Diet

Low carb diet

introduction

The myth of "bad" Carbohydrates as the worst fattening food one can ingest has been widespread for a long time and has persisted for generations. A common nutritional and especially diet tip is therefore to completely avoid those carbohydrates in order to get or stay slim as quickly and effectively as possible. Some praise this method as ultimate slimming weapon, others demonize them as Showmanship and fallacy. But what is it about the low-carb diet, which largely dispenses with carbohydrates? Helps you live and especially eat according to low carb rules Lose weight?

Medical evaluation of the diet by

From a medical point of view can the Low carb dietif done correctly, in the long term good results achieve. It is not a crash diet or a mono diet that leads to frustration for the user after a short time.

The Calorie deficit is moderate, simultaneously sufficient proteins supplied so that the body does not go to the valuable muscle mass and draws its energy from the burning of fat reserves. By ingesting large amounts of fruits and vegetables, the body gets along with it Dietary fiber, vitamins and trace elements supplied, this achieves one Saturation effect and prevents insufficient supplies and cravings.

Also indispensable for the hormonal balance and metabolism Fatty acids are supplied via nuts, vegetable oils and fish. Those who do not suffer too much from the side effects of sugar withdrawal will find in the Low carb diet a simple and successful principle to lose weight.

Generally should still on effectiveness from athletic exercise or endurance and Weight training should be advised. This results in a greater energy deficit and builds lean, strong muscles that burn energy even at rest.
Read more about the topic here: Endurance sports and fat burning

How much can I lose weight with this form of diet?

In the first week can here depending on the initial weight two or more pounds tumble. It is about first of all about water. The body goes to the glycogen stores, i.e. sugar stores, of the liver and muscles and with these also a lot of water disappears from the body.

After that, the weight will drop more slowly but steadily. The prerequisite is of course that you are nourished under his daily calorie requirement and not consuming too much energy in the form of fat or protein. With a moderate deficit that can be sustained over a longer period of time half a kilo to a kilo a week be removed. The closer you are to your target weight, the more stubborn the love handles become.
Through exercise one can be Increase calorie consumption even more.

You can get more here: Tips on how to best lose weight

How does a low carb diet work?

Many people feel more comfortable with a slow transition and gradually reduce their carbohydrate intake in the form of bread, pasta and white flour products.
Soft drinks, sweets and alcohol should be cut from the start.
The carbohydrate-rich side dishes are initially omitted from one and then from several meals and replaced with alternatives.

The range of permitted foods is diverse: These include meat, fish, quark and other dairy products, vegetable products and legumes as sources of protein, healthy fats in the form of nuts and vegetable oils and low-carbohydrate vegetables and fruits.

You can start by leaving out carbohydrates in the evening. Many people feel better with it because they still have enough sugar throughout the day. Dishes include steak with salad or vegetables, vegetable sticks with low-fat quark for dipping, fish with vegetable sauce, vegetable soups with meat. Cheese and other fatty foods are also allowed in moderation.

Later you can switch to omitting the carbohydrates at lunch.
A consistent low carb diet only allows carbohydrates in moderation at breakfast. This includes fruit, for example. Because fruit naturally also contains a lot of its own sugar and can lead to blood sugar spikes, which in turn can lead to decreased performance and food cravings. For this reason, sweets and sweet drinks should also be completely omitted.

Egg dishes with vegetables, sausages with beans or quark with fruit are good sources of energy for breakfast. Protein foods should also be used for snacks between meals. Protein shakes can also be a good source of protein here.
Read more about: Protein shakes such as Protein powder
Switching to the low carb diet can also be radical.

Proponents believe that it boosts fat burning faster. However, many people feel weak and unable to perform during the transition phase; here, for example, you can choose the weekend to start the diet. In general, you should drink a lot throughout the day, the recommendations are between two and three liters. In addition to water, you can also use unsweetened teas or vegetable broth, which also have a pleasant satiety effect.

Find out more about the topic here: Lightning diet

Where can I find good recipes for the low-carb diet?

The low carb diet has many successful and enthusiastic followers.
There is a lot of material on the subject in the form of books or fitness magazines. Finding information on the Internet is even easier and free of charge. Low carb dishes are published and experiences are exchanged on numerous websites and in forums.

In addition, you can also make numerous familiar recipes conform with small changes. Instead of pasta made from white flour or whole grain, you can also process vegetables into pasta with a spiral cutter or use the extremely low-carbohydrate and low-calorie konjac pasta.

Read about that here Whey diet

When do I need a low carb diet?

