Has anyone doen LT then Atkins??

[Pinklady1911]

Hi all, im at abit of a loose end! im on LT but really contimplating doing it for another 3 weeks then going onto Atkins as id like to lose more but really am missing food! im a meat and veg girl not to fussed about carbs so im guessing this could work.

Just wondered if anyone had tried it before?

 

[weasey]

Sorry - haven't done that and don't really know anything about LT. However, just wondered whether you had considered Slim and Save or Lighterlife lite as an alternative? On slim and save you can do 4 packs and 200g of certain veg or you can do 3 packs and a protein meal (100g of white fish or chicken along with 200g of certain veg). Lighterlife lite is a similar idea but you are allowed more vegetables and a lot of different proteins. That way you'd still be on a vlcd but be able to have some meals. I believe that exante has something with food too.

 

[Starlight]

Exante has working solutions. 3 packs and a high protein low carb meal every day

Best of both worlds

 

[spangles]

and just to complete the line up, cambridge also has two 'packs plus protein and veg' plans which will keep you in ketosis.

 

[Pinklady1911]

Wow well i never new any of them did that1 i wonder why LT is so strict then, i appreciate it works very fast as they all do but its personal preference! i didnt know you could still ahve food, im going to have a look now and read up on all 3, slim and save is quite cheap so ive read and exante too! but CD is the most expensive one around here, ive done that one before and thoroughly enjoyed the bars and mousses-yum yum i just need a plan with variety.

Thanks everyone and good luck xx

 

[spangles]

I tried many low carb diets, and none of them worked. Your body needs carbs to remain healthy. Not only will you damage your health with these types of diets, you will also gain it back (it's called the yoyo effect)

Interesting. Do you have any evidence at all to back up the claim that you're more likely to regain after a VLCD or low carb diet? Because actually all the research i'm aware of says that you're exactly as likely to regain after any and every kind of diet.

As for carbs, quite right - you do need carbs to function - our bodies can function on stored fat, but our brains require carbs to keep going. That's why VLCDs contain the correct amount of carbs to keep you healthy.

 

[Lily]

As for carbs, quite right - you do need carbs to function - our bodies can function on stored fat, but our brains require carbs to keep going. That's why VLCDs contain the correct amount of carbs to keep you healthy.

It is true that some parts of some brain cells can only burn glucose, but fortunately our bodies can turn protein into glucose through a process known as gluconeogenesis. This fact means that while there are essential requirements for both fat or protein (meaning we would die without eating at least some fat and at least some protein), we can live quite happily while consuming no carbohydrate at all.

And lots of folks across the world do just that, from diabetics who prefer to treat their diabetes by restricting carbs to those who are on a low/no carb regime as a way of controlling epilepsy - not just people who are trying to lose weight.

 

[spangles]

really? i stand corrected. why do vlcds contain an optimised amound carbs, then? i'm sure that in dr howard's book he said it was for brain function.

 

[Lily]

really? i stand corrected. why do vlcds contain an optimised amound carbs, then? i'm sure that in dr howard's book he said it was for brain function.

And perhaps he honestly believes it is - as I said, it is true that some brain cells need glucose. But we can manufacture that glucose for ourselves, either by drawing on our protein intake or cannibalising muscle (starving folk don't immediately lose their brain function, do they?). That's why the protein level in VLCD products needs to be reasonably high, in order to minimise that muscle mass loss.

P'raps thinking has moved on? He wrote the original book in 1984, didn't he? Maybe he didn't update that bit in the 2004 version.

 

[spangles]

maybe. anyway, thanks xx

 

[AliGal]

Pinklady:

I recommend checking out Paleo on google, including Mark's Daily Apple (see the success stories) and the Swedish DietDoctor, who has a really good list of links to Taubes (good fats bad fats etc). This is similar to Atkins - real food. You will need to watch intakes as portion size for someone who has overeaten in the past is really important. Paleo is about eating real food with real fats - meat/fish and lots of veg and not much fruit and no grains and low carb - maybe some berries. Lots of great recipes on the net - many use cocomut and almonds. I ordered ground almonds online as supermarket prices are too high.

Some eat dairy - some don't. I lost on this before starting my VLCD Alizonne - I lost weight but decided I needed to speed it up and will then go back onto Paleo eating when I'm at goal. It didnt make me feel deprived and was delicious.

As Spangles said, all dieters are at risk of putting weight back on - unless we committ to keeping it off. The diet is not done. That's the start of the really important work!

That means monitoring our weight for the rest of our lives, and taking action if we get 3 or 4 lbs above our stable weight. It also means getting really clear on how much we need to eat when (Breakfast matters!) to maintain our goal weights.

I am amazed looking back two years ago I lost a few stone then slept walked back past my prior weight to several stone higher. Never again!

Ali