Hey everyone! I'm hoping to get some advice. I've realized that rice, bread, pasta, and potatoes are my biggest weakness and will be the hardest obstacle to overcome. Cereal too, I suppose. It's hard for me to feel that my meal is complete without one of them, and I end up feeling more hungry through out the day without them as well. All of my favorite foods are heavy in them, and they're always my favorite part of a meal. It's ridiculous. Heck, I'd take a piece of bread or a baked potato over ice cream or candy always, and it's definitely a problem. I have dark coloring on my neck, and I remember years ago a doctor told me it could be a sign of insulin resistance. It makes me wonder if that's why I seem to lose weight so slow.

I'd like to eat low carb and depend less on grains and starches to see if that speeds up my weight-loss, but it's really hard to do, as the days I try to skip bread and such are the hardest for me to get through. I feel like an addict ! Any advice for foods I can eat so my meals don't feel so empty? I'm going to try eggs for breakfast to cut out the cereal. What fruits and vegetables are the most filling?

I can't give good advice regarding bread--heck, I'm French, I do need my daily bread! (Good, wholes-grain bread, of course.)

For something filling, maybe you could try beans/peas/legumes? I find them pretty filling. Also, quinoa--which technically is of the legume persuasion more than of the 'pure' starch one, if I'm not mistaken.

(Not sure though that taking bread/potatoes over ice-cream and candy is a problem in itself. To me, ice-cream is pretty worse. At least bread does contain nutrients; we can't say that much about candy.)

EDIT - Spaghetti squash, too! (The post under mine made me thik of it.) It's in season now, or almost, and may trick your mind into thinking you're eating pasta.

My favorite rice/pasta substitute is cauliflower. Not everyone likes it, but I absolutely love it

I steam a nice big bowl of cauliflower until it's still just a bit crunchy - I don't like it when it gets mushy. Then I use the small florets whole or crush them with a fork for nice rice-like texture. Mmmmm... I could eat it as is without anything else added (except salt), but it also makes a nice base for sauces or a great side for meat dishes.

Same goes for broccoli, although I prefer cauliflower. And they mix well too.

If you want to cut them out, do it. But the cravings are normal and the benefit of entirely eliminating the sugar and starch sources of carbohydrate is that after about thre or four days the cravings almost disappear, to a shocking degree. If you continue to eat a small amount of starch it may kick up the cravings again, but going cold turkey and really getting rid of it has a ton of benefits. Just stick with it and give it a good two weeks to begin seeing a cessation of cravings, water retention, and increased energy. And if you're not already, I highly recommend following an actual plan, rather than just going generally low carb. The former tends to be more successful for most folks in terms of adherence.

I gave up sugar and flour, starchy foods, some time ago, and I no longer crave them. I eat no pasta, rice, white potatoes. I fill up on veggies and meats.

Speaking of cauliflower, it makes a great substitute for potatoes. There are recipes available for a yummy potato salad made with cauliflower.

've lost over 65 lbs. over the last 12 years, and now I'm maintaining that loss. I do eat a lot, there's lots of good food available that does not contain sugar or white flour.

I, too, am a carb addict and giving up bread/pasta/rice, etc has completely made my cravings go away for them!

What I do is make a batch of low carb muffins using this recipe: http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/bre...arbmuffins.htm
(Makes 12 muffins- 1.5 grams effective carbohydrate plus 2 grams fiber, 6 grams protein, and 185 calories)

And I freeze them! Then every morning for breakfast I'll have 1 or 2 with a tablespoon of sugar free Jam & a cup of tea or coffee.

For Lunch I will typically have a salad with chicken or an amazing meal shake which is super low in carbs & has a lot of good stuff in it (http://www.amazon.com/Amazing-Grass-...g+meal+vanilla)
and a cup of veggies (peas, broccoli, cauliflower, etc).

Dinner I will have a bunless burger, fish with vegebtales, or more chicken!! Cut up a chicken breast and cook with peppers & spices (cajun is good!)

And I satisfy my sweet tooth with 90% lindt chocolate at night. I will eat 1 or 2 squares with a large glass of unsweetened almond milk! only 1.75g of carbs per square.

For snacks I will have a half cup of berries with a few almonds or a cup of cucumber slices!

Thanks everyone for the help! I googled quinoa and it looks amazing, so do the low-carb muffins! I remember trying cauliflower a few years ago and I liked it, so I'll stock up on it next week! I've actually seen some recipes for mashed cauliflower and cauliflower crust somewhere that I'm going to try. I think the crust might work instead of the wheat pizza bagels I make to replace pizza. Spaghetti squash sounds amazing as well!