The well-known measure of whether your own body weight is in the normal range or below or above is the Body mass index, BMI for short. It is calculated from the Body weight in kg, which is divided by the square of the height in m becomes. Values in the range between 18 and 25 kg / m² are considered desirable. People with Obesity (and especially obese people, i.e. people with a BMI> 30kg / m²) are advised to normalize their weight, i.e. to lose weight. But also formally normal-weight people are increasingly dissatisfied with their figure and want to lose a few pounds. In principle, a low carb diet is suitable for both types. This form of nutrition is particularly effective when an excess of carbohydrates is the initial cause of obesity. So if you eat a lot of high-calorie simple carbohydrates such as cakes, pastries, chocolate and fast food, you will benefit twice from avoiding carbohydrates. In addition to the carbohydrate reduction, the biggest calorie bombs are also eliminated. If you are particularly overweight or have known previous illnesses, you should not lose weight on your own, but rather after a medical health check under medical supervision happen.

Why do I lose weight on a low carb diet?

Put simply, the principle behind a weight increase is quite banal: If the body consumes more energy than it consumes in the form of food or beverages containing calories, this is left over and is stored in the form of fat deposits. Losing weight works according to the exact opposite principle: If you achieve a negative calorie balance through lower calorie intake or higher calorie consumption, those fat deposits gradually melt again. Any dieting effort should therefore include a Active, healthy everyday life with sufficient exercise and sporting activity are an integral part of the plan be.
But not only the pure calorie reduction, which often goes hand in hand with renouncing carbohydrates, explains the weight loss with low carb diets. The rather unpleasant properties of the carbohydrates themselves, which can no longer have an impact if they are not used, also play a decisive role in the metabolism. Ingested through food Carbohydrates inhibit fat burning of the body. When needed, the body first draws the energy it needs from recently supplied carbohydrates, i.e. during the last meal, which may still be in the stomach and intestines and, for the sake of simplicity, does not fall back on small cushions that should actually disappear. Just when there is no more quickly usable energy availablethe body makes the effort Break down fat reserves and gain energy from it.

So-called simple carbohydrates as they appear in white bread, fast food, sweets, white pasta and much more also lead to a strong Increase in blood sugar levelsbecause they are immediately absorbed as a "simple" source of energy and are instantly available in the blood. This massive increase leads to a strong regulatory increase Insulin release. The hormone, which also plays an important role for diabetics, ensures that the sugar from the blood is stored in different cells of the body. If these stores are full, the body stores the remaining available amount of energy in the form of fat deposits in the typical problem areas. This rapid removal of available sugar from the blood leads to a very rapid, surprising drop in blood sugar levels, which triggers a renewed cravings for sugary, sweet and high-calorie foods. A vicious circle of eating, cravings and overeating develops.

Also read: Lose weight without hunger

What do I have to consider with a low carb diet?

If you start a low carb diet, you should be aware that it is low - engl. little - and not no - engl. no - carb diet means. This means that a certain amount of carbohydrates will and should still be part of the diet. Depending on the exact form of the diet, the suggested amounts differ by a few grams. Some subspecies simply recommend consuming "as little as possible" of carbohydrates. The reason for these differing data is the fact that carbohydrates are not only the easiest and fastest supplier of energy for the human body, but also the only possible one for certain organs.
The brain, for example, is completely dependent on sugar molecules for its energy production. After a few days without carbohydrates, it can change and process alternatives like the rest of the body, but this is associated with considerable additional stress and can trigger concentration problems, for example.

Read more on the subject below Carbohydrate free diet.

The so-called ketone bodies, which are produced in the liver as part of a low-carb diet to maintain the metabolism, also put a strain on the organism.
The minimum daily requirement for carbohydrates is around 160g, 120g of which is used to supply the brain alone. However, since a healthy liver can produce a certain amount of glucose itself with considerable energy requirements, it is theoretically possible to reduce the carbohydrate intake to 0g.In practice, however, this extreme variant of a low-carb diet is extremely difficult to implement in the vast majority of cases.
But what is the first thing to look out for when deciding on a low carb diet? As a rule of thumb to start with, it can be helpful to remember the “typical” foods that are very high in carbohydrates. As a rule, these are the classic side dishes such as potatoes, bread, noodles, pasta and rice. Fast food is also very rich in carbohydrates and - since it also contains large amounts of fat - generally not recommended for those who want to lose weight. The same applies to salty and fatty snacks such as chips, nachos or flips, but also to sweets of all kinds. A strict low-carb diet then requires a good knowledge of foods and their exact composition. The term carbohydrates always means sugar or starch as a chain of simple sugar. Not everything that hides large amounts of sugar can be recognized as such at first glance. Even carrots, for example, contain carbohydrates. Not to be forgotten is alcohol, which, with its high levels of carbohydrates and high calories, should never be part of a diet. Depending on how much alcohol was consumed, even not using it can lead to short-term weight loss.

