Low-carb foods
– what to eat

2. Do not eat high-carb foods

• Sugar: The worst choice, period.¹⁸ Soft drinks, candy, juice, sports drinks, chocolate, cakes, buns, pastries, ice cream, breakfast cereals – avoid them all. Although controversial based on scientific definitions, many find sugar to have addictive properties. Read our complete guide to sugar
   
  Preferably avoid or limit artificial sweeteners as well¹⁹ (here’s why). Check out our full low-carb sweeteners guide
• Starch:

  Flour, wheat products or other refined cereal grains, even if labelled “gluten free.”²⁰ This means bread, buns, pasta, crackers, porridge, muesli. Whole grains are included here too – on a low-carb diet they are just less bad.²¹ Also potatoes (sweet potatoes too), potato chips, French fries, corn products and popped corn, rice. Do check out, however, some of the low-carb versions of these foods:
  – Low-carb bread
  – Low-carb “mashed potatoes”
  – Low-carb “rice”
  – Low-carb porridge
  – Low-carb “pasta”

  Beans and lentils are also relatively high in carbs, so they’re not good low-carb options. Moderate amounts of certain root vegetables may be OK (unless you’re eating extremely low carb).

• Beer: Made from fermented grain and hops, beer is basically bread in liquid form. We recommend avoiding it altogether. Lower-carb beers (typically called “lite beer” in the US) are available, but keep in mind that they still contain more carbs than dry wine or pure liquor.
• Fruit: While berries like blueberries, raspberries and strawberries are fine in small to moderate amounts, be careful with other fruit. They are fairly high in carbs and sugar, which can raise blood sugar, may slow down weight loss and can possibly worsen metabolic issues.²² Consider it nature’s candy: fine for a special treat, but probably not something to consume daily on a low-carb diet.²³ Learn more 

Watch out

Be very skeptical of special “low-carb” products, such as pasta or chocolate. Unfortunately these products often work poorly and may have prevented weight loss for many people.²⁴ They’re often full of carbs once you see through the creative marketing.

There are many companies that use deceptive advertising to entice you into buying their “low carb” products that are full of starch, flour, sugar alcohols and other sweeteners, and strange additives.²⁵

One of the largest of such companies was fined 8 million dollars for lying about the carb content of their products.

Two simple rules to avoid this junk:

1. Don’t eat “low carb” versions of high-carb stuff – like cookies, bars, chocolate, bread, pasta or ice cream – unless you are SURE of the ingredients (ideally by making it yourself).
2. Avoid products with the words “net carbs” on them. That’s usually just a way to fool you, and they are rarely good low-carb foods.

Read more about fake low-carb products

Also, preferably avoid margarine. It’s a solid form of industrial seed and vegetable oils that contains trans fats. Why eat imitation butter when real butter is probably tastier and better for you?²⁶

Learn more about vegetable oils

Important: Don’t fear fat!

After years of being told to avoid fat and eat low-fat foods, many people find the hardest part of adopting the diet is adding back in more fat. A low-carb diet needs fat, especially in the begining. Fat adds taste and calories. Get it from using butter, coconut oil, high fat cheese, olive oil, avocado oil, even beef and bacon fat. Just don’t overdo it, since eating too much fat can prevent you from burning your stored body fat. Here are some easy tips.

Like a hybrid car engine, the body can burn two fuels for its energy needs. 1) glucose, from the breakdown of carbohydrates and 2) fats.³⁷ When you are no longer consuming a lot of carbs, the body’s engine will convert to burning fats.³⁸ It will either burn the fat you have eaten or the fat stored on your body in your adipose tissue (e.g. belly fat).

The body will only switch to fat as the primary fuel when its carb supply is low. The diet is sometimes called the low-carb, high-fat (LCHF) diet – because that is exactly how you eat. The exception could be when you’re trying to lose a lot of weight. Then instead of eating a lot of fat, you might not have to eat high fat as your body will be using its stored fat for energy, instead of a lot of dietary fat.

How do you know how much fat you should eat? Add enough to enjoy your food. If you enjoy your food and you’re not hungry, you probably don’t need to eat more fat.

Learn more

At the start, do not deny yourself fat. Eat enough so that you are satisfied and you do not feel hungry. Redcing the carbs is what helps you become “fat adapted” — burning fat for fuel efficiently. Eating fat helps you make the transition without being hungry or having intense cravings.³⁹ You will know that you are fat adapted when you do not need to eat every few hours and you no longer feel the highs and lows (“hangry” episodes) that can accompany a high carb diet.⁴⁰

Once your body is fat-adapted, you can then consume a little less fat at every meal and let your body burn what it needs for energy from your fat stores.⁴¹ This can help you lose weight. If at any time you feel deprived, unsatisfied, or have cravings, you can add fat back into your diet. Listen to your body. If you consume more fat than your body needs, it may slow down your fat loss. If you eat too little fat, however, you may feel tired, grumpy, or have cravings. Your body will tell you what it needs. Learn to listen to its cues again.

In short, start by reducing your carbs, eating enough protein, and adding fat for taste. You don’t need to count calories.⁴² Eat when you are hungry.⁴³ Stop when you are full. Easy peasy!

Learn more