Let me start off by saying I don’t like the word “hate”. I find it entirely too strong in most ANY instance, so just know the title is a bit tongue in cheek. 😉
That said, there are pros and cons to everything, including the Low Carb Diet!
So I thought we’d have some fun with it, vent a little, and have a good candid discussion about the negatives we each personally experience…
I’ll start with mine, and then you leave a comment below. I can’t wait to hear your thoughts! 😀
Top 5 Things I Dislike About The Low Carb Diet
1. The fact that I got fat in the first place, and had to go on it to lose weight. LOL.
2. The word “diet”. To me it’s more a “way of eating”. If you slip up and use the word “diet” people assume you’re a weight loss freak or have self-image issues or you’re one of those weirdo dieter types. Or at least that’s what I think they’re thinking. 😛
3. That Welch’s Grape Juice is not low carb. *pout*
4. Misinformed people with good intentions that say too much Bacon will kill me. Which is usually said while they’re slugging a beer or have a mouthful of donuts.
5. The politics and the science behind the low carb diet. Quite honestly, I could care less. I eat Bacon and I lose weight. That’s all I really need to know! 😉
Your turn! What are your biggest issues with the low carb diet, or what ruffles your feathers most when it comes to the low carb topic?
Robin says
the lack of brain power (gets foggy)
the lack of physical strength
that carbs have any effect on me as it is! Blah!!!
Heather says
I hate that sushi is not low carb. Sometimes I suffer from low energy.
Lynn Terry says
Sushi used to my my *favorite* food. π
You gals both suffer from low energy?? I haven’t had that experience. During the initial induction/ketosis phase I do have headaches and get *really* crabby – and also restless, not able to sleep well. But I haven’t experienced lower energy.
Do you eat enough fat & good carbs? I try to eat 20 net carbs/day and plenty of fat – which is what the body uses for energy in place of the carbs.
Cathy says
1) I agree that I don’t like to call it a diet – especially now that I am in maintenance. So I say – I don’t eat carbs, or I watch my carbs.
2) Explaining it to people and they always say “I can’t do without…” – Yes you can if you really want to lose the weight.
3) People who try my diet, and think that they have done well when they had fruit or “just a little” sweets. It’s all or nothing on sweets – especially when you’re trying to lose. Once you cut them out, the cravings go away.
4) That I had to give up pizza. But, now that I’m on maintenance – I eat Papa Murphy’s de-lite pizza with super thin crust.
5) That if I want to eat bread (that is very low carb) that I have to order expensive loaves online, and then pay a bunch of money to have it shipped. I wish Julian bread was sold in my town.
But there are lots of PROS: And yes, BACON is probably #1!!
Lynn Terry says
Bacon is definitely a PRO π lol
I try to avoid the topic altogether, unless I’m with my low carb friends. Often I’ll just say “I already ate” or “Hmm, thanks but that doesn’t really appeal to me at the moment. I think I’ll have __ instead.” etc.
It’s not like I’m having to count points or do any major studying of the menu to eat out either. Steak and green vegetables, salmon & broccoli – all normal menu items. So it doesn’t even *need* to come up in conversation most of the time. Which I like. π
Leslie says
How many carbs are in the Papa Murphy pizza?
Traci Knoppe says
My #1 hate of the low carb lifestyle is when folks want to argue with you and tell you how much your body needs carbs! Um, hello – I said LOW carb, not NO carb. Big difference.
Lynn Terry says
That one bugs me too, Traci. π
I do eat carbs. Like broccoli. π
Christina Clauson says
I think that Traci is correct. The answer is “very low carb” not “no carb”. Then you get the best of both worlds: a slow weight loss without the loss of energy. There is never a foggy feeling (unless you don’t have a little caffeine in the morning!). I am using Pinterest to collect lo-carb recipes. You can go there to see what I’ve found. Some are converted regular recipes. This is so much fun! I just made a delicious sugar-free cheesecake with sugar-free cherry topping. Yum! Today I am making spaghetti and meat-balls, using spaghetti squash as the noodles! Super yum and super easy!