Also read: Calorie-conscious diet

Side effects of the diet

A change in eating habits is rarely perceived as pleasant, and when you switch to a low carb diet you sometimes have to contend with side effects.
Before the body is fully on the fat burning mode, the so-called Ketosis switches, many people suffer from Tiredness, difficulty concentrating and Exhaustion. Circulatory problems can occur just like Mood swings. Therefore one should pay attention to to eat regularly and not to to eat a low calorie diet.

Also a headache are common side effects. Exhausting sporting activities can become stressful during the transition phase. The most of these complaints are, however only temporarily are .

In many places the danger of kidney damage from too much protein is pointed out. This could not be clearly proven by any study. To keep your kidney healthy, you should make sure you drink enough. High cholesterol is often discussed in this context, but studies have shown that a low-carb diet has a positive effect on the ratio of HDL to LDL (“good” to “bad”) cholesterol.

A low carb diet that provides the body with sufficient amounts of protein, fats, fiber, vitamins and minerals is successful and recommended for losing weight in the long term.

Criticism of the diet

The low-carb diet helps to achieve quick success, and many graduates are particularly motivated by the initial loss of water.
Physical and psychological symptoms due to sugar withdrawal can appear at the beginning, but should be overcome after a few days. In general, a balanced low carb diet provides the consumer with sufficient protein, healthy fats, fiber, vitamins and trace elements in the form of meat, dairy products, fish, fruit and vegetables.

Carbohydrates, particularly complex whole grain products, should not be demonized without further ado. Even with a mixed diet, it is possible to lose weight as long as a daily calorie deficit is achieved. For many, a low carb diet means a major change in eating habits.

Many recipes are based on carbohydrates or at least appear as an important side dish. Those who are not very imaginative may find the diet monotonous and quickly eat their fill of eggs, meat, fish and vegetables. However, there are numerous recipes here on the Internet. Vegetarians and vegans can also eat a low-carb diet and use plant-based products such as soy and tofa or cover their protein needs with legumes. There are also many protein shakes and other additional products that can help you lose weight.

However, caution is advised with low carb foods advertised as such. Often they are particularly rich in fat and can stand in the way of losing weight. On the go, it is often not easy to find diet-appropriate food on the menu of restaurants. In most cases, however, you can swap side dishes for salads or vegetables, or you can go straight to salads with turkey breast or beef fillet strips.

After the body has got used to the large amounts of protein and has overcome sugar deprivation and possible digestive disorders, a low carb diet can be very healthy and help you lose weight or maintain weight.

Read more about the topic here: What is the best diet?

What are the dangers of the diet?

A low carb diet that provides the body with sufficient proteins, healthy fats and minerals as well as vitamins can achieve great weight loss successes, be healthy at the same time and can therefore also be carried out as a permanent form of nutrition.
At the beginning, some people still struggle with them Side effects of carbohydrate withdrawal. Cravings are less likely to occur because blood sugar spikes are avoided.

Anyone after a low carb diet phase returns to his old dietmust be aware of this; that the liver and muscles replenish glycogen stores, which means in the body also a certain Amount of water remains. This can turn out to be Weight gain reflect on the scales.
The dreaded one Jojo effect occurs when over the daily calorie requirement Energy is supplied through food. So you shouldn't eat more after a diet phase, otherwise energy will be stored again in the form of fat reserves.
Read more about: Jojo effect

Will I stay slim permanently?

The long-term prognosis after reaching a certain target weight with the help of a low carb diet is characterized by the so-called Jojo effect. After finishing the diet, some time passes and the weight reaches the starting point or, in the worst case, is even higher. The danger of experiencing the yo-yo effect is always when too few calories are consumed over a limited period of time. The body falls into a kind of "starvation mode" and shuts down the metabolism. As a result, he saves calories in the extreme situation that the diet is for him. As soon as food intake is no longer regulated and is eaten “normally” again - that is, as before the diet - there is an excess of calories with increased calorie intake and still lower calorie consumption, which inevitably shows up as additional extra kilos. Unfortunately, this phenomenon is not the exception, but what most people experience after a diet. The vicious circle of being overweight, dieting, the yo-yo effect and being overweight again is then difficult to break.

