i've heard so many people go on low carb diets and i've seen amazing results. my question is, how does that pan out in the long run? if you get off the low carb diet and just eat normal, would you start gaining the weight back? one time i went on a diet, lost around 50 lbs, i did it the old school way. just a lot of salads, turkey sandwiches on wheat bread and cardio everyday. i saw consistent weight loss and at the time i didn't mind doing all the cardio since i had a gym partner. now i don't have a gym partner anymore, don't feel motivated enough to work on cardio on a regular basis so it kinda sucks. if i were to go on a low carb diet, what type of results can i expect? assuming i do work on cardio 2-3 times a week. i would think low carb diets are so unhealthy with all the calories/fat intake. anyone an expert on this?
My brother went on the no carb diet and followed it carefully. He lost allot of weight quickly but then it stopped. He needed to start doing cardio, well he ended up going off the diet and gaining all the weight back. So I believe it can work but looks like you also need to do cardio and learn how to eat healthy when you hit your goals. Much like any diet to work.
low carb diets are great short-term...if you want to get a nice stomach for the beach, etc.
but they are very hard to maintain long-term, i say that from personal experience. it's hard giving up pasta and bread and so many of the foods that taste good.
what works best for me is to just eat the majority of my carbs in the first half of my day (breakfast, mid morning snack and lunch) and cut out the carbs in the latter half of my day (afternoon snack, dinner, late night snack).
this is much easier to do. also, i eat 5-6 small meals per day (as opposed to the typical 3 "squares" a day like most people eat) this helps a lot to stabilize your metabolism.
but they are very hard to maintain long-term, i say that from personal experience. it's hard giving up pasta and bread and so many of the foods that taste good.
what works best for me is to just eat the majority of my carbs in the first half of my day (breakfast, mid morning snack and lunch) and cut out the carbs in the latter half of my day (afternoon snack, dinner, late night snack).
this is much easier to do. also, i eat 5-6 small meals per day (as opposed to the typical 3 "squares" a day like most people eat) this helps a lot to stabilize your metabolism.
thanks for the input everyone. what if i were to stay on a low carb diet and ride the stationary bike for 30-45 mins a day. would that be enough cardio? i know it's not much, but i rarely have much free time, so i can't always get a long workout in. what type of results do you think i would be looking at there? trying to get ready for summer.
Ever heard of the term "hitting the wall" ?
I can tell you this, your body needs carbs! Especially when you are working out. Carbs are the primary energy for your body, if you eat virtually no carbs then your glucogen stores will be diminished severly and whenever you work out you will feel like crap and your body won't function properly, no energy. You even need carbs to burn fat, although fat does have energy it cannot metabolise fast enough when you are exercising. The best thing is to monitor exactly how much you eat, do not eat foods with more energy than what you require for the day.
Yes it is too easy to eat so many carbs these days so intake must be watched, but it is also dangerous to try cut your carbs to very little.
I can tell you this, your body needs carbs! Especially when you are working out. Carbs are the primary energy for your body, if you eat virtually no carbs then your glucogen stores will be diminished severly and whenever you work out you will feel like crap and your body won't function properly, no energy. You even need carbs to burn fat, although fat does have energy it cannot metabolise fast enough when you are exercising. The best thing is to monitor exactly how much you eat, do not eat foods with more energy than what you require for the day.
Yes it is too easy to eat so many carbs these days so intake must be watched, but it is also dangerous to try cut your carbs to very little.
Numba 1 Stunna said:
that's plenty! if you can put in 30 minutes of cardio, 3 or 4 times per week...that is excellent. just make sure to change things up. don't let yourself get burnt out.
do a day on the bike, a day on the treadmill, a day on the stair stepper, maybe a day of aerobics, etc. etc. keep changing your cardio or you can get bored very easily always doing the same thing. good luck.
Numba 1 Stunna said:
From my personal experience, you would lose weight damn fast doing this, but would have trouble keeping it off.
I have read that low-carb diets outperform low-fat (IMO more sensible) diets in the short run, but over the course of 12 months low-fat diets surpass low-carb diets in terms of results. Low-carb programs are a short-term "quick fix"... a sensible low-fat, high fiber, controlled-calorie diet is the real solution.
