Low Carb - The Principle Behind the Diet

What is Low Carb? “Low Carb” means significantly reducing carbohydrates in your diet. Popular carbohydrate sources like bread, pasta, rice, and potatoes, as well as carbohydrate-rich fruits and juices, are consumed much less or not at all.

Carbohydrates, along with protein and fat, are one of the three macronutrients. Unlike the other two, carbohydrates are not essential. The body can produce carbohydrates itself by using the other two macronutrients. Carbohydrates can be classified according to their chemical molecular structure, with different forms being used by the body at different speeds to provide energy:

• Monosaccharides (simple sugars): quickly available sugars, e.g., from honey and fruit
• Disaccharides (double sugars): broken down into simple sugars during digestion, e.g., table sugar and milk sugar
• Polysaccharides (complex sugars): long-lasting sugars, e.g., cereal products and legumes

You may have noticed that carbohydrate sources like fruit, gummy bears, or sugary sodas give you quick energy but don’t keep you full for long. On the other hand, foods with complex carbohydrates like potatoes or pasta keep you full longer. By distinguishing carbohydrates based on their chemical composition, you now understand why: the longer-chain carbohydrates must first be broken down by the body, so they provide energy for a longer time.

In carbohydrate-reduced diets, the consumption of all these sugar forms is greatly limited, with different types of “Low-Carb” diets handling carbohydrate restriction with varying strictness. The extreme is the ketogenic diet, for example in the well-known form of the “Atkins Diet,” which reduces carbohydrate intake to such a minimum that the body enters a state of ketosis. This happens when so little sugar is available that ketone bodies are formed from fatty acids and amino acids, which are then used to synthesize glucose or sugar.

What all carbohydrate-reduced diet forms have in common with all other conceivable diet concepts is the required calorie deficit. Regardless of macronutrient distribution, the body must be supplied with fewer calories than it consumes to successfully lose body weight.

These are the benefits of a Low-Carb diet

As described above, the body does not necessarily depend on carbohydrate intake. This is different for proteins and fats, as the body cannot synthesize these itself. Sufficient protein is especially important for muscle building and maintenance, while fats play an important role in regulating a healthy hormone balance. Cutting back too much on fats or protein during a diet can therefore have health consequences and reduce diet success by causing muscle mass loss due to insufficient protein intake. On the other hand, when carbohydrate intake is reduced, more calories can be consumed in the form of protein and fat, so the negative effects of protein or fat deficiency during Low-Carb diets rarely occur. This makes it possible to minimize muscle mass loss.

Additionally, the start of a carbohydrate-reduced diet can provide a motivational boost because you initially lose a lot of water that was previously bound by carbohydrates in the body. This water loss makes the body appear more defined and is naturally reflected on the scale.

Myths about carbohydrates

“Low-Carb” is everywhere, and the media feature many positive as well as negative headlines about carbohydrate avoidance. Here, we want to take a closer look at some of these myths.

“With a ‘Low-Carb’ diet, you can eat more calories because the body doesn’t absorb fat.”

We wish that were true. Unfortunately, it remains the case: losing weight only works with a calorie deficit, and a kilocalorie is a kilocalorie. What is true is that a low-carb diet can reduce hunger, leading to eating less intuitively.

“Carbohydrates especially make you fat in the evening.”

This is also not true. The explanation is simple: your body doesn’t care whether you consume carbohydrates in the morning, at noon, or in the evening. It’s about the total amount and ultimately the calorie balance. Carbohydrates do not inherently cause weight gain, and there are also people who do much better with a low-fat diet than with a “Low-Carb” diet.

“Without carbohydrates, you have no energy for training.”

This statement is only partly true. Any calorie deficit, regardless of which macronutrient causes it, is perceived by the body as stressful. This can, of course, affect your training. However, in most cases, people quickly adapt to the reduced calorie intake. As explained above, the body synthesizes carbohydrates from fats and proteins when there are not enough carbohydrates available for energy. This adaptability varies from person to person but improves over time.

How to succeed with your Low-Carb diet! - Checklist

• Macronutrient distribution aside: in the end, the calorie deficit determines your diet success.
• Make sure to eat fiber-rich foods to stay full as long as possible after a meal.
• Micronutrients, such as vitamins, minerals, and trace elements, are also very important. So eat enough low-carb vegetables (e.g., broccoli and spinach) and fruits (e.g., berries).
• If cravings hit you: at Rocka Nutrition, you’ll find many of your favorite foods in Low-Carb versions. This way, you can replace carbohydrate bombs like pizza dough without guilt and satisfy your sweet tooth with delicious protein bars & protein snacks.
• Especially now during the Christmas season, can’t give up sweet baked goods? With the e-book “Alina’s Christmas Bakery,” you get 25 delicious recipes with fewer calories and carbohydrates that will accompany you through the holidays and make giving up a thing of the past.