Which is better to reduce carbs gradually, or all at once?

It has been shown that people are more able to make permanent changes if those changes are small. Then, when the new habit has been formed,  Another reason to avoid eliminating too much carbohydrate at once is that some not so good symptoms can occur in the first few weeks  as the body is adjusting to using fat for energy rather than carbohydrate. You usually experience what is known as (keto flu) or carb sickness ) which will last a few days in most cases .(I have more info on this in other blog' what is keto flu')                                     The approach favored by popular diet books featuring low-carb approaches such as Atkins and south beach diets is to reduce carbohydrate a lot at the beginning, and then gradually raise the amount of carb until negative effects occur, such as: weight loss slows, blood glucose control lessens, blood pressure rises, cravings return, etc. The main negative of this are that there is a large change in eating to get used to all at once. 

Low carb snacks to eat on the go

1- Peanut butter and celery . Two stalks of celery topped with 2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter  has only 8 grams of carbohydrates (3 of which are fiber)  You can also make homemade ,I have found very low carb peanuts. (I have recipe on my you tube blonde4fire )                                                                                                                                                                                                         2-One cup of cottage cheese with chia seeds  is an extremely filling snack and also provides extra fiber. (use a small storage container and you are good to go)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       3 -  Walnuts- They have less carbs than  pistachios, and cashews. Plus, they have more antioxidant power than all other nuts,about 1 ounce contains only 4 grams of carbohydrates, half of that coming from fiber.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     4- String cheese is another amazing snack  that's low carb   One part-skim string cheese stick contains less than 1 gram of carbohydrates They're small and pre-packaged, making them one of the easiest low-carb snacks  to enjoy between meals. (They are also amazing coated with almond flour and deep fried )                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         5- hard boiled eggs . They are packed with protein and have  0,6 carbs per egg  you can enjoy a few of them as a snack and they are amazingly filing. add a little mayo and make deviled eggs                                                                                                                                                                                   6-Jerky (beef or turkey) also great if you know how to make your own                                                                                                                                                                                     7- If you can find the dill pickles in the bags they make a perfect snack on the go or place a few in a zip lock bag or any smaller container 

what are net carbs ?

1. net carbs  are simply the grams of total carbohydrates in a portion of food minus its grams of fiber. Because fiber is a carbohydrate that your body cannot digest, it does not raise your blood sugar levels or trigger an insulin response.                                     When you follow a low-carb diet you actually count grams of Net Carbs, which represent the total carbohydrate content of the food minus the fiber content and sugar alcohols (if in the product). The Net Carbs number reflects the grams of carbohydrate that significantly impact your blood sugar level and therefore are the only carbs you need to count when you do. low-carb . 

along on my low carb journey

Well today i got on the scale and it moved again and i lost a few more pounds bringing my loss to 45 pounds which for me is amazing and perfect, I wanna lose at a slower rate and keep it off and not gain it back like before. I average 11 pounds per month and all the food i eat keeps me full and satisfied and I am eating healthier than i have ever eaten, I also have lost a lot of inches and i should have measured myself so i knew exactly how much but i never did but i can tell by my clothes it is a lot and i have had to give away some of them cause they were big or falling off which i wont complain, Well today i wanna talk about the question i have been seeing a lot of on face book. People keep asking about fasts and loosing the weight the quickest..why would you put yourself through all that to end up failing? you may lose it quick but you will gain it back that quick. The only way i would ever even think of doing a fast is if i had a wedding to go to and wanted to fit into an old dress quick. If you take off the weight slower you wont have to worry about gaining it back so fast ,and  most people  know that is the struggle we have been dealing with the most of  of our lives. Well today is august 12 2015 and i will continue with this low carb life style  the rest of my life cause i have found it to be very healthy and satisfying  and it has been working for me. I have found amazing recipes and have been making them for me and my son and the low carb deserts fill my sweet tooth and that was my biggest downfall. I have never been an over eater of regular food but when it came to cake or ice cream all bests were off :(  well it's late and im off to see the wizard ....

