How to Start a Low Carb Diet

Low carb eating is one of the newest and most popular dieting strategies around. Everyone it seems is eating a reduced amount of carbohydrates and losing pounds and inches for their efforts. You can start a low carb diet by educating yourself and altering your daily habits.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Research the low carb programs developed by experts, including the Atkin's Diet, the South Beach Diet and the Zone Diet, which are all available at their official websites (see Resources below). Compare the structure and sample menus of each plan before deciding whether to follow a particular program or design your own.

2. Shop the perimeters of the grocery store rather than the aisles for most of your food items. These outer areas are generally where you will the find the produce, meat and dairy that will make up most of your menus.

3. Choose complex carbohydrates for your daily allotment of carbs. These include whole-grain breads, legumes and some non-starchy fruits and vegetables. You should never eliminate all carbs from your diet.

4. Read nutrition labels to find the amount of carbohydrates contained in food. Remember to consider how many servings are contained in a single package.

5. Stock your refrigerator and food pantry with low carb foods when beginning your diet. Get rid of the high-carb temptations lying around.

6. Eat plenty of low carb, high-protein foods like fish to satisfy your hunger and meet your nutritional needs.

7. Dine out in restaurants offering low carb meals. Many popular restaurant chains such as Ruby Tuesday, Cracker Barrel and Applebees are now offering low carb options in their menus.

8. Check nutrition information from fast food chains to find the number of carbs in their items. Request this information if you do not find it readily accessible when dining. Almost all of these restaurants will have a few items that are low in carbohydrates.

9. Eat plenty of fiber--approximately 20 g per day--when you start your low carb diet. Good fiber choices that are also relatively low in carbohydrates include All Bran cereal, collard greens, blackberries and eggplant.

Tips & Warnings

• Give yourself time to adjust to a low carb diet and don't worry about being perfect from the beginning.
• Stay with your low carb diet at least 2 weeks to allow time for carbohydrate cravings to go away.
• Watch out for withdrawal-type effects when you start a low carb diet, such as headaches and fatigue. These should dissipate in a few days. See a physician if you have persistent problems.

Resources

• Atkins for Atkins Diet information
• Check out the South Beach Diet at The South Beach Diet Online
• Zone Diet to learn more about this diet

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