I’ve heard many people ask “Why Am I Not Losing Weight on the Low Carb Diet?”
If you are not losing weight at all, or your weight loss has stalled, you just may be making one of these common top three mistakes!
1. Counting Calories & Watching Portions
If you’ve tried other diets, or listened to other diet advice, it may be hard to stop counting calories or watching your portions. Many people do it subconsciously, or try to apply it to the Low Carb Diet when they switch to that way of eating.
Combining Low Carb with different types of diets simply doesn’t work!
There’s a science to how the Low Carb Diet works, which has more to do with “food combining” than how much food you eat or how many calories you consume.
Instead, eat freely from the list of low carb foods, to the point that you are both physically and emotionally satisfied. This will prevent binges and cheats, which totally screw up the science of the low carb diet and can actually cause you to GAIN weight.
2. Not Consuming Enough Fat
I know, it’s hard to process: eating fat to lose weight? Yes. In fact the low carb diet is often referred to as LCHF – meaning Low Carb, High Fat. Again, there’s a proven science behind how it works. Your body actually switches from burning carbs for energy, to burning fat for energy. And you need that energy source!
At one point last year my weight loss stalled. All of a sudden I was simply not losing weight anymore. I realized I had inadvertently started eating very low fat meals, consisting mostly of fiber and protein – with hardly any fat at all. Adding the good fats back in did the trick!
Stop looking at fat as a BAD thing. At the very least, consume plenty of fats that come in natural form: avocados, eggs, flaxseed, olives, coconut and nuts for example.
3. Adding in “Low Carb Products”
It can be tempting to try things like low carb pasta or low carb protein bars (I love Quest Bars!), but in the beginning you really want to stick to natural low carb foods. Many people notice their weight loss stall when trying these kinds of low carb products.
During induction phase especially, you should stick to “real food.” And at any point really, until you reach your weight loss goal. Once you have lost the weight, and continue with a healthy lifestyle of low carb eating, indulging in specialty products is fine (assuming they don’t have an adverse affect on any specific health issues you may have, such as diabetes).
If you’re not losing weight on the low carb diet, try making the changes recommended above.
One small change could be the ticket to getting your weight loss kick-started again. 😉
I just gained 1.3 pounds overnight…must’ve been the 8 ounces of PEANUT BUTTER i ate! (that’s my one and constant cheat…)
Great tips. I haven’t seen anyone address this before. Thanks!