okay newbies, when i was first getting going on this deal about 14 months ago, my mom had already been doing LC for a couple of years. some situations prompted me to realize that i needed to make a change in myself or else i'd always be unhappy and unhealthy so i asked my mom for advice. here's what she told me, use it if you can! ....




With low or no-carb, the easiest thing to remember is to avoid the
"white menace" -- sugar, potato, & flour (pasta, breads, etc.). What does
that leave, you say? Mostly meats, vegetables, & cheese. Milk has lactose
and most fruits have fructose (anything ending in -tose is a suger), so you
go easy on those.

Both Atkins and South Beach are low-carb, and both have "phases". Atkins is
very strict and South Beach can be labor-intensive (lots of time-consuming
recipes). With both, the theory is that the typical American diet, laden
with sugar and carbohydrates (which turn into sugar), messes up our insulin
levels. The result is we eat a lot but spiking/dropping insulin causes
cravings for more carbohydrates -- so you always feel hungry. Once you
eliminate carbohydrates, the cravings to eat them disappears. Sounds weird,
but I've found it's true. (Not to say that I don't want cheesecake or pie
now and then, but that's an emotional or taste desire, not a physical
addiction-type craving).

The hardest thing to learn -- speaking as someone who has been on and off
"diets" all my life -- is not to think of it as a diet but as making
permanent changes in your eating habits.

The good thing about a low-carb lifestyle is there is no limit to the
portions! Eat as much as you can stand, as long as it's not carb or sugar.
The bad thing is most people get tired of it. Lucky for me, I never get
tired of eggs, I never get tired of a good salad, and I love a good steak.
I like the South Beach because after the 2-week strict phase, it allows some
whole grain stuff and fruits. Berries are the lowest in carbs, but pears
and apples are good too.

Without reading the books, here are the basic rules:

1. Look at labels -- in the strict phase, you want to eat 25 grams of carbs
or less per day. Eat anything that is low-carb, low-sugar, or sugar-free
("low fat" is not important).
2. Eat protein for breakfast every day -- scrambled eggs, boiled eggs,
omelets, frittatas! With bacon if you like (I always buy the pre-cooked, as
cooking bacon is too messy.) Or, roll up a slice of deli ham around a
mozzarella stick.
3. Stop sugared drinks. Substitute iced tea or learn to like a sugar-free
soda. If you do nothing else, you will lose weight by making this one
change! (Beer is also very bad, very high in carbs.)
4. Eat lots of salad. You can even have "real" dressing (not low-fat)!
Vary them with chunks of chicken, different kinds of lettuce, avocado, other
vegetables, etc.
5. Find easy ways to prepare a variety of meats. This is the hardest.
Chicken breasts are all-purpose -- you can cut them up and stir-fry with
vegetables. Beef patties. Fish (yuck), but no breading. Even kielbasa.
6. Easy snacks: Mozzarella sticks; sugar-free jello cup with a dollop of
extra creamy Cool Whip; roll meat and/or cheese in a big lettuce leaf; put a
couple of tablespoons of cream in the bottom of a glass and slowly pour in
cold sugar free soda (like Shasta blackberry or root beer) while stirring --
it foams up and tastes like an ice cream shake; nuts, but not too many -- a
handful of nuts before any meal reduces the appetite; whipped cream cheese
on a waasa crisp bread, with sugar-free peach preserves and chopped pecans;
even chocolate-dipped strawberries (if you use the dark chocolate there's
not much sugar). I found a "low carb" flavored yogurt that tastes pretty
good -- I throw on a few blueberries and a dollop of Cool Whip. The
sugar-free puddings are good -- cooked, not instant. (The pre-packaged
pudding cups come in "low fat", not low carb...)

After the strict phase, South Beach allows yummy snacks like an apple with a
spoonful of peanut-butter in the center of each half. Cottage cheese with
sliced pears, sprinkled with cinnamon and chopped walnuts. It's weird, but
once you take the refined wheat & sugars out of your diet, things like
fruits and vegetables taste very sweet.

Scrambled eggs are the easiest to learn -- all you need is the right pan.
And you can throw anything in or on top -- diced ham, grated cheese, salsa,
etc.

Another difference between Atkins and South Beach is Atkins doesn't restrict
fat -- like butter, sour cream & cream. South Beach wants you to use a
low-fat butter-flavored "spread", and no cream. It's because of the
cholesterol/heart health issue, but because my choloresterol level is
abnormally low, I don't worry about eating fat. Most reduced-fat foods
don't taste good to me.

I'm afraid fast food restaurants are not very low-carb friendly. You can
get a burger in a bowl now at Burger King. But be aware that ketchup has a
lot of sugar in it. (Mustard is allowed, but I actually think someone came
out with a sugar-free ketchup.) You can take the breading off a KFC (or
Russ's) chicken breast. The Subway wraps are pretty good, and I do like
Papa Murphy's half-the-carb/half-the-calories take-&-bake pizza.

I saw a news story that said over 70% of Americans are overweight -- and our
culture is partly responsible. Cheap, "super-size" fast food that's high in
carbs, and technology that's reduced our level of physical activity. Soda
flows like water. The low-fat craze of the 80s and 90s actually ramped up
the number of calories consumed.

Grandpa says no matter what "diet" you try, the ONLY secret to losing weight
is to consistently burn more calories than you consume. He's right. To
lose weight, you have to either burn more calories (be more active), consume
fewer calories, or do a combination of both.

I haven't talked about calories, but the reason a low-carb diet works is
it's naturally lower in calories and higher in protein and fiber -- which
take longer to digest, so you don't feel as much hunger or cravings and
therefore naturally eat less/fewer calories. (There is absolutely no
protein or fiber in sugar, potatoes -- except for the skin, or processed
white flour, so you digest it very quickly. As a result, your insulin level
jumps and then drops -- which can make you feel "shaky" -- and you're hungry
again in a short time.)




hope that helps, guys!

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proud member of the HOME STRETCH CHALLENGE... kicking those last 13 pounds in the teeth by 12/31/05!! ^_^

Good advice Leah, the only thing that I would not agree with is right at the begining. No Carb diets do not work and are not a healthy way to eat.

Your doing so well with this lifestyle Leah, keep it up!
Ed

Great advice, but isn't Cool Whip made with sugar?

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Kelly
Highest recorded weight: 103.2kg/227.04lbs (03/15/08)
Current: 97kg/213.4lb-13.64
Goal:150
"Resensitizing myself to the urgency and severity of my weight problem is important in keeping myself motivated. I have to remind myself that my body will not tolerate this abuse forever." Jeannette Fulda, aka PastaQueen

Hunts makes a sugar free "Snack Pack" type pudding cup now: 6 carbs per. I think Cool Whip has hydrogenated fat and I know it has corn syrup in it. Best to use the real thing: whipped up heavy cream with a dash of Splenda.

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