Low-carb diets don’t hurt kidneys

Sometimes, the best thing to do when you go low-carb is keep your mouth shut — because the moment people find out you’re on this woe, they try to side track you by repeating every myth and outright lie they ever heard about the diet.
And there are plenty of them like this one that’s bound to come up sooner or later: A low-carb diet is bad for your kidneys.
This is so not true..
If your kidneys could talk, they’d thank you for going on a diet of all-natural fats and proteins  because they’ll no longer have to work overtime filtering out all the toxins that come from a modern garbage diet high in processed junk.
It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to your kidneys,
Another myth, busted   but it’s one thing to simply not hurt the kidneys, .
It’s quite another to actually help them, and other studies have shown that going low-carb can do just that. In one study last year, the diet actually reversed kidney damage in diabetic mice.
No surprise. Obesity and diabetes are what hurt kidneys — and the healthy animal proteins you’ll enjoy as part of a low-carb diet will shrink your gut, prevent diabetes, protect your heart , and help your kidneys… all at the same time. so there's another reason why you would really wanna do this diet :) and ps. I am not a dr just an average person who looks up research and have been doing this diet myself and have been seeing all the great benefits

What are fat bombs?

What are fat bombs?

Usually made from a combination of ingredients such as butter, coconut oil, nuts and seeds, fat bombs were initially designed for those following the Ketogenic diet.  Low carb and ketogenic diets are roughly 75% healthy fat – a ratio that’s challenging to keep up. The solution? Find a concentrated (and delicious) form of fat.

Eating fat sources alone isn’t always palatable, and doesn’t add protein or fiber. This is where fat bomb recipes come into play: all the healthy high fat you need to stay in ketosis with heightened nutrition and unbelievable taste.

                                                                 

Xanthan Gum... is this really a good product if it has sugar ?

I see lots of people who are on  low carb diets that use this in tons of recipes but from the research i have done and reading on it i think i might just not bother with it. when you wiki this one section says: :Xanthan gum is a "highly efficient laxative," according to a study that fed 15 g/day for 10 days to 18 normal volunteers. This is not a dosage that would be encountered in normal consumption of foodstuffs. This study set out to examine the use of xanthan gum as a laxative. As described above, xanthan gum binds water very efficiently, which significantly aids passing stools.^[13] Some people react to much smaller amounts of xanthan gum with symptoms of intestinal bloating and diarrhea.::::: another one says::::

 xanthan gum seems to be capable of (in adults) is causing some digestive distress in those who are susceptible by increasing stool bulk, water content, and sugar content. But as I just mentioned, those with severe allergies should also be careful . Xanthan gum is a largely indigestible polysaccharide that is produced by bacteria called Xanthomonas Camestris. (1) Manufacturers place the bacteria in a growth medium that contains sugars and other nutrients, and the resulting product of bacterial fermentation is purified, dried, powdered, and sold as xanthan gum. (Makes you wonder who first thought to put it in food, doesn’t it?)     so in conclusion it's gonna make you poop and it has sugar in it then why are people using it? you are replacing one sugar with another 

