Not at all, I'm a researcher so i really want to make sure things are valid. I don't go based on anecdotal evidence. I take my field very seriously, and this happens to be my field.
The wikipedia article needs better citations and such, as you'll see. This isn't about whether low carb is good or not--just about how muscle gets used for energy when fasting.
I think Atkins is a fine plan if it's followed exactly. What I found last time I was on a low-carb plan (not Atkins) was that after two weeks, I was DYING for some carbs. But you can add them back on Atkins after the first phase.
sportsmedjosh, 6% body fat??? And what is your body fat percentage now?
All I know is that both times I have tried low carb diets, first Atkins and then South Beach, my body rebelled. The first time the diet was the catalyst for an underlying issue I had that probably would have remained dormant if not for the extreme stress that low carb diets put on my body, and the second time I lost a considerable amount of muscle mass and felt weak. You can say all you want that South Beach didn't cause me to lose muscle and feel weak, but I know it did. I listened to my body and stopped the diet after two weeks, despite the considerable weight loss of 8 pounds. TWO days later, I was back up to my original weight.
I'll stick with clean eating. It works and it's maintainable. Forever.
punchi, always good to take supplements when losing weight, I think, because even if eating the right foods, there isn't enough.
sportsmedjosh, you are an ATHLETE! Good grief, what are you doing here on a weight loss site? You are welcome to join in, of course.
Jay
Thanks jay, just like anything though it's a life style change. I try to participate in as many fitness boards and forums and also submit research to peer review journals.
There is so much misinformation out there, much of it wrapped in much prettier packaging than the truth. It can be so frustrating trying to find good, accurate, trustworthy information without having to earn an "at-home-degree" in the process. What makes it even harder is that you can't even trust experts with legitimate credentials, because they are as likely as the rest of us to say "I reject your reality and substitute my own."
My college degrees are in psychology but I had to take human biology and physiology courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. I have to admit, I never thought I would need to retain much of it (and I haven't), but it has come in handy in sorting out a lot of the "crap science," that crops up in weight loss articles and books. I paid very close attention in class though when we studied digestion and metabolism, and I remember very clearly the professors discussing that weight loss is almost always (if the body has fat to spare) primarily fat, but also a tiny bit of muscle as well, but since muscle requires more calories to maintain, even an insignificant amount of muscle loss starts to produce a cumulative effect on those who yoyo diet. Now, this was presented as "common knowledge," ... so I didn't feel the need to dig into more research to prove it, though the bariatric journal articles and literature reviews I've read since seem to reinforce that belief.
I've chose to eliminate processed foods, and limit even "good" carbs, for a very simple reason. It is working for me, as nothing else ever has. I've had to come to terms with the fact that carbohydrates make me supernaturally hungry. Even when I make a whole grain, such as cracked wheat or brown rice for a meal, I cannot make more than two servings (one for my husband, and one for myself), because I will eat it until it's gone. I can even binge on fruit (I ate an entire pineapple the other day), so I have to measure grapes, berries, pineapple.... or I will eat to the bottom of the bowl. "Luckily," I have a tendency toward colitis or IBS, so overindulging in fruit tends to be self-limiting. After suffering the consequences of overindulgence, I learn my lesson for a few weeks.
I have been obsessed with food for as long as I can remember, and have never felt normal hunger/fullness, and I find that on a lower carb diet, I am satisfied much sooner, have far fewer cravings, more control over my eating, and overall am eating far fewer calories than ever before without hunger. I'm finding it rather amazing to be losing weight without feeling absolutely tortured. Volume-wise, my diet is mostly veggies (low calorie, high fiber and high water). Most of my calories are coming from protein, and fat is probably 25 - 35% depending on the day. My husband is having success restricting his carbs even further (I think probably too much, but maybe he'll be comfortable adding more in as he loses more weight). He however, is also much more the carb "junkie" than I am, so maybe this is what works best for him.
We have blood tests every 3 months, so as long as our numbers are good, we're losing weight, and we're feeling good, I'll count the experiment a success. I do believe, however, that if you're feeling weak, ill, or in pain, it's time to try something else. No matter how quickly I were able to lose weight, I couldn't tolerate a diet that had unpleasant side effects like headache, fatigue, terrible cravings....
There is so much misinformation out there, much of it wrapped in much prettier packaging than the truth. It can be so frustrating trying to find good, accurate, trustworthy information without having to earn an "at-home-degree" in the process. What makes it even harder is that you can't even trust experts with legitimate credentials, because they are as likely as the rest of us to say "I reject your reality and substitute my own."
My college degrees are in psychology but I had to take human biology and physiology courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. I have to admit, I never thought I would need to retain much of it (and I haven't), but it has come in handy in sorting out a lot of the "crap science," that crops up in weight loss articles and books. I paid very close attention in class though when we studied digestion and metabolism, and I remember very clearly the professors discussing that weight loss is almost always (if the body has fat to spare) primarily fat, but also a tiny bit of muscle as well, but since muscle requires more calories to maintain, even an insignificant amount of muscle loss starts to produce a cumulative effect on those who yoyo diet. Now, this was presented as "common knowledge," ... so I didn't feel the need to dig into more research to prove it, though the bariatric journal articles and literature reviews I've read since seem to reinforce that belief.
