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Scroll down at this post for a big long list of low-carb meal ideas!
The low-carb ideas blog carnival mentioned below is now live!
As I’ve talked about many times, I strongly believe that if you want to lose weight, and do it the healthy way, then low carb is the best way to go. (Be sure to see that link for some ideas to hold you over until next week, and don’t miss the interesting comments there.) It’s not easy, but it works, and carbs aren’t all that great for us anyway, unless you’re eating only whole grains that are properly prepared, and not too many.
Here’s the kicker, though:
To keep it off, you’ll need to watch your carbs forever. Not that you’ll never get to indulge, but it’s plain and simple, the less you do so, the longer it stays off, so you need to get into a good habit of avoiding carbs wherever you can. If there’s something I really love, like chocolate, I’ll have it sometimes, but I totally avoid the things I could care less about, like pop. I know, this is obvious stuff I’m sharing, but simple is good sometimes.
In all honesty, here’s how I usually go about this:
When I notice a few extra pounds, either in my clothes or on the scales, I start thinking about doing the low carb thing again soon and decide when I want to start. Just that part can take a few days or a few weeks to get my brain ready to roll, you never know with me. I plan some low carb meals, or meals that can be adapted to low carb for my portion, then I set a date to get the food I need at the store. Once I begin, I usually do pretty well for the first week or so, and drop the weight I really wanted to lose, but then my momentum stalls before I get to my “I’d be really happy at this weight” stage. So I keep that off for a few weeks or months before it creeps back, and I start over again. Thankfully, I always “catch it” before I’m too far from where I want to be, so beginning again isn’t too daunting. My heart aches for those of you who have further to go to get to your target weight. It is much more difficult for you, I know, but IT IS NOT IMPOSSIBLE!
Read about my sister in law, Eva, and see how she lost 50# doing low carb.
Or I think I’ve told you before about my friend, Nancy. She lost 100# in ONE year by adapting Weight Watchers to a healthier version by using plenty of healthy fats, and watching her other portions (carbs). (She also says she learned to love exercising. She would do her stair-stepper and say with each step, “I love this, I love this”, and soon she said she really did love it! I thought she was nuts until I started running. I HATED running, and while now I certainly don’t necessarily love running, I love enough about it to keep at it. Now that I’ve got my new site up, next on my list is to get back into a good running routine!)
HERE IS WHAT I HOPE YOU’LL HELP US WITH:
Next week, Cheeseslave & I are beginning to host REAL FOOD WEDNESDAYS. Each week, we’ll alternate hosting a “blog carnival” – a blog carnival is when the host chooses a topic, and the rest of you either link to your blog with a post about that topic OR leave comment about it. Either way is okeedokee.
PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD FOR US!
The first Real Food Wednesday is right here at the Kitchen Kop blog on January 7th, and it will be all about low carb ideas. Please start thinking of some good low carb recipes or favorite food ideas to share! And please tell everyone for us, so we get a lot of great ideas!
THANK YOU! This time, with everyone helping each other come up with good ideas, we can all reach our goals! I’m going to blog or Tweet about my progress (I’m not starting until Monday, BTW), and I’d love for you to do the same in the comments here or at next week’s carnival post!
- LOW CARB DIETS PROVE BETTER AT CONTROLLING TYPE 2 DIABETES
- Much more about losing weight, exercise, and eating healthier
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{ 34 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh Kel, I’m up for the challenge! Actually, Michael and I are going to try to do it together. Our “official” start day is Monday, Jan. 5th. So, my question is, what are the foods that have carbs that aren’t obvious. Like I know I have to avoid pastas, rice, potatoes and chips. But, I never knew corn had carbs and what about legumes, are they okay??
Lyn
Good! We can start together Monday!
Anything sweet at all has carbs like desserts (of course!), dressings, and even fruit. All breads, and potatoes, like you mentioned, are high in carbs, as are squash and sweet potatoes.
Most other veggies are good, all healthy fats, all proteins (eggs, cheese, meats, etc. – make sure you get them from a healthy source), read more at my low-carb post.
Legumes/beans (and peas, too) DO have carbs, but they have a low “net carb” content because of their high fiber, so it’s a healthier carb.
I avoid ALL carbs the first week or two (this is what makes the weight drop off), then I’ll add back in healthy carbs like whole grains, beans, fruits, etc., but it’s best to add them in slowly to see how your body does. If you start gaining fast, ease back and start slower.