Here's a list I found of hidden carbs in spices

These measurements are for spices in TABLESPOONS

• all spice (ground) for one tbsp = 3.0 net carbs
• black pepper for one tbsp = 2.4 net carbs
• caraway seed for one tbsp = 0.8 net carbs
• cardamom ground for one tbsp = 2.4 net carbs
• cayenne pepper for one tbsp = 1.6 net carbs
• cinnamon for one tbsp = 1.7 net carbs
• cloves for one tbsp = 1.7 net carbs
• corriander leaf seed for one tbsp = 0.6 net carbs
• cumin (ground) for one tbsp = 2.1 net carbs
• curry powder for one tbsp = 1.6 net carbs
• dried basil for one tbsp = 0.9 net carbs
• dried parsley for one tbsp = 0.3 net carbs
• dried spearment for one tbsp = 0.3 net carbs
• fennel seed for one tbsp = 0.7 net carbs
• fresh pepperment for 2 tbsp = 0.2 net carbs
• garlic (ground) for one tbsp = 5.3 net carbs
• ginger ground for one tbsp = 3.1 net carbs
• imitation vanilla extract for one tbsp = 0.3 net carbs
• mace ground for one tbsp = 1.6 net carbs
• nutmeg for one tbsp = 2.0 net carbs
• onion powder for one tbsp = 5.2 net carbs
• oregano (ground) for one tbsp = 0.4 net carbs
• paprika for one tbsp = 1.2 net carbs
• poppyseeds for one tbsp = 1.2 net carbs
• poultry seasoning for one tbsp = 2.0 net carb
• pumpkin pie spice for one tbsp = 3.1 net carbs
• sage (ground) for one tbsp = 0.4 net carbs
• tarragon (ground) for one tbsp = 2.0 net carbs
• thyme (ground) for one tbsp = 1.1 net carbs
• vanilla extract for one tbsp = 1.6 net carbs
• white pepper for one tbsp = 3.0 net carbs

60 Names for Sugar

You may be surprised to learn that sugar has at least 60 different names.

Most all processed foods have some form of sugar in them.  Of course, we know that sugar is added to standard sweets, but it’s also frequently added to spices and other savory products  Refined and processed sugars of all kinds are considered by many experts to be the biggest contributors to obesity and poor health in the United States.

60 Names for Sugar

• Agave Nectar
• Amasake
• Apple Sugar
• Banana Sugar
• Barbados Sugar
• Barley Malt
• Beet Sugar
• Black Strap Molasses
• Brown Sugar
• Buttered Syrup
• Cane Juice Crystals
• Cane Sugar
• Caramel
• Carbitol
• Corn Syrup
• Corn Syrup solids
• Confectioner’s Sugar
• Carob Syrup
• Castor Sugar
• Date Sugar
• Demerara Sugar
• Dextran
• Dextrose
• Diastatic Malt
• Diatase
• Ethyl Maltol
• Fructose
• Fruit Juice
• Fruit Juice Concentrate
• Galactose
• Glucose
• Glucose Solids
• Golden Sugar
• Golden Syrup
• Grape Sugar
• High-Fructose Corn Syrup
• Honey
• Icing Sugar
• Invert Sugar
• Locust Bean Gum
• Lactose
• Maltodextrin
• Maltose
• Malt Syrup
• Mannose
• Maple Syrup
• Molasses
• Muscovado Sugar
• Panocha
• Raw Sugar
• Refiner’s Syrup
• Rice Syrup
• Sorbitol
• Sorghum Syrup
• Sucrose
• Sugar
• Treacle
• Turbinado Sugar
• Yellow Sugar
• Xanthan Gum

how can you lose inches without losing weight

                                                                                                                         

Muscle Versus Fat

Pound-for-pound, muscle takes up less space than fat. Sp, as you gain muscle and lose fat, your scale numbers may not change, but your body sure does. Muscle is composed of healthy, metabolically active tissue that appears lean and smooth. Although fat weighs the same, it takes up more space and gives your body a lumpy appearance. The scale can only tell you if you’ve lost pounds, but not if you've lost fat pounds and replaced them with muscle. That's what happens when you lose inches.                                                                  

Body Composition 

Body composition, or body fat percentage, is the measure of fat tissue versus lean muscle tissue. When you’re trying to lose weight, this may be a better measure of progress than the scale. When you lose pounds through dieting alone, you lose a combination of fat and muscle mass. Losing muscle mass can lower your metabolism and make you into a person who is “skinny fat,” meaning you appear thin but have too high a percentage of fat. A study published in the “Journal of the American Medical Association” in 2012 determined that one in four people are of normal weight, but have too high a percentage of fat, are pre-diabetic and metabolically obese.                                                                                                                                                                            If you continue to watch your calorie intake and exercise, the scale will eventually show that you’ve lost weight. The process may just take longer if you’re adding muscle as you lose. Ultimately, if you feel healthier, look leaner and have grown stronger – it doesn’t matter what the scale says.