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Old 01-18-2014, 07:35 AM   #1  
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Default Are you low carb OR grain & sugar free and still NOT at goal?

I have given up sugar before and I always find it easier to stay binge free without it. So I detoxed from sugar yay! starting the day after Christmas. Then about a week ago I gave up all grains. I have some health issues I'm not going to get into now, but y endocrinologist was very supportive, and felt this was a good approach for my weight loss and to address other issues.

I eat about one serving of fruit a day (never more, sometimes 0 servings though). I still eat starchy veggies about 3x per week (this is how I was eating the past few weeks before going grain free). I'm only eating whole foods, nothing processed.

My weight was stalled until I went grain free, now its coming of quickly. My endocrinologist stated the same. He said to stay with this diet and I will definitely see the scale move.

So I wonder, is anyone grain free & sugar free whole foods or low carb (similar diet) and still not at goal? Do you know why? Is it still calories in the end?

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Old 01-18-2014, 08:28 AM   #2  
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Can you list what you eat in a typical day?
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Old 01-18-2014, 09:59 AM   #3  
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Originally Posted by IdealProteinNewbie View Post
Can you list what you eat in a typical day?
I could, but I'm just asking about others reaching goal. I only gave a rough idea of my diet so that I could hear from those that have a similar one...I don't want someone telling me they eat "clean" and grain free" and can't reach goal only to find out they are eating like 10 servings of fruit and/or starchy veggies a day..KWIM?
I'm curious if others eating grain free still have difficulty as they near goal. I've reached goal already, before my last baby. I was eating clean but still eating grains. When I reached that goal (see siggy) I realized I could stand to lose some more, henceforth the new goal. (see siggy again) Are you grain & sugar free?
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Old 01-18-2014, 10:14 AM   #4  
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Several years ago I stalled on low-carb (at around 350 lbs) while eating no grains, no added sugar, no starchy veggies and very little fruit - maybe 60g of carbs total per day.

My calorie level though was VERY high. I had started swimming regularly and I was CONSTANTLY hungry.

Calories still matter on low and carb conscious diets, but you may or may not have count them.

On a grain-free diet starchy veggies and fruit are my downfall. Both tend to increase my appetite overall, and I can easily overeat fruit (rationalizing in my head that they are "healthy") even to the point of painful cramping and worse.

I've been around enough low-carb forums to know that my experience isn't extremely rare, but it also isn't common. Most people are able to lose weight and get much closer to their goal (certainly closer than 350 lbs) without having to be as carb/calorie/quantity conscious.

Even for myself, if it weren't for my insane appetite during TOM week, I don't think I would have stalled, because I would regain during TOM everything I'd lost the rest of the month, and I'd do it by eating much larger quantities of fattier red meat during TOM (hubby and I began referring to it as "meat week").

Only trial and error can tell you tell you whether you can ride your WOE (way of eating) all the way to goal.



BTW, my current struggles have more to do with staying on plan than stalling on plan. I can lose weight 3 weeks out of four, but during TOM "meat week," I end up gorging on both on- and off- plan foods. I've always had difficulty with hormonal hunger, which has been helped by oral contraceptives. However as I get closer to menopause, even on bc, the issue has gotten more and more difficult to manage. My TOM hunger hasn't been this bad since puberty (when I put on 100 lbs over the course of a couple years).

I guess on that level, even just "not regaining" has been an accomplishment.

Last edited by kaplods; 01-18-2014 at 10:23 AM.
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Old 01-18-2014, 10:46 AM   #5  
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I am just about to reach 220 from 285 last May. Eliminating bread and pasta, lowering carbs is the best thing I have ever done. I have plateaued a couple of times but it has been steady down. And I feel amazing. I am also running now.

At a basic level it is still energy out more than energy in. But I don't believe it is ever just about calories. Before cutting out grains, especially wheat I was hungry all the time. Now I eat fewer calories but I am more full. So how my body uses calories and 'feels' about calories is not the same.

I personally have continued to get less and less hungry. Sugar detox was best thing ever. I haven't reached goal which ultimately is around 180 because of time. Also I do still eat out a lot. I have more good days than bad though and 65 lbs in 9 or so months is fantastic by me. Lowering carbs for me is best thing I ever did.
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Old 01-18-2014, 11:51 AM   #6  
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Sounds like you have a great endocrinologist. I had sworn off sugar and grains because of weight but now am convinced of the bad effects on the body and its influence not only on weight gain but a myriad of other things.

I do kind of think it IS ultimately the calories for weight loss, energy out and in as diamongeog said. But it's also a matter of what works as a permanent solution and what works as far as the effects of sugar and grain. I keep saying grain because, for some reason, people fixate on the word "carb". I eat very little fruit but that's so whether I'm eating low carb or not and very little starchy veggies (sweet potatoes every once in a while). I'm eating way more green veggies, I have never demonized protein or **horrors** red meat, drinking way more water than generally recommended.

So what if I'm not eating bread? No one is really eating healthy whole wheat bread anyway I'm convinced. Unless prepared correctly, the phytic acid in grains binds to prevent the absorption of the nutrients you think you're getting.