Lynn Terry says
Yum, Christina! Can you share the link to your Pinterest board? I want to connect with you there! π
Niki Maas says
I’d like to connect with you on Pinterest as well. I’m nikimaas
Mark says
I would like to see them also. I’m 52,male, work offshore around a bunch of men who eat anything. But one good thing is the healthy way of eating is catching on out there and I do my best to eat the low carb way.
Tonya says
I hate that I lost weight but it seriously elevated my cholesterol.
I hate that it is very unforgiving if you have a slip up.
I hate that it cost so much to buy the food.
I hate that I happen to be insulin resistant and therefore must stay vlc.
I hate that it can be rather inconvenient.
Lynn Terry says
I haven’t had that experience with cholesterol. I’ve read most people experience the opposite. Did you have a recent appt with your doctor about that? I’d be really interested in what they discovered.
I do slip up. All the time, lol. Fortunately it hasn’t been a major issue. A couple pounds of water weight mostly. But I don’t have any real health issues, which may be the difference?
As for the cost, I haven’t seen a big change there. But I was eating *terrible* before, which included lots of bad (and expensive, lol) take out…
George says
I’ve come full circle on low carb diets. At 25 I was 230lbs and the Atkins diet was all the rage… I read the book and in 8 months I lost 70 lbs! I was soooo happy! Unfortunately I was not able to keep it up and quickly gained all the weight back – and more π You see, back then, the book didn’t discount the fiber, so there were no NET-CARBS, Plus, he never talked about supplements or exercize.
I agree with you that the problem is thinking of losing weight as a diet. It’s got to be a lifestyle – as you explain… and the main thing is to avoid processed foods and stick with as much clean (organic) foods as possible…
Now, regarding bacon and red meats, I’ve changed completely after seeing “forks above knives: and “fat, sick and nearly dead”. Amazingly, the main culprits still remain: HIGHLY PROCESSED FOODS! They’re the culprits… It’s the DENSE carbs that’s the problems… Plus all the chemicals they use: High Fructose Corn Syrup, Refined Flower, Refined rice, etc…
Thanks for explaining all this so well…
Lynn Terry says
Good point. I love to “eat clean” and find I lose weight best when I skip any “products” and just eat “real food”.
Cathy says
Hi George,
I read your post this morning and looked into those films you mentioned. The bad thing is it was just after having purchased tons of animal based foods yesterday ;-(
Now I’m considering a switch to a whole foods diet. In Forks Above Knives, the research findings are amazing. I had never heard that something as innocent sounding as milk proteins (casseinate) could be related to cancer and other serious health issues.
Thanks for mentioning those films.
Bridget says
I hate that your body craves the food you can’t have anymore even if you could have cared less about eating it before.
Lynn Terry says
I find that I only crave when I’m “cheating” (another word I “hate” to use, lol). Other than that, when I get a random craving like you’re describing – I often wonder where in the world it comes from. I think for me it’s mostly psychological, so I have to blow it off and have some almonds & string cheese. π
Missy says
I once read somewhere that when your body is craving something it usually means you’re deficient in it. So like if I am craving oranges or orange juice – it could mean I am low in Vitamin C.
I think there’s some truth to it.
Lynn Terry says
I’m careful with my rationalizations though. Like I could rationalize craving a hot fudge sundae lol. But I know what you mean. Lately I’ve been craving dried cranberries. High in natural sugar, but I’ll have a few in the palm of my hand sometimes and count it in for my daily carb count. Does the trick! π
Cindy says
I have been getting the “That can’t be good for you” from my husband and I love Welchs’ grape juice, too! π
Lynn Terry says
That stuff rocks, lol – like heaven in your mouth! It’s hard to resist. π What part of low carb does he feel can’t be good for you? Something specific you’re eating – or something you’re NOT eating (which I find is usually the case)… ?
Angela Wills says
Interesting how everyone ‘hates’ different things about it.