Furthermore, the success of any diet - even the low carb diet - depending on the stamina of the decreasing person. Low carb diets in particular are particularly demanding here, as many things that are associated with special enjoyment for many should now be prohibited at once. For example, anyone who enjoys eating bread and pasta will find it difficult to suddenly stop. The Risk of food cravings is enormous. For these reasons, despite the best of intentions, many people do not stick to a low-carb diet over the long term or every now and then build in "exceptions" to undermine their own diet.

A major prognostic advantage that results from low-carb diets, however, are the relatively small fluctuations in blood sugar levels during the course of the diet, since foods that contain a lot of protein also keep you full for a long time. Current studies suggest that this long-lasting satiety may result in fewer calories being consumed at the next meal and that this even supports the actual weight loss success.

How do I prevent the yo-yo effect on a low carb diet?

The safest way to avoid the Jojo effect To protect, the resolution is not to use a short-term diet for rapid weight loss, but rather one to integrate permanent dietary changes into everyday life. This means being able to correctly identify “fat-making” for a lifetime and then avoiding them in most cases. Certainly it makes little sense to always forbid yourself everything, but you and your body should get used to good, healthy food and an active lifestyle. It is not at all implausible that fast food, sweets, chips and so on in large quantities do not necessarily serve the slim line. From a medical point of view, completely avoiding carbohydrates in the long term is difficultbecause it can lead to unforeseeable damage to the body. If you want to try a low carb diet and just want to lose a little weight, you can combine a healthy and balanced diet with an evening meal without carbohydrates. It is possible to take advantage of some of the positive effects of a low carb diet, save a few calories and lose weight without putting the body in an acute state of emergency.

In general, one should pay attention to it prefer high-quality, complex carbohydrates in any case, for example whole grain products, starchy vegetables, but also bananas or cereal flakes instead of very sugary or white flour products. All foods that are too heavily processed and therefore contain large amounts of artificially added sugar and / or a lot of fat should also be avoided. A good, healthy alternative is always a diet that is based on lots of fresh vegetables (preferably leafy vegetables) and salad sets without completely avoiding a nutrient group, unprocessed or less processed foods preferred and a smaller amount of calories combined with lots of nutrients and vitamins. In conjunction with a sufficient Drink around 1.5 to 2 liters of water daily and regular, moderate exercise Then nothing stands in the way of customer success.

What are the costs of a low-carb diet?

A low carb diet relies on the intake of large amounts of protein. The source for this can be flesh and fish serve who to high quality food would like to grab something more money take in hand.
But canned tuna or cold cuts don't have to be expensive either. In addition, the demand can also be met with low-fat quark or vegetable alternatives such as tofu or legumes.

Should be on processed foods as well as be waivedBy eliminating the need for sweets, soft drinks and alcohol, additional savings can be made. Vegetables and fruits bought from farmers or markets can be healthier and cheaper than in the supermarket. Contrary to popular belief, can also Fruit and vegetables from the freezer be a good alternative, because shock freezing preserves many vitamins.

A low carb diet does not require nutritional supplements, but protein shakes can also be used. This does not significantly increase the costs of a low carb diet, it is worthwhile to compare prices. Losing weight and eating healthy doesn't have to be expensive!

What alternative diets are there to the low-carb diet?

In principle, a low carb diet falls out of the range of the usual crash diets, because it is a form of nutrition that, if carried out correctly, can also be used as a permanent diet without hesitation. This means that your success is more long-term and healthier than the supposed success through mono-diets such as the cabbage soup diet or the Kornspitz diet. A sufficient supply of proteins and fats makes it possible to keep the metabolism and hormonal balance on the go. Vegetables and fruit also give the body the necessary fiber, vitamins and trace elements and prevent deficiencies. All of this cannot be guaranteed by crash and mono diets.

Read more on the subject below: Crash Diet - How Effective Is It?

A sensible alternative to low carb that offers similar long-term success and is also easier to adapt to lifestyle are so-called mixed diets. All foods are allowed as long as you stay below your daily calorie requirement. Then the body starts burning fat. You can count calories or start using the Weight Watchers point system.
This diet has the advantage that it forbids the graduate absolutely nothing, but here too one should not consume too many unhealthy foods, especially since the satiety effect is lower and blood sugar spikes occur, which is not the case with a low carb diet.

The Mayo Diet is a method of weight loss following the low carb diet. It represents a gentle alternative to losing weight.

Another alternative to the low carb diet is the Military Diet and Ketogenic Diet. This is a form of the low carb diet in which one is only allowed to consume a few carbohydrates.

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