Low Carb Diets and You

Every day millions of people are jumping on the band wagon heading to a weight loss solution. Many people spend hours in the gym, counting calories and fat grams but never seeing results. Thank goodness somebody thought about carbs! It is now being proven that if you implement any one of the low carb diets in conjunction with a regular daily fitness routine you can receive the results you want!

Who needs to count carbs?

Everyday you weigh yourself and everyday you find yourself sinking more and more into despair, because either you have not lost any weight or by some unknown reason you have gained one or two pounds. Your motivation starts to deteriorate and your will to try disappears. You start doubting your goal, slacking in your work out routines and getting loose in your diet. You ask yourself how it is possible not to loose any weight despite the effort you have put into exercising and eating right. If anything in this paragraph has sparked a flame in you, maybe it is time that you considered trying a low carb diet.

Carbohydrates – good and bad

Carbohydrates are found in almost everything you eat. So no matter how you swing it, you are going to end up consuming them one way or another. This is where knowledge can play a big part. Knowing which carbs are good and which are not can be very beneficial in low carb diets.

Understanding carbohydrates and how they affect you

Kidshealth.org is a website for children, but the knowledge that it offers can be appreciated by all ages. According to Kidshealth.org, carbohydrates are concealed in two forms: sugar and starches. Sugars are often referred to as the simple carbs. These simple carbs are often found in tasty stuff such as cookies, soda and candy. Basically any food that is sweet is loaded with simple carbs. Starches, the complex carbs are often found in the foods that stick to your bones and get you full quickly such as rice, potatoes, pasta and bread.

Simple carbs are simple because they are digested in your body at an easier and faster pace. The complex carbs are complex because they take longer to be digested. Don’t get confused by the information I am providing; your body does need carbohydrates in order to function properly. Have you ever gone for a number of hours without eating, and all of a sudden you found it hard to hold a conversation because you couldn’t think straight. If you have experienced this, it was probably because your body was running low on carbohydrates thus running low on fuel.

The fuel that your body needs is generated through glucose and glycogen. Glucose is energy that powers every part of your body. You need energy to comb your hair, blink and even talk. The problem with glucose comes when your body has too much of it and can’t release it all. When there is too much glucose in your body it is stored in either the muscles or your liver. When this happens the glucose then becomes glycogen. Too much glycogen can overload your liver and muscles resulting in glycogen being turned into fat. This is exactly why too much of anything can be very harmful to your body.

What low carb diets are out there?

There are many low carb diets that are floating around on the scene. Although their menus are different they all seem to agree on one thing, they have the best weight loss solution. According to Atkins.com, the Atkins diet requires you to focus more on your protein intake than your fats and calories.

The South Beach Diet on the other hand does not concentrate on low fats or low carbs, but instead teaches you how to rely on the right carbs and the right fats. According to the developer of the South Beach Diet and renowned cardiologist Dr. Arthur Agatston, the South Beach Diet is a clinically tested program that will not only help you lose weight but also improve your health.

How can you choose your diet plan from the majority of low carb diets?

The Atkins approach to your weight loss might feel right for you, but this approach can have harmful complications in the long run. After obesity, heart disease is the next leading cause of death in America. The South Beach Diet might be the choice for most due to its acceptance of carbs and fats. Keep in mind when starting any diet plan it is imperative that you consult your physician beforehand. This will help you choose the right plan for your body.