing it then I can't see what's wrong with you not doing it.

[PatientEleventyBillion 851]

I see. Okay. So..

The Keto diet is about putting the body into a state of ketosis. It's effectively tricking the body, particularly the liver, into thinking you're starving, but it realizes you aren't, if you're doing this diet as it should be done.

The liver first synthesizes carbs and stores it for fuels, but it quickly can be completely full of it rather quickly, so it then turns into converting those carbs to fatty acids.. those fatty acids get sent around the bloodstream generally to areas rife with fat (in men it's primarily the gut, in women it's a lot of places), but they also infiltrate the liver itself.

When the liver is deprived of carbohydrates, it starts producing ketone bodies that tell areas that need energy (the brain, muscles, organs, etc. ) to start looking for other methods of energy consumption. The first method of consumption is Protein. The second one is fatty acids. For the muscles, they quickly can run out of fatty acids, so need a steady stream of protein to prevent the ketone bodies from having the body burn up the muscle Proteins instead as fuel (replacing them with fat). The organs like the brain, heart, etc. will easily adjust, using whatever protein it can (not much), and then changing over to burning up fat, which, in an obese person, is rife.

So it makes sense from a standpoint of a perfectly healthy person to go with a normal diet you suggest, which is in line with what the government typically suggests with their food pyramid, but in an obese person due to the excess accumulation of fat, this processed needs to be reversed. Ketosis is, I find, the quickest way of accomplishing this, and when done correctly, and especially under doctor supervision, is quite healthy.

And it's not to suggest eating foods rife with sucralose.. not a good idea. But the body needs protein anyways to avoid burning up the protein in muscles. A high fat diet I think is okay in the short term, because in a state of ketosis the body will burn through that quickly anyways, nothing will come from it. But yes, as a person becomes thinner and requires less energy input to satisfy what their body needs, you'll find that the high volume of ketone bodies and fat will wind up working against the person. So as they get smaller, they must adjust to what their body needs.

I find a logical approach is by far what works best.. what you'll see often is people who are religious-like about diets and such.. which is counterproductive.

Edited May 30, 2017 by PatientEleventyBillion

[sgc 538]

I never counted carbs and over 260 pounds lost later, I still don't count them.

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

You should eat in a way that you can keep eating forever without feeling deprived.

I love eating Keto but it isn't for everyone. If a person feels deprived, then eating Keto or anything else is going to suck for them.

I feel like people need a find a way to eat that doesn't feel like a diet, is easily sustainable for them, and doesn't encourage the idea of cheat meals or cheat days.

If you aren't carb sensitive and can lose weight eating carbs then eat carbs. No one has to live your life or in your body but you. Most programs allow for carbs anyway.

[Newme17 3,444]

No you don't. I won't be doing low carbs either. Hate counting anything as well. And I have my reservations about Keto too. I agree with everything you've posted in regards to it, I choose not to say much about it cause then you get a some folks jumping on board, almost as if you're wrong. You're not. Do what works for you. If a Keto isn't it (definitely not me) than that's okay too.

Edited May 30, 2017 by Newme17

[Newme17 3,444]

2 minutes ago, OutsideMatchInside said:

You should eat in a way that you can keep eating forever without feeling deprived.

I love eating Keto but it isn't for everyone. If a person feels deprived, then eating Keto or anything else is going to suck for them.

I feel like people need a find a way to eat that doesn't feel like a diet, is easily sustainable for them, and doesn't encourage the idea of cheat meals or cheat days.

If you aren't carb sensitive and can lose weight eating carbs then eat carbs. No one has to live your life or in your body but you. Most programs allow for carbs anyway.

I love this. Thank you that and I'm not even the OP. 😊

[Newme17 3,444]

Here is my last phase, week 3 on, from my nut. This is basically how I have been eating pre-op and this is easily sustainable for me. Just to give you an idea.

[LittleLizzieLilliput 919]

I stay away from carbs due to diabetes. But here's a funny story.

I was at my first follow-up visit with my surgeon. All was well and as I was leaving he calls out to me. I look back, he's standing up at his desk, leaning over it, yelling out his office door "And stay away from carbs!!! They'll ruin everything!".

Words I live by mostly, unless I decided I want something decadent. But on MOST days I live by my Doc's final caution as I left is his office. It's STILL echoing inside my head...

[her1981 448]

I am so carb sensitive that I can't lose at all if I eat carbs. 170 pounds down and still can't touch a carb without gaining. Do what works for you.

[blizair09 3,250]

43 minutes ago, OutsideMatchInside said:

You should eat in a way that you can keep eating forever without feeling deprived.

I love eating Keto but it isn't for everyone. If a person feels deprived, then eating Keto or anything else is going to suck for them.

I feel like people need a find a way to eat that doesn't feel like a diet, is easily sustainable for them, and doesn't encourage the idea of cheat meals or cheat days.

If you aren't carb sensitive and can lose weight eating carbs then eat carbs. No one has to live your life or in your body but you. Most programs allow for carbs anyway.

This.

I avoid carbs like the plague, because I have a terrible carb addiction and the only solution for me was to purge them from my life almost completely (outside of cottage cheese and green vegetables). That being said, I agree with what @OutsideMatchInside has said. I can eat in a keto fashion long-term, so that is what I do.

The difference between a diet and a way of life is sustainability. Find what works for you and stick to it. The important thing is that you are making progress toward your goal.

[triplethreat 257]

You are right that ketosis throws everything off balance; that is how you lose weight, by upsetting homeostasis. There are multiple ways to do that, ketosis is one.

When I opted to have wls I was choosing to put my life in the hands of my surgical team, made up of experts. I follow the plan they've established will work for me. If I could lose weight and keep it off on my own I would have, but I failed at it. I'm happy to leave it to the experts.

[fruitandveggies 456]

I don't and didn't follow low carb. Surgeon and NUT don't require it. Doing fine, lost 77 lbs so far!