myths/facts?

[sneakrs]

I haven't quite yet found my home for posting yet on these forums but think I am leaning towards South Beach or a modified personal plan. No white bread, pasta, rice, sugars (including the 'tols), and concentrating on eating healthier carbs. This should work and let me change my bad habits for life, I hope.

Some myths I have read in the past year about low-carbing are:

After you lose the initial water weight in induction and start creeping down the scales, you come to a stall which will last anywhere from 4-6 weeks. If it goes longer, you should either do the Fat-Fast (Atkins) or have a high-carb day --or two --and that will jump-start you again?

Your body will "remember" a weight that it was at long ago and just refuse to move the scale. Your body was healthier at this weight but it is not where you want to be. Your body will hold onto this weight like you were starving yourself.

You should never eat more than 20 carbs at one sitting. If you do, your body can't handle it and will make you sleepy.

People say that eating a high-carb meal once a day works (carb-addicts diet).

[orchidday]

Interesting list of myths Sneakers! Just my own comments about them:

(1) Most folks lose quickly on induction and then slow down pretty dramatically. I call this the "freak out" phase. Because naturally, our bodies slow down the weight loss. It does seem normal for people to quit losing for a couple of weeks here. Atkins defines a stall as six weeks with no weight loss and no lost inches. Some LCers have had luck with a fat fast if that continues (if they are metabolically resistent) but most are not truly in a "stall" as defined by Atkins. I think you are referring to a "refeed" here as well. This technique is similiar to athletes who "carb load". It has worked for some people. I have never really tried it but a true refeed is healthy and balanced.

(2) I think you are referring to "setpoint" theories here. These ideas were common in the 70's and 80's amongst the dieting masses. Basically, setpoint theory says that our metabolism will keep us pretty steady at a certain weight. Although to the best of my knowledge they had no medical research to back this up I do believe it. Unless we do something to change our metabolic rate, of course we would stick at a specific weight. The chemistry of Atkins as well as increased exercise changes the metabolism anyway. We have to speed in up in order to keep weight off.

Carbs do make me sleepy if I eat a LOT. But I have never heard the number 20. That is the Atkin's induction level and most people move their carbs up in OWL with good results.

I am no expert at CAD, but they have a meal once a day that allows higher carbs. However, they have to balance that meal it sure isn't a free for all and that is a common myth.

I love thinking about "sacred cows" and challenging our beliefs!

Orchid

[pstar]

Personally I've never been in a stall...I only lost 1 pound this last week, but it was because I ate too many allowed carbs last weekend. Whenever I feel like the loss is slowing I cut back on carbs and make sure my portions have not gotten larger. While SBD isn't a counting WOE, I try to stay between 1700 and 2000 calories per day. At this point I consume between 30 and 75 carbs per day unless I'm cutting back. I try to make most of my allowed carbs 50 or less on the glysemic index. I do have some items that are around 75 on the glysemic index and very few that are over.

[Monika4]

These 4 myths are interesting.
1) I definitely had #1 - a stall of 4 weeks of 6 weeks of pretty good losses. I am sure the water loss makes sense but that should be much quicker, no matter how much we weight, our livers and muscles (where the water-hogging carbs sit) aren't that large. So it has to be more. Other theories I have heard is that after a quick loss your body needs re-adjusting - so in my case, the big loss was 4-6 weeks followed by a stall.

2. I do think there are set points. I could keep my weight easily - I wasn't somehow constantly dieting. If I ate too much, it quickly came back. But when I stopped smoking, my weight just shot up quickly by about 20 lbs, and then was easy to keep at that higher level, as if that was a new set point. I agree that LC diets may be able to change the set-point. But if I end up easily keeping a weight 5 lbs above my goal, I would rather accept that as my new set point than yoyo around it.

I am curious what others say about one carb meal a day. I have heard others state that they had a carb meal to brake a stall, but I can't imagine how once a day would work - to me it would result in cravings.

I like the no more than 20 g carbs in a setting. That is not much - my husband is a type 1 diabetic and counts carbs, and his typical meals are 48 g! I like the 20 g idea because it may result in portion control.