I've chose to eliminate processed foods, and limit even "good" carbs, for a very simple reason. It is working for me, as nothing else ever has. I've had to come to terms with the fact that carbohydrates make me supernaturally hungry. Even when I make a whole grain, such as cracked wheat or brown rice for a meal, I cannot make more than two servings (one for my husband, and one for myself), because I will eat it until it's gone. I can even binge on fruit (I ate an entire pineapple the other day), so I have to measure grapes, berries, pineapple.... or I will eat to the bottom of the bowl. "Luckily," I have a tendency toward colitis or IBS, so overindulging in fruit tends to be self-limiting. After suffering the consequences of overindulgence, I learn my lesson for a few weeks.
I have been obsessed with food for as long as I can remember, and have never felt normal hunger/fullness, and I find that on a lower carb diet, I am satisfied much sooner, have far fewer cravings, more control over my eating, and overall am eating far fewer calories than ever before without hunger. I'm finding it rather amazing to be losing weight without feeling absolutely tortured. Volume-wise, my diet is mostly veggies (low calorie, high fiber and high water). Most of my calories are coming from protein, and fat is probably 25 - 35% depending on the day. My husband is having success restricting his carbs even further (I think probably too much, but maybe he'll be comfortable adding more in as he loses more weight). He however, is also much more the carb "junkie" than I am, so maybe this is what works best for him.
We have blood tests every 3 months, so as long as our numbers are good, we're losing weight, and we're feeling good, I'll count the experiment a success. I do believe, however, that if you're feeling weak, ill, or in pain, it's time to try something else. No matter how quickly I were able to lose weight, I couldn't tolerate a diet that had unpleasant side effects like headache, fatigue, terrible cravings....
I could have sworn i made a post here but anyways, I agree with you. energy metabolism is one of those things in which is pretty hard to understand and understand understanding then grad school understanding you realize that what you learned in reg phy is completely different because all these loop holes and steps that are by passed that you we not taught.
How low is low? How low is too low? It makes the topic of "low or lower carb," difficult to discuss, because the definition is still a bit fuzzy. South Beach is often described (by non SBers) as low carb, and the induction phase certainly is. The "idea," is supposed to be that eliminating carbs completely eliminates carb cravings. Personally, I have not found that to be true, and I have tried Atkins and other diets with extreme low carb induction phases, and while they worked great for me in the first few weeks, they all produced unpleasant side effects that led me to abandon the diet, also once I was able to add carbs back in, I went nuts and gained.
South Beach, and even Atkins maintenance add carbs in, during later stages.
I got a lot of flack from low and lower carb dieters, when I told them I was skipping the induction phases, because I knew I would never comply with them. Probably South Beach (second stage or even maintenance) or Weight Watchers Core are probably the closest commercial programs to the way I am eating.
Even though I am not eating "low" carb, but rather lower to moderate levels of carbs, I use alot of low carb cookbooks, because low fat or light cookbook recipes yrnf yo hsbr way to high in carbs for me.
A book I found extremely helpful was The Low Carb Bible. The book reviews several low and lower carb diets, (and includes the South Beach diet). Another great book is The Unofficial Guide to Dieting Safely, which lists the pros, cons and success rates of popular weight loss programs and diets.
your review induced "flashbacks." Good 'ol ATP. I remember having to produce those charts from memory on the exam, and not really understanding much if any of it until 4 years later in graduate school (where the professors in general, but the Biology professor in particular was much better at translating concepts into ordinary english).
I would agree, but my point is that it actually depends on how you look at it. I eat about 100 g of carbs most days, and up to 150 occasionally, that included the carbs in the veggies. I also avoid starchy veggies so I while I am taking in a lot of fiber, the carbohydrate calories in my diet are actually quite low. From a calorie standpoint, protein makes up the majority of my diet. By the official "Food Pyramid," standards this isn't a "balanced" diet. Rather it would be judged too high in protein and too low in carbohydrate.
Healthy eating is obviously a not a single point, but rather a range on a spectrum, and optimum for most people is going to be somewhere "in the middle." Another thing to keep in mind is that "balanced" isn't what you eat in a day, a week, or even a month. There are people who eat "low carb," most of the time, whose occasional carb-rich treats bring their diet more in line to what we would consider the "average." I know personally, there will be days when I eat "too many" veggies and my tummy suffers, and a few days of rebound when I eat "too few." There are also days when I will eat extremely low carb, and days when I can't resist an extra helping of potatoes or whole wheat bread.
Seeing my husband eat a more sterotypical low carb diet, I can't really judge him either. His starting weight was over (and is still dangerously close to) 400 lbs. Any diet that can allow him to lose weight is a smart one. As someone who hates most vegetables, getting "good" carbs into him is pretty tough. Low carb has allowed him to lose weight (and overall, I think he is eating no more or at least very little more protein than when he was eating alot of carbs). For him, even unprocessed carbs can be binge triggers. A bag of pistachios is as bad a trigger for him as a bag of potato chips. I would much rather see him eating "low carb," than his carb-addicted pre-diet way of eating. Even Atkins, one of the most extreme low carb diets, includes a lot of low-starch veggies (not much fruit, though) and adds carbohydrates to 60 g or more during later stages.
You are welcome to join in, of course. 
