Tips for Low Carb Success

Learn about the carbohydrate content in foods

The more you know about what carbohydrates are and which foods contain them, the better your low carb success will be. Many "healthy" foods you're eating right now may contain high quantities of carbs, such as rice, potatoes, breads, cereals, rice cakes, low fat crackers, and soda.

Carbohydrates are ubiquitous! Even foods you wouldn't think contain carbohydrates do, such as milk and yogurt. Most people consider count these dairy foods as protein sources, and they do contain 7-8 grams of protein, but if you look the food label you'll see they are primarily carbohydrates. Skim milk contains 13 grams of carbs, 12 of which are sugar. Low fat yogurts contain anywhere between 19 -40 grams of carbohydrates.

Even foods such as ketchup, tomato sauce, and salad dressing can contain a significant amount of carbs. You don't have to totally eliminate these foods from your diet, just make sure you are counting them as carbohydrates and adjust the rest of daily carb intake accordingly.

Learning to read a food label is a must! Don't just look at the calories and fat grams. Look at the carbohydrate grams and the fiber. The less carbs and the more fiber the better.

Be sure to read the ingredients as well. Maltodextrin, sucrose, fructose, and dextrose are sugars as well. Beware anything that ends in "ose!"



Increase your FAT & PROTEIN consumption to compensate for the carbohydrates you are removing

Cutting down on carbs without replacing them with fats and proteins will ultimately lead to low carb failure. Eating fat and protein will ensure that you're getting enough calories and will also satisfy your tastebuds.

Choose heart-healthy fats such as olive oil, canola oil, nuts, and peanut butter (don't bother with reduced fat peanut butter - the fat is replaced with sugar!). Eat more fish and seafood to increase your consumption of omega 3 fatty acids. If you can't stand fish take a fish oil supplement daily.

If you find that you're too hungry or don't have enough energy on your low carb diet, chances are you're not eating enough fat. We don't have to be afraid of fat anymore! Eating fat will not make it turn into fat on our bodies--unless we couple a high fat diet with a high carb diet. When we limit our carb intake on a low carb diet, we become much more efficient at burning dietary fat and our own body fat. That's a promise!

Eat high-quality proteins such as lean meats, chicken, turkey, cottage cheese, and eggs (including yolks!). Watch for the sodium content in foods like bacon, prepackage lunch meats, and sausage.

Make sure you eat frequently throughout the day. This will keep your metabolism revved up and also ensure that you never get ravenously hungry. Aim for four to six small meals a day, no more than four hours apart.

Double your vegetable consumption in place of carbohydrates.

Vegetables are really the secret of success on a low carb diet. Although technically they are considered carbohydrates, they have a fiber, vitamins, minerals, and fat burning properties that make them very different from all other carbs.

For this reason, you shouldn't even count vegetables as carbohydrates. Consider them a free food as eat as much as you want. The only exceptions are potatoes, yams, and corn.

Eat vegetables at most meals and aim for AT LEAST 5 servings a day. Choose vegetables that are all colors of the rainbow: spinach, red peppers, carrots, squash, and dark lettuce. Raw is better, but steamed is good, too.

If you aren't a big vegetable fan, add butter, cheese, olive oil, or dip (make sure you choose full fat dip that has little to no carbs).

Exercise at least three times a week at a moderate to high intensity.

You don't have to spend hours exercising. Shorter, more intense workouts are the best for burning fat and building muscle. A 45 minute workout that combines weight training circuits with intervals of cardio is a great way to step up your metabolism.

Sample workout:

Warm up with 5 minutes of easy cardio on the bike, treadmill, or machine of choice.

For the next 10 minutes, bump up the intensity (either by speed, incline, or level) until you feel like you're working at level 8 on a scale of 1-10. This should be slightly uncomfortable.

After this, go immediately to an 8 exercise circuit of weight training with either dumbbells or machines.

Aim for 10-12 repetitions per set of each exercise (about 80% of your total capacity).

Move from one exercise to the next with no rest in between.

Once you've completed all 8 exercises, take a 2 minute rest, drink water, and then repeat the circuit. This should take no more than 20 minutes.

After you're done with your weight training circuits, get back on your cardio machine.

Start with 2 minutes at an easy pace.

For the next 6 minutes alternate each minute with a hard pace and an easy pace.

Cool down for 5 minutes. Drink water.

Done!


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