Eating carbs stimulates your appetite, so a low carb diet actually works as a natural appetite suppressant.
This always amazes me because I can put away some serious food. But the minute I start eating low carb, I am literally shocked at how little I seem to eat.
Not only does Atkins (or just eating low carb) suppress your appetite, but you’ll also find that it naturally curbs your cravings for all the foods you think you can’t live without.
I can’t even count the number of times I’ve heard someone say, “I could never live without bread” or “I could never give up fruit.” I’ve never been a fruit eater myself, so that wasn’t an issue for me, but I can tell you firsthand that a low carb diet kills your desire for things like bread and pasta and sugar altogether.
It’s like pure magic the way it works because it’s immediate and a complete 180 for most people. On the flip side, eating carbs (I’m referring to “bad carbs”) induces your cravings for bread and sugar and pasta – and basically all the stuff that makes you FAT.
This is why a low carb diet works so well for people, even if they don’t have any real weight loss motivation. All you really have to do is start eating low carb, and the diet takes over naturally – reducing your appetite, your cravings, and your desire for all the foods you think you can’t live without.
How does it work? Eating low carb affects your blood insulin levels. In fact, it drops them dramatically, which naturally suppresses your appetite. Eating (bad) carbs actually spikes your insulin levels, which induces both cravings and appetite. It can be a nasty cycle that not only causes you to eat more, crave bad foods, and gain weight… but it can ultimately result in nasty health issues, including diabetes.
There are tons of people searching for appetite suppressants, and even natural appetite suppressants, but I would much rather eat real food than take a pill or an herb or a supplement of any kind. That’s just my personal preference, but it doesn’t make any sense to me at all to take something out of a bottle when you can just EAT.
Real food should always be your first choice. That’s about as “natural” as you can get when it comes to suppressing your appetite, or achieving any other healthy change.
Another misconception about eating low carb is that it’s more expensive. I eat alone for the most part, so it’s easier for me to calculate my food expenses since I’m not cooking for a family. My experience has been that yes, some things are more expensive… but I’m actually eating a lot less, and without a lot of the add-ons that add-up.
It’s very rare that I’ve heard of someone “being hungry” on a low carb diet. Given that it’s a natural appetite suppressant, which is a result of proper “food combining”, if you’re starving on a low carb diet then you may not be doing it right. 😉
I would love to hear your experience, and whether you notice a major decrease in your appetite – and with cravings too – when eating low carb. Obviously when you first start out it’s usually a dramatic change to your diet, and it takes a few days for your body to adjust, and for those cravings to go away. But I find that it kicks in pretty quick, especially the lack of appetite…
Speaking of, you should never force yourself to eat more than you feel like eating. Listen to your body. It will tell you when it needs more food, and when it needs less.
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