Some years ago the world of dieting was revolutionized by Dr Robert Atkins who propounded the theory that all one had to do to lose weight was cut out carbohydrates from one’s diets.
Over the years this Atkins diet has gathered within its fold numerous followers who swear by the efficacy of the diet as being the only way for them to lose weight and keep it off. And yet there are certain obvious and other not so obvious problems of having a low carb diet.
What is a low carb diet and what are the possible problems associated with it?
A low carb diet is generally one that contains less than 30% of carbs. The way that a low carb diet works is by stabilizing blood sugar levels and making one feel fuller for a longer time.
However, many people find that having a low carb diet makes them feel tired more often.
People complain of having less energy, are unable to exercise for very long and even experience brain fog. Many find that a high protein, low carb diet causes painful constipation. Also cutting down drastically on carbs can also make one feel sugar cravings and other cravings.
Studies have also gone on to show that a low carb diet can cause nutritional deficiencies. Also long term use has been associated with a number of problems such as heart disease, arrhythmia, osteoporosis, and kidney stones. One can see a low carb diet can have many problems, though the extent and severity of problems vary greatly from person to person.
How can these problems be avoided?
In order to mitigate to a large extent, the possible fall outs of a low carb diet, the Low Carb Cycling Theory has been put forward. Body builders also use this method to be able to keep working out optimally while not experiencing energy slumps.
Even regular people, who want to lose weight, can do two days of low carbs in a week while continuing their weights-cardio routine. One ought to take care to coincide the rest days with low carb days so that you don’t suffer low energy or tiredness while working out.
A Low carb cycling routine is recommended by many as being a safer way of practicing a low carb diet. It incorporates variety in the food we eat and can be used for effective weight loss by most people.
