Hi People:

I don't know how many of you on this list are familiar with the food combining principles of not mixing proteins with starches and only eat your fruit in the morning on an empty stomach. You can eat veggies with starches. This is the basics of natural hygiene - the premise of "Fit For Life". I would say that low carbing is definitely food combining in that we try to not eat carbs, but eat only protein and veggies.

Has anyone tried food combining? I've dabbled in it, but never took it too seriously. I know I've only been doing low carbs for less than a week - but I can tell you that the thoughts of never having pasta again really bugs me. One can have pasta with great veggies sauces without adding protein - therefore sticking to food combining principles....and supposedly the body can handle this without the weight gain.

Just wondering if anyone has seriously done food combining and if they found the results acceptable?

Thanks,

I've never tried it but read a book on it......... lol it was just to confusing for me to get. But if your considering doing it more seriously then the best of luck to you!

I think this is the main idea behind the Montignac diet, in a nut shell it doesn't allow combining fat with carbs. Meals are either protein and fat, or protein and carbs.

Wa'il

Hi Tamarian:

No food combining principles are definitely against combining protein with carbs! It has to do with the stomach acid. There is one acid to break down proteins and another to break down carbs. When one eats protein and carbs at the same meal these two acids interefer with each other (one acidic and one is alkaline) - that is why most people experience "heartburn" - the two acids competing with each other - cancelling each other out and the food, instead of digesting, just sits in the stomach and rots - expelling gasses.

The basic premis of food combining.

Between midnight and noon eat nothing but fresh fruit (because the body is in the ellimination stage and shouldn't have to deal with digestion - but fruit digests in 20 minutes therefore it doesn't disrupt the ellimination stage).

Afternoon, you can eat other foods, but never combine protein with a carb (NEVER). If you eat a meal that has flesh, then you should wait something like 4 hours before you eat food again so that this food has time to pass out of the stomach. Flesh foods take longer to digest.

If you eat fruit - wait 20 minutes before you eat any other type of food. And NEVER eat fruit in combination with anything else - meaning don't eat it after a meal as a dessert - because it digests so quickly, if other food is in the stomach it will just ferment in the stomach and cause problems.

If you eat a meal that is veggies and carbs you can eat another meal in 3 hours because it digests quicker. Veggies can digest in both types of stomach acid that is why they can be combined with both proteins and starches without causing digestive upsets.

Eat as much high water content food as possible and as much fresh food as possible, meaning try not to cook your food too much - this destrory life-giving enzymes.

The idea behind food combining is that the body works in cycles and we tend to keep piling in food all the time, and food that doesn't compliment each other. So, the body cannot handle all this food, so it just stores it as fat so that it can deal with it later...but later never comes because we keep piling food into our bodies - and usually improperly combined food at that.

My main reason for asking the questions was wondering whether if one eats carbs - such as whole wheat breads and pastas (not junk food) but doesn't combine it with a protein whether this will cause insulin levels to rise or remain the same? Thus still be burning fat - yet being able to enjoy carbs too.

Do you think Atkins would know the answer?

Regards,

Well, Debaroo, I'm no expert in the subject, but when you go to the doctor to get your blood sugar levels tested, you're supposed to fast for some hours beforehand. Then you're given a sugary drink (no protein) and afterwards your blood is tested to see how you've metabolized the sugar. If sugar, and therefore insulin, levels *didn't* rise in the absence of protein, I don't see how this test could work; EVERYONE would test normal!

I've probably got this scrambled; Doreen, or other knowledgeable souls, help?


Rachel

Hi Debaroo,

I food combined about 13 years ago but opted for the vegetarian version - just vegetables and carbs - so I didn't switch back and forth with protien and vegetables. Did fruit in the morning and then had a fruit snack 4 hours after the last meal. I was in Mexico for 3 months at that time, so it was pretty easy to do with all the great fruits, tortillas and vegetables. When I look back, I realize I was starving myself. I took their vegetarian principles very seriously and ate very little fat as well.