I used to use all this as an excuse to eat crap but no more. I'm not eating as clean as I can, but as clean as I can manage and much better than "normal". It's much better than being hungry and feeling deprived. Maybe some people can manage that but I can't. I need to eat what keeps me sated and that means meat protein first for me.

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Old 01-18-2014, 12:10 PM   #7  
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Me, if you want to get technical, because I lowered my goal. I made my original goal of 160-163 after a few years, but the twenty pounds below that are proving very challenging. Some of it is mental, though, as weight loss bugs me and I hate it and prefer maintenance, but that is because it takes a lot of strictness to see any scale movement at all these days.

I just got diagnosed hypothyroid and have suspected PCOS, which could be contributing to the snail's pace at which I lose. But I've been grain and sugar free for several years and it helps immensely but is no magic bullet. I have to watch my calories too, because I'm so weight reduced that my metabolism and energy needs are notably down regulated from the baseline I began at, or even what is normal for my height and weight for a never-obese person.

Nutrient compositions matters hugely in my ability to maintain and loss, but overall energy intake is a part of the equation, too. I can eat much more food on low carb and still maintain, for example, whereas calorie counting with things like oatmeal and fruit was always a razor's edge of cravings/hunger/scale bouncing. Higher fat, lower carb eating, if nothing else, makes me much more resistant to weight gain. But losing still requires fastidiousness and restriction.

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Old 01-18-2014, 01:50 PM   #8  
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Another thing about stalling that is independent of any diet plan per se is exercise. This is vitally important to me. I have to realize our bodies are amazing machines. They get better at doing something, more efficient. So you need to change exercise up from time to time.
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Old 01-18-2014, 02:04 PM   #9  
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Another thing about stalling that is independent of any diet plan per se is exercise. This is vitally important to me. I have to realize our bodies are amazing machines. They get better at doing something, more efficient. So you need to change exercise up from time to time.
This is misleading. Sure, you'll burn fewer calories over time as your body adapts to an exercise but not a whole lot less and while exercise is great for your health it doesn't burn that many calories to begin with.

My point quite simply is that if one has "stalled" it doesn't mean you need to change your exercise program. Weight loss is not linear, muscle confusion is a only marketing slogan.
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Old 01-18-2014, 08:24 PM   #10  
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I'm low carb and it was plain sailing until I got down to 170. Now all the protein I eat and the weight training and running I do is adding muscle which messes with the scale badly. I hit a low of 163lbs a month or so ago. Now I am sitting pretty at 172lbs. But with bigger arms and legs.

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Old 01-19-2014, 09:30 AM   #11  
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Yes! I rarely eat grains or starchy veggies, and I average 1 serving of fruit a day (2 servings 2-3 times a week). I stalled from July 2012 to November 2013. I built some muscle in that time working with a trainer. The scale didn't start moving again until I started cutting out some of my planned snacks. I'm also hypothyroid, and generally a slow loser. Even when I was on Medifast I lost 1-2 pounds a week, where they say people lose 2-5 pounds a week.

So while I feel better limiting starch and sugar, it's not a fast track to weight loss for me. I'm coming up on 3 years of focused work and still striving towards goal.
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Old 01-19-2014, 11:32 AM   #12  
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I know that eliminating grains and processed sugar are not enough for me to lose weight, but eating them only makes matters worse for me.

The upshot is that you have to try it and see if that alone works for you all the way to your goal and into maintenance. If not, you might need to find additional ways to help get things moving in the right direction. But keeping excess starchy carbs (grains and other sources) and processed sugar at a minimum will likely help.
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Old 01-20-2014, 10:05 AM   #13  
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Thank you everyone. I want to give an indivdual response to everyone, but I've been waiting for the moment to do that since yesterday and it doesnt seem thats going to happen ( i'm typing w 1 hand holding baby in the other!) somi at least want to reply that the responses were very helpful. i am calorie counting loosely. I aim for about 350-450 cals for breakfast, same for lunch and dinner, though I only tract B & L, D is healthy whole foods, and i use portion control. I figure when the scale slows I will cut back on B&L a little. yes i have noticed that my cravings have decreased sooo much and i am full longer, and dont need to snack betweenn meals. its easier to eat less and still feel satisfied.
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Old 01-20-2014, 10:36 AM   #14  
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I am a slow loser, but I definitely feel less hungry and fewer cravings with less added sugar and processed grains. I still eat some, but I feel better overall with gluten free grains like brown rice or quinoa. Mostly because I noticed a weird correlation between joint pain and wheat consumption. Most of my carbs are from veggies, less fruit. My ultimate goal is better health which includes weight loss, but I'm not usually in a hurry about it...slow and steady downward is ok with me, as long as I know I am eating as well as I can and moving a bit more everyday.
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Old 01-20-2014, 12:06 PM   #15  
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I just wanted to add that I have been having cravings today, including carbs and just the generic urge to over eat...I coudnt figure out why, but I wanted something "comfort" like for breakfast, pancakes carbs, but I didnt eat any thing like that, stuck to plan...we had chili last night that I made. and I've had beans and been ok...then I decided to check the packet of spices I added, it Mccormick chili spice thing, ...and it has both wheat something and sugar...i dont know if thats really enough to cause cravings..but its kind of interesting.
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