Posted on 08/27/2017 1:28:10 PM PDT by RoosterRedux
I would suggest adding whey protein powder to the smoothies, if not already doing so.
I don’t know how you could be eating a lot of fruit while claiming to be on a low-carb diet.
Carbs minus fiber:
1 tomato = 3 net carbs
1/2 C blueberries = 18
2 fat onion slices = 6
small cucumber = 2
1 C diced celery = 2
1 banana = 24
Total net carbs = 55
1 C milk = 11 net carbs
That’s a lot of carbs.
Unless I’m mistaken, watermelon is one of th lowest carb fruits, along with other melons and berries, especially strawberries. Dr. Atkins recomended watermelon and strawberries as the fruit to start adding to your low carb diet after the initial phase.
Pinapple is one of the highest carb fruits, along with bananas.
They should not replace meals. Eat meat.
You can get that from just fresh veggie juice with no fruit. Most veggie juice is very low carb. The boost is from the Enzymes.
There are people who drink fresh veggie & fruit juice and lose weight, despite the fruit carbs, because of the enzyme boost.
You can use a carrot base (high carb), which is sweet, and add cabbage, beet, celery, spinach, etc. Very healthy stuff! You can acquire a taste for it very fast because of the good feeling it gives.
I eat a lot of meat.
Bananas and grapes are pure natural sugars. I have to count my carbs and sugars. They are NOT on my diet list. Not even half a banana. Stick with berries.
Congratulations on finding something that works for you... the fruit and veggie smoothies. I would tend to believe that they are helping to bring some needed balance to your diet. And that is likely why you are feeling better. At one time I was a nationally ranked bicycle road racer. I frequently rode over a hundred miles a day, sometimes over two hundred miles a day. I could not have done that without eating plenty of carbohydrates.
The people who have an irrational fear of eating sugars and “carbs” tend to do themselves much more harm than good. Humans are omnivores which explains why the those who tend to have the least health issues into old age eat a wide variety of foods and do not place artificial restrictions on certain essential food groups such as grains, fruits and vegetables. Some of the diet advice given on this forum demonstrates that liberals are not the only ones capable of believing in dangerous nonsense.
Letting some type of weird nonsensical pseudoscience ideology guide your dietary choices is stupid. It is every bit as stupid as believing in typical leftist pseudoscience ideologies such as catastrophic man caused global warming. It is part of being human to try and come up with oversimplified explanations for complicated processes.
We all know that it is not healthy to sit around and eat junk food. Fortunately increasing your chances of staying healthy is pretty simple if you use common sense choosing what you eat, exercise, and keep your weight under control. It sounds like that is what you are doing. So good job!
I would point out additionally that one of the key components of overall health is the balance of microbes in our digestive tracts. If we cut out certain food groups the bacteria necessary to digest them can start to die out. This sometimes leaves people with issues when they try to reintroduce them into their diets. Milk and dairy products are a well known example. Many adults become “lactose intolerant” AFTER they cut out dairy products.
So depending on the length of time and the extent that you have cut certain foods out of your diet you may develop an unhealthy balance of “gut microbes” and this can cause issues. When my appendix ruptured and I had to have emergency surgery to clear up a life threatening infection I was given some vicious antibiotics. This caused me some long lasting digestive problems which caused me a great deal of difficulty, especially with my mood and energy level.
Unfortunately some of my first contacts trying to get past this were with supplement and health food sales persons. Their advice was very unhelpful... along the same lines as much of the advice dispensed here and in the mainstream media. Fortunately the head surgeon who saved my life was able to recommend a professional nutrition expert. There are a wide variety of probiotic supplements and foods rich in healthy bacteria available. I was able to get back to feeling myself again. But it was a battle and this low carb high protein misinformation was completely irrelevant when it came to a real solution to a real problem.
Thx for that good info. My digestion is pretty good so far...but can always get better.
Thank you for the kind reply.
I have been interested in nutrition since my bicycle racing days. But it was my difficulties in the aftermath of my appendix surgery that opened my eyes. Before that my focus had been getting the maximum performance out of my body during endurance events. I had no idea what a profound effect the balance of your gut microbes could have on your mood, energy level, and quality of life.
Fortunately, a common sense diet, a little exercise and watching your weight are all most people need to maintain healthy gut bacteria. But after what I went through... I cringe for people who do things that can throw everything out of balance. And that can be from diet and lifestyle choices, drugs, or in my case heavy duty antibiotics. Once things get screwed up it can take awhile to get back on track.
I am glad that you are having no problems related to digestion that you are aware of.
When I say high-fat yogurt, I'm talking whole milk, preferably with a cream layer on top. This cuts way back on the added sugars that the "low-fat" yogurts are packed with.
My idea of a smoothie is a carefully drawn, locally crafted IPA with a smooth head that tickles the nose.
I eat of lot of Greek yogurt (plain, but add my own fruit) which I think is considered high fat.
Carbs have been ignorantly maligned for years now.
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