Just curious, the ad for this book frequently shows up in the sidebar - I bought it and it is just WONDERFUL, so scientific and objective. What I am curious about, is anybody here following the diet plan of this book? Its so simple, just limit carbs to 72 gm/day, thats it. Dr Lutz says over several months insulin resistance, overweight, gastric stuff, all corrected. For me, 72 gm seems way too high, I try to stay WELL under 30, but he cites many many examples of his patients, so who knows??So if anybody out there is trying, has tried it, would like to know. Bill

this is a book that i,ve got on order as a friend of mine is giving it a go (diabetic and overweight) and i can see the change in her.her bgs have improved a lot and shes lost a fair bit of weight.i,ll get back to you when i,ve read it Bill.
the only thing that bothers me is the higher carb grams but i still want to read it.

alaskaman, I loved that book too. I'm just one of those kids that's gotta know why, why, WHY! The science and their explanations are enlightening.

I don't follow their carb count either though. I suspect that number applies better to people that haven't already screwed up their bodies with massive IR. I'm sure the 72/day would help eventually, but most of us want faster results, right? But I noticed how well it jibes with the ongoing health/weight maintenance that some LC plans proscribe.

I'm interested in the part where they advise older or sick people to "ease" into LC to avoid complications, I just loaned this book to a friend in his 50's with heart trouble and looking to heal and I would feel horrible if he felt bad after dropping his longterm beans and rice diet by going cold turkey on carbs. I actually eased into LC myself, but not deliberately. I wonder if "easing" is really necessary for people who are older or with medical conditions?

Grimalkin

How many carbs we can eat and still lose weight is dependent on many things. Atkins himself acknowledges that for a person who is a regular exerciser (someone who does vigorous exercise for at least 45 minutes, 5 days a week) can eat between 60 and 90 g of carbs a day and still lose weight. YMMV and he recommends during OWL (ongoing weight loss) that you increase your carb intake 5g per day each week until you reach a level where you stop losing. This process will tell you at what level you should be to keep losing.

The thing about "easing" in is that you don't make a clean break that allows you to overcome the carb craving cycle.

If you are looking for a book that does an excellent job of explaining the whys and wherefores, check out The Schwartzbein Principle.

Marlaine

Indeed, the other book I loaned was SPII. I loved the "how to's", but not as good on general and evolutionary "big questions" as LWB (my opinion) which I enjoyed. I hear you about the easing... after I finally got strict with myself I hardly ever crave sweets anymore. But do older or very compromised people experience a greater shock to their bodies as the authors warned as opposed to a gradual reduction?

um, and what is YMMV? Didn't understand that bit.

Grimalkin

Grimalkin.....

YMMV = Your Mileage May Vary

LOL.....since I was an "older/compromised" person when I started LCing two years ago...I have to say that I survived any "shock" that might have happened. As a result I now have lowered cholestrol, lowered blood pressure and increased health and vitality. Shock me again!!

Marlaine

Wonderful! I'm glad to hear how your health improved so much in only two years. If my friend has any questions of his own about starting LC I will refer him to this board!

But other than that... I did think LWB was a real eye-opener. The authors really blow away that low-fat paradigm. For me, at least, I had to overcome that mental block before I could enjoy eating fat and protein and not worry about it. SPI also helped tremendously that way.

Thaks for sharing, Marlaine!
Grimalkin

Hi, Marlaine! Not to butt in but (for the purposes of the SEARCH function and the lovely Dr. Schwarzbein) I'm posting this to correct the spelling of the book title and her name.

if any of you guys live a near a medical college - go check out their medical library - i have one close to me and am finding great books. one i found was by William Lutz who wrote "Life without Bread" it is called "Dismantling a myth : the role of fat and carbohydrates in our diet".