Have a look at Suzanne Sommers book. It's what food combining transformed into and there is much more variety in eating. However, if you're a sugar junkie, eating any carbs at all can be dangerous and set you off on a binge or have you fall off the wagon for a long period of time.

Some people are successful with the Carbohydrate Addict's Diet where you get a "reward meal" once a day that is a balanced amount of protien, vegetable and carbs. The same warning applies to this too.

Personally, I try to stick to foods as close to their natural state as possible. When you combine flour and liquid together, no matter if it ends up as pasta or bread, you are eating glue. This is what I tell myself.

After you're in the low-carb swing of things, eating carbs will make you feel so yukky that you'll wonder why you bothered. This comes from someone who woke up with a huge carb hangover on Monday from indulging in dessert on Easter. It will now take me at least 4 days to get back on track. :o

With all that said, we're all unique and with determination and trial and error, we all develop an LC way of eating different from everone else that keeps us happy and healthy. :D

Karen

Something else I've never understood about food combining (though I've never read the book which might explain it) is that some carb foods also contain significant amount of protein. For example, combining beans and grains will yield a complete protein, yet they are both carby foods.

Well, I don't want to get into a debate here, and food combining (a la Fit for Life) obviously works for some people. I suppose anything that focuses on whole foods and eliminates processed carbs and sugars has got to be an improvement over the 'typical' North American diet!

Rachel

Thanks Karen for your first-hand experience with food combining. I guess I just have to stick this out and get over the carb addiction. I do know that I am addicted - BIG TIME. Been two days now with no caffeine - but I had to take an IBprofin this morning due to headache.

Hope your hangover is short lived :)

Regards,

Food Combining
 

Well, I've typed up two big, long, detailed posts here, and crashed both times, losing everything, including my mind. This is my third and last attempt... :mad:

Anyway, I too dabbled in food combining a la Fit for Life. However the original concept of separating foods that require different digestive processes was developed by an American Dr. William Hay, in the early 1900's. His program, known as "Haying" was in fact, much closer to what we now know as the Paleo Diet. He suggested the diet should be based mostly on vegetables and fruits, supplemented with lean meats, fowl, fish and eggs. Soured dairy products were preferred, such as yogurt, buttermilk and fresh cottage cheeses. Dairy butter only and pure olive oil, no margarine. Grains, breads, baked goods and especially legumes/pulses were frowned upon as being difficult to digest and the cause of much evil in the intestines. Under no circumstance were they to be eaten at the same time as simple to digest meats. Vegetables and non-sweet fruits however, were "neutral", and could be eaten with any food.

In the '80s, the push was on to a more vegetarian, grain-based diet; meat and cholesterol was Public Enemy Numero Uno. Fit for Life, and other similar plans took the original concept of separating foods, and completely changed it to the "modern" philosophy.

Fats, not meat protein, slows the digestive process. When lowcarbing, this is beneficial for providing satiety, and to slow the blast of carbohydrate into the bloodstream, which would otherwise cause a rapid rise in blood sugar and insulin.

Deb, the cravings will disappear, honest. Browse through our member's recipes, and Karen's gourmet recipes (on the red menu bar at the top of the page) or check out Lowcarb Cafe, and Lowcarb Luxury, among many others. You'll find many recipes for lowcarb substitutes for pastas, breads, etc .... Many folks report how healthy, and energetic they feel when lowcarbing, then cave in to craving and go on a wild carb-binge. They feel sick, bloated, gassy, blah ....

Wow, you're giving up caffeine too?? What a woman! :D

Doreen

Rachel,

I believe you are thinking about the Diet For a Small Planet combining which combines amino acids to form complete proteins. You bring up an interesting question though about carby foods yielding complete proteins. Hmm...:confused:

Anyway, the Fit for Lifers frowned upon beans because they contained both carbs and proteins.

