For me, it is about the level of carbs as well as the type. If I want to lose weight, I really struggle to do so with my carbs of ANY type over 100 grams a day. 100 or less and I am not so hungry... I understand this is because the body switches to using fat as fuel because it no longer expects the constant carbs for fuel. Also, if I eat some almonds, or some veggies, or even a piece of fruit, they do not trigger cravings for me even though they are carbs. If I eat an avocado I do not get cravings even though it is fat. But if I eat a slice of bread... ANY kind of bread, even healthy whole wheat, I want more. If I eat a piece of cake, I want more. I find it very difficult to stop overeating when it comes to processed carbs. So there's that.

I think it is a bit of novelty but honestly, no. I never liked fast food or greasy pizza though. Recently, I've been craving brown rice with chili-garlic sauce. It is a little unbalanced like that so I do add veggies and tofu (or tempeh or beans). But I don't particularly think a lot of western restaurant food is good tasting, it is often cheap and convenient but taste isn't its strong point.

Lyn, a couple of years ago you were losing steadily while eating oats with maple syrup every morning and plenty of fresh fruit. What has changed? And why did it change after the weight loss? Also, it seems as though when you reduce carbs, you reduce calories as well. How do you know your weight loss is due to the carbs per se, and not calories?

Yes..its amazing..the difference between America and Canada in terms of their portions. I myself went to Chipotle in Colorodo and ordered a burrito..It took 3 whole meals to get through that thing..it was so big!! I also lived in a school out their and i was served in the cafeteria..the portions on the plate were huge!! I mean, i eat lots at a sitting, when i want to eat, i can eat..but their is no way i could get through all the food on my plate in the States..Anywhere i ate in the states, everything was huge.. and if it wasnt huge..it was full of grease.. I was like ...oookay..in Canada..you would have to pay for that meal two times for that portion size... I dont get it..why does America serve portions so big?? The other thing i noticed, was in clothing stores..the sizes were way larger..walmart for example..carried clothes like a pair of jeans in plus size that were size 40...I was able at the time, to fit myself into one of the pant legs. Size 8x..ive never even seen an 8x in Canada..

Please understand my American chicks..I love you all..I love America, I love the people..you are so awesome and loving and wonderful
I have absoloutly no problem with you.. I just wonder what the heck is going on with the sizing of clothes and portions???

PS if someone finds a size 13 womens wide shoe..send it my way.

I love Chipotle because you can control how much and what. When my husband and I ate meat, we used to split a burrito (light rice, light cheese, no sour cream). Now that we don't, we usually get a bowl each and eat half but it is pretty veggieful (no meat, cheese, sour cream - extra tomatoes, extra beans, extra grilled peppers, guac on the side). Now there may be some who eat a whole burrito in a sitting but I do think that subset is pretty rare or I could be wrong. Generally portion sizes are so large here because you are mostly expected to have leftovers.

I've bought exercise clothes and a few dress pants at Walmart before and unless they've changed or you went to one with a special clothing section, their largest size is probably size 24 or maybe 26 but I'm guessing 24 as that is the top of 3x and 3x is as large as regular stores usually go. (Are you sure that wasn't the men's ? I wouldn't be all that surprised if they went up to that size but even then)

Most department stores in the US do not go beyond size 24, some may go to 26 but that is rare. There is only 1 store I can think of that may go up to size 8x and that is Catherine's but even then I'm not sure, they might stop at 6x and I think that was only a subset of their store. When I was my top weight, I bought a pair of 32 pants and that was the top size in Avenue, size 28 was the top size in Lane Bryant and my only other option would've been Catherine's. Usually, you have to mail order your clothing once you get to that point.

I agree with you Nelie. Once you've eaten vegetables, fibrous brown rice, minimal oils, lean meats (or tofu/tempeh for the vegans!) for months and years on end, fast food can actually churn your stomach and make you want to vomit.

