People have been afraid of carbs for years now, it’s nothing new. Anyone remember the Atkins craze? Most of these low-carb diets limit carbohydrates and replace them with fats and proteins. Seems easy enough, right? I mean, once you get over the fact that this means no bread or pasta!
Since the keto diet is bringing back the low-carb trend, I decided to do a little research on it myself. No carbs doesn’t sound very fun, but hey, what if it works?
The problem is, that most people start to eliminate carbs from their diet without doing their own research. They hear a friend talking about their new diet and try it without really knowing how to do it the healthy way.
If you’re following one of these low-carb diets, stop right now and make sure you’re not making any of these mistakes!
4 Common Low-Carb Diet Mistakes
Eating too MUCH unhealthy fat.
People see diet plans that call for an increase in fats and immediately jump to something like “OMG, I can eat bacon!?” And while it’s okay to eat some bacon, most meal plans that ask you to increase fats in your diet are typically referring to healthy fats.
Here are some examples of healthy fats:
- Coconut oil
- Olive oil
- Chia seeds
- Flax seeds
- Avocado
- Grass-fed and pork and beef
- Wild-caught salmon
- Full-fat dairy products
- Eggs (with yolk)
So don’t go too crazy over processed bacon, sausages, or cheeses!
Eating too many processed low-carb foods.
Just because the package says “low-carb” doesn’t mean it’s good for you. Processed meats, cheeses, and low-carb protein/meal replacement bars can be loaded with unhealthy artificial ingredients and other additives.
While these foods might make you feel full, you’re not necessarily getting the nutrients your body needs.
Eating too much protein.
This was something I made the mistake of doing when I first started trying to lose weight. When you’re decreasing your carbs you’ll need to eat more protein, but there is such a thing as too much. The science of it is boring but basically, when you eat more protein than your body knows what to do with it can actually end up storing it as fat! Kind of negates the reason you’re eating more protein, huh?
Check out my blog all about getting the right amount of protein.
Eliminating ALL carbs, even healthy ones.
Low-carb doesn’t mean no-carb, so when you do add carbs to your diet try some of these healthy ones:
- Sweet potatoes
- Quinoa
- Beans
- Brown rice
- Oatmeal (not instant)
- Whole-grain breads
- Peas
- Corn
- Carrots
- Squash
- Berries
- Pineapple
My Opinion on Low-Carb Diets?
I’ve seen people have success following low-carb diets, but it doesn’t usually “stick.” I think the best way to go, and what’s worked for me, is eating a balance of all the foods groups. Not eliminating carbs, but choosing healthy ones (like some from the list above), and not eating huge portions of them.
That’s another thing: people don’t understand serving sizes.
A lot of people will either under- or over-eat because they aren’t sure what a serving size is… and putting all your food on a food scale to measure it out can be slightly annoying! That’s why I LOVE my portion control containers!
The Portion Fix containers that I use tell me what to eat, how many times a day, and how big of a serving. Simple. If you’ve never tried using portion control containers, I highly recommend it, get the containers and eating guide here.
What do you think of low-carb diets? Have you tried it out? Leave a comment below!