Karen

Debaroo,

You CAN do it! You just have to want to do it more than anything else in the world. The reasons have to be bigger than the desire for carbs. It isn't easy, but the rewards are tremendous You will be so happy with yourself:D

One day at a time, or better still, one minute at a time and those minutes add up quickly into days.

I can't believe you gave up coffee too. An act of true bravery!

Karen

Thanks again for the support. I'm still plugging away. It will be one week tomorrow :0 As for giving up coffee...well, me and Taster's Choice Decaf have formed quite the relationship in the last couple of days. I'm sure decaf is not the greatest thing, but it's warm in my tummy in the morning and I like the flavour (I can hear some of you groan about decaff...and here's the kicker....it's instant!) Ahhhhhh!

I've been looking over those recipes for sure and I'm going to try out that tai chicken (can't remember the exact name) from Karen's gourmet site..the one that you put on a platter. Look yummy :)

I made some lettuce wraps last night (out of my head)...ground beef fryed with onions and garlic. I put a dab of dried mustard in and just a dab of BBQ sauce and a tad of ground corriander. Then chopped up some tomatoe, green onions and shredded some cheddar cheese. I put some ground mixture in big leaves of iceberg lettuce, added a spoonful of the toms, onions, cheese and then rolled them up. Yum. I'm thinking I could also make this into a taco too (without the tortilla).

Cherio,

Yikes!!!!
 

Quote: "I made some lettuce wraps last night (out of my head)..." Eeeek!!!! :eek:

Just kidding, Debaroo! Actually, your recipie sounds yumacious!

Rachel

lettuce rolls/wraps
 

Actually, Deb and Rachel, lettuce makes great springroll wrappers too. Use the softer leaf-type lettuces. Cook up your favourite eggroll or springroll filling - lamb or pork, mushrooms, sprouts, scallions, ginger, etc - roll up tightly in the lettuce, then eat with your fingers with this dipping sauce -

Spicy Dipping Sauce

1 large clove garlic
1 or 2 small red chilies, seeded
2 tsp granular Splenda (or 1 tsp each Splenda and brown SugarTwin)
juice of half a lime
4 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp tamarind paste (if you don't have it, use the whole lime's juice)
====================
- blend everything in blender or food processor.
- makes 1/2 cup, about 5 carbs total .... this is STRONG, a little goes a long way. 1/2 cup is enough for 4 servings ... so just over 1 carb per.

Doreen

Hi Debaroo!!

I read the Fit for Life Book and tried the diet a few times... unfortunately all the fruit gave me violent stomache cramps, and because of the insulin reaction I was always starving. Even though my calories were pretty low I actually gained weight. No comparison to this woe: I feel fit, and strong and specially no pain for me!!!!

Anyway I do believe that first hand experience is the best kind, also because each body is different...

So good luck
Silvia:D

Hi Silvia:

No - I'm not thinking of trying Fit for Life - was more wondering whether others have tried and how they compared it to this WOE. I like eating bacon in the morning over fruit - any day! I think bacon is a food group all on it's own!

Grins,

Hi Debaroo!

I agree!!!!!!! And how are cream eggshakes as a food group do you think?!?!?!?:D :D
Bye
Silvia

Silivia:

Cream eggshakes???? Do tell me where to get that recipe....yum.

Salivating,

Hi Deb!

Cream eggshake: 1 egg, heavy cream, unsweetened cocoa, sweetener. Beat with blender. Enjoy. MMMMMMMMMHHHH.

Hope you like it
Let me know!!!

Silvia

Question about food combining...
 

Hello everyone :wave:

I haven't stopped in on the forum in a while, but it's good to be back...I've been on atkins for almost 3 months and I've almost lost 30 lbs. Recently I've started more of a maintenance program, where occasionally I'll have bread with the eggs in the morning and today I had my first piece of fruit (lol) - a banana 9I realize, a poor choice b/c it had 25 carbs). Anyway, I still want to lose another 12, but I'm in no rush - I just bought new clothes...lol. I been thinking about the Somersizing plan, but I'm confused...so when I found this thread I thought it would help...

