Month: January 2013

There are many factors to consider if you are debating between a food combining diet and a low carb diet. If you are changing your dietary habits due to a health issue such as diabetes, the food combining diet will not help control blood sugar levels, because carbs are not limited. There are also no substitutions allowed within a food combining diet. On a low carb diet, you can find low carb substitutions of your favorite foods and eat them in the place of the traditional, allowing you to eat the foods you love but lessening the number of carbs you consume. On the food combining diet, however, even the low carb varieties aren’t allowed to be eaten in combination with a protein.

When you decide to change your diet to achieve a healthy lifestyle, you will quickly learn that there are many different types of diets that offer healthy benefits. With so many to choose from, including a gluten free diet, a low sugar diet, and many more, it can be difficult to understand the differences to be able to make the best decision for you. This week, we compare the traditional low carb diet with the food combining diet. Read on to learn the differences and similarities between these two types of diets.  

Overview of a low carb diet:

A low carb diet traditionally sticks to a very basic plan. During the first week or two of a low carb diet, carbohydrates are strictly limited, which puts the body in a state of ketosis and allows it to use its own fat as fuel. Once this time period has passed, the carb allotment for the day is increased, but it is still a limited number each day. There is no set time that carbs are allowed, and the types of foods eaten with these limited carbs are not restricted in any way. With a traditional low carb diet, calories and fat are not typically factored into the diet, as the entire diet is based on counting carbs and keeping them to a set limited number per day. 

Overview of a food combining diet:

There are no limitations on the types of foods that can be eaten with a food combining diet. Instead, this diet works on the basis that the body can process certain types of foods more easily if they are not combined with other types. Proteins and carbohydrates are both allowed without limitation, but they are not allowed to be eaten together. The theory of this type of diet is that the body will process proteins more efficiently if starches aren’t eaten at the same time, and vice versa.  

Similarities between low carb diets and food combining diets:

While the principles of the two diets are very different, they are similar in the manner that they use the science of the body’s food processing capabilities to help achieve weight loss goals and better overall health. 

Choosing which type would work best for you:

For some, a combination of the two diets might be the best solution. Limiting when carbs are eaten as well as the number consumed in a day can help control blood glucose levels and help you achieve weight loss goals at the same time. 

Have you ever tried to start a low carb diet only to discover that you have a hard time letting go of some of the high carb foods you love? You are not alone. While it may seem like you simply have low willpower, there may actually be more to it. Many people feel as though they are addicted to bread and other high-carbohydrate foods, making it difficult to begin a low carb diet. Read on to learn why this is, and to learn a few tricks to conquering those cravings and achieving a healthier lifestyle with less carbs. 

Feel-good chemicals –

The same feel-good chemicals that are released by exercise and chocolate can also be released when you take in high carbohydrate foods. Although you may not be conscious of feeling better when you eat bread, that slight increase in chemicals will subside soon, resulting in a craving for more bread or other carbs. 

Energy-

Although the carbohydrates in bread will increase energy for only a short time, it does increase energy. When that wears off, you likely crave more bread or other high sugar/carbohydrate foods to achieve that energy level again. 

Comfort – 

When you make lifestyle changes that will enhance your health and potentially help you live longer, they become easy over time – the norm. But in the beginning, there may be temptations that are hard to overcome, causing days when you simply can’t seem to stick to your new healthy way of eating. As you embark on this journey, and until it does become easy for you, keep the following tips in mind to help you stick to your new healthy eating plan. 

Remind yourself of your goal – 

Whether you are beginning a low carb lifestyle to lose weight, you are starting a gluten free diet to keep Celiac disease under control, or you are starting any other healthy diet for any reason, you do have a reason. Remind yourself of this every time temptation arises. Keeping a note on your refrigerator with your goal written down, write your goal at the top of your next shopping list, set a reminder in your phone for meal times to go off and remind you of why you should make healthy decisions. Since it is easy for temptation to overpower our will in some cases, keeping your main goal at the forefront of your mind can help you stay focused and have the power you need to stick to your low carb or other lifestyle. 

Out of sight, out of mind – 

While this isn’t always the case, and you may very well have an evening where you are craving an eliminated food so much that you are willing to drive to the store and purchase it right that minute. But the majority of the time, those cravings appear because you know the bad-for-you food is in the cabinet or the refrigerator just waiting to be savored. If you don’t have easy access to it, it’s likely that you won’t crave it near as often. Substitute foods you typically have on hand for those that are similar but adhere to your diet, such as gluten free sweets or low carb crackers.

Budgeting can be the hardest part – 

If you have ever tried to live a healthier lifestyle, you likely know firsthand that those foods that are bad for you cost much less than foods that are good for you. Any low carb tortilla will cost much more than the traditional flour tortilla. The same is true for all low carb foods, sugar free foods, and gluten free foods in most cases. It is understandable that the healthier foods cost more for consumers – they cost more to manufacture. However, your local grocery store can often charge a much higher price for their health food options because they buy in smaller quantities. If you shop at a store that specializes in healthy foods, whether a physical location or an online store, you are sure to find low carb foods and other healthy foods at a lower cost. This can help you maintain your grocery budget (or close) while still allowing you to change your lifestyle for the better.

Eating healthy is one of the best decisions you can make, but it can be difficult to decide the best route to take. Changing a lifestyle and the types of food you eat will often affect not only every day in the future for you, but it typically impacts your family and those closest to you as well (particularly if you are the one who prepares the majority of meals at your home). Before you make this big decision, you will want to make sure you are picking something you can stick with. Read on for some thoughts to help you make the decision of which type of diet will work best for you. 

Try to stay away from diets that eliminate foods you love – 

With so many types of healthy lifestyles to choose from, you are sure to find one that will still allow you to eat some of your favorite foods. If you love eating meat, for example, deciding to become a vegetarian might not be the best route to take. By considering the types of foods you and your family eat most, and tailoring a healthy diet plan accordingly, you will have a greater opportunity for success. 

Try different substitutions before making a full commitment – 

For almost any type of diet, there are a variety of substitutions available that can make the change easier on everyone. However, it can often be through trial and error that you find substitutions that everyone likes. You may try three or four different types of low carb breads, for example, before finally settling on a brand that everyone agrees tastes good. By testing out different food substitutions in advance of making the complete dietary change, it will make it much easier to stick to the new plan. 

Determine the diet by considering your reasons – 

Although you will want to consider healthy diets that will be easier to stick to, and you want to pick one that allows you great-tasting healthy substitutions, there is another consideration that must be made as well – the goals you want to achieve. If you are just trying to obtain better overall health, the diet possibilities are almost endless. But if you have a specific goal in mind, such as lessening sugar and carb intake to avoid diabetes because it runs in your family, choosing a low carb, low sugar diet is obviously the best bet.