Make sure Michael checks with his doc so he knows what to do with his insulin when he starts low carb eating. (Readers: Michael has Type 1 diabetes.)
If anyone can think of some more types of carbs that I missed, please let us know!
Kelly
I was following the Maker’s Diet, but it got to be too expensive. I need something that will be everyday and true and tried recipes that the whole family will like. Something I made that was loved was Talipia. I am really looking forward to learning more about this. I am needing to shed about 30-35 pounds.
Ingredients for Baked Tilapia with Garlic Butter:
2 cloves of garlic
2 tablespoons of butter
1 pinch of dried dill weed or parsley
Paprika powder
Salt
Pepper
4 tilapia fillets
How to prepare Baked Tilapia with Garlic Butter:
Preheat the oven to 350° F.
Mince the garlic into fine pieces
Place the garlic in a saucepan and add butter and dill weed or parsley
Add one dash of salt, one dash of pepper and one dash of paprika powder to the saucepan. The exact amount will depend on your own preferences.
Heat the saucepan over low heat until the butter is fully melted and begins to simmer.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and brush some of its content over the bottom of a baking dish.
Put the tilapia fillets on top of the garlic butter mix
Use the remaining garlic butter mix to brush the top of each tilapia fillet
Place the baking dish in the oven and let the tilapia bake for 12-15 minutes.
The baked tilapia with garlic butter is ready when it is easy to flake it with a fork
Rebecca, this sounds SO good, and easy, too! Wish I knew what to look for with Talapia…which should I buy? Wild caught is best I’m sure, but other than that…? I’m getting some today, thank you!
What’s really been working at our house is to have carb-free or minimal-carb dinners. No pasta, no potatoes, no bread. Just protein and veggies.
After doing this for a week or two, we realized that the great majority of our overeating comes during dinner. Apparently, it’s much healthier to eat lots of salad with vinaigrette than to overeat pasta.
I am new to purchasing fish and eating it. I went to Meijer and purchased whatever freshfish they had. I thought it would be better than frozen.
Good luck with your hunt.
This is where I found the recipe:
http://www.tilapia.ws/tilapia-recipe.php
Kelly – I just did a post on my blog that I actually wrote about a year ago. At the time of the writing, I had lost 11 pounds, today, I’ve maintained my nearly 30 pound loss for going on 10 months now. I did as you did – avoided “carbs” for the first 2 weeks, (although I ate tons of vegetables) but after that, all I avoided was flour and sugar. After the initial 2 weeks “going cold”, I was able to eat fruit in moderation, sweet potatoes (with just butter and salt – no maple syrup), squashes, brown rice (a very small 1/2 c portion, occasionally), barley in my vegetable soup, legumes (as in CHILI!), etc and continue to lose 1-2 pounds per week until I reached my goal weight. Now, all I need to do to maintain is to WATCH my white flour, and I still avoid sugar as much as possible (although I do enjoy DARK chocolate, or an occasional dessert from Nourishing Traditions). I have found, though, that with my running – I need to eat MORE carbs, or I don’t feel well when I run. I have upped my intake of fruits (especially bananas – 30 min before or just after a run in particular), and I also find that when I’m doing a lot of running, I CRAVE my whole grain toast, or I’ll make a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch. I still eat far less grains than I used to, and still don’t eat a lot of sugar…….. but with running, and now that I’m in training for the 10K (5th/3rd) I have to treat my body a little differently than when I was simply “losing weight”.
Looking forward to seeing all the ideas Wed!
Shauna
Shauna,
Thanks for sharing your great story!!! I love hearing about real-life successes. It’s in the palmer to call you next week about our coffee date when we’ll finally get to meet!
Kelly
Hi Kel,
But I did lose inches, and that was awesome! It’s interesting to me how he (Jordan Rubin, author of Maker’s Diet) has some huge differences from Sally Fallon (he does not believe you should EVER eat pork or shellfish, for example) but he does use quite a few of her recipes & ideas in the book…
It’s so impossible to give it up completely! I can, however serve it less often & make sure it’s ‘healthier’…;)
Love the new site! I like this idea! I did the Maker’s Diet, it’s actually what led me to Nourishing Traditions…it’s a great tool to lose weight, it’s a 6 week program, anyone can make it thru 6 weeks! You start out with a very limited & extremely low carb diet for 2 week, then add in more for the next 2 weeks & then you have 2 weeks of ‘intro’ to your “lifetime maintenance” diet. I found it very restrictive as a person who LOVES her carbs, (ezekiel bread never tasted SO good!)