I want to possibly combine Atkins and Somersizing....so tell me if this is correct - if I eat carbs...they shouldn't be with protein....and if I want fruit, eat it in the morning, on an empty stomach???

If anyone thinks this is a correct, or wrong, let me know - I'm buying the book tonight:)

E

Hi Erin ~ I'd be happy to answer any SSing questions. I've been SSing for 10 months now (cheat free).

You can eat fruit whenever you want ~ it just must be eaten alone and on an empty stomach. For example, you can have fruit first thing in the morning, wait a bit (around 30 minutes for it to be digested and leave your stomach) and then have bacon and eggs, etc.

Carbs are eaten only with veggies. They cannot be combined with any protein or fat. so, if you wanted carbs for b'fast, you could have a bowl of Grape Nuts or Shredded Wheat with fat-free milk and sweetener. *Ü*

Hi DebB,
What does Somers have to say about whole milk, which has protein, fat, and carbs all together?
Also, do you know where she learned her method of food combining?

Hi alibabka ~ As far as the whole milk, we can't have it for the reasons you stated. We can have fat-free milk which is a carb or we can have cream, full fat which falls into the pro/fat category.

She wrote that she learned her food combining principles while in France. People say it's the same as Michel Montignac (sp), but I'm not familiar with his plan. *Ü*

Thanks DebB,
Sorry, but I have another question! I forgot to ask about (plain) yoghurt: where does Somers stand on that?

Hi ali ~ Please don't apologize, ask as many questions as you'd like!

For yogurt, we're allowed to have plain, non-fat yogurt, with no added sugar (or fruit). SSers then can sweeten it with a legal sweetner or add some flavored syrups, like DaVinci. This is a carb and can be eaten with a bowl of cereal perhaps.

I'll be honest - I've never bought the plain, non-fat yogurt just to eat. I do use it in muffin recipes however. *Ü*

low fat dairy products?
 

On the somersizing plan, are we allowed to have low-fat dairy products such as low-fat cream cheese, cottage cheese, cheese and sour cream?

Or is it supposed to be non-fat to count as a carb and full-fat to count as a pro/fat?

Thanks!

debaroo and doreen/lettuce wraps
 

hey gals..
thanks for your great recipes
i cannot wait to try them both
i did once use romaine lettice to make an egg salad sandwich
made the usual filling and spread it onto the romaine leaves
for want of something to put it on an dnotto use bread
well the bonus was the beautiful crunch i got hen eating this
we all like to have a crunch or two
well thansk again
and
debaroo, congrats on the first week...have patience...check your clothes and how they fir as well as that danged scale
have a grea tone
<')))><

I have a lady in Texarkana that used food combining and lost 60 pounds - she ate protein w/veggies/fat and then ate carbs/veggies. I tried it and found it gave me too much lee way with the carbs - didn't work for me.

sanzal ~ On Somersizing, there are no "low fat" products allowed. The fat-free dairy is considered a carb and can be eaten with other carbs and/or veggies. For example: fat free milk, cottage cheese, yogurt, etc.

For a pro/fat, these must be the 'full fat' versions of cheese, cream, whole milk ricotta, etc.

Cottage cheese is 'allowed' only in the fat free version. Hope this helps. *Ü*

Oh, I know what you mean!
 

When I think about what carbs I can't have. I think about how I'll miss them. I definitely have a psychological addiction to bread, rice and pasta. Then I'll go to the next level of Atkins and I'll have enough carb grams to have something I really miss and it either doesn't taste good or it makes me foggy headed. I definitely get the carb hangover. Pretty soon I'll stop having my Friday doughnut. It tastes okay, but it messes up my head and my stomach. And I'm getting to the point where I'd rather feel good than eat the "forbidden" food.