Mistakes on low carb diet (part 2)

In a previous post I addressed some of my mistakes on my low carb diet. Now I have analysed my behviour even further, researched low carb forums and articles and found other things I need to change (or change a little bit).

 

1. Snacking

I kind of addressed that topic before. Little things add up. Feeling hungry, eating a piece of cheese, butter, sausage or any other allowed foods still add up to quite a bit of calories. And sometimes it’s not even about the calories, it’s more about eating constatntly and losing your ability to tell if you’re really hungry or just want to taste some good food. I don’t need the energy an hour before going to sleep. No snacking, stick to reguar 2–3 meals and you’ll be fine.

 

2. Using artificial sweetener

I’ve been using quite the bit of artificial sweetener lately. In my coffee, tea, dairy products, protein balls and other low carb cooking. But the sweetener can slow down or even stop your weight loss. Even the Diet Doctor’s website has said so and I do trust doctor Eenfeldt. Stevia isn’t that great either but I will try using that instead of Huxol.


3. Eating too much dairy

What I didn’t know a few weeks ago is that dairy products can pump up your insulin like carbs do. So again: weight loss slows down or stops. During the last 3 months I have added a lot of sour cream, ricotta and other dairy in my diet. They do fit my 20 gram carb limit but I have been eating less vegetables in order to “afford” my dairy. Not good. The only dairy I really should eat is cheese in limited amounts and a drop of cream in coffee.


4. Eating too much protein

That fits in with my last point. Eating too much dairy and therefore getting too much protein from my foods. You shouldn’t really go over the 30% of protein a day limit and get about 70% of energy from fat, at least on LCHF. But I eat a packet of ricotta and BOOM! – too much protein. Or eating too much protein powder. A scoop is 25 grams of protein which on some days can be too much.

 

5. Eating too little fat

When protein intake goes too high, fat intake goes too low. I explained that in the point. And when you don’t get enough fat, you also get cravings more and get hungry more easily. More coconut oil, olive oil and butter is needed.


6. Eating too little vegetables

Your carbs should come mainly from leafy green veggies. I’ve been having way too little veggies in my diet because of getting the carbs from dairy. Cabbage, cauliflower broccoli, zucchini, Brussels sprouts, cucumber, peppers, avocado: welcome back to my life.


If you know any other common mistakes on low carb diets, let me know.

Workout Week 12.–18.08.2013

In Workout Week posts I will tell you everything about my last week’s workouts.

Monday morning started with a regular walk with my dog. The weather was cool, windy and rainy. In the evening I debated whether to go running or cycling. Decided to go cycling again. It was a generally nice ride but I did get some rain in the last 10 minutes. And it started to get really cold. I should really invest in some long workout leggings…

Tuesday was again an official rest day. That means an hour long walk for me. My knee still hurt from falling on Saturday so it wasn’t the most pleasant experience. Plus we got a seriously strong rainshower during the last 15 minutes of our walk. I had to squeeze my sweater to get all the water out, my sneakers needed a whole day to dry.

Wednesday was Zumba day. We did about half an hour of dancing and then added some muscle exercises for legs, back and abs. And ofcourse I did my regular doggy-walking for half an hour.

On Thursday the crappy weather continued but it cleared up by evening. In the afternoon I did a regular walk, in the evening decided to go for my first run after Narva Energy Run. I thought I was fast and I was: 8 km/h. That’s fast for me although it might be slow for a lot of people.

Friday surprised me with gorgeous weather, it was nice, warm and sunny. But still autumnal. Did a walk with my dog and in the evening jumped on my bicycle. A regular hour of cycling.

Saturday I had to go shopping because I needed long running tights (yay!) and school supplies (not so yay). Found some Nike tights for only 33€ and an Adidas jacket for 23€, so I couldn’t leave that behind. I cycled to the city and back, about 35 minutes in total. In the evening did a 30 minute walk with my doggy.

Sunday was running day. Somehow my legs were total jello and I felt like a snail. But I did not stop or walk so I can be proud. Plus I ate dinner only an hour before workout so I felt the food in my stomach. You should have at least 2 hours between eating and working out. Not a good running day at all. 

 

In total:

3 hours 30 minutes walking

2 hours 30 minutes cycling

30 minutes Zumba

30 minutes muscle exercises

2 hours of running

 

It was a good week: 9 hours of moving, no muscle or nerve pain (only my knee and elbow hurt from falling last Saturday) and new workout clothes.