Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Gerri on December 25, 2011 at 6:05pm

Hi Kelly,

I jumped right in at 30 carbs. Dr. B isn't high protein, but it is high fat. I was vegetarian for decades before diagnosed T1. It's near impossible to stay within his guidelines without animal protein. To get sufficient protein, you'd be eating a lot more carbs from vegetable sources. For lunch & dinner, I eat protein & low carb vegetables. There's an amazing array of low carb recipe sites to help you with creative & delicious meals. People think I live on meat & salad because that's what comes to mind:)

Here are a few. I have more, if you like.
www.lowcarbcafe.com
www.lowcarbluxury.com
www.lowcarbfriends.com
http://healthyindulgences.blogspot.com/ (the most decadent low carb desserts!)
http://genaw.com/lowcarb/index.html
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/recipes/Low_Carb_Recipes.htm
www.foodnetwork.com (you can search their site for low carb recipes)
http://www.alldayidreamaboutfood.com/
http://mariahealth.blogspot.com/

Permalink Reply by Natalie ._c- on December 25, 2011 at 9:11pm

I am not strictly following Dr. B -- sort of using his philosophy as a guideline. It's partly because I'm a picky eater, and partly because I just can't bring myself to give up milk. So I'm aiming for 60g of carbs a day instead of 30, but so far, it's working quite well for me. I haven't had any trouble cutting out the grains and sweets, as long as I get enough protein. The body can use protein, carbohydrates and fats as sources of energy, but processed carbs (and even "whole" grains are very processed) are the easiest to digest, so it makes sense to me that if you're trying to eat low-carb and feeling a craving for carbs, your body is not getting enough energy from protein. This may be my theory only, but in my own experience, if I'm getting enough protein, I don't crave carbs at all, but if I slip on protein, I start craving carbs. The other thing that makes me crave carbs is when I'm depressed, which also makes sense, because carb consumption leads to increased dopamine in the brain, and dopamine stimulates the pleasure center, which would also explain why some people are literally addicted to carbs.

At any rate, I don't see anything wrong with getting your carbs from vegetables that have other good nutrients in them. I never heard of anyone pigging out on carrots, anyway! :-) I just really think it's important to get adequate protein, or else you'll be sabotaging yourself. You really don't need to go overboard on the protein foods, and there is enough variety to choose from that you shouldn't get bored. And our friend Gerri is a whiz at low-carb cooking, and can point you in various directions if there are foods that you really crave and would like a substitute for. Me, on the the other hand -- I would be perfectly happy eating Purina People Chow if it was tasty, so I eat only a very few foods, and manage pretty well on that.

So the real point is that you have only to try it out, and see what you can do -- lots of people to talk to you and give you their views, and you WILL figure out what works for you! :-)

Permalink Reply by muleman on December 26, 2011 at 3:30am

Hi Kelly. as many know here I started my low carb diet 2 weeks ago. Came on this site a broken a frightened man! I food habits were a nightmare, and my BS would frequently go towards and over 200! I started on 1.000 Carbs a day. Just to have a starting bench mark. A point I my diet I would measure from that was not challenging. Three days I was down to 600-700. 400 is my goal for the new year! I'm enjoying eating healthier, but you look so slim. I have a lot of stored fat, so seems I have a safety belt, oh that's a terrible pun. But I guess you know what I mean! People here are so kind, knowledgeable, and generous with their time. Happy New Year.

Permalink Reply by Cindy on December 27, 2011 at 12:30pm

Happy New Year, Muleman~
I'm glad we're starting this together. But I don't understand what you meant by "1.000 Carbs a day". And then you referred to 600-700. Are you talking calories?

Permalink Reply by muleman on December 29, 2011 at 3:49am

Sorry Cindy. I meant calories of course! But the last 2 days have not been good for a diet! My BS was 133 this morning which is near the top of what I aim for (140) I am my daughters and need to get back to by exercise bike!

Permalink Reply by BadMoonT2 on December 26, 2011 at 4:26am

I went cold turkey when I went low carb. Fast acting carbs like grains, potatoes and sugars cause cravings to eat more, due to the dopamine effect mentioned by Natalie. It only took a few days to get over the cravings by just stopping all at once.

Having said this, others take the opposite tack and also do well.

Permalink Reply by Cindy on December 27, 2011 at 12:32pm

Hi BMT2,
Cold turkey at how many carbs/day, if you don't mind my asking? Family here for another week, so I can't read Dr. B again right now.
Thanks

Permalink Reply by BadMoonT2 on December 27, 2011 at 1:44pm

Cindy,
As a T2 my approach was to just cut out the food groups that were causing me trouble, grains, potatoes, fruit, certain dairy and sugars, these are also the foods that cause cravings. In his book Dr. B has a chart of foods to avoid, foods to limit and foods you can eat without causing problems. It has proven to be a perfect predictor for me. That put me at around 40 g/day. I think counting grams of carbs is much more important for T1's or T2's on insulin, because of the law of small numbers etc.

Permalink Reply by Todd T. on December 26, 2011 at 7:50am

I started out by cutting food types. Right after I started reading Dr B's book I modified what I ate. I also do follow his plan precisely and do not count every bite, but try to stay with salad, fruit, veg and meat. I could also eat pretty much the same thing most every day, in fact, I have had the same breakfast for most of the last year and a half. Pretty boring, but easy. I don't make food a major focus in my life. I try to stay away from Reward food. I like my results and feel good, dropped significant weight and lowered my BG. Good luck and listen to experts like Gerri.

Permalink Reply by Cindy on December 27, 2011 at 12:37pm

I like to read while I eat, so it's not the food I focus on, but the opportunity to sit down and read while eating. Now I have only to change the food carb content I set next to my book I guess! :-)

Permalink Reply by Todd T. on December 26, 2011 at 8:02am

Take a look at this, http://www.dlife.com/dlife_media/diabetes_slideshows/bad_breakfasts...
This site sometimes follows ADA high carb methods but this shows it pretty straightforward.

Permalink Reply by Kelly Collins on December 26, 2011 at 5:48pm

Thanks for all the replies. I don't think it will be as hard to follow on a day to day basis - holidays are going to be the challenges! I am just not used to eating a lot of meat, most days I don't eat breakfast and if I do it's eggs or yogurt. Lunch and dinner is either a salad or just a plain vegetable dish if I am cooking at home. I love butter so the fat part won't be bad! I only eat meat 3 or 4 times a week (1x a day) for one meat is so much more expensive than produce and I don't like dealing with marinating and seasoning it. Even though I do eat more vegetarian I avoid rice and pasta and bread.

I should really go through and read the book again, I quickly skimmed through pages over Christmas at the chapters that I was interested in at the time. It's kind of ironic that I when I read his book 6 years ago I thought it was impossible but in reality it makes a lot of sense and it's too bad not as many people at least try and follow his advice.

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