Anyhoo, I highly recommend it, especially for someone who needs a strict guideline & goal to get started. I’d like to do the program again & then modify the lifetime maintenance ‘diet’, by sort of combining his beliefs with Sally’s & find a middle ground. My family loves Pork! (um, hello, my husband’s last name is Bacon!!)
Happy New Year & here’s to encouraging each other more in 2009!
So your blog is being updated! Hmm. I guess it doesn’t update on my list anymore. I thought maybe you were taking time off.
I found that sugar was by far my biggest weight loss issue. I know carbs convert into sugar, especially the processed ones. But for me, cutting the sugar way back was enough. I still eat all the whole grain carbs I want.
Lucky me.
I badly want to get one of those Bosch bread machines. I’m saving up!
We are definitely a carb-saturated culture. In my family, we pretty much only stick to properly-prepared carbs, and that really limits our intake compared to the average American.
But what I really wanted to say was this — WOW. Your friend convincing herself that she LOVED her stairstepper is just what I needed to hear. I’m having real trouble motivating myself to exercise, and this sort of mind-over-matter suggestion might be just the ticket!
Thanks for sharing,
KristenM
Hi Kristen,
I know, it’s wild how powerful our “self-talk” can be! I’m going to remember that when I’m back on the treadmill tomorrow. I’m excited though, because I got a Vince Flynn book on CD at the library, so I’m only going to let myself listen when I’m running!
Kelly
FreedomFirst, OH NO!!! Maybe that explains why I’m still down 100 subscribers since before the switch!!! I hope people will re-subscribe! Thanks for telling me!
Erin, I had the same thoughts about comparing Jordan Rubin & the WAP philosophies. I can’t seem to figure out where the total truth lies – he put enough doubt in my mind that we do the same as you: we don’t have it quite as often as we used to (but also love it!), and we only get it from healthy sources.
Kelly
I love the idea of affirming the stairstepper. I’m going to do that!
I just got back to the gym today after being gone for a whole month. I want to start going 3-4 times a week again.
I have a trick I use lately — I read my Kindle at the gym — or listen to books on tape. I get so immersed in the book that I forget I’m exercising.
However I’m going to try the “I love the gym” trick — sounds fun!
I wonder why you lost subscribers. That’s weird..
HI!
I am up for the Challenge too. I have lost over 120 lbs in 2 years on Low Carb…I seen you post on LCF…I have maintained for over a year now by keeping my carbs and calories as low as I can…I still walk on my treadmill about 30 min 4 to 5 times a week now to keep it off. I have also keep my Type 2 Diabetes and High Blood pressure under control with this also with NO meds…Down from a size 22 to a size 8 in jeans…
HUGS
Christina
Christina, I love love LOVE your story!!!! Thanks for sharing that encouragement!!
Ann Marie, I think I still have a Feedburner bug, but don’t know what it would be. I’ll have to email Franklin from Hong Kong again!
Kelly
Kelly:
I have found that once you try the low-carb lifestyle, you won’t want to go back to eating carbs again. You think you want carbs, but no matter how great you think they are going to taste, they are disappointing when you give in and eat them. I know that even when I tried to do the low-fat diet, I found myself thinking “Wow, there are a lot of carbs that.” I also hate the way that I feel after I eat something full of carbs. I am always so lathargic. I can’t wait to see how this Real Food Wednesdays takes off.
Tiffany, it’s nice that you have built-in incentive to eat better!
Lyn & I were talking today, and I realized I forgot to tell her about another food with carbs that may not be obvious: milk. You wouldn’t want to cut out whole milk for long (it’s so good for you), but in your first week or two trying to drop some initial pounds you may want to.
(By the way, if you wonder why you should ONLY drink whole milk, read this post: http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2008/02/healthy-milk.html)
Carrots is another one that aren’t obvious, but I think when they’re cooked there are more carbs than uncooked, not sure why. Not even sure I have it right, it may be the other way around. Anybody?
She was at the store when we talked and was reading labels in the produce department. Even foods like broccoli and spinach have carbs! I don’t have a lot of experience with low-carbbing it, but I’m pretty sure that when you’re eating low-carb, you need to look at the NET carbs. Fiber in foods sort of “cancels out” some of the carbs so you have a lower net carb count.
