I went and did low carbs for 2 months and I lost 20 pounds which I think is great. Right now I have been off the diet not watching my carbs for 5 days, but I still feel like I'm on it because when I eat something with carbs or sugar I feel like whoah. It is a very noticeable feel anyone here know how long it takes to get back to normal where you dont notice or have the big shifts in insulin.

I think you may be in the wrong place. This is a woe/wol for the vast majority of us. It is not a diet or something to take a break from. It's forever in one form or another. If you go back to eating the way you used to you will probably just end up heavier than when you started. Just another yo-yo dieter. Are you eating the carbs with protein? That could help if you are trying to add in some of the higher carb veggies or whole grain products. If you are talking about junk food, what do you expect? If eating the food makes you feel bad, don't eat the food.

Also keep in mind, everytime you take a break and come back, odds are you will find it hard and harder to lose the weight. I hear a lot of people complaining about this.

Part of the reason I stopped low carbing was it began to affect my personality. I was feeling anxious,irritable, impatient,apathetic, and depressed. So I know from experience I can not do this as a way of life. I've changed to watching my calories and just my fat intake. So, I do see this as something that should only be done for a short period of time.

Those sound like the symptoms I have on HIGH carbs....

How many grams a day were you eating when you felt that way, just out of curiousity?

Those ar ealso symptoms of withdrawl. The first couple weeks of Low carbing can be hell as your body detoxes and you get over that addiction. Going off and on plan will just keep you addicted. It's like saying ok I may be addicted to heroin, so I'll just quit for a week, then start again. Of course you'll feel like hell that week.

The tired and irritable can also be signs of not getting certain nutrients. Were you taking suppliments when you tried to LC? Finding a plan and sticking to it can also help because you know better what foods to eat and which to stay away from.

Did you cut out caffine? That includes pills that contain caffine such as green tea and so on. Any of those can cause irritability, and caffine withdrawl can as well.

Most of us on here are on it for life. We've discovered not only weight loss, but improved health benifits and improvements to mood and energy when following it properly.

Going back and forth betweek higher fat and higher carbs is a sure fire way to not only gain weight, but do major damage to cholesterol levels and so on. There is alot of chemistry behind low carbing and why it works when low fat low cal doesn't for so many people. Reading up on a plan and understanding it fully can help.

Hi Miamu,

I see from your profile that you have done no reading about low carb. It is pretty much mandatory for successful low carbing to choose a particular plan, then buy and read the appropriate book. Low carbing is so different from just low calorie, that you need solid information behind you to prevent negative side effects such as you experienced.

If you would like to give low carbing another try, have a look at "Which low carb plan is right for me?" at the right side of the screen.

If you prefer to stick with low calorie and low fat, then I'm afraid Fitznoski is correct: you are in the wrong place.

This forum is exclusively for support of the low carb way of life. You will find support if you wish to go low cal and low fat at many other forums, such as www.3fatchicks.com or www.diettalk.com

I wish you all the best, whichever way you choose.

Rosebud