Hi everyone. I'm new to this site and am very interested in a low carb lifestyle. I know that I am a carbo junkie and really have to make changes. My background is Italian and for me to have 3 plates of pasta for dinner and nothing else is normal.

I tried a low carb style a while ago and admit that I felt great and never felt full, full (you know where your gut hurts). I don't know if most of you are following a specific diet (like Atkins) or just eliminating food made with refined sugar and flour and the like.

I also have a question concerning legumes (all kinds of beans, chickpeas, etc) - is there a limit to how much you can have daily? I'd like to know because I really don't want to go overboard in the meat department.

Any advise?

Hi Sylvie, welcome aboard.

It's hard to answer this, as each low-carb plan is different, and many adapt their own plans. I personally limit my carbs below 25g in general, so legumes are allowed, for me, but in limited portions.

Have you read any of the low-carb books? Borrow some from your library and see which one is more suitable for you. And keep us posted

Wa'il

WELCOME SYLVIE P!

Congratulations on your new WOE! I am doing the Atkins WOE and I just finished the induction phase. Since now I am in the Ongoing Weigh Loss phase I can start adding a little more carbs in my diet (increments of 5gs) until I find my correct level. I am probably going to stay in the 25-30g range (more towards the low end) since I have a lot to lose. Depending on what plan you are following, you may be able to have a limited amount of legumes. I am a big ole carnivore so I never really paid attention to the legume problem.

Soybeans are good if you want beans, but want to keeps carbs way down as well. They are hard to cook soft (mine always come out crunchy - yuck), so I'd recommend canned ones. They run about 12 carbs per cup after subtracting fibre (which is not digestible and hence doesn't 'count' as a carb).

Some people don't like soy products, but you might find them worth a try.

Rachel

Hola R.Mines,
I have been taking a fiber supplement and kinda feeling guilty about it...They are in pill form, "Made with Organic Flax", Psyllium free.....but has 4 gms of carb listed per serving...I have been kinda paranoid about the carbs....Should I ignore these carbs? If so, cool...I have looked at all of the other types of Fiber suppl. & feel that they all have many more carbs than mine....Do I have the right stuff??

Thanks,
Spike

Well, the Eadses, authors of 'Protein Power, recommend subtracting fibre from the carb count since the fibre is indigestible. Also, not counting fibre tends to steer us toward high-fibre veggies (since we can eat more of them and stay under whatever our personal carb limits happen to be). Since we need fibre, this is a Good Thing.

There's been some discussion on this topic on this board already; Doreen's written some excellent (as usual) commentary; run a search on 'fibre,' it'll probably turn up!

Just make sure the 4 gm of carbs in your fibre supplement aren't sugar or starch. Flax does have some carb, as well, but also high fibre. Are you allergic to psyllium? From what I gather, psyllium has fewer digestible carbs than flax. You may be able to buy it in bulk in the health food store, though it's a bit yukky to take that way.

Rachel