Ugh I’m the worst with carbs. And the thing is, they never make me feel great… they just give me a quick hit of dopamine and then later my body is like “really?!?”
I definitely think people who stay keto probably have an “easier” time fasting (quotes because this game is NOT easy! Kudos to all keto people).
For me, carbs are a part of my life, and I’m going to eat them. But fasting is definitely opening my eyes to how they affect me, and how I am better suited to maybe NOT indulge as much 😂
Recently I bought some gluten-free bagels as a special treat and didn’t check the calories/carbs… 60 carbs?! 300+ calories?! For one bagel…?! I thought I would pass out after eating it, but wanted to “splurge” (hadn’t had bread in months). But… I was fine… not tired, no crazy cravings, no extra hunger, no weight loss stall or anything. Same when I had some other carb heavy meals recently that used to make me sleepy (carbs from legumes and veg though). I think I’m finally starting to adjust out of food coma now in my 5th month of IF… Noticed the improvement after changing to an early eating period, so maybe that could be helping?
Yes I ate carbs and lost weight doing long fasts like 36-72 hrs at a time. The only thing is if I eat a lot of yummy carbs my stomach doesn’t have room for what my body really needs which is high quality protein.
I went a bit nuts with broth and gf noodles to break a longer fast. It was fine on my stomach and I enjoyed it but was so anxious and irritable and tense shortly after that my husband kept saying “no more noodles please” It was profound and pretty sure it was the high carbs being the first thing. I’ve been carefulSince and eating meat and an apple for example was way better. Once the fast was broken and I adjusted carbs were fine though I’m not testing any high dose carbs bc no thank you horrible inner tension without anything stressful going on.
I’m doing rolling 48’s mostly eating high carb/low fat due to awaiting Gallbladder surgery, and I’ve consistently lost between 6 to 8 pounds per month. Had to make the switch after I got gallstones 2 months into my fasting regimen.
I find the water weight I put on when I eat high carb to be really discouraging. I know what it is but sometimes put too much value on the scale. Habit I’m trying to break.
That said, I don’t want to limit myself by putting anything off limits because then I crave it and sometimes my emotional brain is more powerful than my will. It basically sets me up for failure. Instead I try to opt for healthy carbs occasionally with my meals which otherwise focus on high protein. I.e. eggs, fish, chicken, etc. plus a salad or cooked veggies - sometimes I’ll have quinoa, lentils, brown rice with it or make a savory chickpea pancake. I’m trying to choose carbs that have higher protein content.
Dessert is usually a healthy carb (apple, banana, blueberry) paired with peanut butter or cottage cheese or a protein bar.
If I am going to indulge it better be worth it. 😂 No cheap highly processed carbs or things that taste “good enough.”
I also found this great bakery on the other side of town (so I have to really want to make that effort) that does a whole grain brioche with unsweetened cinnamon apples. It’s a treat I’ll have maybe once a month or so.
Basically I do carbs, but not high carb and not necessarily with every meal. My plate revolves around my protein rather than my carbs, like it did in the past.