Low Carb Diet for Weight Loss – Your Ultimate Guide

Weight gain and obesity have become a common problem worldwide. A sedentary lifestyle, busy schedule and readily available unhealthy/packaged processed foods have become significant contributors to obesity.

Furthermore, most people only focus on exercise and neglect the significance of a healthy diet in an attempt to reduce weight. However, many different types of diet present effectively help in weight loss if appropriately adopted for a short time. 

Low-carb diets help lose weight. They also help combat other health issues like diabetes. The low-carb diet plan has become popular because of its productive and fast results or noticeable changes. 

Overview of Low Carb Diet for Weight Loss

When you follow a low-carb diet, the body uses the stored fat to get energy because of a lack of carbohydrates. As a result, you burn more fats. Another principle for weight loss is to stay on a calorie deficit. When you follow a low-carb diet, you consume fewer calories as well. Therefore, people often adopt this diet for weight loss.

Weight loss includes a calorie deficit diet with restriction of high carb foods like sweets, chips, bread etc. People on a low-carb diet start losing weight by the end of 2 weeks. However, these diets are effective for a short period, and you should not follow them for a long time. The keto diet is an example of a low-carb diet.

Following a low-carbohydrate diet increases ketones in our body, which breaks down fat to use as an energy source. Therefore, it significantly lowers weight but following it for an extended time will be dangerous for the body. It leads to various health problems such as cramps, bone erosion (side effect of ketosis), fatigue, disturbed menstrual cycle, constipation, anxiety, etc. 

A low-carb diet restricts the consumption of high-carb foods like sweets, pasta, and bread. In addition, it restricts high-carb fruits and vegetables. On a low-carb diet, the total carbohydrate consumption is limited to 50 to 150 grams daily. Because every gram of carbohydrate provides four calories, a daily carbohydrate intake of 200 to 500 calories is reasonable.

The remaining daily calories, thus, are derived from protein and fat sources. This diet is rich in protein, fat, and nutrient-dense veggies. It also demands avoiding carbohydrates found in grains and potatoes. Dairy foods that are specifically low fat can be excluded in the low-carb diet.

Foods to Consume for Low Carb Diet

• Non-Veg: Egg, lean chicken, tuna fish, sardines, salmon, herring, etc. 
• Vegetables: Spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, brussels sprouts, kale, zucchini, cucumber, lettuce, carrots, etc.
• Fruits: Apples, oranges, watermelon, star fruit, lemon, green apple, pears, blueberries, strawberries, etc. 
• Nuts and seeds: Almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds, etc
• Fats and oils: Coconut oil, butter, olive oil, fish oil, etc

Foods to Avoid for Low Carb Diet

• Sugar: Soft drinks, fruit juices, agave, candy, ice cream, etc., added sugar.
• Refined grains: Wheat, rice, barley and rye, bread, cereal, and pasta.
• Trans fats: Hydrogenated or partly hydrogenated oils
• Dairy products: Milk, yoghurt, cottage cheese, etc
• Highly processed foods
• Starchy vegetables: Beets, corn, white potatoes, green peas, etc. 
• Grains and legumes that contain carbohydrates.

The HealthifyMe Note

Low-carb diets are a type of fad diet; these diets result in temporary or short-term weight loss. It does assist in rapidly losing weight but also rapidly increases weight once you discontinue it. Moreover, such fad diets restrict dairy, legumes, grains, and fibre-rich foods, which deprive the body of other essential micronutrients and minerals, outweighing the advantages of a low-carb diet. In addition, a low-carb diet may cause metabolic issues, weakness, headaches, bad breath, and other health concerns. 

Few Popular Types of Low-Carb Diets

Ketogenic Diet

The ketogenic diet is rich in fat and low in carbs. A keto diet’s purpose is to limit carbs low enough, resulting in your body entering a metabolic condition known as ketosis.

As a result, the body’s insulin levels drop, producing many fatty acids from its fat reserves. Most of these fatty acids get carried to the liver, which converts them to ketones. Ketones refer to water-soluble compounds that provide your brain with energy. Consequently, the brain relies heavily on ketones rather than carbohydrates. 

Some variations of this diet also limit protein intake, as excess protein can diminish the number of ketones produced. As per studies, the ketogenic diet helps lose body fat and is therefore popular among people, especially bodybuilders. In a ketogenic diet, carbs are usually restricted to less than 50 grams daily and occasionally as few as 20–30 grams. 

Atkins Diet

The Atkins diet is well-known for its low carbohydrate content. This diet is divided into stages to help you lose weight and primarily emphasises protein and fats while limiting carbohydrate intake. The Atkins diet assists in weight loss by changing current eating habits. Furthermore, it claims to be a healthy way of eating for the rest of one’s life.

As per studies, it is a  considerably healthy way to lose weight, increase energy, or improve health conditions, including high blood pressure or metabolic syndrome, though more research is needed to back this.

Low-Carb Diet

A low-carb or carb-restricted diet is what it’s generally named. In comparison to a conventional Western diet, this meal plan is lower in carbohydrates and higher in protein.

Meats, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds, vegetables, fruits, and healthy fats get prioritised. Individuals should avoid high-carb foods, such as grains, dairy products high in carbs, potatoes, sugary beverages, and high-sugar junk meals.

The HealthifyMe Note

People with insulin resistance and diabetes have an increased risk of weight gain. A low-carb diet reduces weight and lowers blood glucose levels for a short time. However, in the long term, the disadvantages of a low-carb diet exceed the advantages. Adopting healthy eating habits and appropriate lifestyle behaviours is critical for justifying the weight-loss journey.

Conclusion

An effective weight management program is the keystone of healthy living. Adopting healthy eating and appropriate lifestyle behaviour is crucial for a sustainable weight-loss journey.

In addition, we need to understand the underlying essentials of eating right, the nutrients necessities, physical activity, correct lifestyle modifications, and a holistic advent to weight loss. Shortcut weight loss methods can never match a healthy and sustainable alternative.

Fad diets have gained a lot of popularity in a short period. But health experts and registered dieticians do not believe that these fad diets such as low-carb diets are beneficial in the long term. Avoid following fad diets that restrict food choices or food groups. 

A balanced diet with necessary modifications to your health goals will produce your desired results. A successful weight loss journey combines several factors, from changing your lifestyle to modifying your foods. Following highly restricted diets, ignoring carbs may give you short-term weight loss, but a healthy and consistent weight loss needs patience and time.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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