Carb counter

[mudgiebananas]

Just a general question for low carbers,I am struggling at present to follow LCHF,I am trying hard but its not second nature to me,can anyone advise me how they count their carbs,when you start doing it,is it a general count of are you spot on keeping lists/records,I have started to cut out the obvious,bread pasta etc,but wonderered whether I've got the wrong end of the stick,thank you to everyone.

[SofaJockey]

I 'count' carb portions of 15g (the weight of the carb, not the entire food).

I have up to 3 portions per day (45g).

I only count carbs in pasta, bread, potato, beans, grains and rice, I don't care about the small amounts in other foods.

I know some people go for lower and indeed higher daily carb limits.

[mudgiebananas in reply to SofaJockey]

Thank you SofaJockey,thats something for me to go on,

[lucigret in reply to mudgiebananas]

As well as the information that SofaJockey has given you, I wondered if you might find these useful, they are a really useful visual guide.

dietdoctor.com/low-carb/vis...

[mudgiebananas in reply to lucigret]

Many thanks Lucigret,thats a really good help

[lucigret in reply to mudgiebananas]

Good I’m glad you found it useful, it’s my ‘go to’ 😊

[FairyTales]

I don't count carbs. I just go with the list that lucigret shared.

[mudgiebananas in reply to FairyTales]

Thanks FairyTales,will have a good look at that,seems a great way to do the obvious LOOK,that will suit me fine !

[Hidden]

I only count carbs occasionally as a sanity check. Once all sugar, grain, grain products, potatoes and processed food are removed from the diet, net carbs will typically remain low. Legumes can push the total up but they are quite nutritious so I tend not to worry.

[mudgiebananas in reply to Hidden]

Many thanks Supafil,thats what I was trying to stick to,but found myself wandering,so thought if I get 'more into it'by counting carbs it would get me more involved to keep to it and get more of an understanding where I was and how to progress.

[slipstick]

Despite not being a "real" LCHFer I like to count carbs occasionally just to see where my "reduce carbs a bit" plan is getting me. I use Carb Manager because it runs as an app on smartphone and/or on laptop. It knows many foods and will also scan barcodes so getting the carb counts in is fairly easy.

[mudgiebananas in reply to slipstick]

Thanks for that tip slipstick,hadnt heard of carb manager,will definately have a look.

[Frajeelay]

I find that I need to have the "ritual" of tracking my macros - if left to my own devices I tend to not do as well, for whatever reason. I use an app called cronometer and track that way. It keeps me focused on my plan and it actually helps me avoid falling off the wagon... your mileage may vary

[mudgiebananas in reply to Frajeelay]

Thanks Frajeelay,I also have the need for some sort of ritual a plan to follow for a while,cant freeload at this point,need a template to get my bearings to understand better.

[Walkmore]

Hi, I use the free app ‘carb manager’ to log my days eating!! Like yourself I’m new to this and have found this a good addition. Hope this helps, good luck 😉

[mudgiebananas in reply to Walkmore]

Many thanks for that Walkmore,its the unusual eating plan thats got me flummoxed,just need to get all this knowledge and get in the swing of it.

[Walkmore in reply to mudgiebananas]

TheAwfulToad has put together a fantastic read, or as Lytham has now christened it the Toads plan. Hopefully one of them will add the link as it was a lightbulb moment for me, and it definitely helped me understand the process of what to do and why it works. Stick with it, once you get past the initial first few weeks it gets easier and becomes second nature.

[mudgiebananas in reply to Walkmore]

Many thanks again Walkmore,do appreciate your time and helpfulness,very kind.

[TheAwfulToad Ambassador]

Honestly, I wouldn't bother. You can (and should) eat green stuff ad lib, and use the dietdoctor.com visual guides to help you "ration" the more carby ingredients. Basically, Hidden 's approach is the way to go.

[mudgiebananas in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Thanks for that AwfulToad,that was my original way to start and get myself used to the WOE,but I started to droop and thought maybe other styles might put me back on track,I'll keep on trucking and take into account the suggestions, many thanks for your time.

[Fruitandnutcase]

I like to have a look at my Carbs & Cals book - there’s an app too - shows you photographs of lots of different foods in various sizes of portions.

I tend to start at the shopping end and not buy carb rich foods in the first place. I’m sure it is DietDoctor who mentions sticking with veg grown above the ground because they have fewer carbs.

[mudgiebananas]

Thanks for that Fruitandnutcase,love the name,thats good to remember about growing above ground,shame it doesnt apply to grapes,my favourite !

[Shield-Maiden]

Hi MB,

If you think of LCHF as being LowCarbHealthyFats, you might find it a little easier to get your head around it, I did (although some would disagree, preferring the high fat way).

I cut out carbs straight away, more or less, I don't eat any processed foods, pasta, rice...I might have a small jacket potato occasionally (approx 32g of carbs) and occasionally a grainy piece of brown bread (app 15g) but like SofaJockey, if I have them, I count them. Most days I have just under 50g; I don't count the carbs in veggies.

I found that going 'cold turkey' was better for me...I will never totally give up bread and potatoes, I will have them now and then, so that I don't feel deprived (and muesli, which I love).

Also, carbs aid water retention, so the less water retention, the better you feel.

As silly as it sounds (and, I too have books to help me count the carbs in food, but I don't use them too often)....because, mostly every packaged food item, has the carb, fat, protein etc content, on the packaging, ie, mostly everything, apart from unpackaged fruit and veg, has the carb info available, so it's easy to work out how many carbs are in a portion size.

Good luck; I'm sure you will do just great 🥬🥦🍅🍋

[mudgiebananas]

Many thanks Shield-Maiden,for your information,I fully understand what you are saying and thank you for those rich snippets,it all builds up for me to get my own LCHF picture into focus,along with my own style or working it,its been fantastic with lots of people giving me help on HU,its definately given me many views on how to do it, thanks again x