Attempting a slow-cab diet. Wish me/us luck?

[ravennr]

To put it nicely, boyfriend is slightly overweight and self-conscious but doesn't seem hellbent, or even semibent on doing much to fix it without me being the one that guides his food intake. And, shame on me, I haven't been that great at it (in my defense, I really miss southern food and have found myself subconsciously altering my recipes to become more like my mother's cooking, oops).

I read about the slow carb diet (via 4-hour work week) and it seems like people are having great results from it. I like the idea of it, and it seems pretty straight-forward and simple. The hardest part is going to be cutting out fruit so much. I really, REALLY love fruit.
From the looks of it, this could potentially save us quite a bit of money, too. Right now, we need that more than anything.

Any tips from anyone who has tried this diet, or a similar one?
I'm worried about the whole same-meal-repeatedly thing. I thrive on variety, I love lots of flavour and I enjoy lots of different cuisines. Cutting down my choices some is going to be harder for me than for him.And again, I cannot stress it enough, I am not a fan of cutting out fruit. That will inevitably be my downfall.

[Saeleofu]

Good luck!

I've done low-carb this year so far, fell off the wagon for a week, but restarting again tomorrow. I've lost 30 pounds in 3ish weeks.

It makes more sense to me to eat low-carb consistently instead of messing it all up with a day of gorging. I know that after I've been eating low-carb for a day or two, I have NO desire for carby crap. But if I DO eat something high-carb (like bread) I crave carbs again within a couple hours. So for me, this diet would not work well. But if it works for you, great!

Straight-up low-carb also allows for more variety. If I want an orange, then fine, I'll just cut out carbs elsewhere (keeping in mind I hit ketosis at around 50 net carbs/day, so my daily carbs are higher than some people). If I want a popsicle, then I have a no-sugar-added one for around 4 carbs. If I want yogurt, I eat a Carbmaster one for 5 carbs. I have eaten more variety on low-carb than I would regularly eat. That being said, I wouldn't have a problem having a meal plan for a week and sticking to it. I tend to do that anyway. For example, I'll have stuffed portabellas for dinner 3 or 4 days in a row, tuna and celery for lunch for a week, etc. because it's easier for me.

Anyway, let us know how it goes!

[Dekka]

Ya I hear of people going from slow carb to low carb but not vice versa. Its easier to have no, or almost no cravings. (it doesn't even feel like a diet)

But yes I have heard of it working well for some. Seems it works best with people who are really active.

I eat a lot more variety now than I did before low carb. Basically it forces you to cook. As a general rule if it comes out of a cupboard its bad, if it comes out of the fridge its good

[ravennr]

All good to know! I will try leaning more towards low-carb, and take from both diets and see how that goes.

I'm having eggs this morning (one with yolk, then two egg whites) that I flavoured with chili powder. Realized we need to hit the grocery store! The end of the article I posted talks about a guy getting good deals with his diet, which sticks out to me most. I'd love to spend less.

I'm definitely going to have to try cooking more recipes that are low in carbs. I have a few, like a kung pao chicken that I'm making tonight that we eat pretty regularly, it's delicious. My go-to are bell peppers and onions, though. LOTS.

[Dekka]

Low carb has so many 'variations' my dad is losing weight eating about a 100 carbs a day. THat is still too much for my mom (and me) but its working well for him. So you could gradually cut down and see where the weight changes begin to occur.

Watch the documentary Fat Head, all of it is on youtube. Its in part a rebuttal to Super Size me, so you can skip the first 20 min or so if you want. Its simplistic but a good start on the science behind low carb and weight loss.

As an interesting aside, it has been suggested that cutting calories often induces weight loss not due to the lower calories, but that people often cut down a lot on their carbs to get their calories lower. ie less pasta, less bread no sugar. No idea if its true but its interesting.

[ravennr]

The 4 hour guy goes into the carbs vs calories thing, too. Very interesting! I saw someone mention that elsewhere, as well.

One of my biggest hurdles is eating out of boredom, and he does it too. I'm looking to change that with foods like cauliflower mash to keep me fuller for long periods of time. Hopefully I like it. I have decided that I'm going to have to start forcing foods that I don't usually like, in hopes that I will eventually like them. Even just from a basic health standpoint, my veggie intake could use some variation.

I know I need to eat more fish too but ugh. Ugh.

[Dekka]

**** had a long post but typing whilst my DNA thaws... typing in gloves sucks... I will get back to it.

[Renee750il]

Originally Posted by Dekka

**** had a long post but typing whilst my DNA thaws... typing in gloves sucks... I will get back to it.

"Posts you never imagined."

Oh, and something I've used when I've done some sort of stir fry type meat in place of rice is shredded cabbage. Sometime's I'll toss it in the stir fry at the end and just let it begin to get tender, and sometimes I just use it raw.

Bok choy has just over 2 grams of carbs per 100 gram serving and regular has just over 6.

[ravennr]

Just realized I typed slow-cab, lol.


I usually hate cabbage, but again, gotta start eating these things! I will give it a shot

[MafiaPrincess]

Originally Posted by ravennr

The 4 hour guy goes into the carbs vs calories thing, too. Very interesting! I saw someone mention that elsewhere, as well.

One of my biggest hurdles is eating out of boredom, and he does it too. I'm looking to change that with foods like cauliflower mash to keep me fuller for long periods of time. Hopefully I like it. I have decided that I'm going to have to start forcing foods that I don't usually like, in hopes that I will eventually like them. Even just from a basic health standpoint, my veggie intake could use some variation.

I know I need to eat more fish too but ugh. Ugh.

I find it's the fat that keeps you full. So califlower mash could be in my diet, but it's not goign to make me full. I'd need there to be a good amount of butter in it, or cream or a nice large mix of cheese for it to be worth much to me and fullness.

Every meal I have if it includes enough fat, I stay sated don't have a desire to munch, and also don't need to eat or snack every few hours. I can do three 'meals' a day and be fine. That wasn't the case pre low carb. I also had out of control cravings often for fast food.

Being on keto, I've cooked more than ever, have a number of meals I adore and feel so not deprived on and even have a handful of go to desserts. I miss fruit some, and will later likely also be going more paleo and would like wine again in my life at a later date in moderation.