– I hate how people act like I’m doing something unsafe. My last question was ‘Where do you get potassium’ when I said I am not currently eating bananas or potatoes (though I do slip in some potatoes at times). I had no idea where I got my potassium from but I googled foods with Potassium and found out that Avocados, Nuts, Fish and a bunch of other foods I still eat have lots of it.
– I hate how people think low-carb = no-carb (like Tracy said).
– I also hate calling it a diet because I think people will think I’m a diet freak or trying to be a model or something (the models in movies seem to be low-carb/no-carb crazy). This is actually the first ‘diet’ I’ve even done! And I’ve been at it for six months now…. it’s definitely a lifestyle change for me too.
Great post Lynn π
Lynn Terry says
Ahh – I get that question a lot too! It IS found in a lot of other foods. π
Dena says
when I order bone in buffalo wings and forget to ask if they are breaded… and you guessed it! They come out breaded. (Though they should never be!)
If you complain, waiter thinks you’re psycho. You’ve been doing so well so you don’t eat them, then the people you are with think your psycho. Or you eat them then wish you didn’t!
Friends thinking what you eat is gross (they now finally get it thank gosh!)
Lynn Terry says
Ahh. I play “diabetic” when I eat out, but only if there’s an issue. And then I get it replaced with something else, and tip well for it. If the wait staff were rude, and I weren’t with friends, I’d get up and walk out. π
I try to play it safe when I’m in a restaurant. I often look at the menu online beforehand just to be sure, and get an idea what I’ll order. I prefer to avoid situations if at all possible.
But speaking of wings, I *love* them too! I get them from Applebee’s quite a bit, as we have very few restaurants in my town. What a treat!!
April says
I hate when people ask how I have lost all of my weight (140 pounds) in such a short time, and I explain it…. And they look at me like and say “That is so unhealthy!” What the heck. Being almost 300 pounds on a 5′ frame is unhealthy. Period. I did this myself, no surgery and with very little support from friends and family. I just had to do it and did it for me.
I also hate when people ask for help with trying low carb, so I am really supportive: write up some helpful notes, recipe websites, stuff about countin carbs, issues I had, etc. The person tries for a week, then just gives up and says “It doesn’t work.” Oh come on!
Finally, I hate how easy it was to lose weight without much exercise because it made it hard to work out. Now I’m regretting that I didn’t work out more and dealing with loose skin.
Ohhhh, and I REALLY HATE how easy it is to fall off the wagon. π
Lynn Terry says
LOL I can relate to that last one. π Ditto!
Kudos to you for doing it on your own, and losing SO much weight! Congrats! π *cheers*
I have no idea why people believe eating low carb is “unhealthy”. Seriously…
Angela Wills says
Good for you for losing that much weight on your own, congrats!!
I forgot the exercise thing but it’s one of my hates too. I do want to exercise because I know I’ll be healthier if I do but I’m sooo unmotivated to do so knowing that I don’t really need it, lol!
There were times in my life where I exercised (well, walked every day) to lose weight because I thought you had to. Now I know better I’m finding it hard to get moving.
I’m trying to find fun stuff that’s active like Hula Hooping (for adults), Swimming, etc, but those are more summery things and it’s so cold out right now!
Lynn Terry says
I’m struggling with it too, but really pushing myself. I want to get toned up – mainly in the thighs, butt & arms π
Violet says
Have you ever seen the movie “FatHead”? It explains a lot about how all the misinformation about what is and is not healthy.
My biggest peev is when people start telling me about how I need carbs, and how low carb is dangerous. They start quoting recycled mumbo jumbo about how anything that restricts fruits is wrong. My father in law is diabetic and finally had to learn about carbs but now he thinks he is an expert on them and gets on my case for not eating 50 carbs at each meal, and 30 for snacks.
Just last month I was 390 lbs, and today I’m 354. Im dropping weight fast and have so much energy you can barely keep me out of the gym. To me, the best motivation is when the ketosis strip is purple and you realize that every bit of exercise youre doing is getting real results.
