BellaOnline Forums Food and Wine Low Carb gaining back weight

In an article on the Bellaonline website Lisa tries to explain what happens when you stop following a low carb diet. Here's the quote 'My answer is - of COURSE you are going to gain weight if you go back to your old eating habits! What do you think caused you to get heavy in the first place? That weight didn't just appear because the magical Fat Fairy waved her wand over you. It was a deliberate result of your eating habits. If you start eating that way again, you are going to have extra fat added to your body. It is very simple and logical.'

I agree that is simple logic but I don't think that is really what people expect to do ie. do people honestly think they can follow a diet (low carb or otherwise) and then go off of it and start eating twinkies and pizza every day and they'll be fine?? I don't think so - the question that I have, and I think it's similar to what others might want to know, is can you do a low carb diet (I am doing the Curves Diet) for a specified time (for me it's 6 weeks) and then go back to eating a HEALTHY, portion controlled diet that includes carbs without gaining back all that you've lost?? I know I can't maintain a weight loss eating the way I used to - I never planned meals and I only ate whatever was fast and easy and it was usually purchased from a fast food store or it was ordered in. But let's face it - I'm not going to NEVER order pizza again - I'm not going to go my entire life NEVER eating a bun with my burger - that's just torture to me. My question is, what amounts of the 'bad' carbs (pasta, bread, potatoes, sweets) is reasonable or acceptable for a person just eating everyday and not following any specific diet if they want to maintain a weight loss?????

Aha, I have entire articles on this topic. There is no one answer, because there is no one body shape nor is there one level of daily activity.

You start very low in carbs because then clearly it will be lower than what your body needs no matter where you fall in the spectrum. But the low carb diet plan clearly tells you what to do next. Let's say you start at 20g/day of carbs. Your body definitely loses weight at that level. You lose most of what you want to lose.

Then each week, you add in another 5g/day, and keep up with your exercise. You make sure you're eating healthy foods, drinking lots of water, taking your vitamins. If you keep doing this for many weeks - eventually you hit your OWN body's natural equilibrium point. That will clearly be where you take in those carbs, you are burning them off, and you are maintaining the weight you have chosen.

So once you know what that value is, then it's up to you what you eat to make up that value. But really - do you see pizza as a life-threatening necessity of daily life? <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> While I like pizza as an occasional treat, I certainly don't see it as "torture" to not eat it. It's just a food.

How about Eggplant Pizza? I love that, eat it fairly frequently, and it's quite yummy <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

But sure if you want a pizza treat for some reason, then just figure out how it affects your daily carbs and plan the rest of the day accordingly. Or figure extra work-outs in to burn off those bread-carbs. Or eat fewer carbs the next day to burn off the pounds you gain.

Oh and there most definitely are low carb / whole grain wheat buns <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

eggplant certainly isn't my thing and I have found a 'pizza' alternative using low carb tortillas and then loading it up with veggies and some cheese - I use a small amount of pesto for sauce. It's not the same though and yes it does feel like torture to not eat pizza. I live with my bf and he has a tenant and it's kind of like living in a college dorm around my place. Friday night rolls around and people hang out and the next thing you know, someone orders a pizza. I get to enjoy the aroma and watch everyone dig in - oh but I can munch on yummy celery - mmmm - oh that really hits the spot - NOT!! I've almost completed 4 (out of 6) weeks of my low carb program and the cravings for pizza are still there. I guess that's just a food that I really enjoy and it's tough to give it up. As for whole grain buns - that's all I eat anyway when I do eat buns/ bread and even pasta.

I used to hate eggplant - but I really find it quite tasty now. Your body adjusts if you keep feeding it a food, it's an evolutionary survival thing. So really, try eating eggplant a few times and you'll find it tastes better as you go <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

When they get a pizza, you can get an eggplant parm which has almsot the exact same yummy aromas, but is MUCH better for you <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> I doubt you're craving the crust - you're probably craving the whole flavor combination of sauce and cheese and such.

The next time the party starts up, pull out the Chinese menu! Tell them to try something new <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

This my be a little late, but if you're still reading this thread, you are in a tough position! However, what about having a slice of pizza and just having the topings (with maybe a bite or two of crust)? And when you order that pizza, order a big salad to go along with it. That way you can fill up on salad and still satisfy your cravings without ingesting all that bread and carbs. Hope this helps. It helped me.

Right, if you start with a salad, then you can still have a slice of pizza and feel full. There are also many healthy pizza options on whole wheat crusts and such. Certainly an occasional slice of pizza - if you were low carb the rest of the day - won't kill your daily limit. Many of us have daily carb balance points of 80g or 90g. You can have a slice or two a day and stay within that. It's just not a great daily food.