Consequences to low carbing..

  • I'm on SBD, have been camping out in Phase 1 for a while. I had simple carbs a few times last week, I also got dehydrated and had tons of sodium, but what I am here for is carb info. Ok, well I did not eat enough to gain back any weight, but the scale moved up 3-4 lbs and has been staying there. I have read a couple times now that carbs will be stored after a reintroduction.

    I would just like to know if that is how it works.. Do carbs store and show on the scale??

    I am struggling to get back on plan btw, of course. But I'm not giving up.
  • I don't think carbs are the reason for the weight gain.
    You got dehydrated so your body is retaining water in self defense.
    You had tons of sodium which also causes your body to retain water.
    This results in temporary weight gain.

    Make sure you're getting at least 64oz of water daily to rehydrate and wash out all that extra sodium. I think you'll see that 3-4 lb gain disappear, maybe you'll even lose another pound or two.
  • I don't understand the physiology perfectly, but from what I've read, it seems that on a higher-carb diet your body needs more water to process higher carb foods, so it holds onto what it needs. On low-carb eating, your body uses less water and gets rid of what it doesn't need. There are other factors, such as sodium that change the balance too. High-sodium, high-carb will hold on to the most water, and low-sodium, low-carb will get shed the most water. There are a lot of other factors too, so this is a bit of an oversimplification.

    For me the difference is 8 to 10 lbs. During TOM, I try especially hard to eat lower carb than usual, not only to try to decrease TOM cravings/hunger, but to try to minimize TOM water weight gain (which sometimes works, sometimes doesn't).

    It takes (for me) about 3 to 5 days to make the transition (either to gain those 8 to 10 lbs of water, or to lose them again).
  • Thanks ladies.