Before this attempt, I had done low carb once before in 2004 where I had lost 200lbs, but stopped when my family got worried. (went from 360 to 160). They stopped letting me exercise and threw out all low carb foods. I was sabotaged by my own family. how sick is that? Well… needless to say thats no longer an issue. I live several states away and we dont have contact. (no lectures please. you dont know them. blood doesnt always equal family)
My goal is to reach 160 lbs by April of 2013.
Fingers crossed.
I use “myDietDiary” app and it gives a medhelp login. If you want to talk im on there as violet_rage
Lynn Terry says
How sad – I’m so glad you’re on your own path now without any hindrances. Good for you! And way to go on your recent weight loss and your goals!! π
Les says
I miss my Sierra Nevada Pale Ale π Otherwise I am very happy with the low carb life style. I have made some very delicious food replacements for the not so carb friendly foods. It is a good thing I like to cook and experiment. π
By the way, I missed your postings the last few days. I thought you might have dropped off the face of the earth.
-Les
Lynn Terry says
Hey Les! Nope, I didn’t fall off the earth, just fell off the wagon – LOL. π I’ve been especially busy between writing a new guide and fostering another great dane. I just picked her up a week ago yesterday, so it’s been a crazy week getting her adjusted and enjoying her company. π
Kelly McCausey says
I’m in the honeymoon stage on day 12 so I don’t have too many gripes at the moment but I remember what tripped me up in the past was missing BREAD and PASTA! I love that stuff!
One thing I’m doing much better with this time around is that I’m eating plenty of salad. I know in the past I did not get enough pure veg and it made things rough fast.
I also wasn’t willing to give low carb recipes a try before and I have a much more open mind now that I’ve checked out some of your ideas here on the blog.
My only gripes right now:
1. I miss my high fiber oatmeal which was my habit for a long while.
2. I miss sugar in my coffee – but I’m getting used to the sugar free syrup slowly.
Traci Knoppe says
Kelly – I use Xylitol as a sweetener. It’s a sugar alcohol, looks and tastes just like sugar and doesn’t give me migraines, and doesn’t mess with my blood sugars. I’m hypoglycemic, so have to be very careful with sugar and carbs. http://www.xylitol.org/
Kelly McCausey says
Hey, thanks for the recommend Traci π I’ll check it out.
Lynn Terry says
Coffee was my biggest hurdle when I first started too. Getting the combination just right so I could enjoy it again. I like the sugar free syrups. I did eventually get tired of them, and have since switched to Splenda, but I’ll switch back when I get tired of that. I tend to like things in phases, then switch it up. π
By the way, you’re first week was awesome – congrats! How much weight have you lost now?? π
Angela Wills says
Kelly I don’t know if you can do it but when I started I went straight to no sugar and only cream, thick cream. I got used to it and I really love my coffee without sweetener at all!
I gave up tea though. I used to drink tea and not so much coffee but I can’t do coffee without sugar, lol!
Other drinks I love are Almond Milk (1 carb), Soy Milk (2 carbs) and I do drink some Diet Coke. Not all brands of the milks are that low in carbs, you need to buy the unsweetened and look to make sure.
Violet says
Pasta that tastes like pasta: dreamfields (5 net carbs)
kinda pasta… diff texture…. 0 carbs and cals: shirataki pasta or miracle noodles
Bread: julianbakery.com they have 1 and 2 carb breads π
theres a locator there to tell you if any stores nearby sell it.
Garry Woods says
Hi Lynnand all you beautiful People,I can understand where you are all coming from, I don’t like diets, love my food to much but the right foods, had a sugar problem so my health and dietisian told me to use stevia, the Liquid type, 7 drops equals one teaspoon so i did and its not even made my sugar levels rise which is great, I even use it in cooking as well, I’ve cut oput all Processed foods from my way of eating, and also all Dairy like cheeses, which I loved, but no more Milk, cream,dairy yogurt, made from cows milk and cream but goats ok, I like to eat clean greens and most fruits.So Lynn and every one keep up this great Blog, helps a lot of people but remember can’t please every one so don’t try. Kind and encouraging thoughts from.Garry.