Low carb diets should only be considered in the short-term. Restricting carbs is not a healthy long-run choice and has been found to increase the risk of heart conditions. You can get away with it for a short period of time, but it should not be considered as a lifelong weight management technique.
there are more and more doctors each day coming out now condemning the Atkins type diet where Carbs are basically restricted.. putting a big strain on your kidneys.. Gman is right ,, Carbs are very important to your body ,, so definitely don't restrict them over a long period of time.. They are an everyday necessity and our body's number 1 choice for its fuel.. A lot of good health depends on what kind of carbs you are eating and their Glycemic Index.. Good carbs are fruits and veggies, dairy products, and whole grains.. obviously you try and avoid Carbs with high sugar contents like donuts , bagels, french fries....etc..
Personally i am getting friggin frustrated with my friggin body..(boy am i glad i caught this shit early because thankfully its not yet visible through my shirts..Just when i sit or take off my shirt.)
Been trying to lose my gut over a year now....Fell off the gym routine around Xmas and didnt get back on until late Feb!!!
I hurt both my knees doing squats!!! and had to sit for another 3 weeks which turned out to be 6 weeks...Now i am back, my friggin beer gut is still protruding..(I am only a size 38 but i dont like what i see when i look in the mirror..)
What makes things worse, my g/f loves my calfs (though i am one of those people born with naturally big mascular calf muscles), arms and chest are also much thicker and more mascular but my fucking Gut makes me look like the beggining of Elvis downward spiral!!!
I am pretty much happy with all of my body!!!
But my friggin gut just wont go away!!!!
I wont do any more diets!!! I will just eat cleaner foods and try to maintain an active life style...This way you can keep things on an even keel so that you dont blow up like a friggin doll just because you took a vacation..
No more weights, no more diets no more beer (been off that for over a year)
I just run 20-30 mins every day m-f and do at least 50-100 situps daily!!!
If i feel like it i will pump some iron once or twice a week... But the one thing i now know for sure, is that excessive weight work actually ends up hurting you physically and mentally..(ie..you strain muscles, twist shit while the pain and recovery makes it really hard to get back to the gym because it farking hurts like a bitch so you look for every friggin reason to skip one day)...
keep the workouts fun, eat what you love (but moderate) is my motto...(if only i could still throw back gin and vodka like i did when i was 18....I could lose 20lbs from just 2 or 3 straight weeks of partying off that shit..(i dont recommend this)
Been trying to lose my gut over a year now....Fell off the gym routine around Xmas and didnt get back on until late Feb!!!
I hurt both my knees doing squats!!! and had to sit for another 3 weeks which turned out to be 6 weeks...Now i am back, my friggin beer gut is still protruding..(I am only a size 38 but i dont like what i see when i look in the mirror..)
What makes things worse, my g/f loves my calfs (though i am one of those people born with naturally big mascular calf muscles), arms and chest are also much thicker and more mascular but my fucking Gut makes me look like the beggining of Elvis downward spiral!!!
I am pretty much happy with all of my body!!!
But my friggin gut just wont go away!!!!
I wont do any more diets!!! I will just eat cleaner foods and try to maintain an active life style...This way you can keep things on an even keel so that you dont blow up like a friggin doll just because you took a vacation..
No more weights, no more diets no more beer (been off that for over a year)
I just run 20-30 mins every day m-f and do at least 50-100 situps daily!!!
If i feel like it i will pump some iron once or twice a week... But the one thing i now know for sure, is that excessive weight work actually ends up hurting you physically and mentally..(ie..you strain muscles, twist shit while the pain and recovery makes it really hard to get back to the gym because it farking hurts like a bitch so you look for every friggin reason to skip one day)...
keep the workouts fun, eat what you love (but moderate) is my motto...(if only i could still throw back gin and vodka like i did when i was 18....I could lose 20lbs from just 2 or 3 straight weeks of partying off that shit..(i dont recommend this)
personally, i think you should just stick to eating healthy and exercising. do it the old school way thats proven to work 
the only way to lose weight in the long run is cut back on food espically fatty high calorie stuff. get off sugar for a few days and you will not miss it. start it up again and you will crave it.
stay active and stop eating junk you will be happy you did.
I was 220 lbs in my early 20s, started surfing, swimming and playing ping pong while watching what i eat and i have been between 180 and 185 since i hit 25, 23 years ago
RJ
stay active and stop eating junk you will be happy you did.
I was 220 lbs in my early 20s, started surfing, swimming and playing ping pong while watching what i eat and i have been between 180 and 185 since i hit 25, 23 years ago
RJ