What many people don’t know, is that healthy fats work that way, too!
Kelly
Kelly
I drink Soy Slender Soy Milk and its only got 1 net carb per 8 oz glass..I use it to cook with too…can be found where they keep the Dietary Stuff at Walmart or in the produce section at most other stores…You can also find The Westsoy Organic Unsweetened Milk at Walmart and other places too…all for 1 net carb for White or Chocolate Soy Milk ;]
For you all that dont or cant take anything with Soy you can sometimes still find Hood Carb countdown Milk in the dairy section..or sub and use 1/2 Heavy Cream and Half water for the LC milk in recipes. ;]
HUGS!
Christina
I think kefir is lower in carbs. Also, isn’t cheese? I knew all of this back when I was low-carbing.
A neat (and FREE) tool you can use online is http://www.fitday.com. It tells you how much carbs are in EVERYTHING and you can easily keep track of all your carbs, protein, fat intake, etc.
If you’re going to stop drinking milk for a period of time, I think it would be smart to drink bone broth instead. Japanese people don’t drink milk but they do drink lots of bone broth (from fish).
Christina, Kelly will probably say something but in case she doesn’t, soy milk is not healthy and should be avoided.
It’s very hard to digest and soy is a goitrogen which means it blocks iodine in the thyroid gland. Which can cause thyroid disease, weight gain and metabolic/hormonal problems, and a host of other health issues.
Here’s more info:
http://www.soyonlineservice.co.nz/
http://westonaprice.org/soy/
Christina, if you haven’t heard that about soy before, don’t freak out. It’s crazy with all the conflicting info out there, but it’s a no-brainer for me because milk doesn’t naturally come from a plant. Just look over the links and see what you think.
Kelly
Thanks…VERY interesting… I didnt know that and be drinking it for over a year..
Thank you!
HUGS!
Hey, I like that half cream and half water idea for recipes. You’re still getting the healthy fat in the cream, but not as many overall carbs…
Thanks…I do that almost all the time in my recipes and you cannot tell the difference…
Cheering you all on and trying to keep my weight in matience… ;]
HUGS!
Christina, you are not alone! Everyone is drinking soy milk and eating soy these days. We are all told it’s healthy. I used to drink it too…
Thanks for covering weight loss with LCing! It is a subject near and dear to my heart. All of my recipes are designed to fit in a LC lifestyle plan.
Your blog is a valuable healthy eating resource, Kelly! A whole foods LC perspective is hard to find.
So is your Lauren if I think this is my g/f for LCF!!!!
HUGS!
Oh..Kelly…where can I find that wonderful gift Santa got your little girl? I want to get one for my 4 year old son…
HUGS!
Oh..and Cocount Milk is a great sub in recipes too… ;]
Lauren,
After racking my brain a while (“what gift did Santa bring my daughter?!!!”), I finally figured it out that I think you’re mixing me up with Cheeseslave – here’s her blog and you can comment there and ask her: http://www.cheeseslave.com – that does look cool doesn’t it?!
Kelly
Hey Everyone,
Wanted to let you know that the post mentioned above is live now – go here to share all your favorite low carb ideas and recipes!
http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2009/01/healthy-low-carb-meal-ideas-our-first-real-food-wednesday-blog-carnival.html
Thank you!
A bit off topic here, but whatever…
Is there anyone else out there who also had NO clue what “g/f” meant in Lauren’s comment?! I had to google, “computer speak g/f” hoping I could figure it out: it means “girlfriend”! LOL! (That one means “Lots of laughs”.) Another one that had me stumped in a comment last week was “SIL” – sister in law. “LC” above is “low carb”, but you probably figured that one out. Maybe you figured them all out and it’s just me who is so computer illiterate…..?
Lauren, thanks for motivating me to learn something new!!
Kelly
WAY TO GO, Kelly! Low-carb is indeed a healthy lifestyle change you do forever and ever amen. I lost 180 pounds eating this way five years ago and I’m STILL livin’ la vida low-carb today…and LOVE it! Let me know if I can help you and those taking up your challenge in any way. GO FOR IT!!!
Jimmy Moore, author of “Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb”
http://www.livinlavidalowcarb.com
livinlowcarbman@charter.net
LOVE your before and after shots, Jimmy!