You don't realize how terrible it is for your body when you are used to eating it, but once you don't eat it anymore, your body really does react badly. I never eliminated fast food on purpose but once I had my 2nd baby 4 months ago, dragging 2 under 2 into a van in -35C weather was just insane, so I went 4 months without any fast food or restaurant food. Had some McDonalds a few days ago and had to stop halfway through, it was just so horrible. There was nothing "wrong" with it, but the actual food wasn't compatible with my stomach anymore.

Guilty of being able to eat an entire Chipotle fajita burrito in one sitting. Easily. To me the're not that big, no bigger than a 6" sub sandwish granted I don't add a lot of ingredients. Totaled out to about 790 cals the way I have it.

I know my metabolism is broken. 30 years ago I was diagnosed with reactive hypoglycemia, but didn't continue following the diet (no refined sugars/flours, protein with every meal, lots of veggies, some fruit, etc.) It wasn't "low carb" but it definitely had the impact of lowering the carbs I ate.

20 years ago, when we were trying to get pregnant, I was diagnosed with IR and PCOS. Again, the diet I was given was not officially "low carb", but the overall effect was to lower the percentage of carbs I was eating. (avoid sugar, eat whole grains if you eat grains, eat lots of veggies, and base every meal around some protein). But there was no limit to calories. So while my blood sugar become more normalized, and I wasn't hungry, I also didn't lose weight.

I've tried every diet out there. I've done low-fat/almost vegetarian: Pritikin, Ornish, etc. I've done the IR diet: protein based meals with moderate carbs.

I can count calories, and try to limit my calories to 1600, and still not lose weight. (How can someone as big as me NOT lose weight on 1600/day?! All the calculators say I need 2200 or so to retain my basal weight.)

I can count calories, and limit my calories to 1200, and lost weight, even eating healthy whole grains and lots of fruit and veg. But I am SO hungry after a while that I cannot continue it more than a few months. I obsess over my next meal; I eat as much as I can for mmy 1200 calories. I am grumpy and distracted and rather unpleasant to live with (according to my family).

But when I limit calories AND carbs (avoiding sugar and grains and still eating veg, but very little fruit), I can lose weight... AND I am not ravenously hungry and food-obsessed. My moods are more calm, and my blood sugars are more even (I'm pre-Diabetic, so I test fairly regularly)

So while I'm only an experiment of one, I have come to the conclusion that for me, I need to eat lower carbs... but I ALSO need to limit my calories. Together, they allow me to "eat less" without feeling like I'm starving. Calorie counting alone isn't enough -- I get too hungry, and then binge. And limiting carbs alone isnt' enough -- I eat too much, and don't lose.

So I don't really think carbs vs calories is always an either-or issue. For many of us, it's a both-and issue.

And more and more on the low-carb boards I frequent, people are acknowledging that.

I just ate my favorite breakfast of 2 eggs over easy over top of a cup of white rice.

After reading this thread, it makes me feel so Asian.

I just ate one of my favorite breakfasts too... some scrambled eggs made with real cream and some butter, some smoked salmon and cream cheese and a few cherry tomatoes... all organic of course... So I really hope there is something to this whole low carb thing and that cholesterol and fat aren't as big of a problem as we're been led to believe or I guess I'm going to be in big trouble someday...

I suppose that's the crux of the matter. In my own experiment of one, I've found that my hunger levels aren't affected (not noticeably, at any rate) by macronutrient composition. I feel no more satiated after a protein-based meal than after after a carb-based meal, assuming the calories are about the same. As for sugar crashes, I honestly don't know what that is, and I've been known to eat A LOT of sugar in one sitting, though not so much recently. My guess is that I have a robust insulin response, so when I eat sugar my body kicks right into gear and brings my blood glucose levels down to premeal levels.

For ME, then, there's no compelling reason to lower carbs. If I don't have to live in a world without olive bread, crepes, fresh pasta, and warm carrot muffins, I see no reason to do it. Of course I have to moderate my portions, like everyone else, and it isn't always easy. But it's no easier for me to limit carbs than to limit nuts or cheese or anything else. I love it all!

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