I'm considering going cold turkey for at least a week, just to see if I can and if it makes a difference. I would love to not crave them, because then I'd stop craving my old favorite foods as well!

My husband is the same as you. Every weekend we make a bunch of loaves of bread and eat them throughout the week. We've slowly cut down adn he finds he doesn't crave them as much. Instead of going full cold turkey, try incorporating a starch/grain-free day into your week. That's what my husband has done and it worked for him. He found that he could go without bread/pasta/etc. for several meals a day.

Biggest help in this? SQUASH!! I bought a julienne peeler a couple weeks ago and I peel zucchini into spaghetti like strands, dump healthy meaty marinara or homemade pesto on it and voila! PASTA. Warmed up in a pan on the stove (with PAM) changes the texture to more like pasta (also shrinks so do a lot, we use 1 zucchini for 2 people). Squash is loaded with vitamins and is very filling. Lately, I've thrown pumpkin into everything (especially convenient since it comes in cans!).

For sandwhiches, try using a big hearty leaf of lettuce and fill it with yummy but healthy ingredients. If the lettuce is stiff enough you can use it like a boat. If it's a big floppier, try it like a wrap/tortilla.

Quinoa is still a grain but it's like a super grain so definitely a good extremely filling alternative. I try to eat it like I would rice and I get stomach aches because of how filling it is. You could use quinoa for a sweet treat too, quinoa pudding comes to mind! Chia seeds and flax are also a filling additive you can put into some dishes to make you fuller and they have a nutty flavour.

Good luck. Living with a bread addict has made me very sympathetic!

I love rice. Before I started my weight loss journey I eat rice every meal (2+ bowls!). When I decided to lose weight I went cold turkey and didn't eat rice for three weeks. It was a killer but I kept telling myself I'd eat rice again once I lose ten pounds. I gave in on the fourth week but then I found out I was completely okay (and full) just after eating 1 cup so that's about my limit now. As for bread, I only eat two slices a day or two small pita rolls a day.

I alternate days though. If I eat rice today, I'll have bread tomorrow. I can't eat both in a day because I noticed just recently that I feel really sleepy when I eat too much carbs. I eat rice/bread for one meal only then only eat meat/fish and veggies for the next.

I agree with this. There are many plans out there and several that allow for some limited carbs. I was a big bread eater but I really don't crave it much. I find my meals are far more filling if it's got some protein, veggies, healthy fat. There are these shitake tofu noodles that work really well as a pasta substitute and I also like cauliflower and squash.

For decades, I thought that low-carb was unhealthy, because I always got severe "induction flu" and the symptoms didn't gett better after two weeks, they only got worse (to the point that I'd have to worry about passing out).

Turns out it was a blood sugar thing. All the low-carb authors whose books I read, recommended sucking it up and sticking it out (and never suggested upping carbs). None (surprisingly now to me) suggested increasing carbs just enough to avoid the ill feelings. Instead they all assured the reader that the symptoms would disappear (never telling us what to do if they didn't).

I should have figured it out on my own, but I didn't until my current doctor recommended low-carb, but warned me not to go too low - so I had to experiment.

I'll probably be experimenting for the rest of my life, because as I get smaller, healthier and fitter, my carb tolerance changes.

For me, tapering off carbs has been easier and more comfortable than going "cold turkey."

Some carbs (the most concentrated ones) I did have to cut out completely. I find that I'm most satisfied if my protein and fat exceeds the carbs. I focus more on the protein, so if I'm having 15g of carb in a meal, I want at least 15g of protein. That works quite well for me.

When it comes to carb intake and tolerance though, I've learned that there really is a huge amount of individual difference. You really do have to experiment to find the perfect carb intake for you at this point in time (and be aware it could change if your age, health, fitness, weight, or lifestyle changes in any way).

I found a recipe for how to prepare spaghetti squash. I can't believe how low calorie it is and I can't wait to try it next week.

I was so proud of myself for having green beans at dinner instead of fries, but for my third meal I had a chicken sandwhich on white bread. Maybe I won't go cold turkey, and start off by allowing myself to have them 2-3 times a week. Especially next week, I'm gonna try the squash and cauliflower. It'll definitely be an experiment!

Good luck Samantha! And try to have fun with it! You can do it!

my secret is rice. I replaced it with white bread, now I can stuff myself with rice and it does not have nearly as many calories as 3 slices of bread

Have you been to an Endocrinologist or had your regular Dr do blood work recently? I have PCOS and IR so it made me think of this. I've taken Metformin for years and it really helps to control things in general for me. Just a thought....