Once upon a time, I lost over 90 pounds. What I did NOT do was cut carbs. I didn't use a magic button or starve myself — I ate what I liked. I didn't, however, eat everything all the time and I cut down the extras.
Lately, cutting carbs has been the thing that everyone is doing. This means no bread, pizza, pasta or rice. This is something that I just cannot do. Have you ever had sourdough bread with a yummy bowl of clam chowder? How about a regular peanut butter and jelly sandwich? What about a nice crisp English Muffin? These are the little things in life that I enjoy.
I know a few people who have done the Keto and I will admit, there are aspects of the diet that sound good. You can eat fat and meat all day long. Here is the deal with that — unless you do it under the guidance of a doctor, there are no guarantees. The ratios need to be precise and it can only be done for so long before it can cause medical issues. The ones I have heard is gallbladder issues, high blood pressure and similar.
After I started losing those 90 pounds, I took nutrition classes at my local college and got myself a certification of nutrition. The basics of nutrition do not change. One day you will hear that something is good for you, then you will it is bad for you the next day. The truth is, if you don't go overboard one direction or the other, you will be okay. We all have our favorite foods and the things that we enjoy, a lot. The key is to enjoy things in moderation. This includes fats, proteins, carbs, and sugars. If you overdo it on any one of these you can throw your body out of whack. It can cause medical issues that will cause more harm than any weight loss.
If ever the phrase YOLO was appropriate, it's now. You only live once.
Enjoy the bread.
Have the piece of cake.
Don't go overboard and don't starve yourself to enjoy them, but life is so much more than banning bread from your life. There are so many things to enjoy. It doesn't have to be bread or cake, it could be something else you have cut out of your life because you think it will work for you. For me, I find that the more I tell myself I can't have something, the more I want it. Then comes the binge session. Eating as much as possible of the forbidden item, getting sick, and then promising to never do it again.
To all those banning carbs, I'm not on board. I need bread and good carbs include fruits and veggies which I also happen to love. Before you ban all carbs as bad, talk to a nutritionist like the one I turn to, Marla, and get the down-low on how good carbs can be.