Lynn Terry says
Hi Garry,
Your dietician recommended you eat fruits, with a sugar problem? Just curious as they contain so much natural sugar…
I stick to berries, and otherwise get what I need from veggies. π
MANDA says
i, like you, despise when people try to tell me that i am eating ‘unhealthy’. (as they eat a cake….)
Lynn Terry says
Ridiculous, isn’t it? π
low carb recipes says
I definatly agree with your on point 4, it is even worse when they are not open to even looking into low carb science to be able to accept that eating bacon is fine !
Lynn Terry says
Exactly π
Ruth says
I don’t like it when people with little to lose think they can use the lc way of eating to drop a few pounds, then go back to their former way of eating thinking they will be okay – this is not a quick fix diet, it’s a way of life eating! Also, if you need a “grape fix” – try Great Value Drink Enhancer found at Wally World.. it’s quite tasty and satisfying!
Lynn Terry says
Thanks, I’ll check that out! And I agree. It’s an easy way to lose weight *quickly*, but pointless to go back eating like crap and expect the results to stick. π
Bessie says
Didn’t like “feeling yucky” during induction phase- constant nausea, vomiting, horrible headache, shakiness, fatigue. I found that I had to up my carbs a little as I take med that depletes my potassium levels and had to add additional carbs (only 5-8) to allow for some items such as V-8 or tomatoe juice, strawberries or cantalope. Now trying to stay between 20-28 per day, working well and weight is coming off, though probably a little slower than I would like! Energy levels are up and am adding more exercise each day!
Lynn Terry says
Oh wow, Bessie – I didn’t feel anywhere near that bad during induction. I wonder if it had to do with your med and/or potassium levels. No fun!
What kind of exercise are you doing? I’ve been doing Zumba DVD’s at home, but am signing up for Curves this week. (they have a special offer for a free week to try it out)
Bessie says
Just lots of walking, hula-hooping-great for tummy-and some light weights-doing all exercising at home-lost 5 more pounds this week!!
Lynn Terry says
Awesome! Congrats π
Shirley says
I love that I can eat bacon, butter, cream, and nuts!!! I’ve lost 155 lbs!!! I love that my energy is good, my skin, nails and hair all love it…. but probably the thing that rocks me with “HAPPY” is that after a year of watching what happens on LC…my Dr. stated… “THERE IS NOT ONE THING I WOULD CHANGE ON YOUR BLOOD WORK. EVERYTHING IS RIGHT ON TARGET! NOW TELL ME MORE ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE DOING THAT YOU ARE CONTINUING TO LOSE WEIGHT WHILE “OTHERS” QUIT TRYING!!!” (p.s. 100 lbs of my weight loss was in 1 year) I hope to lose another 50 lbs. and recognize that even then I will be overweight because of the huge amount of excess skin I carry as a result of being up to 388 lbs at one time. Because of my age (73) I would probably never be approved for removal of the excess skin. But I would be mentally aware that I have won the victory over the battle I have struggled with since I was in grade school!!
Lynn Terry says
That’s amazing, Shirley. π Way to go!!
What a huge achievement. You must be VERY proud of yourself, and rightly so! π *cheers*
Teddy says
I have used this for years. Need something GOOD AND SWEET? Sugar free A & W Root Beer and a shot of cream or half and half. SO GOOD!! I also use a sugar free orange soda and a shot of cream or half and half and it tastes like an orange dreamcycle I have not tried it but bet you could freeze it.
Since I am new I hope I am not repeating. I use a bread from Aldi that is VERY VERY low carb. I make french toast with it (and low carb syrup) so satisfying and you are not hungry.
You can also put it in a blender with eggs and flavorings and make pan cakes.
Marian Benavides says
Can you tell us more about the Aldi bread that’s low-carb?