I have done the LCHF diet but I find it is too difficult to maintain for me personally. I did lose a lot of weight with little to no effort, so I know it can be an effective way to lose weight fairly quickly. I did gain most of what I lost back. The first time I did the Atkins diet back in high school. Lost 45lbs in 3 months, kept it off for 4 years but went off to college and gained it all back. Second time I did LCHF was 2 years ago. Again lost most of the weight in 3 months, only maintained for 1 year and gained it all plus some back.
Some tips.
-Buy some Keto Strips, the kind a diabetic would use. This will help you first know when you are in ketosis and two, maintain ketosis for longer especially if you have a lot of weight to lose.
-Baby wipes help for well you'll figure this one out, I would keep some at work, single ply toliet paper does not feel too good after a while. 😉
-Be sure to drink plenty of water, I would track that even more closely than the food you consume. You can become dehydrated fairly quickly especially early on with this diet as your body begins adjusting.
-Do no neglect carbs or be completely fearful of them. I realize you are trying to cut carbs with this diet but it is not about getting rid of them all together, even if that is a goal, it is better to learn to restrict them and live with them then to ban them outright. Certain food groups have carbs, learn the difference between food groups, learn the difference in carbs and what net carbs are. I think this is where I made the mistake. I was down around 10 net carbs a day. I barely ate veggies and never ate fruit. While the begginning of this diet calls for you to do this you slowly have to start eating them again as you begin the maintain part of the diet. This is where I always got stuck. I would increase my carbs all at once, once I lost the desired weight. I am an addict with carbs, once you give me a little my body wants all of them. Slowly ease your way back into carbs. Make a plan of how you will go about re-introducing them to your diet. Start learning the difference between good carbs and bad onces. While it is possible to never eat carbs again, that is a very difficult lifestyle to maintain, even for the devout followers of LCHF, hence why it is called Low-Carb, not No-Carb. While white rice, flour and flour products, and sugar should be eliminated, veggies, brown rice, sweet potatoes, and eventually even fruit should not be. There is certain nutrients in these food groups that a pill just will not make up for.
-Be ready for periods of weekness/lightheadedness/cramping, a lot of times this signals that you are becoming dehydrated or are dehydrated. As I mentioned you will lose a lot of salt, electrolytes and water through bowel movements, especially early on in this diet. This can lead to dehydration fairly quickly. You may even drink more than the reccomended amount and still have these symptoms. It is really all about feel and learning your body. If you use the bathroom more than you used too use it, for me that was going from 1 bowel movement every 1-2 days to 2-4 bowel movements a day, you may have to drink even more than the reccomended amount of glasses of water a day to replenish what you are losing. Fiber is another key component here. It is difficult to get fiber if you are not eating fruits, veggies, and plant products like flour, bread, and rice. A diet low in fiber can lead to at times constipation, and at other times the exact opposite. Be ready for both, have both remedies on hand.
-You may have to have raise your salt intake, early on especially. This is to replenish salt your body is going to lose through bowel movements, urination, and general excercise, you may end up having to eat more salt than you are used too. I know for me I found some bullion cubes I really liked and kept them in my desk drawer at work. Or even the ramen noodle packets, I just would not use the noodles obviously, just make a simple broth. Eventually you will be able to add veggies and meat. Early on it should not have anything really, just the broth. I would be careful with salt, I cannot stress this enough, I tested my blood pressure before I started increasing my salt intake. I was consistently low, low to the point where when I was standing up too quickly I would be light headed. Check yours before increasing salt, salt is a poison and can be deadly. I am not trying to scare you away from it but it is not an exact science, unless you talk to a medical professional, experimentation can be dangerous.
-This leads me to another point, I work a desk job. Make sure you stand up once in a while. Not even because of the diet. Get up and stretch walk around, I know for me when I was sitting for too long that is when standing up quickly led to lightheadedness.
-Understand the breakdown of why you are choosing High Fat. What is it about fat that makes it a good choice in your diet? Here is an insight into the reasoning behind why choosing fat. But remember just because something has more energy does not make it filling/satisfying. This is important to understand because if you do not feel full after eating you will have a greater chance to overeat. This is especially true with nuts, seeds. Because so many calories are packed in a small quantity it can be very tough to feel full after eating say a small handful of nuts. This may lead you to reaching for another handful. Since Fat has the highest calories per gram it can then lead to you eating more calories than you need. Find foods that make you feel full. Eggs are a great example. Apples though not high fat also are a good example (I realize you probably will not eat thse on a low carb high fat diet, at least not when you are starting out). I just want you to be aware that you need to find foods that make your brain satisfied that it is full. Just because it is packed with fat and has a lot of calories, you may not feel full after eating it.
Fat: 1 gram = 9 calories
Protein: 1 gram = 4 calories
Carbohydrates: 1 gram = 4 calories
Alcohol: 1 gram = 7 calories
I guess my final suggestion would be to read up on diabetics, read about their struggles, their posts, what they have to deal with on a consistent basis. For them they did not choose to have to be on a carb restricted diet like you or I. You can find some decent recipes on their forums. You can find some good advice about maintaining a healthy lifestyle from them. While many do not exactly have a LCHF diet, they do try to restrict carbs, which really is the overall goal of LCHF. They may give you some insight on how to live on reduced carbs, because it is not always easy to do, especially if you are eating out at all. Especially snack ideas. For them there is no vacation where they can just cheat or have a cheat day, even if they go on vacation they still have to live with this disease. What will you do when you take a vacation? Just chalk it up to a cheat day? For them it is an entire lifestyle change. Reading about how they have to change their lifestyles keeps me motivated. Because I can have a cheat day, I can take a vacation from my LCHF and eat whatever I want with little problem other than I might gain a few lbs. I should mention this hits close to home as I have a sister with Type 1 Diabetes, I restrict my carbs more than she does, but still for her there is no real cheat day, or vacation from her disease, if she eats a bunch of sweets she pays for it by having to inject herself with more insulin. Each injection is like a constant reminder of her disease. Something I cannot possibly understand or comprehend fully. I will never have to live with that hanging over my shoulder and for me seeing this is a reminder and motivation for me to remain LC (not so much HF anymore).
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